Darkmax wrote:Nice cyborg accessory! I like! I'll try to whip up a design and see if you like it. Any preference on color? Or just my regular metallic tones would do?
PS: I just find other colorations difficult to blend with, so I have not use that many colors.
The super transport is inspired by those super-tankers and super-long freight trains. What do you think?
Suit ypur desire...If ypu can't do it, I can always sketch it up...
That was my first thought...a container ship...modular super hauler...tediously slow to get up to speed, and almost impossible to slow down in anything less that a few dozen planetary diameters...
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Behemoth Super transporter:
Did it occured you, that the giant cans (described in the
Three Galaxies) with a little modification can readily
service a starfighter or two?
Adios
KLM
But still, one of the most basic rules for survival on any planet is never to upset someone wearing black leather - This is why protesters against the wearing of animal skins by humans unaccountably fail to throw their paint over Hell's Angels.
- Terry Prachett
Small font: use ctrl+c and copy it, so you can read. But since it is in small fonts, it is not important. I am not a NE salesperson.
Behemoth Super transporter: Did it occured you, that the giant cans (described in the Three Galaxies) with a little modification can readily service a starfighter or two?
Adios KLM
Or modify a can to conceal an LRM or cruise missile launcher....stuff enough of them in among a load of innocuous cargo pods(or maybe pods carrying sensor-queering materials like radioactive wastes)...snuggle up over a planetary target or next to a space station...Modern version of the 'fireship'...
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Was was the book/movie; 'Flight of the Condor'?
About the government agent whose entire office is paid to read books and magazines filing reports on fictious criminal modus operandi they pick up in case somebody every DOES committ a crime along similar lines? Until they accidentally get a government document outlining a scheme to seize MiddelEastern oilfields...and somebody decides to have the entire office wiped out?
And yet there have also been actual cases..."Murder on the Rabbit Proof Fence" where a group of Australian mystery writers were shocked to discover that a series of murders nearby mimiced the layout for a 'perfect crime' they had been discussing...turned out to be a handyman who was listening in on their 'murder talks'.
Somewhere on Earth, in an abandoned warehouse, with the windows blocked out, lit inside only by the glow of a portable compscreen and the shimmering energies of a powered-down dimensiona portal, an FWC operative suddenly perks up..."Hey, THERE"S an idea! They'll NEVER see that coming!!!"
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Darkmax wrote:Well it is not very surprising. Most of them being uneducated, they have to get their ideas from somewhere!
"The FWC Guide to Dirty Tricks: Or; If It Kills and Demoralizes TGE Legionnaires, It's a Good Idea."
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Behemoth Super transporter: Did it occured you, that the giant cans (described in the Three Galaxies) with a little modification can readily service a starfighter or two?
Adios KLM
Oh definitely! From the very first time I read up on it..... I've comto the conclusion that with minimum modifications, one can also make it into a life-raft, a very big bomb delivery container, and even a portable housing...
For my part, I took the idea from the British container ships
(used as auxiliary aircraft carriers) and the german MEKO concept.
Adios
KLM
But still, one of the most basic rules for survival on any planet is never to upset someone wearing black leather - This is why protesters against the wearing of animal skins by humans unaccountably fail to throw their paint over Hell's Angels.
- Terry Prachett
Small font: use ctrl+c and copy it, so you can read. But since it is in small fonts, it is not important. I am not a NE salesperson.
Darkmax wrote:can serve well as ablative armor too....
"Yarrr.... Drop containers from starboard pilons
from A to F or prepare to be boarded...!"
cpt. "Blackbeard" KLM
But still, one of the most basic rules for survival on any planet is never to upset someone wearing black leather - This is why protesters against the wearing of animal skins by humans unaccountably fail to throw their paint over Hell's Angels.
- Terry Prachett
Small font: use ctrl+c and copy it, so you can read. But since it is in small fonts, it is not important. I am not a NE salesperson.
Darkmax wrote:can serve well as ablative armor too....
"Yarrr.... Drop containers from starboard pilons from A to F or prepare to be boarded...!"
cpt. "Blackbeard" KLM
"They're complying. Dropping containers."
