Darrien Technology

[Ulsyus]

I read this article recently about a new understanding of solar eruptions and the actions of the sun's magnetic environment (magnetosphere?).

I wonder if this could have been a better explanation for a more refined version the foundation of Darrien Star Trigger Technology. Simply put, the Darrien technology enables and drives a solar eruption that could be aimed at a particular point. A single point of aim could allow for a far more graduated response by Darrien targeteers, and it was the failure of this that caused a fully-fledged solar flare that caused all the damage.

Ideas anyone?

 

[jcrocker]

I haven't read the original Darrians module in years, but wasn't it two different groups unaware of the other, and the unintended interaction of their projects that caused it?

Aside from the almost mandatory "difficult to test" jokes, I don't see a practical reason they couldn't go to an uninhabited system to run some trials.

Now, politically, if the Zho found out that the Darrians were refining their "doomsday weapon", they might have some objections. And the Darrians might not want to give the impression that there was anything left to refine - "Nope, it's perfectly ready to do as we ask. Move your Navy squadrons back to your space or we'll be happy to demonstrate it for you."

 

[flykiller]

if you want an explanation for the star trigger malfunction, you'd have to describe how it functions in the first place. can't even begin to grasp how one would control magnetic forces in a star - why would anyone expend the energy to do so when they simply could expend it directly on target?

 

[Fovean]

why would anyone expend the energy to do so when they simply could expend it directly on target?

Yeah that always bugged me too. I shy away from the Darrians in my games if possible but IMTU they were working on a ring world/Dyson sphere type structure close to their star that created a magnetic feedback loop and caused the star to flare. Sort of like a mini white dwarf scenario.

I prefer them trying to expand living area/agriculture/manufacturing space rather than trying to create a super weapon. Maximize their available systems rather than expand beyond their borders. Still, their greatest folly was trying it at home as opposed to an uninhabited backwater system as jcrocker points out above.

 

[whulorigan]

You have to remember that the "star trigger" was NOT a weapon in the first place. Two separate scientific research teams were both doing independent astrophysical research of their home star, and the beams of the two entirely unrelated probes that they were using to do their studies interacted in an unexpected way, causing the star to flare accidentally.

The Darrians much later (after they had recovered their civilization) used the general historical knowledge of the Maghiz to bluff that their ancestors had discovered a way to make a star flare as a counter against a possible overwhelming invasion by other interstellar powers.

. . . why would anyone expend the energy to do so when they simply could expend it directly on target?

Becuase by inducing a star to flare in the manner described for the Maghiz, it ends up (thru heat, radiation, and EMP) baking everything in the whole star system, as well as putting neighboring star systems out to several parsecs in the path of the EMP pulse over the course of the next decade or so as the wake expands. That is potentially a very bad situation for a polity like the Sword Worlds, for the expense of a single successful Darrian military operation.

 

[Ulsyus]

Becuase by inducing a star to flare in the manner described for the Maghiz, it ends up (thru heat, radiation, and EMP) baking everything in the whole star system, as well as putting neighboring star systems out to several parsecs in the path of the EMP pulse over the course of the next decade or so as the wake expands. That is potentially a very bad situation for a polity like the Sword Worlds, for the expense of a single successful Darrian military operation.

Plus, it may not be a matter of expending incredible amounts of energy to achieve the result. The focused application of the necessary amounts of force at the right moment could achieve the same outcome.

Good point though about the risk the Sword Worlds would have to accept if they decided to take on the Darriens though. That question of whether the Darriens would be willing to engage in genocide in order to defeat a SW invasion would be a pretty unpleasant one for their executive branch to have.

 

[whulorigan]

Plus, it may not be a matter of expending incredible amounts of energy to achieve the result. The focused application of the necessary amounts of force at the right moment could achieve the same outcome.

Exactly. One only needs to set up the conditions for a situation that acts as a catalyst for some reaction in the star.

Good point though about the risk the Sword Worlds would have to accept if they decided to take on the Darriens though. That question of whether the Darriens would be willing to engage in genocide in order to defeat a SW invasion would be a pretty unpleasant one for their executive branch to have.

Yes. It is important to understand that the "Star Trigger" (whether actual or bluff) is not a tactical weapon, it is a strategic deterrent.

 

[Hyphen]

Sounds like E. E."Doc" Smith's 'sunbeam', which directed the output of the sun into a single beam of radiation.

Funnily enough, it overwhelmed any shields, and could even fry planets.

 

[Grav_Moped]

That may be the first example of it (he was good at imagining overkill weapons and then coming up with even bigger ones...)

I'm reminded of the meteor defense system of Larry Niven's Ringworld.

 

[Ulsyus]

This isn't particularly a question about Darrien tech, and pardon my ignorance, but what is the reason that manoeuvre drives have been limited to 6G? Is it supposed to be because of the capacity of the inertial compensators designed to stop everyone getting squished?

 

[mike wightman]

A brief history of the maneuver drive:
CT77 - the m-drive is hinted to be a reaction drive, HG79 explicitly states it is a fusion rocket, the only reason for 6g limit is drive performance.
CT(r) - no longer hints at reaction drive, HG80 drops the reference to a fusion rocket, EP to agility and wording of HG80 lead many to believe the m-drive is some sort of reactionless drive.
Up to this point acceleration compensation and grav plates are only mentioned in adventures and supplements, they are not part of ship design.

MT makes the m-drive a reactionless drive, acceleration compensation and grav plates are now part of the design sequence.

TNE goes back to a reaction drive - HEPlaR - but also includes acceleration compensation and crav plates in the design sequence with rules for how drive performance is limited by g-compensation for the crew.

T4 goes with the magic maneuver drive again, although HEPlaR is still an option - grav plates and acceleration compensation limit drive performance to crew tolerance levels - FF&S2 explicitly allows you to stack acceleration compensation at lower TLs to get greater compensation so we se the first appearance of a 14g fighter.

MgT2e HG has made the standard m-drive some sort of gravitic drive, maxing out at 9g at TL15 to maintain compatibility with T5, it also offers a reaction drive option that can go as high as 16g - and yes you can stack them for 25g. The g rating is mitigated by the acceleration compensators.

 

[flykiller]

what is the reason that manoeuvre drives have been limited to 6G?

I just say that anything over 6G bleeds into jump.

 

[whartung]

It was limited to 6G because they were running out of space for charts in the LBB.

 

[flykiller]

It was limited to 6G because they were running out of space for charts in the LBB.

that's probably the single biggest driver for most of ct's rule set limits.

 

[jcrocker]

It was limited to 6G because they were running out of space for charts in the LBB.

I think the number of sides on the dice came into play a few times, too. 6G drive max, maximum jump is 6 parsecs...

 

[Ulsyus]

The T5 BBB has all the information in it to build a 9G vessel. Has anyone else tried that yet?

 

[Ulsyus]

Here's a little something I whipped up after an unacceptably late finish tonight. I just started with a 100t scout mod I'd been playing around with and tried to fit the largest M-drive in that I could without forcing the crew into cocoons for the duration of their duty...