Colonizing Ships and Colonies There Of
- Thread starter sinbadsam
- Start date
Well from what I have seen any sub light Colonizer will take years to reach any possible colony planet. In the days of the early Imperium, I can see that happening. But in the middle to late times of the Imperium, taking 100+ years to get to a colony world would mean more than likely others using jump capable ship have gotten there first and long established themselves.Originally posted by Ganidiirsi O'Flynn:
I vision two broad characteristics for colony ships as well, though not quite as you see it.
It seems to me that people bent on a colonisation effort will buy the most efficient, cost effective vessel they can for the mission. That would mean seriously considering losing about 30-40% of the vessels available tonnage to support a jump drive (and it's tankage payload), and/or taking *much* longer with a much larger payload and attempting the mission sublight. These options would be weighed by the individual colony leaders in the light of their own reasons for establishing the colony in the first place.
I see Colony Ships divided up into Colony Establishment Ships and Colony Support Ships. The difference is that Colony Establishment Ships are meant to be smaller vessels that can, if needed, be taken apart to supply the colony's needs... Raw materials for additional structures, power supply, computers and so on. These are by far the rarer of the two vessels and are built with the mindset of never returning to or contacting the home government ever again. These are used most often by dissident groups and persecuted populations to escape regimes they find unpalatable.
The colony support vessel is essentially a troop transport. Streamlined for landing and capable of carrying nearly the whole colonial infratructure and most of the population, these vessels are meant to stay intact and return to the home system for further supplies, follow-on colonists, and to begin to conduct trade with the 'mother country' (albeit on a fairly inefficient basis).
As to some of the other issues brought up, I can only leave that up to YTU and your group's concept of what a startup colony needs. There are alot of good ideas out there, especially given that No Planet Ever Survives Contact with Player Characters
So in my mind unless you going to colonize a world that is far from ideal, or in the very early days of jump drives, sub light is not a viable option.
As for cannibalizing a ship for materials to build infrastructure...it would only be a possibility, if the colony had a wrecker yard orbiting it or carried a wrecker yard in its cargo holds.
Using the T20 shipbuilding rules to build a colonizer ship to carry 1000 cold berth colonists with 100 tons of cargo for each is 17,000 dtons. Its costs is 6,380 Mcr to build also. So a one shot ship is hard for me to seeing built.
I can see various governments building such ships, including the Imperium.
Why you ask, a cheaper way to remove those unsatisfied with ones government, rules, conditions etc.
It could be viewed as a safety valve so to speak, most interested in under going colonist conditions , tend not be follow the rules types of persons.
Underwriting the cost of building such ships and bank rolling the costs of the colonists, could be done like what was tried here in early times here on the Americas. Private groups underwrote the costs, for a large piece of goods and materials for said colony. But it seemed for the most of the private groups that did that, the rumors of gold were greatly exaggerated.
rogermccarthy
SOC-12
Don't see your point about needing a wrecking yard - if the ship can land next to a watersource and you can run cables off it it doesn't need to be dismantled to immediately serve the colony as a powerstation.
And if its built from scratch there is no reason why every component can't be designed for easy removal and conversion to colonist use.
I seem to remember the Germans actually built a giant Zeppelin during WW1 which was sent off to fly across the whole of Africa to resupply Lettow Vorbeck's Army in Tanganyika and in which many components were specified to be dismantled and reused - for example the fabric covering the airframe would have been turned into uniforms and tents.
With a high enough tech level I am sure this principle could be easily applied to a purpose-built starship, the gravitics designed to be converted into grav belt units, the computer into the basis of a worldnet, internal walls and floors designed to be easily removed and converted into building materials, the hull designed to be itself a building and so on.
And if its built from scratch there is no reason why every component can't be designed for easy removal and conversion to colonist use.
I seem to remember the Germans actually built a giant Zeppelin during WW1 which was sent off to fly across the whole of Africa to resupply Lettow Vorbeck's Army in Tanganyika and in which many components were specified to be dismantled and reused - for example the fabric covering the airframe would have been turned into uniforms and tents.
With a high enough tech level I am sure this principle could be easily applied to a purpose-built starship, the gravitics designed to be converted into grav belt units, the computer into the basis of a worldnet, internal walls and floors designed to be easily removed and converted into building materials, the hull designed to be itself a building and so on.
Landing on a planet with an atmosphere, in vehicle designed to be easy to take apart?*shudders abit* Kinda like driving across the Outback in a vehicle build out of tinker toys.
Yes once on the ground it can supply power, but removal of the power plant? Well in Todays world USN Nuclear ships/subs can supply power from its power plant but removing the power plant with out a ship yard......
One note, to conserve costs of the ship on the order of millions of credits, hulls would not be designed for landing on a planet, ie streamlined or partial streamlined.
Removal of starship's computer system. the computer system is not located in one single location, from what I recall but scattered thru out the starship.
Building a starship for an interplanetary voyage means components and structures are "fastened" together with more than bolts and nuts or use of super glues. Structural members will be "welded" or "fused" together.
