by Marcus L. Rowland
Copyright © 1994, revised 1998
Due to various technical problems it was necessary to split the worldbook
into two files for the HTML version; this one is mainly "scientific", covering the R. force, spacecraft design
and operation, and the solar system. The other covers the historical and
social background of the stories, sources, etc.
contents
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Passages in this and the next section are taken from "Practical Astronautics" by Andrew Olle (1918). They are reprinted by permission of the author and The Redgrave Technical Press.
Gravity is a natural force like lightning; harnessed, it is as controllable as electricity. It is extremely complex, but many of these complexities are irrelevant to its practical use.
If a man switches on a wireless, he may possibly be thinking of the
details of electrical generation and power distribution, radio wave
propagation, or the fundamental nature of the electron itself, but he
is much more likely to be thinking about the news, music, or the
latest football results. It doesn't make any difference to the
operation of the wireless. Similarly, it is useful to understand the
R. force and graviton technology, but it is not essential. It is
enough to know that they work, and how to use them. The companion
volume "Theoretical Astronautics" by Rowena Dell covers gravitational
theory in much greater detail; as its title implies, this volume is
more concerned with the practical use of this technology. Despite
this, a brief non-mathematical introduction to the science of
gravitation is essential.
3.1 Theoretical basis
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Atoms are believed to consist of a central nucleus containing protons and proton-electron pairs, an inner shell of gravitons, and an outer shell of electrons. The former theory of heavy electrically neutral particles (usually called neutrons) in atomic nuclei is now generally discounted. [See 13_ATOM.GIF].
Until the discovery of the R. force it was assumed that all gravitons exerted the normal pull of gravity; it is now known that the gravitational "charge" of any atom is a quantum state, which changes spontaneously if even one graviton of opposing sign is introduced into the graviton shell. Fortunately such an introduction requires large amounts of energy, and always releases excess gravitons of the shell's original sign, which tends to limit the spread of such reversals. If this were not the case we would live in fear of an accidental release of R. gravitons suddenly causing the whole world's gravity field to reverse! Oddly, individual gravitons have not been observed to reverse sign spontaneously.
G. matter always contains a surplus of G. gravitons which are free to migrate between atoms, acting as a kind of gravitic "fluid". Similarly, R. matter contains free R. gravitons. Both forms of graviton are continually radiated by the appropriate atoms, instantaneously replaced via quantum events which are still not fully understood. It is possible to increase G. graviton density far above normal levels, especially in materials that are naturally extremely dense, so that they become much heavier than usual. On Ceres, for example, an odd combination of geographic features and natural forces has resulted in an unusual excess of G. gravitons, which is especially notable in the "heavy water" of that worldlet. A similar effect is noticeable in the rings of Saturn. Similarly, it is possible to force more R. gravitons into R. matter, and thus make it abnormally repulsive. Matter containing concentrated gravitons is naturally unstable, and tends to release them spontaneously; the rate of loss can be controlled by mechanically vibrating the structure, while the direction in which they are radiated is to a large part determined by its geometry.
At various points in later sections it is important to understand the difference between mass and weight. Mass (more properly known as inertial mass) is a measure of the quantity of matter in an object, regardless of its gravitational sign. The force exerted by, for example, a hammer is dependent on the mass of the head, not its weight, except when weight is used to speed the hammer's blows. Weight is a product of gravitation, and is naturally completely different for R. matter and ordinary matter. It also varies according to the local pull of gravity. For instance
Finally, a note on chemical nomenclature. When describing a material
made of two or more elements with differing gravitational signs, it is
important to mention the signs. At the moment this is usually done by
prefixing the name of the element with R. or G., for "repulsive" or
"gravitic", and spelling out the name of the element in full. For
example, R. Lead (II) G. Iodide is used in developing engines. This is
satisfactory, in some respects, but does not take account of graviton
concentration; it will also be very cumbersome if more complex compounds
enter service, so there is a move to replace this convention with
one or more superscripted "R" or "G" signs beside the normal symbol for the
element, or with superscripted symbols "g+" and "g-", with extra plus or minus
signs for materials with unusual graviton concentrations. At least four
variations on these schemes have appeared in the literature; until a
firm international consensus is reached we will continue to use the
existing method.
3.2 Practical mechanics
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Rennick's original graviton conversion system was based on a modified Wimshurst machine (an electrostatic device for producing extremely high voltages) with a tiny fragment of R. matter fixed to one of two electrodes, surrounded by a powerful electromagnet. As enormous sparks cracked across the gap they dislodged R. gravitons from the R. matter; these gravitons in turn displaced G. gravitons from some of the surrounding atoms, and the electrode was gradually converted to R. matter. Most of the R. gravitons were unfortunately lost. After several weeks (and the exhaustion of the students who took turns to crank the machine) the electrode was carefully cut into pieces and welded to make the tips of a dozen new electrodes. Thereafter progress was more rapid, especially when Lord Redgrave took charge of the production process. By mid-1899 the works at Smeaton contained scores of steam-powered Wimshurst machines, each slowly producing pieces of R. lead which were amalgamated into two spheres, used as the Astronef's graviton store. These were fixed inside outer casings of normal lead, so that the R. matter was surrounded by ordinary matter; gravitons were trapped inside the sphere, unable to escape because they were repelled by the surrounding lead. More gravitons could then be forced into the cores at lower voltages, so that they added to the "soup" of R. gravitons that surrounded the R. lead without causing more normal matter to become R. matter. Meanwhile more R. lead was synthesised to make R. lead (II) G. iodide crystals (see above and below) which focus and amplify the R. graviton beam.
Tesla's improvements of 1901-4 replaced the Wimshurst machines with rectified high-voltage AC transformers, and regulated the graviton flow via strong eddy currents, allowing production of R. lead and gravitons at a greatly increased rate. These procedures increased speed and decreased power consumption by a factor of eight, and eliminated huge amounts of noise. Efficiency more than trebled as the equipment was perfected. Today output at Smeaton alone exceeds an ounce a day, and the global total is approximately four inertial pounds a week.
R. force engines, usually called developing engines, consist of a sharply pointed pear-shaped reservoir of "dense" R. matter (almost always R. lead, although the harder R. gold was sometimes substituted before it became a currency metal), charged to saturation with an excess of R. gravitons, while encased in a heavy lead jacket. The outer casing repels the R. gravitons back into the core. An electrical tuning fork is arranged to vibrate the core at its resonant frequency, sending regular shock waves down its conical end towards the point. This focuses the full effect of the vibration towards a very small point, releasing a burst of gravitons. The quantity released is controlled by varying the current supplied to the solenoid which keeps the fork vibrating, while a ring of electromagnets around the point is used to make minute adjustments to its position (via a soft iron sphere buried in the R. lead) to ensure maximum efficiency. See 14_ENGIN.GIF for a simplified plan of the layout of these engines.
The released gravitons are directed into the "amplifier", a precisely-faceted crystal of R. lead (II) G. iodide; this chemical has a suitable crystalline structure and contains roughly equal masses of R. lead and G. iodine. As the R. gravitons enter the crystal they trigger a "shock wave" of quantum changes, in which the G. iodine becomes R. iodine and the R. lead becomes G. lead. The result is a massive release of R. gravitons. Most are absorbed by the G. lead atoms, which in turn revert to R. matter, releasing G. gravitons which reverse the change in the R. iodine, but a significant portion are released as a narrowly focused "jet" of gravitons of enormous power. A useful by-product of this process is the production of a good deal of electrical energy from piezo-electric effects, and this can be harnessed to run the other systems of the ship.
Unfortunately the gravitic reversals in the crystals are never quite 100% efficient; sooner or later the balance between G. matter and R. matter is lost, and the core decays exponentially, until all that is left is a crystal made almost entirely of G. matter or R. matter; which way the balance tips is entirely a matter of chance. If taken out of service early enough some or all of the material can be salvaged, and most engine builders offer rebates on new crystals if an old one is handed in at the time of purchase.
Chemists may be interested in brief details of the fate of used crystals. They are ground to powder, with great care taken to avoid any loss of flying dust, then heated and electrolysed in a sealed chamber to separate the component elements. Iodine and R. iodine are released as vapour; as the gas rises both forms of iodine condense on the walls of the chamber (the R. iodine condenses because the atoms are more strongly attracted by interatomic forces than they are repelled by the R. force), with the R. iodine much higher than the iodine. Meanwhile the lead and R. lead are plated onto one of the electrodes. Once electrolysis is complete the mixed leads are detached from the electrode, weighed to determine the proportions of the two forms (and the amount of any rebate), then converted to pure R. lead via the Rennick-Tesla system. There is currently no major industrial demand for R. iodine; the only known uses are in the manufacture of Kodak's graviton-sensitive photographic emulsion, used mainly for research, and in demonstration R. force equipment for education. This consumes just a small portion of the R. iodine produced; the rest (a few pounds recovered per factory per year) is kept in the hope that some application will eventually be found. Most manufacturers are delighted to sell it at £150 an ounce.
Developing engines must be fitted in precisely matched pairs. The cost of crystals rises rapidly with the mass each engine must move, so larger ships tend to have two or more pairs of engines. Unfortunately each additional pair adds mass and considerable bulk, and increases the work of the engineers who keep them running; usually this means that the ship needs extra crew, who will need more accommodation, supplies, and lifeboats.
The R. force must always push against something, or it has no effect. Typically the earth or another planet is used, while at low altitudes mountains are preferred.
Variants of this device include the attractor (or tractor) beam, which
uses a similar system to aim precisely focused beams of G. gravitons,
and the pressor beam, which is a developing engine mounted as a
stationary projector. The attractor beam is unlikely to see service in
the near future, since a full-scale model would need a core encased in
several hundred ounces of R. lead. Both types of beam projector are
still experimental.
3.3 Spacecraft Design and Costs
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To design a ship we must first know its purpose. This determines the load that it must carry, and its performance needs. For example, a ship that will be used for routine flights on the Earth-Moon run needs the ability to take off and land on Earth, enough supplies for a few days in space, and plenty of cargo capacity. A ship flying the Earth-Ganymede run needs engines powerful enough to break free of Jovian gravity, more supplies, and will probably devote more room to passengers than to cargo.
In essence, a spacecraft consists of a box or tube made of strong steel girders surrounded by an airtight hull and fitted with developing engines. While the full design process takes months and an enormous number of calculations, it is possible to reach a first approximation extremely quickly. This consists of the following stages:
While this is sometimes a laborious process, it requires no special equipment or mathematical techniques, although a slide rule, logarithmic tables, abacus, or adding machine may be useful. Owners of Lotus 123-compatible difference engines are strongly advised to read this section and design ships with the spreadsheet template SPACESHP.WK1; see section 3.3.4 for details.
In the examples that follow, prices, weights, etc. are rounded to the nearest whole number or to a convenient number of decimal places. This rounding was carried out after calculations were completed. The spreadsheet template also presents results with some degree of rounding. For convenience, fractions of tons and fractions of cubic yards are shown as such, not converted to pounds and ounces or cubic feet. This degree of accuracy is ample for the early stages of ship design.
In all that follows prices are quoted in pounds sterling. To work in
dollars, multiply by 5.
