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34 KiB
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: Earth's Dreamlands : Info on: RPG's, :(313)558-5024 : area code :
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:RPGNet World HQ & Archive: Drugs, Industrial :(313)558-5517 : changes to :
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: 1000's of text files : music, Fiction, :InterNet : (810) after :
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:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:
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=======================> GET FUDGE-VEHIC.RULES
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Getting File: SERVER:[GRASS]FUDGE-VEHIC.RULES;1
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X-NEWS: wharton rec.games.frp.misc: 21606
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Path: netnews.upenn.edu!newsserver.jvnc.net!howland.reston.ans.net!wupost!waikato.ac.nz!comp.vuw.ac.nz!acheron.amigans.gen.nz!alien
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From: alien@acheron.amigans.gen.nz (Ross Smith)
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Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
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Subject: Vehicle design system
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Message-ID: <alien.07mq@acheron.amigans.gen.nz>
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Date: 7 Jul 93 12:42:53 GMT
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Organization: Kzinti Diplomatic Corps. Let's do lunch.
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Lines: 767
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This is a vehicle design system I've been working on (and off) for a while;
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I'm posting this preliminary version in hopes of some useful ideas. It's
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intended to be compatible with any modern or SF RPG, although it was designed
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with FUDGE especially in mind. I'll post the accompanying vehicle combat
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system later.
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---------------------------------------------------------------------------
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GENERIC VEHICLE DESIGN SYSTEM
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-----------------------------
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Version 1.00 (7-Jul-93)
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Copyright 1993 by Ross Smith
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alien@acheron.amigans.gen.nz
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CONTENTS
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--------
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V1. Introduction
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V2. Technology
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V3. Vehicle types
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V4. Vehicle design
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V4.1. Hull
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V4.2. Engines
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V4.3. Sensors
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V4.4. Artificial intelligence
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V4.5. Accommodation
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V4.6. Defensive systems
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V4.7. Weapons
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V5. Performance
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V6. Sample designs
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V6.1. Ground car
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V6.2. Main battle tank
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V6.3. Fighter jet
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V6.4. Scout ship
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V1. INTRODUCTION
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-----------------
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This is intended to be a fairly simple, general purpose vehicle design
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system. It is not intended to substitute for the more elaborate and
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detailed systems found in games like GDW's MEGATRAVELLER, RTG's MEKTON II,
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or SJG's CAR WARS; instead, it's intended for quickly designing vehicles
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and determining their general capabilities. A reasonable amount of good
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judgement on the designer's and GM's part is taken for granted.
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If you or your players have ever said something along the lines of,
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`Quick, give me a rough idea of what that car/aeroplane/spaceship can do,
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so I can get on with the roleplaying,' this may be worth a look. If, on
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the other hand, you're into highly detailed vehicle or spaceship design,
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and like spending hours fiddling about with options until you get just what
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you want, you probably won't like this system; I suggest you try one of the
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games mentioned above.
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The term `vehicle' is meant in the most general sense possible;
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basically, any kind of self-powered, mobile machine, specifically including
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ground vehicles, robots, mecha, aircraft, and spacecraft (water craft may
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be added to a future version). My objective here was to come up with a
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system that could be used to design anything from R2-D2 to the Death Star.
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The system was designed with FUDGE in mind, but it should be easy to adapt
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it to the mechanics of almost any RPG.
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An accompanying vehicle/spacecraft combat system (FUDGE compatible) will
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be posted once I get the details worked out. This will explain things like
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the armour ratings and the `Agility' parameter, and will expand on the
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fairly sketchy list of weapon stats given here.
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This is a provisional version, and will be posted to rec.games.frp.misc
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in the hope of receiving constructive comments (given the nature of the
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Net, non-constructive comments can probably be taken for granted).
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Comments should either be mailed to me (my address is given above), or
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posted to rec.games.frp.misc. Although I retain copyright on it, this file
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may be distributed freely provided no changes are made. In particular,
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Steffan O'Sullivan can include it in the FUDGE archives if he likes,
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although I wouldn't recommend it until I've had a chance to make at least
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one update based on comments from the Net.
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A NOTE ON UNITS: Metric units are used throughout. Masses are in
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kilograms (kg), tonnes (t = 1000 kg), kilotonnes (kt = 1000 t), and
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megatonnes (Mt = 1000 kt). Prices for vehicle components are given in
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dollars, in the interests of being as `generic' as possible; these are
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intended to be equated (more or less) to present-day US dollars. In SF
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universes, of course, these should be converted to whatever currency units
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your interstellar society uses. I may revise the price scale significantly
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in a future version; the present one tends to give unrealistically low
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prices for some vehicles, especially military aircraft.