Most iterations of Traveller have starships fairly much immune to non vehicle or starship grade weapons. So to disassemble a starship or spaceship, will require cranes, large winches, and vehicle grade cutters.
As your Zeppelin example, from what I recall the Hindenburg's skin was impregnated with compounds that contributed to its burning, so use as uniforms or tents would have lets say interesting.
Most grav modules for starship/spaceships of the size to carry colonists are not small enough to be installed in a made on colony grav belts or vehicles.
Another factor is that the colonists will be using time to disassemble the starship/spaceship. Time better used to building the infrastructure of the colony.
It will be more time efficient and cost efficient to use materials and items shipped to the colony on board or as cargo on another ship.
Or you could use a planetoid hull of a metal like iron, once in orbit, start harvesting of the iron of the planetoid, once the infrastructure of the colony reaches the point where they need such materials.
If you remove "making babies the old fasioned way" from the equation, why would anyone WANT to form a new colony? Settlement is usually about people seeking a better life for themselves and their children.
PS. women as baby factories is only required for maximum population growth rates - If the average couple raises three children to adulthood (breeding age) then the population will still grow.
A lot would depend on the travel time back to the founding world. If it is near enough, the size of the breeding population would be irrelevant. All the initial colonists would have to do is to prepare infrastructure for subsequent colonists. In fact, the "initial colonists" may not actually be permanent colonists, but rather professionals who will go somewhere else once they have finished their job.
The most important part of the initial colony would be scientists. You can't just plop down on an alien world without spending a lot of time studying it. You probably wouldn't even bother trying to grow crops for at least a year, or if you did they would be experiments, to see it you can do it, and what genetic modifications, fertilisers and so on are necessary.
The most important part of the initial colony would be scientists. You can't just plop down on an alien world without spending a lot of time studying it. You probably wouldn't even bother trying to grow crops for at least a year, or if you did they would be experiments, to see it you can do it, and what genetic modifications, fertilisers and so on are necessary.
mbrinkhues
SOC-14 1K
I see the following reasons to colonise a new world:
a) Resources
The world supplies resources that can not/no longer be had on the homeworld like raw metalls or agrarian products
b) Overpopulation
Too many people coupled with being in-capabel of enforcing reproduction laws (Like the Reproduction Permit in Nivens Known Space) will make mass-colonisation efforts seem like a good idea.
c) Export of unwanted
Getting rid of the unemployed, rebellious and criminals by sending them to a remote colony (like the BuReloc in Pournelles FutureHistory does) by sending them off to a colony world and making them pay for it if possible
d) Because it is there
This is the type of private venture to establish a colonie that is likely done by a small group with limited infrastructure and little to no connection to the homeworld
The second criteria for a colonisation effort is the preparation part:
i) Blind shot
The presence of a planet within the right region of the target system is all that is known. This is most typical for slower than light and independent colony efforts
ii) Basic scouting
The planet has been mapped and the athmosphere and water deemed useable by humans. Some checking for dangerous viruses etc has been done.
iii) Extensive scouting
The planet has been scouted and mapped so the colonists know what to expect and where to land. They will have a decend idea what dangers lurk on world and may have packed the right solutions. Animals will have been cataloged and the useful animals cataloged
iv) Basic infrastructure
While this has been ruled out for this example, the final solution is, like alanb sugested, that a "Colonial Command" has done some basic work establishing quarter modules, a basic starport and an orbital comm network (Basic ComSats can be very small, look up the OSKAR series of HamRadio relays) Depending on the inital investment they may even install basic food supply farms
The final element of colonisation is the amount of resources invested:
1) Private venture, FTL
Little to no resources past the basic needs for establishing a colony. Seeds, basic food for the starting period and some basic maschinery (mills, maschine workshop, a few fuel cell or ICE powered engines like the single-cylinder "Bulldog" that Bill suggested - beasts where build until the 1950s and used until the late 1970s, the similar diesel variant is still around) The colony from the "Coyote" novels would be an excample
2) STL official colony
A well planned, large-scale colony planted by STL craft like the one used by the Europeans to colonise the Alpha Centauri system. This beast will carry huge amounts of technology and allow a rather advanced colony. The colony from "Legend of Heorot" or Webers "Manticore" colony are examples
a) Resources
The world supplies resources that can not/no longer be had on the homeworld like raw metalls or agrarian products
b) Overpopulation
Too many people coupled with being in-capabel of enforcing reproduction laws (Like the Reproduction Permit in Nivens Known Space) will make mass-colonisation efforts seem like a good idea.
c) Export of unwanted
Getting rid of the unemployed, rebellious and criminals by sending them to a remote colony (like the BuReloc in Pournelles FutureHistory does) by sending them off to a colony world and making them pay for it if possible
d) Because it is there
This is the type of private venture to establish a colonie that is likely done by a small group with limited infrastructure and little to no connection to the homeworld
The second criteria for a colonisation effort is the preparation part:
i) Blind shot
The presence of a planet within the right region of the target system is all that is known. This is most typical for slower than light and independent colony efforts
ii) Basic scouting
The planet has been mapped and the athmosphere and water deemed useable by humans. Some checking for dangerous viruses etc has been done.
