Escape Velocity

[Maladominus]

I'm surprised that with Space Cadet suggesting the possibility of encountering Gas Giant-native life forms.... uhhh.... no one has yet chimed in with the Jagd-Il-Jagd. This is classic JTAS stuff.

Ohhh... and of course, as far-trader also mentioned, another "life form" encounter that can spring up from a GG is a lurking pirate vessel.

 

[Maladominus]

I'm surprised that with Space Cadet suggesting the possibility of encountering Gas Giant-native life forms.... uhhh.... no one has yet chimed in with the Jagd-Il-Jagd. This is classic JTAS stuff.

Ohhh... and of course, as far-trader also mentioned, another "life form" encounter that can spring up from a GG is a lurking pirate vessel.

 

[far-trader]

Originally posted by Maladominus:
I'm surprised that with Space Cadet suggesting the possibility of encountering Gas Giant-native life forms.... uhhh.... no one has yet chimed in with the Jagd-Il-Jagd. This is classic JTAS stuff.

Personally I put such critters on my rumour list, and note them as false

A life form that existed in such circumstances would be impressive indeed. No such beasties though, but the stories of them never die. Of course all such stories have some basis in fact

 

[far-trader]

Originally posted by Maladominus:
I'm surprised that with Space Cadet suggesting the possibility of encountering Gas Giant-native life forms.... uhhh.... no one has yet chimed in with the Jagd-Il-Jagd. This is classic JTAS stuff.

Personally I put such critters on my rumour list, and note them as false

A life form that existed in such circumstances would be impressive indeed. No such beasties though, but the stories of them never die. Of course all such stories have some basis in fact

 

[Malenfant]

Originally posted by Maladominus:
Ohhh... and of course, as far-trader also mentioned, another "life form" encounter that can spring up from a GG is a lurking pirate vessel.

That's going to be ridiculously unlikely given the size of GGs, unless there are specific refuelling lanes that are always frequented by ships (which is possible if you have permanent refuelling stations in the atmosphere but then those are probably going to have a lot of defences and patrols around them).

Keep in mind the scale here - even the smallest gas giants are much larger than Earth, and there is a hell of a lot of room there. It's quite possible for a ship to hide in there and never be found, and never be seen by another ship. Plus of course said pirates also have to deal with the same powerful wind shears and storms etc, so it's not exactly a good place to lurk.

 

[Malenfant]

Originally posted by Maladominus:
Ohhh... and of course, as far-trader also mentioned, another "life form" encounter that can spring up from a GG is a lurking pirate vessel.

That's going to be ridiculously unlikely given the size of GGs, unless there are specific refuelling lanes that are always frequented by ships (which is possible if you have permanent refuelling stations in the atmosphere but then those are probably going to have a lot of defences and patrols around them).

Keep in mind the scale here - even the smallest gas giants are much larger than Earth, and there is a hell of a lot of room there. It's quite possible for a ship to hide in there and never be found, and never be seen by another ship. Plus of course said pirates also have to deal with the same powerful wind shears and storms etc, so it's not exactly a good place to lurk.

 

[The Shaman]

Originally posted by Supplement Four:
Maybe we should put together a well thought out and complete encounter chart that CT players can use when skimming GG's.

Here's one:

Jovibacter is a genus of microorganisms found in the atmospheres of gas giants. Jovibacter is an anaerobic chemoautotroph, converting methane and free amino acids into organic molecules using the energy produced by oxidation of hydrogen gas or hydrogen sulfide.

The scarcity of iron oxide in gas giant atmospheres is a critical limiting factor on Jovibacter populations. Starship and spacecraft hulls constructed of hard iron (TL 9) or crystaliron (TL 10-11) skimming fuel from gas giants provide a ready substrate for Jovibacter, which quickly expresses flagellae and pilli to reduce the iron oxide, reproducing very rapidly in the process. Jovibacter on exposed hull surfaces die-off rapidly when exposed to ultraviolet light beyond the protective envelope of the gas giant's atmosphere, but bacteria within the ship's fuel tanks continue to reproduce, pitting and scarring the metal walls and reducing the structural integrity of the tanks and hull - in rare cases the reducing action of Jovibacter may breach the tank outright, releasing both fuel and the organism into other compartments of the ship. In extremely rare cases Jovibacter may also affect a starship's jump drive.

Engineers and maintenance crews refer to the reddish-brown stains indicating the presence of Jovibacter as "crud." "Crud" is treated by evacuating the tanks and other infected compartments to vacuum and installing powerful ultraviolet lights. The tank walls usually require repairs as well.

The fuel tanks of ships and boats regularly involved in skimming gas giants, such as a fuel lighter or tanker, may be treated with a ceramic coating to reduce the risk of damage by Jovibacter - the cost is ImpCr 10000 per displacement ton of fuel tankage. This coating must be replaced annually at a cost of ImpCr 1000 per displacement ton.

It's rumored that some gas giants have been seeded with Jovibacter to discourage their use for refueling, though no specific claims of this activity have been sustantiated to date.

Crud encounter: Scoop Jovibacter while fuel skimming - throw 13+ for infestation, +1 for every twenty tons of fuel skimmed. If the tanks become crud-infested, treatement cost is 1D% of the cost of annual maintenance per twenty tons of fuel, to a maximum of 10D%. Infestation may only be detected by visual inspection or biochemical sniffer.

An infested ship may suffer a hull breach: throw 15+ for a breach, +1 for every week the infestation remains untreated. Repairing a hull breached by Jovibacter is 1D% of the hull cost of the ship or craft. The referee should decide of the hull breach is to an internal compartment, spilling fuel and bacteria into the interior of the ship.

An infested hull may suffer additional damage during battle - each hit that causes the loss of fuel increases the cost of repair by 1D% of the hull cost.

 

[The Shaman]

Originally posted by Supplement Four:
Maybe we should put together a well thought out and complete encounter chart that CT players can use when skimming GG's.

Here's one:

Jovibacter is a genus of microorganisms found in the atmospheres of gas giants. Jovibacter is an anaerobic chemoautotroph, converting methane and free amino acids into organic molecules using the energy produced by oxidation of hydrogen gas or hydrogen sulfide.

The scarcity of iron oxide in gas giant atmospheres is a critical limiting factor on Jovibacter populations. Starship and spacecraft hulls constructed of hard iron (TL 9) or crystaliron (TL 10-11) skimming fuel from gas giants provide a ready substrate for Jovibacter, which quickly expresses flagellae and pilli to reduce the iron oxide, reproducing very rapidly in the process. Jovibacter on exposed hull surfaces die-off rapidly when exposed to ultraviolet light beyond the protective envelope of the gas giant's atmosphere, but bacteria within the ship's fuel tanks continue to reproduce, pitting and scarring the metal walls and reducing the structural integrity of the tanks and hull - in rare cases the reducing action of Jovibacter may breach the tank outright, releasing both fuel and the organism into other compartments of the ship. In extremely rare cases Jovibacter may also affect a starship's jump drive.

Engineers and maintenance crews refer to the reddish-brown stains indicating the presence of Jovibacter as "crud." "Crud" is treated by evacuating the tanks and other infected compartments to vacuum and installing powerful ultraviolet lights. The tank walls usually require repairs as well.

The fuel tanks of ships and boats regularly involved in skimming gas giants, such as a fuel lighter or tanker, may be treated with a ceramic coating to reduce the risk of damage by Jovibacter - the cost is ImpCr 10000 per displacement ton of fuel tankage. This coating must be replaced annually at a cost of ImpCr 1000 per displacement ton.

It's rumored that some gas giants have been seeded with Jovibacter to discourage their use for refueling, though no specific claims of this activity have been sustantiated to date.

Crud encounter: Scoop Jovibacter while fuel skimming - throw 13+ for infestation, +1 for every twenty tons of fuel skimmed. If the tanks become crud-infested, treatement cost is 1D% of the cost of annual maintenance per twenty tons of fuel, to a maximum of 10D%. Infestation may only be detected by visual inspection or biochemical sniffer.

An infested ship may suffer a hull breach: throw 15+ for a breach, +1 for every week the infestation remains untreated. Repairing a hull breached by Jovibacter is 1D% of the hull cost of the ship or craft. The referee should decide of the hull breach is to an internal compartment, spilling fuel and bacteria into the interior of the ship.

An infested hull may suffer additional damage during battle - each hit that causes the loss of fuel increases the cost of repair by 1D% of the hull cost.

 

[far-trader]

Originally posted by Malenfant:
Keep in mind the scale here - even the smallest gas giants are much larger than Earth, and there is a hell of a lot of room there. It's quite possible for a ship to hide in there and never be found, and never be seen by another ship. Plus of course said pirates also have to deal with the same powerful wind shears and storms etc, so it's not exactly a good place to lurk.

Arr, tha's why my boys and I, err, I mean that's why I hear Pirates will sit on a nearby bit of rock or ice instead of lurking in the depths. The Pirate just powers down and waits then jumps on the merchie when it's safe (scans report no patrol craft) and the merchie is most vulnerable (can't go "down" and we're, err, I mean those bad ol Pirates have the high frontier). A merchie would be wise to just surrender in those cases.

