464 lines
17 KiB
Groff
464 lines
17 KiB
Groff
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** Drive Systems **
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Hyperdrive -
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Used for interstellar travel. The only way to move from one starsystem
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to another is to use the hyperdrive. The hyperdrive is too inaccurate
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to use for moving from planet to planet.
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Sub-light Drive -
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Used to travel between planets within a starsystem. Unable to propel
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yoour spacecraft faster than light, the sublight is too slow to be used
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for moving between starsystems.
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Gravity Generator -
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Generates gravity for environmental and protective purposes. The gravity
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generator will also protect you from acceleration caused by the
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sub-light drive.
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** Energy Systems **
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Converter -
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A power generator that transforms Ore IV into energy units.
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Accumulators -
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Store energy units made by the converter. This system is primarily used
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whenn another system, such as the hyperdrive, requires a large amount
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opf eneregy at a rate much faster than the convertoer can produce.
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Essentially a large collection of batteries.
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Ore Storage -
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Holds the 4 different types of ore (I-IV).
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** Command and Support Systems (C&S) **
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Bridge -
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The command cneter of your ship. If the bridge is destroyed, the game
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ends.
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Crew Quarters -
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The living quarters and off-duty stations for your crew.
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Computer -
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The central computer for your spacecraft. It is very powerful, but not a
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true machine intelligence.
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Autodoctor -
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An automatic medical repair unit used for raising you and your crew's
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health percentage.
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Hibernaculum -
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A cold-storage unit for transporting passengers. The process is
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dangerous and you should expect to lose a certain percentage of the
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passengers upon revival.
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Vidcomm -
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The video communications device for your spacecraft. In this game it is
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limited to receive only. Messages are stored by repeater units in orbit
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around all of the habitable planets, so you won't miss any messssges
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that you might need.
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Cargo Hold -
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Stores cargo that you purchase down at the starports or that you capture
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from enemy vessels.
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Atmospehrics -
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The environmental control for your spacecraft. If this sustem is
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destroyed, everyone on the spacecraft will die.
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** Scanning Systems **
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Solar/Planetal Scanner -
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Scans the starsystem that you are in or the planet that you are
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currently orbiting.
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Resource Scanner -
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Scans the surface of habitable or airless planets for the best available
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mining site.
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High Definition Scanner -
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Provides a detailed scan of any spacecraft within your range.
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** Lander systems **
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Orbital Shuttle -
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Used to travel to and from starports, which are found on the surface of
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almost all of the habitable planets.
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** Weapon Systems **
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Missile Launcher -
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Powers and launches missiles at enemy ships.
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Missile Rack -
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The system of racks and conveyors used to store missiles and load them
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in the Missile Launcher.
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Enhanced Beam Weapon (EBW) -
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A type of highly destructive particle-beam weapon.
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Shield Generator -
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Generates a sphere of disruptive gravity waves around your spacecraft,
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lessening the effects EBW or missile hits upon your spacecraft.
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Docking Adaptor -
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Used only for docking and boarding an enemy spacecraft. It will adhere
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to the other spacecraft's hull and, if marines are deployed, burn a
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breach right through the outer hull.
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Electronic Countermeasure (ECM) -
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A variety of jamming equipment which renders your ship invisible to
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enemy scanners.
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Assault Capsule -
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A lander used on habitable planets with a population sophistication of
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40 or greater when you wish to mine ore illiegally. The capsules are
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siimilar to the orbital shuttles, but they carry marines, are covered
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with armor, have a cannon mounted on top, and can land almost anywhere.
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** Mining Systems **
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Ore Processor -
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Another lander, this one greatly resembles a flying off-shore oil rig of
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the 20th century. Used to mine ores on habitable and airless planets.
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Ramscoop -
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A recently invented device which allows you to collect ore IV directly
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from the atmosphere of a gaseous planet.
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CREW: USE AND MAINTAINANCE
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Running a complex starship of the 24th century requires the aid of many
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skilled technicians. Although you are initially provided with a few
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crewmen, as ou expand your ship you will find the need to hire more.
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Each crewman has a number of characteristics on which they should be
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judged. Hiring the right crewman can make the difference between winning
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and losing.
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The characteristics for each crewman are:
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Health -
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A measurement of a crewmember's ability to perform his duty. If the
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health percentage reaches 0, the crewmember dies. Reduced health may
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result from battle damage, injury when moving dangerous cargo, and
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changing watch. A crewman with a health percentage of less than 70% may
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die of untreated injuries during any watch. This is especially true for
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older crewmen.
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Age -
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In the time period that Universe II depicts, a crewman's age runs from
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20 to 130. All crewmen automatically retire when they reach 130. On a
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dossier, the promotion date is also the birthdate. Age primarily
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determines a crewman's ability to resist death from injuries. Older
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crewmen are more likely to die from untreated (below 70% health)
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injuries.