iii) Extensive scouting
The planet has been scouted and mapped so the colonists know what to expect and where to land. They will have a decend idea what dangers lurk on world and may have packed the right solutions. Animals will have been cataloged and the useful animals cataloged
iv) Basic infrastructure
While this has been ruled out for this example, the final solution is, like alanb sugested, that a "Colonial Command" has done some basic work establishing quarter modules, a basic starport and an orbital comm network (Basic ComSats can be very small, look up the OSKAR series of HamRadio relays) Depending on the inital investment they may even install basic food supply farms
The final element of colonisation is the amount of resources invested:
1) Private venture, FTL
Little to no resources past the basic needs for establishing a colony. Seeds, basic food for the starting period and some basic maschinery (mills, maschine workshop, a few fuel cell or ICE powered engines like the single-cylinder "Bulldog" that Bill suggested - beasts where build until the 1950s and used until the late 1970s, the similar diesel variant is still around) The colony from the "Coyote" novels would be an excample
2) STL official colony
A well planned, large-scale colony planted by STL craft like the one used by the Europeans to colonise the Alpha Centauri system. This beast will carry huge amounts of technology and allow a rather advanced colony. The colony from "Legend of Heorot" or Webers "Manticore" colony are examples
shadowdragon
SOC-12
btw i am not using "trekkie" biology. i never said the local flora and fauna was edible, more likely it wont be. we will be lucky if local soil will grow terran foodstuffs. and if it isnt edible, it cant eat the colonists either.
but now for the ship (built as per t20 rules):
R A Heinlein
Asimov Class Colony Ship
20,000-ton Hull (Cylinder) - Partially Streamlined
AC: 8 (8 vs. Meson Guns) AR: 0 SI: 525 Initiative: 0
Starship Size: Huge
Cost: 5,080.228 MCr (6,350.285 MCr without discount)
Annual Maintenance = 508.023 KCr (254.011 KCr if routinely maintained)
Routine Maintenance = 127.006 KCr/Month (1,270.057 KCr per year)
Model/9 Fib (PP: 65/14) Computer Avionics: Less than 1,000,000-ton
Sensors: 2 Parsecs (passive survey) Communications: System Wide
Cargo: 4,257.875-tons Extra Ship's Stores: 26 crew/weeks of Standard Stores,
Jump-1 (enough fuel for 4x Jump-1)
Acceleration: 1-G Agility: 0
Atmospheric Speeds: NOE = 875kph Cruising = 2,625kph Maximum = 3,500kph
Power Plant: TL-11 Fusion (315 EP output, enough fuel for 26.01 weeks)
Fuel Purification Plant (TL-11, 9hrs per 2,000 tons of fuel)
10x 100-ton Repulsor Bay TL-11, USP: 4
5x 8-ton vehicle hangar
5x 5-ton vehicle hangar
5x 95-ton small craft (Internal Hangar)
5x 30-ton small craft (Internal Hangar)
2x 20-ton small craft (Internal Hangar)
1x 100-ton large craft (Internal Hangar)
15x Single Occupancy Stateroom (15 People)
225x Double Occupancy Small Cabin (450 People)
1000x Low Berth (1,000 Colonists)
1x Maintenance shop (20 Mechanics)
1x Engineering Shop (20 Engineers)
5x Laboratory (10 Scientists)
10x Sickbay (20 Patients)
10x Autodoc
20x Airlocks (combined into 4 large airlocks and 1 small one)
Extra: Small Craft Fuel Tank 600 dTons
Total Crew: 265 people
7x Command Officers, 20x Command Crew
1x Flight Officers, 32x Flight Crew
1x Gunnery Officers, 20x Gunnery Crew
2x Engineering Officers, 13x Engineering Crew
1x Medical Officers, 5x Medical Crew
3x Ship's Troops Officers, 120x Ship's Troops
40x Service Crew
the extra quarters are to give the colonists a place to stay while recovering from the freezer.
as an aside: I would rather have hydroponics bays than carry expendable foodstuffs, anyone have an idea of what kind of yield you can get from 10 m^2 of tanks?
Basic assumptions (or rather, random thoughts as i was working up the ship ):
1: This is NOT the OTU
2: Jump 1 drive is NEW.
3: Earth has colonized the moon and mars, currently mines the asteroid belt and has a base on Europa. This gives science the resources and the ability to refine stellar cartography enough to risk a jump to an unknown location, as well as enough test cases jumping to Europa and back.
4: A suitable location has been found within 20 weeks of travel time, including 4 jumps, to colonize and so a expedition has been paid for.
(alternatively, a potential location has been found within 4 jumps, and the extra 22 weeks is for additional exploration)
5: The ships crew is planning on colonizing as well.