"Excellent...move to take possession."
"Coming abou--OH CR---! THose containers have just started accelerating to high cee...AT US!!!"
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
That is why I obtained this handy-dandy gravitonic
sensor from an Enforcer...
-----------------
Which brings us back to the "what the sensors can do"
questions...
Adios
KLM
But still, one of the most basic rules for survival on any planet is never to upset someone wearing black leather - This is why protesters against the wearing of animal skins by humans unaccountably fail to throw their paint over Hell's Angels.
- Terry Prachett
Small font: use ctrl+c and copy it, so you can read. But since it is in small fonts, it is not important. I am not a NE salesperson.
KLM wrote:That is why I obtained this handy-dandy gravitonic sensor from an Enforcer...
----------------- Which brings us back to the "what the sensors can do" questions...
Adios KLM
...Tells you exactly HOW and HOW BADLY you're about to be hosed in the few seconds remaining between realizing that those canisters of 'industrial radio-isotopes' are really disposable x-ray laser batteries and getting vaped....
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
You could always make those containers you drop full of say....... Long range missiles. That would be quite a surprise most pirates would be willing to for go meeting.
"Your Grace," she said, "I have only one question. Do you wish this man crippled or dead?"
"My Lady," the protector of Grayson told his Champion, "I do not wish him to leave this chamber alive."
"Yaarrr... hose the bridge and the engineering
with phase beamers, and then board... But first drop cloak!"
"I told ya Scotty, dis the last time I gave a warning.
It costed us a decoy again."
Adios
cpt. "Blackbeard" KLM
But still, one of the most basic rules for survival on any planet is never to upset someone wearing black leather - This is why protesters against the wearing of animal skins by humans unaccountably fail to throw their paint over Hell's Angels.
- Terry Prachett
Small font: use ctrl+c and copy it, so you can read. But since it is in small fonts, it is not important. I am not a NE salesperson.
Very nice...looks nicely armed too.....I wouldn't mind flying one...
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
"Yaarrr... hose the bridge and the engineering with phase beamers, and then board... But first drop cloak!"
"I told ya Scotty, dis the last time I gave a warning. It costed us a decoy again."
Adios cpt. "Blackbeard" KLM
THat's another idea...rather than mount the ship's bridge in an obvious place...admittedly at great expense, rewire everything through an inconspicious part of the ship, like hiding the command center inside a false double-hulled life support system waste tank...The bridge is still functional for inspections, visits, and routine travel, but the real nerve center is the last place pirates will hit...
"WE've burned the bridge sir, and we're patching in our own con---"
"Captain, our 'headless hulk' just expelled our boarding team with explosive bolts and jumped to paralight..."
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
That is a cool Container ship! I love it! I know a lot of people including my self who will use it in their campaigns. You might want to start thinking about an even larger one. There are new container ships in our own world who are going to be able to haul 12,000 containers at one time.
"Your Grace," she said, "I have only one question. Do you wish this man crippled or dead?"
"My Lady," the protector of Grayson told his Champion, "I do not wish him to leave this chamber alive."
taalismn wrote:THat's another idea...rather than mount the ship's bridge in an obvious place...admittedly at great expense, rewire everything through an inconspicious part of the ship, like hiding the command center inside a false double-hulled life support system waste tank...The bridge is still functional for inspections, visits, and routine travel, but the real nerve center is the last place pirates will hit...
Not bad. Actually, several ships IRL can be captained
from both the bridge and the engineering. Submarines
even have a station in the tower (used on the surface)
and in the pressurised hull - to be used submerged,
plus the engineering.
On he other hand, bridges are pretty functional - since
most captains, however advanced their sensors might be -
like to use the old MkI. Eyeball. This is especially true
for giant cargo vessels - they are not supposed to fall
prey for pirate attacks.
Terefore, if the lucky (or professional) pirate can
arrange an attack while the usual escort/local patrols
are busy elsewhere, he can expect a rich bounty.
Of course, hijacking the whole ship is probably out of
question (those giants sloths are not famous for
their escape abilities), but a well selected container(s)...