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V2. TECHNOLOGY
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---------------
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The following scale of technology levels is used. Note that all
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vehicles designed under these rules are assumed to have a minimum
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technology level of 6 (20th century equivalent).
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Level Description Period Technology
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----- ------------ ----------------- ----------------------------------
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I Stone Age Before 8000 BC Stone tools, fire, bow and arrow
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II Bronze Age 8000 - 1200 BC Metals, wheels, writing, ships
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III Classical 1200 BC - 1400 AD Iron, steel, armour, catapults
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IV Renaissance 1400 - 1700 AD Printing, guns, sailing ships
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V Industrial 1700 - 1900 AD Railways, steamships, telegraph
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VI 20th Century 1900 - 2000 AD Computers, aircraft, fission power
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VII Cyberpunk 2000 - 2100 AD ? Fusion power, cyberspace, nanotech
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VIII Interstellar 2100 AD - ? FTL travel, gravity control
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IX Dysonian ? Matter transmitter, megastructures
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X Unknown ? Time travel?
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V3. VEHICLE TYPES
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------------------
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Vehicles are divided into three broad classes and ten specific types.
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GROUND VEHICLES comprise wheeled vehicles, tracked vehicles, hovercraft,
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and mecha (which also includes human-size robots). See below for
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transformable mecha rules.
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AIRCRAFT comprise fixed-wing aircraft (conventional aeroplanes, which
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may or may not have vertical take-off capability), helicopters, and
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antigravity craft.
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SPACECRAFT comprise aerospaceplanes (or ASPs, capable of aerodynamic
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flight as well as space travel), re-entry vehicles (capable of landing on
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and taking off from a planetary surface vertically, but not of aerodynamic
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flight), and orbital vehicles (space-only craft not capable of landing on
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anything larger than the Moon). Note that these rules are not intended to
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cover the primitive, chemically propelled spacecraft of the late 20th
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century.
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The following table gives the basic parameters of each of the ten types
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of vehicle. `TL' is the minimum technology level required to build a
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vehicle of that type; `Max mass' is the maximum size of such a vehicle;
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`Hull mass' is the mass of the vehicle's basic hull, as a percentage of the
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vehicle's total mass; `Hull cost' is the cost of the hull (expressed as
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dollars per tonne of hull mass, not total vehicle mass); `Basic speed',
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`Basic range', `Agil mod' (agility modifier), and `DC mod' (damage capacity
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modifier) will be explained below (see under `Performance').
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Vehicle TL Max Hull Hull Basic Basic Agil DC
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type mass mass cost speed range mod mod
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------------------- -- -------- ---- ------- -------- ------ ---- ---
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Ground vehicles
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Wheeled vehicle 6 200 t 25% $5000/t 60 km/h 300 km -3 0
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Tracked vehicle 6 1000 t 30% $5000/t 40 km/h 200 km -5 0
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Hovercraft 6 10,000 t 30% $10k/t 60 km/h 150 km -1 0
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Mecha 7 1000 t 30% $20k/t 60 km/h 200 km +1 0
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Aircraft
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Fixed-wing 6 1000 t 20% $20k/t 600 km/h 200 km +3 0
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Helicopter 6 100 t 15% $20k/t 150 km/h 50 km +7 -1
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Grav craft 8 -- 15% $40k/t 300 km/h 100 km +7 0
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Spacecraft
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Aerospaceplane 7 1000 t 20% $40k/t 600 km/h -- +3 +1
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Re-entry vehicle 7 10,000 t 15% $40k/t 150 km/h -- -1 +1
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Orbital vehicle 7 -- 10% $20k/t -- -- -1 -1
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V4. VEHICLE DESIGN
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-------------------
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V4.1. HULL
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V4.1.1. BASIC HULL
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The vehicle's hull consists of the basic chassis or airframe, plus
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external skin and superstructure (not including special features such as
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armour), plus basic communication equipment (two-way radio), as well as any
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components relevant to the specific vehicle type -- wheels, tracks, wings,
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rotor blades, re-entry shielding, etc. The mass and cost of the hull
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varies with vehicle type; refer to the table above.
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V4.1.2. SPECIAL HULL FEATURES
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AMPHIBIOUS CAPABILITY: This gives vehicles the ability to travel on
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water (or, for aircraft and spacecraft, the ability to take off and land on
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water), as well as on land. Amphibious adaptations take up 2% of the
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vehicle's mass and cost $10,000 per tonne. Tech level 6.
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JUMP JETS: These give an aircraft the ability to take off and land
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vertically. On ground vehicles, they give the ability to make short
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airborne hops to cross difficult terrain (or roadblocks). Jump jets are
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mandatory on re-entry vehicles. Mass is 5% of the vehicle; cost is $10,000
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per tonne. Tech level 6.