3.3.1 Volume, mass and cost
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The table that follows lists these factors for some standard compartments and items of equipment, all of which are available from 1900 onwards unless marked otherwise:
| Useage | Volume yards3 | Mass Tons | Cost | Notes |
| Control room, civilian | 8 | 2.0 | £ 1700 | |
| Control room, military | 16 | 5.0 | £ 2500 | 1903 onwards |
| 1st class per passenger | 25 | 3.0 | £ 1000 | |
| 2nd " " " | 12 | 1.2 | £ 300 | |
| 3rd " " " | 8 | 0.6 | £ 120 | |
| 4th " " " | 6 | 0.4 | £ 90 | |
| Galley | 6 | 1.0 | £ 200 | |
| Air lock | 3 | 0.5 | £ 450 | |
| Supplies/person/week | 1 | 0.5 | £ 10 | |
| Cargo space | 3 | 1.0 | £ 30 | |
| Strong room | 16 | 3.0 | £ 1500 | |
| Maxim gun | 0.1 | 0.05 | £ 250 | |
| Powered Gatling gun | 0.2 | 0.1 | £ 525 | |
| Pneumatic Cannon | 2 | 1.0 | £ 400 | |
| 8" gun | 20 | 25.0 | £15000 | 1905 onwards |
| 1000 lb bomb | 2 | 0.6 | £ 800 | 1905 " |
| Steel Ram | 5 | 10.0 | £ 3000 | |
| Lifeboat | 16 | 2.0 | £ 1500 | 1903 onwards |
| Navigation engine Mk I | 2 | 1.0 | £ 1500 | 1905 " |
| Navigation engine Mk II | 2 | 1.0 | £ 2300 | 1909 " |
| Navigation engine Mk III | 2 | 1.0 | £ 3500 | 1910 " |
| Navigation engine Mk IV | 2 | 1.0 | £ 3500 | 1912 " |
| Navigation engine Mk V | 2 | 1.0 | £ 4500 | 1917 " |
| Radio, Earth-Moon range | 2 | 1.0 | £ 1000 | 1902 " |
| Radio, Interplanetary | 4 | 2.0 | £ 2500 | 1907 " |
| Searchlight (external) | - | 0.05 | £ 175 | |
| Telescope | 1 | 0.1 | £ 350 | |
| Breathing Dress | N/A | N/A | £ 320 | |
| Atmospheric Engines (2) | 4 | 2.0 | £ 2500 | |
| Developing Engines (2) | 24 | 2.5 | Variable |
Compartments
CONTROL ROOMS are needed in all ships. Military vessels use large control rooms with redundancy in instruments and personnel. Civilian vessels need less complexity.
ACCOMMODATION is listed with minimum space and cost requirements. On some ships, such as the Astronef, the volume devoted to first class passengers is even larger, but costs and weights should be proportional to size. Some passenger space (of all classes) is used for communal areas such as lounges, corridors, etc.
GALLEYS need more space according to the number of people aboard the ship. The galley above is adequate for up to ten passengers and crew. Add another 3 cubic yards, 0.5 tons, and £100 for 11-20, and so forth.
AIRLOCKS are needed on all ships. Some larger ships have two or more. Most also have access hatches (not airlocks) which can only be used on a world with an atmosphere. The latter need not be added to construction costs, since they are relatively inexpensive and add little mass.
SUPPLIES include oxygen, water, and recycling chemicals, as well as food and drink.
CARGO VOLUME assumes average weight cargo; metal ores and other heavy loads may take up less room, eg 1 cubic yard per ton. The cost remains constant at about £30/ton because denser cargoes need stronger compartments and more bracing.
STRONG-ROOMS are needed on any ship which will carry valuables. Almost all liners have a strong-room to secure passenger's jewellery, money, etc.
Weapons
In 1900 guns can only be used when a spaceship is in a breathable atmosphere, since they must be fired through open ports. By 1908-10 airtight seals and breech airlocks have been developed, but are unreliable and unusable with Gatling guns. Bombs can be used in a vacuum, since the bays are sealed off from the rest of the ship.
MAXIM GUNS are tripod mounted. They are usually kept in lockers which
need a small amount of space; weight is for the gun, locker, and some
ammunition.
[Use the generic Machine Gun in the rules. Civilians may find it
difficult to obtain these and other military weapons, although the
British government is usually prepared to co-operate with explorers
and others who have a legitimate need for armaments. They can be fired
in vacuum after 1910, but this requires regular maintenance of
airtight seals and breech airlocks, Difficulty 8.]
POWERED GATLING GUNS are available in pneumatic, steam-driven, or electrical versions. All are recent military innovations, so far only found in a few ships belonging to various navies. The rate of fire is greatly increased, but so is ammunition consumption. They are fixed to mounts and motors which take up some space.
[These weapons were really built, but were unsuccessful; Edwardian engineering wasn't quite up to the challenge of feeding ammunition at these speeds, and the usual result was a jam. While they work (make a luck roll, Difficulty 4, to fire each burst successfully) use the data for the Mini Gun described in the rules. Because Gatling gun barrels rotate it is not possible to use them through vacuum seals.]
PNEUMATIC CANNON are described in the second Astronef story. They fire explosive or incendiary shells, and have a range of four miles on Earth, seven miles on Mars. The incendiary shell contains a thermite compound, which will burn even in a vacuum - unfortunately it can't be fired in a vacuum without depressurising the ship!
[Cannon, range 4 miles (much further under low gravity), 1 shot per 2 rounds
| explosives burst | 10ft, effect 25, A:I B:C C:K |
| incendiary burst | 15ft, effect 15, A:I B:C C:K * |
* Burns through 1D6/2 inches of steel per round for 1D6/2 rounds.
Breech airlocks and barrel seals are available from 1909 onwards, with
maintenance problems as above.]
8" GUNS are long-barrelled naval guns, built to minimise weight and recoil. They were developed especially for military use, utilising Lord Redgrave's new explosives. They aren't fitted with any horizontal training mechanism, just a simple elevation control; they are aimed by adjusting the angle of the entire ship. This greatly simplifies their operation, and six crew can handle the demands of loading and firing. The volumes and weights include storage for 50 rounds and 50 charges of propellant, packed in cardboard canisters separate from the shell.
[8" gun, range 7 miles (much further under low gravity), 1 shot per 3 rounds
| explosives burst | 20ft, effect 40, A:I B:C C:K |
| incendiary burst | 30ft, effect 30, A:I B:C C:K * |
* Burns through 1D6 inches of steel per round for 1D6 rounds
Breech airlocks and barrel seals are available in 1908, with
maintenance problems as above.]
1000 lb BOMBS are simple gravity bombs; a little inaccurate, but devastating enough if they are on target. The weights include a bomb bay, armoured doors, etc; replacements cost £300 a bomb. Bays are often built in pairs, with the option of suspending a single naval torpedo instead of two bombs; this decision doesn't affect construction costs, but adds £1000 per torpedo for ammunition.
RAMS are simply a bow (sometimes a pointed stern) reinforced with
strong steel girders and covered in extra-strong armour plate. They
were fitted to a few early ships, but improved firepower subsequently
proved more effective.
[See later sections for the combat effects of a ram.]
Miscellaneous Equipment
LIFEBOATS are airtight hulls fitted with tanks of oxygen, chemicals for carbon dioxide absorption, a simple hand-cranked spark-gap wireless transmitter, and supplies of food and water. There are no engines. Folding rotor blades allow atmospheric landings; as the lifeboat hits air they snap open, and start to spin the craft. The autogyroscopic effect thus created buoys up the craft and brings it in for a bumpy but surviveable landing.
Endurance is 20 man-days; they will support a single occupant for 20 days, two occupants for 10 days, three for about a week, and so forth. 1904 Board of Trade regulations require all commercial vessels to have a lifeboat for every twenty passengers and crew. Those who have used them describe them as extraordinarily claustrophobic and uncomfortable.
[The designers of lifeboats, and the regulations governing them, are highly optimistic; if there are more than five occupants the lifeboat overheats, knocking out the carbon dioxide absorption system long before the nominal duration of its supplies. Since there has never been an accident with a rescue craft inside four days range this defect has not been discovered. While the craft can survive an atmospheric landing, the occupants may not be so lucky; the braking effect of the rotor blades is just enough to prevent it burning up in the atmosphere, and those aboard take 1D6 random hits each with Effect 2D6, damage A: B/KO, B:KO/I, C:C/K]
NAVIGATION ENGINES are mechanical calculating engines of great precision. Models are available from several companies, most notably Redgrave Business Machines Ltd. They are extremely useful in navigational calculations.
[Navigation engines reduce the Difficulty of navigational problems provided that a successful Babbage Machine roll is made. If the Babbage Machine roll is failed, the difficulty of the problem is raised +2.
| Model | Price | Difficulty | First available |
| Mk I | £1500 | -1 | 1905 |
| MK II | £2300 | -2 | 1909 |
| Mk III | £3500 | -2 | 1910 * |
| MK IV | £3500 | -3 | 1912 |
| MK V | £4500 | -4 | 1917 |
* The Mk III was a bug-ridden fiasco; it was supposed to be more accurate than the Mk II but wasn't, cost as much as the Mk IV, and tended to break down when confronted with complex problems. Despite this they have a small coterie of loyal users who are sure that they are better than their successors. Unscrupulous dealers with old stock still try to pass them off as better than the Mk. II]
RADIOS are fitted to almost all ships built after 1902. There are two models, distinguished by transmitter power. The earlier model is adequate for Earth-Moon communications, and for short-range ship-to-ship messages, later designs (1907 onwards) are powerful enough to transmit across interplanetary distances. Both can receive at all ranges. They have extremely long aerials (up to several miles) towed behind the ship; this means that they can only be used in space, since the aerial would soon be torn away or tangle with the air-screws in atmosphere.
SEARCHLIGHTS are widely used for landings etc. They are powerful arc lights, built into a casing on the outside of the hull and controlled by levers inside. Despite certain scientific errors in the popular account of the first journey to the Moon, searchlights can be used normally in a vacuum.
TELESCOPES are essential for interplanetary navigation, but they are not usually needed for flights between the Earth and the Moon; a good pair of binoculars suffices. Extra telescopes are often carried as backup and for the entertainment of passengers. The statistics quoted are for a high quality portable refracting telescope with storage locker and tripod.
[Raise navigation difficulty +2 if a telescope is NOT available]
BREATHING DRESS is described in much more detail in a later section. No weight or volume is indicated because suits are portable equipment, and thus fall outside the main concerns of the designer.
Engines
The ATMOSPHERIC ENGINES are air compressors which power propellers
mounted on retractable arms. They are used for navigation in
atmosphere, but have no effect in space. A pair is needed for every
250 tons of ship mass.
[If there is less than one pair for every 250 tons, add 1 to the
difficulty of all atmospheric manoeuvres. If there is less than one
pair for every 500 tons, add 2 to the difficulty of all atmospheric
manoeuvres, and so forth. See later sections for calculation of
atmospheric speed.]
DEVELOPING ENGINES are priced according to the power output required, and to the degree of precision with which they are made, but the size and weight are constant. The physical data listed are for two complete sets of engines, the minimum needed for a spacecraft; more sets can be added at the same weight and mass per pair. The fewer the engines the smaller the crew needed, but the more the engines cost. Section 3.3.3 details engine costs and performance.
