TEXT: An e23 Sourcebook for GURPS
  ®
  STEVE JACKSON GAMES
  Stock #37-0126
  Version 1. 0 – January 2010
  ®
  Written by DAVID L. PULVER
  Edited by ANDY VETROMILE
  Editorial Assistance by JASON “PK” LEVINE
  Illustrated by MICHAEL BARRETT, DARRELL MIDGETTE,
  DAVID PLUNKETT, and DAN SMITH
  DIVERGENT AND PARANORMAL TECH
  TM
  
  CONTENTS
  2
  INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . 3
  Publication History . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
  About the Series. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
  About the Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
  About GURPS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
  1. SPACECRAFT DESIGN
  OPTIONS . . . . . . . . . . . 4
  SHIP DESIGN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
  Smaller Systems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
  Larger Systems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
  SYSTEM DESCRIPTIONS . . . . . . . . .5
  Armor, Wooden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
  Armor, Etherwood . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
  Armor, Adamant. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
  Armor, Skystone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
  Armor, Iron . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
  Armor, Orichalcum . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
  Armor, Structural Field . . . . . . . . . 7
  Digestive System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
  Ether Propulsion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
  Exophase Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
  Extradimensional Interface. . . . . . 8
  Habitat Options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
  Factory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
  Gasbag. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
  Helicopter Rotor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
  Holoprojector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
  Jet Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
  Lightspeed Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
  Magnetic Planetary Drive . . . . . . 11
  Maneuver Enhancement . . . . . . . 11
  Maw. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
  Maws and Other
  Melee Attacks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
  Ornithopter Wings . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
  Parachronic Flux and
  Time-Flux Drive. . . . . . . . . . . . 12
  Power Plant, Ether Furnace . . . . 13
  Power Plant, Magical. . . . . . . . . . 13
  Power Siphoning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
  Power Plant, Orgone . . . . . . . . . . 14
  Power Plant, Perpetual
  Motion Machine . . . . . . . . . . . 14
  Power Plant, Psychotronic . . . . . 15
  Power Plant, Solar Boiler . . . . . . 15
  Power Plant,
  Vacuum Energy. . . . . . . . . . . . 16
  Reaction Engine,
  Laser Rocket . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
  Reaction Engine, Plasma. . . . . . . 16
  Reaction Engine,
  Solar Thermal . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
  Sails, Radioisotope. . . . . . . . . . . . 17
  Sails, Tachyon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
  Sapient Brain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
  Small Upper Stage . . . . . . . . . . . 18
  Solar Mirror . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
  Tail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
  Weaponry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
  DESIGN FEATURES . . . . . . . . . . . .19
  DESIGN SWITCHES . . . . . . . . . . . .22
  Sealed Vessels at
  Low Tech Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
  Zombie Vehicle Spell . . . . . . . . . . . 25
  STATISTICS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25
  Crew. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
  Basic Statistics Block. . . . . . . . . . 25
  Air Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
  Boost Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
  2. TRAVEL AND
  COMBAT . . . . . . . . . . 26
  FANTASTIC COSMOLOGY . . . . . . . .26
  The Crystal Spheres . . . . . . . . . . . 26
  The Edge of the World. . . . . . . . . 26
  Hyperdynamic Cosmos . . . . . . . . 26
  Air-Filled Cosmos . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
  BOOST-DRIVE MOVEMENT . . . . . .27
  Travel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
  Basic Combat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
  Tactical Combat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
  Heliographs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
  PSEUDO-ATMOSPHERIC
  MOVEMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28
  Travel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
  Basic Combat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
  Tactical Combat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
  CONSUMABLES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29
  Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
  Supplies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
  Warheads. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
  WEAPONRY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
  3. FANTASTIC
  SPACECRAFT . . . . . . . 31
  MAGICAL SHIPS . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
  Star Galleon (TL4^) . . . . . . . . . . . 31
  Soul Slaver (TL3^) . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
  STEAMPUNK AND
  WEIRD-SCIENCE SHIPS . . . . .33
  Ether Steamship (TL5+2^) . . . . . 33
  Ether Ironclad (TL5+2^) . . . . . . . 33
  Psi-Jammer (TL11^) . . . . . . . . . . 34
  Operator-Class Reality
  Police Cruiser (TL12^) . . . . . . 35
  BIOSHIPS AND
  SPACE MONSTERS . . . . . . . . .35
  God Ship (TL3+4^) . . . . . . . . . . . 35
  Space Amoeba . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
  Space Whale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
  Tree Ship (TL10^) . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
  INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
  CONTENTS
  GURPS System Design T STEVE JACKSON
  GURPS Line Editor T SEAN PUNCH
  Managing Editor T PHILIP REED
  e23 Manager T STEVEN MARSH
  Page Design T PHIL REED and
  JUSTIN DE WITT
  Art Director T WILL SCHOONOVER
  Production Artist & Indexer T NIKOLA VRTIS
  Prepress Checker T MONICA STEPHENS
  Marketing Director T PAUL CHAPMAN
  Director of Sales T ROSS JEPSON
  GURPS FAQ Maintainer T –––––––
  VICKY “MOLOKH” KOLENKO
  Additional Material: Sean Punch, S. John Ross, William H. Stoddard, and Thomas Weigel
  Lead Playtester: Jeff Wilson
  Playtesters: Anthony Jackson, Ben Diedrich, Christopher R. Rice, Frederick Brackin, Kyle Bresin,
  Luis E. González Rico, Martin Heidemann, Roger Burton West, and Shawn Fisher
  Extra-special thanks to Kenneth Peters for playtest contributions above and beyond the call of duty.
  
  INTRODUCTION
  3
  Space travel doesn’t just mean rocket ships and warp
  drives.
  GURPS
  Spaceships
  7:
  Divergent
  and
  Paranormal Tech expands the GURPS Spaceships
  design rules with weird-and-wonderful systems, features,
  and switches. The seventh book in the series introduces
  magic, psi-tech, steam-tech, weird science, and giant
  space monsters!