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TRANSFORMATION CAPABILITY: This gives a vehicle (usually a mecha) the
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ability to change shape between two (or more) different vehicle types. The
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transformation gear itself takes up 5% of the vehicle's mass for each
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additional form, and costs $20,000 per tonne. When designing a
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transformable vehicle, calculate the mass and cost of the basic hull
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separately for each of the different forms; the actual hull mass is the
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greatest of the different types, while the hull cost is the total of all
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the different costs. Tech level 8.
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HANDS: Mecha may be given human-like (or non-human-like, if you prefer)
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hands; each hand takes up 2.5% of the vehicle's mass and costs $20,000 per
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tonne. Tech level 7.
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BIOFORM: This is an external pseudo-organic covering, normally applied
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only to human-sized androids, which makes a robot indistinguishable (at
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least in appearance) from a living creature; a medical examination would be
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required to tell the difference. Mass is 1% of the total; cost is $1000
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per kilogram. Tech level 8.
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V4.2. ENGINES
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V4.2.1. MAIN POWER PLANT
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The main power plant may be one of three types: conventional engines
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(chemical power, which includes everything from piston engines to jets),
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fusion reactors, and mass-conversion reactors. The mass and cost of a
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power plant depend on the type and the `power rating', which determines the
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vehicle's speed and agility. Hovercraft, helicopters, ASPs, and re-entry
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vehicles must have a power rating at least equal to the vehicle's mass in
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tonnes; all other types must have a PR of at least one-fifth of the
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vehicle's tonnage (unless they are fitted with jump jets, in which case the
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PR must be at least half the tonnage). Spacecraft must have fusion or
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mass-conversion engines.
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CONVENTIONAL ENGINES produce 20 PR points per tonne, and cost $10,000
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per tonne. Tech level 6.
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FUSION REACTORS produce 40 PR points per tonne, and cost $60,000 per
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tonne. Tech level 7.
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MASS-CONVERSION REACTORS produce 40 PR points per tonne, and cost
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$120,000 per tonne. Tech level 8.
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V4.2.2. FTL DRIVES
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Interstellar vessels will require a faster-than-light (FTL) drive in
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addition to the normal (sublight) engine. The details of this will vary
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enormously depending on the type of SF universe you want to build; the
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description given here is only a suggestion.
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FTL drives come in four types. The basic Mark I is also called the
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`one-shot' drive, since it is intended for emergency use only, and is
|
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fitted to lifeboats and sometimes as a backup drive for larger ships. It
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is normally capable of only one FTL jump before it must be replaced,
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although a skilled engineer might be able to coax a second one out of it.
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Maximum FTL speed is one quarter of a light-year per day.
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Most ships are fitted with a Mark II, III, or IV drive, which can be
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used for as long as they're kept in good repair, and give speeds of
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one-half, one, and two light-years per day, respectively. The Mark II is
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used in most commercial vessels; the Mark III is used in the faster
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commercial vessels and most military vessels; and the Mark IV is used in
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the fastest warships, couriers, and racing yachts.
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A Mark I drive takes up 2% of the ship's mass, with a minimum of one
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tonne, and costs $10,000 per tonne. Mark II, III, and IV drives take up
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2%, 4%, and 8% of the ship's mass (minimum of 2, 4, and 8 tonnes),
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respectively, and all cost $40,000 per tonne. All FTL drives are tech
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level 8.
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Note that Marks II, III, and IV are effectively interchangeable. You
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can take, say, a Mark III drive out of a 1000-tonne ship, fit it into a
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2000-tonne ship, and it will act as a Mark II; if you fit it into a
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500-tonne ship, it will act as a Mark IV. This does not apply to Mark I
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drives, and cannot be used to shift the effective rating below Mark II or
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above Mark IV (in the example given, the drive would act as a Mark IV in
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ships of anything up to 500 tonnes, a Mark III in ships of 501 to 1000
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tonnes, a Mark II in ships of 1001 to 2000 tonnes, and would not function
|
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at all in a ship of more than 2000 tonnes).
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V4.2.3. FUEL
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You should set aside a percentage of the vehicle's mass as fuel tankage.
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The amount of fuel will be determined by the range you want the vehicle to
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have.
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GROUND VEHICLES AND AIRCRAFT: For conventionally powered vehicles,
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range equals the basic range (from the vehicle type table) times the fuel
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percentage. For fusion powered vehicles, 1% of the vehicle's mass in fuel
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gives effectively unlimited range. For mass-conversion powered vehicles,
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forget about fuel; a negligible amount gives unlimited range.