Example: The Astronef
Item Volume Mass Cost
Control room, civilian 8 2.0 £1,700
Passenger space 100 12.0 £4,000 (The Redgraves)
3rd class cabin 8 0.6 £ 120 (Murgatroyd)
Galley 6 1.0 £ 200
Air lock 3 0.5 £ 450
Supplies (3x26 man-weeks) 78 39.0 £ 780
Maxim guns x4 0.4 0.2 £1,000
Pneumatic Cannon x 4 8 4.0 £1,600
Steel Ram 5 10.0 £3,000
Searchlights x2 N/A 0.1 £ 350
Telescopes x 2 2.0 0.2 £ 700
Breathing dress x2 N/A N/A £ 640
Atmospheric engines x2 4 2.0 £2,500
Developing engines x2 24 2.5 See later sections
SUBTOTAL 245.4 74.0 £17,040
Cubic Tons
yards
Example: The Shanghai Princess
Item Volume Mass Cost
Control room, civilian 8 2.0 £1700
2nd class cabin x 1 12 1.2 £ 300
3rd " " x 2 16 1.2 £ 240
4th " " x 3 18 1.2 £ 270
Galley 6 1.0 £ 200
Air lock 3 0.5 £ 450
Supplies x 6 man/weeks 6 3.0 £ 60
Cargo space, 300 tons 300 300.0 £9,000
Strong room 16 3.0 £1,500
Searchlight N/A 0.05 £ 175
Breathing dress (x6) N/A N/A £1,920
Lifeboat 24 2.5 £1,500
Radio 2 1.0 £ 1000
Atmospheric engines x2 4 2.0 £2,500
Developing engines x4 48 5.0 See later sections
SUBTOTAL 455 323.15 £20,815
Cubic Tons
yards
Hulls are built around a skeleton of steel girders. All plating is made of steel, riveted, then welded and caulked with layers of rubber, asbestos, and tar to insulate the occupants from the cold of space and prevent any air loss. An inner wooden lining adds comfort, and is also carefully sealed and varnished as a further precaution against leaks. Portholes and the windows of observation decks are made of heavy plate glass, in several laminations cemented with Canada balsam, and are fitted with steel roller shutters. Military craft naturally use much heavier armour plate, with all of the inner layers mentioned above. All of these components add weight, and cost roughly œ500 per ton.
Three main hull designs are in common use. The first is the general-purpose cigar shape popularised by the Astronef. This shape is highly streamlined, and it is ideal for exploration and for ships that may face a wide variety of conditions. It has a relatively high surface area and weight for its volume.
| Structural weight | = component weight x .1 |
| Hull weight | = Structural weight x 1% per cubic yard. |
The second type is a simple cylinder with rounded ends, with width about a sixth of length, mostly used for the largest ships. Poorly streamlined, and sometimes difficult to control in atmosphere, it has the advantages of relative cheapness and lightness.
| Structural weight | = component weight x .1 |
| Hull weight | = Structural weight x 0.5% per cubic yard. |
Hull weights for the above types (but not structural weight) should be DOUBLED if the hull is covered in military-grade armoured plating.
The final type is the flat-sided prism typified by HMS Nova and other naval craft. This shape, the so-called "flying brick", has sloping armoured sides and bow to ensure that projectiles will strike glancing blows if they hit, and a heavily reinforced armoured keel to support naval ordnance. It is streamlined, though not so well as the cigar hull. As might be expected, this design is heavy and inefficient in any non-military role. It is the only hull strong enough to mount full-sized naval ordnance.
| Structural weight | = Component weight x .2 |
| Hull weight | = Structural weight x 1% per cubic yard |
At this stage it is possible to calculate atmospheric speed by comparing the mass of the ship and the number of atmospheric engines, with a modifier for the hull design.
Speed = (250/mass) x number of atmospheric engine pairs x 50 mph Add 10% for cigar-shaped hulls, subtract 10% for cylindrical hulls.
Example: The Astronef
Structural weight = component weight x .1 = 74 x .1 = 7.4 tons
Hull weight = Structural weight x 1% per cubic yard.
= 7.4 x 2.454 = 18.1596 tons
Hull total = 7.4 + 18.16 = 25.6 tons @ £500 per ton = £12,780
Item Volume Mass Cost
Internal components 245.4 74 £17,040
Hull N/A 25.6 £12,780
SUBTOTAL 245.4 99.6 £29,820
Cubic Tons
yards
Speed = (250/mass) x number of atmospheric engine pairs x 50 + 10%
= 2.51 x 1 x 50 +10%
= 125.5 + 10% = 138 MPH in atmosphere
Example: The Shanghai Princess
Structural weight = component weight x .1 = 32.4 tons
Hull weight = 32.4 x 231.5% = 74.9 tons
Hull total = 107.3 tons @ £500 per ton = £53,645
Item Volume Mass Cost
Internal components 463 323.7 £20,815
Hull N/A 107.3 £53,645
SUBTOTAL 463 431.0 £74,460
Cubic Tons
yards
Speed = (250/431) x 1 x 50 - 10%
= .485 x 50 - 10% = 26 mph in atmosphere
Game Data
The BODY of a ship can be calculated from its mass and hull type:
| Mass | BODY | Modifiers: | BODY |
| 50-100 tons | 60 | "Cigar" hull | +10 |
| 100-200 tons | 70 | "Flying Brick" hull | +15 |
| 200-400 tons | 80 | EITHER Armoured steel plating | +5 * |
| 400-600 tons | 90 | OR steel ram fitted | +5 * |
| 600 tons and up | 100 | * Not "Flying Brick" hull |
Ordinary plating and armoured glass subtract 15 from the Effect of bullets etc.; projectiles which still have some Effect left will penetrate. Most either glance off or embed somewhere in the layers of material that make up the hull.
Military grade armour subtracts 25 from the Effect of bullets etc.; projectiles which still have some Effect left penetrate on a column "B" or "C" result, and glance off on a column "A" result.
The Difficulty modifier for atmospheric flight can be calculated by comparing mass and the number of atmospheric engines, and modifying the result for the hull style as follows:
| Cigar shaped hull | -1 |
| Cylinder hull | +1 |
| Military hull | No modifier |
The Astronef
The Shanghai Princess
From the outside there is little to distinguish the weakest developing engine from the most powerful; all consist of a complex arrangement of machinery surrounding an amplifier crystal and an R. lead core. The essential features that determine performance are the size of the amplifier crystals, and the mass of the cores; repulsive power and crystalline stability are related to the size of the crystal, endurance to the mass of the core. A final factor is the precision with which the controlling mechanism is built; this affects cost, reliability, and control accuracy.
All ships need at least two engines, because they invariably need to push against more than one object. For instance, a ship approaching the Moon needs to push against the lunar surface directly for support, and diagonally for propulsion. With just one engine it would be necessary to calculate a complex compromise between these thrusts, changing by the second with altitude and speed. The mathematics of the R. force are too complicated to make this possible. Extra engines are added in pairs to preserve symmetry and simplify adjustments.
Crystals
The mathematics of crystal design are extremely complicated (see the companion volume by Rowena Dell), but fortunately the end result is four simple equations which even an amateur can understand and use:
| Crystal width (inches) = | maximum acceleration x mass of ship / 150 |
| Crystal mass (oz) = | width cubed x 0.6 |
| Crystal cost = | £950 per oz |
| Crystal service life (months) = | Width x 25 / maximum acceleration |
It should be noted that it takes a good deal of time to grow large crystals, at least a month per ounce.
If more than one pair of engines is used, divide the ship's mass by the number of pairs of engines before making this calculation. All engines must be identical.
For example, a ship weighing 100 tons and expected to perform at 4g would need a crystal of width
100 x 4 / 150 inches = 400/150 inches = 2.66 inchesand mass
2.66 x 2.66 x 2.66 x .6 = 18.97 x .6 = 11.38 ozR. lead (II) G. iodide costs £950 an ounce. A crystal of mass 11.38 oz costs
11.38 x £950 = £10,811The other crystal of the pair naturally costs the same, for a total cost of £21,622. They must be ordered nearly a year before they are needed, to allow for growing time. Their service life will be
2.66 x 25 / 4 = 16.6 months
Crystal life estimates aren't always accurate; they can fail months earlier than expected for no apparent reason, or last months beyond their allotted span. They fail very suddenly once they start to deteriorate, with power output halving every few hours, but they can be exchanged for fresh crystals at half price if they are caught before serious deterioration begins; accordingly it is advisable to replace them at the first sign of trouble. Most ships carry spares. It is notable that crystals often fail early if they are subjected to unusual strain.
[The referee should secretly roll 2D6 as follows:
| 2: | Add 1D6 months to crystal life |
| 3-4: | Add 1D6/2 months |
| 5-9: | Crystals will fail on schedule |
| 10-11: | Subtract 1D6/2 months from crystal life |
| 12: | Subtract 1D6 months from crystal life |
Crystal replacement takes about 6 hours and a Mechanic roll, difficulty 8. The pilot must then adjust the crystal position to exactly match power output; this takes an hour and is difficulty 7]
Storage Cores
Storage cores are masses of R. lead charged with excess R. gravitons. These are "radiated" from the pointed end of the core; the power produced by the amplifier crystal is related to the rate of graviton release. Again some complex theory determines their capacity and performance; in essence, the storage capacity is related to the square of core mass. The practical consequences can be boiled down to a single simple equation:
Core mass (oz) = Sq. rt. of endurance (weeks) x crystal mass x .5Cores are made of pure R. lead, and the cost of the core is simply the current cost of R. lead, £1550 an ounce. Full recharging costs a tenth of core cost; the cost of the core includes one full charge.
Example: Taking the ship above, and assuming that the designers expect the engines to operate for a maximum of 20 weeks between charges:
crystal mass = 11.38 ozCore mass must be
Sq. rt. 20 x 11.38 x .5 = 4.47 x 11.38 x .5 = 25.5 ozCore cost is 25.5 x £1550 = £39,525; recharge cost is £3,953 Both these results are multiplied by the number of cores, for final costs of £79,050 for cores, £7,905 for recharging.
[if cores are badly abused (eg. by an attempt to exceed the rated performance of the engines) they may lose some charge. Reduce endurance by 1D6/2 weeks.]
At this point it is possible to calculate the minimum operating expenses for the ship. Divide the total cost of the crystals IN THE ENGINES by their service life in months, then add the total recharge cost, assuming continuous operation, per month. In our example above, the crystals cost £10,811 and last 16.6 months, the recharge cost is £7,905 per 20 weeks.
| Crystal cost (per month) = | £10,811 / 16.6 = £651 |
| Core charge cost (per month) = | (£7,905 / 20) x 52 /12 = £1,713 |
Engine Machinery
The remaining machinery of the engine is a complex array of mechanical and electrical components designed to control output and keep the R. graviton beam aligned on the object that is repelling the ship. The more accurately it is built, the less trouble it gives and the less attention it needs from the pilot and engineer. Precision costs money, and varies from one manufacturer to another.
| Type | Cost | [Difficulty Repair/Use] |
| Redgrave Superlative | £2500 + 30% of cost of core + crystal | [+2/-2] |
| Redgrave Standard | £1500 + 25% of cost of core + crystal | [ 0/ 0] |
| Rolls Royce | £1200 + 25% of cost of core + crystal | [-2/+1] |
| Tesla-Westinghouse | £1000 + 15% of cost of core + crystal | [-1/+2] |
[The two difficulty modifiers shown are for repairing the engine, and for precise navigation. For example, the Tesla-Westinghouse model is moderately easy to repair (-1 difficulty modifier) but very inaccurate if used for long-range navigation (+2 difficulty modifier)]
The Redgrave Superlative (1903) and Standard (1900) are usually regarded as the best engines for long-range navigation, although the Superlative has been described as "an absolute pig to repair". The Rolls-Royce (1905) is screened against the Ganymedan magnetic ray, and has a reputation for ruggedness and ease of repair which offsets its slightly reduced accuracy; it is often found in naval craft, where constant watchkeeping prevents serious navigational errors. Finally, the Tesla-Westinghouse design (1907) simplifies the aiming mechanism, and is built mainly for short-range flights; most craft on the lunar run use it.
