[Spaceships] New system and design switch

[Tyneras]

System

Reinforced Structure

Extra framework, thick layers of damage absorbing plates, crumple zones, shock absorbers, or structural integrity fields that never fail, it all adds together to not prevent damage, but to make sure you can suck it up with the best of them.

Each system grants the ship +50% dHP and +1 HT. If this system is struck by a penetrating weapon, treat it as an empty space.

Reason for system? Space combat is DEADLY, a single hit from a major weapon battery can cut through 2 layers of armor and take you down ~50% of your dHP. This system gives a ship a bit more endurance in a slugging match.

SM dHP Cost
+5 +10 300k
+6 +15 1M
+7 +25 3M
+8 +35 10M
+9 +50 30M
+10 +75 100M
+11 +100 300M
+12 +150 1B
+13 +250 3B
+14 +350 10B
+15 +500 30B

Concerns: In Pyramid 30 Spaceships, David Pulver gives an equation forgetting the TS of a spaceship, the first part looks like this: (average dDR + dST/HP), if using the system, I propose changing it to (average dDR + SM based dST/HP + extra dHP*0.5), because this system represents an improvement in durability without an accompanying increase in weapon output.





Design Switch

Superscience Power

For those who have more than what reality can offer, but aren’t quite Cosmic yet. It doesn't matter if your power plants use dilithium crystals or chakam oil, it makes 3 times as many power points as a standard power plant of that type. It has no other effects on the ship or systems. With this design switch, you can have a power plant scale down (Spaceships 8) and provide normal power for a plant one size larger.

Example: A Superscience SM+10 antimatter reactor gives 12 power points (4x3) to a SM+10 ship, or a Superscience SM+9 antimatter reactor can give a SM+10 ship 4 power points.

Reason for this switch? I felt the gap between normal power plants and cosmic power plants was too large, and this feels like it fits in that intermediate space.

[vicky_molokh]

Instead of Reinforced Structure, I simply declared all my ships to start rolling HT for destruction at -5×HP instead of -HP, and be automatically 'dead' at -10×HP instead of -5×HP. In a campaign that never started, duh. :(

[terranstrider]

Have a look at the GREATER SURVIVABILITY section in GURPS Spaceships 3 - Warships & Mecha on page 35. It includes design switches for Advanced Armour, Damage Reduction and Missile Shield.