Well, for the pirate, it is profit.
For the merchant, it is better, than having the ship
blasted into several pieces.
----
Now, there is the Q-ship solution, but... Well, if that
tactic becomes standard, the pirates will open fire
first, and do not bother with threats or prisoners.
Basically that happened during WWI, with british
ships (which all had to be build with at least one
gun enplacement, for example the Lusitania was
able to mount a dozen medium calibre guns (10*12 cm?)
giving it a firepower of a contemporary light cruiser)
and german subs (a submarine of that age was a
rather fragile nutshell... One hit and no more diving,
a second hit and dive,dive,dive... With no return.)
Adios
KLM
But still, one of the most basic rules for survival on any planet is never to upset someone wearing black leather - This is why protesters against the wearing of animal skins by humans unaccountably fail to throw their paint over Hell's Angels.
- Terry Prachett
Small font: use ctrl+c and copy it, so you can read. But since it is in small fonts, it is not important. I am not a NE salesperson.
That probably explains why this particular ship looks so well-armed....I say eight tachyon scatterguns on outriggers, forward lasers, a pair of forward repulsors/tractors, and the engine pod looks like it has a veritable forest of point defense lasers....NO kidding, since if a pirate can hit the right container ships, make off with the whole cargo load, and manage to fence it all off, they stand to make a profit on sheer volume.....
Rather fast, though....superhaulers traditionally move like lame bison when fully loaded...
But the extendable bucky-tube extensors have me thinking that maybe while this ship is in orbit it accumulates extra power using tether physics orbiting through a planet's magnetic field...stores up power and takes strain off its reactors, especially for routine onboard power needs....
I'll have to do some research while I'm stating this baby up...
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Darkmax wrote:Thanks guys for the support of this monster... it nearly broke my graphic processor... As suggested, I am currently thinking of making a far bigger one, but I'm not quite sure about matching the 12,000 container capacity...
"Er, guys? I don't think that's a moon..."
"Why not?"
"Moons don't have 'Megaversal Truckin' blazoned across them in mile-wide numbers....
For when you REALLY got big loads to haul...
(shot of Dolza, Zentraedi 'rig-driver, wearing a cap and talking trash on a CB while his giant fortress-rig(complete with enormous steer horns sticking out from the top of it) plows through an REF speedtrap and goes sailing towards a planet....)
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Darkmax wrote:Wow! That advertisement will definitely be worth a hell lot to the "truckers".
May be the planetoid factory can double as a cargo transport when business is really bad!
hmm.... I have been thinking... Cars, ships and planes all have some sort of honking device to warn others.... one cannot simply honk in space... what does one do? Flash a high-powered beam?
Navigation lights, but they're relatively useless unless you're close...
Starships will have universal transponders, sending coded IDs on approved 'standard' channels to other ships' nav systems and collision avoidance comps, as well as local traffic control.....
Hazardous cargo-carrying ships will have powerful strobes and short range repetitive radio message loops running, while ships may also have blinkers to inform nearby EVA crews and other ships, if their engines produce dangerous efflux, of engine power up and possible dangers from the engine firing, but not all spacefarers recognize this code of conventions...
For emphasizing such things as 'get out of the way!" or "thanks for screwing up by docking approach", presuming that both ships are undamaged, broad-frequency comms are standard....but really, if the other guy's turned off his communications, there ain't much you can do to get their attention aside from the obvious sight of a multi-ton spacecraft surging towards him....
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
That's why I'm trying to think of some rescue ship/'coast guard cutter' designs for local space search and rescue units....
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Basically take every 'well-meaning but dumb/naive/underfunded/insufficiently paranoid altruistic rescue workers show up at distant disaster site and get maimed by forces beyond their comprehension/control' movie and plan accordingly if it was YOU taking that emergency call...and NO, you CANNOT just sit back when a distress call comes and wait for the signal to expire...
