Babylon 5: Blue Sector: Level
Docking Portal
The Docking Portal is the main entry into the station for incoming ships, routed from here, through the Central Docking Hub and then on to their allocated bay. Located on the central axis of the spinning section of Babylon 5, ships must match the rotation of the station, a process taken over by the Central Computer when vessels surrender navigation to Command and Control. The Docking Portal is automatically sealed when the station’s blast doors are activated and it can also be closed by Command and Control to deny access to any rogue ship trying to enter the Central Docking Hub without authorization. All ships entering the Docking Portal are rigorously scanned by Babylon 5’s sensor arrays to confirm they are not carrying any proscribed substances or illegal weaponry.
Only spacecraft of Large superscale size or smaller may enter the Docking Portal and so gain access to Babylon 5. Larger vessels must stay in an orbit allocated to them by Command and Control, their crew and passengers entering the station by shuttle. Most ships of this size carry their own smaller landing craft but Command and Control can offer the use of the station’s own shuttles and pilots if necessary, at a cost of 2,000 credits per trip.
Docking Bays
Located within the Command Sphere are 60 pressurized docking bays, all connected to the Docking Portal via the Central Docking Hub. Most docking bays are accommodated in a huge ring that runs the circumference of the Command Sphere, with ships positioned by a system of lifts and tubes upon entering the station and passengers disembarking through a terminal that leads straight to Customs. However, 12 docking bays have their own sealed compartments and are used to hold the personal craft of ambassadors, sensitive EarthForce military ships and the few businessmen willing to pay extortionate rates in order to maintain the secrecy of their negotiations. Nominally, any visiting ship is permitted to use a docking bay, though those who have not filed travel routes with Command & Control prior to arrival may be required to wait in orbit outside the station until one becomes vacant. EarthForce reserves to right to refuse access to any ship believed to contain hazardous materials, illegal goods or criminals. Ambassadorial ships, however, enjoy normal diplomatic privilege and so may never be searched or detained, a state of affairs that some diplomats have taken advantage of in the past.
The majority of the dock workers can be found unloading cargo in these docking bays and so the area is a constant hive of activity. Cargo is unloaded from incoming ships and then either transferred to other vessels, routed to transfer terminals for processing or taken directly to Red Sector for sale.
Only spacecraft of Large superscale size or smaller can be handled by the docking facilities on board Babylon 5 and so most large space liners and warships will use shuttles and other landing craft to gain access to the station. Visitors are charged 6,500 credits per day (or part thereof) for their ship to use a docking bay, though those wanting a sealed bay will face charges
Cargo Bay
This is the busiest area on Babylon 5, with over 1,500 dock workers, security guards, maintenance crews and ship crewmen all working together to transfer cargo to and from ships in orbit around the station. The loading facilities can handle almost any configuration of cargo transport, though the processing of standard Earth Alliance cargo pods is by far the quickest and so during hectic periods of over-scheduling, ships carrying these are often given priority over alien vessels – not out of prejudice but due to simple expediency. The cargo bay is a massive, sprawling construction, extending into the spine of the station, with elements stretching down into Blue Sector almost to the Central Docking Hub. Within the docking bays, a high throughput of arriving ships guarantees a hectic schedule for dock workers during peak times but it is within the spine that the majority of cargo is brought on board from large freighters waiting in orbit around the station. It is here that high volume traffic is routed, as well as cargo pods that must be kept in zero-g, away from the rotating parts of Babylon 5. The familiar hard dock mooring clamps that extend in front of the station are used to facilitate the movement of cargo pods brought in by maintenance pods and cargo loaders from freighters, where they await rotational scheduling that will bring them into the cargo bay. From there, cargo pods are scanned, cataloged and routed to storage bays where they await processing, either to within the station itself or to other ships waiting in orbit once traders on board have sold their merchandise. With various trade tariffs placed on each type of cargo that arrives on the station, the cargo bay generates the main source of revenue for Babylon 5 and has allowed it to continue operating with far less funding than was first dreaded by EarthGov. The Dockers’ Guild appreciates their position as a fundamental part of the station’s operation and has begun negotiating better conditions for its workers, including more contractors and upgraded dockside equipment to cope with the growing number of ships that come to Babylon 5 every day.
Central Docking Hub
Comprising a complex system of tunnels and lifts that direct ships to and from the Docking Portal and bays, the Central Docking Hub is a marvel of engineering design though it takes up a lot of available space in the Command Sphere. As ships enter the Docking Portal, they surrender control to Babylon 5’s Central Computer, which then automatically routes them through the hub and into their allocated docking bay. With sometimes over 100 vessels using the hub every day, it is imperative that the systems governing their movement are fully maintained at all times and Babylon 5 has a virtually spotless operating record.
Dockers’ Guild
By far the largest workers’ union on board Babylon 5, over 1,500 dockers belong to the guild, headed by their forewoman Neeoma Connoly. Bound by government contract and forbidden by law to strike, despite being civilians, relations between the Dockers’ Guild and the Command Staff have always been strained as financial cutbacks from EarthGov have consistently cut into the dock working budgets. Life has become hard for the workers and though they are considered an essential component of Babylon 5, being responsible for the loading and unloading of all the cargo that passes through the station, they are understaffed and over-scheduled to the extreme.
Docking Fees
While space travel for most is in the form of being a passenger, there are those lucky enough to own or run their own spacecraft – and the mountain of debt that inevitably goes with that responsibility. At the bottom of the pile and therefore the most accessible to Player Characters, are the free traders. These folk are independent haulage and shipping operators, who often barely make enough to cover the interest rates on their loans. Such
operators are always only a single short step from insolvency... but that is an important step. Another inevitable bill that crosses every ship owner’s desk is docking fees for their craft.
Even the largest spacecraft cannot contain entire worlds. Instead, they act as ferries through the infinite reaches of space, connecting living worlds to one another. They require places to load and unload cargo, refuel or simply sit while idle between missions. Docks provide these services for a fee. Many governments, in an effort to direct more interstellar traffic their way, provide their diplomats with expansive privileges to open docks to ships ‘free of charge’. These privileges form a vital commodity of trade in the diplomatic world. Ambassadors exchange temporary docking rights for everything from an invitation to a meeting to cessation of undeclared conflicts. A ship must pay one day’s fees in order to enter the dock. Most docks issue a bill every 30 days thereafter. If the ship leaves before the next billing cycle, it must pay any accumulated fees or the dock will not release the craft.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:48, Fri 31 Jan 2020.
