CT Only: Five Sisters Clipper (block 3 revision update)

[Spinward Flow]

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Five Sisters Clipper

During the Third Frontier War (979 - 986), deep penetration strikes by Zhodani cruiser squadrons to disrupt shipping through harassment and interdiction of civilian interstellar shipping in the Spinward Marches sector had the knock on effect of dispersing naval forces during the war. These circumstances then created numerous opportunities for more "entrepreneurial" privateers and corsairs to take advantage of the situation to also prey upon merchant shipping across much of the sector (everyone who was inclined to do so was cashing in on the chance to turn pirate while naval forces were scattered chasing down rumors and feints, along with some very real predation on commerce). At times, the fog of war became very thick during those years.

The Five Sisters subsector was not spared the depredations of pirate attacks during the war, particularly those made by the more "adventurous" cartels operating out of bases in the neighboring District 268 and (of course) Sword Worlds subsectors. There was a very real fear that the communications and supply lines (both civilian and military) used by the Five Sisters subsector could be severed by marauding bands of corsairs and stepped up pirate activities. Without interstellar trade and supplies, some worlds would have to be evacuated and abandoned if they were unable to domestically support their populations while effectively interdicted by piracy.

One response to these stressful conditions during the Third Frontier War years that has survived into more modern times was the development of what came to be known as the Five Sisters Clipper, a new class of Fast Trader designed to counter the pirate threat plaguing the region so as to ensure the shipping and communications lines remained open. The first prototype to be tested was constructed at Karin / Five Sisters and was based upon the earlier LSP Clipper 3, albeit with some important modifications incorporated into the final design. A high priority was placed upon the class to align the performance more towards the needs of merchant ships at the extreme edge of Imperial controlled space during wartime when the navy presence could not be everywhere it was needed under conditions of relatively austere technological support.

Five Sisters Clipper (Type AT): Constructed using a similar custom winged airframe 400 ton hull as the Lurushaar Kilaalum class Corvette, the Type-T Patrol Cruiser and its follow on Patrol, Response and Pursuit Corvettes which in turn inspired the LSP Clipper 3, the primary modification over previous iterations was the use of TL=10 standard H drives, producing jump-4 and 4G acceleration with a power plant-4 performance profile in a "clean" configuration unencumbered by external loads. Fuel tankage is 185 tons, sufficient for either one jump-3 with 6.5 weeks endurance or one jump-4 with 2.5 weeks endurance (HEPlaR reaction maneuvering consumes fuel faster). Fuel scoops are integrated into the hull and an onboard fuel purification plant is used to refine fuel skimmed from gas giants or water oceans. The block 3 revision update features a new bridge design integrated to an adjacent upgraded model/4fib computer with fiber optic backup systems for survival in natural high radiation environments (and against unsanctioned radiation weapons) which incorporated a TL=10 paramilitary sensor suite upgrade as part of the modernization enhancements. The block 3 version of the class is also now armed with a pair of mixed triple turrets standard, mounting a sandcaster, pulse laser and missile launcher in each turret.

The ship retains its internal hangar berth for an armored Five Sisters Fighter used for both organic escort duties as well as maneuver tug services for the up to 20x Modular Cutter Modules that can be docked externally to the ship during both interplanetary and interstellar transport operations. There is also an additional internal hangar berth for a 30 ton Modular Cutter Module which operators can customize with a cargo hold, passenger accommodations and/or a Mail Vault for mail deliveries to Postal Unions under contract (with or without subsidies).

Accommodations aboard are 7 single occupancy crew staterooms and no low berths. The crew consists of two pilots who have sufficient skill to interchangeably pilot either the starship or the small craft, a navigator, a two engineers, a skilled medic who manages and maintains the regenerative life support biome systems aboard the ship and any docked modules, plus a skilled gunner. Quality of life aboard is typically higher than minimum commercial standards thanks to the Environmental Control Type V-c regenerative life support systems, making the recruiting and retention of skilled crew less of an issue over time for ships of the class.

Five Sisters Clippers cost MCr284.246 in single production, or MCr227.3968 per copy in volume production, not including architect's fees.
Five Sisters Fighters cost MCr30.1 in single production, or MCr24.08 per copy in volume production, not including architect's fees.
Modular Cutter Modules: Standard Cargo Modules cost MCr2 in single production, or MCr1.6 per copy in volume production, not including architect's fees.

Both the starship and fighter designs have been in production long enough that architect's fees are not required at either the Karin or Iderati shipyards where the class remains in volume production by 1105, now in the block 3 revision update. Following the Fourth Frontier War (1082 - 1084) the shipyards at Jewell and Vilis were granted permission to produce the class under license with the block 3 revision update, reaching volume production levels that have been sustained through 1105 by modest yet sustained demand from ambitious merchants wanting to upgrade their fleets in those subsectors.

Both craft were also reverse engineered by shipyards at Gram and Sacnoth for use by the Sworld Worlds Confederation as a localized technological clone variant, which they have styled as the Twin Brothers Clipper (Klippari Tvíburabræðra in the Sagamaal language) to differentiate it from the original Imperial design, which also remains in volume production by 1105 in the block 3 format. Rumors that cloned copies of the class are in service with the Ku Su'ikh corporation for use in the Great Rift by Aslan clans have yet to be corroborated and confirmed.

 

[Spinward Flow]

Costs and Revenues: Although comparable in construction cost to the more well known (and larger at 600 tons) Type-M class Subsidized Liner (which is the typical alternative in the MCr220-250 price range), the Five Sisters Clipper actually has a markedly lower overhead cost for a potential increase in cargo/passenger capacity (via externally towed Modular Cutter Modules) that is more flexible at meeting demand for transport service levels (one size does not fit all!) in many of the more provincial and backwater regions of the Imperial frontiers. The relative simplicity (or vintage) of the ship's TL=10 systems, standard drives, off the shelf weaponry and electronics means that parts, spares and maintenance are even more widely available and easily obtained commercially in subsectors that have limited access to more advanced technologies. This in turn makes it far easier for civilian operators to keep their ships well maintained and in service for longer, increasing their return on investment in the class. The built in armament and armored fighter escort also helps ward off potential pirate attacks better than the slower (and unarmed by default) Type-M class Subsidized Liner can manage (without damaging the Liner's profit margin potential by needing to arm up and hire gunners).

Weaponry: The Five Sisters Clipper block 3 revision update features a pair of optionally manned mixed triple turrets mounting the common combination of sandcaster, pulse laser and missile launcher. A single skilled gunner usually controls both turrets from a workstation on the bridge.