Example: The Astronef
Crystal width (inches) = maximum acceleration x mass of ship / 150
= 5 x 99.6 / 150 = 3.32"
Crystal weight (oz) = width cubed x 0.6
= 35 x 0.6 = 21.93 oz
Crystal cost = 21.93 x £950
= £20,833 (x2 crystals)
= £41,667
Service life (months) = width x 25 / maximum power
= 3.32 x 25 / 5 = 16.6 months
Core mass = Sq. rt. 52 x 21.9 x .5 = Sq. rt. 570 = 23.88 oz
Core cost = 23.88 x £1550 = £37,012 (x 2 cores) = £74,023
Recharge cost = £7,402
Operating cost = (£41,667 / 16.6) + ((£7,402 / 52) x 52/12)
= £2,510 + £616 = £3,116 per month
Machinery cost = (£20,833 + £37,012) x .25 + £1,500
= £57,845 x .25 + £1,500
= £14,461 + £1,500
= £15,961 (x 2 engines) = £31,922
Item Volume Mass Cost
Hull and interior 245.4 99.6 £29,820
Amplifier crystals N/A N/A £41,667 *
Cores N/A N/A £74,023 *
Engine machinery Already included £31,922
TOTAL 243 98 £177,432
Cubic Tons
yards
* Volume and mass are not noted because they are already included in
the overall data for the engines.
Example: The Shanghai Princess
Crystal width (inches) = 1.5 x 213.5 / 150 = 2.15"
Crystal weight (oz) = 2.15 cubed x 0.6 oz = 6.0 oz
Crystal cost = 6.0 x £950 = £5,702 (x6 = £34,212)
Service life (months) = 2.15 x 25 / 1.5 = 36 months
Core mass (oz) = Sq. rt. 26 x 6 x .5 = Sq. rt. 78 = 8.83 oz
Core cost = 8.83 x £1550 = £13,692 (x 4 engines = £54,767)
Recharge cost = £54,767 x .1 = £5,477
Operating costs = (£22,808/36) + ((£5,477 / 26) x 52/12)
= £634 + £912 = £1,548 per month
Machinery cost = (£5,702 + £13,692) x 15% + £1,000
= £3,909 (x 4 engines)
= £15,636
Item Volume Mass Cost
Hull and interior 463.0 430.9 £74,460
Amplifier crystals x 6 N/A N/A £34,212
Cores x 4 N/A N/A £54,767
Engine Machinery x 4 Already included £15,636
TOTAL 463.0 430.9 £179,075
Cubic Tons
yards
SPACESHP.WK1 is a template for Lotus 123 and compatible spreadsheets. Most spreadsheet programs should be able to load it or translate it. Set your spreadsheet to use British pounds as the default currency before using it. The file has been saved in protected mode; this means that only the unprotected cells (usually shown in a different colour) can be altered. You are strongly advised not to remove protection until you understand how it works; dozens of serious formula errors were eliminated at various points in testing, the last only days before release of this collection. Save edited sheets with a new name to avoid overwriting the original. Please DON'T distribute templates with modified formulae. A sample spacecraft has been recorded. While the template is moderately bulletproof, it can't prevent stupid mistakes; for example, it won't stop you choosing to have 1000 engines or -5 first class cabins. This shouldn't do any harm provided you spot the error.
The spreadsheet is organised so that everything needed for game purposes can be printed out on a single page, showing cells A1..G49; a few choices (such as hull style, engine type, etc.) are entered to the right of this range, but the choices made are summarised on the first page. A second page (A50..G90) has spaces for notes and illustrations. Both pages have been optimised for the Lotus WYSIWYG add-in, but results should be acceptable without it.
The top few lines of the main page detail the name of the ship, country of origin, and so forth; these do not affect values. Below are details of hull design and performance; endurance in weeks and maximum acceleration are entered here, the rest of the information summarises choices that are made elsewhere on the sheet.
The remainder of this page is a long list of components, prices, volumes, and weights. Simply type in the number of items needed and it will automatically calculate volume, size, and cost. Once a hull type is selected it will show the hull weight and cost (the default is a cigar-shaped hull, like the Astronef). Once the number of developing engines is selected, and the make and maximum acceleration is typed in, it automatically shows all relevant costs. Off the page to the right are sections detailing the hull and engines, and some lookup tables which are used by the spreadsheet to calculate complex items that can't easily be handled in a single equation. A nearby section holds the volume, mass, and cost of each type of accommodation; if you want to change these factors for an unusual design, these are the numbers to modify. Since this should be comparatively rare, they are initially protected.
At the bottom of the first page, just before various totals, are five "new item" entries for any extras you might wish to enter. Names, volumes, weights, and costs of these extra items can be entered into another lookup table off the main page to the right. Cells in this table are not protected. It's assumed that these items aren't limited to a particular hull style, don't affect the number of crew, and so forth. For instance, a really big gun might be entered as 11-inch gun, volume 30 cubic yards, mass 50 tons, cost £80,000; this would work correctly as far as volume, mass, and costs per gun were concerned, but the spreadsheet won't know that it could only be built into a military hull, or that it would need fifteen or twenty crew. Similarly, a new form of accommodation (such as a luxury suite much larger than the normal first class cabin) will not be reflected in the galley size or quantity of supplies aboard.
At several points you should type in numbers to make a selection from a limited range of possibilities. Any other entry will result in an error message:
| Control room | type "0" for civilian, "1" for military. |
| Navigation engine | "0" for none, "1" for mk I, "2" for mk II, etc. |
| Radio | "0" none, "1" short range, "2" long range |
| Steel Ram | "0" none, "1" bow, "2" bow and stern |
| Hull design | "0" cigar, "1" cylinder, "2" military 'brick' |
| Hull armour | "0" standard plate and glass, "1" military grade armour plating. This entry has no effect on the military chisel design if it has been selected. |
| Engine make | "0" Redgrave superlative, "1" Redgrave standard, "2" Rolls Royce, "3" Tesla-Westinghouse |
Some choices need more than one entry. For instance, when entering cargo requirements there are spaces for the mass to be carried, and the hull volume needed per ton. This permits the choice of (for example) 1 ton per cubic yard for dense metals and ores, 1 ton per 5 cubic yards for furniture, etc. Water, oil, and most other liquid cargoes average about a ton per cubic yard; liquid mercury and the "heavy water" of Ceres would theoretically ship at 16 tons per cubic yard, but in practice are more likely to be shipped in small jugs packed in straw inside wooden crates, averaging about a ton per cubic yard.
When you explore the sheet, try making a few "minor" changes and see how they snowball as they affect weight, volume (and hence hull weight), engine power (and hence cost). For example, adding a lifeboat (cost £1500) to one ship added nearly £200,000 to its eventual price. Changing the number of developing engines can have a VERY large effect on costs, and it's possible to achieve some extremely silly results, such as ships with hundreds of cheap engines. Keep an eye on operating expenses, crew, endurance, and crystal life, as well as on the actual cost of the ship, and you won't go far wrong.
The template doesn't distinguish between passengers and crew, but will
warn you if there are more pairs of engines than people aboard the
ship, or if a warship has more battle stations than occupants. The
latter assumes two crew on the bridge, a crewman per pair of
developing engines, six crew for each 8" gun, and one crewman for all
other guns. By real naval standards this is highly optimistic; most
warships would have teams of ten or fifteen for each big gun, and many
more crew aboard for other stations and as "spares". The warnings are
displayed near the engine and hull details. You will also be warned if
your design mounts naval guns in a cigar-shaped or cylindrical hull.
These warnings do not affect the operation of the sheet and can be
ignored at your discretion.
3.5 Spacecraft Design Record
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Use this form (also saved as a separate file for printing convenience, and as a separate text file shiprecd.txt) to record details of ship designs. It will probably print out at slightly more than a page, so you may prefer to edit the text version on screen, to delete lines that don't apply or add extra lines for new items of equipment. The spreadsheet SPACESHP.WK1 is much more convenient; see section 3.4, above, for details.
Forgotten Futures II - Spaceship Design Record | |||||
| Ship Name | Type | ||||
| Owner | Flag | Base | |||
| Number/ Type | Notes | Volume Yd3 | Mass Tons | Cost | |
| INTERNAL COMPONENTS | |||||
| Control room | . | . | . | . | £ |
| 1st Class Cabins | . | . | . | . | £ |
| 2nd Class Cabins | . | . | . | . | £ |
| 3rd Class Cabins | . | . | . | . | £ |
| 4th Class Cabins | . | . | . | . | £ |
| Galley for ______ persons | . | . | . | £ | |
| Air Lock | . | . | . | . | £ |
| Supplies for _____ man-weeks | . | . | . | £ | |
| Cargo space, _____ tons | . | . | . | £ | |
| Strong room | . | . | . | . | £ |
| Maxim Gun | . | . | . | . | £ |
| Powered Gatling | . | . | . | . | £ |
| Pneumatic Cannon | . | . | . | . | £ |
| 8" gun | . | . | . | . | £ |
| 1000 lb bomb | . | . | . | . | £ |
| Steel Ram | . | . | . | . | £ |
| Lifeboat | . | . | . | . | £ |
| Nav engine, Mk _____ | . | . | . | £ | |
| Radio | . | . | . | . | £ |
| Searchlight | . | . | . | . | £ |
| Telescope | . | . | . | . | £ |
| Vacuum Dress | . | . | . | . | £ |
| . | . | . | . | . | £ |
| . | . | . | . | . | £ |
| . | . | . | . | . | £ |
| . | . | . | . | . | £ |
| . | . | . | . | . | £ |
| . | . | . | . | . | £ |
| Developing engines, _____ pairs | . | . | . | £ | |
| R. Force engine, _____ pairs | . | . | . | £ | |
| Subtotals | . | . | £ | ||
| HULL | |||||
| Specification | Difficulty Modifier | ||||
| Materials | BODY | ||||
| Subtotals | . | . | £ | ||
| ENGINES | |||||
| Amplifier Crystals | . | £ | |||
| Crystal life, months | |||||
| R. Graviton Cores | . | £ | |||
| Engine mechanisms | . | Maker | £ | ||
| Engine Power, g | . | ||||
| Endurance, weeks | . | ||||
| Recharge cost | £ | ||||
| GRAND TOTALS | . | . | £ | ||
| Notes . . . . . . | |||||
3.6 Sample Spacecraft
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This is a brief listing of a few spacecraft designed using these techniques.
The Astronef
Yacht, owner Lord Redgrave, completed 1900
British, base Smeaton, Yorkshire
Control room, 100 cubic yards 1st class passenger space, 1 x 3rd class cabin, galley, air lock, supplies (26 weeks), 4 x Pneumatic Cannon, 4 x Maxim guns, forward ram, 1 pair atmospheric engines, 1 pair Redgrave Standard developing engines, 2 x searchlights, telescope, 2 x Breathing dress
Hull cigar-shaped, standard plate / armoured glass
Volume 245.4 cubic yards, mass 99.6 tons, BODY 75
Atmospheric speed 138 MPH, difficulty modifier -1
Engine crystals £20,833 (x2), service life 16.6 months, max 5g
Engine cores 1 year capacity, recharge cost £7,402
Cost £177,082, operating cost £3,116 per month.
This luxurious yacht carries supplies for three occupants for half a
year. She was built before radio or navigation engines were available,
and is not fitted with a lifeboat (since there was no-one to rescue
the occupants). The Astronef is cutting-edge technology in 1900, and
is still in many ways a typical ship in 1920 (although by then the
actual ship occupies pride of place in London's Science Museum). She
is a sleek agile craft with good handling in the air and in space. For
more details see section 3.6, below.
