How many Xboats?
- Thread starter plop101
- Start date
FlightCommanderSolitude
SOC-13
Not sure what the exact answer would be, but Supplement 7: Traders & Gunboats has some material on the xboat network. I was just looking at it, I think it mentioned that about a dozen tenders would support xboat traffic in a hipop system. You can do the math to figure out the total number of tenders in the Imperial xboat network...
Not quite. They would not all be coming from the same systems. A week out and a week back means two week round trip for each boat. Suddenly it's down to one per day, then you take into acount they could be coming and going from around siz different systems, near the core, and you're only getting a delivery from a particular system once per week.
Well, here is a for instance:
The Xboat run from Lanth to D'Ganzio, Jump4 route.
At once per day, an absolute minimum of 14 Xboats.
I'm thinking that they only run Xboats on the routes, the
rest of the systems get communication by Scout Couriers or
Merchant ships [depending on what the communication is
and the speed of the ship].
I guess there are two issues. Timing, how many Xboats per hour, day,
week, etc. The other is budget, how much is it going to cost for x-number
of Xboats. I ask the question 'cause I'm playing around with Adventure 5,
TCS, and was wondering how much money it would cost to run and maintain
an Xboat route. That way I could budget and allocate boats and ships for
the Scout Service in a particular subsector.
The Xboat run from Lanth to D'Ganzio, Jump4 route.
At once per day, an absolute minimum of 14 Xboats.
I'm thinking that they only run Xboats on the routes, the
rest of the systems get communication by Scout Couriers or
Merchant ships [depending on what the communication is
and the speed of the ship].
I guess there are two issues. Timing, how many Xboats per hour, day,
week, etc. The other is budget, how much is it going to cost for x-number
of Xboats. I ask the question 'cause I'm playing around with Adventure 5,
TCS, and was wondering how much money it would cost to run and maintain
an Xboat route. That way I could budget and allocate boats and ships for
the Scout Service in a particular subsector.
A minimum of one Xboat per link and one Xboat tender per node. This will get you a visit every 16-18 days on the average. You'll need a certain number of spares to account for maintenance and accidents.
More likely, count on three X-boats per link for weekly service. Multiply as needed for more frequent service and keep in mind that you may need more than one tender per node if the traffic increases.
Hans
far-trader
SOC-14 10K
A minimum of one Xboat per link and one Xboat tender per node. This will get you a visit every 16-18 days on the average. You'll need a certain number of spares to account for maintenance and accidents.
More likely, count on three X-boats per link for weekly service. Multiply as needed for more frequent service and keep in mind that you may need more than one tender per node if the traffic increases.
Hans</font>[/QUOTE]I think I like those numbers but I'd want something closer to daily service. Maybe 21 X-boats per link, with 1 Tender per link, and have each Tender 'carry' a prepped X-boat and run it like the old pony express it's modelled after. i.e. The X-boat arrives, dumps through going x-mail to the standby X-boat already loaded with todays outgoing x-mail and it jumps. The arriving X-boat is corralled by the Tender and seviced to be ready for the next arrival in about 24hrs. It's a little more complicated with more than two links but mostly an issue of timing. If there is an emergency or breakdown the standby is pressed into service and everybodys work gets a little more hectic until another standby is brought in from the nearest Scout Waystation (adventure nugget - a good assignment for some detached duty Scout if handy). Or, since the Tender has the capacity (IIRC) perhaps it should 'carry' 2 X-boats, cycling one as a standby as above and keeping one in reserve for emergency use and replacement.
trader jim
SOC-14 1K
speaking of x-boats, i have this recurring nightmare...here it is...iam at the very edge of imperial space...so far out hardly any one knows where i am...my x-boat go nuts...i misjump not once or even twice but tree times!!! there i am very, very lost...running out of water,food,air,
fuel,power,every thing, damn computers!! i have to put it down on a gods-forsaken mud ball the natives call EARTH!!!!! boy is it one great big
s...hole, realy screwed up!!! now thats a nightmare!!! quick some one wake me up!!
fuel,power,every thing, damn computers!! i have to put it down on a gods-forsaken mud ball the natives call EARTH!!!!! boy is it one great big
s...hole, realy screwed up!!! now thats a nightmare!!! quick some one wake me up!!
trader jim
SOC-14 1K
now you ask...how did he put it down?? you cant land x-boats!!! well thats a whole new story!!
trader jim
SOC-14 1K
the cuss word used in one of the lasts post was far two strong!! thats what i posted after a 14 hour work day and a fight with the boss!! yesterday was one of those days i woul rather forget!! sorry bout that folks!!!
You have a problem there. It is not possible to time the arrival of an X-boat. There's an unavoidable uncertainty about the time a jump takes, remember.
Most (about 80%) of all ships will arrive within a window of +/- 7 hours, but that's a spread of 14 hours (this is based on a jump duration of 140+8d6 hours). And then there is the remaining 20%.
Hans
far-trader
SOC-14 10K
You have a problem there. It is not possible to time the arrival of an X-boat. There's an unavoidable uncertainty about the time a jump takes, remember.
Most (about 80%) of all ships will arrive within a window of +/- 7 hours, but that's a spread of 14 hours (this is based on a jump duration of 140+8d6 hours). And then there is the remaining 20%.
Hans</font>[/QUOTE]Yes, I was factoring that, just not bothering to post the details yet. As you say most of the time the X-boat will arrive on the correct day, and I'm figuring the +/- will even out most of the time (i.e. the arriving boat may be a few hours late, so the departing boat is as late leaving but it may in turn arrive early and so 'catch up') There are also some other ideas I'm working on related to this for a submission so I'd rather not just give it away here
as I'm sure you can understand 
The timing issue I was referring to was that if you have more than two incoming links you have to wait for all of them to arrive before dispatching any of your readied X-boats so they can catch the through x-mail for their respective link.
Thanks for the feedback though, I do blunder on occasion (like my recent TML post where I 'forgot' in the heat of posting and half asleep that the speed of light is far slower than instantaneous
talk about your goofs... ). I appreciate it when someone catches me and especially so when they tell me in a kindly fashion.Mega traveller canon. The word of the assassination went out to the imperium at jump 4, taking 1 week per 4 parsecs. That means an x-boat was standing by and ready to go as soon as one arrived. It could be accounted for by having a standby boat at each tender, but implies that a boat was ready to go at all times, for each of the outbound routes.
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In the end, Murphy will rule
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In the end, Murphy will rule
FlightCommanderSolitude
SOC-13
Sorry folks, got the reference incorrect. It suggests that about a dozen xboats (not tenders) would support a hipop system.
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