L-Hyd drop tanks: The Five Sisters Clipper has fittings mounted on the hull plumbed for L-Hyd drop tank usage. With up to 160 tons of external jump fuel tanks dropped at jump, either a J2+2 with up to 400 tons of external load (800 tons combined total) or a J4+4 with no external load (a clean configuration) can be performed with no refueling needed while en route. Upon breakout from the second jump at the destination, ~5 tons (~3.5 days) of power plant fuel reserve should remain in the internal fuel tanks, sufficient to maneuver and refuel under most circumstances.

Five Sisters Fighter (Type FA): Constructed using a 20 ton custom aerodynamic needle configuration armored hull capable of 6G acceleration, the fighter comes armed with a fixed rigidly mounted combination sandcaster and missile launcher. All versions feature a detachable bridge with 2 acceleration couches and an adjacent model/2 computer to assist with fire control. Since an additional gunner is not needed, the second acceleration couch can be used to transport a passenger.

The drive systems layout is a "mid-engine" arrangement, with M-Drive thruster plates and HEPlaR maneuvering systems located shortly aft of the fighter's center of gravity and incorporated into the swing wing aerofoils. Fuel tankage and the integral fuel scoop on the hull are located along the ventral keel spine under the drive bay aft of the sandcaster and missile launcher. A very small dorsal tank fuel reserve is segregated as a redundant backup to self recover the fighter if the main fuel tank is breached by mishap or battle damage.

The aft end of the fighter features a 5-way omni-dock airlock for Modular Cutter Modules. A single module can be towed externally at 2G longitudinally behind the fighter for atmospheric entry (using the fighter as a faring) and planetary landings. This allows the fighter to assist with sky crane delivery of any and all externally docked modules while the Five Sisters Clipper uses maneuvering power to remain in a geosynchronous position over the landing site in low orbit, reducing delivery transit time and distance to a planetary surface. In vacuum, up to an additional 4 modules can be docked at right angles to the fighter hull and towed externally at 1G, although while these right angle docking ports are in use the combined craft is no longer streamlined.

Peculiarities: By FAR, the most consistently peculiar thing about the Five Sisters Clipper is its Environmental Control Type V-c capacity for its 7 person crew. However, the improvement this feature makes to the onboard quality of life for skilled crews aboard these ships is such that recruiting seasoned crew is rarely an issue. FRESH food meals cooked daily, rather than heavily preserved rations that everyone gets tired of consuming, often makes for quite a difference in crew morale over the long term. This also means that crews are not at the mercy of local market prices (and quality) when visiting worlds where life support consumables are an expensive commodity due to scarcity of resources and/or adequate technology (a potential liability in some remote backwater systems). Having a secure reserve of air, food and water consumables that will last an entire year between annual overhauls can be quite the logistical security asset.

While life support recycling efficiency of gases, liquids and solids is quite high, it is not and cannot ever be 100%. The replacement of losses in chemical reserves necessary for sustaining the regenerative biome life support systems are routinely obtained from the waste byproducts of wilderness skimmed fuel getting filtered out by the onboard fuel purification plant, which is more integrated into the ship's life support reserve systems than is typical. Additionally, the life support system of the Five Sisters Fighter has also been designed to integrate with the parent Five Sisters Clipper relatively seamlessly for waste purging and consumables reserve replenishment while the fighter is docked, helping to keep the regenerative biome life cycle better balanced over the duration between annual overhauls.

Ships constructed at the Karin and Iderati shipyards will almost always model their regenerative life support biome on native species habitat from either world, although there are some notable rare exceptions. Ships constructed at Jewell will typically model species habitat from neighboring Emerald, while those constructed at Vilis will almost always model the habitat of nearby Saurus, although other options are available (at added expense). The habitat species of the regenerative life support biome can be changed during annual overhaul maintenance if desired, although this option is rarely exercised unless crews have allergic reactions to specific biomes beyond the skills of the onboard medic to resolve adequately. Changing the regenerative life support biome to model a species habitat of a world other than that of where the construction and/or maintenance work is being done may incur additional time and cost surcharges, so owners will want to budget their operations accordingly if exercising this option.

Naming: While there is no officially recognized naming convention for Five Sisters Clippers and their Five Sisters Fighters, there is a bit of a tradition among crews to name their craft after celebrity sisters, whether they be historical, currently trending, real, fictional or mythological.

 

[Spinward Flow]

Variants: Owing to the sheer number of possible load outs with Modular Cutter Modules it is impossible to make an exhaustive list of all variants in service. One of the most common variations is modifying the retained internal module for cargo, passenger and/or mail delivery services to best suit the planetary markets intended to be serviced.

Merchant Decoy (Type AQ): Essentially the same as the Type AT Merchant Transport except that they have had their TL=10 bridge workstations, pulse lasers and missile launchers updated to TL=13 standards, increasing their respective USP weapon codes from 1 to 2. Typically this relatively modest optional upgrade is only worth it to operators who have access to TL=13 type A or B starports within range of (or better yet, are on) their preferred routes that can handle annual overhaul maintenance issues with minimal delays.

Tanker Transport (Type TT): Loaded with 13 to 21 Modular Cutter Modules configured for fuel tankage, a Five Sisters Clipper can make deliveries of up to 590 tons of refined fuel from an in-system gas giant to a Desert World, Fluid World, Vacuum World, Planetoid Belt or Asteroid Belt at 2G once or twice a week (or use 20 modules for up to 800 tons per delivery at 1G). Developing worlds without easy access to hydrogen fuel sources in-system could even potentially charter a Five Sisters Clipper to shuttle refined fuel into the system from gas giants in neighboring systems 1-2 parsecs away in order to meet their (otherwise relatively modest) demands for starship fuel (at a cost of reduced fuel delivery volume per round trip to account for fuel consumed by jumping).

Yacht (Type YT): A few Five Sisters Clippers under private ownership have been converted into yachts. The most common means to achieve the conversion is to outfit a Modular Cutter Module for passenger accommodations, although this will typically require hiring a steward to meet the service needs of high passengers. A double suite stateroom for the yacht owner (and spouse, if any) means that up to an additional 3 staterooms can be made available for a steward/valet and 2 high passenger guests (or a personal security detail). The remaining 10 tons will usually be devoted to another regenerative biome life support laboratory capable of sustaining up to 5 persons at Environmental Control Type V-c standard to be maintained by the starship's medic. Some yacht conversions will opt to replace a stateroom (or two) and a portion of the laboratory capacity devoted to life support with a vehicle berth for an Air/Raft or Speeder with an option for a workshop to maintain the vehicle. Particularly wealthy individuals will sometimes use the yacht conversion as a low tech yet high speed VIP courier transport over particularly long distances (2+ subsectors) since the life support systems aboard can be configured to not need replenishment after every jump (in which case wilderness refueling and refining alone is usually sufficient). This allows transport yachts to operate "off the main lanes" relatively independently, jumping up to 4 parsecs every 8-9 days for up to 50 weeks before needing to make port for annual overhaul maintenance and deep replenishment of consumables.