6: Little or no heavy machinery will be sent along. Manual labor will have to suffice until colony is well situated.
7. This will not reflect reality any more than T20 does. If we were dealing with reality, we would be more concerned with mass rather than volume.
8. We will NOT be reviving all of the colonists at once. It will be done in groups of 3-5 families. The 10% of childless partners will be revived last.
9. Colonists in deep freeze will be 90% families with children. Remaining 10% will be partners without children.
10. All Low Berthed animals are female. This is to allow the rapid(ish) development of the frozen embryos brought along. Males at this point take up too much food and space.
So the first thing to take is the above ship. Next is what do we fill that 4200 dTons of cargo hold with?
but now for the ship (built as per t20 rules):
R A Heinlein
Asimov Class Colony Ship
20,000-ton Hull (Cylinder) - Partially Streamlined
AC: 8 (8 vs. Meson Guns) AR: 0 SI: 525 Initiative: 0
Starship Size: Huge
Cost: 5,080.228 MCr (6,350.285 MCr without discount)
Annual Maintenance = 508.023 KCr (254.011 KCr if routinely maintained)
Routine Maintenance = 127.006 KCr/Month (1,270.057 KCr per year)
Model/9 Fib (PP: 65/14) Computer Avionics: Less than 1,000,000-ton
Sensors: 2 Parsecs (passive survey) Communications: System Wide
Cargo: 4,257.875-tons Extra Ship's Stores: 26 crew/weeks of Standard Stores,
Jump-1 (enough fuel for 4x Jump-1)
Acceleration: 1-G Agility: 0
Atmospheric Speeds: NOE = 875kph Cruising = 2,625kph Maximum = 3,500kph
Power Plant: TL-11 Fusion (315 EP output, enough fuel for 26.01 weeks)
Fuel Purification Plant (TL-11, 9hrs per 2,000 tons of fuel)
10x 100-ton Repulsor Bay TL-11, USP: 4
5x 8-ton vehicle hangar
5x 5-ton vehicle hangar
5x 95-ton small craft (Internal Hangar)
5x 30-ton small craft (Internal Hangar)
2x 20-ton small craft (Internal Hangar)
1x 100-ton large craft (Internal Hangar)
15x Single Occupancy Stateroom (15 People)
225x Double Occupancy Small Cabin (450 People)
1000x Low Berth (1,000 Colonists)
1x Maintenance shop (20 Mechanics)
1x Engineering Shop (20 Engineers)
5x Laboratory (10 Scientists)
10x Sickbay (20 Patients)
10x Autodoc
20x Airlocks (combined into 4 large airlocks and 1 small one)
Extra: Small Craft Fuel Tank 600 dTons
Total Crew: 265 people
7x Command Officers, 20x Command Crew
1x Flight Officers, 32x Flight Crew
1x Gunnery Officers, 20x Gunnery Crew
2x Engineering Officers, 13x Engineering Crew
1x Medical Officers, 5x Medical Crew
3x Ship's Troops Officers, 120x Ship's Troops
40x Service Crew
the extra quarters are to give the colonists a place to stay while recovering from the freezer.
as an aside: I would rather have hydroponics bays than carry expendable foodstuffs, anyone have an idea of what kind of yield you can get from 10 m^2 of tanks?
Basic assumptions (or rather, random thoughts as i was working up the ship
):1: This is NOT the OTU
2: Jump 1 drive is NEW.
3: Earth has colonized the moon and mars, currently mines the asteroid belt and has a base on Europa. This gives science the resources and the ability to refine stellar cartography enough to risk a jump to an unknown location, as well as enough test cases jumping to Europa and back.
4: A suitable location has been found within 20 weeks of travel time, including 4 jumps, to colonize and so a expedition has been paid for.
(alternatively, a potential location has been found within 4 jumps, and the extra 22 weeks is for additional exploration)
5: The ships crew is planning on colonizing as well.
6: Little or no heavy machinery will be sent along. Manual labor will have to suffice until colony is well situated.
7. This will not reflect reality any more than T20 does. If we were dealing with reality, we would be more concerned with mass rather than volume.
8. We will NOT be reviving all of the colonists at once. It will be done in groups of 3-5 families. The 10% of childless partners will be revived last.
9. Colonists in deep freeze will be 90% families with children. Remaining 10% will be partners without children.
10. All Low Berthed animals are female. This is to allow the rapid(ish) development of the frozen embryos brought along. Males at this point take up too much food and space.
So the first thing to take is the above ship. Next is what do we fill that 4200 dTons of cargo hold with?
I am of the opinion that the concept of "Alien" ecosystems and biology being so radically different is a logically unfounded assumption. Carbon chemistry is carbon chemistry everywhere. All attempts to produce anything even remotely suggestive of "life" using a copper or silicon base have yielded no positive results that I am aware of. Genetics and biology have shown that even the most radically different lifeforms on Earth are more similar than different at the cellular and genetic level.