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SPACECRAFT: 10% of the ship's mass (if fusion powered) or 1% (if
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mass-conversion powered) gives enough energy for ten round trips between a
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planet's surface and orbit, or one interplanetary journey (at about one
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astronomical unit per day), or one FTL jump.
|
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|
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|
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V4.3. SENSORS
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Ground vehicles and aircraft need not be fitted with any kind of sensor
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suite, but all spacecraft require one. Sensors come in three levels of
|
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sophistication: civilian, military, and reconnaissance.
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CIVILIAN STANDARD SENSORS provide the most basic functions required for
|
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navigation and weather avoidance. They are roughly equivalent to the radar
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sets and navigation beacon receivers found on most present-day airliners
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and business jets. Civilian sensors take up 2% of the vehicle's mass and
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cost $25,000 per tonne.
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|
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MILITARY STANDARD SENSORS provide more advanced radar functions such as
|
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target tracking, and also include other types of sensor such as infrared
|
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search and tracking equipment, laser rangefinders and target designators,
|
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and encrypted communications gear. At higher tech levels, it would include
|
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sensors for such things as gravitational radiation, neutrino emissions, and
|
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possibly FTL signals (if your universe includes such things). Mass is 4%
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of the vehicle; cost is $75,000 per tonne.
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||
|
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RECONNAISSANCE STANDARD SENSORS basically include long-range,
|
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high-resolution versions of every kind of sensor that the local technology
|
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can produce. In present-day terms, this is equivalent to the kind of
|
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sensors fitted to AWACS aircraft or spy satellites. Mass is 8% of the
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vehicle's mass; cost is $150,000 per tonne.
|
||
|
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All three types of sensor suite are available at tech level 6; of
|
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course, they increase in sophistication enormously with each tech level
|
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(and, to some extent, with the size of the vehicle).
|
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|
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|
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V4.4. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
|
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|
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Any vehicle can be programmed with artificial intelligence, although of
|
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course it's normally associated with human-sized robots. No mass is taken
|
||
up (vehicles of the appropriate tech level will have fairly sophisticated
|
||
embedded computers anyway, and the extra chips required are negligible in
|
||
size; the addition of AI is mainly a matter of software rather than
|
||
hardware). The intelligence levels listed here are intended to be equated
|
||
to the trait levels in FUDGE.
|
||
|
||
Intelligence Tech Cost Typical
|
||
level level equivalent
|
||
------------- ----- ----- -------------------
|
||
-10 6 $5000 Insect
|
||
-9 7 $10k Fish
|
||
-8 7 $15k Reptile, most birds
|
||
-7 7 $20k Horse, smart birds
|
||
-6 7 $30k Cat
|
||
-5 7 $40k Wolf, smart dog
|
||
-4 7 $50k Chimp, gorilla
|
||
-3 (terrible) 8 $100k Human moron
|
||
-2 (poor) 8 $150k Dim human
|
||
-1 (mediocre) 8 $200k Dim human
|
||
0 (fair) 8 $250k Average human
|
||
+1 (good) 8 $300k Smart human
|
||
+2 (great) 8 $400k Smart human
|
||
+3 (superb) 8 $500k Human genius
|
||
+4 9 $1M Superhuman
|
||
+5 9 $2M Superhuman
|
||
+6 9 $4M Superhuman
|
||
+7 10 -- Superhuman
|
||
+8 10 -- Superhuman
|
||
+9 10 -- Superhuman
|
||
|
||
|
||
V4.5. ACCOMMODATION
|
||
|
||
V4.5.1. COCKPITS
|
||
|
||
For most vehicles, each crew member must have their own cockpit. This
|
||
includes a seat, provision for external view (windows, video monitor,
|
||
virtual reality gear, cyberlink, or whatever else is appropriate to the
|
||
vehicle type and technology level), whatever controls are necessary for
|
||
that crew member's function, and (if the vehicle's role requires it) an
|
||
airtight seal and oxygen supply. Each cockpit has a mass of half a tonne
|
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(including the occupant) and costs $5000, plus an extra $10,000 if you want
|
||
to fit it with an ejection seat.
|
||
|
||
A cockpit may be occupied for up to 12 hours under normal conditions, or
|
||
up to a week under emergency conditions (but the occupant would suffer a
|
||
fatigue penalty after the first 12 hours).
|
||
|
||
Ground vehicles and aircraft with single-person crews can do without a
|
||
cockpit if you choose, but a passenger seat (see below) must still be
|
||
provided for the driver or pilot, and the seat is considered to be exposed
|
||
to the open air (like a motorcycle); the occupant is not protected by the
|
||
vehicle's armour, and must wear a full vacuum suit if the vehicle is to
|
||
operate outside Earth-normal conditions. Vehicles without a cockpit may
|
||
not have any kind of sensor suite, and must not have a maximum speed higher
|
||
than 250 km/h.