 

[Spinward Flow]

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Five Sisters Clipper (block 3 revision update)
Ship Type: AT (Merchant-A, Transport)
TL=10 (LBB5.80 design fitted with LBB2.81 standard drives, and off-the-shelf weapons) (LBB5.80, p18)

Tonnage (custom hull): 400 tons
Configuration: 1 (Needle/Wedge, streamlined, MCr48) (LBB5.80, p21-23)
Armor: 0

Jump-H (code: 4, 45 tons, MCr80, TL=10, Civilian, Capacitor storage: 8 tons = 288 EP maximum)
Maneuver-H (code: 4, 15 tons, MCr32, TL=10)
Power Plant-H (code: 4, 25 tons, MCr64, TL=10, EP: 16, Surplus EP: +0 @ Agility 3, Emergency Agility: 4)
Total Drives: 45+15+25 = 85 tons (LBB2.81, p22) (+ 7 tons Five Sisters Fighter drives = 92 combined tons)

Fuel: 185 tons = 120+65 tons (LBB2.81, p14-15, 23)

• Jump Fuel = (Tonnage/100) * (Parsecs*10)
  • 120 tons = 3 parsecs range @ 400 tons displacement
• Power Plant and Reactionless Maneuver Fuel = (10Pn*0.25*weeks)
  • 65 tons = 6.5 weeks @ 4G M-Drive reactionless maneuver within 1000 diameters of gravity wells for 400 tons displacement
• HEPlaR Reaction Maneuver consumption rate = (Tonnage/100) * (G*0.05*days)
  • 0.2 tons consumption per G per day beyond 1000 diameters of gravity wells (CT Beltstrike, p5, 11)

Fuel Scoops (MCr0.4) (LBB5.80, p27)
Fuel Purification Plant: 200 ton capacity (8 tons, MCr0.036) (LBB5.80, p27, 36)
L-Hyd drop tank fittings (MCr0.01) (LBB A5, p14)

Hardpoints: 2 (MCr0.2) (LBB2.81, p15 and p23)
Triple Turrets: 2 (MCr2) (LBB2.81, p23)
Mixed Triple Turret: Sandcaster, Pulse Laser, Missile (1 ton, MCr1.5, EP: 1)
Mixed Triple Turret: Sandcaster, Pulse Laser, Missile (1 ton, MCr1.5, EP: 1)
Batteries:

• 2x Sandcaster (code: 3) (LBB5.80, p25)
• 2x Pulse Laser (code: 1) (LBB5.80, p25)
• 2x Missile (code: 1) (LBB5.80, p25)

Bridge (20 tons, MCr2, Paramilitary Sensor Suite)
Computer: 4fib (Code: D, 8 tons, MCr45, TL=10, EP: 2)
Skills required: 7 crew (Cr33,310 per 4 weeks crew salaries)

1. Pilot-2 = Cr6600
2. Pilot-2 = Cr6600
3. Navigator-1 = Cr5000
4. Engineering-2/Engineering-2 (chief) = ((4000*1.1)+(4000*1.1))*0.75*1.1 = Cr7260
5. Engineering-1 = Cr4000
6. Medic-2 = (2000*1.1) = Cr2200
7. Gunnery-2/Gunnery-2 = ((1000*1.1)+(1000*1.1))*0.75 = Cr1650

Crew staterooms: 7 single occupancy (28 tons, MCr3.5)
Environmental Control Type V-c capacity: up to 7 persons

• Laboratory: regenerative life support biome (14 tons, MCr2.8, hydroponic garden, aquaculture and carniculture) (CT Errata, p12, lab space costs MCr0.2 per ton)

Internal Hangar Bays: 20+30=50 tons capacity Ordinary Launch Facilities (50 tons, MCr0.1) (LBB5.80, p32)

• 1x Five Sisters Fighter (20 tons)
• 1x Modular Cutter Module: Standard Cargo Module (30 tons, MCr2)

External Docking: 600 tons capacity Dispersed Structure Launch Facilities (0 tons, MCr1.2, ship becomes unstreamlined while in use) (LBB5.80, p32)

• 20x Modular Cutter Module docking attachment points

Cargo Hold: 0 tons
Waste Space: 0 tons
Total Cost: MCr284.246 (100%) single production, MCr227.3968 (80%) volume production

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Five Sisters Fighter
Ship Type: FA (Fighter, Armored)
TL=10 (LBB5.80)

Tonnage (custom hull): 20 tons
Configuration: 1 (Needle/Wedge, streamlined, integral fuel scoops, MCr2.4)
Armor (code: 7, 4.8 tons, MCr4.8)

Maneuver-6 (3.4 tons, MCr1.7)
Power Plant-6 (3.6 tons, MCr10.8, EP: 1.2, Surplus EP: +0 @ Agility 6)
Total Drives: 3.4+3.6=7 tons

Fuel: 1 ton = 1 ton (LBB5.81, p34)

• Power Plant and Reactionless Maneuver Fuel = (Tonnage/100) * (Pn*days/28)
  • 1 ton = 23 days 8 hours @ 6G M-Drive reactionless maneuver within 1000 diameters of gravity wells
• HEPlaR Reaction Maneuver consumption rate = (Tonnage/100) * (G*0.05*days)
  • 0.01 tons consumption per G per day beyond 1000 diameters of gravity wells (CT Beltstrike, p5, 11)

Hardpoints: 1 (MCr0) (LBB5.80, p30)
Rigid Mount Weapons: Sandcaster, Missile (1 ton, MCr1, EP: 0) (LBB5.80, p25)
Batteries:

• 1x Sandcaster (code: 3)
• 1x Missile (code: 1)

Bridge (4 tons, MCr0.1, Paramilitary Sensor Suite, includes 2 acceleration couches with 24 hours life support endurance)
Computer: 2 (Code: 2, 2 tons, MCr9, TL: 7, EP: 0)
Crew (skills) required: 1 crew (LBB5.80, p34-35)

