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Post by srbrant on Nov 21, 2017 17:22:05 GMT
so Ev is based on the average speed of the components, and ratios and other BS. increasing the speed of some Re-mass will increase the average Ev, but unless its like 20-30% of all the re mass then the difference is not gonna be worth the powerplant and radiators Oh? Please explain.
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Post by srbrant on Nov 21, 2017 5:22:26 GMT
Isn't that essentially an ion engine? Also, if you're talking about combustion remasses, they're probably useless if the speed's greater than their detonation velocity. Combustion? Too wimpy. And you may be right, but I don't want porridge-slow acceleration.
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Post by srbrant on Nov 21, 2017 4:27:15 GMT
Now I know for a fact that this is going to get shot down, but please hear me out.
This is a possible way to increase velocity and RM efficiency. A miniature particle accelerator built between the fuel pump and the engine core that, like a coilgun, accelerates a minute portion of reaction mass until it is fired out the back end at three - perhaps even five - times the velocity. To prevent these pups from reaching relativistic speeds, their dry mass is increased until the Delta-V is at around 3-6.00.
I know there's going to be a lot of shit being pointed out in this idea, but I want to see what the issues with it are and how I can seal them up with properly applied phlebetonium - enough so that the entire engine design isn't handwaved so I can prevent my SF from getting too soft.
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Post by srbrant on Nov 18, 2017 0:49:06 GMT
With their sharpened prows and narrow profiles, these ships are ideal for charging straight towards their targets. One side has most of the ship's armaments and armor, while its less-armored "underbelly" holds the escape craft, observation domes, APAS rings, communication equipment and other essential non-com installations.
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Post by srbrant on Nov 18, 2017 0:32:42 GMT
A late reply, I know, but here's a WIP of the various ship designs I've had in mind. In the novel, this style of ship is referred to as the "Foss-Gaughan Pattern." Was Foss-Gaughan a Dark Eldar by any chance? Not sure, but I'm certain they weren't from Commorragh. To be honest, their resemblance to Drukhari Raiders I didn't even notice until I was about to photograph the drawing. I thought "what could be aesthetically pleasing but functional at the same time? Would these be ships that both Heinlein and Jodorowsky could look upon with pride?"
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Post by srbrant on Nov 17, 2017 5:33:54 GMT
A late reply, I know, but here's a WIP of the various ship designs I've had in mind. In the novel, this style of ship is referred to as the "Foss-Gaughan Pattern." Attachments:
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Post by srbrant on Nov 6, 2017 4:20:07 GMT
When you say "infantry in space" I think of either Adeptus Astartes or Kerbals with M16s.
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Post by srbrant on Nov 6, 2017 4:15:58 GMT
It's space. The ship doesn't have to enclosed. Large, exposed structures help save weight. For the propellant tanks, you want spheres. They have the lowest tank mass to propellant mass ratio. For the structure support, you want to use tension wires. The propellant tank spheres will look like they're caught in a spider's web or a hammock. Habitats are best concentrated underneath a propellant tank or on a stick that separates them from the engines if they are radioactive. Your inspiration should be blimps and airships, but without the aerodynamic shapes. The setting's futuristic nature allows for more liberties to be taken. And yeah, airships are an inspiration - including the Prydwen. Although a standard Heinleiner itself resembles more of a whale shark than a zeppelin.
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Post by srbrant on Nov 4, 2017 22:46:38 GMT
Seems entirely sensible. The moving parts will have to be designed around the issue of cold welding themselves together. Dip 'em in space-age plastic!
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Post by srbrant on Nov 4, 2017 21:34:48 GMT
I was thinking that, as a radical defense against EMPs, hacking and other forms of intangible skulduggery, of having a ship that relied more on clockwork or otherwise analog mechanisms that won't get completely screwed during a battle. It may also have the added benefit of a reduced heat signature but the deficit of being heavy in mass for both the parts and the extra crew. I dunno, I've got a cold or some bug. Thoughts?
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Post by srbrant on Nov 4, 2017 21:13:52 GMT
Although I'm wondering how I can make the habitat lightweight and sturdy enough to sprawl all over the ship. I was thinking of an aluminum-beryllium shell lined with aramid fiber and carbon-fiber with the interior wall being titanium. Maybe even throw in a little fiberglass in there. I was thinking of just having "plasteel", but then I remembered that phlebetonium gives you guys anaphylactic shock, so...I skipped that.
EDIT: Forgot about your answer above. Ugh, I hate being sick!
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Post by srbrant on Oct 25, 2017 20:06:53 GMT
To get back to the Venture Star, didn't went to pandora to get some superconducting macguffinite? They needed it to fix earths energy problems. But they had enough energy to accelerate venture star at 1.5g for months using oasee sails. At 10kt this is 45PW at 50% laser efficiency. I think they thought using the remaining power on traveling to Pandora to get the macguffinite would be more better in long term/economic/the high command don't give a fuck about their people and give that as an excuse to send them there. This story will get quite a few edits and touch-ups, seeing how I simply went on a writing rampage. Then things will get cookin'... Anything you guys liked in particular? I'm kind of proud of my description of the Inviolable himself.
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Post by srbrant on Oct 25, 2017 7:12:31 GMT
Sorry it's not much but it's really late and I want to get some shut-eye. Enjoy!
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Post by srbrant on Oct 25, 2017 7:09:49 GMT
“A Prey Stronger.”
Freefall. Slight eccentricity. A stable orbit, twenty-thousand miles above the giant marble of frozen water, ammonia and helium that the Kemono Union called Olivia XVI.
And what the Sun Eaters cartel called home.