One thing's for certain...I'm going to have at least TWO vessels responding to any call outside local aerospace...or have one of my team in a fighter/scoutship patrolling local space around the wreck...if he finds a freefloating survivor or debris important to subsequent incident investigation, excellent...if he finds a corpse identical to the guy I'm speaking to on the damaged ship, or monitors my entire crew going insane or being taken over by alien predators, he's in position to go screaming back to base and report the incident, thereby alerting my colleagues not to fall for that same trap....
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Darkmax wrote:self-sacrifice, that's another noble trait....
Yeah...well, when the Forces of Evil take advantage of it to eat/torture the rescue workers, a little common sense and caution sure looks good....
"You're obviously insane, sir, now lie back down and don't endanger the rest of the mission before you become very obviously DEAD."(gestures meaningfully with combination laser cutter/laser carbine, with MDC EVA armor suit on)
"There's nobody aboard, and it's creeping me out...EVERYBODY!_BACK_ TO THE SHIP! We'll explore it later via remote probe!"
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Not bad. But you should contemplate making several models. A small economical model, a medium model, a large model and them a super ship. Something the really big conglomerates would use to transport tremendous amounts of products. Just think about it.
"Your Grace," she said, "I have only one question. Do you wish this man crippled or dead?"
"My Lady," the protector of Grayson told his Champion, "I do not wish him to leave this chamber alive."
Darkmax wrote:Aramanthus, I just did some research and realize this.
the ships that carry 15,000 units were based on the standard 20ft containers. These have a dimension of 20ft by 8 ft by 8.5 ft....
The super-can in the Three Galaxies are 130ft by 60 ft by 40 ft..... they are about 230 times the size of the TEU unit mentioned above.....
Thus. the Behemoth would be carrying about 56580 units of TEUs...
Yep...BULK haulers....
I'm figuring maybe three-four feet of horizontal clearance between containers, and ten feet of clearance vertically...enough space for a spacesuited worker or EVA bot to crawl about the outside of a racked can and do structural inspection, since not all of the cans are going to be accessible from inside the ship(unless the shipper permits it, has special instructions, and has the container placed on one of the handful of inpection hatches in the extensor tubes(the also serve as man-ways between the modules).
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Aramanthus wrote:Not bad. But you should contemplate making several models. A small economical model, a medium model, a large model and them a super ship. Something the really big conglomerates would use to transport tremendous amounts of products. Just think about it.
The original 'Baskin'(which has since become in my stat files the 'John Frumm' class) and the 2nd generation Baskin(the revised version) are essentially 'midget' versions of this concept...the existing Behemoth is the 'large' version, but a variant could add extra midsection modules, and have maybe 6-8 extensor rods instead of four for structure stability and anchor points...the 'Super' may as well be a converted small asteroid with a big drive unit in the center and anchor pylons sticking up out of it....like an enormous sea urchin....
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Dear god, this is a LOT of cargo.....without hundreds of EVA pods and can-wranglers, it would take weeks to load/unload that bastard from a full load!
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Darkmax wrote:okay... I've been at this ship design the whole afternoon.... It is tiresome with this lackluster graphic capability.... the best size I can come up with is 17,472 Super-Cans. However, the ship will be 9,930 feet (3,310 m) and nearly 1/5 - 1/4 of the length in diameter.....
But still, one of the most basic rules for survival on any planet is never to upset someone wearing black leather - This is why protesters against the wearing of animal skins by humans unaccountably fail to throw their paint over Hell's Angels.
- Terry Prachett
Small font: use ctrl+c and copy it, so you can read. But since it is in small fonts, it is not important. I am not a NE salesperson.
Yeah, but if the ship gets to stay in space. It could be very large. Even over a mile. It wouldn't have to worry about the stresses of landing on a planet.
"Your Grace," she said, "I have only one question. Do you wish this man crippled or dead?"
"My Lady," the protector of Grayson told his Champion, "I do not wish him to leave this chamber alive."
Darkmax wrote:KLM, 14,500 is not really the biggest number for a container ship to date... However as I have pointed out previously, each super-can can easily hold approximately 230 TEUs. That would mean the Emma is probably carrying only about 64 TEUs.