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Specialty -
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Every crewman has a specialty, which they may not switch. They are:
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Captain -
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The supreme authority on a spacecraft. Captains are invariably
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asomnigenated and technically always on duty.
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Astrogator -
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The person responsible for getting the spacecraft from one place to
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another. An astrogator's grade is especially important for hyperspace
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jumps. The higher grade astrogators will break the ship out of
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hyperspace much closer to the habitable zone of a starsystem, thus
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saving a great deal of time and energy.
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Gunner -
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The gunner is an expert on all the various forms of weaponry that your
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ship may carry. A superior gunner hs a greater accuracy with missiles
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and more skill in using ECM's.
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Pilot -
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The pilot is the person who flies the orbital shuttles, ore processors,
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and the assault capsules. All lander-type vehicles require one more
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pilot to operate. The higher-grade pilots' ships will receive less
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damage when descending through the atmosphere. In addition, when an
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assualt capsule is on the ground, the pilot mans the cannon and the
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higher grades are better shots. Pilots also move cargo to and fromm the
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cargo hold.
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Miner -
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They are the crewmen who land on habitable and airless worlds to mine
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the various ores. They are required to launch ore processors. The
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higher-grade miners (15 and above) will recover even more ore than the
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resource scanner indicated for the mining site. Since miners work in
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gangs, it is important to realize that their grades are averaged and
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that it is the average which determines a particular ore processor's ore
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recovery rate.
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Marine -
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Marines are used in two circumstances: boarding & ground assaults. When
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boarding an enemy spacecraft, the marine works as a individual,
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neutralizing enemy marines, providing cover fire or capturing control
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panels. During ground assaults, the marines move as a squad,
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neutralizing enemy ground squads and attacking enemy defense stations.
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All marines are outfitted with various types of exosuit armor and
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portable cannons. As a marine's grade rises, his ability to move and his
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accuracy of fire improve.
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Engineer -
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the fix-it man for your ship. Engineers are very expensive to keep,
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being the highest paid of all the specialties. As an engineer's grade
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rises, his speed and ability to repair the various ship-board systems
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improves.
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Grade -
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A measurement of a crewman's knowledge of his specialty. Grades run from
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1 to 20, grade 20 being the highest. Once a crewmember has been hired,
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his grade will rise once a year. To speed things up, a crewman can be
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left at a technical school, where it will take much less than a year per
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grade (and several thousand credits!).
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Promotions -
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Promotions happen once a year, on the crewman's birthday. A promotion
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increases the crewman's grade and income. Once a crewmember's grade
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reaches 20, promotion day only signifies his next birthday.
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Income -
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Income is based on the crewman's grade and specialty. The pay scales
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are:
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Specialty | Base Income Raise Per Grade
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------------------------------------------------
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Captain | N/A N/A
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Astrogator | 15,000 750
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Gunner | 10,000 600
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Pilot | 7,000 250
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Miner | 8,000 300
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Marine | 4,000 1300
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Engineer | 19,000 1000
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Crew can be paid when entering a drydock, in the Pay Day section. Any
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crew member which has not been paid in over 60 days will quit.
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Watch -
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Watch determines which part of the day the crewman is on duty. The day
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is broken up into three 8 hour watches. Astrogators and gunners stand
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regular watches. Pilots, miners, marines, and engineers have special
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watches: They only work when their duties are needed. You as the
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captain, have undergone a process called asomnigenation. Asomnigenation
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alters the body's chemistry and makes it unecessary for you to sleep.
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Astrogators and gunners can also be asomnigenated. Anyone who is
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asomnigenated is on a "full" watch and are always available.
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**Provisions**
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One provision includes enough food, water, etc. to keep one person alive
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for one day. Usually it is convenient to think of the provisions supply
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in terms of days, that is, with the current complement of crew, how long
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before they starve. To calculate the number of provision/days, divide
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the number of provisions by the current number of crew.
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COMMERCE IN THE LOCAL GROUP
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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In the Local Grooup, the basic unit of currency is the credit. The
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credit has been fixed by the Interworld Trade Commision, at the famous
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Meeting of 2167, as being equivalent in value o one unit of Ore IV.
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Since Ore IV is a common substance, but tedious to refine, it provides a
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stable monetary base.
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Your primary goal, as an interstellar merchant, is to earn money. The
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four sources of revenue available to youuare: trading, passenger
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transport, mining, and orbital piracy.
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** Trading **
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The object of trading is to buy an item on a world where it is
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commonplace and relatively inexpensive and brin it to a world whose
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sophistication is from 1 to 10 points lower. Suddenly, your product
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becomes state-of-the-art and highly desirable. Multiply your profit
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times the 10 products you can carry per trip and you have a sizable
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amount of credits.