1. Ship's Boat-1 or Pilot-2

Small Craft Staterooms: 0
External Docking Facilities (LBB5.80, p32)

• 1x Modular Cutter Module Ordinary Launch: 30 tons capacity (0 tons, MCr0.06, craft remains streamlined when in use)
• 4x Modular Cutter Module Dispersed Structure Launch: 120 tons capacity (0 tons, MCr0.24, craft is unstreamlined when in use)

Reserve Fuel Tank: 0.2 tons
Cargo Hold: 0 tons
Waste Space: 0 tons
Total Cost: MCr30.1 (100%) single production, MCr24.08 (80%) volume production

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Liner Module (A/B)
Modular Cutter Module: Standard Cargo Module (30 tons, MCr2, TL=12)

• A Staterooms: 1 luxury suite and 3 single occupancy (20 tons, MCr2.5)
• B Staterooms: 5 single occupancy (20 tons, MCr2.5)
• Environmental Control Type V-c capacity: up to 5 persons
  • Laboratory: regenerative life support biome (10 tons, MCr2, hydroponic garden plus aquaculture and carniculture) (CT Errata, p12, lab space costs MCr0.2 per ton)

Total Cost: MCr6.5 (100%) single production, MCr5.2 (80%) volume production

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Standard Cargo Module
Modular Cutter Module: Standard Cargo Module (30 tons, MCr2, TL=9)

• Cargo hold: 30 tons (5 tons Mail Vault conversion ready)

Total Cost: MCr2 (100%) single production, MCr1.6 (80%) volume production

 

[Spinward Flow]

Five Sisters Clipper     AT-41444D1-030000-10001-0  MCr227.3968     400 tons
        batteries bearing            2     2   2              Crew=7. TL=10.
                batteries            2     2   2                Pulse Laser.
Passengers=0. Low=0. Lab=14. Hangar=50. Cargo=0. Fuel=185. EP=16. Agility=3.
Jump-2, Maneuver-2 @ up to 800 tons total (+400 tons external)
Jump-1, Maneuver-1 @ up to 1000 tons total (+600 tons external)

Five Sisters Fighter     FA-0106621-730000-00001-0  MCr24.08         20 tons
        batteries bearing            1         1                      TL=10.
                batteries            1         1             Crew=1. Bridge.
Passengers=1. Staterooms=0. Low=0. Cargo=0. Fuel=1+0.2. EP=1.2. Agility=6.
Maneuver-5 @ up to 24 tons total (+4 tons external)
Maneuver-4 @ up to 30 tons total (+10 tons external)
Maneuver-3 @ up to 42 tons total (+22 tons external)
Maneuver-2 @ up to 68 tons total (+48 tons external)
Maneuver-1 @ up to 170 tons total (+150 tons external)

Liner Module (A/B) (MCr5.2 in quantity, 30 tons)
Staterooms=5. Lab=10. TL=10.

Modular Cutter Module: Standard Cargo Module (MCr1.6 in quantity, 30 tons)
Cargo=30. TL=9.

Single production

• Total Cost (Five Sisters Clipper + Five Sisters Fighter + Standard Cargo Module): MCr284.246 + 30.1 + 2 = MCr316.346
• 20% Down Payment: MCr56.8492 + 6.02 + 0.4 = MCr63.2692
• Architect Fees: MCr2.84246 + 0.301 + 0.02 = MCr3.16346
• Construction Time: 64 weeks (Clipper), 24 weeks (Armored Fighter) (LBB A5, p33)
• Annual Overhaul: Cr284,246 + 30,100 + 2,000 = Cr316,346 (LBB2.81, p8)

Volume production (80% single production cost)

• Total Cost (Five Sisters Clipper + Five Sisters Fighter + Standard Cargo Module): MCr227.3968 + 24.08 + 1.6 = MCr253.0768
• 20% Down Payment: MCr45.47936 + 4.816 + 0.32 = MCr50.61536
• Construction Time: 52 weeks (Clipper), 20 weeks (Armored Fighter) (LBB A5, p33)
• Annual Overhaul: Cr227,397 + 24,080 + 1,600 = Cr253,077 (LBB2.81, p8)

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Recurring costs:

• Crew Life Support: Cr0 due to regenerative life support Environmental Control Type V-c (up to 7 persons)
• Passenger Life Support: Cr2000 per high/middle passenger per 2 weeks, Cr100 per low passenger per 2 weeks
• Crew Salaries: Cr33,310 per 4 weeks per 4 weeks (LBB2.81, p11, p16)
• Surface to Orbit Shuttle Costs: Cr10 per cargo ton, Cr20 to 120 per passenger (LBB2.81, p9)
• Fuel: Cr500 per ton (refined), Cr100 per ton (unrefined), Cr0 (skimmed) (LBB2.81, p7)

Revenue sources:

• Interplanetary Charters (12+ hours): Cr1 per hour per ton of ship (Cr400 per hour), minimum 12 hours (Cr4800) without external loading (external loads add Cr1 per hour per ton) (LBB2.81, p9)
  • Interplanetary Travel (distance, acceleration, time) (link)
• Interstellar Charters (2 weeks): Cr9000 per high passage berth, Cr900 per low passage berth, Cr900 per ton of cargo (LBB2.81, p9)
• Passenger Revenue: Cr10,000 per high passenger, Cr8000 per middle passenger, Cr1000 per low passenger
• Interstellar Cargo Transport: Cr1000 per ton to declared destination (LBB2.81, p8-9)
• Mail Delivery: Cr5,000 revenue per ton on delivery (Cr25,000 max) (LBB2.81, p9)
• Imperial subsidies reduce gross revenue receipts by 50% for passengers, cargo and mail (LBB2.81, p7)

 

[Spinward Flow]

​

Five Sisters Clipper (block 3 revision update)
Economic break even formula for annualized costs (including life support, berthing fees, crew salaries and annual overhaul costs)

Cost calculation

• CPD = (LS*25 + CS*13 + CC*(CM/40+0.001) + FC*DPY + BFE) / DPY + BFD
  • CPD = Cost Per Destination (in Cr), round up to nearest integer
  • LS = Life Support (in Cr) per 2 weeks (Cr0 for stock Five Sisters Clipper and Five Sisters Fighter)
  • CS = Crew Salaries (in Cr) per month (Cr33,310 for stock Five Sisters Clipper, Five Sisters Fighter and cargo only Modular Cutter Module)
  • CC = Construction Cost in credits (Cr316,346,000 single production, Cr253,076,800 volume production)
  • CM = Construction Multiplier (x0 Subsidized, x1 Paid Off, x2.4 Bank Loan Financing, over 40 years)
  • FC = Fuel Cost (in Cr) to refuel per Destination (Cr500 per ton refined, Cr100 per ton unrefined, Cr0 per ton wilderness)
  • BFE = Berthing Fees Extra (additional berthing fees for warehousing the ship at idle during extra crew vacation days annually)
  • DPY = Destinations Per Year
  • BFD = Berthing Fees (in Cr) per Destination (Cr100 for 6 days, Cr100 more per +1 days)