The Super-Can's dimension are as follows:
130 ft (long) x 60 ft (wide) by 40 ft (height)
A standard TEU would be:
20 ft (long) x 8.5 ft (wide) x 8 ft (height)
But:
- in sea-faring ships, most containers are stored in the
cargo bay, they have to be lifted out one by one -
loading the Behemoth is more like loading a railroad
train. More cranes (or in our case, more tugs/tractor beams)
can work on them.
- While super cans do need larger cranes/tugs/tractor beams,
yet (un)loading one is approximately the same time: one
crane "cycle".
-------------
As for protection... There is a rational limit, how big is
the pirate threat - and this more-or-less sets the
size of the adequate escort..
If the pirates are expected to have two frigates and a
cruiser at most, our escort of a cruiser and 4 frigates
plus the defensive guns on the merchant vessels
are more than enough... For whatever size of convoy
or cargo ship.
Vesides, there is piracy as of today, yet those container or
Ro/Ro ships travel without any significant protection.
Adios
KLM
But still, one of the most basic rules for survival on any planet is never to upset someone wearing black leather - This is why protesters against the wearing of animal skins by humans unaccountably fail to throw their paint over Hell's Angels.
- Terry Prachett
Small font: use ctrl+c and copy it, so you can read. But since it is in small fonts, it is not important. I am not a NE salesperson.
WZ-PT-0001 “Silver Fish” Z-Class Personal Luxury Transport
The aptly-named ‘Silverfish’ is a small craft design that serves equally well as an executive shuttle and lifeboat aboard larger ships, or, properly outfitted, as an FTL courier and private yacht.
In its basic, original, configuration, the SilverFish was a basic spaceboat, able to shuttle between ships, cruise in deep space, and make a single safe planetary reentry, but was unable to do much more than that. Subsequent upgrade models have included full atmospheric maneuvering capabilities, powerplant changes, surface-to-space transatmospheric drive, FTL propulsion, and, of course, luxury accommodations. Its wedge-shaped lifting body hull with top-located pilot’s cockpit(accessible from the cabin below) is stoutly built to weather the rigors of space debris, atmospheric buffetting, or a rival megacorp’s assassins taking shots at it. The standard configuration Silverfish is umarmed, but security-conscious execs and celebrities, as well as more than a few Runners and bounty-hunters, have outfitted their Silverfishes with 1-4 light weapons systems(usually light lasers or ion weapons).
The Silver Fish is aimed at the well-to-do; if you want basic transportation, buy an Orbital Hare, but if you want style, buy a Silver Fish.
Type:WZ-PT-0001 “Silver Fish” Z-Class
Model A: Basic Model
Model D: Deluxe Model with FTL drive
Model S: Super-Deluxe model with FTL drive and luxury appointments
*Model T: Transatmospheric Upgrade
(*Note: ‘T’ can be added to all previous models denoting atmospheric capability; so a basic model with TA capability would be the ‘AT Model’.)
Class:Personal Luxury Transport
Crew: 1; with comfortable passenger seating for 1-3 . Can accommodate up to 25 passengers , but conditions will be cramped, and effective life support limited to 36 hours.).
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 450
Reinforced Crew Compartment 100
Wings(4)(T-Models only) 80 each
Height: 22.5 ft(7.5m)
Width:45 ft(15m)
Length:45 ft(15m)
Weight: 15 tons
Cargo: Up to 1/5 tons of cargo/baggage can be carried in a small 4ftx4ftx5ft bay between the cabin and the main engines.
Powerplant: Nuclear Fusion w/ 20 year energy life
Speed:
(Atmosphere)(T-models only) Hover to Mach 6, transatmospheric
(Sublight) )(Model A&D)Mach 12
(Kitsune Values: 30% of light speed; Accelerates/decelerates at 0.7% of light speed per melee)
Model S: Mach 9
(Kitsune Values: 35% of light speed; Accelerates/decelerates at 0.9% of light speed per melee)
(FTL)(D and S models only) 1.5 light years per hour
(Underwater) Can maneuver at speeds of 15 MPH, and survive depths of 1,000 ft. T-Models can maneuver at 60 MPH underwater.
