modular stateroom

[Enoki]

I did a cursory search for this idea and came up empty. If it's a repeat sorry.

I would think that a common item available for, primarily, merchant ships would be modular staterooms that could be installed in the ship's cargo bay on an "as needed" basis.

The idea here is that a container similar to the standard cargo containers is available but this one houses a complete standard stateroom inside it. It would take up 5 versus 4 tons of space with the extra ton being a self-contained power, water, waste processing, and enviromental unit. This way the unit requires no hook up to the ship it is on. Any entertainement / communications and the like would be wireless in nature allowing the passengers full access to the ship's systems of that sort just like for other passengers.
The modular stateroom could also be used on a planet as temporary housing in colonization situations or, as an emergancy shelter.

Other modular units of the same sort should also be available:

A lounge unit
A galley unit
A basic medical module
An office module
A workshop module (contents vary depending on function)

etc.

These would generally be available at most or all better starports on a rental / lease basis as well as for outright purchase.

This would mean that a merchant ship could increase the number of passengers it could take on a particular run if cargo was unavailable or unprofitable and passengers were available.
A ship could also install various modules like several workshops and offices to be converted to a repair ship or workshop ship for a particular run or mission. The flexibility would greatly enhance most of the smaller types like free and far traders or small subsidized merchants.

 

[far-trader]

A fair idea but the thing is the "4 tons" per stateroom is not just the passenger's room (the room is about half the volume). It also includes common spaces (corridors, lounges, recreational space, food services and storage, etc. etc... the other half of the volume).

Just what is included depends to a degree on how many "staterooms" there are on a ship, and a little on how well they are laid out. It will also vary on the type of use.

Generally the more "staterooms" you have the more flexibility and therefore more elaborate and larger the common spaces can be. In my opinion much of the life support is also included in the "stateroom" tonnage and cost.

By treating it as a self-contained module it gets complicated. I think you'd have to group several to make it doable. Maybe as few as 4 "staterooms" per module. Include a high passenger baggage area (1ton per stateroom), and call it a 20ton module is how I'd do it. I think I've drawn such up somewhere sometime... as part of my modular TAS Hotel work iirc.

 

[Carlobrand]

A fair idea but the thing is the "4 tons" per stateroom is not just the passenger's room (the room is about half the volume). It also includes common spaces (corridors, lounges, recreational space, food services and storage, etc. etc... the other half of the volume).

Just what is included depends to a degree on how many "staterooms" there are on a ship, and a little on how well they are laid out. It will also vary on the type of use.

Generally the more "staterooms" you have the more flexibility and therefore more elaborate and larger the common spaces can be. In my opinion much of the life support is also included in the "stateroom" tonnage and cost.

By treating it as a self-contained module it gets complicated. I think you'd have to group several to make it doable. Maybe as few as 4 "staterooms" per module. Include a high passenger baggage area (1ton per stateroom), and call it a 20ton module is how I'd do it. I think I've drawn such up somewhere sometime... as part of my modular TAS Hotel work iirc.

It's workable at 4 (5) dTons if you consider it a self-contained "kitchenette" model, but selling that to passengers who expect more for their ten grand might be tricky, so that multi-unit module is probably best. Between the "self-contained power unit" and the furnishings and all, it's likely to take up as much as 2 tons per unit when collapsed down for storage. I see it as more applicable to military ships, converting cargo space to double-occupancy troop space when needed and stored at the base warehouse when not needed.

 

[Enoki]

I'd think the 5 tons (minimum) is acceptable in size. That gives a equipped and powered stateroom, nothing more. If you put four in a cargo bay you still have to leave room outside the modules for passageways, access, and such in addition to the rooms themselves. If you want a lounge, add a fifth module to the four rooms for 25 tons total (not including passageways and such).

Larger modules would also be available I'd think.

I don't think that 8 staterooms and a lounge / general purpose module (45 tons space) would be an unreasonable trade off wtih the other 5 tons taken up by passageways and waste space. So, a free or far trader might be able to take 4 or 5 stateroom modules and a lounge / galley module in lieu of cargo. That doesn't seem an unreasonable trade in space.

 

[Carlobrand]

In my ship plans, a 16 dTon 4-stateroom set consists (on average) of 8 dTons of "bedroom" (4 10' by 10' rooms), 2 dTons of restroom (aka fresher), 2 dTons of hall, and 4 dTons of "other": a dining lounge, small kitchen, and small laundry room, with the spaciousness of each depending on how many rooms I had all told and how many passengers they needed to serve.

On something like a scout, the lounge and kitchen and laundry are merged as one room to maximize available space, with just enough room for a table and some chairs and the kitchen and washer/dryer over on one side; it's bachelor living, wouldn't want to try to sell a high passage on that. On something like a subsidized merchant, I can manage a bar in the lounge and enclosed kitchen and laundry rooms. Larger, and I can consolidate a bit to create room for specialty rooms like a small movie lounge with theater seating or a game room, maybe a small store for snacks, toiletries and knick-knacks - and my kitchen gets more professional.

 

[far-trader]

I seem to recall some work on modular bases built on the standard 30ton cutter module that might give you some ideas. I don't recall who did them but think they were posted to the image gallery here on CotI if you want to look there.

 

[BytePro]

4 dtons is an abstraction and most of the LS is already present in pressurized cargo holds. Should be higher cost than integrated staterooms (doesn't share common walls, etc.).

Sub-optimal use of space for curved/high cargo holds, cost of module, loss of cargo space - these all provide in-game 'reasoning' for such to not be commonly used. Not to mention esoteric issues like passengers feeling like freight...

 

[CosmicGamer]

Not to mention esoteric issues like passengers feeling like freight...

But perhaps better than feeling like a popsicle?

