ISS Lu Hao writeup

[flykiller]

upper jump deck

two of the quad j4 drives. the deck includes another maneuver drive plant.

1) upper jump drive deck

2) manual hatch down to the engineering atrium, up to the 02 level maneuver deck

3) jump field generators

4) electrical power load center - 01 level engineering

5) gear, equipment, and parts lockers

6) life support air processor

7) 01 level maneuver drive deck

8) maneuver drive plant

9) local maneuver drive control panel

10) manual hatch going down to forward power plant deck, up to 02 level aft gunnery station

11) manual hatch going down to aft power plant deck

 

[flykiller]

(this repeated from deckplan viginettes thread)

a quick outline of how turrets are built. lots of lines stuffed together so the explanation is done in stages using a double-size graphic.

A is 1 dton, 3m by 3m by 1.5m. B is the turret dome, overhead view. C is a triple turret dome with weapon access slots. beneath C is a side view of the turret dome with a 6'3" human standing alongside for reference. D is a cut-away view. The outer ring is the bottom of the turret skirt, while the inner ring is the hull bearing housing attached directly to the ship's hull and on which the turret rides as it rotates. E is a slightly higher cut-away view. the outer ring is the turret bowl while the inner ring is the turret bowl bearings which carry the weight of the turret while riding on the hull bearings. the rotor bar across the center is controlled by the servo wheels on the sides and mounts the weapons modules in the center. F shows three laser weapon modules attached to the rotor bar - below F there are three missile and/or sand racks attached instead. G shows the hull hatch inside the turret allowing access to the turret internals from inside the hull, without having to detach and lift the turret bowl away from the hull.

these show various gunnery stations directly behind the hull mounting individual turrets. each station contains the control panel and a vacc suit for wear during combat ops, and also serves as an airlock for when the turret access hatch is open. the two stations on the left simply show different entry hatch placements. the next shows a missile/sand magazine behind a reloading hatch, the whole being supported by a backup battery. the last gunnery station has two banks of backup batteries for last ditch operations of its laser weapons.

the point of a gunnery station and backups is to maximize the safety and continued operation of the weapon and gunner regardless of what other combat actions occur in the rest of the ship.

 

[flykiller]

02 level forward gunnery station and upper deck garage

1) laser turrets

2) laser turret batteries

3) upper starboard turret gunnery station

4) upper port turret gunnery station

5) grav shaft iris valve down to 01 level aft family berthing

6) gravitics controls for adjacent grav shaft

7) equipment lockers

8) soft/hazard vacc suit lockers

9) bad/cold weather gear

10) personal weapons equipment locker

11) heavy duty airlock decontamination station with heavy duty air processor life support module

12) grav bikes

13) air rafts

14) overhead sliding outer hull hatch

15) gravitics controls for guiding vehicles into and out of the garage space

16) equipment cargo containers

02 level medical receiving deck, robot drone bay, screens

(includes the previous heavy duty airlock decontamination station from the previous graphic)

1) medical receiving deck

2) emt equipment lockers

3) hazard suit equipment lockers

4) grav shaft iris valve down to medical triage deck

5) elevator platform down to medical triage deck

6) gravitic controller for grav shaft and elevator

7) gurneys

8) robot drone maintenance equipment and parts

9) hazard vacc suit lockers

10) robot drone bay - 8 grav-driven robots, 8 high speed recon drones

11) drone deployment, heavy duty decon station airlock, iris valve overhead for drone deployment

12) overhead cargo hatch to exterior, on deck to upper cargo deck

13) hazardous duty robots

14) drone operations station

15) life support air processing station (for 11)

16) nuclear damper screen station

17) meson screen station

02 level top maneuver deck, aft gunnery stations

1) electrical power load center - 02 level

2) parts/equipment locker, soft vacc suit locker

3) manual hatch down to upper jump drive deck

4) maneuver drive

5) maneuver drive local control panel

6) manual hatch down to upper maneuver drive deck

7) upper starboard aft laser turret

8) upper port aft laser turret

 

[JFGarber]

a quick outline of how turrets are built. lots of lines stuffed together so the explanation is done in stages using a double-size graphic.

