Yeah, the Hull issues are, for me/Varca, the primary reason for wanting to go to the shipyards at Tech World--specifically.
     I've been kinda assuming that the hull of the Vultan is one, single, monolithic piece--assuming that, when it was originally built, they used some Super-Science-y Tech/15 3D "printer" gadget which just took the raw materials and "extruded" the hull, complete with cut-outs for hatches and whatnot.
     Now, any Tech/15 shipyard might be able to fix the problem--if I recall, StarMaster said something about "Microfractures in the hulls metallic matrix", or something like that.  Whatever the issue is, it didn't sound like something that could be fixed by running a hot torch over the fractures :P  And, if the hull is a single, solid structure, then cutting out the damaged sections and replacing them doesn't sound like a good idea, either.
     But the shipyard at Tech World was built by, and is operated by, technicians from planet Neumann(sp?)--where they have/had very advanced Nano-Technology.  I'm thinking it's gonna take a "bath" of nanites to swarm over the hull, filling in the microfractures, to fix the Vultan's hull.
     That's just what I think, anyway ^_^

     Fixing/replacing the ventral Turret--yeah, I was pretty sure that was gonna be Yard Work.  That's pieces of armored hull, there.  Gonna need heavy cranes, and probably Gravlifters.  No surprise there.
     On the other hand...we have all the needed pieces/parts, we only lack the heavy equipment needed to install it...anyone feel like trying to drop an entire, missile launcher equipped, Turret Assembly out of one of the wrecks...then drag it into our cargo bay...then pay someone to install it for us, when we reach a real shipyard?
^_^  Of course I'm kidding....

     But, y'know, I think I might argue about us being able to "fix" the fuel tanks, here.  As I understood it, there is just a section of the tankage that's only damaged, not destroyed.  Now, I acknowledge that these ain't "water tanks"--they aren't just a tight cube of metal that holds liquid.  These tanks hold Liquid Hydrogen (or a reasonable facsimile thereof), which is a Cryonic Fluid--the liquid they hold is at a temperature of -252.87°C.  So the tanks are, probably, a special material that holds up to that temperature, as well as having the intense refrigeration equipment need to maintain that temperature at all times.
     So, I'm thinking the issue is just that we have fuel in part of the tanks--that we can't make the needed repairs as long as we have any fuel on board.  So...we dump the fuel.
     We save making the fuel tank repairs for the Very Last Job.  We then either give the reactor enough fuel to operate for a couple of days (assuming the reactor needs to be constantly fed fuel), or we charge-up the ship's emergency power back-ups (batteries?), which should last for a couple days.  Then we just dump the fuel, flush the tanks (for safety) and go in there and make the repairs.
     Once the repairs are complete, we seal up the tanks and lift off--Gravitic Thrusters don't use "fuel", they just use "power"--heading straight for the seacoast, to the south of our mountain location.  We land at/on/in the water and start Wilderness Refueling--we fixed the fuel processors already, remember?
     And who cares if the seawater is biologically contaminated!  We're gonna convert the water into Deuterium, and then burn it in a fusion reactor!
     Of course, we should hope that Varca's repairs to the Fuel Processors don't...uh...leak.


ADDENDUM
     "...a lot of vacc suits..."?  Salvageable Vacc Suits?  Calling All Personnel with Mechanic Skill, report for Suit Refurbishment Duty!
     Space Suits that have been stored at this facility since the Aslan attack?  Even if they are only General Purpose or Light Duty suits, that still makes them TECH/15 Space Suits!!  Sco-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-ore!
     And even if they are only Light Duty suits, we got 14 Vespexers (including Varca & Rejji) to work on them--we are a "suit-wearing" culture, we'll be able to cobble together something to "upgrade" their armor value.  They may not be "pretty" when we're done with them, but they'll stop a bullet....probably.  I hope...

Lots of good ideas there Varca! Teddy is more than willing to get his hands dirty and will work with anyone!

  The only reason for a fuel tank to be unusable would be a hull rupture affecting the section, which could kind of go along with the reduced hull integrity. Otherwise, fuel tanks don't really require anything special - it's just space designated to hold fuel in the same way that cargo capacity is space reserved for cargo. You could make more of either by taking out something else (and some ships do just that).

  You can likewise carry crates/drums of fuel IN your cargo hold and use those to refill the tanks if you want to extend a mission, or even do a second jump on a ship that isn't inherently capable of it. Jump bridges and deep space depots also work on this basis by way of stockpiling the crates/drums ahead of time.