Market Cost:
Model A: 1.3 million credits
Model D: 11 million credits
Model S: 20 million credits
Model T: Adds 500,000 credits to cost
Systems of Note:
Standard, plus:
*AutoPilot----This is a basic robotic autopilot with Navigation: Space, Pilot: Spacecraft: Small. and Radio Basic, all at 98%, that can be activated to plot and implement basic course corrections and manage flight operations; it cannot conduct combat maneuvering(a Black Market special software package is available for 2 million credits that gives the AI 3 actions/dodges per melee, and a +2 to Dodge). This is popular with private owners who just want to sightsee(or sleep in) without worrying about piloting.
*Extended Life Support---Life support(air and water recycling) aboard a Silverfish is effective for six months between servicing; generally has enough food for 2 weeks(Luxury Model has enough supplies for 6 months of basic rations).
*Luxury Accommodations(Model S)---The Model S adds designer decor interiors, a fully stocked wetbar and chef-quality food synthesizer/autokitchenette(also recycles organics into basic rations in emergencies), folding couch-beds, holo-display systems, sanifresher and zond-shower/cleanser booth.
Weapons Systems: None standard
Options:
Besides the model package upgrades listed above, the Silver Fish has a number of other standard market options available to it, for extra cost.
*Forcefields----1,000 credits per MD for standard forcefields(up to 300 MDC); 2,000 credits per MD for (light, military-standard) variable forcefields(up to 2400 MDC)
*Laser Reflective Armor---Very popular; Lasers do HALF damage. 200,000 credits
*Executive Communications----Secured scrambled communications system. Cryptography skill rolls are at -10% to crack this advanced coding computer system, though the system must be regularly updated and reset every six months(many execs have it reset monthly). 50,000 credits.
Other options are also possible, such as stepped-up FTL capabilities, phase-fields, more expensive luxury appointments, and the like, but at greater cost, and may radically change the configuration and performance of the vessel.
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Left the gun stats off but can always add if you want...
WZ-MCF-100 Behemoth Modular Super Freighter
The WZ-MCF-100 Behemoth is the spacegoing version of a terrestrial container ship or freight train; a massive cargo carrier piled to the beams with cargo. While lacking the glamour and mystique of the Runners, the super-freighters are arguably the REAL backbone of galactic trade, moving items in bulk cheaper than anything else. SuperHaulers carry everything from toiletries and trash to terraforming assemblies and entire prefab communities across the great galactic ranges. Without them, the great galactic economies would wheeze and slump to a stop, and many worlds would just plain starve, but for the diligent SuperHauler crews.
Like the much smaller ‘Frumm’-class freighters, the ‘Behemoth’ is an ‘open-frame’ freighter, incapable of entering a planetary atmosphere(at least, not when loaded), instead loading standardized cargo modules(known commonly as ‘cans’) into a framework open to space. The ship is loaded and unloaded by EVA workers, workpods, or robots, and a typical load configuration assembled in much the same way as a terrestrial freight train, only in large orbital ‘marshalling’ yards.
The ‘Behemoth’ itself is a three part ship; a forward Command/Navigation Module, a Mid-Section Systems module, and a rear Drive Section. The Navigation MOdule carries the ship’s operations center, living quarters, and crew life support, the Midsection Module is dedicated to power generation, support systems, and flight engineering(including a machine shop and EVA gear), and the Drive Section is the main contra-gravity/FTL propulsion system. All three sections have their own onboard power generators and auxiliary manueuvering thrusters, as well as individual command/control capability(each section can thus serve as a piloted lifeboat in an emergency, or be used to control the ship in event of damage to another section).
All three sections are linked by four tough buckytubes that compact and telescope to stretch the three sections out to accept cargo pods between the modules, and retract when the ship is not hauling cargo, like bookends. The tubes serve as both peronnel access between the extended sections, service trunks, attachment points for the cargo pods, and provide some limited access to the cargo pods themselves(provided the cargo pod airlocks are prepositioned over the appropriate airlock hatch in the service tube; otherwise the pods will have to be accessed by somebody going outside the ship in an EVA suit).
