far-trader
SOC-14 10K
Actually 567-908 is a Class E starport. Good idea hunting up the background Gadrin. Nice descriptive. Being a desert world I wonder if the vault was always buried or if it's the result of sand drift?
Class E Starport
- Thread starter Andrew Boulton
- Start date
Interesting comments all. You may consider all of them stolen. 
IMTU, the only real difference between nearly all Class E ports and a Class X "port" is that fact that the Class E port has been surveyed and had a beacon installed. Nothing more.
The SPA(1) will identify a need, then ask the IISS for recommendations. The Scouts consult their files, select a few targets, and dispatch some poor schmoes to perform a detailed survey. This survey will include many more things than just soil and rock samples. Weather, flora, fauna, the natives, and many other things must be taken into account. That's why the IISS is the best organization for the job. Once the schmoes return, the IISS forwards a list of sites to the SPA and that organization performs its own investigation.
Once the site is selected, the SPA either "builds" the "port" itself or, more usually, subcontracts the job out to a private company or, rarely, the IISS. The "extrality" line is marked, the actual landing site gets "improved" or constructed, a few hardstands "improved" or constructed, the beacon bunker built and solid antenna erected.
Any other amenities are wholly situational and usually knocked together after the fact by the locals and sometime with some off-the-books help from crew; i.e. Hey champ, you the head muddie hereabouts? Good. Just want to let you know we'll be leaving those stacks of extruded sheeting 'cause it ain't worth shipping them out. Most of this other stuff is going to be left behind too. The Authority don't much care what happens to it, understand? Slappy here will show you how to work the bonding gun.
After "construction" is complete, the SPA will monitor the new "port" depending on local conditions and traffic flow. This monitoring will take many forms and come at irregular intervals. It could be an SPA courier flyby, a subcontractor staying in orbit long enough to upload beacon records, an IISS visit, or even someone from the IN stopping by. Of course, every port isn't monitored the same way every time or even after the same period of time.
The need for repairs is noted during these visits and those repairs are handled in the same manner as the initial construction. Class E ports are fairly mobile too. Once the need becomes evident, the SPA can easily move the port's location by simply building another and shutting down the original beacon. A port may be moved due to climatic reasons, the lake dried up, environmental reasons, a newly active volcano nearby, or sociological reasons, the Star Bellied Sneechs are better hosts to visiting starships than the Plain Bellied Sneeches.
This means a planet may have a few abandoned ports whose locations are only know to certain individuals or groups. Of course the condition of those port's landing grounds and hardstands is unknown too.
Regards,
Bill
1 - MTU has had something similar to the SPA ever since the John Ford "Skyport" article in deadtree JTAS.
IMTU, the only real difference between nearly all Class E ports and a Class X "port" is that fact that the Class E port has been surveyed and had a beacon installed. Nothing more.
The SPA(1) will identify a need, then ask the IISS for recommendations. The Scouts consult their files, select a few targets, and dispatch some poor schmoes to perform a detailed survey. This survey will include many more things than just soil and rock samples. Weather, flora, fauna, the natives, and many other things must be taken into account. That's why the IISS is the best organization for the job. Once the schmoes return, the IISS forwards a list of sites to the SPA and that organization performs its own investigation.
Once the site is selected, the SPA either "builds" the "port" itself or, more usually, subcontracts the job out to a private company or, rarely, the IISS. The "extrality" line is marked, the actual landing site gets "improved" or constructed, a few hardstands "improved" or constructed, the beacon bunker built and solid antenna erected.
Any other amenities are wholly situational and usually knocked together after the fact by the locals and sometime with some off-the-books help from crew; i.e. Hey champ, you the head muddie hereabouts? Good. Just want to let you know we'll be leaving those stacks of extruded sheeting 'cause it ain't worth shipping them out. Most of this other stuff is going to be left behind too. The Authority don't much care what happens to it, understand? Slappy here will show you how to work the bonding gun.
After "construction" is complete, the SPA will monitor the new "port" depending on local conditions and traffic flow. This monitoring will take many forms and come at irregular intervals. It could be an SPA courier flyby, a subcontractor staying in orbit long enough to upload beacon records, an IISS visit, or even someone from the IN stopping by. Of course, every port isn't monitored the same way every time or even after the same period of time.
The need for repairs is noted during these visits and those repairs are handled in the same manner as the initial construction. Class E ports are fairly mobile too. Once the need becomes evident, the SPA can easily move the port's location by simply building another and shutting down the original beacon. A port may be moved due to climatic reasons, the lake dried up, environmental reasons, a newly active volcano nearby, or sociological reasons, the Star Bellied Sneechs are better hosts to visiting starships than the Plain Bellied Sneeches.
