RE: CT jump fuel & black globes
In reply to #6677 CT jump fuel & black globes by Glenn Myers
Glenn Myers [email removed] writes: #I was looking over CT material as I prepared to code a set of Traveller #Utilities when I realized I've misunderstood some things for years. I was under #the impression that Jump Drives "worked" by storing huge amounts of energy in #zuchai crystals and releasing it to enter jump space. The only fuel needs seemed #to be that which the powerplant required to generate the huge amount of energy. #Then I noticed in High Guard under the section on Black Globes, page 43 #"If a ship absorbs enough energy to make a jump, and is supplied with #sufficient fuel, it may jump at the end of the turn." #Why is additional fuel required? How much is needed? I never noticed this before #because I never used Black Globes that much. I figure that someone who has #gamed with TCS has to have encountered this at some point. #It seems as though you have to pay twice. Does anybody know why? Good question. Unfortunately the mechanics of jump drive seem to have changed with each new generation of Traveller, and never quite got a full explanation, with _detailed_ rules that weren't ambiguous. Here're my house rules for CT and MT: In order to jump, a starship must have a jump drive (high output power plant) powered up and producing energy. The first faze of the sequence is to divert energy into the jump capacitors. After the (zuchai crystal) capacitors are fully charged (generally during the relatively low-output "power-up" cycle of bringing the jump drive online), energy from the capacitors is shunted to the lanthanum grid along with remaining output from the J drive. The remaining several (mili?)seconds of the jump initiation is sustained by the J drive alone. Graphically: Time---> ....................................... O . u . t . p . u . t . . |---- Charging Capacitors------------|-Initiation-|-Completion-| Time---> . . . ........................ I n p u t Chart 1 represents the output produced by the Jump drive. Chart 2 represents the input of energy into the lanthanum grid. Neither is to scale, since I postulate a lengthy "warm-up" phase. It's this warm-up phase that the black-globe rules allow you to "ignore," but you must still have a jump-drive online and ready to roar (with a full [maybe 95%] fuel supply for the jump.) In my campaigns, it's assumed that the drive is being brought online during the phases previous to the jump. In any event, it's all hand-waving and magic... :) (Especially since the MT Starship Operator's Manual states pretty explicitly that this rule no longer applies. Just goes to show that you can't trust an old Vilani fart farther than you can smell him...) My personal feeling is that capacitors were intoduced without much thought, and that they haven't been exploited in standard designs enough. (Enclosed is my [Updated] Ape class fighter, as an example: [High Guard design]) Date: 12/31/93 -Off- ---Def--- FS-???? Gibbon FS-0106611-D00000-05002-0 MCr15.611 8 tons batteries bearing 1 1 Crew=1 batteries 1 1 TL=15 Passengers=0 Low=0 Cargo=0 Fuel=0.04 EP=0.48 Agility=6 Hull: 1 8.00 Tons 120KCr/Ton 960KCr M-Drive: 6 17% 1.36 Tons 500KCr/Ton 680KCr P-Plant: 6 6% .48 Tons 3000KCr/Ton 1440KCr Fuel: 0.5% 0.04 Tons Armor: 13 14% 1.12 Tons 300KCr+(1300KCr/Ton) 1756KCr Capacitor 54EP 1.50 Tons 4000KCr/Ton 6000KCr Computer: 1 1.00 Tons 2000KCr 2000KCr Fusion Gun: 5 2.00 Tons 2000KCr 2000KCr Missile: 2 750KCr 750KCr Pilot Couch: 0.50 Tons 25KCr 25KCr --------- -------- 8.00 Tons 15611KCr The Ape class fighter, while small in stature more than makes up for its diminutive size with its blazing fusion gun, uncanny agility, and thick hide. The 8 ton needle-shaped fighter is available (with slight modifications) at tech level 12 and higher. The fighter mounts maneuver-6 and power plant-6 which produces 0.48 energy points, providing an agility rating of 6. Fuel tankage is minimal, at 0.04 tons, giving a duration of 2.5 days constant operation. Fuel scoops allow for easy refueling, and the craft may burn unrefined fuel directly. Much of it's 20% size reduction is due to the 1.5 ton capacitor that it leeches engergy off of in combat situations. The capacitor can provide enough energy to the craft's fusion gun for 27 turns of combat. A missile rack rounds out the armament. The hull is armored to a strength of 13. The fighter has no bridge, but does carry a Model/1 computer. For crew, the craft carries a pilot/gunner, requiring one couch. As no gunner has been provided for, the pilot may only fire one weapon at a time. Many commanders are willing to endure this short duration in exchange for the 25% increase in guns (and the comparative strength of the fusion gun) that can be brought against the enemy compared to conventional 10 ton fighters. The TL 14 variety is same basic configuration, except that the armor factor drops to 7. The volume obtained by the reduction in armor is used to supplement the power plant. Double the cost of the power plant, but reduce the cost for the armor. The TL 13 variety is the same as the TL 14 version except that the armor factor drops to 3, and the fusion-gun rating is reduced to 4. The TL 12 variety is the same as the TL 13 version except that the maneuver drive, power plant, and agility ratings are all reduced to 4, and the missile rating is reduced to 1. The volume obtained by the reduction in the manuever drive is used to supplement the power plant. Below TL 12, this class of ship just isn't possible... Design notes: As it stands, the only rules that were bent were the 1-ton minimums on the fuel requirement, and the provision of two different weapon types on board. Oh yeah, the capacitor rules are on pages 31 and 42 of my edition of High Guard (c) 1980 under the headings "Screens" and "The Black Globe", respectively. I think this design is a logical extension of those rules. - -- [email removed]