WatchTower class Recon Fighter

[hal]

Hello Folks,
Every now and then, I get the urge to put together a GURPS Traveller spacecraft using GMV - an old legacy software package created by Thomas Bont before GVB came into existence. I like the program because they made an effort to populate the database with GURPS TRAVELLER STARSHIPS modules, something that it seems GVB never really did.

With that said, here is a copy of the work in progress TL 11 WatchTower recon fighter...

Crew: 2 Total. 1 Command and Control, 1 Turret Gunner. 2 Maintenance crewmembers as part of the flight crew aboard the main ship.

Hull: 20-ton RSL, Extra Heavy Frame, Expensive Materials, Laminate (Expensive) Armored Hull (DR 500, Electrified, Psi-Shielded, Instant Chameleon, LCD Skin), Total Compartmentalization, Radical Stealth (-14, AMod -8), Radical Emission Cloaking (-14, PMod -8 [-7, PMod -1 in space]), Radical Sound Baffling (-14, BMod -14 [N/A in Space]).

Control Areas: Command Cockpit/11 (Hardened, Complexity 9).

Command Cockpit/11
Radio: 50,000,000
Maser: 0
Laser: 100,000,000
Meson: 150,000

Passive: 100,000/41
Active: 200,000/42 (would normally be 43, but max sensor rating is size+36)
Radscanner: 30,000/38

Engineering: 13 ST Maneuver Drive/11 (Short Term Access space, 6.44 / 8.19 Gs, 975 stons thrust), Small Utility/11.

Accommodations: Small Craft Bridge Add-on.

Armaments: 1 Turret/11 Battery of 1 (Std Laser/11 390 Mj, 2xHv Missile Rack/10 [10], 3x500mm Electronic Warfare Drone/11, 10x500mm Missile/11, 7x500mm Nuclear Missile/11).

Statistics: DMass 119.07 stons, EMass 119.07 stons, LMass 151.33 stons, Base Cost MCr43.5, Load Cost MCr3.81, Total Cost MCr47.31, HP 18,000, Damage Threshold 450, Size Mod +6, HT 12, 31.7 Man-Hours/day Maintenance.

Space Performance: sAcc 6.44/6.44/8.19/8.19 Gs.

Air Performance: aSpeed 4,089 mph, Skimming aSpeed 13,965 mph, aLift 975 stons.

Sample Times : Orbit 0.04 Hrs, Escape Velocity 0.05 Hrs, 100D 2.51 Hrs, Earth-Mars 43.19 Hrs.


The WatchTower class Recon Fighter is a second line fighter being retired from front line Imperial naval units, and are usually found in Subsector Naval Table of Organization and Equipment. A TL 10 Empress Marava Class ship, with a moderately trained sensor operator, generally only has a 10% chance of successfully detecting the recon fighter*. Armed with a single standard laser mounted internally, along with twin 500mm missile launchers with 10 missiles each, the WatchTower is capable of launching a jamming missile either alongside of itself, or can launch the jamming missile to shadow a ship it is attempting to protect.

The weapon loadout above shows 7 nuclear missiles, 3 EW warheads, and 10 conventional warheads. It could just as easily be carrying one 500mm missile launcher and 1 250mm missile launcher instead. The idea is to keep this fighter from being toothless, while still allowing it to engage in its primary mission: Getting as close to the enemy without being detected - and reporting back to the main ship.

*Note: in Game speak, a skill 12 operator using an PESA with a scan rating of 41, is penalized by -6 for the radical stealth this fighter enjoys - thereby needing to roll a 6 or less on 3d6 to spot the fighter at 1 hex distance).

[brian_smaller]

I also like the GURPS ships you can build with GMV. A great little piece of software.