|
||
|
||
|
||
V4.5.2. PASSENGER SEATS
|
||
|
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Each passenger seat has a mass of 125 kilograms (including the
|
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passenger) and costs $500. Note that passenger seats used for passengers
|
||
(as opposed to one substituting for a cockpit) are protected by the
|
||
vehicle's armour and atmospheric seal in the normal way. Passenger seats
|
||
may be occupied for the same period of time as crew cockpits.
|
||
|
||
|
||
V4.5.3. CABINS
|
||
|
||
For long-distance travel, each occupant of the vehicle requires a cabin,
|
||
which provides life support and living space for as long as the vehicle
|
||
continues to function. Standard cabins have a mass of 2 tonnes and cost
|
||
$5000, and provide accommodation for one crew member or economy-class
|
||
passenger. Luxury cabins have a mass of 4 tonnes and cost $25,000, and
|
||
provide accommodation for one first-class passenger.
|
||
|
||
Note that, although the mass and cost of cabins is calculated on an
|
||
individual basis, this does not necessarily mean that the vehicle's
|
||
accommodation is actually divided into individual rooms. Cabins may be
|
||
combined into double or larger units; however, this is purely a question of
|
||
internal layout, and has no effect on the design process in terms of mass
|
||
and cost.
|
||
|
||
|
||
V4.5.4. ESCAPE PODS
|
||
|
||
Most spacecraft (and some aircraft) are fitted with emergency escape
|
||
pods. These provide life support for two people for two weeks, and are
|
||
fitted with small manoeuvring jets (capable of initiating re-entry from
|
||
orbit around a planet, or possibly of reaching a nearby planet from
|
||
interplanetary space if you're lucky), a re-entry shield and parachutes, a
|
||
two-way radio, an emergency beacon, and an inflatable raft (the pod itself
|
||
will also float). There is also a survival kit containing food for two
|
||
people for a month (assuming an oxygen atmosphere and a water supply),
|
||
water purification equipment, and a medical kit. They can hold four people
|
||
if you're really desperate, at the cost of overloading the life support
|
||
system (reducing endurance to two days), fatigue penalties all round, and a
|
||
very rough landing (severe risk of injury). Each escape pod has a mass of
|
||
half a tonne and costs $10,000. Tech level 7.
|
||
|
||
|
||
V4.6. DEFENSIVE SYSTEMS
|
||
|
||
V4.6.1. ARMOUR
|
||
|
||
Armour is rated as light, medium, heavy, or various grades of
|
||
extra-heavy. As a rough guide, a present-day armoured personnel carrier
|
||
will have light or medium armour, a light tank will have medium or heavy
|
||
armour, and a main battle tank will have XH1 or XH2 armour. No modern
|
||
vehicle has XH3 armour, but it's included for use in SF vehicles. Refer to
|
||
the table below for the mass of a vehicle's armour (percentage of the
|
||
vehicle's mass); all armour costs $5000 per tonne. Tech level 6.
|
||
|
||
Armour type Mass
|
||
--------------- ----
|
||
Light 2.5%
|
||
Medium 5%
|
||
Heavy 10%
|
||
Extra-heavy I 20%
|
||
Extra-heavy II 30%
|
||
Extra-heavy III 40%
|
||
|
||
|
||
V4.6.2. SHIELD GENERATORS
|
||
|
||
These are high-tech systems which generate a `force field' around the
|
||
vehicle, providing the equivalent of armour protection. A shield is
|
||
equivalent to extra-heavy armour of the same numerical rating; for example,
|
||
a level II shield is equivalent to XH2 armour. Refer to the table below
|
||
for mass; cost is $50,000 per tonne. Tech level 8.
|
||
|
||
Shield type Mass
|
||
----------- ----
|
||
Level I 4%
|
||
Level II 8%
|
||
Level III 12%
|
||
Level IV 16%
|
||
|
||
|
||
V4.6.3. ELECTRONIC WARFARE SUITE
|
||
|
||
An EW suite includes jamming equipment which can interfere with an
|
||
enemy's sensors and weapons guidance. It takes up 2% of the vehicle's mass
|
||
and costs $500,000 per tonne. Available at tech level 6; EW suites built
|
||
at higher tech levels are more sophisticated. An EW suite is virtually
|
||
useless against sensors of a higher TL, and is more effective against
|
||
sensors of a lower TL.
|
||
|
||
|
||
V4.6.4. STEALTH
|
||
|
||
A vehicle's external skin may be treated or modified in order to reduce
|
||
its detectability. Stealth adds only to the vehicle's cost, not the mass.