  PUBLICATION HISTORY
  Rules for some shipboard systems are adapted from the
  GURPS Vehicles Expansion volumes, some of which drew
  on material that originated in GURPS Steampunk, GURPS
  Ultra-Tech, and GURPS Warehouse 23. Rules for zombie
  vehicles first appeared in GURPS Undead. Certain game
  mechanics for hulls and systems came from Vorkosigan Saga
  Sourcebook and Roleplaying Game.
  ABOUT THE
  AUTHOR
  David L. Pulver is a freelance writer and
  game designer based in Victoria, British
  Columbia. He is the co-author of the
  GURPS Basic Set Fourth Edition, and
  author of Transhuman Space, GURPS
  Spaceships, and numerous other gaming
  products.
  About the Series
  GURPS Spaceships 7: Divergent and Paranormal
  Tech is one of several books in the GURPS Spaceships
  series. This line supports GURPS Space campaigns by
  providing ready-to-use spacecraft descriptions and rules
  for space travel, combat, and operations. GMs need the
  core book, GURPS Spaceships, to use this book.
  GURPS, Warehouse 23, and the all-seeing pyramid are registered trademarks of Steve Jackson Games Incorporated. Pyramid, Divergent and Paranormal Tech, e23, and the names
  of all products published by Steve Jackson Games Incorporated are registered trademarks or trademarks of Steve Jackson Games Incorporated, or used under license.
  GURPS Spaceships 7: Divergent and Paranormal Tech is copyright © 2010 by Steve Jackson Games Incorporated. Some art © 2010 JupiterImages Corporation.
  All rights reserved.
  The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this material via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal,
  and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage
  the electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.
  INTRODUCTION
  I’ll soon be
  leaving for the
  planet Mongo, in
  a rocket-ship of
  my own design.
  – Dr. Zarkoff,
  Flash
  Gordon:
  Rocketship
  About GURPS
  Steve Jackson Games is committed to full support of GURPS players.
  Our address is SJ Games, P. O. Box 18957, Austin, TX 78760. Please include
  a self-addressed, stamped envelope (SASE) any time you write us! We can
  also be reached by e-mail: info@sjgames.com. Resources include:
  New supplements and adventures. GURPS continues to grow – see what’s
  new at www. sjgames.com/gurps.
  e23. Our e-publishing division offers GURPS adventures, play aids, and
  support in PDF form . . . digital copies of our books, plus exclusive mate-
  rial available only on e23! Just head over to e23.sjgames.com.
  Pyramid (www.sjgames.com/pyramid). Our monthly PDF magazine
  includes new rules and articles for GURPS, systemless locations, adven-
  tures, and much more. Look for each themed issue from e23!
  Internet. Visit us on the World Wide Web at www.sjgames.com for
  errata, updates, Q&A, and much more. To discuss GURPS with our staff
  and your fellow gamers, visit our forums at forums.sjgames.com. The web
  page for GURPS Spaceships 7: Divergent and Paranormal Tech is at
  www.sjgames.com/gurps/books/spaceships/spaceships7.
  Bibliographies. Many of our books have extensive bibliographies, and
  we’re putting them online – with links to let you buy the resources that inter-
  est you! Go to each book’s web page and look for the “Bibliography” link.
  Errata. Everyone makes mistakes, including us – but we do our best to
  fix our errors. Up-to-date errata pages for all GURPS releases, including this
  book, are available on our website – see above.
  Rules and statistics in this book are specifically for the GURPS Basic
  Set, Fourth Edition. Page references that begin with B refer to that book, not
  this one.
  
  Trailblazer was NASA’s first manned interplanetary space-
  ship. Designed in the high-mana labs in the New Mexico desert,
  then teleported piece by piece into orbit and carefully assembled,
  she would carry 17 humans and four mutant chimera to the Red
  Planet and back.
  Her drive was a VASIMR plasma rocket . . . but it was powered
  by a magical NEMA reactor. The nuclear-enhanced mana area it
  created not only heated the ship’s reaction mass, it provided a
  steady stream of oz particles the ship’s astromancers could draw
  upon to conjure up food, water, and other supplies while in deep
  space. That same power would also be tapped to teleport the explor-
  ers directly from Mars’ orbit to the planet’s surface and power a
  variety of exotic weapons if they ran into any trouble. After what
  happened to the mission to asteroid 272426 Choronzon, everyone
  knew space was not empty . . . nor particularly friendly.
  In theory, it would do the job. But no one had ever operated a
  NEMA reactor of this size before in space. The launch had been
  scrubbed six times already. Gremlins.
  This was the seventh attempt.
  The commander’s wife had sent him a fresh four-leaf clover
  that their daughter had found. NASA had paid to teleport it up. It
  was in his suit pocket, next to his heart.
  And they were nearing the end of the launch checklist . . .
  “Astrological forecast?”
  “All signs are positive.”
  “Warding?”
  “Shields up,” his co-pilot purred. “Sigils drawn and checked.”
  “Demonic activity?”
  “Negative. Looks like our exorcism worked.”
  “Affirmative.” Filling the reaction-mass tanks with essential
  hydrogen had seemed like a dumb idea, but it cured their gremlin
  problems and boosted their delta-V.
  “NEMA reactor status?” That was the big one. But if the grem-
  lins were gone . . .
  “Nominal. Oz particle count is log 2.5 and rising. All penta-
  grams in the core are holding.” Some excitement crept into the
  engineer’s laconic drawl. “We have very high mana in the core,
  commander. Feed me some mass and let’s hit the road!”
  “Houston, this is Trailblazer,” the commander signaled. “We
  are good to go for Mars!”
  This chapter describes new systems and design options that
  can create out-of-the-ordinary spaceships. Some use super-
  science or divergent technology; others are quite realistic.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  4
  CHAPTER ONE
  SPACECRAFT
  DESIGN OPTIONS
  SHIP DESIGN
  An ordinary spacecraft design is made of 20 systems. Further
  customization is possible with rules for off-size systems.
