EVA in Jump Space?

[silversides207]

I just figure that attempting EVA in jumpspace produces one of three results.

1. The ship is precipitated out of jumpspace in interstellar space, and must jump again to reach its destination. Going by the rulebook, this means loss of ship and crew.

2. The individual attempting the EVA is lost in jumpspace, and cannot be recovered, therefore dying.

3. The mind of the individual attempting the EVA cannot cope with the experience of jumpspace and becomes hopelessly insane, whereupon 2 above occurs if he/she has completely exited the ship.

Just not sure which of the three to use. To use 1 would require reworking the rules for jump, of which I am not a fan of anyway, but clearly would put a severe damper on the idea.

 

[Carlobrand]

I'd worry more about something from jumpspace figuring out a way to get in!

 

[atpollard]

1. The ship is precipitated out of jumpspace in interstellar space, and must jump again to reach its destination. Going by the rulebook, this means loss of ship and crew.

I like #1, except all of the ships exit to the exact same empty hex ... a Lost Civilization of starships devoid of jump fuel with crews in various states of despair or decomposition.

 

[Enoki]

Thanks, Enoki. What you describe sounds to me more like a kind of artificial wormhole than the way I think of Traveller jumpspace w the jump grid holding the ship together and all that. I think if I ever switch to something more like Pournelle's Alderson Drive (precise jump points connected by links, with instant transport point-to-point), then I would probably make it work somewhat like you describe.

I see it more of a well or bending of space than a true wormhole. The ship opens this around itself and the depth is determined by the strength of the drive. The ship "falls" in and comes out a week later (regardless of depth) at the "bottom" of the well.
The drive only has to create the well. Once you fall in you just "move" to the bottom sort of like throwing a stone into a pond. The harder you throw it the deeper it goes before losing its momentum.
So, the drive only operates for a few moments to open the well. After that you just sink to the bottom taking about a week to do so.
If you go outside you risk drowning.

Misjumps occur because a strong gravity field is something the computer cannot account for. This results in the "well" being opened inaccurately and you end up somewhere else. A good navigator / pilot and engineer can manually compensate for this to some degree adjusting the settings for the gravity field. Hence why player skill reduces the possibility of a misjump. Once in the "well" you are in another dimension so external influences no longer effect things.

That is the best analogy I can manage for how I see the Traveller jump system working.

 

[SpaceBadger]

The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of being able to repair your jump grid w netting, or even extend your jump grid to odd shapes w that same netting.

That would also tie into the thread about various ways to have jump-capable vessels less than 100 dTons - as long as you arrange your jump grid netting to create a grid volume of 100+ dTons, and you have a J-drive sufficient for your 100+ dTon extended jump grid, and you carry and expend the L-Hyd fuel for such a jump - well then, that sounds like a 100+ dTon starship to me!

 

[SpaceBadger]

The netting would also be good for dispersed-structure starships in some cases, depending on mission. I think I agree w aramis that the jump grid would ordinarily closely follow the skin of each module and strut - but if for some reason you did not want that, for instance to be able on purpose to move from one module to another while in jump, even if not connected by tunnels for that purpose, you could re-shape your jump bubble by extending the jump grid with repair netting, making a relatively safe EVA passage from one module to another. Just as long as the resultant jump bubble displacement tonnage did not exceed your J-drive or fuel capacity, that is!

 

[Fritz_Brown]

I'd worry more about something from jumpspace figuring out a way to get in!

You mean like this? :smirk: