Scott Martin
SOC-13
Hello
As threatened (promised) some specs on Missiles for discussion. These are all missiles based on HEPLAR drives, and for those of you who want some serious nastiness for high tech missile platforms, these can be used *stock* in any TNE game, and are designed using FF&S. I discovered that one of the "guidance" options for (battlefield) missiles is laser command controlled, so TNE does actually have specs on *just* the reciever (however obfuscated) which opens up the options for Fully Independent Missiles. Specs are for TL-13 and TL-15 missiles. Note that the "command" missiles are T-$ compatable (since they are all above the minimum HEPLAR thrust, and HEPLAR, Fusion plants and the nuclear triggers have not changed from TNE. YMMV converting the FIM's: If you want these in T4 I'd reccomend grabbing my spreadsheets and redesigning with FF&S-2 sensor packages.
Tech-13 is the tech level of the nasty deep space navy: improved powerplane efficiencies, Fusion plants small enough to tuck into a missile and the first availability of X-Ray lasers makes for a potent combination: My back-of-the-envelope estimate is that a TL-12 navy would need 2-4 times the tonnage of a tech-13 navy to make it an even fight: this ratio gets worse if you are using KKM's (Kinetic Kill Missiles)
For "traditional" traveller players the Tech-13 missiles will be quite a shock. For TNE players, the TL-15 missiles are "unholy" and I shudder to think what a "Traveller Classic" player (used to 6G missiles) would think of them. They are, however *much* closer to what I (and a number of other folks in "hard SF land) would expect space-based missile systems to be like. It should also be notes that the TL-15 "controlled" missiles can easily be upgraded to have a LOT more endurance for a nominal increase in size, no increase in price and a small decrease in maximum thrust (High endurance 500 Kton version given. Note that the average thrust for this missile dropped from 28.9 G's to 28.5 G's)
For all of these missiles, the most expensive component (often more than 90% of the cost) is the warhead. You'd think that in a society where fusion plants can be found in *cars* and X-Ray lasers are common welding tools ("hard times" has some Canon fiction regarding x-ray laser welders) that nuclear triggers and bomb-pumped lasers would be a bit cheaper.
I am still "tweaking" the TL-15 FIM's, including having variants that are controlled by a flight computer instead of a "seeker" package. I also think that the power curve is a bit low, so expect these to "bulk up" a bit and have accellerations in the 16-20 G range. TL-13 FIM's will be fairly similar to the controlled missiles, since the sensor packages are a much smaller percentage addition to their base mass (expect 12-14G accellerations with endurance and volumes similar so the controlled missiles)
I can provide full design notes to folks interested, but I will just have summaries here for people to peruse.
After looking at these specs, be in awe that the 3rd Imperium would be foolish enough to use tech-9/10 thrusters on the missiles mounted by it's tech-15 missile corvettes: changing their standard loadout to the "massive" 500 Kton FIM's presented here (with full computer control) would give them almost triple the loadout, with thrust of "only" 13G/26 G-Turn fuel volume, almost 10x the loadout using 500Kton "Standard" missiles or the mix that I would propose of 40 x 10 Kton "interceptor" missiles and 160 x 500 Kton "shipkiller" missiles (this is in *ready* storage, with the same in cargo) This matches the "standard" loadout for the missile corvette of 140 cubic meters of ready missiles. The "Stock" TNE missile frigate I'm happy to shoot to pieces in combat: this loadout would certainly give me pause. FIM loadout (while smaller) would be guarenteed to saturate the point defence of most task forces, while the corvette (and escorts) break out of engagement range.