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Certain products are even more marketable. Not only will food/spice,
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lifeforms, narcotics, and jewelry sell at a starport 10 sophistication
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points lower than the point of purchase, they can be sold at starports
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up to 10 sophistication points higher than the point of purchase. This
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reflects the fact that these product types have a more universal appeal
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and that they are not as dependent on local technology.
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Products have several characteristics. They are:
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Name -
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This is the product's brand name.
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Type -
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The product's classification. Almost every culture has product types
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which are illegal to import. In the appendix is a list of the cultures
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and their illegal product types.
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Cargo Size -
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A measurement of the product's bulk.
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Sophistication -
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A measurement of the product's complexity. This figure is always the
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same as the product's planet of origin. At best, products appeal to a
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range of 20 sophistication points. This reflects the fact that products
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too simple for the buyer have been out-moded (no one buys grindstones
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anymore) and products that are too complex do not have the other
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supporting technologies required (an ancient Egyptian would not have any
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use for a television set).
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Price -
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The value of a product is based upon its sophistication and its original
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manufacturer's price (a figure you will never know exactly). Note that
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products up for sale at their planet of origin or on planets outside of
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the sophistication's range of appeal will be worth 0 credits.
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** Mining **
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Mining is a fairly straightforward way of earning money. It requires at
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least one ore processor, a mining squad, a resource scanner, a scanner
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program, and patience. In additio, depending on how intent you are in
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the pursuit of ore, you may need some assault capsules and their
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paraphernalia.
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Once the ore has been collected and refined, it is brought to a
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starport, where it can be exchanged for credits.
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The disadvantages of mining are numerous. High concentrations of ore are
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difficult to find. LAnding on airless worlds is usually very dangerous.
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The start-up costs in minng are very high, typically above 50,000
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credits.
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** Passenger Transport **
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At every starport in the Local Grou there are people waiting for flights
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to other planets. You, as a merchant, are continually hopping from
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planet to planet. Equipped with a hibernaculum, you can carry these
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people for a fair amount profit, which is based on the distance and
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sophistication of the destination from your current starport.
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** Orbital Piracy **
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In many of the less-developed starsystems, complete anarchy in orbit is
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the rule. Properly outfitted, you can profit from this situation.
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Capturing another spacecraft, though, is not a simple process. You need
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to select a suitable target, scan it, and destroy its entire complement
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of crew and marines, all without destroying the ship. If it isn't
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possible to destroy all of the marines, you will have to send over some
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of your own and hope the can secure the ship.
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Once the target ship is captured, you will be able to take all of the
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credits, ore, and products on board... if you survive.
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THE ON-BOARD COMPUTER
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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In order to operate, your spacecraft must be equipped with an on-board
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computer. The computer controls many of the other systems on your ship.
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The speed of the computer is measured in *tevops per minute* (trillions
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of operations per minute). Program size is measured in the number of
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operations which must be executed in a complete run. So, to find the
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amount of time it takes for a program to completely run, divide the
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program's size (tevops) by the computer's tevops per minute figure. This
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will give you the time in minutes.
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The following is a list of the programs available for your computer:
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Hyperspace Navigation -
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Calculates the course, energy, time, and distance required to make a
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hyperespace jump. This program must be available for the hyperdrive to
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work.
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Normalspace Navigation -
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Calculates the course, energym and time required to move your ship
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anywhere within a starsystem. This program must be available for the
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sub-light drive to work.
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Autodoctor -
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Controls the autodoctor. This program must be available for the
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autodoctor to work.
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Hibernaculum -
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Controls the freezing and thawing of passengers in the hibernaculum.
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Thie program must be available for the hibernaculum to work.
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Solr/Planetal Scanner -
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Interprets the data gathered by the solar/planetal scanner. This program
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must be available for the solar/planetal scanner to work.
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Resource Scan -
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Interprets the data gathered by the resource scanner. This program must
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be available for the resource scanner to work.
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High Definition Scan -
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Interprets the data gathered by the high definition scanner. This
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program must be available for the high definition scanner to work.
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Shuttle Guidance -
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Controls the ascent and descent of orbital shuttles. This program must
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be available to launch orbital shuttles.
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Ore Processor Guidance -
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Controls the ascent and descent of ore processors. This program must be
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available to launch ore processors.
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Assault Capsule Guiudance -
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Controls the ascent and descent of assault capsules. This program must
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be available to launch assault capsules.
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Missile Track -
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Aims and launches missiles at a target object. This program must be
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available to launch missles.
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EBW Track -
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Aims and fires the EBW at a target object. This program must be
|
||
available to fire the EBW.
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ECM -
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Controls the ECM unit. This program must be available for the ECM to
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function.
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Athena IRS -
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The information retrieval system program. This program contains hundreds
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||
of important facts and figures which can be recalled by typing a key
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word.
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||
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||
When you sell a computer, all of the programs you have purchased for it
|
||
will be lost. Once a program has been purchased, there is no way to
|
||
remove it short of selling the computer.
|
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|
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|
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