I am deeply impressed at the thought you've put into this. Kudos.

 

[flykiller]

2nd deck - paws gundeck

ship's main gun, particle accelerator weapon factor 9

1) main guide ring

2) manual hatch up to bridge

3) guide rings

4) grav shaft iris valve up to main deck circulation space and down to 2nd deck forward gunnery stations and ground-level garage

5) paws accelerators

6) live-operations maintenance robots

7) electrical power load center - paws

8) paws control station

9) local testing and control panel

10) paws parts and equipment locker

2nd deck - main cargo deck

1) general parts and equipment lockers

2) 1 dton cargo modules

3) vacc suit lockers - soft and hazard suits

4) grav shaft control for cargo shaft

5) cargo hatches, up to boat deck, down to ground level garage receiving deck

6) reserve air tank

7) reserve water tank

8) supply office

9) sensitive parts and equipment lockers

10) critical parts and equipment lockers

11) robot station - heavy duty cargo bots

2nd deck - lower jump deck

two of the quad j4 drives. the deck includes another maneuver drive plant.

1) lower jump drive deck

2) manual hatch up to the engineering atrium, down to the 3rd deck maneuver drive

3) jump field generators

4) electrical power load center - 2nd deck

5) gear, equipment, and parts lockers

6) life support air processor

7) 2nd deck maneuver drive

8) maneuver drive plant

9) local maneuver drive control panel

10) manual hatch going up to forward power plant deck, down to 3rd deck aft gunnery station

11) manual hatch going up to aft power plant deck

 

[flykiller]

Kudos

thanks, had a lot of fun doing that one, but what I hope is that it gets used in a game.

 

[flykiller]

3rd deck forward gunnery station and lower garage deck

1) laser turrets

2) laser turret batteries

3) lower starboard turret gunnery station

4) lower port turret gunnery station

5) grav shaft iris valve up to paws bay

6) gravitics controls for adjacent grav shaft

7) equipment lockers

8) soft/hazard vacc suit lockers

9) bad/cold weather gear

10) personal weapons equipment locker

11) heavy duty airlock decontamination station with heavy duty life support air processing module

12) lower garage deck

13) heavy duty airraft truck

14) sliding panel door access

15) gravitics controls for guiding vehicles into and out of the garage space

16) light duty cargo grav robot

17) combat robot

18) heavy duty cargo grav robot

19) cargo/equipment container modules

20) heavy duty cargo robot

21) sliding panel cargo access

22) manual panel hatch up to main cargo bay

3rd deck maneuver drive, aft gunnery stations

1) electrical power load center - 3rd deck

2) parts/equipment locker, soft vacc suit locker

3) manual hatch up to lower jump drive deck

4) maneuver drive

5) maneuver drive local control panel

6) manual hatch up to lower maneuver drive deck

7) lower starboard aft laser turret

8) lower port aft laser turret

9) fuel scoop

10) fuel purifier centrifuge processors

11) fuel purifier local control panel and valve manifold

 

[flykiller]

... and that's about it for the deckplan write-up. any errors, please point them out. I'm hoping to add a "starship operator's manual" to this. then perhaps a game. anyone want to go anywhere in the cindy lu?

 

[JFGarber]

Should both images be identical?

 

[flykiller]

Should both images be identical?

no, I screwed up, 'll try to fix it tonight.

fixed.

 

[magmagmag]

I want to introduce your ship on Japanese SNS site if you permit it.

 

[flykiller]

I want to introduce your ship on Japanese SNS site

sure, go ahead, you have my permission.

 

[Shadowrunner]

As they would say in Japan, GANBARIMASHITA! Excellent work! I like the CT feel and it's big enough to really adventure in. Love it.