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Tables of profit points when allowing 14 days for annual overhaul maintenance within each year (365-14=351 days maximum)
Note: 252 / 365 = 69% (~70% minimum required time on route each year for subsidy contracts)

Single Production (break even profit point in credits)

DPY (tempo) + vacation days	Subsidized CPD (in Cr)​	Paid Off CPD (in Cr)​	Bank Financed CPD (in Cr)​
35 (2+8 days) = 350 + 0	21,511​	247,473​	563,819​
31 (3+8 days) = 341 + 9	24,287​	279,405​	636,569​
29 (4+8 days) = 348 + 2	25,944​	298,657​	680,453​
27 (5+8 days) = 351 + 0	27,855​	320,768​	730,846​
25 (6+8 days) = 350 + 0	30,076​	346,422​	789,306​
18 (6+8 days) = 252 + 98	42,249​	481,619​	1,096,736​
19 (2+8+8 days) = 342 + 8	39,557 + drop tank rental​	455,802 + drop tank rental​	1,038,544 + drop tank rental​
18 (3+8+8 days) = 342 + 8	41,749 + drop tank rental​	481,119 + drop tank rental​	1,096,236 + drop tank rental​
17 (4+8+8 days) = 340 + 10	44,211 + drop tank rental​	509,426 + drop tank rental​	1,160,726 + drop tank rental​
16 (5+8+8 days) = 336 + 14	46,993 + drop tank rental​	541,283 + drop tank rental​	1,233,290 + drop tank rental​
15 (6+8+8 days) = 330 + 20	50,159 + drop tank rental​	577,402 + drop tank rental​	1,315,543 + drop tank rental​
12 (6+8+8 days) = 264 + 86	63,223 + drop tank rental​	722,278 + drop tank rental​	1,644,953 + drop tank rental​

Volume Production (break even profit point in credits)

DPY (tempo) + vacation days	Subsidized CPD (in Cr)​	Paid Off CPD (in Cr)​	Bank Financed CPD (in Cr)​
35 (2+8 days) = 350 + 0	19,704​	200,473​	453,549​
31 (3+8 days) = 341 + 9	22,246​	226,340​	512,072​
29 (4+8 days) = 348 + 2	23,763​	241,932​	547,370​
27 (5+8 days) = 351 + 0	25,512​	259,842​	587,905​
25 (6+8 days) = 350 + 0	27,545​	280,622​	634,929​
18 (6+8 days) = 252 + 98	38,734​	390,230​	882,324​
19 (2+8+8 days) = 342 + 8	36,227 + drop tank rental​	369,223 + drop tank rental​	835,417 + drop tank rental​
18 (3+8+8 days) = 342 + 8	38,234 + drop tank rental​	389,730 + drop tank rental​	881,824 + drop tank rental​
17 (4+8+8 days) = 340 + 10	40,489 + drop tank rental​	412,661 + drop tank rental​	933,701 + drop tank rental​
16 (5+8+8 days) = 336 + 14	43,038 + drop tank rental​	438,471 + drop tank rental​	992,076 + drop tank rental​
15 (6+8+8 days) = 330 + 20	45,941 + drop tank rental​	467,736 + drop tank rental​	1,058,248 + drop tank rental​
12 (6+8+8 days) = 264 + 86	57,951 + drop tank rental​	585,194 + drop tank rental​	1,323,335 + drop tank rental​

 

[Spinward Flow]

Jump-4, Maneuver-4, Agility-3 (+0 tons external)

• Internal: Five Sisters Fighter
• Internal: 1x 30 ton Modular Cutter Module
  • Cargo: 30 tons (5 tons of which may be a Mail Vault)
• External: 0 tons
  • Subsidized Net Revenue: cargo only (mail delivery adds Cr10,000)
    • Charter: 13,500+0 = Cr13,500 maximum
    • Non-charter: 15,000+0 = Cr15,000 maximum
  • Paid Off or Bank Financed Net Revenue: cargo only (mail delivery adds Cr20,000)
    • Charter: 27,000+0 = Cr27,000 maximum
    • Non-charter: 30,000+0 = Cr30,000 maximum

Jump-2, Maneuver-2, Agility-2 (+200 tons external)

• Internal: 20 tons cargo in internal hangar bay
• Internal: 1x 30 ton Modular Cutter Module
  • Cargo: 30 tons (5 tons of which may be a Mail Vault)
• External: Five Sisters Fighter
• External: 6x 30 ton Modular Cutter Modules = 180 tons cargo practical limit
  • Subsidized Net Revenue (mail delivery adds Cr10,000)
    • Charter: 9000+13,500+81,000 = Cr103,500 practical maximum
    • Non-charter: 10,000+15,000+90,000 = Cr115,000 practical maximum
  • Paid Off or Bank Financed Net Revenue (mail delivery adds Cr20,000)
    • Charter: 18,000+27,000+162,000 = Cr207,000 practical maximum
    • Non-charter: 20,000+30,000+180,000 = Cr230,000 practical maximum

Jump-2, Maneuver-2, Agility-1 (+400 tons external)

• Internal: Five Sisters Fighter
• Internal: 1x 30 ton Modular Cutter Module
  • Cargo: 30 tons (5 tons of which may be a Mail Vault)
• External: 13x 30 ton Modular Cutter Modules = 390 tons cargo practical limit
  • Subsidized Net Revenue (mail delivery adds Cr10,000)
    • Charter: 13,500+175,500 = Cr189,000 practical maximum
    • Non-charter: 15,000+195,000 = Cr210,000 practical maximum
  • Paid Off or Bank Financed Net Revenue (mail delivery adds Cr20,000)
    • Charter: 27,000+351,000 = Cr378,000 practical maximum
    • Non-charter: 30,000+390,000 = Cr420,000 practical maximum

Jump-1, Maneuver-1, Agility-0 (+600 tons external)

• Internal: Five Sisters Fighter
• Internal: 1x 30 ton Modular Cutter Module
  • Cargo: 30 tons (5 tons of which may be a Mail Vault)
• External: 20x 30 ton Modular Cutter Modules = 600 tons cargo maximum limit
  • Subsidized Net Revenue (mail delivery adds Cr10,000)
    • Charter: 13,500+270,000 = Cr283,500 practical maximum
    • Non-charter: 15,000+300,000 = Cr315,000 practical maximum
  • Paid Off or Bank Financed Net Revenue (mail delivery adds Cr20,000)
    • Charter: 27,000+540,000 = Cr567,000 practical maximum
    • Non-charter: 30,000+600,000 = Cr630,000 practical maximum

 

[Spinward Flow]

Deck Plans (imgur links)

• Main Deck
• Main Deck Overlay
• Upper/Lower Deck

It's almost as if the more you iterate deck plan design ideas, the more tightly integrated (and better) you get at organizing them coherently. It's almost as if there are "skills" involved in having fun with making deck plans.