 

[Enoki]

4 dtons is an abstraction and most of the LS is already present in pressurized cargo holds. Should be higher cost than integrated staterooms (doesn't share common walls, etc.).

Sub-optimal use of space for curved/high cargo holds, cost of module, loss of cargo space - these all provide in-game 'reasoning' for such to not be commonly used. Not to mention esoteric issues like passengers feeling like freight...

All very reasonable. But, on the other hand if you have an empty cargo hold...

Could be highly useful to colonizing and military groups. You bring your housing and other functioning buildings with you.

A wheeled version makes this essentially a travel trailer / RV.....

If the cargo hold is tall enough a stackable version could be used allowing two or more layers. This would require installing additional deck space etc., obviously.

 

[Magnus von Thornwood]

I think I might have the answer to that...

I seem to recall some work on modular bases built on the standard 30ton cutter module that might give you some ideas. I don't recall who did them but think they were posted to the image gallery here on CotI if you want to look there.

That might be David Chase, I know he did some serious modular concept work a while back.

 

[BytePro]

All very reasonable. But, on the other hand if you have an empty cargo hold...

Or just a need for staterooms that exceeds the need for coin, etc. Was just listing some reasons 'in-game' for them not being super common...

I've basically had players use 'modular staterooms' many times - well, using the cargo hold for quarters. Porta-pot and some gel mattresses and they are all set.

 

[aramis]

I've done such a design, at 4.5Td, 3x3x6.75m

+--+---+----+--------+-----+
|__|Fr_:____:______________|
|Eq+---+____:______________|
|__|________+______________|
|__|________|______________|
|__|__Bunk__|______________|
+--+--------+--------+-----+

+---+1m__:_doorway

+--+---+----+--------+-----+-----+--------+----+---+--+
|__|Fr_:____:____________________|________|Bunk____|__|
|Eq+---+____:____________________|________|________|Eq|
|__|________+________+___________+________+________|__|
|__|________|________|____________________:____+---+__|
|__|__Bunk__|________|____________________:____:Fr_|__|
+--+---+----+--------+___________+--------+----+---+--+
|__|Fr_:____:____________________|________|Bunk____|__|
|Eq+---+____:____________________|________|________|Eq|
|__|________+________+___________+________+________|__|_
|__|________|________|____________________:____+---+__|
|__|__Bunk__|________|____________________:____:Fr_|__|
+--+---+----+--------+___________+--------+----+---+--|
|__|Fr_:____:____________________|________|Bunk____|__+
|Eq+---+____:____________________|________|________|Eq|
|__|________+________+___________+________+____u__B|__|
|__|________|________|____________________:____+---+__|
|__|__Bunk__|________|____________________:____:Fr_|__|
+--+--------+--------+-----+-----+--------+----+---+--|
+

 

[Dragoner]

I suppose one can use the pressurized cabins from book 3, though I did some base modules for my campaign:

http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/traveller-beyond-the-frontier/wikis/base-modules

 

[Carlobrand]

Why are we setting space for the mechanical equipment? Strikes me that the decks are 3 meters height while the rooms could be under 2 1/2 meters height - plenty of space for ventilation and mechanical equipment in that half-meter between-deck space.

 

[aramis]

Why are we setting space for the mechanical equipment? Strikes me that the decks are 3 meters height while the rooms could be under 2 1/2 meters height - plenty of space for ventilation and mechanical equipment in that half-meter between-deck space.

Because, at least for me, I tend to design for MegaTraveller, and in MT, the portable SR needs to be 54kL stateroom, and a few kL of PP, a few more of AG/LS, having those in a separate compartment makes good sense.

Much the same way, the end-cap is stowable under the floor, so you can connect multiple modules together into either a field-base or into a deck-long module. Note: this module won't fit through the side locks of the March Harrier plans...but you can put quite a few of them down the hold...

 

[Icosahedron]

The 'Advanced Base' in the equipment lists of LBB3 is a self-contained unit to house 6 persons for extended periods and takes up 6dT. So it's already been done.

Personally, I don't allow these for jump travel, but I have used Steerage cabins that have collapsible furniture and walls, that are able to stack down to 1dT per room.

 

[samuelvss]

I posted what I use here:

http://www.travellerrpg.com/CotI/Gallery/index.php?n=1353

These are intended to be used interchangeably with cargo containers. The cutter modules provide the bulkheads and segregation from cargo.

 

[Fritz_Brown]

Some might very well be designed that way. Others designed a la Aramis. I agree they wouldn't work as High Passage. But I am not convinced anyone paying for High Passage would be booking on a Far Trader, anyway.

 

[Carlobrand]

Some might very well be designed that way. Others designed a la Aramis. I agree they wouldn't work as High Passage. But I am not convinced anyone paying for High Passage would be booking on a Far Trader, anyway.

Well, you can fly Southwest Airlines into El Paso, but if you're wanting to fly into Clovis, NM, you'll have to settle for some smaller outfit. And then there's always the, "All the others are booked up and I have to leave TODAY," passenger - and we need not explore too deeply the reasons why they didn't have time to book a reservation in advance on a nicer ship. I've always thought the anti-hijack program and a well-armed crew were absolute necessities for Far Trader captains.

 

[BlackBat242]

The 'Advanced Base' in the equipment lists of LBB3 is a self-contained unit to house 6 persons for extended periods and takes up 6dT. So it's already been done.

Personally, I don't allow these for jump travel, but I have used Steerage cabins that have collapsible furniture and walls, that are able to stack down to 1dT per room.

I'd allow a modified version of the "Advanced Base" with ship-power hook-ups to be used for "Middle Passage" (steerage class) passengers.

It also makes transporting a scientific team much easier... just charter a bare-bones freighter, and have them live in their base modules for the whole trip!