 

[flykiller]

continuing on with my idea of a starship operator's manual. you may or may not find it complete or interesting, my hope is that you find it useful.

traveller has many rule sets. this discussion is intended to provide a general description of traveller ship components and functions, and specifically of the SC07 class, and particularly the iss lu hao, allowing player character and skill set involvement in the operation of these ships. ct up to book 6, along with many of my own rules, is presumed, and I have no access to or familiarity with other rule sets. if the rules or descriptions here resemble any previously published rule set this resemblance is unintentional and purely coincidental. as always the referee may alter or disregard these or those as he sees fit.

 

[flykiller]

engineering

cold fusion power plants

operational description
cold fusion power plants use "crystalic fusion" to provide electrical power to a ship (or to any power consumer). a crystaline latticework is immersed in mildly pressurized hydrogen, and individual hydrogen atoms fill the crystal intersices. an electrostatic discharge (a spark) kicks off the cold fusion process, and the electrically excited intersticial hydrogen undergoes low-pressure low-temperature fusion generating an electrostatic potential. total electrostatic DC potential is gathered in a central collection tower where it is balanced, regulated, and converted to AC at standard frequencies and voltages. from there power is supplied to the rest of the ship via standard transformers, breaker boxes, power panels and load centers. each fusion instance clears the interstice for new fuel for the next fusion instance. fuel consumption is constant regardless of powerload.

there is no particular upper limit to the size of this assembly, but larger plants do begin to exhibit some inefficiencies in electrostatic power transmission across the latticework.

there is a hard lower limit to the size of this method of power generation. the smallest possible enduring power plant size is 1 dton. crystaline latticeworks smaller than this are broken down by the fusion - the smaller the latticework the faster the dissolution. cold fusion power sources of this temporary nature, however, make excellent power packs for devices such as battle dress armor, weapons, space-going missiles, and other devices that can function with temporary sources of power, and above microscopic there is no particular limit to how small they can be.

shipboard power plant assemblies are typically sized so as individually to provide, for example, maneuver 1 or jump 2 to the ship - thus the practice of rating power plants in whole numbers. they need not necessarily be so sized, however, especially in split engineering plants or where damage control is a major issue.

cold fusion power plant crystal latticeworks represent the majority of the cost of such a power plant.

physical description
most shipboard power plant assemblies consist of a pair of double-hulled pressure flasks containing the fusion crystal latticework, and one electrostatic collection tower between them, as this seems to be the optimal configuration in terms of size and cost. other configurations are possible, but they will be larger and more expensive. most will have a small control panel associated with the flask pressurization, fusion light-off, load balancing, and electrical connection.

normal operations

crystalic fusion power plant operations are simple. light-off consists of lining up hydrogen fuel to the flasks and bringing them up to mild operating pressures, "shocking" the latticework to initiate fusion, aligning the pressure and power collection to balance loading between the flasks, lining up the collection tower to process the power load, and then connecting the output to the ship's power grid. fuel consumption is constant regardless of power load and continues until the power plant is shut down or depressurizes or runs out of fuel. shutdown consists of depressurization or fuel cut-off. engineering skill level 1, or mechanic 1 and electronics 1, are sufficient for all normal operations.

cold fusion power plants are fairly cool and quiet, emitting only a dim hum.

maintenance

power plant assemblies have no moving parts other than those associated with fuel transfer and electrical power distribution. they are tough, rugged, and dependable for many decades of use, except for the latticeworks. the pressure flasks are not highly pressurized and the collection towers use only normal electronic equipment. normal maintenance consists of replacing any electrical components that fail or fuel valves that wear out. engineering 1, or mechanical 1 and electronics 1, are sufficient for these routine tasks.

refit/overhaul

annual refit/overhaul consists of removal of the latticework and replacement with a refurbished one. latticework refurbishment requires large specialty equipment and normally is not possible aboard most ships. the task of removing, carrying, and installing spare latticeworks is rated UNUSUAL, and while an engineer or mechanic and electrician team of skill level 1 or 2 may succeed in the attempt a skill rating of level 3 is required to guarantee success. failure will result in reduced output, possible damage to the system, and even breakage of a latticework. broken latticeworks are impossible to repair. if installed anyway they may work at reduced capacity for short periods but rapidly will break down.

