Johannes replied to me: > > * Total systems failure in deep space. The crew may be injured or > > dead as well, but it doesn't really matter if they can't get the > > ship going again. People on Earth have just the loss of signal > > and perhaps a sudden energy burst. > > > > How much would emergency communication equipment, where total loss is very > unlikely, cost? Such as you have 2 or 3 of them, they are stored in > seperate saves and are only assembeled when needed. You have some > dedicated batteries specifically for that. > > If you have that, and no one used the components to MacGyver something, as > long as a crew member is operational, you most likely will have a mayday.
According to the old VE rules, you need a BIG radio for deep space communications. An extreme-range, tight-beam radio has a nominal range of just ten million miles. Vacuum helps, and so do sensitive receivers. Realistically, you should get much better ranges with lower pulse repetition rates, and also with raw power instead of ever larger dishes. This power will be gone in the "total systems failure" scenario. So, emergency beepers, sure. But no replacement for the main dish. > Some component vital to the mission, but not vital to keep the ship > operational fails. A small supply craft that delivers a replacement might > be more ecconomical, then moving the mission ship. Even more so, if the > component is still operational, but a failure is imminent. A timely supply > might mean the mission does not need to be interrupted. A robotic supply vessel with extra reaction mass instead of a crew cabin. That can't be improvised. A regular manned ship gets loaded with extra reaction mass in the cargo hold plus drop tanks. Because it is improvised, you need a crew to pump reaction mass into the main tanks and to heave the empty tanks out. > A crew member might need to be removed from the craft. Maybe it is > injuries or a sickness, where the time of the rescue mission is survivable > but not the full mission time. Or the disabled crewmember now needs > additional resources (Some medical supply, where not enough is on board > for keeping the crew member going for the whole mission, diarrhoea or > similiar taxes life support systems, the crew member developed some mental > problem and now needs to be restrained (less a problem if you have cryo > chambers) ect.) I have cryonics, of course. > An other thing to consider would be that you could have a situation, where > you have multiple crafts operating in a limited area of a belt. More > likely with miners then with prospectors. Then safe for some of the total > loss of maneuver scenarios, you have more limited response times. The mothership gets a gaggle of little workbees and a few dedicated SAR bees. What other specialist models? Or just those two? Regards, Onno _______________________________________________ GurpsNet-L mailing list <[email protected]> http://mail.sjgames.com/mailman/listinfo/gurpsnet-l