Illustrations 07_ASTNF.GIF, 08_ASPLN.GIF
The Hartley Rennick (and sister ship Zaidie Redgrave)
General purpose yachts, owner Lord Redgrave, completed 1903 (1904)
British, base Smeaton, Yorkshire
Control room, 4 x 1st class, 4 x 2nd class, 6 x 3rd class (crew), 6 x 4th class (servants, crew), galley for 20, air lock, supplies (10 weeks), 50 tons cargo @ 3 cubic yds/ton, strong room, 6 x pneumatic cannon, 6 x Maxim guns, forward ram, 2 x searchlights, radio (short range), telescope, 8 x breathing dress, lifeboat, 2 pairs atmospheric engines, 3 pairs Redgrave Standard developing engines.
Hull cigar-shaped, standard plate / armoured glass
Volume 742.6 cubic yards, mass 389.3 tons, BODY 95
Atmospheric speed 71 mph., difficulty modifier -1
Engine crystals £23,649 (x8), service life 21.6 months, max 4g
Engine cores 52 weeks capacity, recharge cost £23,649
Cost £649,660, Operating cost £8,525 per month.
These ships were built as the logical successors to the original Astronef; for exploration, for diplomacy, to carry passengers and cargo, and (if necessary) for limited warfare. As such they fall between a multitude of stools; they lack cargo space, and are overcrowded when they carry passengers. They are slower than the Astronef, and poorly armed compared to the naval vessels that soon entered service. Despite these shortcomings both are agile and are still in use in 1920. At various dates both were upgraded with long range radios and navigation engines; these are not included in the prices above, which are original construction cost.
HMS Nova (and others of her class)
Warship, Royal Navy, completed 1905 (8 others built 1906-1916)
British, base Plymouth, Devon
Military control room, 1 x 2nd class (captain), 3 x 3rd class (officers), 18 x 4th class, galley for 22, air lock, supplies (10 weeks), 50 tons cargo at 1 cubic yd/ton, 2 x 8" guns, 6 x 1000lb bombs, 4 x electric Gatling guns, 2 x searchlights, no lifeboats, telescope, 22 x breathing dresses, 2 pairs atmospheric engines, 4 pairs Rolls Royce developing engines.
Hull "brick-shaped", military armour plate
Volume 606.8 cubic yards, mass 598.3 tons, BODY 105
Atmospheric speed 42 MPH, difficulty modifier +1
Engine crystals £36,177 (x10), service life 24.9 months, max 4g
Engine cores 26 weeks capacity, recharge cost £27,590
Cost £1,097,626, operating cost £16,207 per month.
These are the specifications for the Nova as she was built; she was later upgraded with a long-range radio and Mk IV navigation engine which are not shown above. There are minor variations between the Nova and others of her class; most notably, the other ships have three sets of atmospheric engines, not two, and lose some cargo capacity. Her slow atmospheric speed is only a factor in sustained low-altitude manoeuvres; ships of this class are built to swoop from space, adding a good deal of momentum to engine power, and the atmospheric engines are used mainly for fine control and landing. In a strike from space she can achieve 150-200 MPH for short periods.
The Nova was designed for use on Earth and in nearby space; her primary role was defence against surface naval forces and the "flying battleships" which were then slowly emerging from the shipyards of Europe, with her spacegoing capability almost an afterthought. The design was unexpectedly successful, so much so that these craft became the core of Britain's space fleet; most are still in service in 1920.
The Rolls Royce engines in this hull were built under contract, with the cores and crystals supplied by Lord Redgrave's company; they were specially designed for immunity to the Ganymedan magnetic ray, and have since proved to be a robust design of reasonable accuracy.
All ships of this class are built to land on water as well as land, and they are mostly based in naval ports. If the hold is packed with iron rations, and strict water conservation is enforced, endurance can be stretched to 300 man-weeks, or 15 weeks in space. Supply depots on the Moon, Mercury, and Ganymede mean that it is rarely necessary to take such extreme steps. The Nova now serves primarily as a training vessel; with the exception of the Nebula, which was destroyed in an unsuccessful attempt to deflect the 1908 asteroid, the other seven ships of this class are still in regular service. The new Nebula class, which will enter service in 1921-2, has a similar configuration but is rated at 5g with better endurance and firepower.
The American Independence class (7 ships) is similar in performance, though different in detail, and variants are operated by Germany (3 ships), France (2), Norway (2), Belgium (1), Finland (1), Italy (1), Japan (1), Russia (1), and Switzerland (1).
See 11_NAVY.GIF for a picture of this ship in flight. One of the adventures has a naval background.
The Orion, a typical liner
Liner, P&O lines, completed 1908
British, base Plymouth
Civilian control room, 20 x first class, 20 x 2nd, 20 x 3rd, 30 x 4th (crew), galley for 90, air lock, supplies (7 weeks), Cargo x 100 tons @ 3 cb.yds. per ton, strong room, Mk 1 navigation engine, short-range radio, 2 x searchlights, 2 x telescopes, 8 x breathing dress (engineering crew), 5 x lifeboats, 3 pairs atmospheric engines, 10 pairs Redgrave Standard Developing engines.
Hull cylindrical, standard plate / armoured glass
Volume 2444 cubic yards, mass 1341.7 tons, BODY 100
Atmospheric speed 17 mph, Difficulty modifier +3
Engine crystals £11,012 (x22), service life 22.4 months, max 3g
Engine cores 30 weeks capacity, recharge cost £40,878
Cost £1,337,076, Operating cost £15,754 per month.
This liner clearly shows the advantage of a large number of developing engines, but she only has three sets of atmospheric engines, rather than the five or more her mass would suggest were needed, and is extremely clumsy in atmospheric flight; she generally lands on water, then is towed to her dock by tugs. She must be extremely careful in her approach to Ganymede since she has barely enough engine power to break free if she ventures too close to Jupiter. Despite these failings she is a popular Earth-Ganymede service, almost always over-booked. Her Christmas flights are especially in demand. She has recently been upgraded with a Mk IV navigation engine and long-range radio, not shown in the above costs.
While the statistics for this craft do not include weapons, she has numerous mounting points for pneumatic cannon and pneumatic Gatling guns, and pipes for a compressed air supply to power them. In an emergency she can quickly be converted into an armed troop ship carrying up to 300 passengers and crew.
| Scenario Idea, 1908 onwards: Murder On The Ganymede Express This one speaks for itself, although it isn't a good idea to stick too closely to the Christie model. A few inscrutable Orientals and Ganymedans should keep players guessing, especially if the motive is moderately obscure. A Christmas setting offers some interesting possibilities for weapons disguised as presents, murderers disguised as Santa, bodies in sacks, etc... |
The Steel Baron, a typical mining ship
Mining Ship, private owner, 1912
American, base Tycho, the Moon
Civilian control room, 6 x 3rd class cabins, galley for 6, air lock, 26 weeks supplies, 150 tons cargo @ 1 cb.yd. per ton, 1 Maxim gun, 1 pneumatic cannon, Mk II navigation engine, long-range radio, 2 searchlights, telescope, 6 breathing dresses, no lifeboat, 1 pair atmospheric engines, 1 pair Redgrave Standard Developing engines.
Hull cylindrical, armoured steel
Volume 432.1 cubic yards, mass 377.6 tons, BODY 85
Atmospheric speed 30 mph, Difficulty modifier +2
Engine crystals £142,059 (x3), service life 62.9 months, max 2.5g
Engine cores 26 weeks capacity, recharge cost £13,668
Cost £758,175, Operating cost £6,793 per month.
Despite her name, this ship mainly mines rare minerals. She usually leaves Earth with her hold packed with explosives, drills, and other supplies, which are used or abandoned as she fills with ore. Recently her crew discovered a deposit of several tons of high-quality jadeite, the rarer and more valuable form of jade; her owners are cautiously selling it on the Chinese market, in quantities that won't bring the price down. The hull design is inherently clumsy, but she rarely ventures into the atmosphere anyway, being based at one of the Lunar refining plants. Her cannon and Maxim gun can be fired in space; the cannon is used mainly to break up rocks from a safe distance, the Maxim gun is for defence against claim jumpers.
The "Stella", the first interstellar spacecraft
Exploratory ship, built by public subscription, 1919
British, base Smeaton, Yorkshire
Civilian control room, 2 1st class cabins, 100 cb. yd exercise compartment, galley, air lock, supplies for 100 weeks (see below), Huxley algal food/air system (see below), 50 tons cargo @ 1 cb.yd. per ton, 2 x Maxim guns, 2 x pneumatic cannon, navigation engine mk V, long range radio, 2 x searchlights, 2 x telescopes, 2 x breathing dress, 2 pairs atmospheric engines, 1 pair Redgrave Superlative Developing engines, Rennick-Tesla Graviton plant.
Hull cylindrical, standard plate / armoured glass
Volume 369.2 cubic yards, mass 256.2 tons, BODY 85
Atmospheric speed 88 mph, Difficulty modifier +1
Engine crystals £181,829 (x10), service life 42.7 months, max 4g
Engine cores 100 weeks capacity, recharge cost £30,326 (see below)
Cost £6,895,181, Operating cost £9,830 per month (see below)
The Stella is a radical new design, utilising a variety of techniques
to extend endurance far beyond the figures above, which are emergency
reserves. Roughly half her food is carried in the form of concentrated
iron rations, the remainder is supplied by the Huxley algal system (50
cb. yds, 25 tons, £500,000) which converts sewage, carbon dioxide, and
nutrient chemicals into algae, which can then be processed to a
variety of tasty foods. A useful by-product is oxygen. The
experimental Tesla-Rennick graviton generator (100 cb. yds, 100 tons,
£4 million) recharges her cores in flight, so that in theory the only
resource that will eventually run out is the supply of engine
crystals. Note that the prices quoted for these items are estimates,
not precise figures; the algal system was constructed without charge
by a team of scientists and engineers from Imperial College, the
graviton plant was donated by R. Force Developments Inc. of America,
and Lord Redgrave provided the engines, the spare crystals, and the
work-force that constructed her.
3.7 The Astronef
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Although her main components have already been listed, the Astronef has many interesting features which bear closer examination. Study will undoubtedly reward designers who may be tempted to replicate or improve on her design. See 08_ASPLN.GIF for her layout. Various illustrations accompanying the Astronef stories show internal or external details.
The Astronef has two main decks; the glass-walled upper deck, and a lower deck inside the main cylindrical hull. There is also a small conning tower above the upper deck, which looks very like a funnel and is used mainly for navigation in deep space.
The greenhouse-like upper deck is used for recreation and observation, but is not absolutely essential to the operation of the ship; in an emergency the compartments around the stairs can be sealed, allowing air to be retained even if the glass is broken. This is unlikely, since the glass is thick and can be covered with steel shutters (raised pneumatically) in moments. Mounts for the ship's Maxim guns and pneumatic cannon are also on this deck; the weapons themselves are stored in lockers under the deck, along with many other supplies. The compartment at the forward end of the deck contains controls for the atmospheric engines and rudders, used for navigation in air. Some of the glass panels of the main compartment double as airtight hatches, and can be slid open in atmosphere; naturally this is only done after the air is thoroughly tested. For safety it is impossible to open them if there is a vacuum outside.
The layout of the upper deck makes the Astronef perfect for astronomical observations; there is even a large glass panel in the lower deck, allowing observation below the hull. Naturally it is usually protected by hatches and outer steel shutters. Later vessels often omit such refinements. Equipment customarily kept on the upper deck includes two powerful astronomical telescopes, deck chairs and tables, and Lady Redgrave's cameras.
Amidships the lower deck is largely occupied by the engines, air and water purifiers, and other machinery. There are large sliding hatches in the walls beside the engines, used mainly for servicing on Earth; like the hatches on the upper deck, they are securely fastened in space and held closed by tons of air pressure.
