Sunday, May 23, 2010

STARMASTER LIGHT TRANSPORT

Starmaster light transport

The most popular transport among independent human traders, merchants and cargo haulers is the Starmaster Light Transport. The Starmaster has been in service for about 50 years, hitting the market before the first war. It has quickly become a hallmark of independence and self-reliance in the Free Colonies.

The Starmaster boasts good speed, a 100-ton cargo capacity, is easily upgradeable and is fairly affordable, especially if bought on resale. For those into more questionable activities, the Starmaster is ubiquitous in the space lanes; meaning it is very easy to hide.

One of the defining characteristics of the Starmaster is that there are virtually no “stock” models, and the range of possibilities includes budget, stripped-down cargo haulers to impromptu gunships. This, of course, can be a nightmare for the authorities, because many pirates and smugglers use stolen or faked transponder signals that beam inaccurate systems information to customs and patrol vessels, requiring a deep scan of any Starmaster they stumble across if they’re on the lookout for a specific ship.

The Starmaster comes off the factory floor moderately armed for a civilian vessel. It has two fixed forward laser cannons and a rear-mounted laser turret. However, it also has two “hard points” built into the hull that make adding two more weapon emplacements easy (-20% to labor cost and -10% on starship mechanics roll). One of these hard points is located on the dorsal hull, at the highest point. The other is located under the “chin” of the cockpit. Kugler-Vaughn Enterprises, the ship’s manufacturer, claims these bays are meant for “improved sensor packages and other non-military upgrades.” The placement of the hard points leads most to believe this was to give the company, which heavily backed the separatist movement in the Free Colonies, a degree of plausible deniability. This has made KVI a sort of folk hero among the more “blue collar” segments of Free Colony society.

Model: KV-7 Starmaster

Class: Light Transport

Crew: Three to eight.

M.D.C. by Location

Forward lasers (2) – 150 each

Tailgun – 200

Engine pods (2) – 300 each

Reinforced Crew Compartment – 250

*Main body – 900

*Depleting the M.D.C. of the Main body disables the vessel, leaving it adrift in space without power or life support and multiple hull breaches. Four two-man escape pods are built into the bottom of the hull, and have enough life support for 48 hours and can withstand re-entry. Each has a powerful locator beacon. Reducing the M.D.C. of the vessel to -200 causes it to explode, doing 6D6x10 M.D. to everything within a 500-foot radius.

Speed

Maximum Sublight Speed: .08 C, or 0% of the speed of light.

Maximum Acceleration/Deceleration: 6 Gs per melee round

Maximum FTL Speed: Cx183 ( ½ light year per day).

Maximum Atmospheric Maneuvering Speed: Mach 4. Can attain escape velocity on a full engine burn, but cannot maneuver.

Statistical Data

Height: 33 feet

Length: 100 feet

Width: 88 feet

Mass: 200 tons

Cargo: 100 tons

Power Plant: Helium-3 Fusion Drive

FTL Drive: NMD-183 KV Stardrive

Range: 20 light years, or 40 days of consumables

Market Cost: 1.5 million credits

Weapon Systems

1. Forward Laser Cannons (2): These are very basic electron lasers with good range, but limited damage. Most spacers have their power boosted or have the guts swapped out for something more powerful (while leaving it appearing on the outside as if the ship has not been modified).

Primary Purponse: Defense

Mega-Damage: 1D6x10 M.D. each, or 2D6x10 M.D. when fired as a dual blast (counts as one attack)

Effective Range: 10 miles

Rate of Fire: Four attacks per melee round.

Payload: Effectively unlimited.

2. Rear laser turret: This tail gun turret is manually operated and is designed to discourage pursuers. It covers a 60-degree cone to the rear of the vessel.

Primary Purpose: Defense

Mega-Damage: 2D4x10 M.D. Always fired as a pair.

Effective Range: 4 miles

Rate of fire: Equal to hand-to-hand attacks of the operator.

Payload: Effectively unlimited.

Sensors: The Starmaster has standard short-range sensors with a 100,000 mile range, and mass detectors with a range of 2 million miles.

Bonuses: +10% to all starship mechanic rolls when upgrading.

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GENESIS 14

Mountains_spitzer_f800

ZAANUSSII

18

SOL PRIMUS

The Sun Gif

RIGELAN DEFENCE FORCE


BARUUL MERC

THE TWINS

http://a52.g.akamaitech.net/f/52/827/1d/www.space.com/images/h_et_planets_02.jpg

AZRIL

MATRIX 33

KELEV

STEINMAN CLASS B HEAVY HAULER

Steinman Class B Heavy Hauler

While it will never get the glory of a Crossbow, or even the quiet respect of a Starmaster, the Steinman is, arguably, the most important starship in human space. The vessel, over 70 years old, is quite simply the lynchpin in all interstellar human commerce, without which there could be no Protectorate.

Little more than a command module, a pair of engines and a cargo hold, the Steinman is a simple, but effective design that has kept colonies, core worlds, and the military supplied through peace, war, and across a hundred varying climates.

Not at all fast, and usually completely unarmed, the ship’s only defense is a powerful passive sensor system, and a negative mass drive with the shortest warm-up time of any non-military human ship in operation. Often traveling in convoys with a few escort vessels, a pack of Steinman under attack will quickly go to FTL using preset coordinates, so that there is a much shorter navigational computation time. An average ship takes 1D4 minutes to perform a jump, but a Steinman can usually do it in half that (most military ships have the same jump time).

With a crew of six, a modular cargo hold that can haul up to 500 tons, and a very reasonable price tag, it is the ship of choice for most large corporations, and is the transport of choice for the military as well. But even the military versions rarely have armaments. To keep space consumption to a minimum, the Steinman has a very small power plant. At most, it might be able to be fitted with a turret, but not a very powerful one. A much more reasonable option for arming the Steinman is to put missiles on it, which need no large power source.

Steinman haulers are most often encountered hauling food, raw materials, dry goods, water, large groups of people and military supplies. Pirates tend to avoid them because highly valuable cargo is much more likely to be on a smaller, better armed, light or medium transport. Some budget colony operations also use them to transport colonization supplies and colonists. By dividing the massive cargo bay into two decks filled with bunk beds, the Steinman can carry up to 600 passengers.

Model: C-98 Class B Heavy Hauler

Class: Freighter

Crew: 6, capable of carrying up to 600 passengers

M.D.C. by location

Sensor array – 150

Engine pods (2) – 400 each

*Main body – 2,000

Command module – 800

*Depleting the M.D.C. of the main body would disable the vessel, causing the command module to detach as a life pod. Steinmans rarely explode; usually only when they are carrying highly flammable or volatile cargo.

Speed

Maximum Sublight Speed: .2 C, or 20% of the speed of light

Maximum Acceleration/Deceleration Rate: 4 Gs per melee round

Maximum FTL: 365 x C, or one light year per day, half that speed for civilian models.

Top Atmospheric Manuevering Speed: Mach 1.5, but can attain escape velocity on a full engine burn (cannot maneuver)

Statistical Data

Height: 44 ft

Length: 210 ft

Width: 115 ft

Cargo: 500 tons

Power Plant: Fusion Reactor

FTL Drive: NMD-365 (military) or NMD-183 (Civilian)

Range: varies with supplies carried. Estimated it could travel 400 light years, but none has ever tried.

Market Cost: 2 million credits new, 1 million credits used.

Weapon Systems: None

Sensors: The Steinman has a powerful early-warning system that gives it mass and electromagnetic field sensors with a range of 1 million miles, and powerful short-range sensors with a 300,000-mile range.

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