This means a planet may have a few abandoned ports whose locations are only know to certain individuals or groups. Of course the condition of those port's landing grounds and hardstands is unknown too.
Regards,
Bill
1 - MTU has had something similar to the SPA ever since the John Ford "Skyport" article in deadtree JTAS.
Nice work.
Beautiful work as always Andrew. Of course, I for one wouldn't mind seeing the other Classes portrayed, but hey that's just me.
Say Andrew, when are you going to do a High Guard movie? I think it could be smashing, think of it, the starship(s) rising out of the GG's atmo, wisps of gas flowing off the bow...
Just a thought.
Still your drooling fan,
Magnus.
As for the rest of you, loving this "be careful where you set down" aspects of this thread and I am totally for a "Wilderness Landing" table.
Beautiful work as always Andrew. Of course, I for one wouldn't mind seeing the other Classes portrayed, but hey that's just me.
Say Andrew, when are you going to do a High Guard movie? I think it could be smashing, think of it, the starship(s) rising out of the GG's atmo, wisps of gas flowing off the bow...
Just a thought.
Still your drooling fan,
Magnus.
As for the rest of you, loving this "be careful where you set down" aspects of this thread and I am totally for a "Wilderness Landing" table.
All this starport talk has sparked a question that's been weighing on my mind since I bought my first Starter Edition back in 79 or thereabouts. Why on Earth (no pun intended) is there only ONE starport per system? I know Earth has three marked on the Invasion Earth map (or so I recall), and I think there's said to be "spaceports" on lunar bodies outside the main planetary starport. But surely there's more than one place to land on the big commercial hubs? Right?
Does this require a new thread?
Back to writing for Roger.
Does this require a new thread?
Back to writing for Roger.
BG,
There's one Imperial starport per system. One port where everyone and anyone can use regardless of the locals. One port with extrality(1).
Here it is straight from my 1981 edition: In nearly all cases, a planet will consider that a starport is extraterritorial, and not subject to local law, but will also enforce strict entrance and exit controls.
LBB:3 strongly implies that there are private and other ports available, many CT adventures and descriptions state this explicitly, and then MT goes one further by providing tables in sysgen to create these non-imperial ports.
Regards,
Bill
1 - Although how the Imperium "enforces" extrality at one of the unattended Class E ports we're talking about is anyone's guess. I think it's a combination of things. First, the locals are most likely desperate for any off-world trade and won't generally bit the ship that feeds them. Second, if the locals get naughty the SPA can easily move the port to a more friendly region. Third, the Imperial Navy and Marines have very large guns and plenty of time on their hands.
Another factoid escapes my 30 year old memory of reading the big black book. I guess I was maybe being too literal when I read the rules. It just seemed odd that with all of our contemporary counterparts; Hethro, JFK, SFO and so forth, that there'd be lots of other ports dotting any planet.
Thinking here...... I guess I do recall the implication, but I never really got the sense that it was a bonafide rule; i.e. "The Imperium administers this port, but other ports are administered by local governments."
Ah well. Another senior moment
Did I ever tell you guys about the time I was trapped in a scout ship that looked like a can of purina dog chow, when we were jumped by a pack of Corsairs?
No?
Well, there we were........ :rofl:
Thinking here...... I guess I do recall the implication, but I never really got the sense that it was a bonafide rule; i.e. "The Imperium administers this port, but other ports are administered by local governments."
Ah well. Another senior moment
Did I ever tell you guys about the time I was trapped in a scout ship that looked like a can of purina dog chow, when we were jumped by a pack of Corsairs?
No?
Well, there we were........ :rofl:
Icosahedron
SOC-14 1K
A typical Traveller pdf then.
I wonder if this is where Mongoose got their inspiration?
Sorry, consider me self-chastised.
Icosahedron
SOC-14 1K
Starports cost more than airports
Earth today is a balkanised world.
Earth today doesn't even have an interplanetary spaceport, much less a starport.
A planet with a homogenised government may have only one starport with smaller feeder facilities in other regions or, as Aramis suggests, 'The Starport' may be a collective term and have branches on different continents.
As for landing, if in doubt just launch a missile and park in the crater.
Earth today is a balkanised world.
Earth today doesn't even have an interplanetary spaceport, much less a starport.
A planet with a homogenised government may have only one starport with smaller feeder facilities in other regions or, as Aramis suggests, 'The Starport' may be a collective term and have branches on different continents.
As for landing, if in doubt just launch a missile and park in the crater.
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So, where there're main hubs, there may also be small "one strip" starports dotting the planet (size and pop depending). That makes more sense than anything else.
As usual, very nicely done.
One can make a very interesting game session not only enforcing landing at the 'official' port but making it part of the scenario. Two privately owned landing fields, with separate owners who are bitter rivals; and aggressively go after ships landing on the planet.