  It wouldn't let us do a Jump-2, but we'd be able to do two Jump-1s in a row without stopping to refuel if we crammed our hold full of fuel drums. That probably isn't necessary at the moment, though.


  Edit: I can't see needing to go all the way to Tech-World to get the heavy equipment. You don't need high tech levels to make forklifts and the like. Even if we can't get any from the palace, Asim and/or any of the other nearby worlds are capable of producing industrial-age hardware.
This message was last edited by the player at 13:03, Fri 10 July 2020.

Fuel tanks also probably have various pumping systems and safety protocols. If you look at fuel tanks on rocket ships they are crazy complicated with all sorts of pumps and pressure valves and safety stuff.

For example high speed pumping requires you to also pump another inert gas INTO the tank to avoid fighting a vacuum effect. Modern rocket engines are so complex that because you can't create a pump fast enough to move the fuel, there is actually a miniature rocket engine inside that propels the pumping mechanisms with ROCKET SPEED just to pump the fuel into the main tank.

Here is a great video that goes into different engine types:

https://youtu.be/LbH1ZDImaI8

And just looking at that you realize there is a lot more to a fuel tank then just a place to store fuel.

---

Okay joking aside if possible I'd like to set up an agreement on how BB will fit into the crew ahead of time via OOC before even stepping foot into IC negotiations. The last thing I want to do is set myself up for failure by being on a completely different frame of reference for payments as opposed to everyone else.

She does not come with a ship share, fyi, so I don't know how you are planning on dividing up the loot. I am fine with it being a percentage thing or even a flat fee. I don't know how the rest of you are planning on squaring up the loot but in my other traveller game the rule was this:

1) Ship gets first cut of the share. The goal was to fill up, say, 3 amount of months of maintenance and loan as an emergency fund.

2) Everyone gets a flat 5%.

3) For the remaining percentage it gets split up depending on ship shares contributed. So if you contributed 60% of the downpayment you got 60% of whatever was left.

4) If upgrades are planned the ship can get an additional 5-10% set aside for upgrades.

I'm not saying we HAVE to do it, but I don't know if it has been decided yet so just throwing this out there as an option.

  We aren't really using ship shares in the conventional sense so those don't even matter.


  Oleb gets 10% of any take, up front. That's part of the deal.

  For the rest...

  IIRC the 'standard' arrangement for ventures like this* is that the captain gets 3-5 shares, officers get 2 (XO maybe gets 3) and everyone else gets one. This is done partly on the assumption that the captain has to pay some operating expenses directly rather than taking it all out of a ship fund, and the officers might have to do the same every now and then.

  * This largely holds true of privateering/mercenary operations in a number of genres and settings. IIRC the Drinax campaign also assumes something like this is in place.

  We could establish a few shares as 'belonging to the ship' without causing too much trouble as long as it we're careful to keep the 'grunts' happy with other measures since this does effectively cut into their pay.

 Alternately, a major expense could just be deducted from the haul (after paying Oleb's tithe, of course) before shares are split. Probability of more serious but less frequent grumbling.



  Edit: The PCs would presumably all count as 'officers' in this sort of an arrangement. (It's also something of a genre standard...)
This message was last edited by the player at 19:36, Fri 10 July 2020.

If you want traditional pirate's code then it goes something like this:

1) When the ship docks you first subtract any expenses for the ship. Food, repairs, ammunition etc.

2) Captain and the Quartermaster receive 2 shares

3) the Master, Bosun, and Gunner receive 1.5 shares

4) other officers received 1.25 shares

5) Everyone else gets a share

The whole point of being a pirate was that overall it was a much more even split of the take and as captains were "elected officials" it was a very democratic system of business.

Compared to a traditional merchant ship where the sailors would make almost nothing (a couple of shillings which is the equivalent of about $10 a month. That did include food, clothing, medical, and housing for the month from the ship so that is pretty much "pure profit" but its a reason why piracy was so attractive despite the steep penalty for getting caught. Captains of a merchant ship usually had a percentage of the profit so were encouraged to go as cheaply as possible.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0fAznO1wA8

  We can shuffle the share numbers around however we need to, but it seems like you're okay with the general idea?

  Is it fair to suppose that all of the characters are also at least loosely okay with it?


  (I'd be inclined to stick to whole-number shares just to keep the math simple, whatever the numbers actually end up being.)