For reference I envision 10 - 20 kton warheads beintg used for "point defence" (swatting small craft or in an anti-missile role) 50-100 Kton warheads being used for long range target saturation and 500 kton warheads being used in the anti-ship role. I have designed missiles with the 200 kton warheads, but if I'm going here I prefer to just use the bigest hammer I'm allowed (and would really prefer laser warheads in the megaton range for killing Capital ships, but they don't exist in the design sequences) Warheads in this range would allow Tech-11 / 12 fleets to hold against missile armed Tech-13+ combatants, although the cost / loss ratio would be very heavily canted against them as noted above (payable in cash, in advance)
Note that "end" (Endurance) is in G-Hours rounded DOWN to the nearest 0.5: to convert to G-Turns, multiply by 2. Average thrust is rounded *DOWN* to the nearest whole G (even when thrust is N.95)
</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;">TL-13 Controlled Missiles:
Warhead Volume Mass Thrust End. Cost Warhead Cost
(ktons) (m^3) (tons) (G avg) (G-hrs) (MCr) (MCr)
10 2.5 3.5 17 24.5 0.803 0.6
20 2.5 3.5 17 24 0.903 0.7
50 2.5 3.5 17 23.5 1.003 0.8
100 2.5 3.6 17 22.5 1.103 0.9
200 3 3.7 16 32 1.203 1
500 3 3.8 16 28.5 1.303 1.1
TL-15 Controlled Missiles:
Warhead Volume Mass Thrust End. Cost Warhead Cost
(ktons) (m^3) (tons) (G avg) (G-hrs) (MCr) (MCr)
10 0.5 0.543 37 19.5 0.6344 0.6
20 0.5 0.553 36 17.5 0.7344 0.7
50 0.6 0.578 35 28 0.8344 0.8
100 0.6 0.597 33 24.5 0.9344 0.9
200 0.6 0.615 32 21 1.0344 1
500 0.75 0.700 28 26.5 1.1344 1.1
500 1.0 0.718 28 55 1.1344 1.1
(The last missile is the "High endurance" 500 Kton variant)
TL-15 Fully Independent Missiles:
Warhead Volume Mass Thrust End. Cost Sensor range
(ktons) (m^3) (tons) (G avg) (G-hrs) (MCr) (hexes)
10 1 1.00 21 32.5 1.048 1
20 1 1.01 21 31.5 1.014 1
50 1.5 1.46 14 37 1.462 2
100 1.5 1.48 14 35 1.480 2
200 2 1.97 10 35.5 1.974 3
500 2 2.05 10 31 2.048 3</pre>[/QUOTE]Sensor Range in km is range in hexes x 30,000
Sensor Range in LS is Range in Hexes / 10
note that this is *short* range: max range (tracking range, not detection range) is 16x short range
Scott Martin
As threatened (promised) some specs on Missiles for discussion. These are all missiles based on HEPLAR drives, and for those of you who want some serious nastiness for high tech missile platforms, these can be used *stock* in any TNE game, and are designed using FF&S. I discovered that one of the "guidance" options for (battlefield) missiles is laser command controlled, so TNE does actually have specs on *just* the reciever (however obfuscated) which opens up the options for Fully Independent Missiles. Specs are for TL-13 and TL-15 missiles. Note that the "command" missiles are T-$ compatable (since they are all above the minimum HEPLAR thrust, and HEPLAR, Fusion plants and the nuclear triggers have not changed from TNE. YMMV converting the FIM's: If you want these in T4 I'd reccomend grabbing my spreadsheets and redesigning with FF&S-2 sensor packages.
Tech-13 is the tech level of the nasty deep space navy: improved powerplane efficiencies, Fusion plants small enough to tuck into a missile and the first availability of X-Ray lasers makes for a potent combination: My back-of-the-envelope estimate is that a TL-12 navy would need 2-4 times the tonnage of a tech-13 navy to make it an even fight: this ratio gets worse if you are using KKM's (Kinetic Kill Missiles)
For "traditional" traveller players the Tech-13 missiles will be quite a shock. For TNE players, the TL-15 missiles are "unholy" and I shudder to think what a "Traveller Classic" player (used to 6G missiles) would think of them. They are, however *much* closer to what I (and a number of other folks in "hard SF land) would expect space-based missile systems to be like. It should also be notes that the TL-15 "controlled" missiles can easily be upgraded to have a LOT more endurance for a nominal increase in size, no increase in price and a small decrease in maximum thrust (High endurance 500 Kton version given. Note that the average thrust for this missile dropped from 28.9 G's to 28.5 G's)
For all of these missiles, the most expensive component (often more than 90% of the cost) is the warhead. You'd think that in a society where fusion plants can be found in *cars* and X-Ray lasers are common welding tools ("hard times" has some Canon fiction regarding x-ray laser welders) that nuclear triggers and bomb-pumped lasers would be a bit cheaper.