  SMALLER SYSTEMS
  Shipbuilders often need to cram several components into a
  small space. Since each step up in hull SM roughly represents
  a tripling of loaded mass, there’s an easy way to squeeze mul-
  tiple, inferior systems into the same location: Use the stats for
  hardware for a vessel one SM smaller, and install three systems
  in the same amount of space.
  A few systems require special treatment:
  Armor or Force Screens: Use 1/3 the dDR or reflected dam-
  age dice of the full-size system (and 1/3 the lift of armor sys-
  tems that provide contragravity lift). It’s very inefficient to
  spread a smaller ship’s defenses over a larger vessel!
  Banned Systems: A smaller exophase field, helicopter rotor,
  lightspeed drive, ornithopter wings, stasis web, stardrive, or
  soft-landing system can’t be used with a larger ship. At least,
  not successfully.
  Contragravity Lifters: These produce one-third the G (round
  to one decimal place).
  Control Room or Sapient Brain: Since this also represents the
  spaceship’s attitude thrusters, gyros, etc., a vessel with a smaller
  system additionally has a -1 penalty to Handling and Stability
  Rating. If a sapient brain is smaller, apply a further -2 to DX.
  External Clamp: A smaller external clamp can only be
  attached to things that are at least three SM smaller than the
  vehicle. (A full-size clamp has no SM limits.)
  Factory: Smaller factory systems do not provide a HT bonus.
  Fuel Tanks, Sails, Drives, or Engines: Use 1/3 the delta-V
  reserve of a smaller fuel tank and 1/3 the acceleration of a
  smaller engine or sail. A scaled-down ramscoop can only pro-
  vide unlimited fuel to a smaller thruster. When using the
  Delta-V Increase Table (GURPS Spaceships, p. 17), smaller
  tanks count as only one-third of a tank; round fractions down.
  
  Power: Smaller power plants do not provide sufficient
  power for normal-size systems, but they can power another
  scaled-down system sharing the same location.
  In addition, some systems can be half-size at half cost:
  • Cargo holds (halve capacity).
  • Factories (halve output).
  • Fuel tanks (halve delta-V reserve, count as a half-tank for
  delta-V increase).
  • Habitats (halve cabin-equivalents).
  • Mining and refinery systems (halve output).
  • Open spaces (halve areas).
  • Passenger seating (halve seats).
  • Power plants (fusion and antimatter only – halve Power
  Points).
  LARGER SYSTEMS
  While it’s more common to cram in smaller systems, some-
  times a small ship needs a big gun – or a device that isn’t nor-
  mally available at its size. A system that’s one SM larger occupies
  three times its usual number of locations, and has the statistics
  of a system for a larger ship. (Three high-energy systems used to
  make up a larger system require three Power Points.)
  One class of systems requires special treatment:
  Defenses: Use twice the dDR or reflected damage dice of the
  original system.
  Other components that might have additional effects are
  better handled by using three normal-size components, since
  scaling has already been determined.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  5
  SYSTEM DESCRIPTIONS
  These are additional systems that can be built into space-
  craft, as detailed in GURPS Spaceships (p. 9). The cost and
  other statistics vary according to the spacecraft’s hull SM, as
  indicated in the tables in this section.
  ARMOR, WOODEN
  (TL0) [HULL]
  Wood is a natural composite material with a high strength-
  to-weight ratio. This represents ordinary wood (in contrast to
  the more exotic organic armor in GURPS Spaceships). Wood
  dDR is treated as semi-ablative vs. burning or corrosion damage.
  Wooden Armor Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10*
  +11*
  +12*
  +13*
  +14*
  +15*
  US dDR
  1
  1
  2
  2
  3
  4
  5
  6
  7
  10
  15
  SL dDR
  0
  1
  1
  1
  2
  3
  3
  4
  5
  7
  10
  Cost ($)
  2K
  6K
  20K
  60K
  200K
  600K
  2M
  6M
  20M
  60M
  200M
  * Structural limitations mean that ordinary wood cannot be used on vessels larger than SM +9.
  Repair Skill: Carpentry.
  The core of our defense is the faith
  we have in the institutions we defend.
  – Franklin D. Roosevelt
  ARMOR, ETHERWOOD
  (TL1^) [HULL]
  Etherwood is a tough wood that has innate contragravity
  properties. It may be hard to find. Perhaps it grows in the sky
  forests of Venus or Jupiter’s atmosphere, or can be found only in
  great trees that sprout from comets in the outer solar system!
  Maybe it has a mystical origin, springing from seeds of the pri-
  mal world-tree that supports the heavens, or is imported from
  the aerial forests of the sky elves in the elemental plane of air.
  Wherever it came from, it has special capabilities. In addi-
  tion to serving as armor, every etherwood system provides the
  vessel with 1/3G of lift. If the lift of etherwood exceeds the plan-
  etary gravity, the vessel flies as if it had contragravity lifters
  (save for the lower lift and lack of power consumption).
  Etherwood dDR is treated as semi-ablative vs. burning or
  corrosion damage. Due to the vast size that etherwood trees
  can grow and the innate antigravity properties, it does not have
  the structural limitations of ordinary wood. Etherwood vessels
  can have any hull size.
  Etherwood Armor Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  US dDR
  1
  1
  2
  2
  3
  4
  5
  6
  7
  10
  15
  SL dDR
  0
  1
  1
  1
  2
  3
  3
  4
  5
  7
  10
  Cost ($)
  10K
  30K
  100K
  300K
  1M
  3M
  10M
  30M
  100M
  300M
  1B
  Repair Skill: Carpentry.
  
  ARMOR, ADAMANT
  (TL2^) [HULL]
  Many fantasy craft are made of “crystal.” Adamant repre-
  sents this: a material far tougher than ordinary stone, yet
  easily fabricated (magically or otherwise) into armor mate-
  rial. Earth enchanted by the Essential Earth spell (GURPS
  Magic, p. 53) and turned to stone is treated as adamant.
