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Miuramir · 10-13-2017, 02:13 AM

Back when we were working on GURPS Ogre, getting the infantry to be able to jump, without using a consumable fuel, but not be able to just fly around, was a considerable balancing act that eventually got given up on. All the suits have at least 1 hour of flight capability. The reason for not just zooming about was targeting & cover; but logically non-Marine infantry crossing water hexes are flying across it. They were limited by a minimal trickle-charge from the RTG to the flight batteries, which made GEV-PCs important in long-term ops for recharging the suits as well as giving them better strategic mobility.

A different / additional logical explanation given real-world characteristics of and further developments in high-output electric motors, which IIRC wasn't something that GURPS Vehicles took into account, is that electric motors can be run at *much* higher output levels than their continuous rating for short periods. (Consider the starter motor in a traditional car, for example.) One could easily claim that the ducted fan motors were only good for, say, 5 minutes before they started to overheat, and a less than 50% duty cycle. Most soldiers would want to keep a few minutes in reserve, so in addition to the being silhouetted against the sky issue that should keep the suits in nap of the earth short jumps as desired.

(Say, 2 seconds cooldown for every 1 second of operation (2:1) in ordinary conditions; 1:1 in the arctic, 3:1 in particularly hot or high altitude conditions, 4:1 in hellishly hot or both hot and high altitude.)

10-13-2017, 02:13 AM	#9
Miuramir Join Date: Jun 2012	Re: Another infantry thread. Back when we were working on GURPS Ogre, getting the infantry to be able to jump, without using a consumable fuel, but not be able to just fly around, was a considerable balancing act that eventually got given up on. All the suits have at least 1 hour of flight capability. The reason for not just zooming about was targeting & cover; but logically non-Marine infantry crossing water hexes are flying across it. They were limited by a minimal trickle-charge from the RTG to the flight batteries, which made GEV-PCs important in long-term ops for recharging the suits as well as giving them better strategic mobility. A different / additional logical explanation given real-world characteristics of and further developments in high-output electric motors, which IIRC wasn't something that GURPS Vehicles took into account, is that electric motors can be run at much higher output levels than their continuous rating for short periods. (Consider the starter motor in a traditional car, for example.) One could easily claim that the ducted fan motors were only good for, say, 5 minutes before they started to overheat, and a less than 50% duty cycle. Most soldiers would want to keep a few minutes in reserve, so in addition to the being silhouetted against the sky issue that should keep the suits in nap of the earth short jumps as desired. (Say, 2 seconds cooldown for every 1 second of operation (2:1) in ordinary conditions; 1:1 in the arctic, 3:1 in particularly hot or high altitude conditions, 4:1 in hellishly hot or both hot and high altitude.)