|
||
|
||
LEVEL I STEALTH: The skin is covered with a material which absorbs
|
||
visible light (giving it a black or grey colour), infrared radiation, and
|
||
radar signals. This is the equivalent of a present-day stealth aircraft.
|
||
Cost is $10,000 per tonne of vehicle mass. Tech level 6.
|
||
|
||
LEVEL II STEALTH: The skin can change colour, pattern, and radar and
|
||
infrared characteristics, in accordance with the decisions of the on-board
|
||
computer (or the pilot) as to what would provide the optimum camouflage at
|
||
any moment. This is often referred to as a `chameleon coat' (and is more
|
||
or less equivalent to the `mimetic polycarbon' described in William
|
||
Gibson's novels). Cost is $30,000 per tonne of vehicle mass. Tech level
|
||
7.
|
||
|
||
LEVEL III STEALTH: In the most advanced form of stealth, the vehicle's
|
||
skin incorporates a nanotechnology-derived hologram system, which can
|
||
project a three-dimensional image of the vehicle's surroundings onto its
|
||
surface, giving something close to genuine invisibility (effective against
|
||
infrared as well as visible light; the effect on radar is only slightly
|
||
better than level II stealth). The image is not perfect; it's difficult to
|
||
follow sharp edges and intricate curves in the shape, especially if the
|
||
vehicle is moving (the result is something like the effect in the
|
||
`Predator' movies). Cost is $100,000 per tonne of vehicle mass. Tech
|
||
level 8.
|
||
|
||
|
||
V4.6.5. TRACTOR BEAM
|
||
|
||
A device which uses gravity-control technology to produce a narrow beam
|
||
of attractive or repulsive force. It can exert a maximum force equal to 1
|
||
per cent of the ship's own drives (e.g. a tractor beam fitted to a ship of
|
||
1000 tonnes, with a drive capable of 5 G, could accelerate 10 tonnes at 5
|
||
G, or 50 tonnes at 1 G, or whatever). Mass is 2% of the ship's mass; cost
|
||
is $50,000 per tonne.
|
||
|
||
|
||
V4.6. WEAPONS
|
||
|
||
Obviously the details of which weapons are available and what their
|
||
capabilities are will be highly universe-dependent; the fairly generic list
|
||
presented here is just a suggestion, and is intentionally short on detail.
|
||
GMs are encouraged to expand it to their heart's content!
|
||
|
||
`TL' is the technology level required to build the weapon. `Mass' is
|
||
the mass of one weapon, not including ammunition; for some weapons this is
|
||
expressed as a percentage of the vehicle's total mass. `Cost' is the cost
|
||
of the weapon. `Ammo' and `A/C' are the mass and cost of one round of
|
||
ammunition. `Range' is the maximum range. `DM' is the damage modifier;
|
||
for melee weapons this is based on the mecha's strength (see below, under
|
||
`Performance').
|
||
|
||
For rocket or missile weapons, the mass and cost refer to one missile or
|
||
expendable multiple rocket pack.
|
||
|
||
Melee weapons can only be fitted to mecha.
|
||
|
||
A note on modern equivalents: a machine gun is intended to equate
|
||
(roughly) to a 12.7mm heavy MG, a light autocannon to a 25mm cannon, a
|
||
medium autocannon to a 50mm cannon, and a heavy autocannon to a 75mm
|
||
cannon. A tank gun has a calibre of around 120mm, a howitzer about 155mm.
|
||
Among the missiles, the anti-tank missile is roughly equivalent to a heavy
|
||
ATGM such as Hellfire, the anti-aircraft missile is something like a
|
||
Sparrow or AMRAAM, the tactical missile is something like a Maverick, and
|
||
the long-range missile is something like a Tomahawk.