  Adamant is semi-ablative: It loses 1 dDR for every 10 points
  of d-damage it resists (see Semi-Ablative, p. B47).
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  6
  Adamant Armor Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  US dDR
  1
  2
  3
  5
  7
  10
  15
  20
  30
  50
  70
  SL dDR
  no
  1
  2
  3
  5
  7
  10
  15
  20
  30
  50
  Cost ($)
  10K
  30K
  100K
  300K
  1M
  3M
  10M
  30M
  100M
  300M
  1B
  Repair Skill: Armoury (Vehicle Armor).
  ARMOR, SKYSTONE
  (TL2^) [HULL]
  This is an arcane crystal that combines the properties of
  etherwood and adamant. It might originate in rare meteorites
  or asteroids, or be quarried from the quintessence of the crys-
  tal spheres that separate the heavenly bodies. Perhaps it is
  made from petrified air elements or fossilized dragon bone.
  Maybe it’s the very substance of heaven brought to Earth. It
  has as much lifting ability as etherwood (1/3G per system) but
  is far tougher. Like adamant it is semi-ablative, losing 1 dDR
  for every 10 points of d-damage resisted. The contragravity lift
  of skystone and etherwood are cumulative.
  Skystone Armor Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  US dDR
  1
  2
  3
  5
  7
  10
  15
  20
  30
  50
  70
  SL dDR
  no
  1
  2
  3
  5
  7
  10
  15
  20
  30
  50
  Cost ($)
  20K
  60K
  200K
  600K
  2M
  6M
  20M
  60M
  200M
  600M
  2B
  Repair Skill: Armoury (Vehicle Armor).
  ARMOR, IRON (TL5) [HULL]
  This is riveted iron plate. It is somewhat less protective than the high-grade steel described in GURPS Spaceships. It may also
  be available at TL2-4 but is significantly more expensive, costing at least five times as much.
  Iron Armor Table
  SM
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  US dDR
  1
  2
  3
  5
  7
  10
  15
  20
  30
  50
  SL dDR
  1
  1
  2
  3
  5
  7
  10
  15
  20
  30
  Cost ($)
  12K
  40K
  120K
  400K
  1.2M
  4M
  12M
  40M
  120M
  400M
  Repair Skill: Armoury (Vehicle Armor).
  ARMOR, ORICHALCUM (TL2^) [HULL]
  A legendary metal with triple the strength of the strongest bronze. It can also represent various other super-strong fantasy metals.
  Orichalcum Armor Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  US dDR
  4
  6
  9
  12
  18
  25
  40
  60
  90
  120
  180
  SL dDR
  3
  4
  6
  9
  12
  18
  25
  40
  60
  90
  120
  Cost ($)
  50K
  150K
  500K
  1.5M
  5M
  15M
  50M
  150M
  500M
  1.5B
  5B
  Repair Skill: Armoury (Vehicle Armor).
  My grandfather swore it was the
  skystone that made the difference.
  – Varrus, The Skystone
  
  DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
  (TL7) [ANY!]
  This is an internal bay equipped with specialized features:
  crushers, melting furnaces, digestive super-acids, or something
  similar. When activated, anything held inside (up to its rated
  capacity) takes the indicated damage; spacecraft suffer this to
  each hull section simultaneously.
  If a digestive system is placed in a hull location, it can also
  function as a hangar bay and cargo hold (although its capacity
  is lower, as shown below). If placed in a core location it can
  carry cargo, but to access it there must be a hangar bay, cargo
  bay, or maw system in the same hull section.
  Specify the type of damage the bay inflicts per space com-
  bat turn: burning, crushing, cutting, or corrosion. For example,
  a ship inside an SM +10 crushing disposal bay takes 4d+2 dam-
  age to the front, central, and rear hulls. High-TL bays also
  apply an armor divisor. Cutting or burning get a (2) armor divi-
  sor at TL9, (3) at TL10, (5) at TL11, and (10) at TL12.
  Corrosion ignores armor dDR at TL12^. This damage is d-
  scale; characters who have the misfortune to be caught in such
  a bay take 10 ¥ damage.
  The damage assumes a 20-second turn. Multiply the dam-
  age (after subtracting DR) by three for a 1-minute turn, 10 for
  a 3-minute turn, or 30 for a 10-minute turn.
  To use the system, objects must enter, be placed, or be
  pulled (via robot arms, tractor beam, or by being swallowed via
  a maw) into the digestive system. After material has been
  destroyed the system can expel the processed residue or direct
  it into a refinery, fuel tank, mass driver engine, total conversion
  power plant, etc.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  7
  ETHER PROPULSION
  (TL^) [HULL!]
  These interact with the ether (see Etheric Cosmos and
  Ether Drives, p. 22), stealing momentum and energy from light.
  For a minor variation in technobabble, substitute the term
  “astral” and assume the drive interacts with flow of extra-
  planar astral energies.
  All ether or astral propulsion systems work like reactionless
  drives, although the boost-drive design switch (p. 23) is a com-
  mon modification.
  Ether Oars (TL^): Each system produces an acceleration
  of 0.1G. Ether oars do not use Power Points, they require
  manual operation by the number of crew members indicated
  below. To propel the ship they must constantly row, moving
  the oar-like vanes to interact with the surrounding ethereal
  medium. They cannot be used on craft greater than SM +7.
  Crew manning the oars must be in passenger seating in the
  same hull section as the oars.
  Ether Screw (or Ether Flukes) (TL^): This electromechanical
  propeller- or rotor-like device churns the ether, offering 0.2G
  acceleration per system. Each is a high-energy system that
  requires one Power Point. Alternately, ether screws can be
  defined as “ether flukes” representing fin-like devices used to
  propel a biological space beast.
