The Ghalalk Cruiser

[robject]

The Ghalalk Cruiser is a modular, multipurpose ship used extensively during the Barracks Emperors period.

Marc expanded my knowledge of the Ghalalk Cruiser by mentioning that there are three bays on each side, each of which can have an absolutely huge module attached. I think he also mentioned that there are variants of the Ghalalk which only have one or two bays on each side, and are correspondingly shorter.

I'll try to find the references.

I wonder what its T5 stats would be.

 

[Andrew Boulton]

Marc's favourite ship, ISTR. I'll have to build one...

S09 lists it as TL15, so it postdates the Civil War by several hundred years, although I'm sure a similar ship was around then. The SEH and Planet from MT RSB seem to be related.

 

[Pickles]

I don't know, everyone's doing modular ships these days ...

 

[Border Reiver]

I vote for a resurgence in non-standard, bespoke ship designs.

 

[robject]

Yeah Brom, I noted that too. Although the Clipper was always modular, wot?

 

[Border Reiver]

It was what made the Broadsword so cool, those two modular cutters.

The Aurora in TNE showed promise and the tease of other modular designs was inspirational for me using FF&S1.

Time to look up the references and see what I can come up with using FF&S2

 

[Pickles]

Don't mind me, just a Spica in-joke. I must stop doing that ...

 

[far-trader]

Originally posted by the Bromgrev:
Don't mind me, just a Spica in-joke. I must stop doing that ...

Oh you got me good...

<mutter mutter hiver mutter manipulation mutter grumble... >

 

[far-trader]

Now then, back to the story...

Originally posted by robject:
The Ghalalk Cruiser is a modular, multipurpose ship used extensively during the Barracks Emperors period.

Marc expanded my knowledge...

That's... interesting.

As Andrew correctly recalls Marc did name it his favorite somewhere/when. And when I saw that (on these boards iirc) I figured it would be a good one to work up for T20. Not sure where the notes are now, ran into a snag and put it aside.

I don't doubt Marc's assertion, or your reporting of such, but I never got that impression from the ones I could find when I researched it for my T20 version. Now that you say it I can kinda see it, if I squint. It certainly isn't clear that it was from what I remember. Another wrinkle to add to the treatment of it.

The relationship to the SEH and Planet from MT RSB Andrew notes is I believe due to a mistake. The artwork of the Ghalalk was used but the two ships are nowhere near the same. It has no doubt added to the confusion of the enemies of The Imperium

 

[robject]

I never saw it, either, so I suspect it's more like a retcon than anything else. Or call it an "expansion of the concept"...

 

[far-trader]

Or perhaps Marc's original vision for it becoming clearer

Did he offer any hints as to what function(s) the modular sections would be organized as? Weapons Bays? Troop Landing Craft Hangers? Cargo? Fuel Tanks? ??? Or would you care to share your own ideas for them? Nothing is leaping out at me with quick look at the stats and pics. I'm just (always) curious.

Hmm, now why am I recalling weapon bay and troop modules as features? I wonder if I did toy with the idea for the Ghalalk when I looked at it? Or is this recent revelation just messing with my mind? I'm going to have to hunt up my previous work to figure that out.

 

[robject]

TL15. 50,000 tons. J4. 5G. Factor 5 armor.
Four 50-ton small craft.
200 troops.

PA Spine. 40 x 50t missile bays. 5 x 30-gun laser batteries. 1 x 20-gun fusion battery.
2 x 21-launcher sandcaster batteries.
Meson screen (factor-5).
Nuclear damper (factor-9).

So here's what I can grok about it in T5 parlance so far (with some guesses and some empty spots).

</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;"> Volume Cost
(50,000) Hull 5,000
100 Bridge -
1,000 50cm armor 4,000
1,255 250EP Jump-4 drive 1,250
20,000 Jump fuel -
1,250 625EP MP-5 drive 7,500
2,500 Power plant fuel -
800 Spacious Hangar ?
? PA Spine ?
200 Missile bays ?
50 Laser batteries 250
10 Fusion batteries ?
14 Sandcaster batteries 14 (appx)
? Screen ?
? Damper ?

704 Command (16) 88
Pilots (6?)
Astrogators (6?)
Engineers (13)
Aux pilots (4)
Gunners (appx 50)
Bunker (200 troops)
Medical staff (14)

(22,117) 18,102

...leaving 22,000+ tons for the remaining armaments...</pre>[/QUOTE]

 

[robject]

Jesse's images of the Ghalalk make it look like the smallest version, as if there were two extended versions of it possible.

Ghalalk from Vision Forge Studios

If that's so, then each side unit (probably not really a module, eh?) displaces no more than 10,000 tons -- and probably less.

But there's some jump fuel in them modules. Up to 10,000 tons of it.

Anyway, that would seem to indicate there could be a 75,000 ton variant and a 100,000 ton variant.

Alternately, if the image shows two modules on each side, displacing appx 5,000 tons each, then the two variants could be around 40,000 and 60,000 tons.

I think the latter case seems more likely, and seems to ring a bell. So then:

</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;"> Volume Cost
(40,000) Hull 4,000
80 Bridge -
1,000 50cm armor 4,000
1,005 200EP Jump-4 drive 1,000
16,000 Jump fuel -
1,000 500EP MP-5 drive 6,000
2,000 Power plant fuel -
800 Spacious Hangar ?

564 Command (13) 70.5
Pilots (5?)
Astrogators (5?)
Engineers (12)
Aux pilots (4)
Gunners (appx 40)
Bunker (160 troops)
Medical staff (12)

(17,551) 15,070.5</pre>[/QUOTE]</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;"> Volume Cost
(60,000) Hull 6,000
120 Bridge -
1,000 50cm armor 4,000
1,505 300EP Jump-4 drive 1,500
24,000 Jump fuel -
1,500 750EP MP-5 drive 9,000
7,500 Power plant fuel -
800 Spacious Hangar ?

720 Command (18) 90
Pilots (6?)
Astrogators (6?)
Engineers (15)
Aux pilots (4)
Gunners (appx 60)
Bunker (240 troops)
Medical staff (18)

(22,855) 20,590</pre>[/QUOTE]