Two replies in one, economy of email 8-)
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From: [email removed] (Derek Wildstar)
Subject: Not to open this flamewar again ...
>In any case, I called Dave Nilsen and asked him (without filling him in on
>this discussion, and without outlining our various scenarios to him) how
>the "Fusion Rockets" in T:TNE worked. I did mention that I was concerned
>about radiation and hot plasma effects.
>Dave's answer was that the drive uses a heat exchange system to heat LH2
>in the thrust chamber using energy from the fusion reactor. No fusion,
>no radiation, no massive damage.
>There you have it; it's not physics (but then again, the "new era" space
>drives obey physics about as much as the thruster plates and agaility
>generators of MegaTraveller --- as Bertil pointed out, its about as sane
>as arguing if AD&D "Magic Missiles" travel on a ballistic path). It is
>however, a playable game mechanic.
That's nice. Except that to have the fuel consumtions he lists
the "just hot hydrogen" has to be moving at like 0.55 C... ARGH!
THRUSTER PLATES WERE BETTER, we couldn't criticize them abotu
anything 8-)
I give up. I'll stop thinking about the drives until I have a fit
when the tech manual comes out. 8-)
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From: Stewart Eyres [email removed]
Subject: Retcon?
>NEGATIVE MATTER
We hashed around with this in some of the TDR discussions of
a year or so ago. Yes, it's been thought of. It didn't seem
to be any better a intertialess drive than a foo-on field, though,
so we dropped it. Bob Forward notwithstanding. 8-)
- -george william herbert