  Ether Sail (TL^): This functions like an ether screw but
  slower, limited to 0.1G. However, it does not require Power
  Points, drawing energy entirely from the ether. Unlike space
  sails they do not cover many square miles, and they resemble
  normal seagoing masts and rigging in size. They might even be
  normal equipment made from eldritch substances (cloth spun
  by the giant moon spiders, etc.). They are exposed systems and
  are targeted as if they were radiator wings. Vessels that sail in
  air or space can include an “ether keel” or similar device to let
  them maneuver freely (unlike realistic space sails).
  ARMOR, STRUCTURAL FIELD (TL11^) [HULL!]
  This is armor made of unstable exotic matter reinforced by energy fields. Unlike other armor, it has a Power Point requirement.
  If a structural field armor system ever loses power, the armor itself is destroyed, losing its dDR.
  Structural Field Armor Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  US dDR
  30
  50
  70
  100
  150
  200
  300
  500
  700
  1,000
  1,500
  SL dDR
  20
  30
  50
  70
  100
  150
  200
  300
  500
  700
  1,000
  Cost ($)
  1M
  3M
  10M
  30M
  100M
  300M
  1B
  3B
  10B
  30B
  100B
  Repair Skill: Armoury (Vehicle Armor and Force Shields).
  Digestive System Table
  SM
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Capacity (tons)
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  1,000
  3,000
  10K
  30K
  d-Damage
  2d+2
  3d
  3d+2
  4d
  4d+2
  5d
  5d+2
  6d
  6d+2
  7d
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  100K
  300K
  1M
  3M
  10M
  30M
  100M
  300M
  1B
  3B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Vehicle Type).
  Crushing bays are half cost.
  
  Powered Ether Sails (TL5+2^): These are ether sails aug-
  mented by additional power, allowing them to extend force
  fields farther into ether space. They require one Power Point
  and have 0.3G acceleration. Like ether sails, this is an exposed
  system not protected by armor.
  The drive’s interactions with the ether can produce exotic
  visual effects. For example, iridescent wakes and shadowy lees
  may follow etheric vessels across the sky; the craft’s shadow
  becomes a black, tapering cone surrounded by a rust-colored
  fringe. (Add +2 to rolls to detect the vessel with passive sen-
  sors). In engineering or habitat spaces, interior lights may
  become red-shifted when the drive is operating (perhaps neces-
  sitating ultraviolet lighting aboard the vessel).
  Like reactionless engines, ether propulsion can be used in
  atmosphere unless the GM rules otherwise. If the GM does not
  want ether propulsion to be useful for atmospheric thrust, he
  can restrict them to functioning in thin air, at high altitudes, in
  vacuum, etc.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  8
  Ether Propulsion Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Oar crew
  2
  6
  20
  –
  –
  –
  –
  –
  –
  –
  –
  Cost ($)
  30K
  100K
  300K
  1M
  3M
  10M
  30M
  100M
  300M
  1B
  3B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Reactionless Drive).
  Halve cost for oars; double cost for sails; triple cost for powered ether sails.
  EXOPHASE FIELD (^) [ANY!]
  This allows a spacecraft to go out of phase with reality, per-
  haps shifting into an adjacent dimension or level of hyper-
  space. Everything in an exophase field enters an insubstantial
  state – one that has only limited interactions with ordinary
  matter and energy. Exophase fields can be explained as moving
  a ship into a parallel universe, altering its subatomic structure,
  or turning it into an odd form of “dark matter.”
  The ship is affected normally by gravity and by graviton or
  tractor beam weapons. Other physical and energy attacks can-
  not harm it (nor can it harm others). An exophased ship is also
  vulnerable to psionic and nonmaterial magical attacks.
  It can pass through solid matter, provided it can escape its
  gravity. It cannot rematerialize inside a solid object; attempt-
  ing to do so prevents materialization. If the system is depow-
  ered while inside a solid object the spacecraft is destroyed,
  disintegrating in the other dimension while leaving the solid
  object unharmed.
  The field’s outline is
  visible as a ghost-image
  across
  the
  electromag-
  netic spectrum – this is a
  side effect of whatever keeps it anchored in reality. A ship using
  an exophase field is invisible to active sensors, but remains visi-
  ble to passive sensors at a -8 penalty to detection. It uses its own
  passive sensors at -8 and detects communication signals at the
  same penalty, but it cannot use active sensors or communica-
  tions. The ship can interact normally with other ships using
  exophase fields, however! Whether they can affect (or be
  affected by) someone who has the Insubstantiality advantage
  depends on the form of Insubstantiality.
  An exophased ship cannot pass through a force field that
  stops solid objects or uses the reality-stabilized variant. The
  GM may rule that certain other materials, energy barriers, or
  magic spells are impenetrable to exophased craft.
  Only objects within the exophase can be carried. Objects
  released from it materialize.
  EXTRADIMENSIONAL
  INTERFACE (TL12^)
  [CORE!!]
  The spacecraft is larger inside than on the outside! Hull size
  of the vessel refers to the extradimensional hull. Thus, an SM
  +5 ship has an extradimensional mass of 30 tons but it appears
  much smaller!
  The system reduces the effective SM of the vehicle for the
  purposes of external access (doors, etc.) to it, attacking it, or
  detecting it; and its effective mass and volume when storing
  or holding it. The craft is reduced by -4 SM per system. For
  example, installing two systems reduces the external SM by
  -8. A lesser reduction can be specified if desired when the ves-
  sel is created.
  A ship with an extradimensional interface cannot have ram-
  scoops, solar panel arrays, reaction engines, hot reactionless
  thrusters, or any type of sails (e.g., lightsails or ether sails). Its
  weapon batteries cannot have guns or missile launchers, and
  any beam weapons must use the energy-phasing surface
  option. Otherwise, all systems can operate normally.
  The destruction of the dimensional interface component
  can result in the vessel being trapped in the other dimension or
  destroyed (GM’s option).
  Exophase Field Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  20M
  50M
  100M
  200M
  500M
  1B
  2B
  5B
  10B
  20B
  50B
  Repair Skill: Electronics Repair (Parachronic).
  
  FACTORY (TL5) [ANY!]