SuperHaulers are not usually armed, since their cargos are usually so mundane or difficult for would-be pirates to liquidate easily(try breaking even trying to sell off a few thousand tons of nish-grain quickly and out of the blue), but with so many cargo cans and the prospect of so much potentially valuable loot to be had in one fell swoop, some pirates(and especially privateers) can’t resist, so some superhaulers are quite heavily armed. The example illustrated is a case in point, mounting no less than eight pylon-gimbaled tachyon scatterguns, six turreted point defense lasers, two repulsor/tractor beams, four turreted rail guns, and a pair of medium laser cannons.
SuperHaulers are too slow and massive to be effective warships, and most militaries dismiss them as noncombatant ships, but the annals of galactic warfare are full of accounts of desperate or deceptive military ploys employing SuperHaulers acting as troop transports, orbital weapons platforms, disguised bombers, and improvized fighter carriers.
Buying and operating a SuperHauler, even from a bargain-minded corporate guild like WZTechYards, doesn’t come cheap; the sort of logistics and scheduling involved in arranging profitable cargo configurations is the work of a small corporation or government agency; few small ‘mom and pop’ Runners can afford, or are inclined, to buy SuperHaulers, and most freeelance captains don’t like being tied to a slow lumbering SuperHauler that can be outraced by even shuttles....However, for most spacers, duty on a Superhauler running a regular route offers a steady paycheck, predictable routines, and few hassles...and especially near populated CoreWorlds, there’s always work to be had.
Type:WZ-MCF-100 Behemoth
Class:Modular Super Freighter
Crew: 20; pilot/captain. 2 co-pilots, 3 flight engineers, and 4 gunners/general spacers, with 1-10 additional hands/working passengers.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Command/Navigation Module: 3,200
Mid-Section Systems Module: 3,000
Drive Section: 5,000
BuckyTubes(8) 500 each
Forcefield 2,000
Height:
Command/Navigation Module: 90 ft(30m)
Mid-Section Systems Module:204ft(68 m)
Drive Section: 153 ft(51 m)
(Fully Loaded): 204 ft(68m)
Width:
Command/Navigation Module: 240 ft(80 m)
Mid-Section Systems Module:480 ft/510 ft(160m/170m)
Drive Section: 192 ft(64 m)
(Fully Loaded): 510 ft(170m)
Length:
Command/Navigation Module:210 ft(70 m)
Mid-Section Systems Module: 192ft(64 m)
Drive Section:174 ft(58 m)
(Retracted): 576 ft (192 m)
(Fully Loaded): 3250 ft(1083 m)
Weight: Unloaded, a Behemoth SuperHauler masses some 10,000 tons; fully loaded; 63,000 tons
Cargo: Can carry up to 246 ‘super cans’; in full load configuration, stacked in six columns of 20 cans each in the forward extension, and six rows of 21 cans in the rear extension(w/ roughly 10 ft of clearance between vertical rows, and 3 ft between horizontal pods).
Powerplant: Three Fusion Nuclear Powerplants w/ 21 year energy life
Speed:
(Atmosphere)Not Possible
(Sublight) Mach 6 fully loaded; Mach 10 in ‘clean’ state
(Kitsune Values:30% of light speed; ; Accelerates/decelerates at 0.6%/1.0% of light speed per melee)
(FTL) 3 lightb years per hour
(Underwater) Not Possible
Market Cost: 180 million credits
Systems of Note:
Standard Systems, plus:
*Cargo Module Corraling System---The Behemoth uses a combination of electromagnetic forcefield ‘cages’ and molecular fusion hardpints along the length of the buckytubes to hold the cargo pods in place. These bonds can be severed in seconds with a coded signal from the command center/cargo management boards.
*Electrodynamic Tether Power Generation System----This system takes advantage of the magnetic fields of various planets and the elongated configuration of the Behemoth to generate additional electrical power while orbiting on station. This usually provides enough power to run shipboard systems allowing the fusion powrplants to be powered down, or to feed a trickel current to the ship’s drive batteries, again saving wear and tear on the powerplants. The system also allows for station keeping and orbit alteration without using thrusters or the CG drive system.