One can make a very interesting game session not only enforcing landing at the 'official' port but making it part of the scenario. Two privately owned landing fields, with separate owners who are bitter rivals; and aggressively go after ships landing on the planet.
BG,
Exactly. And who knows what sort of reception you'll receive when you set down at one of the small "one strip" ports?
They could be eager for shippers, wave all the usual fees, lavish gifts on the crew, and bend over backwards to fill any request.
Or they could see you as sheep to be shorn. Think of all those horror stories about people attempting to get their car repaired at filling stations in remote towns.
Regards,
Bill
I was just thinking that. There's the classic scene from "National Lampoon's Vacation" where Chevy Chase tries to get the family station wagon fixed, just like you said.
This makes a little more sense, and frees up the immagination. Hopping from one port to the next creates some story and gaming possibilities that I hadn't considered. The flipside is the industrial complex that's a city unto itself because it's so sprawling and interconnected with other urban hubs.
My traditional view of the starport was always colored by the "must land here" perception that I had by looking at many a planetary map for Traveller. Tarsus, Across the Bright Face, Prison Planet and a number of others.
Interesting.
This makes a little more sense, and frees up the immagination. Hopping from one port to the next creates some story and gaming possibilities that I hadn't considered. The flipside is the industrial complex that's a city unto itself because it's so sprawling and interconnected with other urban hubs.
My traditional view of the starport was always colored by the "must land here" perception that I had by looking at many a planetary map for Traveller. Tarsus, Across the Bright Face, Prison Planet and a number of others.
Interesting.
The Earth has a bunch of class E starports. Almost every major airport has a 2D DIRB (VOR &/or TACAN). Almost every major airport has hydrocarbons crackable for hydrogen via catalysis and electrolysis. Most also have large water resevoirs.
Heck, many qualify as D ports.
most have concrete areas able to land small spacecraft, provided we're talking standard "T-Plate" M Drives.
Heck, many qualify as D ports.
most have concrete areas able to land small spacecraft, provided we're talking standard "T-Plate" M Drives.
From my adventure "Hellion's Hoard" (Not canon, I know, but I'll defend a claim that it's the next best thing any day ):
Note that the beacon is a local product paid for by the locals, not a Scout beacon, and doesn't indicate an Imperial starport.
Hans
):"The Pilot's Guide to Eakoi Subsector mentions that any starship that lands [on Danelag] anywhere outside the regional starports is treated as a hostile raider and will cause the militia to turn out. There are no less than 303 starports, all of them Class E and each one marked by a radio beacon. The guide lists the names and frequencies of all of them."
"Mimersby
The starport is a large concrete-covered field located about two kilometers outside the city, with one small cinder-block hut containing the beacon. A small, neat wooden shack like a bus shelter stands next to it. Inside are a few wooden benches and a telephone mounted on the wall. A sign reads: "Please call the port captain upon arrival" in a dozen different languages. The phone will be answered by someone speaking good, but heavily accented, Galanglic. She will ask the visitors to remain at the starport, and will say the port captain will be there within half an hour."
"Mimersby
The starport is a large concrete-covered field located about two kilometers outside the city, with one small cinder-block hut containing the beacon. A small, neat wooden shack like a bus shelter stands next to it. Inside are a few wooden benches and a telephone mounted on the wall. A sign reads: "Please call the port captain upon arrival" in a dozen different languages. The phone will be answered by someone speaking good, but heavily accented, Galanglic. She will ask the visitors to remain at the starport, and will say the port captain will be there within half an hour."
Note that the beacon is a local product paid for by the locals, not a Scout beacon, and doesn't indicate an Imperial starport.
Hans
Engineer: "Better leave the engine running so we can just hover over the water while we refuel."
"E - Frontier Quality Installation. Essentially, a bare spot of bedrock with no fuel, facilities, or bases present." [SM:36]
Hum... the beacon isn't even mentioned; apparently that came later. We all do agree that even Class E starports need beacons, right?All this screams "unmanned" to me, although I wouldn't say a few exceptional Class E starports couldn't have a hotdog stand or the equivalent (Manned p.d.q. when the locals hear a ship approaching). Or perhaps a vending machine.
What you describe is what I'd expect from a Class D or possibly a bare-minimum Class C.
Hans
The entire local town (perhaps with the entire planetary population on some of these worlds) would be located immediately beyond the painted 'extrality' line (if we assume that even class E starports have beacons and extrality lines).
Plot seed: PC's ship land in the Class E starport with a consignment for the locals. Just as they open the hatch, someone runs across the extrality line pursued by a mob. He's an Imperial citizen and appeals to the PCs for help.
Hans