damage control

the power plant flasks are double-hulled to contain any leaks. such leaks usually are vented overboard. if a power plant flask takes damage sufficient to breach it the lowered pressure simply will result in a shutdown uneventful for the power plant itself. leaks into the engineering space, however, in addition to displacing breathable air, will result in tremendously freezing temperatures near the leak and may result in personnel casualties and brittle fracture of any metal within direct range of the leak. it will also greatly lower atmospheric temperatures throughout the engineering space, if the leak is large then to the point of rendering the space uninhabitable to unprotected personnel.

if electrical faults develop in the power distribution system then a normally-functioning power plant control panel will trip a breaker and isolate that plant from the ship's electrical system. this will have no effect on power plant operation. if an electrical fault develops in the power plant collector assembly itself there is no way to isolate the system electrically from the crystal latticework power generation, and the power plant must be shut down.

abnormal operations
operating a cold fusion power plant with a damaged or broken crystal latticework will degrade the latticework resulting in reduced power production. for each day of such operations roll d6. if the roll is less than the number of days of operations then roll d6 for each such day of operations - the result is the number of energy points by which the power plant output is reduced. such reductions are permanent and cumulative. rolls are modified by engineering skill.

operating a cold fusion power plant past its refit/overhaul date will see declining power production. for each month of such operations roll d6. if the roll is less than the number of months of operations then roll d6 for each such month of operations - the result is the number of energy points by which the power plant output is reduced. such reductions are permanent and cumulative until refit/overhaul is accomplished. rolls are modified by engineering skill.

 

[flykiller]

maneuver drive

operational description

"maneuver drives" are used to propel space-going vessels. they do this by utilizing electrical power and gravitic field generators to warp real-space-time to induce a localized gravity field into which the vessel "falls" in a controlled direction. this warp, when properly calibrated and aligned, exacty matches the shape of the vessel which it propels, thus allowing the vessel to manever close to other objects such as air and dirt without entraining them in the localized gravity field. vessels undergoing "maneuver" make no sound other perhaps than the sound of a large object moving through an atmosphere. maneuver drives themselves sound like any rotating machinery. while the gravity field may be of any value maneuver drives typically are rated in values of 1 to 6 g, g being the standard acceleration of 32ft/sec^w experience on terra's surface. maneuuver drives greater than 6 are easily achieveable but 1) are not cost efficient and 2) begin to approach the breaching of real-space-time seen in jump.

maneuver drives and jump drives are very similar. while jump drives breach real-space-time, maneuver drives simply manipulate it.

the real-space-time warp generated by maneuver drives has a natural "lay", giving the ship a "natural" direction of travel. maneuver drives are aligned with the vessel such that it falls in a typically intended direction - forward - thus it can be said to operate as if it were a jet engine driving a craft forward (though maneuver drives have no discharge of any kind). this orientation can be altered, allowing the vessel to maneuver left or right without changing orientation, to change orientation, or even to hover in a natural gravity field, at a reduced maneuver rating. the greater the alteration, however, the greater the maneuver drive rating is reduced and the greater the maneuver drives are overloaded. in general most maneuver drives can be overloaded for a few minutes before any damage begins to accrue, so in most cases ships may cruise slowly over a field, pull in to hover over a landing pad, and drift gently down to land, with no danger of damaging the drives. maneuver drives can be designed to perform unlimited warp alteration allowing unlimited hover, but such drives operate at one rating below their cost and size, e.g. a maneuver 3 drive that allows unlimited hover would be the same size and cost as much as a maneuver 4 drive. many civilian and military gigs are built with such drives, but few military space-going ships are, and almost no civilian ships have such capability.

physical description

a maneuver drive is unimpressive externally, consisting of a cylindrical housing with a sphere at one end. internally it is a complex of nested counter-rotators (two for maneuver 1, three for maneuver 2, etc) which generate the real-space-time warp. this warp is "passed through" to the gravitic controller, which is the sphere at the end of the drive. this contains the fields and guides which both shape the real-time-space warp to the outline of the vessel and also control the angle of the warp thus controlling the direction in which the vessel "falls".

