Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

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Jakelope13
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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by Jakelope13 »

Arioch wrote:The individual worlds have police frigates that are responsible for local patrol and law enforcement. These are limited by treaty as to size and number.
If the frigates are only available to the individual nations for local protection, does that mean they aren't equipped with an FTL drive? I'd imagine it'd be hard to convince the TCA why, say, Proxima might need a police force capable of patrolling Esperanza.

*EDIT*

Also, how large are the shipboard weapons, especially the Terran ones? Are the Heavy lasers/mass drivers restricted to the Cruiser-type vessels because of power requirements, or that they're too mass-intensive, and reduce the lighter warships armament too much to be an effective replacement?
Last edited by Jakelope13 on Fri Sep 20, 2013 6:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Murica
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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by Murica »

You said that the TCA marines have never invaded anyone have they seen any combat at all? Also I did some math and there is less then 200 million humans in the colonies has this caused tensions between the colonies and earth? I don't mean violent but would a nation on mars more willingly support a nation on aldea then one on earth?

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by Arioch »

Jakelope13 wrote:If the frigates are only available to the individual nations for local protection, does that mean they aren't equipped with an FTL drive? I'd imagine it'd be hard to convince the TCA why, say, Proxima might need a police force capable of patrolling Esperanza.
Most police frigates would have FTL drive. They'd need it to effectively patrol. A police force would be of limited effectiveness if you could safely evade them just by jumping to the next system. Also, most of these ships will be manufactured somewhere other than where they're deployed; the vast majority are constructed in the Sol system.
Jakelope13 wrote:Also, how large are the shipboard weapons, especially the Terran ones? Are the Heavy lasers/mass drivers restricted to the Cruiser-type vessels because of power requirements, or that they're too mass-intensive, and reduce the lighter warships armament too much to be an effective replacement?
The primary limitation on starship weaponry is power requirements. A typical frigate would look something like this:

Class: Frigate (FF)
Length: 180 m
Crew: 100
Screens: none
Max. Acceleration: 7 G
Armor Rating: 35
# in Class: 12
Weapon Mounts
02x1 Medium Laser
02x2 Point-Defense Laser
04 Missile Tubes
01 Anti-Missile Launcher
Murica wrote:You said that the TCA marines have never invaded anyone have they seen any combat at all? Also I did some math and there is less then 200 million humans in the colonies has this caused tensions between the colonies and earth? I don't mean violent but would a nation on mars more willingly support a nation on aldea then one on earth?
The Colonial Marines have been called in the help local authorities with emergencies, criminal/terrorist situations, bug hunts and the like.

Many of the colonial nations still need lots of support from Earth, and even those (Mars and Aldea) that have achieved a certain amount of self-sufficiency still have strong economic ties to Earth (where 90% of their potential customers live). Some may resent Earth's influence, but most conflicts have been local disputes. Many of the colonies are rivals. The potential war that the Colonial Fleet was founded to prevent was between Yinghuo (the largest Martian nation) and Aldea.

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by Murica »

Sorry if I'm asking to many questions but when you said 12 for number of frigates did you total or maximum or average

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by Arioch »

Murica wrote:Sorry if I'm asking to many questions but when you said 12 for number of frigates did you total or maximum or average
The entry was cut and pasted from my notes; I didn't realize the "# in Class" line was there.

There are 12 vessels in that particular class (Hayes). The total number of police frigates in service is probably around twice that number.

NOMAD
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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by NOMAD »

yay neat, Hayes Frigate ( names after someone again)

& Victory class BC's ????? would have been named for HMS Victory of Adm Nelson fame ?

edit ( dang spell checker)
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I am a wander, going from place to place without a home I am a NOMAD

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by saint of m »

Besides enemy bombardments, what sort of dangers would a terrain ship face in space?

Solar storms, meteors, space junk/debris, and other dangers that could arise?


The thought comes from a very real danger of fire mariners face today at sea, and es[ecialy for submarines which are in an inclosed space underwater.

Also, what would the ways be used to deal with such dangers?

Jakelope13
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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by Jakelope13 »

Arioch wrote:(...) Some may resent Earth's influence, but most conflicts have been local disputes. Many of the colonies are rivals. The potential war that the Colonial Fleet was founded to prevent was between Yinghuo (the largest Martian nation) and Aldea.
Did the individual nations on the colony worlds develop because of which Earthside nation launched the colonial expedition, or is it more like that the colonies are divided among individual city-states?

And is it only Mars that has nations, like Earth, or have all of the colony worlds been divvied up in the same fashion?

On a separate note, what happens if a Terran ship fires its mass driver weapons at a target and misses? Is there some kind of warhead built into the round that, after a set period of time, detonates, or does the round just... keep on going? I mean, sooner or later, that round is going to smack into something.