Still using the desktop MacOS Preview application to create these, but this time rather than using straight lines to define the main deck hull outline (a triangle on a rectangle) I decided to use the line curve option. So I started with a vertical line at the stern and then moved the midpoint of that line (making it into a continuous parabolic curve) and stretched it all the way out to the nose. The result of that change was a hull shape that was remarkably similar to the previous iteration using straight lines overall, but the continuous curve shape allowed more width/usable volume up in the nose ... which turned out to be important.

By having a wider nose (parabola shaped rather than triangle shaped) more computing space could be put "around" the bridge (fore and aft, rather than just aft only) to accommodate the larger model/4fib upgrade. Ironically, even with a larger bridge (the lateral bubbles are 6x3 instead of 5x3 ovals in the previous iteration and need to be spaced further outboard due to the change in hull shape outline), the computer room space didn't reach as far aft along the hull as in previous iterations.

Moving the extendable airlock further forward to immediately behind the computer room, followed by the crew lounge (now with walk in cooler/freezer larders in the port/starboard galley areas!) before moving aft into the seven crew staterooms (and medbay with isolation autodoc) meant that there was sufficient hull beam width to not need to "squeeze" the staterooms into a hull section that was really too narrow for them. Aft of the crew staterooms is the regenerative life support biome lab spaces, complete with port side an agricultural robot station for maintenance of the vegetation, food crops, a pair of fruit trees and a wall of hydroponic vegetation vertical farming on the ship's port side. On the starboard side is where the algae tank, carniculture, aquaculture and processed life support chemical reserves are stored. The life support biome section is accessed through an airlock, since the biome may need to be maintained at different atmospheric temperature, pressure, humidity and chemical concentration levels than the rest of the ship in order to maintain biome integrity.

Aft of the life support biome lab is the transverse access corridor with grav lifts running to the upper and lower decks. Each grav lift has an emergency battery associated with it to provide reserve backup power to both the life support biome lab proper and the grav lifts in the event main power from the fusion powerplant is unavailable. Aft of the transverse access corridor is engineering, where the jump drive, maneuver drive, power plant and fuel purification plant systems are located. Jump capacitors line the outer bulkheads, while the purification plants are set up to capture and process for use desirable chemical waste byproducts that result from wilderness skimmed fuel into refined liquid hydrogen fuel needed for the drives.

The L-Hyd drop tank couplings over and under the wings have been updated to include fuel pumps inside the wings for better fuel flow characteristics when needing to drop tanks before jump. The fuel arms for making fuel transfers have been moved from the fuselage out to the wingtips to advantage of the location of the new drop tank fuel pumps. Owing to the parabolic shape of the hull, the fuel scoops in the wing roots needed to be canted outboard by 3º which ironically improved their intake flow characteristics during skimming maneuvers around gas giants.

The lower deck only features access to the external docking ports for when the Five Sisters Clipper is carrying an external load that cannot all be situated above the wing. The upper deck is where the starship's mixed triple turrets and internal hangar bays are located between the external docking ports that are situated above the wing.

Overall, I really like the block 3 update revision of this starship design a good deal more than the previous iteration I made only 6 weeks ago because of how everything fits together so much better in this one.



Guess this means I'm going to need to start thinking about how to make some deck plans for my Karin Corvette now.

 

[whartung]

Still using the desktop MacOS Preview application to create these,

You did this all in Preview?

You are a patient man!

I like the engine detail.

 

[Spinward Flow]

You did this all in Preview?

Uh ... yes ...?

You are a patient man!

I'm just making do with the tools I have access to that can get the job done.
Is the Preview application the ideal tool for this job? Obviously not.
Can I make it work (with enough trial, error and patience)? Yes ... yes I can.

I like the engine detail.

Me too.

 

[whartung]

Yea, it's just that Preview has the fundamental tools (lines, boxes, arcs, etc.) but lacks the most fundamental of typical drawing apps: grids, snap-to-thing, and grouping being some of them.

MacDraw was pretty basic back in the day. I used to use it to make graphs and charts for presentations. At least it had coordinates and such.

Have you tried using Keynote?

 

[Spinward Flow]

Yea, it's just that Preview has the fundamental tools (lines, boxes, arcs, etc.) but lacks the most fundamental of typical drawing apps: grids, snap-to-thing, and grouping being some of them.

Yeah, Preview has no snap-to-thing functionality to it, so everything is freehand manual placement.
You can annotate pictures with lines, ovals/polygons, arcs, etc. and do crop, copy/paste and the like ... so really bare bones stuff when editing. You CAN select multiple items via shift-Lclick so as to be able to move them around as a group of objects if you need to. I just simply made myself an image of an empty deck plan grid (10x10) and then copied that up to 90x60 for use as a "blank canvas" to work on top of.

What I find annoying is that you can only add like around 16 items or so (lines, copy/paste images) before everything starts blurring out when saving the image. This means that there's something on the order of 30+ intermediate saves along the way to building up towards the final image, because I can only make but so many changes before needing to save, close the window and reopen with all the changes recorded in before proceeding to the next stage of adding changes to fill in details. So the overall design sort of "accretes" into place bit by bit.

This workflow also makes it possible to "test" arrangements of features since I can roll back saves to an earlier point in the process and start over from there if a particular arrangement of parts looks like it isn't working out all that well.