I am fine with that depending on her position and how big the crew ends up being. If she ends up being in charge of a group of marines and leading the charge then she might ask for an extra quarter pay as an officer but that is a negotiation for a later time.

In reply to BB Nova (msg # 38):

     Actually, in this specific instance, the creation of a "ship fund"--or even assigning a specific "share" of loot to the ship--is actually warranted (is that the right word?  I.e., "called for"?)

     Anyways, both in the PoD material, as well as during our "interviews" with both Princess Rao and King Oleb, we were told by both that we were not only responsible for "maintaining & repairing" the Harrier, but that we were also tasked with "restoring the ship to her former glory" (or words to that effect).  So we have to spend time and money on improving the damned décor!

     I ain't paying for that, so we better arrange for that money to be embezzled skimmed right off the top, just like the Operational Costs.

     Princess Rao might let us slide--a little--on this issue, but I'd bet real money that King Oleb will not.


     Speaking of Vacc Suits -- and I was speaking of Vacc Suits, you know...you just weren't paying attention -- here's some data about Vacc Suits I pulled from the Central Supply Catalogue, 2nd Ed., concerning "general duty" Vacc Suits.  The info in the Catalogue only went up to Tech/12 designs, everything after that is just some extrapolation on my part--subject to acceptance by Star Master, of course.  But the info concerning the Electronics Suites is all straight from the book--again, our salvaged Tech/15 Drinaxi Space Suits being subject to modification by StarMaster.

---

VACC SUIT
At lower Tech Levels, a rather bulky suit providing protection from hard vacuum and temperatures encountered in space.  The suit also gives some radiation protection and includes a six-hour air supply.  At higher Tech Levels, the vacc suit becomes much thinner and easier to use, even though its level of protection continues to increase.
     This all represents a complete suit, usually with helmet and any additional gear, such as air tanks, already attached.  Suits, if sealed, offer total protection from gas and airborne biological agents.

     Unless otherwise stated, non-powered suits come equipped with electronics suites, appropriate to their Tech Level, as detailed below.

  Cosmetic RUs cover the restoration of the ship's glorious appearance and luxury; we've mostly got that dealt with thanks to all of the salvage and ship shares that we've thrown at the problem.

  The bigger issue is that we need to build an entire fleet (not necessarily Harriers) to really make the plan work. That's going to take money. We also need to bring world governments onside. That's also going to take money (in massive quantities), whether or not we're handing it to them directly.

---

     So.  The decor within the Harrier-class has been described as "Baroque" -- so, what is "Baroque"?  (I swear, the first person to make a "no money" joke will get smacked with a fish!  My Hand to God!)

Baroque definition
     Baroque (US: "ba-row'k") is a style of architecture, decor style, music, dance, painting, sculpture and other arts that flourished in Europe in a period spanning from the 17th century until the beginning of the 18th century. The style began at the start of the 17th century in Rome, then spread rapidly to northern Italy, France, Spain and Portugal, then to Austria, southern Germany and Russia.   Though first appearing in Rome, the term Baroque likely arises from the Portuguese word, “barocco,” which means “uneven pearl.”  The style typically uses classical orders and ornaments in a free and sculptural way that evokes movement and has a dramatic effect.  Baroque style permeated most parts of European culture, including gardens, architecture, music and art.

     In the decorative arts there is an excess of ornamentation -- golden hardware,  ornate embellishments, flower and nature motif embellishments on walls and cielings, gilded and painted wood, intricately carved wooden items, upholstery done in beautiful silks.  Gilded architectural details and heavily decorated  -- one might even say overly decorated -- wall panels are common in most styles of Baroque interior design.  Baroque architecture emphasizes this with bold massing, colonnades, domes, light-and-shade ‘painterly’ colors, and the bold play of volume and void.  Baroque-style interiors are luxurious, with raised, gilded ornamentation and rounded shapes, a plentiful use of gold and darker shades of ivory, as well as a variety of inlaid wood — called marquetry — are all hallmarks of much of the Baroque style.

     Furniture from the Baroque era can be identified by its very ornate and luxurious look.  Intricate, elaborate and exaggerated decorations are characteristic and most often include flowers, leaves, and cherubs.  Baroque-style furniture is highly detailed and overly ornamented, yielding an overall look that is both grand and lavish yet symmetrical and balanced.  Furnishings are heavily decorated, have curvaceous legs – sometimes animal legs —  and feature intricate embellishments of scrolls, leaves and shells -- and are upholstered in rich, sumptuous fabrics, but velvets and heavy brocades are most often used, all framed by gilt-wood and marquetry.  Baroque style lamps and accessories feature iconic leaves and scrolls in the design.