Forward are the engineer's cabin, which is also used as a workshop, and the airlock. This can be filled with air in less than thirty seconds, or pumped out in two to three minutes. Aft are the saloon, galley, bathroom, WC, night cabin, and the engines which operate the air screws. There is electric lighting throughout, the power being a by-product of graviton flow in the engine crystals. The electrical mains are 48v DC.
While the Astronef may seem large for the number of occupants, much of her volume is taken up by machinery, by pipes, ducts, and cables, and by stores. Most internal functions are carried out by electrical or pneumatic machinery, or by steam from a small electrically-heated boiler which is also used to distil drinking water. For example, the galley oven, hot plates, and grill are electric, with boiling water on tap for beverages. All compartments have steam radiators (which can instead be linked to an electrical refrigerator if the ship is too warm). Electrical fans circulate the air, then it is compressed and passed through various filters and chemicals to remove carbon dioxide and excess water vapour. Tanks of liquid oxygen supplement any shortage. After a few weeks the air is a little stale and insipid, but this is only noticeable by comparison with fresh air. Similarly, the water would have little or no taste if Lord Redgrave had not thought to add a supply of mineral salts to the distillation system.
An important function of the compressed air system is operation of the Astronef's cannon. These are four powerful smooth-bore pneumatic guns, firing two types of shell. The first contains a powerful explosive, equivalent to twenty pounds of dynamite. The second holds two liquids, an oxygenator and a powerful incendiary agent. When mixed they ignite spontaneously in a reaction which will continue even in a vacuum. The effect is like burning a similar weight of thermite. For obvious reasons both types of shell must be handled with great care; the incendiary is especially dangerous, since it could easily burn through the deck or hull of the Astronef if it were accidentally dropped, and shells are kept in padded cases until they are needed. The guns can throw these shells to a distance of about seven Terrestrial miles on Mars, about four miles on Earth; exact range depends on gravity and air resistance. They cannot be fired in space.
The other weapons carried aboard the Astronef include two Maxim guns, two ten-bore elephant guns firing explosive bullets, a dozen assorted rifles and shotguns, and six revolvers.
| Elephant Gun | no multiple targets, Effect 9 *, Wounds A:I B:C C:K |
| * Explosive shells raise Effect to 15 | |
If the air and water systems are the lungs and blood-stream of the Astronef, her nervous system is the complicated network of cables, rods, speaking tubes, and telephones linking her control rooms and engines. Lord Redgrave can regulate her flight without leaving the conning tower, with Murgatroyd operating the developing engines and atmospheric engines at his command; precise adjustments for interplanetary flight require Lord Redgrave's personal attention, but they are comparatively rare.
The developing engines are in the lowest part of the vessel amidships, and much of the engineer's time is devoted to their care. While the main components are very small, they are mounted in bulky rotating frames which allow them to be focused in any direction. More complexity is added by the electrical and pneumatic control equipment, and by electrical generators which convert the low-voltage output of the engines to 48v DC. When the engines are operating they are virtually silent; the only noise is the faint hum of the regulatory tuning forks, an occasional click as the frames shift to maintain precise focus, the chug of the pneumatic pumps, and the whirr of the generators. Efficient use of mineral wool and asbestos insulation ensures that mechanical noise is kept to a minimum; it is only faintly audible outside the engine compartment, and the upper deck is completely quiet.
The saloon is fitted to the finest standards, with maximum attention paid to the comfort and convenience so essential when it is sometimes occupied for weeks on end. The floor is the finest teak, while the inner lining of the walls is panelled in oak. Neatly concealed cupboards contain small arms, a wine chest, Lady Redgrave's photographic equipment, a microscope and dissecting tools, medical supplies, and other essentials. For entertainment there is a phonograph with a comprehensive selection of cylinders, a magic lantern with many slides, a range of board and card games, and a compact library containing the best of English science and literature, plus many important works by foreigners such as Lowell and Flammarion. Naturally the night cabin is fitted to a similarly high standard.
The bathroom has hot and cold water, and an extraction system which takes damp air straight to the purifiers. One unusual refinement is the ease with which it can be converted into a darkroom; a lid folding down over the bath is used as a workbench, and compartments contain Lady Redgrave's enlarger, developing dishes, and a good supply of photographic chemicals, papers, and plates.
Finally, the upper conning tower is fully equipped for navigation, with large-scale star charts, a sextant, chronometers, and sets of logarithms and other tables and instruments. In space it is the nerve centre of the ship; the forward control room only comes into its own when the Astronef is flying in an atmosphere or preparing to land. Lord Redgrave himself devised many of the instruments, and a few have no parallel in Terrestrial navigation. Naturally all skilled pilots are fully conversant with their use in later years.
By far the most important is the gravitational compass, which uses a gimbaled needle with R. matter and G. matter tips to obtain an exact bearing on the nearest strong gravitational source. It is also possible, but much more difficult, to obtain a rough bearing on strong R. graviton sources, such as the engines of spacecraft.
[The difficulty of this feat (using Pilot skill) should vary with the needs of the adventure, but it should never be easy. Maximum detection range should be low; under a million miles for a ship in deep space, a few thousand miles anywhere near a planet, and a hundred miles or less for a ship on the surface of a planet. Occasionally freak conditions extend or reduce the range dramatically.]
A Honeymoon In SpaceMany of the details of this section are contradicted by A Honeymoon In Space. Briefly:
Some of these changes have implications that would make it necessary to revise most of the worldbook and all details of the R. force and spaceship design and operation. Their cumulative effect does not make this setting more interesting or usable as a role-playing background; to avoid such extensive revisions I have decided to ignore the new data, and stay with the descriptions in the original stories. |
Spacecraft fly by means of the R. force, but otherwise obey the normal laws of gravity and inertia. The engines push against whichever massive object has been selected (generally the nearest planet), and are often capable of imparting an acceleration of three or four gravities. Unfortunately the occupants would be extremely uncomfortable under this force.
When a spacecraft accelerates, the occupants feel weight proportional to the force exerted by the engines, added to the local gravity. For this reason most craft accelerate extremely gently when they leave the Earth, so that the upward thrust of the developing engines just exceeds the downwards pull of the Earth. As the craft rises the pull of gravity slowly decreases, and the force exerted by the engines is raised; the acceleration counterfeits the normal gravitational force. For convenience this force must be exerted downwards, towards the decks. This means that spacecraft must take off vertically and fly with the developing engines pushing against objects "below" the ship. Illustrations showing ships flying in deep space, but in the atmospheric bow-first mode, are dramatically appealing but incorrect (see 06_HOME.GIF, 07_ASTNF.GIF and 11_NAVY.GIF for examples). While most spacecraft have engines capable of exerting much more than 1g, this power is a reserve used for emergencies and to overcome strong gravitational forces near the giant planets.
While one gravity may not seem much acceleration, it soon builds up to colossal speed. In practice most craft must spend a good deal of time in slow acceleration as they depart, and slow deceleration as they near their destinations. For instance, the Earth-Moon journey should theoretically take three hours at 1g, but usually needs ten because a good deal of time is spent at relatively low speeds, gaining altitude and matching speed with the Moon. Similarly, travel times may be extended by such factors as the position of the planets relative to each other and the Sun, the need to shed or gain orbital velocity, etc. Ignoring the special case of the Earth-Moon run, which is just too short for efficiency, the average acceleration after these factors are taken into account is roughly 0.5g for private and commercial vessels, and 0.75g to 1g for military craft. Engines are built to give their most economical performance in these ranges, and running at higher acceleration for prolonged periods may seriously reduce the charge stored in the core.
| Travel times (days) at opposition (Maximum distances between planets) | |||||||||
| Planet | Distance from Sun | M | V | E | M | J | S | U | N |
| Mercury | 36.3 M | - | 4.3 | 4.8 | 5.6 | 9.6 | 12.7 | 17.8 | 22.3 |
| Venus | 67.0 M | 4.3 | - | 5.3 | 6.0 | 9.8 | 12.9 | 18.0 | 22.4 |
| Earth | 93.0 M | 4.8 | 5.3 | - | 6.4 | 10.1 | 13.1 | 18.1 | 22.5 |
| Mars | 139.5 M | 5.6 | 6.0 | 6.4 | - | 10.5 | 13.4 | 18.3 | 22.7 |
| Jupiter | 483.6 M | 9.6 | 9.8 | 10.1 | 10.5 | - | 15.5 | 19.9 | 24.0 |
| Saturn | 883.5 M | 12.7 | 12.9 | 13.1 | 13.4 | 15.5 | - | 21.6 | 25.4 |
| Uranus | 1767.0 M | 17.8 | 18.0 | 18.1 | 18.3 | 19.2 | 21.6 | - | 28.3 |
| Neptune | 2790.0 M | 22.3 | 22.4 | 22.5 | 22.7 | 24.0 | 25.4 | 28.3 | - |
| Travel times (days) at conjunction (minimum distance between planets) | |||||||||
| Planet | Distance from Sun | M | V | E | M | J | S | U | N |
| Mercury | 36.3 M | - | 2.3 | 3.2 | 4.3 | 8.9 | 12.2 | 17.4 | 22.0 |
| Venus | 67.0 M | 2.3 | - | 2.1 | 3.6 | 8.6 | 12.0 | 17.3 | 21.9 |
| Earth | 93.0 M | 3.2 | 2.1 | - | 2.9 | 8.3 | 11.8 | 17.2 | 21.8 |
| Mars | 139.5 M | 4.3 | 3.6 | 2.9 | - | 7.8 | 11.4 | 16.9 | 21.6 |
| Jupiter | 483.6 M | 8.9 | 8.6 | 8.3 | 7.8 | - | 8.4 | 15.0 | 20.1 |
| Saturn | 883.5 M | 12.2 | 12.0 | 11.8 | 11.4 | 8.4 | - | 12.5 | 18.3 |
| Uranus | 1767.0 M | 17.4 | 17.3 | 17.2 | 16.9 | 15.0 | 12.5 | - | 13.4 |
| Neptune | 2790.0 M | 22.0 | 21.9 | 21.8 | 21.6 | 20.1 | 18.3 | 13.4 | - |
The spreadsheet template TRAVTIME.WK1 can be used to calculate journeys at any desired acceleration; the results are based purely on acceleration and ignore all other factors. [It includes a planet called Pluto which does not, of course, exist in this universe.]
It's interesting to note that on its first flight the Astronef took more than eleven days to fly from the Moon to Mars; no engine problems were reported, so evidently Lord and Lady Redgrave weren't in any great hurry. Of course they were on their honeymoon...
Because the R. force pushes against objects such as planets, it is
often desirable to manoeuvre close to such bodies en route to a more
distant destination. For example, a ship travelling from Earth to
Jupiter will usually use the R. force to push towards Mars if it is in
the right part of the sky, then transfer the focus of the developing
engines to Mars as it continues on towards Jupiter. It might also use
Ceres or one of the other asteroids as another "stepping stone" in its
flight. This manoeuvre is generally described as "tacking".
3.8.1 Common Problems
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Unless a ship is badly managed, any normal journey should be trouble-free. The main causes of difficulty are navigational errors, mechanical failures, and stress due to unusually powerful gravitational fields or acceleration. All should generally be entirely avoidable.
Most navigational errors are due to poor watchkeeping. Although spacecraft are extraordinarily fast, interplanetary distances are so vast that there should still be ample time to check courses and correct for any error. Especial care should be taken if one of the less accurate types of engine is in use; the Westinghouse-Tesla design was expressly designed for short-range flights, and its aiming mechanism is inherently unreliable for long-distance use. The Rolls-Royce model is also a little inaccurate, since the anti-magnetic screening around the engine has a slight but unavoidable damping effect on the control magnets around the core.