  This is an industrial system capable of manufac-
  turing goods from appropriate components. Two
  additional types of factories (GURPS Spaceships,
  p. 16) are available:
  Factory Shop (TL5): This facility must be dedi-
  cated toward manufacturing goods of a specific engi-
  neering skill and specialization. Use the statistics for
  a fabricator but reduce the production speed from
  $/hour to $/week and divide the cost by 10.
  Production Line (TL6): This factory must be dedi-
  cated to building a single product. Use the statistics
  for a fabricator but reduce the production speed
  from $/hour to $/day and divide the cost by five.
  Any TL8+ factory system (fabricator, production
  line, etc.) can be designated a bio-tech facility that
  makes vat-grown products (in accord with its TL). At
  TL9+ a production line can even represent an artifi-
  cial womb that, in conjunction with other appropri-
  ate design switches, gestates a baby spaceship (see
  Maturing Living Ship, p. 23).
  GASBAG (TL5*) [HULL]
  This is a membrane filled with lighter-than-air
  gas, such as a hydrogen or helium balloon. A gasbag
  is rated for its tons of lift.
  The Lift row of the Gasbag Table (p. 10) shows the
  tons of lift per gasbag. A spacecraft needs lift greater
  than its weight to rise (usually four gasbag systems).
  Lifting Gas (TL5): The
  gasbag
  is
  filled
  with
  hydrogen or helium. The
  differences are minimal
  in GURPS Spaceships
  terms. Large quantities of
  helium are difficult to
  acquire at TL5-6; hydro-
  gen is flammable, and
  hydrogen-filled gasbags
  are considered volatile
  systems if damaged when
  operating in an oxygen
  atmosphere.
  Antigravity Gas (TL^): Weird science gases provide
  lift beyond that possible for buoyancy alone: 10 times
  the lift of hydrogen is typical. The origin is up to the
  GM. Destructive distillation of some natural antigrav-
  ity material is a logical source, but exposure to
  radioactivity and the action of acid on “unobtainium”
  metals are also popular.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  9
  Extradimensional Interior Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  10M
  30M
  100M
  300M
  1B
  3B
  10B
  30B
  100B
  300B
  1T
  Repair Skill: Electronics Repair (Parachronic).
  Habitat Options
  These are modifications to habitat systems (GURPS
  Spaceships, p. 17).
  Magical Life Support
  In settings where enchantment exists, a habitat can use magic
  to provide life support. This is practical in an abundant-magic
  setting where the expense of upgrading items with self-powered
  Create Air and Create Water spells (using the Power spell) is low
  enough to factor into the ordinary cost of a habitat system. If
  magical life support is used a habitat has greater room, since it
  can omit some machinery. This allows twice the normal number
  of cabin equivalents. However, this benefit does not extend to
  steerage cargo, minifacs, teleport projectors, or hibernation sys-
  tems, so they also take up twice as many cabin equivalents.
  (Thus, the ship doesn’t gain an advantage when using those
  rooms). For cargo, it means that each unused cabin equivalent
  gives 2. 5 tons cargo, which works out to the same amount, as a
  ship gets twice the cabin equivalents.
  Additional Tech Level Restrictions
  If creating lower-TL ship designs, minifacs are unavailable
  before TL8 and automeds before TL9.
  Craft Shops
  These rooms can be placed in habitats (GURPS Spaceships,
  p. 18). The number of cabin equivalents taken up are shown in
  parentheses as usual.
  Craft Shops (2): This is a workspace and a set of tools and spare
  parts for use with a particular skill, most commonly a craft or
  repair skill like: Artist, Armoury, Carpentry, Cooking, Electrician,
  Electronics Repair, Explosives, First Aid, Hazardous Materials,
  Housekeeping, Leatherworking, Machinist, Mechanic, Photogra-
  phy, Prospecting, Sewing, Smith, and Veterinary. A craft shop
  gives a +2 equipment bonus for the skill; 10 shops provide +3; 100
  create a state-of-the-art facility with +TL/2 bonus (minimum +4).
  A shop contains space and equipment for three people to work at
  once and enough resources to count as basic equipment for any
  related craft or science as well. Shops for arts and crafts that use
  fewer or lighter tools (e.g., painting or sewing) take up half the
  space (one cabin-equivalent).
  Passenger Seating and
  Magical Life Support
  Passenger seating benefits from the same enchantments
  described above in Magical Life Support. In an abundant-magic
  setting, replacing their limited life support systems with magical
  equivalents doubles the number of seats accommodated.
  
  HELICOPTER ROTOR
  (TL7*) [HULL]
  This is a set of rotor blades and a transmission for vertical
  takeoff and landing. The blades fold up or lock into rigid
  air foils during any high-speed maneuvers (e.g., when a
  streamlined ship reenters atmosphere). It is only usable in an
  environment with at least 0.1 atmospheres of pressure. Ships
  can install one or two systems; each requires one Power
  Point. A single rotor provides an air speed of 200 mph if
  streamlined or 80 mph if not. Two rotor systems increase this
  to 250 mph or 100 mph. This is not cumulative with air per-
  formance provided by other systems.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  10
  JET ENGINE
  (TL7) [HULL]
  In addition to the jet engines detailed in GURPS
  Spaceships, the following types are available:
  Turbofan (TL7): A turbofan is a jet engine with an added fan
  that increases the air flow to improve thrust and fuel efficiency.
  However, it cannot operate at hypersonic speeds. Maximum air
  speed is 2,000 mph. Each engine provides 0.5G acceleration for
  calculating atmospheric speed, and consumes one fuel tank
  worth of jet fuel per hour (TL7) or two hours (TL8+).
  Afterburning Turbofan (TL7): As above, but fitted with a
  reheat system that can augment the thrust by squirting raw
  fuel into the exhaust, providing a temporary burst of speed at
  the expense of greatly increased fuel consumption. It has the
  same normal performance as a turbofan, but the acceleration
  is multiplied by 1.5 when the afterburner is used (increasing
  top speed). This quadruples fuel consumption, using one fuel
  tank every 15 minutes (TL7) or half-hour (TL8).