Weapons Systems: None standard, but the standard Behemoth comes with eighteen hardpoints for mounting weapons systems; some operators even add specially modified cargo cans as fighter/power armor hangars, missile launchers, mine racks, and weapons platforms.
Aux. Craft: Most SuperHaulers will carry a pair of Utility Power Armors, and a service shuttle or two(WZ typically offers its WZ-PT-0008 H-Class Orbital Hare shuttle as free with new-purchase Behemoths) that serves to get the crew to and from planetary ports, stevedore cargo pods(if local port facilities are lacking), and perform EVA servicing/inspection of the ship. Many WZ Behemoths will also carry a pair of WZ-MPU-003 Scarab utility craftas well.
Options:
Most buyers and operators of Behemoths will tweak the standard configuration depending on their specific needs, adding additional armor, armament, variable forcefields, different engines and powerplants, and different avionics(such as individual cargo pod state monitoring, inventory locks, internal security, etc...), though few do anything radical to the design.
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"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Silverfish: The FTL is a bit expensive,
especially if we compare it to the Runner
ship. Otherwise nice.
Behemoth as mothership: Yepp. Also, the
core rows can be used for storing spare
parts, additional ammo and more importantly,
power and shield modules.
The poor goverment's carrier
Adios
KLM
But still, one of the most basic rules for survival on any planet is never to upset someone wearing black leather - This is why protesters against the wearing of animal skins by humans unaccountably fail to throw their paint over Hell's Angels.
- Terry Prachett
Small font: use ctrl+c and copy it, so you can read. But since it is in small fonts, it is not important. I am not a NE salesperson.
Silverfish: The FTL is a bit expensive, especially if we compare it to the Runner ship. Otherwise nice.
Behemoth as mothership: Yepp. Also, the core rows can be used for storing spare parts, additional ammo and more importantly, power and shield modules. The poor goverment's carrier
Adios KLM
Using the stock FTL drive prices in Rifts Dimension Book Six: THree Galaxies, but WZ could probably bring the price down 20-25% as part of a package deal rather than buying the engines separately....
You know, we already have the beginnings for a complete ship package deal here....Behemoth, with attached Orbital Hare shuttle, a few cans converted to hold Solace escort fighters, a Silverfish or two as owner's skiff/emergency lifeboats...as soon as I get the Scarab utility craft stated out, those would eb perfect for manhandling cargo pods....
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
No mention of the size of the starship they are
capable to propel, and a 5ly/h CG drive costs
40 million... However, your "tipical" runner ship
costs 30 million and is able to travel that speed.
So, I am afraid those prices are flawed.
Adios
KLM
But still, one of the most basic rules for survival on any planet is never to upset someone wearing black leather - This is why protesters against the wearing of animal skins by humans unaccountably fail to throw their paint over Hell's Angels.
- Terry Prachett
Small font: use ctrl+c and copy it, so you can read. But since it is in small fonts, it is not important. I am not a NE salesperson.
Ill take KLM's advice and start slashing prices to both reflect the original manufacturer's price and Darkmax's agenda to undercut the market in the Three Galaxies with low, low, sale prices...
Meanwhile, we'll be creating minion races to man our secret armadas....
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Let's see, I already sent out the stats on the Komodo, right?
Now looking at the Immense...
Oh sweet galloping grud....
Okay, WZ is clearly in the running as THE people to go to to get things moved....
"WZRentaCruiser....Let Us Put YOU In the Cockpit."
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
Post deleted as the race link was removed from the link posted.
the crystaline growth is hereby removed as well.
Last edited by shiiv-a on Sun Feb 11, 2007 3:53 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Creator of the Chi grenade. Used in game by Kevarin [GM] and self as Mai - Civilian Martial artist that got amped via experiment. Ghost weapons and shirts rule.
Nano Missiles - used once and GM banned further use. They weren't THAT bad. and did stop a demon scout ship from returning with valuable info.
I've comto the conclusion that with minimum modifications, one can also make it into a life-raft, a very big bomb delivery container, and even a portable housing... 