|
||
|
||
Weapon TL Mass Cost Ammo A/C Range DM
|
||
------------------------ -- ------ ------ ------ ---- ------- ----
|
||
Projectile weapons
|
||
Machine gun 6 100 kg $2000 0.5 kg $1 1 km +6
|
||
Light autocannon 6 500 kg $10k 2 kg $4 1 km +12
|
||
Medium autocannon 6 1 t $20k 5 kg $10 1.5 km +15
|
||
Heavy autocannon 6 2 t $40k 20 kg $40 2 km +18
|
||
Tank gun 6 4 t $80k 50 kg $100 3 km +21
|
||
Howitzer 6 10 t $200k 100 kg $200 20 km +24
|
||
Flame weapons
|
||
Flamethrower 6 250 kg $5000 -- -- 150 m +9
|
||
Heavy flamethrower 6 2 t $40k -- -- 500 m +15
|
||
Energy weapons
|
||
Laser gun 7 500 kg $25k -- -- 10 km +14
|
||
Heavy laser gun 7 2 t $100k -- -- 50 km +20
|
||
Laser cannon 7 5 t $250k -- -- 250 km +23
|
||
Plasma gun 8 2 t $100k -- -- 1 km +21
|
||
Heavy plasma gun 8 5 t $250k -- -- 5 km +24
|
||
Plasma cannon 8 20 t $1M -- -- 25 km +27
|
||
Rocket weapons
|
||
Multiple rocket pack 6 250 kg $1000 -- -- 5 km +21
|
||
Anti-tank missile 6 100 kg $2000 -- -- 5 km +24
|
||
Anti-aircraft missile 6 250 kg $5000 -- -- 25 km +27
|
||
Tactical missile 6 1 t $20k -- -- 100 km +30
|
||
Long range missile 6 5 t $100k -- -- 1000 km +33
|
||
Melee weapons
|
||
Claws 6 2% $10k/t -- -- -- ST+1
|
||
Sword 6 2% $10k/t -- -- -- ST+3
|
||
Power sword 8 4% $50k/t -- -- -- ST+6
|
||
Chainsaw 6 4% $20k/t -- -- -- ST+6
|
||
|
||
|
||
V5. PERFORMANCE
|
||
----------------
|
||
|
||
The basic parameter that determines performance is the power to mass
|
||
ratio (PMR), equal to the engine's power rating divided by the vehicle's
|
||
mass in tonnes. This is used to calculate the maximum speed, acceleration
|
||
(spacecraft only), field length (non-VTOL aircraft only), and agility.
|
||
Calculation of maximum range is explained above, under `Fuel'.
|
||
|
||
Speed = Basic speed * PMR
|
||
|
||
Acceleration = 2 * PMR
|
||
|
||
Field length = Basic field length / PMR
|
||
|
||
Agility = (5 * PMR) + Agility modifier (1) + Agility modifier (2)
|
||
|
||
Damage capacity = Basic damage capacity + DC modifier
|
||
|
||
Basic speed, agility modifier 1, and DC modifier are given on the table
|
||
of vehicle types. Basic field length, agility modifier 2, and basic damage
|
||
capacity are determined from the vehicle's mass. Agility should be rounded
|
||
down to an integer (e.g. 2.5 rounds down to 2; -2.5 rounds down to -3).
|
||
|
||
Mecha also have a strength parameter; this is simply equal to the basic
|
||
damage capacity for the mecha's mass.
|
||
|
||
The irregularities in the DC scale in the 100 to 500 kilogram range
|
||
represent a `fudge factor' to make my vehicle combat system reasonably
|
||
consistent with FUDGE.
|
||
|
||
Vehicle Agility Field
|
||
mass modifier length
|
||
------- -------- ------
|
||
<100 kg 0 50 m
|
||
100+ kg -1 50 m
|
||
300+ kg -2 100 m
|
||
1+ t -3 250 m
|
||
3+ t -4 750 m
|
||
10+ t -5 2000 m
|
||
30+ t -6 3000 m
|
||
100+ t -7 4000 m
|
||
300+ t -8 5000 m
|
||
1+ kt -9 6000 m
|
||
3+ kt -10 --
|
||
10+ kt -11 --
|
||
30+ kt -12 --
|
||
100+ kt -13 --
|
||
300+ kt -14 --
|
||
1+ Mt -15 --
|
||
|
||
Vehicle Damage Vehicle Damage Vehicle Damage
|
||
mass capacity mass capacity mass capacity
|
||
------- -------- ------- -------- ------- --------
|
||
10+ kg -2 10+ t +20 10+ kt +38
|
||
15+ kg -1 15+ t +21 15+ kt +39
|
||
20+ kg 0 20+ t +22 20+ kt +40
|
||
30+ kg +1 30+ t +23 30+ kt +41
|
||
50+ kg +2 50+ t +24 50+ kt +42
|
||