Common sense and practice require a navigational check at least three times a day, followed by careful calculation of the course, and appropriate modification of the engine settings if necessary. Factors that can affect the result include the accuracy of the developing engines, as described above, the use of a navigational engine, and so forth. Usually there is no particular difficulty about the operation, above and beyond normal use of a pilot's skill, although some tricky manoeuvres require extra care.
Mechanical failures are also likely to be due to inadequate attention. The best developing engines are extremely delicate, and without constant care they soon become temperamental. While in most ways a fine engine, the Redgrave Superlative has a reputation for minor problems, while one Rolls Royce machine continued to work after the engineer accidentally dropped a mallet onto its core control magnets. Other engines fall between these extremes. Complexity also affects ease of servicing; the Redgrave Superlative service manual runs to 128 pages with fourteen fold-out charts, the Tesla-Westinghouse equivalent is barely half the size.
Usually one engineer or mechanic should be employed for each pair of developing engines. If there are less there is a good chance that servicing will be skimped. Unfortunately it is easy to become obsessed with the engines and forget that the other machinery aboard ship requires its fair share of attention, as does the structure of the ship itself; a ship with perfect engines but faulty life support equipment or a leaking weld is a death trap.
The most common causes of problems are human error and overloading of the engines. Both can be attributed to prolonged acceleration. While engines are often designed for 3 gravities or more, the occupants are not; engineers and mechanics soon become tired at these accelerations, and errors are almost inevitable. Even if the engines aren't over-stressed, running at high gravities increases the strain on the cores and crystals, and on auxiliary equipment such as the focusing magnets and generators. Things get worse if the engines are overloaded; for example, if one or more pairs of engines is out of service the other engines will be lifting more than the mass they were designed for. Pilots sometimes try to exceed the maximum acceleration their engines were built for; while this often works for a few minutes, sometimes for hours, the inevitable result is rapid deterioration of the engine crystals and cores, and an increased chance of a breakdown.
If some of the engines of a ship are out of action, the other engines share the load, but at proportionally lower acceleration. For example, a ship with two pairs of engines might be rated at 3g; if one pair is taken out of action, the other pair could continue to move it at a maximum of 1.5g, but the chance of a breakdown is increased.
The acceleration of overloaded ships is reduced by the proportion of the overload; for instance, a 100 ton 3g ship carrying 50 tons of excess cargo can only accelerate at 2g. This also applies to ships towing or pushing other ships.
Engines must always operate in pairs; it isn't possible to take just one out of service. For instance, if one of the Astronef's engines were out of action the other would be unusable until it was fixed. This could be catastrophic if it were on the verge of landing.
In an emergency engines can be "pushed", increasing the maximum gravity rating. Usually it is impossible to predict how much extra force will be produced, and damage is almost inevitable. For example, an engine rated at 2g might give 50% extra thrust, or 3g, the first time it was abused in this way, but only 10% extra power the next time. It might also break down after a few minutes.
Game Data
If the players say that they are going to take sensible precautions
against an error (such as regular position checks, engine maintenance,
and so forth), and the ship is flying a familiar route, the referee
need never ask for the dice to be rolled. If they seem to be doing
things sloppily, or are venturing into unknown territory, more
frequent rolls might be needed.
The basic Difficulty of any navigational calculation is 6, rolled using the Pilot skill (the Scientist skill may optionally be substituted). The factors that can affect the operation, to a minimum Difficulty of 2 or maximum of 10, can include any or all of the following:
| Navigational engine Mk 1 | -1 * |
| Navigational engine MK II,III | -2 * |
| Navigational engine MK IV | -3 * |
| Navigational engine Mk V | -4 * |
| * Also requires a successful Babbage Engine roll, or | |
| Failed Babbage Machine roll | +2 |
| Not using a telescope | +2 |
| Following a familiar course | -1 |
| Earth-Moon run | -2 |
| Redgrave Superlative engine | -2 |
| Redgrave Standard engine | 0 |
| Rolls Royce engine | +1 |
| Tesla-Westinghouse engine | +2 |
| Per 12 hours without a check | +1 |
| After any failed check | +2 |
| Within 1,000,000 miles of Jupiter | +2 |
| Within Saturn's rings | +2 |
| Engines have been damaged | +2 |
| Engines are not properly serviced | +2 |
| Emergency manoeuvre | +1 to +3 |
| (depending on circumstances) | |
| Per week in flight | +2 * |
| * A "tacking" manoeuvre resets time to zero | |
If the navigation roll fails there has been a slight (or possibly catastrophic) error somewhere along the line, either in determining the position or in setting the course for the next few hours. The navigator need not necessarily know that an error has occurred; if the referee keeps the modifiers secret, the navigator can't be entirely sure that there is (or isn't) a problem. Find the effects by checking against the severity of the failure, as follows:
Despite all of the above, there is no need to pay too much attention to navigation if it is irrelevant to the needs of your campaign. For example, if the characters are busy with a complex intrigue involving the jewels (or life) of an NPC they will only be annoyed, and possibly distracted, if you pester them for regular navigation checks.
Tacking - flying close to a planet and using the R. force to push away from it - is a fruitful source of dramatic tension. Will the manoeuvre succeed, or will the spacecraft be thrown off course? Are pirates waiting in low orbit, ready to ambush any ship that passes by? Will the ship be hit by a meteor, or run into a hitherto-uncharted minor moon? It's up to the referee to decide.
Engines that are "pushed" develop 2D6-3 x 10% extra thrust. This gives a range of -10% to 90% extra thrust. -10% represents a catastrophic failure, with the engine requiring servicing before it can develop full thrust or can be "pushed" again. Kind referees won't leave adventurers in a death trap if this happens.
The difficulty of servicing developing engines is 8, with the following modifiers:
| Redgrave Superlative | +2 |
| Redgrave Standard | 0 |
| Rolls Royce | -2 |
| Tesla-Westinghouse | -1 |
| Engineer overworked | +2 |
| Acceleration 2g or more | +1 |
| Engine "pushed" above design rating | +2 per hour |
| Engine overloaded | +1 |
| Maintenance neglected | +2 |
Some other systems that need occasional attention include the following; all are difficulty 5:
As with navigational errors, maintenance should only become a problem if players persistently ignore it; if they occasionally mention that someone is taking care of it, you need never worry about rolling the dice.
The effects of low and high gravity are described in more detail in
section 4.0]
3.8.2 Hazards
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Space is virtually empty; while there are occasional meteors, they are extraordinarily rare. None were encountered during the maiden voyage of the Astronef, and most flights are without incident. The rare exceptions are usually particles no larger than a grain of rice, easily deflected by the armour of any well-built ship; those that penetrate tend to embed in the layers of tar inside the hull, which melt with the heat of impact and quickly form an airtight seal.
When the more dangerous effects of x-rays and radium were discovered, there were fears that there might be similarly dangerous radiation in space. Fortunately this is not the case; the Sun is made of burning hydrogen, not radium, and does not generate X-rays. The only dangerous radiation it produces is heat, easily minimised by suitable insulation, or by refrigeration on flights towards Mercury.
Ships on the Mercury run travel with all spare cargo space packed with ice. Melted water is allowed to evaporate into vacuum, cooling the ship even more, or sprayed into the air around the ship once it has landed on Mercury. This keeps conditions tolerable while the ship loads its ore, but means that great care must be taken to avoid running out of ice before the ship retreats from the Sun, while loading a maximum amount of cargo. Ideally just enough ice is carried to last until the ship passes the orbit of Venus on the return journey.
One of the most dangerous problems aboard ship is fire. Some of the chemicals used in air purifiers react violently with water, with electrical cables, oxygen, tar, and wooden panelling adding their own dangers. Fortunately the vast majority of fires can easily be extinguished if they are caught in time; just close a few airtight doors to contain the blaze, then vent the compartment to the surrounding void. Breathing dress is naturally fireproof, although some extreme conditions can damage the oxygen cylinder or knock out the air purification chemicals.
Professor Rennick's incendiary compound poses special problems, because it will burn in a vacuum and develops enough heat to penetrate asbestos. It is made by mixing two chemicals; if they are kept well apart, and only allowed near each other as shells are charged, the risk of a fire is minimised. Warships generally keep a few ready-charged shells for each gun, packed separately in asbestos-lined lockers, with armourers filling more shells as they are needed. Even with these precautions magazine fires are greatly to be feared, and the largest warships are built to jettison them into space in an emergency.
Game Data
Meteors should be very rare, only encountered when it serves the needs of your campaign. Unless you decide otherwise they should be rated as
| Meteor | Effect 6D6, Wounds A:I B:C C:C/K |
the hole they leave will always self-seal, or will be small enough to be plugged easily. Hollywood's depiction of all the air in a compartment instantly rushing out through a small meteor hole is a myth; the effect would be more like a powerful vacuum cleaner sucking air through the hole, causing a relatively slow pressure drop.
Any Effect which remains if a meteor penetrates the hull will be used inside, carrying on to damage more items until all its Effect has been shed. Internal partitions are BODY 10, pressure bulkheads (such as airlock walls etc.) are BODY 15, engineering components (such as engines) are also BODY 15.
Example:
A meteor with Effect 28 penetrates the Astronef's hull.
15 Effect is shed in the hull, leaving Effect 13 to damage the
interior of the ship. The referee decides that it has struck
Murgatroyd's compartment, heading towards the stern of the ship;
fortunately Murgatroyd is working on the engines at the time. The
meteor ploughs through the compartment, smashes a photograph of
Murgatroyd's mother, bangs through the door (overcoming BODY 10, but
losing effect 10), and strikes the life support equipment with Effect
3, which does not do any significant damage. An extremely hot lump of
nickel steel mashes against the casing of the equipment, leaving a
neat disk which drops to the floor. Murgatroyd checks his compartment,
finds that air is still leaking out (slowly, since the hole is small),
plugs it with a lump of putty, then coats it with tar. Once the
Astronef lands he will rivet a patch over the outer hole. Lord
Redgrave finds the remains of the meteor, and has it mounted in a
locket for Zaidie.
All bets are off if a ship is hit by a REALLY big meteor, but this is only worthwhile if you want to maroon the adventurers or involve them in an elaborate rescue mission. At top speeds a big meteor would vaporise a ship, not just make a hole.
The note on radiation assumes that your campaign minimises or ignores atomic energy, and uses the variant atomic structure described above. In the real universe the steel-hulled ships described by Griffith would convert relatively harmless forms of radiation into showers of lethal particles, and the maiden flight of the Astronef would have ended with three unpleasant deaths.
Any fire is extremely bad news; unless the air vents are quickly closed the entire ship will soon be flooded with smoke and fumes, overloading the purification system. All ships are equipped with water-based fire extinguishers, using pumps to propel the liquid, and are compartmented to minimise the spread of fire and loss of air. Big ships have fire alarm switches in every compartment; as well as sounding the alarm, they shut down the ventilators to the compartment. Smaller ships, and all early models, lack these refinements.
Only the largest warships are equipped to jettison their magazines;
the magazine is built as a box inside a bay with remotely-operated
doors. In an emergency airtight doors close, the bay doors open, and
powerful springs throw the compartment into space. Anyone inside the
compartment is naturally killed if they are not wearing breathing
dress. Magazines with this capability should be purchased as cargo
holds, volume 1 cubic yard per ton; the cost of the extra equipment is
negligible. Naturally there are interlocks to stop the bay doors
opening if the airtight doors aren't shut, and the occupants of the
magazine can over-ride the controls to prevent jettisoning.]
