Hi Tech Blades and Swords

[Enoki]

CT and MT don't do much with these weapons beyond give players a choice of a few typical ones based on their historical equivalents. I have added to those more high tech versions that could be possible within a Traveller universe. These newer technology adds make these weapons several times more dangerous in terms of damage and penetration.

Edged weapons made of ceramic or ceramet (ceramic-metal composites). These are nearly unbreakable, often undetectable by scan like a metal detector, and can be ground to much sharper edges that hold that edge better.

Weapons that have been precision ground to 1 micron or less in sharpness. Basically, such a blade is many times sharper than a modern razor is. The precision could be down to 1 or 2 molecules along the blade's edge. This increases penetration on many materials like cloth armor or a vac suit and allows the weapon to inflict much more damage on striking.

Coatings on the blade that act as lubricants (like super teflon) that make the blade move through the target with less resistance. These coatings also lower air resistance enhancing speed of motion in an atmosphere. Again, damage and penetration are enhanced.

"Smart" blades that use electronics to prevent anyone but the owner using them, use electronics to enhance the damage or deliver things like a massive shock along with the strike to the target. Another version at high tech levels uses a very localized field to make the blade weigh nothing (mini grav field) enhancing speed of motion or has an electro-static field that breaks down molecular bonds as it passes through the target negating many types of armor.

Basically, what I envision is something like a TL 15 sword that is super sharp, so hard as to be unbreakable, can slice right through conventional body armor, can be wielded by anyone as it weighs next to nothing and, delivers a devastating blow to the target.

The idea here is that on many worlds and even aboard ship such weapons might be the one of choice over firearms or energy weapons simply because of legal restrictions. Aboard ship at close quarters such weapons would be extremely useful, probably more so than many firearms would be.

Even used for things like chopping your way through a jungle a high tech machete that doesn't wear you out as quickly would be a useful tool.

 

[stealth]

I used to use a sword made of starship hull material made weightless by an anti-gravity field generator in the pommel. It only did 2D damage but had a Pen of 40, so you could slice through an airlock with it

 

[Icosahedron]

I don't mean to rain on your parade. It's true that technology can enhance an edged weapon, and the examples you give are good, but I feel that in Traveller terms, the difference would amount to only a small DM. As a Referee I might allow a +1. Perhaps +2 if you were fighting low tech troops using conventional blades and armour.

Where monofilaments have the advantage of minimal resistance, a traditionally shaped blade, even with a slick coating, will have a comparatively large degree of resistance, so the sharpness of the edge will not necessarily equate to a deep and harmful penetration.

The advantages of the material strength, whilst rendering the weapon less breakable, will also not greatly assist penetration as the rigidity of armour - its unwillingness to move out of the way - will probably be the dominating factor in its protection.

Cut & Zap technology has some merits, but again, you would need to penetrate the armour in order to deliver an electric shock, so this is much more useful against civilians rather than on the future battlefield.

Reducing the weight of the blade could be counter-productive, depending on how your grav-tech works. If it reduces the effective mass and hence the momentum of the blow, penetration could actually be reduced.

Anyway, why reinvent the wheel? It strikes me that what you want is a light sabre.

Unfortunately, when I tried designing a TL15 light sabre many years ago, I realised that without strong psionics it would have little use apart from a ceremonial weapon. A group wielding these would be cut down in seconds by a group armed with ranged weapons - it's only the Jedi Force that allows them to parry incoming ordnance. I'm afraid the warning "Don't take a knife to a gun fight" will always be true, no matter how sharp or smart your blade is.

 

[sabredog]

And i had a really nice ceramic kitchen knife, and while it was razor sharp, lightweight, and held its edge....it had the fault of many such things (diamonds for one) in that it shattered when I dropped it on a stone floor. Hardness doesn't always equate with durability - ceramic plates in body armor crack and shatter when hit - which also helps the wearer but means they need to be replaced after use.

Really sucked - I treated myself that knife by spending too much. Now I'm back to good old high carbon steel.

I like the knife in the Sten series - a crystal grown under certain gravity and atmospheric conditions is then sprayed with a selective viral agent that noes it to shape and a monomolecular edge. Diamond hard, yet the matrix allows for hard blows without shipping or shattering.

But it's still just a knife. BTW: I don't think lowering its drag is going to add any bonuses - neither will lightness (except in making it easier to use over a longer period of time) - the first effect will be negligible and the second might reduce penetrating power by reducing momentum and the corresponding energy dump focused on the sharp edge.

 

[Dragoner]

I can see monofilament wire bayonets and blades at higher TL's, possibly kept straight by microgravity generators in the handle. Also there could be Laser Scalpel type blades and bayonets starting at TL 9 or so, also for both, bayonets with a shock/stun feature for guard/crowd control duty.

 

[mike wightman]

Nice in fiction but in the real world a sword must be flexible. If it doesn't flex it either shatters or your bones do - and I'm talking about the sword wielder.

 

[Magnus von Thornwood]

Neato!

/snippity-snip/

I like the knife in the Sten series - a crystal grown under certain gravity and atmospheric conditions is then sprayed with a selective viral agent that noes it to shape and a monomolecular edge. Diamond hard, yet the matrix allows for hard blows without shipping or shattering.

/snip-snippity/

<<Sabredog you get major points for the Sten reference. Always loved that series, I mean not only was it super fun space opera, but it also had a really kick ass recipe in each book.>>

As for advanced TL blade weapons, I agree that they should be more effective and do more damage, mostly due to being made of superior materials and having been manufactured with methods far beyond the standard for such an item. I figure that they just don't rust, hold an edge for nigh on to forever and might have some neato dodads if the player could convince me that it made sense.

Speaking of making sense, exactly how do you keep an unauthorized person from using a blade weapon? I mean I can see how one could keep someone from using a firearm with an e-lock, but a sword or other bladed weapon seems pretty unlikely. Its not like it can instantly dull the blade if an unauthorized user picks it. Curious to hear how that feature works.

 

[stealth]

But I use the force....

I always pictured my gravity assisted sword as something with great mass that I could just swing around like a ninja, because the gravity generators in the blade added force. And imagine the edge on coherent superdense metal. Just plug it in when not in use.

Anyway, I can't recall chopping anyone in half with it. But I did use it as an unbreakable prybar, and for chopping into a ships hull.

 

[sabredog]

<<Sabredog you get major points for the Sten reference. Always loved that series, I mean not only was it super fun space opera, but it also had a really kick ass recipe in each book.>>

Ahhhh...the infamous Imperial chili Sten always had to test out! Summer's almost over - I better whip some up to torture my friends! Its best eaten outside for certain reasons.

 

[sabredog]

I always pictured my gravity assisted sword as something with great mass that I could just swing around like a ninja, because the gravity generators in the blade added force. And imagine the edge on coherent superdense metal. Just plug it in when not in use.

Anyway, I can't recall chopping anyone in half with it. But I did use it as an unbreakable prybar, and for chopping into a ships hull.

There was a story by Harry Harrison called "No War, No Battles Sound" that described a battle in zero-G on board a warship. One of the weapons used was an axe that had little thrusters on opposite sides alongside each blade. When the user pushed the triggers he could use the thrusters to work up the momentum for a strike, then recover. Another nasty device was a "drillinger" that clamped onto an armored suit's leg and then started winding down with it's pincers and a screw clamp. Sort of a reverse Jaws of Life thing.

 

[Matt123]

Blades need hardness to retain an edge and softness in order to flex (eg: taking impacts with parrying blades). In materials science these are two mutually exclusive attributes.

Even worse, hard = brittle. The only reason you want hardness in a sword is to keep the edge sharp for as long as possible, overdo it though and you will lose that edge in combat due to chipping, especially if you are grinding to 1 or 2 microns... Thats assuming it doesn't just break when you parry, leaving you with the handle and a stub.

The Japanese swordmakers (from circa 1100 on) have been using a composite design for a long time to try and overcome the problem. In essence when working their raw material steel, it is separated into soft, medium and hard steels. The hard steel is used for the edge, medium for the sides and back and soft for the core. Other construction methods exist, the most common is "Kobuse", a hard steel edge, inserted into a U shaped medium steel jacket, forge welded into a single billet then formed into the sword.

Carbon steel is generally used for sword making, but it requires maintenance to prevent rust. Stainless steel needs less maintenance, but is not as hard as carbon steel (doesn't hold an edge as well).

Ceramics hold a great edge (very hard) and no doubt some bright spark will develop a ceramic edged blade in a similar fashion to the Japanese sword. Ceramics will still suffer from impact chipping when struck against hard surfaces (eg: other ceramic blade edges).

The observations made earlier on weightless swords are correct, without mass, a sword will struggle to penetrate. Using anti grav tech though, you may be able to achieve perfect balance, aiding use and parrying. And during a swing, add significant mass along the end third of a sword where the leverage gained during a swing will aid penetration significantly.

Monofiliment wire will likely have better use with weights on the end, for example picture a three headed flail where its not the weights that cause the damage but the wire wrapping around limbs etc. Or perhaps a monofiliment yo-yo weapon. I've often wondered though, how do you contain, control or mount that monofiliment wire?

 

[Dragoner]

Monofiliment wire will likely have better use with weights on the end, for example picture a three headed flail where its not the weights that cause the damage but the wire wrapping around limbs etc. Or perhaps a monofiliment yo-yo weapon. I've often wondered though, how do you contain, control or mount that monofiliment wire?

With gravitics, I can see a stilleto type monofilament weapon where the wire spools in the handle when switched off.

edit:

After some thought:

Monofilament Bayonet/Fighting knife TL 12 17.5cm "blade"
Functions by wire spooling in handle, extending when switched on.
The blade is stiffened through a electro-magnetic process.
Damage: as per normal bayonet, except blade negates armor (treat as no armor).
Stun feature: 1 point of damage, 2d6 points of stun damage.
Each stun drains one charge from the bayonet, 10 charges total, then requires one hour on high energy charging stand, without use of stun charges, bayonet lasts one month without charging. Bayonet is typically carried on right calve of combat armor.

After I get home I will work up a pic w/ write-up.

 

[sabredog]

Niven's Know Universe stories have a thing called a variable sword which is a monomolecular wire held rigid in a stasis field when extended. The length can be varied by the user and it has a bright red diode tip to tell the user where the end is.

 

[Dragoner]

Niven's Know Universe stories have a thing called a variable sword which is a monomolecular wire held rigid in a stasis field when extended. The length can be varied by the user and it has a bright red diode tip to tell the user where the end is.

We lack the stasis tech, however.

 

[Dragoner]

Here is what I have come up with, blades/swords could be similar, esp a foil.

Monofilament Bayonet/Fighting knife TL 12 17.5cm "blade"
Functions by wire spooling in handle, extending when switched on.
The blade is stiffened through a electro-magnetic process.
Damage: as per normal bayonet, except blade negates armor (treat as no armor).
Stun feature: 1 point of damage, 2d6 points of stun damage.
Each stun drains one charge from the bayonet, 10 charges total, then requires one hour on high energy charging stand, without use of stun charges, bayonet lasts one month without charging. Bayonet is typically carried on right calve of combat armor. The Bayonet usually attaches to the side of the barrel (Instellarms GR Mk 7 version shown) as to not interfere with any under-barrel grenade launcher equiped weapons.