The blue-haired Human’s eyes followed the lines of data as they raced down the screen, ice-like pupils framed by a labyrinth of geometric tattoos sprawled across the upper half of her face. The window that sat next to the pillar of information showed a large red spot where the orbits of their fleet and that of their quarry intersected. The stream of text paused and a new window popped up along the bottom of the screen:
ORBITAL RENDEZVOUS IN 6:18:32
SCANNING HIGHLIGHTED VESSEL.
The woman’s tired fingers danced across the keyboard, plastic keys clacking. Every bend of the knuckle and press of the finger was a hot bolt of pain, having been worked for several hours straight. A new window popped up displaying a laughing, pixelated skull against a black background and a meter below that gradually filled itself a solid red. As soon as the bar was completely filled, it was instantly replaced with the words “HACK COMPLETE.”
The woman grinned, a cry of joy almost escaping her throat. After literally hundreds of attempts, the vessel’s digital defenses were finally worn down and its computer’s private files were now available for her viewing pleasure. Leaning back and cracking her knuckles, she watched a wall of text cascade down the second monitor with a rush of satisfaction. Slamming her finger onto a glowing yellow key, she stood up and stretched her aching legs as a sheet of paper poured out of a slot on the console. Tearing the hardcopy out from its perforated seam, she walked out of one of the many booths that lined the bridge, housing personnel in cloisters of concentration.
Towards her right, at the end of the narrow room, was her admiral, Vargz the Inviolable, named for how untouchable he was in combat.
A mere glance of the admiral - nay - warlord was enough to remind his underlings of the man that led them to their fortunes and their enemies to a gruesome end. His combat armor, once reserved for EOD specialists and shock troopers, had its outer plating replaced with ones that were embossed with images of swords, skulls, thrusters and stylized diagrams of weapons and starship components. Molded upon his broad pauldrons were the seal of his cartel, a blazing sun wrapped in long curving teeth that pried themselves between each waving flame. Sitting erect upon a lavish, yet morbidly decorated captain’s chair, he appeared not as the commander of an entire fleet, but as a golden god of war, brooding and cruel.
Vargz himself was enough to turn heads - particularly to those new to this part of the Sargasso Sector. A humanoid grey squirrel, one of the countless Transhuman representatives of the Kemono Union, muscular and sharp of eye. His gaze was narrow and deliberate, ears sharp and pointing back giving him the impression of a horned devil. Embedded upon his head were chrome circuits that seemed to sprout from the emblem of a golden sun with a screaming face. The end of his pointed furry tail was curved onto his lap like a companion pet, thighs adorned with two holsters both large enough to hold a decent-sized carbine.
Beneath his “throne” was a backlit domed ceiling engraved with scenes depicting the many battles he had fought. There was a large blank space on its surface awaiting decoration and Vargz was anxious for a fight worthy of filling its space. His effortless slaughter of the witless slave-warriors of Tarm-Agbha were not worthy of remembrance. They were not achievements, they were merely obstacles to his treasures.
Vargz’s cerulean eyes turned towards the smiling woman before him, who handed him the printout like a messenger presenting a scroll to an awaiting prince. “This had better be worth it,” he said with a hoarse, vaguely Slavic accent. The hacker felt her lungs swell with held breath, fearing that she, despite her unwavering loyalty, has transgressed against him in some vague, undefinable way.
The warlord almost immediately took notice of the meat of the paper’s information:
>>>ID_MANIFEST<<< >MELVILLE-CLASS_HEINLEINER_[G15] >REGISTRATION:CXFA-220918875
>NAME:NATS_RUNAWAY_BRIDE >OWNER:NEW_ARICEBO_TRAVEL_SOCIETY >CALLSIGN:ROMEO-16
>REMASS: HYDROGEN DEUTERIDE >DOC:12.26.5508 >DRY_MASS:1.5Mt >RMCAP:6000Kt >>>PAYLOAD_MANIFEST<<< >3546_PERSONNEL[53_REPULSORS] >1.5t_ARTWORK >4000t_FRESH_FOOD >7000t_PACKAGED_FOOD >200t_CONSTRUCTION_EQUIPMENT >3000t_CONSTRUCTION_MATERIALS >600t_MISCELLANEOUS >>>TOW<<< >NATS_OLIVIAN_PRIDE
>NATS_TUNGSTEN_MOON
Vargz stared in silence at the text before him. Standard armaments, two escort ships and tons of valuable loot onboard a Heinleiner of a recent generation. The Sun Eaters’ flagship, the Solar Noose, was a fine battlecruiser but it was no Heinleiner. It had little reaction mass to share and could tow only the smallest transports. With a barely perceptible smile, he tucked the printout into a satchel on his belt and pressed a silver button implanted into the side of his head.
“Attention all hands onboard,” he said, voice transferred to the intercom system. “Initiate rendezvous and interception procedures with the Runaway Bride. Let it also be known that Starstruck is to be granted a thirty percent increase in payment and full bordello privileges.”
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Post by srbrant on Oct 25, 2017 2:26:59 GMT
So, in summary, you just write about life of people in your setting. How they live, how they earn credits for living, how they interact with other people and things. What about a Cold War on Mars? The poles have plenty of access to water ice, the places closer to the equator don't. So I'd expect the North and South pole to be well-developped superpowers after a while, while the territories closer to the equator are less developped and used as pawns in proxy wars between the North, the South, and offworld powers. Or what about a trans-/posthuman cult on Mercury dedicated to building a Matrioshka brain around the Sun? Or megacorporations/governments grown fat from asteroid mining turning their eye to star lifting? Or what about conflict between folks that are pro-uplifting and vehemently anti-uplifting? Related: Thanks. But I got a short story already underway: about a pirate fleet attacking a Heinleiner and getting far more than they bargained for.
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