Alien life could easily look very different. Some of it could easily contain toxic compounds and elements. It is, however, my opinion that if the air is breathable and the water is drinkable, then an earthlike carbon based ecosystem is likely. New species (and classes and orders) are likely, but protien is protien and sugars are sugar - some of it will probably be edible and some of it could find US delicious.
The planets (like Venus) that are possible candidates for completely toxic ecosystems, are unlikely choices for colonization. And if you did want to colonize a toxic world, it would probably be easier to alter the 1000 colonists than to create and sustain Earth-like plants and animals on the hostile world.
Just my 2 cents.
Unfortunately alien life doesn't have to be able to "eat the colonists" to be a problem. Its mere physical presence can cause serious problems.
Furthermore, there is a serious problem if you want the colony to be in contact with Earth, and that is: how can you prevent alien life forms being transferred back to Earth?
P
Pickles
Guest
And another thing ... just because the local fauna dies horribly if it eats you, doesn't mean it won't try ...
Shadowdragon,
No, you're usuing Heinlenian biology which is just as bad.
All it takes is for local fauna to act as if you and your imported flora & fauna is edible. If they eat your crops, attack you livestock, and die after ingestion you've still lost your crops and livestock.
Which, of course, is why you're colony mission is depending on simply walking off the ship, thawing out a mule, and starting to plow right away.
All it has to do is try.
Enough parsley with which to starve in style? You're going to need a hydroponics volume on the order of your jump fuel tanks or greater.
Nor is it reality, game or otherwise.
Anyone have an adjective meaning completely ludicrous? Oh yeah, completely ludicrous.
You're bringing children? Good Sweet Strephon...
Bill
Actually, this mission plan makes a great deal of sense once you realise that the colonists are members of a cult, and are expecting divine intervention in their favour.
</font>[/QUOTE]It worked for the pilgrims coming to North America. Compare the first year at Plymouth (a religious settlement) to the first year at Jamestown (a commercial venture).In any case, it would probably be best to start with a small settlement and add colonists (and skills) at regular intervals.
mbrinkhues
SOC-14 1K
And the other extreme is this HUGE sublight coloniser vessel. Parts of the craft might be useful for other colonies:
1,000,000-ton E.E. Smith -class Colonie transport (GTL10 / TTL9-12)
The E.E. Smith class colonisation vessel is among the largest space-going structures ever build by mankind. Made possible by advances in gravitics that led to the discovery of gravity-well independed thruster plates and artificial gravity, a small number of these craft where build to send out generation ships towards new stars. Due to their rather high technology level few modern societies bother building these sub-light behemoth so it has become the stapel of escapist societies seeking worlds "beyond the jump-range", world so far out that J-Drives would break down before reaching them
The hull is build based on an O'Neill cylinder with a large scale thruster capabel of 1g sustained acceleration at the rear and a massiv meteor screen at the front. The inner cylinder is covered by alternate strips of land and large, closeable windows/lighting elements. Quarters exist to house up to 3000 persons in resonable comfort and supply them with food and total, self-contained life support. This facilities are used to house the ships flight and caretaker crew. Another 12000 persons and around 2000 large animals can be transported in suspended animation and awaken at the target, including crew for the huge factory crafts carried.
The ship carries extensive manufacturing capacities both for use during the flight and after the target system has been reached, including a small spaceyard capabel of building new STL and in some cases FTL craft. The ship itself ends up as a large space station and habitat in system and serves as the basic plattform until the planet has been checked out and the basic infrastructure constructed.
Crew: 3,000 Total. 90 Command and Control, 400 Engineering, 1,453 Maneuver Drive, 100 Medical, 474 Crew Facilities, 15 Lab Techs, 260 Flight Crew, 208 General Staff and Security
<P>Design: 1,000,000-ton USL Hull, Heavy Frame, , Durasteel (Standard) ArmoredDR 500, Total Compartmentalization, 200 Turret (DR 250) with three 250 Mj Std Laser.
Modules: 2 Command Bridge (Hardened), 2 Adv Sensors, 2 Survey System, 2 Scientific Sensors, 10 Probe Module, 2 Traffic Control, 4 PESA-UHv, 2 Adv Commo Suite, 4 Computer Bank (8xMacroframe, HiCap, Hardened), 2 Engineering, 4 Starship Shipyard (30), 87,115 Maneuver Drive (3,484,600 stons thrust), 1,852 Utility, 100 Military Sickbay, 3,000 Low Berth (4 Berthing units each, 12,000 Cryoberths), 2,000 Low Berth (1 Large Animal each, 8,000 Cryoberths), 35 Housing, 35 Farm, 2 Park, Plaza, 6 Factory, 100 Logistics, 5 Military Holoventure, 20 Normal Office, 3 Stage, 6 Theater, 6 Shooting Range, 50 Brig, 100 Gymnasium, 20 Troop Armory, 5 Isolation Laboratory/TL, 5 Physics Laboratory/TL, 5 Laboratory/TL, 1,000 Spacedock (5x100-ton Interplanetary Shuttle), 3,000 Spacedock (15x100-ton Shuttle), 30,000 Vehicle Bay (30000-ton Factory Ship), 30,000 Vehicle Bay (30000-ton Factory Ship), 45,000 Hold, 2,100 Spacedock (35x30-ton Ship's Boat).