I am still "tweaking" the TL-15 FIM's, including having variants that are controlled by a flight computer instead of a "seeker" package. I also think that the power curve is a bit low, so expect these to "bulk up" a bit and have accellerations in the 16-20 G range. TL-13 FIM's will be fairly similar to the controlled missiles, since the sensor packages are a much smaller percentage addition to their base mass (expect 12-14G accellerations with endurance and volumes similar so the controlled missiles)
I can provide full design notes to folks interested, but I will just have summaries here for people to peruse.
After looking at these specs, be in awe that the 3rd Imperium would be foolish enough to use tech-9/10 thrusters on the missiles mounted by it's tech-15 missile corvettes: changing their standard loadout to the "massive" 500 Kton FIM's presented here (with full computer control) would give them almost triple the loadout, with thrust of "only" 13G/26 G-Turn fuel volume, almost 10x the loadout using 500Kton "Standard" missiles or the mix that I would propose of 40 x 10 Kton "interceptor" missiles and 160 x 500 Kton "shipkiller" missiles (this is in *ready* storage, with the same in cargo) This matches the "standard" loadout for the missile corvette of 140 cubic meters of ready missiles. The "Stock" TNE missile frigate I'm happy to shoot to pieces in combat: this loadout would certainly give me pause. FIM loadout (while smaller) would be guarenteed to saturate the point defence of most task forces, while the corvette (and escorts) break out of engagement range.
For reference I envision 10 - 20 kton warheads beintg used for "point defence" (swatting small craft or in an anti-missile role) 50-100 Kton warheads being used for long range target saturation and 500 kton warheads being used in the anti-ship role. I have designed missiles with the 200 kton warheads, but if I'm going here I prefer to just use the bigest hammer I'm allowed (and would really prefer laser warheads in the megaton range for killing Capital ships, but they don't exist in the design sequences) Warheads in this range would allow Tech-11 / 12 fleets to hold against missile armed Tech-13+ combatants, although the cost / loss ratio would be very heavily canted against them as noted above (payable in cash, in advance)
Note that "end" (Endurance) is in G-Hours rounded DOWN to the nearest 0.5: to convert to G-Turns, multiply by 2. Average thrust is rounded *DOWN* to the nearest whole G (even when thrust is N.95)
</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;">TL-13 Controlled Missiles:
Warhead Volume Mass Thrust End. Cost Warhead Cost
(ktons) (m^3) (tons) (G avg) (G-hrs) (MCr) (MCr)
10 2.5 3.5 17 24.5 0.803 0.6
20 2.5 3.5 17 24 0.903 0.7
50 2.5 3.5 17 23.5 1.003 0.8
100 2.5 3.6 17 22.5 1.103 0.9
200 3 3.7 16 32 1.203 1
500 3 3.8 16 28.5 1.303 1.1
TL-15 Controlled Missiles:
Warhead Volume Mass Thrust End. Cost Warhead Cost
(ktons) (m^3) (tons) (G avg) (G-hrs) (MCr) (MCr)
10 0.5 0.543 37 19.5 0.6344 0.6
20 0.5 0.553 36 17.5 0.7344 0.7
50 0.6 0.578 35 28 0.8344 0.8
100 0.6 0.597 33 24.5 0.9344 0.9
200 0.6 0.615 32 21 1.0344 1
500 0.75 0.700 28 26.5 1.1344 1.1
500 1.0 0.718 28 55 1.1344 1.1
(The last missile is the "High endurance" 500 Kton variant)
TL-15 Fully Independent Missiles:
Warhead Volume Mass Thrust End. Cost Sensor range
(ktons) (m^3) (tons) (G avg) (G-hrs) (MCr) (hexes)
10 1 1.00 21 32.5 1.048 1
20 1 1.01 21 31.5 1.014 1
50 1.5 1.46 14 37 1.462 2
100 1.5 1.48 14 35 1.480 2
200 2 1.97 10 35.5 1.974 3
500 2 2.05 10 31 2.048 3</pre>[/QUOTE]Sensor Range in km is range in hexes x 30,000
Sensor Range in LS is Range in Hexes / 10
note that this is *short* range: max range (tracking range, not detection range) is 16x short range
Scott Martin