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by Arioch »

saint of m wrote:Besides enemy bombardments, what sort of dangers would a terrain ship face in space? Solar storms, meteors, space junk/debris, and other dangers that could arise?
Radiation from the Solar wind or planetary magnetic fields would be a concern, but I think any spacecraft would have to be designed to protect against such radiation; we can do that today, so I don't anticipate it being a problem. Military vessels are probably well-hardened against anything the Sun can put out, and civilian vessels may have "shelters" with extra shielding in which passengers can ride out a solar storm.

Fire is a concern, but I expect most things that make up a spacecraft will be engineered to be flame resistant.

Collision with any object is a serious concern, especially when system transit velocities can be up around 3,000 km/s. Radar detection of debris and proper traffic control will be very important in avoiding collisions.
Jakelope13 wrote:Did the individual nations on the colony worlds develop because of which Earthside nation launched the colonial expedition, or is it more like that the colonies are divided among individual city-states? And is it only Mars that has nations, like Earth, or have all of the colony worlds been divvied up in the same fashion?
Colonies will be sponsored by a wide variety of entities: Earth nation-states, corporations, private organizations, or private individuals. Some will have strong ties to Earth nations and/or cultures, and some will have no ties at all. Some will be commercial ventures, some will be national attempts at expansion, and some will be attempts at cultural or religious independence by minority groups. In this wild and woolly early phase of colonization, if you have the proper backing, you can go almost anywhere and set up a colony, but it's easiest to do so on one of the four established extra-solar colony planets. All four of these planets each have multiple colonies. Alpha, Proxima and Esperanza are administrated by a TCA Colonial governor, with each colonial settlement being essentially a sovereign nation; almost any unclaimed land can be colonized. The Aldean colonies federated together to form a planetwide government (which is a full TCA member), and so to settle on Aldea you must obtain specific permission from the Aldean government.
Jakelope13 wrote:On a separate note, what happens if a Terran ship fires its mass driver weapons at a target and misses? Is there some kind of warhead built into the round that, after a set period of time, detonates, or does the round just... keep on going? I mean, sooner or later, that round is going to smack into something.
Later more likely than sooner; a projectile could easily zing around a solar system for years, decades, or even millennia before it was swept up by large mass such as a planet. Or if the round had escape velocity, it might leave the solar system altogether.

Hopefully if there are projectiles launched in an inhabited system, someone will keep track of where they went and whether they present a hazard to navigation. But the vastness of space is such that I don't think it's that much of a worry.

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by fredgiblet »

How stable is the political situation on Earth in this timeframe?

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by pinheadh78 »

On the subject of what happens when a mass-driver round misses its target - I present the following from Mass Effect 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCoHT_cHPzY

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by Arioch »

fredgiblet wrote:How stable is the political situation on Earth in this timeframe?
Reasonably stable. There are always local tensions and conflicts, and every new generation always seems to think that the world is going to hell in a handbasket, but for the most part it is peaceful and prosperous. The news of the coming war surely has everyone on edge, but at the same time it has given them an incentive to cooperate.

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by Jakelope13 »

On the topic of weapons, what kind of lasers are the ships armed with? The sort of 'scarring-the-hull, cutting-armor-open, possibly-see-some-bubbling-at-edges' sort of lasers (akin to high-powered industrial laser cutting tools) or the kind of laser where there's enough power in the beam that, despite lasers seen as cutting or welding tools, the armor just explodes due to the sheer energy transfer?

And, on a somewhat related note, are the Scout ships essentially long-ranged frigates with beefed-up sensors?

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by Murica »

I remember hearing there were populations off these 6 worlds how large are these populations? Are they not even worth mentioning? Population wise

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by fredgiblet »

Murica wrote:I remember hearing there were populations off these 6 worlds how large are these populations? Are they not even worth mentioning? Population wise
The answers are in the beginning of this page.

http://well-of-souls.com/outsider/forum_terrans.html

Also, I haven't been there for a while. Re: Sagan

Image

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by Murica »

How big is the TSC? I'm taking military wise you already told us space based but what about the rest (ground troops, technicians, and other support personnel ? What is the percentage that goes to the fleet versus those that go for other careers?

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by Arioch »

Jakelope13 wrote:On the topic of weapons, what kind of lasers are the ships armed with? The sort of 'scarring-the-hull, cutting-armor-open, possibly-see-some-bubbling-at-edges' sort of lasers (akin to high-powered industrial laser cutting tools) or the kind of laser where there's enough power in the beam that, despite lasers seen as cutting or welding tools, the armor just explodes due to the sheer energy transfer?
Lasers heat the surface of the target; whether this cuts or causes an explosion would, I think, depend on the composition of the target.
Murica wrote:How big is the TSC? I'm taking military wise you already told us space based but what about the rest (ground troops, technicians, and other support personnel ? What is the percentage that goes to the fleet versus those that go for other careers?
By TSC do you mean the Scout Corps? It is large enough to crew, maintain, and support about 10 starships and operate a few outposts and training facilities. There are no Scout Corps ground troops.