Statistics: EMass 3,262,741.8 stons, LMass 3,487,741.8 stons, Cost MCr18,998.84, HP: 11,340,000 (DT 567,000), Size Modifier: +16, HT 12, Maint. 0.1 Hrs (661.6 man-hrs./day).
Performance: sAccel 1.00 G / 1.00 G (empty tanks), Air Speed 0 mph, Dodge -4 + 1/2 Pilot Skill (-4 vs Meson Fire).
30,000-ton Georgius Agricola -class Heavy Mining/Factory ship (GTL10 / TTL9-12)
The Agricola Class Mining/Factory ship is a heavy mobile base for asteroid mining and processing. It uses four daughtercraft to perform the initial fetching and pre-processing. It also serves as a rest and recovery base for her rather cramped mining ships so it has relatively large crew facilities and stores. Ships of this class often serve as an initiial mining outpost being brought in-system in pairs by the huge Wernecke class Jump-Tenders. They are also used as mobile plattforms by some colonisation-efforts
Crew: 350Total. 24 Command and Control, 60 Maneuver Drive, 4 Medical, 12 Crew Facilities, 6 Lab Techs, 8 Turret Gunners, 210 Flight Crew, 10 Mass-Driver, 16 Steward/Purser
Design: 30,000-ton USL Hull, Heavy Frame, DR 500, Total Compartmentalization, 8 Pop Turret (DR 250) with three 250 Mj Std Laser.
Modules: Command Bridge (Hardened), 2 Advanced Sensors, Survey System, 2 Probe Module, 2 Engineering, 100 Mass Driver/Launch Tube (25stons at 60mph), 3,658 Maneuver Drive (146,320 stons thrust), 56 Utility, 350 Stateroom, 50 Stateroom (Civilian catering/supply/entertainment personal), 4 Military Sickbay, Factory, 8 Gymnasium (Large fitness installation), 5 Hall/Bar/Conference Room (Amusement and supply establishments), 4 Logistics, 2 Normal Office, Stage, Theater, 6 Physics Laboratory/TL, 1,000 Vehicle Bay (1000-ton Mining craft[Long range sublight mining craft]), 1,000 Vehicle Bay (1000-ton Mining craft[Long range sublight mining craft]), 1,000 Vehicle Bay (1000-ton Mining craft[Long range sublight mining craft]), 1,000 Vehicle Bay (1000-ton Mining craft[Long range sublight mining craft]), 9,994 Hold, 80 Spacedock (4x10-ton Launch).
Statistics: EMass 96,314.16 stons, LMass 146,284.16 stons, Cost MCr907.64, HP: 1,080,000 (DT 54,000), Size Modifier: +13, HT 12, Maint. 0.7 Hrs (144.6 man-hrs./day).
Performance: sAccel 1.00 G / 1.00 G (empty tanks), Air Speed 39 mph, Dodge -2 + 1/2 Pilot Skill (-4 vs Meson Fire).
1,000-ton Beowulf Shaffer-class Mining/Factory ship (GTL10 / TTL9-12)
The Beowulf Shaffer is one of the many mining ships that ply the belts looking for useful asteroid to process. Basically a brig clad in a decend amount of armor and with solid thrusters she undertakes missions that can take up to a month to complete to fill her cargo holds. To reduce the amount of "dead" ore brought back, she has a small smelter plant aboard allowing the first processing step to be performed on place.
Crew: 50 Total. 17 Command and Control, 3 Engineering, 1 Maneuver Drive, 1 Medical, 2 Lab Techs, 4 Turret Gunners, 22 Flight Crew/Mining experts
Design: 1,000-ton USL Hull, Heavy Frame, DR 500, Total Compartmentalization, 2 Pop Turret (DR 250) with one 40MJ Mining Laser, 2 Pop Turret (DR 250) with three 250 Mj Std Laser.
Modules: Basic Bridge (Hardened), Survey System, Probe Module, Enh Sensors, Engineering, Smelter Unit (A small smelter unit for mining ships and young colonies), 125 Maneuver Drive (5,000 stons thrust), 2 Utility, 25 Stateroom, Military Sickbay, 2 Logistics, 2 Physics Laboratory/TL, 80 Spacedock (4x10-ton Launch), 547 Hold.
Statistics: EMass 2,238.65 stons, LMass 4,973.65 stons, Cost MCr106.85, HP: 135,000 (DT 6,750), Size Modifier: +10, HT 12, Maint. 1.9 Hrs (49.6 man-hrs./day).
Performance: sAccel 1.01 G / 1.01 G (empty tanks), Air Speed 94 mph, Dodge 0 + 1/2 Pilot Skill (-4 vs Meson Fire).
