[Spaceships] Where are the Capacitors?

[vicky_molokh]

Greetings, all!

Back in 3e days, I remember designing ships which could get big but temporary power outputs - like for heavy weapons or drives - through the use of large capacitors. They would then slowly recharge from their cheap/small reactors.
But a quick look through SS didn't find capacitor systems. Am I missing them or what?

Thanks in advance!

[SCAR]

Since Spaceships uses Power Points, and most Systems only require 1 PP (Super Stardrive being the only item I can see straight off which requires 2PP), Capacitors would be below the granularity.

[vicky_molokh]

They would be below the granularity, if not for the fact that someone might want a ship with, say, 12 systems worth of drives and/or weapons (or more!). Such as a hit-and-run sort of fighter operating from a carrier.

[SCAR]

I see the idea, but Spaceships doesn't have the concept of Power Usage over Time. How much 'Power' does it take to fire a Laser Once, or to run a Reactionless Drive for 4 hours, or maybe 6 hours at half power?

You'd have to define some kind of Power Usage over Time for each system (possibly the same for all).

[SCAR]

A quick search found this thread which seems to be on a similar line.

[vicky_molokh]

Power over time is easy: just define a new unit, called PowerPoint*second. Like the kWs and kWh.
Firing a LASER turret for one minute requires 60 PP*s.

[Ulzgoroth]

Spaceships doesn't have a concept of power usage over time, as such, but it's utterly trivial to provide one and answer those questions in terms of PP*seconds. In keeping with the irritating current UT policy, PP aren't defined in any real-world terms, which might make it hard to hack together a capacitor bank system.

There hasn't been such a system in any of the first 4 books. Which would seem to be the ones most likely to have it, unless the Transhuman Spaceships I've seen mentioned is on the current list of planned releases.

There have been efforts to dissect the elusive Power Point. The favored conclusion was that one PP = 1/20 MW per ton ship.

[SCAR]

You're right, and the other thread (posted above) made me realise where my thinking was wrong!
Anyway - that thread would seem to provide a suitable answer.

[SuedodeuS]

This thread had some information on capacitors, with stats based on the fuel cells. You might want to take a look at it.

[jacobmuller]

I keep seeing Fuel Cells referred to as requiring fuel. I must be misreading the "closed system" bit. I think of them as burning their stored H-LOX and requiring outside power input to turn the exhaust water into H-LOX. Rechargeable batteries? Refueling would be faster but, to my mind, that isn't a closed system; Physics: "a closed system can exchange energy, but not matter, with its surroundings." This is how batteries work.

Turning it into a powerplant/capacitor system...
Csomic power level weapons and shields using standard powerplants. The Fuel Cells would be your capacitors and they'd be 1,000 of the size required. For a 20sec turn, a 24hour fuel cells becomes a 4shot battery. Recharging the capacitors from a power plants/solar units logically takes more power than they produce.

You'd have to find a scale below Cosmic for a playable rate of use; perhaps make your power systems a mix of capacitor/generator on a ratio that gives a decent recharge rate. A bit of number-philia will get you there.