 

[far-trader]

Originally posted by Malenfant:
Keep in mind the scale here - even the smallest gas giants are much larger than Earth, and there is a hell of a lot of room there. It's quite possible for a ship to hide in there and never be found, and never be seen by another ship. Plus of course said pirates also have to deal with the same powerful wind shears and storms etc, so it's not exactly a good place to lurk.

Arr, tha's why my boys and I, err, I mean that's why I hear Pirates will sit on a nearby bit of rock or ice instead of lurking in the depths. The Pirate just powers down and waits then jumps on the merchie when it's safe (scans report no patrol craft) and the merchie is most vulnerable (can't go "down" and we're, err, I mean those bad ol Pirates have the high frontier). A merchie would be wise to just surrender in those cases.

 

[Maladominus]

Nice idea TheShaman.

Hull-eating bacteria. I like it. *swiped*

 

[Maladominus]

Nice idea TheShaman.

Hull-eating bacteria. I like it. *swiped*

 

[Malenfant]

Originally posted by far-trader:
Arr, tha's why my boys and I, err, I mean that's why I hear Pirates will sit on a nearby bit of rock or ice instead of lurking in the depths. The Pirate just powers down and waits then jumps on the merchie when it's safe (scans report no patrol craft) and the merchie is most vulnerable (can't go "down" and we're, err, I mean those bad ol Pirates have the high frontier). A merchie would be wise to just surrender in those cases. [/QB]

Well this all goes back to several debates on various Traveller boards about piracy and refuelling and so on... if your pirate is hanging out in low orbit on a large ring boulder or small moon then he's got to be able to see through all the surrounding ring particles (if applicable) and also the interference from the horribly powerful radiation belts that he's sitting in, and also happen to be on the same side of the planet as the incoming merchant ships so he can see them, and also be able to intercept the merchants in time before they get out of range, and so on.

And if there's a lot of room in a gas giant's atmosphere, there's even more room in which to get lost in low/high orbit.

Like I said, arguments have undoubtedly raged about the practicality of all this in the past, and I dare say that no agreement was reached as usual.

 

[Malenfant]

Originally posted by far-trader:
Arr, tha's why my boys and I, err, I mean that's why I hear Pirates will sit on a nearby bit of rock or ice instead of lurking in the depths. The Pirate just powers down and waits then jumps on the merchie when it's safe (scans report no patrol craft) and the merchie is most vulnerable (can't go "down" and we're, err, I mean those bad ol Pirates have the high frontier). A merchie would be wise to just surrender in those cases. [/QB]

Well this all goes back to several debates on various Traveller boards about piracy and refuelling and so on... if your pirate is hanging out in low orbit on a large ring boulder or small moon then he's got to be able to see through all the surrounding ring particles (if applicable) and also the interference from the horribly powerful radiation belts that he's sitting in, and also happen to be on the same side of the planet as the incoming merchant ships so he can see them, and also be able to intercept the merchants in time before they get out of range, and so on.

And if there's a lot of room in a gas giant's atmosphere, there's even more room in which to get lost in low/high orbit.

Like I said, arguments have undoubtedly raged about the practicality of all this in the past, and I dare say that no agreement was reached as usual.

 

[Malenfant]

Oh, and this issue is being talked about on the SJG forums too, so take a look at the thread there:

http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?t=24885

 

[Malenfant]

Oh, and this issue is being talked about on the SJG forums too, so take a look at the thread there:

http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?t=24885

 

[Commander Drax]

The scarcity of iron oxide in gas giant atmospheres is a critical limiting factor on Jovibacter populations. Starship and spacecraft hulls constructed of hard iron (TL 9) or crystaliron (TL 10-11) skimming fuel from gas giants provide a ready substrate for Jovibacter, which quickly expresses flagellae and pilli to reduce the iron oxide, reproducing very rapidly in the process. Jovibacter on exposed hull surfaces die-off rapidly when exposed to ultraviolet light beyond the protective envelope of the gas giant's atmosphere, but bacteria within the ship's fuel tanks continue to reproduce, pitting and scarring the metal walls and reducing the structural integrity of the tanks and hull - in rare cases the reducing action of Jovibacter may breach the tank outright, releasing both fuel and the organism into other compartments of the ship. In extremely rare cases Jovibacter may also affect a starship's jump drive.