normal operations

in general, maneuver drives either have electrical power applied to them and are under the control of the bridge pilot, or they don't or are not. engineers supervise light-off of the drives and check for any initial signs of problems or failures, but unless maneuever drive real-space-time warp fields are in their natural orientation then maneuver drives require little engineering operational attention. if maneuver drive real-space-time warp fields are being altered and the drives overloaded for long periods of time then engineers may adjust sequences and rotations in an attempt to balance loads and prevent damage to the drives for a period of time, task difficulty rating ranging from UNUSUAL to VERY DIFFICULT.

maintenance

maneuver drive rotators are heavy, complex, and sensitive, but are not fragile. other moving parts requiring maintenance include those associated with fuel transfer and electrical power application. field generator internal maintance is the same as that of any rotating machinery. external maintenance of the drives themselves is minimal. remaining maintenance consists of keeping replacing any electrical components that fail. engineering 1, or mechanical 1 and electronics 1, are sufficient for these routine tasks.

refit/overhaul

maneuver drive field generator rotators must be rebalanced each year, and the field generators must be carefully calibrated to the ship on which they are mounted. this rebalancing and calibration must be performed during annual overhauls or or the not only will the maneuver drives become unpredictable in their direction but also may lose "power" - i.e. a maneuver 2 drive may become capable only of maneuver 1 . the task of rebalancing/recalibrating maneuver drives is rated UNUSUAL and requires both a qualified engineer and a qualified navigator. while those with skill level 1 or 2 may attempt it and may succeed the results cannot be guaranteed. skill level 3 for both engineer and navigator are necessary for guaranteed reliability in control and power. shipyard overhaul is sufficiently experienced (usually) to calibrate without testing. field testing proof of calibration usually is a timed and calculated trip to a nearby moon or around the world on which the yard is located, and cursory check for entrainment in proximity to the vessel hull.

damage control

in general maneuver drives are quite stout and not easily damaged, though the gravitic controller is somewhat less robust. immediate damage control of maneuver drives usually is impossible and repairs will major work and recalibration.

abnormal operations

if maneuver drives operated in an overloaded condition for long periods, they will rapidly lose alignment and overheat. this can cause seized bearings, resulting in moderate loss of drive power or instant total failure, or frictional impacts between one rotor and another or the cylinder walls, resulting in instant total failure. in addition the gravitic controller sphere can lose alignment and begin to drive the ship erraticly or entrain debris, equipment or people along the edge of the hull.

also if the gravitic controller is damaged then the above conditions may obtain, immediately or over time.

 

[Leitz]

Haven't read the last couple posts, so maybe I missed the standard crew compliment. Number? Hot-bunking? Count over minimum? Expected role duplication (scientists are gunners, etc)?

Addendum: I just re-read Book 2. Will get to LBB 5 in a few days.

 

[kilemall]

I applaud the engineering details of the drives. I'm not persuaded to go in that direction, but I am of the firm belief that the more you 'know' about how your tech works, the more you can visualize it and render it 'real', convey ship immersion and thus the play world in general.

Oh, one nice side effect of your maneuver description, the 'grav warp' can explain why they have to be within 2 LS to detect you max range, rather then more likely AUs.

 

[atpollard]

Haven't read the last couple posts, so maybe I missed the standard crew compliment. Number? Hot-bunking? Count over minimum? Expected role duplication (scientists are gunners, etc)?

Addendum: I just re-read Book 2. Will get to LBB 5 in a few days.

List of Crew in the ship's description HERE (scroll down)

 

[Leitz]

List of Crew in the ship's description HERE (scroll down)

Yeah I saw that a little bit ago. When I wrote the scene about the captain, Sarah, and her fiance, I kept it fully generic.

Lucky could be a senior engineer but may not be officer material. Depends on how the ship is run. I can really see some friction when Sarah thinks her step-mom's ex-husband has been assigned to the ship to babysit her.