CT Only: Rift Courier

[Spinward Flow]

Rift Courier
TL=13 (LBB5.80)
Ship Type: AF (Merchant-A, Frontier)

Tonnage: 198 (custom hull)
Configuration: 6 (Streamlined, 15.84 MCr)
Fuel Scoops (MCr 0.198)
Armor: 0

Jump-3 (7.92 tons, MCr 31.68, Capacitor storage: 106.92 EP maximum)
Maneuver-2 (9.9 tons, MCr 6.93, Agility: 2 requires 3.96 EP)
Power Plant-3 (11.88 tons, MCr 35.64, EP: 5.94)
Fuel: 65.7 tons (3 parsecs = 59.4 tons, 4 weeks operations = 5.94 tons, up to 12 weeks powered down)
Fuel Purification Plant: 200 ton fuel capacity (5 tons, MCr 0.03) (LBB5.80, p27, 36)

Dual Turret (1 ton)
Missile Rack: 1 (Code: 2, Battery: 1, MCr 0.75)
Sandcaster: 1 (Code: 3, Battery: 1, MCr 0.25)
Bridge (20 tons, MCr 0.99)
Computer: 3 (Code: 3, 3 ton, MCr 18, TL: 9, EP: 1)

Crew: 2 (Pilot, Gunner)
Staterooms: 2 (8 tons, MCr 1)
Cargo: 65 tons (5 ton Mail Vault, 60 tons internal cargo remaining)
Collapsible Fuel Tank: 60 ton capacity (0.6 tons, MCr 0.03)
Waste Space: 0 tons

Rift Courier  AF-1632331-030000-00002-0   MCr 89.0704   198 tons
    batt bearing          1         1                     TL=13.
    batteries             1         1                    Crew=2.
Passengers=0 (1 possible). Cargo=65. Fuel=65.7. EP=5.94. Agility=2. FPP.
Jump-2, Maneuver-1 with 0.1-66 tons external cargo added.
Jump-1, Maneuver-1 with 66.1-198 tons external cargo added.
Jump-0, Maneuver-1 with 198.1-297 tons external cargo added.

Interplanetary Travel (distance, acceleration, time) (link)



Total Cost (first in class): MCr 111.338
20% Down Payment (first in class): MCr 22.2676
Architect Fees (first in class): MCr 1.11338
Construction Time (first in class): 47 weeks
Annual Overhaul (first in class): Cr 111,338 (LBB2.81, p8)

Additional Ships Cost: MCr 89.0704
Additional Ships 20% Down Payment: MCr 17.81408
Additional Ships Construction Time: 38 weeks
Additional Ships Annual Overhaul: Cr 89,071 (LBB2.81, p8)

Life Support: Cr 4,000 per 2 weeks (LBB2.81, p7-8)
Crew Salaries: Cr 3640 per 2 weeks (including 2 weeks annual overhaul) (LBB2.81, p8, 11, 16, 23)

Berthing Costs: Cr 100 for 6 days, plus Cr 100 per day after 6 days (LBB2.81, p8)
Surface to Orbit Shuttle Costs: Cr 10 per cargo ton, Cr 20 to 120 per passenger (LBB2.81, p9)
Fuel: Cr 500 per ton (refined), Cr100 per ton (unrefined), Cr 0 (skimmed) (LBB2.81, p7)

Mail Delivery: Cr 25,000 revenue per delivery (LBB2.81, p9)
Interstellar Cargo Transport: Cr 1000 per ton (LBB2.81, p8-9)
Interplanetary Charters: Cr 1 per hour per ton of ship (Cr 198 per hour), minimum 12 hours (LBB2.81, p9)
Interstellar Charters (2 weeks): Cr 900 per ton of cargo, Cr 900 per low passage berth, Cr 9000 per high passage berth (LBB2.81, p9)
Subsidy reduces gross revenue receipts by 50% for passengers, cargo and mail (LBB2.81, p7)

 

[Spinward Flow]

First there was the 100-ton 6G TL=13 Spinward Courier that I created as a "proof of concept" design for a subsidized/private courier starship that could reliably generate profits on X-Mail alone at any port of call with a population code of 1+ (and possibly even code: 0 when delivering to an interdiction garrison for a Red Zone system).

However, this 100-ton design was legitimately criticized as being too hyper-specialized for its "pure x-mail courier" role.



Next there was the 194-ton 6G TL=13 Spinward Flex Courier, which took the previous concept "to the next level" by increasing the starship's tonnage to the point where a 40 ton internal cargo bay plus 40 ton collapsible fuel tank to fill that internal cargo bay could be included, above and beyond the 5 ton mail vault for carrying x-mail.

