[Spaceships] Secret bases, Space stations and Stargates

[thtraveller]

TL10 Dirty Snowball class secret Asteroid base “Rough Diamond”

For those adventures where your heroes or protagonists need a secret base or listening post in space.

It could be:
- a standard space opera pirate base
- a corporate black ops base - carrying out activities that would be illegal on planet
- an isolationist groups hideaway
- an offshore tax haven
- a movie set
- a theme park (with some work)

With an irregular shape and layers of rock and ice applied over the steel hull it looks like any other icy asteroid though it is in fact a constructed space station. They are built to “hide in plain sight” by orbiting beyond the systems snow line or in a gas giant’s distant orbit. Only close inspection can distinguish it from a normal rocky body. Its low density and higher thermal signature becomes apparent on very close inspection. Its secrecy lies in not drawing attention to itself.

It keeps its heat signature low by not running any major power systems except when its cover is already blown and it is under direct attack. Even then it only uses a small Fuel Cell with a low thermal signature.

With a large hangar bay it can house up to 1000 tons of smaller craft, up to three SM7 craft or a combination of smaller craft. Craft usually dock and leave it when the base is occluded from the system’s main planet - either when it passes on the other side of the sun or behind a gas giant.

A small tertiary battery provides last ditch point defence and some offence if its cover is blown.

A large open space garden provides food for long term occupancy and a recreation area.

Construction: These craft are typically built on the surface of a real asteroid by a specialist “mining team” left behind when it was being mined or visited for other purposes. The craft is built from local resources (ice, rock and iron) with specialist components being provided by the sponsor. Once complete a small drive pushes it off into its own pre-selected orbit or it can stay attached as a surface feature of the larger asteroid.

Variant: Some models are fitted with a drive system to alter its orbit. Though as this can draw unwanted attention this is only done when placing them in systems where some natural phenomenon can be used as cover.

Design:
Front
1 Armor (Ice) dDR 2
2 Armor (Rock) dDR3
3 Armor (Steel) dDR 10
4-6 Hangar Bay (1000 ton capacity, up to three SM 7 craft, 3 crew)
C Control Room (complexity 9, comms/sensor 9, 11 crew)

Central
1 Armor (Ice) dDR 2
2 Armor (Rock) dDR3
3 Armor (Steel) dDR 10
4 Cargo 500 tons
5! Battery (Tertiary) 3 VRF Improved point defence lasers, 3 VRF UV lasers, 360 tons cargo
6 Open Space (garden)
C Habitat (60 cabin equivalent – see below for typical breakdown)

Rear
1 Armor (Ice) dDR 2
2 Armor (Rock) dDR3
3 Armor (Steel) dDR 10
4 Fuel Cell (Small SM9, 1 power, 300 tons cargo)
5 Fuel Tank (500 tons rocket fuel for fuel cell)
6 Fuel Tank (500 tons fuel for visiting craft)

Stats:
TL 10
SM+10
dST/HP 150
Hnd/SR NA
Move NA
HT 13
LWt. 10,000
Load 2100
Occ 80 ASV
dDR 15/15/15/
$60M

Habitat: 10 luxury cabins, 10 cabins, 10 bunkrooms, 4 hibernation capsules, 1 office, 1 briefing room, 1 minifac, 6 person sickbay with 2 automeds, 50 tons steerage cargo.

[laserdog]

Interesting. Makes me think there needs to be a "camouflaged" cost modifier for hanger bays to represent that they are not obvious.

Great write-up though.

Although it seems like the biggest benefit of such a hidden base would be monitoring, so I'm surprised it doesn't have an array system of some sort.

[thtraveller]

TL10^ Darkway class Jump Gate

Darkway class jump gates are typically the first commercial gates built in a system and often the only commercial gate in medium sized systems. Capable of allowing passage for up to 1000 ton (SM8) craft they provide the backbone of the network that binds the occupied worlds together.

These totally automated gates are typically found in distant orbits of occupied planets. They are usually defended by a neighbouring space station or a military vessel - often both. The armor on the gate is to provide some defence against low speed impacts from in-system debris and glancing blows rather than full combat protection.

Attacking a gate directly is rare (and usually immediately fatal for the attacker) as they are incredibly expensive and may be the only link that a system has with neighbouring systems. However, some isolationist groups have been known to try so jump gate security is very tight.