3.9 Combat
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Spaceships can almost always avoid a fight if the crew know that trouble is coming. They are fast, extremely manoeuvrable, and accelerate very rapidly, while weapons have short ranges and are often much slower than their targets. Projectiles don't have any homing mechanism, and can't be remotely controlled. Even if a moving spacecraft attacks a motionless target, the ballistics are extremely complex. The only way that two ships can fight for more than a fraction of a second is to match courses and speeds, close to a convenient distance (no more than 2-3 miles), and start taking pot-shots at each other. In practice very few captains are stupid enough to let this happen.
Surprise attacks are a different matter. There have been a few cases of piracy, usually against mining ships; where the details are known, the attacker has invariably used trickery to close to point-blank range and match speeds and courses, then disabled the target before it could make an escape. For instance, one pirate pretended to be a courier carrying an urgent message from the victim's owners, another pretended that there was a fire aboard and requested aid from the victim. In other cases it is believed that there was a saboteur aboard the target ship.
When combat does occur it usually lasts just a few moments before the ships break contact, usually because of radical course changes or a sudden change of acceleration.
Attacks that take place in atmosphere, or against grounded spacecraft or other targets, are different. Here speeds are comparatively low, and there is usually little room to manoeuvre. The advantage always lies with the fastest ship and the best gunners and pilots.
Some early spacecraft were equipped to ram. Although this is often the only way to ensure damage to a target that is rapidly changing its velocity, it is now generally regarded as a tactic of desperation, since the most likely result is serious damage to both ships.
Bombs and machine guns are mainly carried for use against ground targets, and are almost useless against spacecraft. It is theoretically possible for a ship to drop bombs in the path of its pursuer, but speeds are so vast that an error of a few thousandths of a second would mean a miss by hundreds of feet or even miles. Dumping a large number of small heavy objects into the path of a pursuer may be much more effective; in one incident a mining ship dropped a few spadefuls of rock chippings, which spread out into a cloud of fragments, holing the pursuer in several places.
Game Data
This game does not include a complex spaceship battle system for war-gamers; if that's what you want, you may prefer to use one of the rules systems mentioned in Appendix B of the Forgotten Futures rules.
Spaceship combat is a contest of skills, consisting of attempts to use
the ship itself, or its weapons, to damage an enemy. Gun combats etc.
can be resolved by the normal game rules. The faster ship in a combat
can run rings around its opponent. This is most easily resolved by
giving the occupants of the faster ship +1 for each .5g advantage they
have over their opponents. For example, if the Astronef (5g) attacked
a pirate freighter (3g), all relevant skills would gain a +4
advantage!
3.9.1 Ramming
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Ramming is suicidal, unless the collision takes place at extremely low speed or the victim is flimsily built. It can only occur if the craft involved are on a collision course, or the craft that is doing the ramming is faster than its opponent. Unless complete surprise is achieved the attacker must make several successful skill rolls, overcoming the skill of the opponent, to achieve a collision. This assumes, of course, that the defender wants to evade; if not, collision is automatic.
Divide the difference in speed between the two ships by 10, then add the mass of the attacker, to get the attacking Effect. The defender is the BODY of the defending ship. Both of these numbers will probably fall well off the normal attack versus defence table, so divide both (usually by 20 or 30, as explained in the rules section 1.2.1) to get onto the table. After both numbers are in the range covered by the table, apply the following modifiers:
| Head-on collision: Side-on collision: Overtaking collision: Attempting to evade: Equipped to ram: |
+2 +1 -1 -4 (see below) +4 (see construction rules) |
Example: Maybe This Wasn't A Good Id....
The Astronef (mass 99.6 tons) pursues and rams a pirate freighter,
which has BODY 80.
The speed difference is 1500 MPH. It will be an overtaking collision
and the Astronef is equipped to ram, while the target is not.
The Effect of the attack is 1500/10 + 99.6 rounded to 250
The defending BODY is 80.
Dividing both by 40 puts them back on the scale at 7 and 2, with the
attacking Effect reduced to 6 because it will be an overtaking
collision, but raised to 10 because the Astronef is equipped to ram.
Naturally the damage goes both ways; the freighter attacks the Astronef with its mass (500 tons) and the speed difference (1500/10), for a total Effect of 650 against BODY 75. Dividing both by 50 reduces them to 13 against 2, with the freighter's Effect reduced to 9 because it is attempting to evade.
Use the damage result table as follows:
Example: Maybe This Wasn't A Good Id.... (2)
On a 4 the Astronef easily slices into the freighter. On a 9 the
damage is severe enough to destroy the freighter. Unfortunately the
roll for the freighter is a 3 followed by a 2; the Astronef is also
wrecked. There are no survivors.
If both ships survive a collision, a Pilot roll is needed to separate them afterwards. If the roll fails, a sadistic referee may wish to inflict further damage on both ships.
At lower speeds, or against a much smaller target, there is a better chance of survival. For instance, the ramming described in The World of the War God took place at about 100 MPH, and the target ship probably weighed ten tons with BODY of 20. Let's see how this would work in terms of these rules:
The Astronef attacks with Effect (100/10)+99.6, rounded to 110,
against BODY 20, which is reduced to 6 against 1. Modifiers to the
attack are +4 for the ram, +1 for a side-on collision, for a final
Effect of 11 against BODY 1. While this just goes off the table, the
referee decides that a 12 will be damage A, 6-11 damage B, 2-5 damage
C. On a 4 the Astronef slices the Martian ship in two. Meanwhile the
Martian ship's Effect is only 10+10 = 20 against BODY 75, divided down
to 4 against 15, and reduced again to the minimum of 1 against 15
because the pilot is trying to evade. The referee rules that the
difference is so great that there is no chance of the Astronef being
harmed by the collision.]
3.9.2 Bombs And Torpedoes
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Bombs are carried by most military ships. Torpedoes use a similar warhead, mounted on a compressed-air motor which will propel it up to a mile; they are designed for use against surface ships, and are useless away from water.
Both classes of weapon are designed almost exclusively for use against ground (or water-borne) targets, since it is impractical to aim against a moving spacecraft with any degree of accuracy.
| 1000 lb bomb: | 20ft radius, Effect 30, A:I B:C C:K |
| Torpedo warhead: | 20ft radius, Effect 25, A:I B:C C:K |
These are less powerful than the explosives described in Forgotten Futures I: The A.B.C. Files, which were developed by more advanced technology in the face of much tougher weight problems.
See section 3.9.3 below for rules for hitting another ship with
dropped weapons, but there is an additional modifier of +6 to the
defending pilot's skill if only one bomb is used. This modifier is
reduced by 1 for each bomb dropped, to a minimum of +1
3.9.3 Throwing Rocks
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As mentioned above, dropping a large number of projectiles into the path of another spacecraft can be a relatively effective form of attack. There are two main circumstances in which it is effective;
It might also be possible to use these tactics to attack a ship on a converging or opposing course, but the odds against a hit are astronomical. Any projectiles which hit act as meteorites, as described above.
The basic chance of a hit is found by use of the pilot's skills, with the modifiers described above in section 3.8, but halve the attacking skill if the ships are not on exactly the same course. If a hit does occur, roll skill versus skill again to determine how many rocks hit:
| A: 1 | B: 1D6/2 | C: 1D6 |
This weapon is an extraordinarily powerful magnetic beam, generated by dozens of projectors, originally developed as a defence against meteors. It is based on a strongly magnetic particle analogous to the graviton, known as the "magnetron". Its effect is to immobilise all the moving parts of an R. force engine, most notably the aiming mechanism, generators, and focusing magnets. At low power the target is unable to alter course or speed; at medium power it is immobilised; at high power it would theoretically lose all control and crash. The range is five to ten miles.
The equipment is an array of dozens of projectors, each weighing several tons, and is only found defending a few of the largest Ganymedan cities. Since they draw power from the magnetic field of Jupiter there is little chance that a portable version will be developed.
The magnetic screening in Rolls Royce developing engines reduces the effect considerably, but can't stop it completely; otherwise there is little or nothing that can be done to overcome the power of these beams. Fortunately the Ganymedans are friendly, and the short range of their beams means that they would pose no threat if their attitude were to change.
Game Data
These rays are guided by dish-like wireless antennae, and are
activated whenever any object is on a collision course with one of the
protected cities. There are so many ray projectors that a spaceship
travelling at low speed will always be caught; don't bother to roll.
To attack a spaceship travelling at high speed the operator (skill
8-10) must overcome the skill of the pilot. Meteors (and other
projectiles) are automatically deflected off course, usually crashing
outside the city.
| Distance | Effect |
| 0-3 miles | 100 |
| 4-6 miles | 75 |
| 7-10 miles | 50 |
| 11-15 miles | 25 |
| 16-20 miles | 10 |
The Effect must overcome the BODY of the spaceship. This usually means dividing the Effect and BODY by 10 to get them onto the attack/defence chart. Results of a hit are as follows:
If the Ganymedans use the ray against a spaceship they will usually limit
the power to avoid damaging it, so that only an "A" or "B" result can
occur. The screening on Rolls Royce engines halves the Effect of the
ray.
3.10 Flying Dreadnoughts
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At the dawn of the Space Age many nations dreamed of invincible flying battleships, mounting a formidable array of weaponry and able to advance inexorably towards any target, no matter how well it might be defended. Unfortunately there were snags...
Anywhere near a planet the weight of such a vehicle is supported on invisible "stilts" of the R. force. Any jolt or turning force (such as the sideways blast of a big turreted gun) tends to start the ship rotating about at least one axis. The effect is minimised if the recoil is comparatively small, or is aligned along an axis of rotation, but this is difficult to achieve with big guns. The Astronef was equipped with compressed air guns which had a very light recoil; HMS Nova, and other similar craft, achieve stability by firing both guns simultaneously, with the recoil balanced to either side of the longitudinal axis of the ship. Even so they would soon lose control if they were not travelling forward with some speed. Even the largest warships (such as Germany's Hindenberg) have their main weapons arranged symmetrically around their longitudinal axis, and may even lurch backwards if they fire all guns at low speed. The severity of this problem increases with the size of guns and the distance of guns from the axis of rotation. One miscalculation or malfunction, such as firing the guns in an asymmetrical pattern, can send the ship spinning out of control.
A second problem is speed and manoeuvrability. Big ships are notoriously hard to handle, especially in atmosphere, and are usually slowed by air resistance. The largest ships bristle with propellers, but efficiency is low.
Most of these problems go away if a ship is travelling in vacuum at interplanetary speeds, but at these velocities the chances of hitting anything are negligible. Big ships are thus expensive status symbols, vulnerable to fleets of smaller and cheaper warships.
Naturally this situation will change as designs improve; 1920 military doctrine puts the most useful size of warship at about 1000 tons, in 1915 750 tons was considered excessive. Eventually it should be possible to overcome the limitations described above.
Game Data
The design rules make big ships extremely expensive, especially if the
guidelines on crew numbers are followed. Big ships bring a host of
problems for referees; everything from working out the chain of
command to keeping notes on hundreds of crewmen. They also tend to
dominate adventure plots - players sometimes forget to be subtle when
a few fourteen-inch shells can take care of most problems. While the
existence of "the fleet" is sometimes useful as background
information, or as a threat of retribution, the reality that
adventurers encounter should be smaller vessels and support craft, not
lumbering dreadnoughts. Small-ship military campaigns are more fun,
and recommended if your players are capable of the degree of
cooperation needed; for example, will players obey the orders of their
captain? Under all circumstances?
German flying dreadnoughts of the Great War were not capable of space flight, and had most of their weapons mounted in turrets. To design one use the methods described above but make the following changes:
