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Old 11-10-2019, 02:59 AM   #11
dataweaver
 
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Default Re: [Space] Atomic Horror Tales of the Interplanetary Super-Solar Patrol!

My suggestion would be to borrow some inspiration from Lensman: equip ships with inertial dampers that aren't just about keeping the crew from experiencing tremendous acceleration; they actually reduce the ship's inertial mass. Reduce its mass to 10%, and its velocity increases tenfold to maintain the same momentum; it also increases the effective speed of light as far as the ship is concerned by an order of magnitude, allowing the ship to travel the interstellar void at up to 10c. Dampen inertia to 1%, and you get a hundredfold increase in both momentum and top speed. That said, I'd make the extent to which inertia can be dampened be limited by gravitational effects: you don't get nearly as much dampening in a gravity well (such as planetary orbit or even the inner solar system) as you do in the outer system and interstellar space.

You must also contend with the drag of interstellar dust, which in turn dictates a streamlined shape (like a disk or pointed cylinder) and maneuver fins for FTL-capable ships, just like the typical rocketship in the 50s tended to be pictured.

Between these two effects, FTL is generally not something one sees in the inner system: you generally don't get superluminal speeds until you're in the outer system. It's mainly an in-setting excuse to reduce the effective interstellar travel times down to a manageable level. And by messing with inertia, you get to have tremendous velocities without turning every starship into a kinetic kill weapon. It takes just as long to build up the same momentum as it does without the inertial dampers; it's just that you cover more ground this way.
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Old 11-10-2019, 01:42 PM   #12
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Default Re: [Space] Atomic Horror Tales of the Interplanetary Super-Solar Patrol!

So it would be a real space drive akin to Mass Effect's mass effect drives?:
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Faster-than-light drives use element zero cores to reduce the mass of a ship, allowing higher rates of acceleration. This effectively raises the speed of light within the mass effect field, allowing high speed travel with negligible relativistic time dilation1 effects.

Starships still require conventional thrusters (chemical rockets, commercial fusion torch, economy ion engine, or military antiproton drive) in addition to the FTL drive core. With only a core, a ship has no motive power.

The amount of element zero and power required for a drive increases exponentially to the mass being moved and the degree it is being lightened. Very massive ships or very high speeds are prohibitively expensive.

If the field collapses while the ship is moving at faster-than-light speeds, the effects are catastrophic. The ship is snapped back to sublight velocity, the enormous excess energy shed in the form of lethal Cherenkov radiation.
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Old 11-10-2019, 02:34 PM   #13
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Default Re: [Space] Atomic Horror Tales of the Interplanetary Super-Solar Patrol!

Velocity is a product of energy, not momentum, so relativity still matters. So, if your superscience reduced effective mass by 99%, a 99% inertial shielding, the effective velocity could increase 10x with the same amount of energy. In the case of reaction drive, this could get quite complex, but we should simplify things.

Let us say that the exhaust would have effectively 10x the thrust for the same amount of reaction mass released and the delta-v would increase 10x. For example, 99% inertial should would allow a TL9 fusion drive to have an effective thrust of 0.05g per engine (real thrust would be only 0.005g though) and an effective delta-v of 120 mps per fuel tank (real delta-v would be 12 mps though).

Such an inertial system would allow for some interesting campaigns, as most spacecraft would be dependent on their inertial systems. When a spacecraft turns off their inertial system though, they would need to 'steal' inertia from the frame that they were within (otherwise, you could end up with major problems). That is not beyond the real of superscience though.

In order to create relativistic velocities, you would need a 99.9999% inertial shielding. The effective thrust of a TL9 fusion drive would become 5g while the delta-v would be 12,000 mps. With two engine components and ten fuel components, you would have an effective acceleration of 10g and would have an effective delta-v of 168,000 mps. During a collision though the real delta-v would be 0.1% of the effective delta-v.

Last edited by AlexanderHowl; 11-10-2019 at 02:37 PM.
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Old 11-10-2019, 02:56 PM   #14
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Default Re: [Space] Atomic Horror Tales of the Interplanetary Super-Solar Patrol!

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Originally Posted by warellis View Post
So it would be a real space drive akin to Mass Effect's mass effect drives?:
Essentially, yes; that's what I'm thinking — but with restrictions preventing FTL from being used anywhere near a planet.

As well, I'm trying to avoid a sharp differential between STL and FTL: there wasn't much of the “switch on the drive and jump to lightspeed” stuff back in 50s sci-fi, and my preference is to keep as much as possible the feel of “climb into your rocketship, blast off into space, fly to your destination, and land.” passing lightspeed should feel more like breaking the sound barrier than toggling between essentially motionless to being surrounded by star-streaks.
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Old 11-10-2019, 02:59 PM   #15
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Default Re: [Space] Atomic Horror Tales of the Interplanetary Super-Solar Patrol!

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Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl View Post
Velocity is a product of energy, not momentum, so relativity still matters. So, if your superscience reduced effective mass by 99%, a 99% inertial shielding, the effective velocity could increase 10x with the same amount of energy. In the case of reaction drive, this could get quite complex, but we should simplify things.

Let us say that the exhaust would have effectively 10x the thrust for the same amount of reaction mass released and the delta-v would increase 10x. For example, 99% inertial should would allow a TL9 fusion drive to have an effective thrust of 0.05g per engine (real thrust would be only 0.005g though) and an effective delta-v of 120 mps per fuel tank (real delta-v would be 12 mps though).

Such an inertial system would allow for some interesting campaigns, as most spacecraft would be dependent on their inertial systems. When a spacecraft turns off their inertial system though, they would need to 'steal' inertia from the frame that they were within (otherwise, you could end up with major problems). That is not beyond the real of superscience though.

In order to create relativistic velocities, you would need a 99.9999% inertial shielding. The effective thrust of a TL9 fusion drive would become 5g while the delta-v would be 12,000 mps. With two engine components and ten fuel components, you would have an effective acceleration of 10g and would have an effective delta-v of 168,000 mps. During a collision though the real delta-v would be 0.1% of the effective delta-v.
Be that as it may, we're not dealing with hard science fiction here; we're dealing with space opera. As such, some liberties can be taken with the real-world physics.

One of the liberties being taken is to say that whatever is causing the reduction in the inertial Mass also causes the effective speed of light to be increased. This is not a misunderstanding of physics or an oversight; it's a deliberate part of the effect.

Let me phrase it differently: your momentum remains the same, your thrust remains the same, your percentage of light speed remains the same. What changes is light speed.
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Last edited by dataweaver; 11-19-2019 at 11:10 PM.
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Old 11-10-2019, 04:35 PM   #16
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Default Re: [Space] Atomic Horror Tales of the Interplanetary Super-Solar Patrol!

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How do these "Loi-class FTL drives" work? Got ideas there? What style of FTL drive would fit most thematically with the 1950's-style retrotech feel of the setting?
I honestly didn't give it much thought, as I'm really focusing on the Campaign/Adventure side of this over the intricate mechanics. So for the most part, my answer to the "How do Loi-class FTL Drives Work" would be "Very Well, thank you."

But I guess the "negative mass"/"Inertia Removal" ideas from Lensmen and Mass Effect could be used here. I certainly didn't have any better ideas.
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Old 11-10-2019, 09:12 PM   #17
warellis
 
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Default Re: [Space] Atomic Horror Tales of the Interplanetary Super-Solar Patrol!

Asimkc, as I understand jt used, hyperspace while Anderson used something akin to stutterwarp for his Flandry stories.
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Old 11-10-2019, 09:28 PM   #18
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Asimkc, as I understand jt used, hyperspace while Anderson used something akin to stutterwarp for his Flandry stories.
Anderson is _the_ source for stutterwarp though that is a very quantum mechical sort of drive and rather after this period.

Warp of some sort is probably most in period though Andre Norton used hyperspace for her Soalr Queen stories.

All of the 3 drives as Gurps classifies them were known in the period literature though Jump was the rarest.
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Old 11-19-2019, 10:41 PM   #19
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Default Re: [Space] Atomic Horror Tales of the Interplanetary Super-Solar Patrol!

So what are firearms like in this setting?

Some sort of superscience particle weapon right?
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Old 11-20-2019, 06:15 AM   #20
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Default Re: [Space] Atomic Horror Tales of the Interplanetary Super-Solar Patrol!

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So what are firearms like in this setting?

Some sort of superscience particle weapon right?
For simplicity, I'll stick to Tales of the Solar Patrol's default weapons listing, with the Atomic Pistols and "obsolete" laser weapons, although I'd definitely consider adapting other Ultra-Tech weapons that fit the superhero/pulp sci-fi theme, like Neural Weapons or Flamers. Warehouse 23 also had a "Freeze Ray" weapon that would fit well here.
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