This design was put through its paces in the Race to Profitability against an unarmed "stock" Far Trader, in which the Spinward Flex Courier design performed admirably compared to its competition. After the Race to Profitability ended, I turned to the potentially lucrative possibility of the design securing fuel tanker transport contracts running circuits between a gas giant and a mainworld lacking hydrographics (such as D'Ganzio/Lanth/Spinward Marches).



Then (in the history of this forum, but presumably not within the history of the Traveller setting), the 194-ton 5G TL=11 Spinward X-Courier design was detailed as an earlier ancestor of the design philosophy that could be produced at a lower tech level (11 vs 13).

Only after writing up the specifications for the 5G TL=11 design variant did I realize that such a ship would be perfectly "legal" to use in the Distant Fringe Traveller setting (which is limited to Jump-2 and TL=12). In a case of potential convergent evolution, such a Fringe X-Courier build would qualify as an X-Range Starship due to its flex fuel capacity inherent in its design.



Well now, it's time to take the underlying basic concept that is the cornerstone for each of these starship designs and push it into a different direction … increased jump capacity (Jump-3 instead of Jump-2) with a commensurate increase in maximum range on internal fuel (6 parsecs instead of only 4 parsecs), yielding a 2J3 option rather than only a 2J2. This increase in jump range makes it possible to transit even the Jump-5 route of the Riftspan Reaches sector and other routes that would be essentially inaccessible to a wide variety of competing merchant starship types along the fringes.

Ironically, the increase in jump capacity necessitated an increase in fuel tankage and cargo space at the expense of maneuver drive power (now a more pedestrian 2G instead of 5G or 6G). Overall hull tonnage needed to increase to 198 tons from the previous (whacktastic?) "standard" of 194 tons, but everything still "fits" within the 100-199 ton hull code classification. Doubly ironically, the reduction in maneuver drive power permitted the power plant displacement to be reduced to the point where the J3 2G TL=13 Rift Courier is actually only 81% of the price of the J2 6G TL=13 design … and only 73.3% of the price of the J2 5G TL=11 (big custom power plants are EXPENSIVE at these tech levels!).

So yet another variant on a theme, only this time … the objective is to "reach for the distant stars" in a way that isn't a direct competitor to the 5G and 6G versions of the Jump-2 designs. However, the reduction in maneuver drive capacity involved does dramatically increase the risk of being unable to outmaneuver and break away from pirates or other hostile craft (so best be prepared to be boarded from time to time). To partially compensate for this reduction in maneuver capability, the Rift Courier has a Model/3 computer instead of a Model/2bis. This upgrade in computer power does not completely compensate for the reduction in agility/acceleration, but it does help mitigate the loss when it comes to ship to ship combat options.



So … thoughts?

 

[bookwyrm]

your 100 ton mail truck may have been criticized for being hyper-specialized, but so is the Scout X-Boat. your courier is in good company. even mail delivery personnel have some interesting stories to tell.

I also like how you are finding different niches for one concept with minor variations.

I'm a big fan of the Fuel Purification Plants, but have only recently added collapsible fuel cells to the mix. still considering the possibilities.

haha, finding a way across a deep rift while being chased by others who have to take the long way around... but seriously, I have had thoughts of making Rift Jumping businesses a few times. I think your Rift Courier would bring loner systems in rifts more into the mainstream (if their populations wish to be that connected), and although not as fast as the X-Boat system, they can surely keep distant systems, and especially the rift systems, better connected.

 

[Spinward Flow]

I also like how you are finding different niches for one concept with minor variations.

Hold onto your pantaloons, I may have just come up with a 3J2 TL=11 version of this design that could also do Rift Runs (albeit slower).
I'll have to put that one in yet another thread so as to not confuse it with this version.
Oh and spoiler alert ... 194 tons (that magical whacktastic number!) is once again the "sweet spot" for such a design.

I'm a big fan of the Fuel Purification Plants, but have only recently added collapsible fuel cells to the mix. still considering the possibilities.

The combination does make for some pretty wild logistics possibilities.

but seriously, I have had thoughts of making Rift Jumping businesses a few times.

Best way to corner a market is to find your niche somewhere that no one else can manage to survive in. It's a lot easier to thrive in the absence of competition, after all.

I think your Rift Courier would bring loner systems in rifts more into the mainstream (if their populations wish to be that connected), and although not as fast as the X-Boat system, they can surely keep distant systems, and especially the rift systems, better connected.