70+ kg +3 70+ t +25 70+ kt +43
|
||
100+ kg +4 100+ t +26 100+ kt +44
|
||
150+ kg +6 150+ t +27 150+ kt +45
|
||
200+ kg +8 200+ t +28 200+ kt +46
|
||
300+ kg +10 300+ t +29 300+ kt +47
|
||
500+ kg +12 500+ t +30 500+ kt +48
|
||
700+ kg +13 700+ t +31 700+ kt +49
|
||
1+ t +14 1+ kt +32 1+ Mt +50
|
||
1.5+ t +15 1.5+ kt +33
|
||
2+ t +16 2+ kt +34
|
||
3+ t +17 3+ kt +35
|
||
5+ t +18 5+ kt +36
|
||
7+ t +19 7+ kt +37
|
||
|
||
|
||
V6. SAMPLE DESIGNS
|
||
-------------------
|
||
|
||
V6.1. GROUND CAR
|
||
|
||
Description and performance
|
||
Type : Wheeled vehicle
|
||
Tech level : 6
|
||
Mass : 2 tonnes
|
||
Cost : $12,000
|
||
Speed : 180 km/h
|
||
Range : 600 km
|
||
Agility : +9
|
||
Damage capacity : +16
|
||
|
||
Breakdown
|
||
Hull : 500 kg @ $2500
|
||
Powerplant (conv, PR 6) : 300 kg @ $3000
|
||
Fuel : 40 kg @ n/a
|
||
Cockpit : 500 kg @ $5000
|
||
Passenger (3) : 375 kg @ $1500
|
||
Cargo : 285 kg @ n/a
|
||
|
||
|
||
V6.2. MAIN BATTLE TANK
|
||
|
||
Description and performance
|
||
Type : Tracked vehicle
|
||
Tech level : 6
|
||
Mass : 50 tonnes
|
||
Cost : $451,500
|
||
Speed : 60 km/h
|
||
Range : 400 km
|
||
Agility : -4
|
||
Damage capacity : +24
|
||
|
||
Breakdown
|
||
Hull : 15 t @ $75,000
|
||
Powerplant (conv, PR 75) : 3.75 t @ $37,500
|
||
Fuel : 1 t @ n/a
|
||
Sensors (mil) : 2 t @ $150,000
|
||
Cockpit (4) : 2 t @ $20,000
|
||
Armour (XH2) : 15 t @ $75,000
|
||
Machine gun (3) : 300 kg @ $6000
|
||
MG ammo (3000 rds) : 1.5 t @ $3000
|
||
Tank gun : 4 t @ $80,000
|
||
TG ammo (50 rds) : 2.5 t @ $5000
|
||
Cargo : 2.95 t @ n/a
|
||
|
||
|
||
V6.3. FIGHTER JET
|
||
|
||
Description and performance
|
||
Type : Fixed-wing aircraft
|
||
Tech level : 6
|
||
Mass : 20 tonnes
|
||
Cost : $629,500
|
||
Speed : 2400 km/h
|
||
Field length : 500 m
|
||
Range : 2000 km
|
||
Agility : +18
|
||
Damage capacity : +22
|
||
|
||
Breakdown
|
||
Hull : 4 t @ $80,000
|
||
Powerplant (conv, PR 80) : 4 t @ $40,000
|
||
Fuel : 2 t @ n/a
|
||
Sensors (mil) : 800 kg @ $60,000
|
||
Cockpit : 500 kg @ $5000
|
||
Ejection seat : n/a @ $10,000
|
||
Armour (lt) : 500 kg @ $2500
|
||
EW suite : 400 kg @ $200,000
|
||
Stealth (lev 1) : n/a @ $200,000
|
||
Light AC : 500 kg @ $10,000
|
||
LAC ammo (500 rds) : 1 t @ $2000
|
||
AA missile (4) : 1 t @ $20,000
|
||
Cargo : 5.3 t @ n/a
|
||
|
||
|
||
V6.4. SCOUT SHIP
|
||
|
||
Description and performance
|
||
Type : Re-entry vehicle
|
||
Tech level : 8
|
||
Mass : 100 tonnes
|
||
Cost : $7,010,000
|
||
Speed : 750 km/h
|
||
Acceleration : 10 G
|
||
Agility : +17
|
||
Damage capacity : +27
|
||
|
||
Breakdown
|
||
Hull : 15 t @ $600,000
|
||
Powerplant (M/C, PR 500) : 12.5 t @ $1,500,000
|
||
Fuel : 10 t @ n/a
|
||
Amphibian : 2 t @ $20,000
|
||
Jump jets : 5 t @ $50,000
|
||
FTL drive (mk 3) : 4 t @ $160,000
|
||
Sensors (recon) : 8 t @ $1,200,000
|
||
Cockpit (4) : 2 t @ $20,000
|
||
Std cabin (8) : 16 t @ $40,000
|
||
Escape pod (4) : 2 t @ $40,000
|
||
Shield gen (lev 1) : 4 t @ $200,000
|
||
EW suite : 2 t @ $1,000,000
|
||
Stealth (lev 2) : n/a @ $2,000,000
|
||
Laser gun (4) : 2 t @ $80,000
|
||
Tac missile (5) : 5 t @ $100,000
|
||
Cargo : 10.5 t @ n/a
|
||
|
||
|
||
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
|
||
--
|
||
... Ross Smith (Wanganui, New Zealand) ... alien@acheron.amigans.gen.nz ...
|
||
"Use of unnecessary violence in the apprehension of the Blues Brothers
|
||
has been approved."
|
||
|
||
|