1,000,000-ton E.E. Smith -class Colonie transport (GTL10 / TTL9-12)
The E.E. Smith class colonisation vessel is among the largest space-going structures ever build by mankind. Made possible by advances in gravitics that led to the discovery of gravity-well independed thruster plates and artificial gravity, a small number of these craft where build to send out generation ships towards new stars. Due to their rather high technology level few modern societies bother building these sub-light behemoth so it has become the stapel of escapist societies seeking worlds "beyond the jump-range", world so far out that J-Drives would break down before reaching them
The hull is build based on an O'Neill cylinder with a large scale thruster capabel of 1g sustained acceleration at the rear and a massiv meteor screen at the front. The inner cylinder is covered by alternate strips of land and large, closeable windows/lighting elements. Quarters exist to house up to 3000 persons in resonable comfort and supply them with food and total, self-contained life support. This facilities are used to house the ships flight and caretaker crew. Another 12000 persons and around 2000 large animals can be transported in suspended animation and awaken at the target, including crew for the huge factory crafts carried.
The ship carries extensive manufacturing capacities both for use during the flight and after the target system has been reached, including a small spaceyard capabel of building new STL and in some cases FTL craft. The ship itself ends up as a large space station and habitat in system and serves as the basic plattform until the planet has been checked out and the basic infrastructure constructed.
Crew: 3,000 Total. 90 Command and Control, 400 Engineering, 1,453 Maneuver Drive, 100 Medical, 474 Crew Facilities, 15 Lab Techs, 260 Flight Crew, 208 General Staff and Security
<P>Design: 1,000,000-ton USL Hull, Heavy Frame, , Durasteel (Standard) ArmoredDR 500, Total Compartmentalization, 200 Turret (DR 250) with three 250 Mj Std Laser.
Modules: 2 Command Bridge (Hardened), 2 Adv Sensors, 2 Survey System, 2 Scientific Sensors, 10 Probe Module, 2 Traffic Control, 4 PESA-UHv, 2 Adv Commo Suite, 4 Computer Bank (8xMacroframe, HiCap, Hardened), 2 Engineering, 4 Starship Shipyard (30), 87,115 Maneuver Drive (3,484,600 stons thrust), 1,852 Utility, 100 Military Sickbay, 3,000 Low Berth (4 Berthing units each, 12,000 Cryoberths), 2,000 Low Berth (1 Large Animal each, 8,000 Cryoberths), 35 Housing, 35 Farm, 2 Park, Plaza, 6 Factory, 100 Logistics, 5 Military Holoventure, 20 Normal Office, 3 Stage, 6 Theater, 6 Shooting Range, 50 Brig, 100 Gymnasium, 20 Troop Armory, 5 Isolation Laboratory/TL, 5 Physics Laboratory/TL, 5 Laboratory/TL, 1,000 Spacedock (5x100-ton Interplanetary Shuttle), 3,000 Spacedock (15x100-ton Shuttle), 30,000 Vehicle Bay (30000-ton Factory Ship), 30,000 Vehicle Bay (30000-ton Factory Ship), 45,000 Hold, 2,100 Spacedock (35x30-ton Ship's Boat).
Statistics: EMass 3,262,741.8 stons, LMass 3,487,741.8 stons, Cost MCr18,998.84, HP: 11,340,000 (DT 567,000), Size Modifier: +16, HT 12, Maint. 0.1 Hrs (661.6 man-hrs./day).
Performance: sAccel 1.00 G / 1.00 G (empty tanks), Air Speed 0 mph, Dodge -4 + 1/2 Pilot Skill (-4 vs Meson Fire).
30,000-ton Georgius Agricola -class Heavy Mining/Factory ship (GTL10 / TTL9-12)
The Agricola Class Mining/Factory ship is a heavy mobile base for asteroid mining and processing. It uses four daughtercraft to perform the initial fetching and pre-processing. It also serves as a rest and recovery base for her rather cramped mining ships so it has relatively large crew facilities and stores. Ships of this class often serve as an initiial mining outpost being brought in-system in pairs by the huge Wernecke class Jump-Tenders. They are also used as mobile plattforms by some colonisation-efforts
Crew: 350Total. 24 Command and Control, 60 Maneuver Drive, 4 Medical, 12 Crew Facilities, 6 Lab Techs, 8 Turret Gunners, 210 Flight Crew, 10 Mass-Driver, 16 Steward/Purser
Design: 30,000-ton USL Hull, Heavy Frame, DR 500, Total Compartmentalization, 8 Pop Turret (DR 250) with three 250 Mj Std Laser.