  Fission Air-Ram (TL7): This engine uses a fission reactor to
  operate a turbofan that sucks in air, heating and expelling it for
  thrust. It operates two years on an internal nuclear fuel supply.
  The exhaust is slightly radioactive. Each air-ram produces 0.2G
  (TL7), 0.4G (TL8), or 0.6G (TL9+) acceleration for calculating
  atmospheric speed.
  Fusion Air-Ram (TL10): This sucks in air, heats it using a
  fusion reaction, then expels it as reaction mass. It operates five
  years on an internal fuel supply. The weight includes a high-
  efficiency fusion reactor that serves only to power the engine.
  Each air-ram produces 0.2G acceleration for calculating
  atmospheric speed.
  Gasbag Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10*
  +11*
  +12*
  +13*
  +14*
  +15*
  Lift
  9
  30
  90
  300
  900
  3,000
  9,000
  30k
  90K
  300K
  900K
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  50K
  100K
  200K
  500K
  1M
  2M
  5M
  10M
  20M
  50M
  100M
  * Lifting gas on SM +10 or larger spacecraft requires superscience.
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Lighter-Than-Air).
  Multiply cost by five for antigravity gas.
  Helicopter Rotor Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7*
  +8*
  +9*
  +10*
  +11*
  +12*
  +13*
  +14*
  +15*
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  100K
  300K
  1M
  3M
  10M
  30M
  100M
  300M
  1B
  3B
  10B
  * Rotors are TL7 on vessels of up to SM +6. On craft of SM +7 or higher they require superscience, and are TL7^.
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Helicopter).
  HOLOPROJECTOR (TL10^) [HULL]
  This is a superscience holographic system that projects an image around the spacecraft to visually disguise it as anything of the
  same, or one higher, SM. For example, an SM +5 spacecraft could appear as an SM +6 house.
  Holoprojector Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  60K
  200K
  600K
  2M
  6M
  20M
  60M
  200M
  600M
  2B
  6B
  Repair Skill: Electronics Repair (Media).
  I want you to get out of this part of
  space and back home just as fast as
  you can.
  – Michael Garibaldi,
  Babylon 5 #5.15
  
  LIGHTSPEED DRIVE
  (TL^) [ANY!]
  This drive permits the spacecraft to accelerate instantly to
  the speed of light and move through space in a direct path until
  it intersects a large gravity well (usually in proximity to a star
  or planet). At that point it drops back to the speed and course
  it had when it activated the lightspeed drive.
  Thus, this is not a faster-than-light stardrive – a journey
  across 100 light-years takes 100 years of real time. However, no
  subjective time at all passes aboard the vessel, since it is mov-
  ing at light speed. Optionally, close passage to celestial bodies
  can warp its path without deactivating the drive. A successful
  Navigation (Space) roll (aided by good star charts) ensures the
  drive deactivates at the correct point; a mistake under- or over-
  shoots its destination by many light-years. Vessels moving with
  a lightspeed drive are treated as a beam of weakly interacting
  particles (analogous to neutrinos) so they pass through other
  objects, interstellar dust, etc. without ill effect. Speed is equal
  to the speed of light.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  11
  Jet Engine Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  200K
  600K
  2M
  6M
  20M
  60M
  200M
  600M
  2B
  6B
  20B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (either Aerospace or Jet Engines).
  Multiply cost by 1.5 for afterburning turbofan, by two for fission air-ram, or by five for fusion air-ram.
  Lightspeed Drive
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  300K
  1M
  3M
  10M
  30M
  100M
  300M
  1B
  3B
  10B
  30B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Stardrive).
  MAGNETIC PLANETARY
  DRIVE (TL9^) [SPECIAL!]
  A popular system for flying saucers, this propels the
  vehicle via interactions with a star or planet’s magnetic
  field – it’s essentially a superscience magnetic levitation
  device. Each system provides 0.5G (TL9), 1G (TL10), or
  2G (TL11+) acceleration, but is also a high-energy system
  requiring one Power Point. The drive must be installed in
  a core system or the rear hull.
  The drive only works if the craft is within the magnetosphere
  of worlds with strong magnetic fields. In our solar system, the
  Sun, Earth, Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn,
  Uranus, and Neptune have strong
  magnetic fields (that extend up into
  the orbital space around them); the
  other planets and most smaller bod-
  ies (such as the moon) do not. The
  drive can cause odd electromagnetic
  effects beneath it. Headlights blink
  out, instruments (particularly mag-
  netic compasses) react wildly, etc. The
  effect is unpredictable; it happens whenever the GM wants it to
  and does whatever he likes. It is +4 to be detected by any senses
  that detect magnetic fields.
  Magnetic Planetary Drive Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  20K
  60K
  200K
  600K
  2M
  6M
  20M
  60M
  200M
  600M
  2B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Reactionless Drive).
  MANEUVER ENHANCEMENT (TL6) [HULL]
  Maneuver enhancement represents mass devoted to aerodynamic control systems, and structural strengthening to facilitate
  high-g maneuvers in a planetary atmosphere. Each system installed adds +1 to air performance Handling.
  Maneuver Enhancement Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  50K
  150K
  500K
  1.5M
  5M
  15M
  50M
  150M
  500M
  1.5B
  5B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Aerospace).
  
  MAW (TL8) [FRONT HULL]
  This is a powered jaw and mouth, which can deliver a
  bite attack, swallow food, etc. An ordinary mechanical jaw
  inflicts thrust-1 crushing damage; when attacking space-
  craft, this converts to d-damage (divide by 10). For +50%
  cost, a maw inflicts cutting damage instead of crushing.