This is one of those blind spots that I think we have as gamers (Referees and Players). Economic factors (like trade in goods, services and passenger transport) can bind disparate political entities together into "blocs" that share interests (military, political, cultural, etc.) ... but the thing that REALLY undergirds all of those possibilities is ... correspondence. Communications is what binds disparate regions together.

You have to place the order before someone packages up and sends the goods, after all.
No communications, no orders for shipments of goods, services ... no nothing.

In isolation, different political zones can grow in ways that make them drift apart over time.
But with communications in place, that drift apart can either be slowed, reduced, accelerated or (in the case of a declaration of war) all but severed. Communications across the stars is what makes interstellar commerce and all the financial incentives that comes with those transactions "binding" for participating members of that communications network.

Without communications, there is no hegemony.

The fringes of a political zone are going to be places where such communications, and thus the "binding forces" keeping far flung star systems in alignment with each other through shared mutual interests, are going to be at their weakest and most delayed. In such locales, the impact that routine/reliable/regular deliveries of x-mail can have across interstellar space can be exceptionally profound, to the point of being difficult to calculate in purely monetary terms.

At what price the alignment of common interests between two separated societies?

So yeah, even if speculative cargo is the real CHA-CHING! as far as cash grabs go ... the one service that will ALWAYS be in demand is x-mail, no matter what. Because x-mail is how governments and cultures both export and import their influence to and from abroad beyond the boundaries of their system. X-mail is the bedrock foundation of both interplanetary and interstellar hegemony, making everything else that can happen ... possible ... for good, or for ill.

 

[Condottiere]

My feeling is, within the confines of Traveller, is that each trade route is rather specific.

If an unusual line of communication is being considered, chances are that everything associated with it is customized to obtain the maximum, or at least optimal, return on investment.

I think the Imperium imposes it's ecks boat network, so that while it may or may not turn a profit, in general or on specific routes, the real value is ensuring regulated lines of communication across the Imperium.

 

[Fovean]

I think the Imperium imposes it's ecks boat network, so that while it may or may not turn a profit, in general or on specific routes, the real value is ensuring regulated lines of communication across the Imperium.

Agreed but I for one miss the original Spacelanes rules, where communication and trade followed the same routes, the goal being to link up the A class ports if at all possible. I embrace the “use imagination to figure out why” paradigm but many x-boat routes are just silly.

So glad travellermap.com allows one to turn the routes off.

 

[Spinward Flow]

So ... over on the companion design J2 2G TL=11 version thread, I came up with this utterly bonkers idea of using a "standardized" 97 ton L-Hyd drop tank (with 96 ton collapsible fuel bladder in it) for the 194 ton "family" of starships (originally broached as an option for diversifying into fuel tanker services for the J2 5G TL=11 and J2 6G TL=13 courier starships operating as interplanetary maneuver tugs, link HERE). The rabbit hole that wound up leading me down was a 3J2 on internal fuel starship design having the potential for either 3J1+3J2=9 parsecs (in 6 jumps) one way range if the external tank was dumped after making 3J1 ... or ... 7J1=7 parsecs (in 7 jumps, obviously) two way range if the external tank was retained the entire way.

Needless to say, this is a rather "slow" performance profile (Jump-1 or Jump-2) for long distance travel, but when you're dealing with rift expanses and a LONG gap in between star systems, sometimes that extra few parsecs of added range can make a difference in terms of being able to reach destinations with sufficient fuel remaining to maneuver and sustain life support. Here is the relevant context cross-posted from the J2 2G TL=11 version thread.

Additionally, in terms of using "standardized" 97 ton L-Hyd drop tanks (MCr 0.155 each, that are not dropped when jumping) with internal collapsible fuel bladders in them as "flex type" external cargo containers capable of transporting either cargo goods or additional fuel (for tanker operations), a Rift X-Courier can "tow" either 1 such external tank through jump or up to 3 such tanks at 1G through interplanetary space.

Note that with a single 97 ton L-Hyd drop tank filled with 96 tons of refined fuel (in a 96 ton collapsible fuel bladder inside the drop tank) … if retained through 3 Jump-1 (29.1 tons jump fuel, 1.1 tons power plant fuel per 8 days) before being fully drained and discarded in normal space, after which the Rift X-Courier could make an additional 3 Jump-2 (38.8 tons jump fuel, 1.1 tons power plant fuel per 8 days) on internal fuel tankage and collapsible fuel bladder capacity … and after 6 jumps of up to 8 days per jump (210.3 tons total fuel consumption) still have 8.7 tons of fuel remaining (enough for 62 days of maneuvering at 2G) at the destination. That is a 9 parsec maximum one way range if expending the fuel tank along the route.