     Baroque-style furniture, predominantly, has turned or pedestal feet.  Small, round and oblong tables and consoles are common.  Chests and cabinets, many with inlaid wood panels, are very in vogue for storage pieces.  Wooden furniture pieces are predominantly oak, walnut, chestnut, and ebony -- or non-terrestrial woods of a similar nature.  Much of the ornamentation is done in rosewood, sandalwood, tulipwood, and other exotic woods -- for purposes of ornamentaion and accent, the more exotic, the better.

     The basic shape of Baroque furniture is also distinctive: curved legs are a hallmark of the period. The appearance of being handmade pieces, and being made of 'the best woods' is paramount.  Upholstered pieces can be covered in cloth (usually a silk, velvet or damask fabric, but not always) or leather, but wood is always a prominent feature of every piece of Baroque-style furniture.  The wooden elements of Baroque furniture can be varnished, but it is more common for wood to be painted – most often in either gold or white – and often with a crackled finish.  Pieces with gold-painted wood are very popular as a status symbol.
Five characteristics which strongly influence Baroque furniture style are:

Foliage motifs — Baroque style used a great deal of plant life in its ornamentation, including scrolling foliage and garlands of flowers.

Marquetry — Marquetry involves laying different-colored wood veneers onto the surface of furniture -- inlaying such woods as ebony and mahogany with tortoise shell, brass and other metals.

Putti  — This is an Italian word that means ‘boys’ and refers to chubby infants used in much of the Baroque décor.

Crests and Initials  — Monograms used for decorative purposes were common in Baroque style furniture, as were heraldic crests.

Lambrequin motif  — We’ve already noted that the Baroque era was typified by luxurious textiles, and the features of these fabrics were used in other media as well.  A tasseled cloth motif, called a lambrequin, is one of the most commonly seen -- appearing with curtains over windows, as well as accenting an open archway.



     My apologies -- I was suddenly overwhelmed with an obsessive need to Educate.  I shall have myself Flogged, immediately...

Fileted ;-)

In reply to BB Nova (msg # 34):

Actually, BB has Cyrus's shares. He felt bad about committing his shares to the venture but then having to leave for a family 'emergency', so he assigned them to BB as sort of payment for filling in for him, especially as 'muscle'.

If Cyrus ever returns, we'll deal with it then.

That works great. BB's got Cyrus' shares so she already is part owner, welcome aboard BB!

I'm thinking of starting a MGT2 game here as well. IF I do, anyone here is welcome.

  Okay, so... five days means that we'll have spent ~1 week on Drinax in addition to the week from Asim. Is there anything else we need to do here or should we head off to pursue the various schemes that we've talked about?

Five days and the ship is mostly fixed but not completely. Jump drive is fixed, are the fuel tanks, scoops, cargo scoop, all that is fixed too?

Tech-World for the tech 15 workforce there and possible android/robot? Triple missile launcher and ventral hard point all fixed. Maybe update or upgrade the computer too.

link to another game

I'm going to try my hand with MGT2 Anyone interested in trying, give a hollar.

I might be interested. The last three Traveller games I joined as a player had the GM bail and I wound up taking up GMing the games.

Well, you are welcome to come aboard. Looking at the naval campaign with the cruiser. I will ask for advice from time to time, I'm not too proud as to overlook my shortcomings. ;-)

In reply to Theodore McFarlane (msg # 50):

Post people, we need to get off of this rock and on to Tech-World. Then off to privateering! Woot!!!

  Privateering? But we've got a water reclamation project to pursue, an old set of ruins to poke around in for lost tech, a raid on some nearby worlds that will get us crushed under valuables...

  (Although we can't get to the latter two until the fuel tanks are fixed and/or we load up the cargo hold with the aforementioned fuel drums...)

Fuel tanks will be fixed at Tech-World.

True, I did overlook lots of adventure in my post!

In reply to Theodore McFarlane (msg # 50):

Hmm, it is purely an Imperial military campaign? I had an idea I wanted to use for Ingrid but didn't that might work for a character, but I'm not sure she'd make an Imperial soldier.

That was an idea, might not be that, partly up to what folks want to do.

You could be captain! ;-)
This message was last edited by the player at 10:58, Tue 14 July 2020.