Wouldn't be able to do this kind of thing without being able to crop and copy/paste snippets from the Starship Geomporphs v2.0 set using screen settings that make all the components a uniformly common size (so I can use them like LEGO pieces) for stuff like engineering components, stateroom spaces, turrets, bridge workstations, computers and so on and so forth. Most of what you're seeing in my deck plans are snippets pulled from the Starship Geomporphs v2.0 set and creatively arranged to form the deck plan. I use the annotation of lines, rectangles and ovals to form the bulkheads and partition walls and the text feature to annotate in text intended to match the font seen used for the "HOLO PIT" and "AR" for the agricultural robot station to make it all feel like it's a unified coherent piece of design work. I just creatively rearrange and repurpose the parts to create the final images that I'm posting.

Have you tried using Keynote?

No.
My iMac is so vinatge that by the end of this summer it's going to be 11 years old, meaning that for starters all of the connectors on it are outdated (USB 2.0) and won't work with current year hardware (USB-C, Lightning 4, etc.). The MacOS version on my computer is also abandonware stuck at 10.13.6 due to hardware limitations. At some point here, I'm going to want to migrate over to an M2 (or later) Apple Silicon setup.

Just checked the App Store on Keynote and found this:

Compatibility
Mac
Requires macOS 11.0 or later.

So even if I wanted to use Keynote, the hardware I'm still working with won't support it.

I'll probably migrate up +1 TL on my computer in the next year or so, once the EU connector standard forces more commonality in connectors on computer manufacturers and Apple Silicon moves into ARM v9 so I can buy a new computer that I can then use for the next decade again.

 

[coliver988]

and there are several free on-line drawing sites that may also work and all you need is a web browser. I use several for various things depending on needs, and of course a lot of local/PC-based drawing programs. Again, depending on what I am drawing. and there is always hand-drawn. Which sadly I do not do a lot of lately (and I have a scanner so I could digitize them as needed).

I am impressed that you are doing that with Preview as well. I never would have thought to use it that way (I just use it to annotate screenshots for work, mostly big arrows saying CLICK THIS)

 

[Rigel Stardin]

Neopaint by Neosoft, has free demos. (That the program I use, nor this an advertisement, just my opinion). There are archived versions as well dating back to it's DOS days. I prefer 4.0 myself, because 5.0 interface changed when they made a Window's version to hang out with the big boys (Adobe and Photoshop). In 4.0 and DOS's interface, look and feel makes it like look and feel like Windows Paint with just a few more bells and whistles. It can 'Open' and 'Save' files as BMP, GIF, JPEG, PCX, PCT and RAS to name a few. I love it's "Stamp' function (Mini files of drawing you use repetitively in all your drawing.), for it's ease of use and ability to save any file size. It saves me hours of work digging through files and redrawing rooms I've already made.

If I so desire, I could go into Geomorph cut, click and paste to Neopaint. Clip some more, and create an entire stamp folder of Geomorph rooms and items used in those room. Several days of hard work would then allow me to, create ships using their design elements in a few hours.

Last time I check, (A few months ago) the price for the newest version IMEVO, I think, cost less than 40 US Dollars. Which kinda pissed me off, when I bought the windows version it cost me over 50 Dollars. Finally, I kid you not, 4.0 doesn't use that much memory. As I sit here, I'm streaming music, typing this, have several notepad files open, word files, calculator and directory window open and it runs just fine on a seven year old computer. 5.0 acts like a window's program under these conditions, load slow. In 5,0 you can do layers and open them as well. I think there is an Apple version or it just can run in both with no problem?

Check it out.

 

[Spinward Flow]

I am impressed that you are doing that with Preview as well.

Well, if you look at my earlier efforts, you can CLEARLY see a learning curve is involved.
But after a half-dozen or so of these, I'm learning a lot of workflow tricks for how to achieve the results I'm ultimately angling for.

I never would have thought to use it that way

Necessity ... mother ... invention ... you know the drill.
One thing I can certainly attest to is that what I'm doing LOOKS easy in the results, but the process is anything BUT easy to execute. It takes me days of time to finalize a single deck as I build everything up piece by piece, so it's definitely a sub-optimal tool to get the job done.

(I just use it to annotate screenshots for work, mostly big arrows saying CLICK THIS)

And that's basically what I'm doing here.
I start with a "blank" grid image and then start annotating on top of it and pasting in copies of image snippets to slowly assemble all of the parts and pieces. Some of the work requires deleting out the background of grid image leaving transparency (except for all of the imagery I've been building up) which can then be saved as an intermediate save step in a different window. I can then revert the blank grid back to last opened so it's "blank" again and can then copy/paste back in the intermediate save step as a single unified image object with lots of transparency ... and then iterate the cycle again.

That's how I'm able to create the overlay image, because I use intermediate save step as a kind of intermediate transparent layer step (to use photoshop terminology) which I can then overlay on top of the already existing image of the main deck so you can get a sense of how the upper (and lower) decks are positioned in relation to the main deck. That overlay also gives you a direct intuitive sense of where the external Modular Cutter Modules dock to the hull and how the streamlining of the hull gets "spoiled" into unstreamlined when those modules are docked (which isn't a problem in vacuum, but IS a problem in atmosphere) ... hence why I notated the design specs the way that I did in the starship construction writeup.

I personally find that the overlay is extremely useful (for me) in order to "proof" the 3D placement of deck elements so everything remains (relatively) coherent and integrated, despite the fact that I'm working in 2D and have to extrapolate the 3D-ness of the multiple decks. For one thing, the block 3 lower deck arrangement (without turrets forward) allowed me to visualize the external docking ports access corridors as being shaped something akin to ventral strakes under the hull to help provide longitudinal stability during atmospheric maneuvering and aerobraking. In order to achieve that, the lower deck corridors needed to be as longitudinal straight as possible without the addition of "draggy" widening or narrowing of the corridor ... which then helped me make the decision on what the arrangement of elements for the lower deck ought to look like.

I could then use the decision(s) for the layout of the lower deck to modify in order to create the upper deck with the hangar bays between the external docking access corridors. That then set up the positioning for the mixed triple turrets and I could then use the overlay of the upper deck onto the main deck in order to confirm the field of fire from the turrets (and yes, those mixed triple turrets are a composite I made from different turret geomorphs pasted together).



The moral of the story being, Preview is kind of clunky for this purpose (okay, really clunky) ... but it can be done with sufficient determination and familiarity/skill with the tools (which takes a while to learn). I am gratified that persons besides myself are even minimally impressed by the final results that I've been able to present and add to these forums.

 

[Grav_Moped]

Hey, it has to be better than MS Paint to do *.bmp files, then saving the final version as *.jpg.

My workflow has developed into using a "bye" image (effecively a scratchpad) and multiple saved versions for selective reversions ("Well, that didn't work out, how far back did that mess start?" "Ok, that part's good. Copy it over to the latest one.")