If retaining the 97 ton L-Hyd drop tank filled with 96 tons of refined fuel (in a 96 ton collapsible fuel bladder inside the drop tank) for the entire journey, a Rift X-Courier could make 7 consecutive Jump-1 (211.4 tons fuel consumption at 8 days per jump) and still have 7.6 tons of fuel remaining (54 days of maneuvering at 2G) at the destination, in addition to still having the external fuel tank (which could be refilled and reused for a return journey).

So … 9 parsec maximum range in 6 jumps with a discarded (in normal space) external fuel tank … or a 7 parsec maximum range in 7 jumps with a retained external fuel tank that is NOT discarded. It would be a LONG trip either way … but if there is no other way to reach your destination … then that's what it will take. Bear in mind that the above fuel calculations assume that all 80 tons of internal cargo space are devoted to carrying reserve fuel for these incredibly long journeys between the stars. Be sure that your life support systems are fully recharged before departing any starports!

The biggest advantage that I can see in using a J2 2G TL=11 version over a J3 2G TL=13 version is the difference in maintainability (TL=11 is easier to find than TL=13). So for the truly low end/backwater tech levels in charted space, if you REALLY need the REACH of a Rift Courier for your planned route(s), you may want to choose the TL=11 version rather than the TL=13 version so as to be able to obtain parts, spares and overhaul maintenance at a wider variety of locations (making it harder to get "stranded" somewhere).

X-Range Starship INDEED.

This conceptual framework then brings to mind the question of ... could a J3 2G TL=13 version somehow achieve a longer "reach" in terms of theoretical maximum range?
Let's find out.



There are, for all intents and purposes, only 2 external fuel tank configurations that are going to be relevant to increasing jump range for a J3 2G TL=13 starship like the Rift Courier ... 66 tons (Jump-2 limit) and 198 tons (Jump-1 limit).

A 60 ton L-Hyd drop tank (fuel only) that is actually dropped at jump (destroying the drop tank) would enable a 3J3 one way performance profile, yielding 9 parsecs in 3 jumps at the cost of disposing of the external tank.

A 66 ton L-Hyd drop tank (with a 65 ton collapsible fuel bladder for flex cargo capacity) would need 52.8 tons of jump fuel and 1.7 tons of power plant fuel, so 54.5 tons of fuel minimum per Jump-2 if the external tank is retained through jump. This would yield a total fuel capacity of:
65.7 tons (internal tankage) + 60 tons (cargo bay collapsible fuel bladder) + 65 tons (external tankage) = 190.7 tons
190.7 / 54.5 = 3.5
So instead of having a 2J3 performance, the ship would have a 3J2 performance if the external tank were retained through jump ... which doesn't seem like an advantage (barring additional context factors).

A pair of "standard" 97 ton L-Hyd drop tanks (each with a 96 ton collapsible fuel bladder for flex cargo capacity) for 192 tons of additional external fuel would mean that Jump-1 would cost 39.2 tons of jump fuel and require 1.7 tons of powerplant fuel for up to 8 days of operations, so 40.9 tons of fuel minimum per Jump-1 in this configuration. This is enough additional fuel for 4J1 in succession before dropping the tanks in normal space after draining them and making an additional 2J3 on internal fuel only, achieving a range performance of up to 10 parsecs in 6 jumps.

If the "standard" 97 ton L-Hyd drop tanks (each with a 96 ton collapsible fuel bladder for flex cargo capacity) for 192 tons of additional external fuel are retained for reuse, the J3 2G TL=13 Rift Courier would have a total fuel capacity of:
65.7 tons (internal tankage) + 60 tons (cargo bay collapsible fuel bladder) + 192 tons (external tankage) = 317.7 tons
317.7 / 40.9 = 7.77
So a maximum range of 7 parsecs in 7 jumps would be possible while retaining both external fuel tanks for reuse.



What this analysis tells me is that although there are a couple of edge cases where a J3 2G TL=13 version can achieve a slight performance increase in terms of maximum range for truly DEEP SPACE transit across rifts, those edge cases will probably not be common enough (nor economically viable enough) to be a foundation for choosing a J3 version over a J2 version except where those few edge cases become the difference between mission success and mission failure.

So the external fuel tank configuration profile "still works" for the J3 version, it doesn't "work better enough" to be a compelling "must have" alternative except in situations where speed is more valuable than immediate cash flow or profit margins.

Mind you ... the above is assuming a "solo" effort, rather than being part of an emplaced "trail of breadcrumbs" of external tanks parked at preplanned relay points for truly EPIC coordinated LONG range rift transits when running "relays" of pre-positioned external tanks awaiting pickup for use in deep space in order to leapfrog across major rift expanses.