[Spaceships] 'Fun in forty minutes with your clothes on' ( Semiballistic shuttles )

[vicky_molokh]

Originally Posted by RAH, Friday

I like to ride the semiballistics-the high-gee blastoff that always feels as if the cradle would rupture and spurt fluid all over the cabin, the breathless minutes in free fall that feel as if your guts were falling out, and then reentry and that long, long glide that beats any sky ride ever built. Where can you have more fun in forty minutes with your clothes on?

Greetings, all!

This old bit got me wondering: how does one design a semiballistic in Spaceships/Alternate GURPS rules? I'm guessing it has chemical rockets, and burns most of them on the early phase. Then there's the winged landing (with minimal thrust, I guess). Not sure if they have a Soft Landing System or just land 'normally' (it is said they can't afford any second passes - the landing strip must be available right there right now). Anything else?

Thanks in advance!

[thrash]

Originally Posted by vicky_molokh

This old bit got me wondering: how does one design a semiballistic in Spaceships/Alternate GURPS rules?

The same way you would build a shuttle fully capable of reaching orbit and returning, but with only about half as much delta-V. You'll find that this is much easier to manage in a single vehicle without staging.