Modules: Command Bridge (Hardened), 2 Advanced Sensors, Survey System, 2 Probe Module, 2 Engineering, 100 Mass Driver/Launch Tube (25stons at 60mph), 3,658 Maneuver Drive (146,320 stons thrust), 56 Utility, 350 Stateroom, 50 Stateroom (Civilian catering/supply/entertainment personal), 4 Military Sickbay, Factory, 8 Gymnasium (Large fitness installation), 5 Hall/Bar/Conference Room (Amusement and supply establishments), 4 Logistics, 2 Normal Office, Stage, Theater, 6 Physics Laboratory/TL, 1,000 Vehicle Bay (1000-ton Mining craft[Long range sublight mining craft]), 1,000 Vehicle Bay (1000-ton Mining craft[Long range sublight mining craft]), 1,000 Vehicle Bay (1000-ton Mining craft[Long range sublight mining craft]), 1,000 Vehicle Bay (1000-ton Mining craft[Long range sublight mining craft]), 9,994 Hold, 80 Spacedock (4x10-ton Launch).
Statistics: EMass 96,314.16 stons, LMass 146,284.16 stons, Cost MCr907.64, HP: 1,080,000 (DT 54,000), Size Modifier: +13, HT 12, Maint. 0.7 Hrs (144.6 man-hrs./day).
Performance: sAccel 1.00 G / 1.00 G (empty tanks), Air Speed 39 mph, Dodge -2 + 1/2 Pilot Skill (-4 vs Meson Fire).
1,000-ton Beowulf Shaffer-class Mining/Factory ship (GTL10 / TTL9-12)
The Beowulf Shaffer is one of the many mining ships that ply the belts looking for useful asteroid to process. Basically a brig clad in a decend amount of armor and with solid thrusters she undertakes missions that can take up to a month to complete to fill her cargo holds. To reduce the amount of "dead" ore brought back, she has a small smelter plant aboard allowing the first processing step to be performed on place.
Crew: 50 Total. 17 Command and Control, 3 Engineering, 1 Maneuver Drive, 1 Medical, 2 Lab Techs, 4 Turret Gunners, 22 Flight Crew/Mining experts
Design: 1,000-ton USL Hull, Heavy Frame, DR 500, Total Compartmentalization, 2 Pop Turret (DR 250) with one 40MJ Mining Laser, 2 Pop Turret (DR 250) with three 250 Mj Std Laser.
Modules: Basic Bridge (Hardened), Survey System, Probe Module, Enh Sensors, Engineering, Smelter Unit (A small smelter unit for mining ships and young colonies), 125 Maneuver Drive (5,000 stons thrust), 2 Utility, 25 Stateroom, Military Sickbay, 2 Logistics, 2 Physics Laboratory/TL, 80 Spacedock (4x10-ton Launch), 547 Hold.
Statistics: EMass 2,238.65 stons, LMass 4,973.65 stons, Cost MCr106.85, HP: 135,000 (DT 6,750), Size Modifier: +10, HT 12, Maint. 1.9 Hrs (49.6 man-hrs./day).
Performance: sAccel 1.01 G / 1.01 G (empty tanks), Air Speed 94 mph, Dodge 0 + 1/2 Pilot Skill (-4 vs Meson Fire).
mbrinkhues
SOC-14 1K
Some notes on the above:
+ Each Farming unit is an acre/500000cubic foot of space dedicated to food supply and life support. It can provide both for about 100 persons, allowing some waste capacity and some "working up" of the colonists after tawing
+ Each housing unit is about a city block in size housing around 100 people (half if luxury, more if "student dorm" is acceptable)
+ Once the cargo has been unloaded, there is space for an additional 3-4 housing or farming units
+ The lasers are anti-meteroid defence
+ The mother ship also has mass-catchers to catch the ore delivered from the Agricola class mining crafts in 25ston chunks
+ The ships classes are named after
E.E. "Doc" Smith, Author of "Lensman" and "Space Circus d'Alambert"(1)
Georgius Agricola, one of the first to write a complete work on mining and smelting and "founder of the mining sciences"(2)
Beowulf Shaffer from Larry Nivens "Known Space" universe
(1) A wandering space circus used as a cover for an espionage team would make a nice Traveller scenario
(2) A must read for all survivalist nuts and "Lord Kalavan" fans.
+ Each Farming unit is an acre/500000cubic foot of space dedicated to food supply and life support. It can provide both for about 100 persons, allowing some waste capacity and some "working up" of the colonists after tawing
+ Each housing unit is about a city block in size housing around 100 people (half if luxury, more if "student dorm" is acceptable)
+ Once the cargo has been unloaded, there is space for an additional 3-4 housing or farming units
+ The lasers are anti-meteroid defence
+ The mother ship also has mass-catchers to catch the ore delivered from the Agricola class mining crafts in 25ston chunks
+ The ships classes are named after
E.E. "Doc" Smith, Author of "Lensman" and "Space Circus d'Alambert"(1)
Georgius Agricola, one of the first to write a complete work on mining and smelting and "founder of the mining sciences"(2)
Beowulf Shaffer from Larry Nivens "Known Space" universe
(1) A wandering space circus used as a cover for an espionage team would make a nice Traveller scenario
(2) A must read for all survivalist nuts and "Lord Kalavan" fans.
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