If you're talking about the TCA, they have some administration and support people on the ground, and operate a number of bases and space stations, including the TCA Academy and the TCA HQ on Earth. Beyond the Fleet's Colonial Marines, and whatever security forces are in their few ground-based buildings, the TCA doesn't have any ground troops.

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by Jakelope13 »

What kind of trade goes on inbetween the worlds of Humanity? Is it mostly immigration (more people for the colonies), refined ore to processing facilities, or does each colony have their own production sites, and ship out finished products instead. For example, would there be a market for Proxima-built vehicles on Earth?

Since the TCA is restricted to interplanetary affairs, does that mean that they aren't allowed to interfere if a conflict arose between Yinghao and the AIC? And is there some form of physical boundary that the TCA are not allowed to cross (e.g. geostationary orbit, Low Planetary Orbit, or beyond the reach of natural satellites)?
Arioch wrote: Beyond the Fleet's Colonial Marines, and whatever security forces are in their few ground-based buildings, the TCA doesn't have any ground troops.
Would the Marines have any ground vehicles or, because they're a part of a space-going force, would they have a dedicated smallcraft, akin to a pinnace, for use in boarding actions or quelling a conflict that concerns TCA interests? (I'd assume such a pinnace would be capable of maneuvering within an atmosphere)

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by Arioch »

Jakelope13 wrote:What kind of trade goes on inbetween the worlds of Humanity? Is it mostly immigration (more people for the colonies), refined ore to processing facilities, or does each colony have their own production sites, and ship out finished products instead. For example, would there be a market for Proxima-built vehicles on Earth?
Many of the colonies are not self-sufficient, and require a constant stream of food and supplies from Earth (or elsewhere). A few colonies (such as those on Mars) were set up for industrial production, but most do not yet have significant local production and so also depend on imports for equipment and finished goods. Raw materials are most of what a typical colony exports. Some colonies are research-oriented and produce only science. A few were settled for political or ideological reasons, and don't export anything of value.

It's hard to imagine many colonies competing with the industrial might (extensive infrastructure and huge labor pool) of Earth. Where Mars would have an advantage would be in industrial processes that would be heavily regulated on Earth due to pollution or other concerns. And, being in the same system as Earth, Mars can benefit from Earth's extensive shipping infrastructure.
Jakelope13 wrote:Since the TCA is restricted to interplanetary affairs, does that mean that they aren't allowed to interfere if a conflict arose between Yinghao and the AIC? And is there some form of physical boundary that the TCA are not allowed to cross (e.g. geostationary orbit, Low Planetary Orbit, or beyond the reach of natural satellites)?
As with the US Federal vs. State authorities, jurisdiction has more to do with subject matter rather than location; if you commit certain types of crimes or cross state lines in the commission of a crime, then the Federal authorities gain jurisdiction. Similarly, the TCA can go after a den of interstellar pirates even if they're hiding in a ground base (though there may be issues of local sovereignty to navigate). Also, on a world that's still under the administration of a colonial governor, the governor can call for action against a colony that has violated its charter in some way. And any sovereign entity can voluntarily ask for a TCA intervention in their territory. But if two independent sovereign nations decide to have a ground war, it's not the TCA's business to interfere. Though the TCA does have ground installations in AIC territory (the TCA Aerospace Academy, for one), so in a hypothetical Yinghuo attack on AIC, the TCA could have some say in the matter.
Jakelope13 wrote: Would the Marines have any ground vehicles or, because they're a part of a space-going force, would they have a dedicated smallcraft, akin to a pinnace, for use in boarding actions or quelling a conflict that concerns TCA interests? (I'd assume such a pinnace would be capable of maneuvering within an atmosphere)
Sure, Colonial Marines would need shuttles, dropships, and armored fighting vehicles that can operate in and from space.

However, as the TCA has very little in the way of ground forces, most TCA action is in the form of trade sanctions. Nearly all of the colonies are heavily dependent on imports and/or exports, and so the threat of an embargo or blockade must be taken very seriously.

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Re: Miscellaneous Terran question-and-answer thread

Post by Murica »

How well armed are human ground troops in comparisons to lorii or umiak ? I mean its pretty obvious that a human soldiers gear isn't going to be as good as lorii but is it early 1800s vs 21st century or is it 1960s vs 21st century

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