That's one impressive bacterium, surviving in fuel tanks, I mean liquid hydrogen (very cold), i'd love to see to a bacteria that can reproduce at those temperatures. Other than that though, that was a really good post, explain the temperature problem and I'll use it.

 

[Commander Drax]

The scarcity of iron oxide in gas giant atmospheres is a critical limiting factor on Jovibacter populations. Starship and spacecraft hulls constructed of hard iron (TL 9) or crystaliron (TL 10-11) skimming fuel from gas giants provide a ready substrate for Jovibacter, which quickly expresses flagellae and pilli to reduce the iron oxide, reproducing very rapidly in the process. Jovibacter on exposed hull surfaces die-off rapidly when exposed to ultraviolet light beyond the protective envelope of the gas giant's atmosphere, but bacteria within the ship's fuel tanks continue to reproduce, pitting and scarring the metal walls and reducing the structural integrity of the tanks and hull - in rare cases the reducing action of Jovibacter may breach the tank outright, releasing both fuel and the organism into other compartments of the ship. In extremely rare cases Jovibacter may also affect a starship's jump drive.

That's one impressive bacterium, surviving in fuel tanks, I mean liquid hydrogen (very cold), i'd love to see to a bacteria that can reproduce at those temperatures. Other than that though, that was a really good post, explain the temperature problem and I'll use it.

 

[Supplement Four]

The TRAVELLER ADVENTURE Experiment


As an experiment, I thought I'd see how this 1G-Escape-Velocity rule that I'm going to start using in my game would affect a classic (as opposed to "Classic") Traveller scenario.

Let's look at the Traveller Adventure.

The March Harrier, with its J-1 capability, is locked into the Aramis Trace (that cluster of stars around Aramis--all within one parsec of each other).

The TA says the Harrier spends 48 weeks a year servicing its subsidy route, leaving two weeks for the ship's annual overhaul and two weeks that the ship can go "off route" and do what it wants.

Of course, with it's J-1 drive, it won't be able to go off the route at all...because the entire Aramis Trace must be the ship's subsidy route.

The Aramis Trace consists of a few worlds in the Aramis subsector, a few worlds in the Rhylanor subsector, and one world in the neighboring Deneb sector.

Let's look at them and see how the March Harrier would fare on its assigned subsidy route...








In the Armais subsector, we have: Aramis; Natoko; L'oeul d'Dieu; and Reacher.

Aramis: No problem. Size 6 world. Class A starport. Harrier can land but doesn't have to with the highports.

Natoko: Again, no problem. Size 5 world. Class B starport. Harrier can dock with the highport or land at the installation.

L'oeul d'Dieu: Is a Size 9 planet, but it's also a water world. It's Class B starport is probably exclusively in orbit (with maybe only some facilities surface-side). The Harrier shouldn't have a problem here, but it will probably only dock at the orbital starport (unable to land on the Size 9 planet). Note that the Harrier's launch is only capable of 1G acceleration too, so if any of the Harrier's crew have business surface side, then they'll have to buy a seat on a shuttle.

Reacher: Size 9 world with a Class C starport. TL 8. And, it's an Amber Zone due to violence perpetrated against off-worlders. Chances are this world is not on the Harrier's subsidy route. The Harrier can't land. And, at TL 8, there are probably no highports associated with Reacher's Class C starport. There may be some limited shuttle service dirtside (which would minimize the Harrier's crew to danger dirtside), so if Reacher is on the Harrier's subsidy route, this is the only option.




Now, let's follow the Aramis Trace Rimward into the Rhylanor subsector, to: Vinorian, Nutema, and Margesi.

Vinorian: Size 8 world. Harrier can't land. But, there is a Class B starport which will have a highport. No problem here.

Nutema: Same thing. Size 8 world with a Class B starport. The Harrier crew probably never leaves the starport at these worlds--it just docks, spends time unloading/looking for cargo/loading in orbit, then makes for the next world.

Margesi: Size 5 world. Class A starport. Harrier can land.





The last world in the Aramis Trace stretches all the way into the Deneb sector. This is Saarinen. It's a Size 5 world with a Class B starport. The Harrier should have no problem here.





Well, there you have it. The March Harrier's entire subsidized trade route. All 8 star systems of the Aramis Trace.


Given Reacher's highport, even with it's Amber Zone rating, the planet could be a part of the Harrier's subsidized route.

Note how the 1G-Escape-Velocity rule added some flavor to the Harrier's travels.

They'll probably make dirtside at Natoko and Aramis. But they'll stay at the orbital facilities at Reacher and L'oeul d'Dieu.