Design:
Front
1 Armor (Nanocomposite) dDR 30
2-6! Jump Gate

Central
1 Armor (Nanocomposite) dDR 30
2-6! Jump Gate
C Control Room (complexity 8, c/s 8, automated)

Rear
1 Armor (Nanocomposite) dDR 30
2-6 Fusion Reactor (10 Power)
C Engine Room

Options: Total automation

Stats:
TL10^
SM+9
dST/HP 100
Hnd/SR NA
HT 13
Move NA
Occ 8 SV (usually unmanned)
dDR 30/30/30
$1750M

[thtraveller]

Originally Posted by laserdog

Although it seems like the biggest benefit of such a hidden base would be monitoring, so I'm surprised it doesn't have an array system of some sort.

The design is for a standard space opera pirate base (TM). A more realistic monitoring station would likely be as small as possible (SM5). Hmm, I should probably do one of those too.

[thtraveller]

TL10 Wagner class rotating space station

A typical wheel design orbital space station as run by minor powers or large corporations. It provides a transit station between planetary interface craft and interplanetary (or interstellar) craft.

With one fifth of a G spin-gravity in the habitat section some degree of normal working is possible. It has room for up to 400 occupants of which 300 are given over to visiting dignitaries, and transiting passengers. A large open space garden provides food for long term occupancy and a recreation area.

A tertiary battery provides point defence and offence in case of attack. In space opera settings the hangar bay houses a wing of 10 small fighter craft (SM5) in addition to the normal craft such as work pods and orbital shuttles.

Design:
Front
1 Armor (Metallic Laminate) dDR 20
2-4 Hangar Bay (crew 3, 1000 ton capacity, three SM7 craft maximum or a combination of smaller craft – typically including work pods, orbital shuttles and other craft)
5 Fuel Tank (for visiting craft)
6 Cargo 500 tons (transiting cargo)
C Control Room (C9, comms sensor 9, crew 11))

Central
1 Armor (Metallic Laminate)
2 Cargo (500 tons)
3-5 Habitat
6! Battery (Tertiary) defence grid
C Fusion Reactor (1 Power)

Rear
1 Armor (Metallic Laminate)
2-4 Habitat (see below)
5-6 Open Space (garden)

Options: Spin gravity 0.2G

Stats:

Core crew 63: 3 shifts of 21 (off duty staff double as gunners in case of attack)
Secondary crew: pilots and crew of subcraft as required

TL 10
dST/HP 150
Hnd/SR NA
HT 13
Move NA
LWt. 10,000 tons
Load 1940 tons
SM 10
Occ 400 SV
dDR 20/20/20
$260M

Habitat:
Cabins 50
Luxury Cabins 100
Bunkrooms 25
Hibernation Capsules 12
Cells 12
Briefing Rooms 12
Establishments 12
Labs (General) 5
Labs (Physics) 2
Minifacs 4
Offices 8
Sickbays 8 with 4 automeds

[thtraveller]

TL9 Emmett class Space Construction Vehicle “Sky Weaver”

These work pods or space construction vehicles are used throughout the space industry to build and repair craft and space stations. With their large external carrying capacity and heavy duty robot arms they can carry large plates and girders into position and easily fix them in place. They also find auxiliary use as short distance tugs and rescue vehicles. A rugged, cheap and popular design with a good safety record.

Design:
Front
1 Armor (Steel) dDR1
2 Robot Arm
3-6 External Clamp
C Control Room (complexity 4, comms/sensor 3)

Central
1 Armor (Steel) dDR1
2-6 External Clamp

Rear
1 Armor (Steel) dDR1
2 External Clamp
3 Robot Arm
4 Nuclear Thermal Rocket (1.5G, water)
5-C Fuel Tank (4.5 tons water, 0.45 mps)

Stats:
dST/HP 20
Hnd/SR 0/4
HT 12
Move 1.5G/0.45mps
LWt. 30 tons
Load 1 pilot/operator internal, up to 10 tons external in normal operation, considerably more in emergencies.
SM 5
Occ 1 SV
dDR 1/1/1
$0.89M

[Cernig]

I always figured pirates would look to set up in rogue states or highly balkanized nations planet-side, a space-age Tortuga on some little-settled world. That lets them take off and land hidden by the planet's bulk when needed. Asteroids, however, make great corporate bases (e.g. for when that nasty bio-experiment really mustn't escape - or just to escape taxes as the ultimate in offshore HQs).

Regards, C