 

[Spinward Flow]

Hey, it has to be better than MS Paint to do *.bmp files, then saving the final version as *.jpg.

Maybe ... but if so it's not by much. At least Preview defaults to saving files to .png format, although other options are available as exports. The .png format is what enables transparency to be retained through saves, allowing a "poor man's photoshop layers" workflow to be possible via intermediate saves.

My workflow has developed into using a "bye" image (effecively a scratchpad) and multiple saved versions for selective reversions ("Well, that didn't work out, how far back did that mess start?" "Ok, that part's good. Copy it over to the latest one.")

That's essentially what I have to do for any kind of "cut out" involving a curve.

So if you look at the Main Deck image, you'll notice that the curve of the outer bulkhead is contiguous from stem to stern of the ship ... except where the "bridge bubbles" break the outline. Because the intersection of the curving hull and the curving ovals of the "bridge bubbles" is complex rather than straightforward (lines don't cross at tidy 90º angles) I basically had to do a sort of "measure twice and cut once" process on transparency layers in order to put a pre-fab of the bridge bulkhead shape (straight lines between ovals) onto a copy of the hull shape done as a single line with the midpoint moved to form the curve of the hull. I basically wound up needing to measure (in pixels) how far back from the nose to start the cut and then how far to go to end the cut on a copy of the hull outline on a transparent solo image.

Once I had those pieces arranged (hull outline with cuts in it deleting where the bridge space would go) I could simply go back to my blank grid image, copy/paste in the curved hull outline with the cuts already in it and then copy paste the bridge module in on top of that to make everything fit together right. However, since there was no snap to grid functionality, I needed to build out the computer and avionics spaces as well around the bridge to help verify that I wasn't setting myself up for an "off by one" (pixel) placement error introducing an unwanted asymmetry because I was needing to copy/paste and reposition everything after the initial layout of where things ought to go (measure twice, cut once).

So getting those breaks in the line curve of the hull at the bridge bubbles took quite a bit of wrangling to make them look right, and even once I had done it the tolerances were so tight that even moving a single pixel up/down or left/right would leave gaps in the cut I'd made in the hull shape.

Measure it with a micrometer.
Mark it with a grease pencil.
Cut it with an axe.

 

[Spinward Flow]

Oh dear.
I just realized that there's a very interesting "breakpoint" on the Optimal Drives Usage table when building an LBB2.81 standard drives starship.

The 400 ton form factor is the cutoff point for standard drives H-class at TL=10, hence why I chose it for the above exercise.
All H-class drives add up to 85 tons of drives, requiring 3 crew positions for engineering (1 engineering position per 35 tons of drives).

However, if you bump up to TL=11 and want double fire computer programming for lasers, you're going to want to have J-class drives for jump and maneuver along with a K-class drive for power plant. That combination stacks up to 98 tons of drives (leaving 7 tons left over for maintenance of any small craft drives without requiring an additional engineering position) ... and the ideal form factor for that combination is 450 tons. At 450 tons, a J-class drive yields a rating of 4 (and the K-class drive yields a rating of 4 at 500 tons). That combination then enables a combination of cascading factors to improve (thanks to the more comprehensive Optimal Drives Usage table!) throughout the ship.

The real kicker is if you bump up to TL=12 and still want double fire computer programming for lasers, you're going to want to have L-class drives for jump and maneuver along with an M-class drive for power plant. That combination stacks up to 118 tons of drives, which requires 4 engineering positions (and leaving 22 tons left over for maintenance of any small craft drives before needing yet another engineering position) ... and the ideal form factor for that combination is 550 tons. At 550 tons, a L-class drives yields a rating of 4 (and the M-class drive yields a rating of 4 at 600 tons).

I'm going to need to ... investigate ... the possibilities here at these two breakpoints, which won't necessarily increase the crew size, and see if the revenue performance yields and revenue tonnage fractions improve significantly. I might even have sufficient tonnage allocation to add passenger capacity in addition to crew in an armed J4 clipper ship at TL=11-12!

Now wouldn't that be something interesting to see?
Pricey ... sure.
Incredibly fun to play in "modest technology level" regions of the map? You betcha!

In fact, I can easily imagine such a clipper ship being the "next step up" on the ladder for merchant starship operators after tooling around in Free/Far Traders who want to have a wider range of destinations (greater jump capacity) for use on speculative cargoes ... because the more destinations within range of one (or two) jumps of your current location, the greater the odds that you can buy low/sell high on speculative cargoes by maximizing your arbitrage potential.

This will require some investigation.



Oh and before anyone asks, the same equivalent thing at TL=10 would mean needing G-class drives for jump and maneuver with an H-class drive for power plant. That combination stacks up to 78 tons of drives (so still need 3 engineering positions) ... and the ideal form factor for that combination is ... 350 tons.

I suspect that trying to "shrink down" the original design into 350 tons won't exactly work (too cramped!) ... but growing the ship design to 450 or 550 tons while maintaining the 4/4/4 drive performance yield without adding (much) to the crew size could certainly work. The 550 ton design @ TL=12 would almost certainly be able to add a steward to the crew and up to 8 high passenger staterooms (plus additional Environmental Control Type V-c capacity to sustain them). I would have to run the numbers first to know if Environmental Control Type V-d capacity(!) might even be an option at TL=12 without impacting the revenue tonnage too much for comfort.

Back to the drawing board!

 

[Grav_Moped]

On the other hand, if you're using LBB2 drives, you might want to hit the high end of the size ranges (399Td, 599Td) since the drives will be what they are at all points between the 200Td performance steps while the power plant fuel drops off as a percentage as hull tonnage increases.

 

[Spinward Flow]

On the other hand, if you're using LBB2 drives, you might want to hit the high end of the size ranges (399Td, 599Td) since the drives will be what they are at all points between the 200Td performance steps while the power plant fuel drops off as a percentage as hull tonnage increases.

I just realized that there's a very interesting "breakpoint" on the Optimal Drives Usage table when building an LBB2.81 standard drives starship.

LBB2.77 and LBB2.81 have ... dramatically INADEQUATE tables for drive performance. There is nowhere NEAR enough granularity in the LBB2 tables for use cases except at exceedingly contrived breakpoints (100, 200, 400, 600, 800, 1000, 2000, 3000, 4000, 5000).

Optimal Drives Usage (LINK) (click it!)

Ever wanted to know how to get away from being stuck with 100 ton hull increments?
There's your answer.