 

[Enoki]

Ceramet and ceramic composites are nearly unbreakable. Worked for several companies that made that stuff both for production and as prototypes / experimental items. One had a coffee cup that was literally unbreakable ceramic with reinforcements in it. You could throw this cup like a major league pitcher and nothing would happen to it (they were making the same stuff for armor in Apache helicopters too... Problem was it cost about $50 a copy......

I can see within the Traveller timeline there being such blades available for sale even if at a fairly high price.

 

[sabredog]

We lack the stasis tech, however.

But it would make a dandy one-off (or is it?) alien artifact for someone to find, wouldn't it? IMTU it did anyway:

Every time the player uses it he rolls two dice - comes up snakeyes the battery (or whatever powers it) is dead and its junk. Does 2D6+STR for damage. No modifiers for personal armor so if you hit you do damage. Any weapon making a successful parry is destroyed - but at least it protected against damage that round.

Applicable skill DM's are Sword and Cutlass (it's a slashing weapon - not impaling). And range DM's are -1 Close, 0 Short. For Attribute DM's it's 1/2 DEX.

Oh, and since I have a fumble house rule (roll snakeyes and you fumble - a natural 12 always hits) then if you fumble with this thing everyone in close to short range of you (including yourself) has to roll 1 die...on a 1 you get hit with the thing and take 1/2 damage: "Gee, thanks Obi-Wan! Next time just use your cutlass, will ya?" This is because the thing not only cuts through anything less than superdense like a laser through butter, its kinda hard to see - it just has that glowing red light on the tip. So it can be hilariously funny to hear the other players (who may have lost ears, noses, fingers, etc.,) yell at him not to use it or they'll shoot him first.

(although floating around out there is the alien suit with the stasis cancellation circuit built into it to shut off the sword if it comes too close, and the stasis "dueling shield" that the same race used...but the players haven't gone back to that "lost" world again for so long I think they forgot where it was)

Anyhow, since the thing might stop working at any time he mainly carries it around "just in case" (I dunno of what, like hand to hand combat with a Marine a battledress?), and its fun to see him agonize for a second when he tries to decide if the fight of the moment is worth the risk of never getting to use the superweapon again. Consequently it hardly gets used, and every time it does its less likely he'll use it again. LOL

 

[aramis]

Repulsor tech is interesting... a repulsor field in a 100Td bay is available at TL10 and 50Td at TL14. (CT HG & MT RM)... but no personal sized versions nor turret versions are in the tables of either, so we can presume they're at least TL17+ (since MT covers 16 routinely).

 

[Dragoner]

Repulsor tech is interesting... a repulsor field in a 100Td bay is available at TL10 and 50Td at TL14. (CT HG & MT RM)... but no personal sized versions nor turret versions are in the tables of either, so we can presume they're at least TL17+ (since MT covers 16 routinely).

The necromonger weapons of chronicles of riddick come to mind.

But it would make a dandy one-off (or is it?) alien artifact for someone to find, wouldn't it? IMTU it did anyway.

As an artifact it is great. I use the snake-eyes, manfunction and boxcars critical hit rule as well, always funny when the fancy rifle suffers a malfunction.

With my bayonet, I would have to say, while it works with armor and light stuff like tin cans, it would break trying to cut open an airlock and be destroyed if it cut into a power source, the glow in the picture is stun mode, just to make it more threatening to prisoners or civies in a riot sitch. price is another interesting question, Cr 250 is my thoughts, as per price of a GR. Also I would say it will in both on modes, be detectable by sensors, ultimately, with combat rifleman skill it is learned, but not used too much.

 

[BytePro]

Repulsor tech is interesting... a repulsor field in a 100Td bay is available at TL10 and 50Td at TL14. (CT HG & MT RM)... but no personal sized versions nor turret versions are in the tables of either, so we can presume they're at least TL17+ (since MT covers 16 routinely).

Yeah, not to get to OT, but I wonder why MgT dropped repulsors... the only mention I've found is at TL16 in the CSC with no details (and CSC is a bastardized beast, so can't put much faith in it).