As they travel Rimward they're stuck in space for a long while--high ports at both Vinorian and Nutema. Maybe they take shuttles dirtside if they get too stir crazy. And, you can better believe that they always make it dirtside at Margesi. With both a Naval Base and a Scout Base there, there's got to be some incredible bars.

Finally, on the last leg of their subsidy, they move into the Deneb sector and are able to land at Saarinen.

Then, it's back to Margesi. And into space for a couple of months hitting Nutema, Vinorian, and L'oeul d'Dieu. Aramis is a break dirtside. Then the highport at Reacher. Dirtside again at Natoko.

Whew.

It's not always an easy life being a spacer...


...er, um, a Traveller.

-S4

 

[Supplement Four]

The TRAVELLER ADVENTURE Experiment


As an experiment, I thought I'd see how this 1G-Escape-Velocity rule that I'm going to start using in my game would affect a classic (as opposed to "Classic") Traveller scenario.

Let's look at the Traveller Adventure.

The March Harrier, with its J-1 capability, is locked into the Aramis Trace (that cluster of stars around Aramis--all within one parsec of each other).

The TA says the Harrier spends 48 weeks a year servicing its subsidy route, leaving two weeks for the ship's annual overhaul and two weeks that the ship can go "off route" and do what it wants.

Of course, with it's J-1 drive, it won't be able to go off the route at all...because the entire Aramis Trace must be the ship's subsidy route.

The Aramis Trace consists of a few worlds in the Aramis subsector, a few worlds in the Rhylanor subsector, and one world in the neighboring Deneb sector.

Let's look at them and see how the March Harrier would fare on its assigned subsidy route...








In the Armais subsector, we have: Aramis; Natoko; L'oeul d'Dieu; and Reacher.

Aramis: No problem. Size 6 world. Class A starport. Harrier can land but doesn't have to with the highports.

Natoko: Again, no problem. Size 5 world. Class B starport. Harrier can dock with the highport or land at the installation.

L'oeul d'Dieu: Is a Size 9 planet, but it's also a water world. It's Class B starport is probably exclusively in orbit (with maybe only some facilities surface-side). The Harrier shouldn't have a problem here, but it will probably only dock at the orbital starport (unable to land on the Size 9 planet). Note that the Harrier's launch is only capable of 1G acceleration too, so if any of the Harrier's crew have business surface side, then they'll have to buy a seat on a shuttle.

Reacher: Size 9 world with a Class C starport. TL 8. And, it's an Amber Zone due to violence perpetrated against off-worlders. Chances are this world is not on the Harrier's subsidy route. The Harrier can't land. And, at TL 8, there are probably no highports associated with Reacher's Class C starport. There may be some limited shuttle service dirtside (which would minimize the Harrier's crew to danger dirtside), so if Reacher is on the Harrier's subsidy route, this is the only option.




Now, let's follow the Aramis Trace Rimward into the Rhylanor subsector, to: Vinorian, Nutema, and Margesi.

Vinorian: Size 8 world. Harrier can't land. But, there is a Class B starport which will have a highport. No problem here.

Nutema: Same thing. Size 8 world with a Class B starport. The Harrier crew probably never leaves the starport at these worlds--it just docks, spends time unloading/looking for cargo/loading in orbit, then makes for the next world.

Margesi: Size 5 world. Class A starport. Harrier can land.





The last world in the Aramis Trace stretches all the way into the Deneb sector. This is Saarinen. It's a Size 5 world with a Class B starport. The Harrier should have no problem here.





Well, there you have it. The March Harrier's entire subsidized trade route. All 8 star systems of the Aramis Trace.


Given Reacher's highport, even with it's Amber Zone rating, the planet could be a part of the Harrier's subsidized route.

Note how the 1G-Escape-Velocity rule added some flavor to the Harrier's travels.

They'll probably make dirtside at Natoko and Aramis. But they'll stay at the orbital facilities at Reacher and L'oeul d'Dieu.

As they travel Rimward they're stuck in space for a long while--high ports at both Vinorian and Nutema. Maybe they take shuttles dirtside if they get too stir crazy. And, you can better believe that they always make it dirtside at Margesi. With both a Naval Base and a Scout Base there, there's got to be some incredible bars.

Finally, on the last leg of their subsidy, they move into the Deneb sector and are able to land at Saarinen.

Then, it's back to Margesi. And into space for a couple of months hitting Nutema, Vinorian, and L'oeul d'Dieu. Aramis is a break dirtside. Then the highport at Reacher. Dirtside again at Natoko.

Whew.

It's not always an easy life being a spacer...


...er, um, a Traveller.

-S4