  If a digestive system or hangar bay is in the same section
  as the maw, a successful attack allows the ship to swallow
  whole anything small enough to fit in that system. The
  swallowed object is moved to that location.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  12
  Maws and Other Melee Attacks
  Melee attacks using systems such as a maw, robot arms,
  or a tail are not intended for space combat, but can be
  employed in regular GURPS combat if the GM is using ves-
  sels designed with these rules; see When Not to Use These
  Rules (GURPS Spaceships, p. 50) and Weapons in Ordinary
  Combat (GURPS Spaceships, p. 66). Convert from d-scale
  to ordinary scale where appropriate.
  Maw Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  30K
  100K
  300K
  1M
  3M
  10M
  30M
  100M
  300M
  1B
  3B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Robotics or Mecha).
  ORNITHOPTER WINGS
  (TL5+2) [HULL!]*
  This is a set of motors and actuators for powered, flapping
  wings. A vessel given ornithopter wings must be given the
  winged design feature (GURPS Spaceships, p. 30). Each sys-
  tem provides 0.25G acceleration in atmosphere only, and adds
  +1 to Handling in the air. A ship using ornithopter wings can-
  not exceed a top air speed of 500 mph.
  * Ornithopter wings can only be installed in the central hull.
  PARACHRONIC FLUX
  AND TIME-FLUX
  DRIVE (TL^) [ANY!!]
  These superscience drives allow a spacecraft to travel in
  time or other dimensions. Each flux drive is a high-energy sys-
  tem requiring two Power Points to operate. For both drives, the
  GM uses the operating procedures of a probability drive (see
  Jump Drive Variations, GURPS Spaceships, p. 41). That is, a
  Navigation skill roll is required, at a penalty (typically -10) if
  the destination is unknown; failure sends the vessel some-
  where else and disables it until it is repaired.
  Time-Flux Drive: This device lets the vehicle travel any dis-
  tance into the past and/or future, subject to whatever limita-
  tions the GM imposes on time travel to manage paradoxes.
  The user must set specific temporal coordinates, e.g., “200
  years, 27 days, three hours, 17 seconds into the past.”
  The device transports the vehicle to that time, though it does
  not move in space relative to the surface of the Earth (or the
  nearest other large mass). That is, the drive corrects automati-
  cally for planetary rotation, orbit, stellar movement, and so on.
  Parachronic Flux Drive: This system is identical in statistics
  to the time flux drive, but permits travel only to alternate par-
  allel worlds (like a parachronic conveyer).
  Flux drives can also have either or both of these options:
  Speed-Limited: The vehicle is not instantly transported
  through time. Instead, it moves the vehicle out of conventional
  time/space and enters a hyperdimension (similar to hyperspace)
  where it travels forward or backward through the timestream. If
  this is a time flux drive, the speed in years per hour is equal to
  the number of flux systems installed. (Cutting the power drops
  the vehicle out of the timestream at whatever date it has
  reached.) If it is a parachronic flux drive, use “para-years”: the
  number of years since the destination reality diverged from the
  reality the vehicle presently occupies, plus any extra time travel.
  Ornithopter Wing Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  150K
  500K
  1.5M
  5M
  15M
  50M
  150M
  500M
  1.5B
  5B
  15B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Heavy Airplane).
  The craft became a full ’thopter
  as the Duke banked it, holding the
  wings to a gentle beat, pointing
  with his left hand off to the east
  beyond the factory crawler.
  – Frank Herbert, Dune
  
  For example, a trip from our 2006 to the 2006 of a world where
  things deviated in the year 1916 has a divergence distance of 90
  para-years. For a vehicle equipped to travel through time and
  between parallel worlds, if the journey also involves travel in
  para-time, e.g., from our 2006 to the year 1950 of a parallel
  world that diverged in the year 1916, add the temporal distance
  (56 years) to the “length” of the trip (90 years, for a total of 146
  years). It’s up to the GM whether this is possible.
  Anywhere: This option lets the vehicle travel to any point in
  time or space. It can go anywhere and anywhen. The standard
  version can travel anywhere in the universe instantly as per a
  probability drive with infinite range (GURPS Spaceships,
  p. 41). For the speed-limited version of a time-flux drive, the
  vehicle can travel as many light-years per hour as it can travel
  years per hour; thus, add the spatial distance in light-years to
  the temporal distance in years when calculating travel times.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  13
  POWER PLANT, ETHER
  FURNACE (TL5+2^)
  This power plant recreates in miniature the bizarre ether
  flux found in the core of a sun, which permits it to burn many
  times longer than its chemical nature otherwise allows. Each
  ether furnace provides one Power Point for three months on
  internal fuel. Endurance can be extended. Each fuel tank of
  nebulonic fuel (containing a mixture of liquids and metals sim-
  ilar to the primal solar nebula) operates an ether furnace for an
  additional year.
  POWER PLANT,
  MAGICAL (TL^) [ANY]
  These power plants are enchanted items. All of them cease
  to function in regions where magic doesn’t work at work at all
  (no-mana areas). They generate magic power points, which
  work like normal Power Points except they also power systems
  with the magic-powered design feature (p. 20).
  Mana Engines (TL^): These devices gather ambient magical
  energy and transform it into mechanical or electrical power.
  They range from glowing crystals to complex techno-magical
  machinery. They do not require fuel and produce one magical
  Power Point.
  Soulburner (TL^): A necromantic power plant fuelled by the
  torment of the souls of sapient beings, who are bound within
  the device using the Soul Jar spell. Souls burn out (roll vs. Will
  each year) and need replacement. Assuming Will 10, half the
  souls are lost every year (on average), or 1/18 of them every
  month. Any soul with Magery tends to last longer (for up to
  Magery squared years), which may not be to their comfort.
  Soulburners do not function in no-mana areas. A soulburner
  generates two Power Points if it has its full complement of
  souls, or one Power Point if it has at least half as many souls.
  These are trapped within the machine in a remnant of their
  body (e.g., as skulls, corpses, etc.). If the machine is destroyed
  the souls are freed from torment (but still dead).
  NEMA Reactor (TL7^): This is an enchanted nuclear fis-
  sion reactor whose radiation output is partially shifted from
  hard radiation to magical energy. (NEMA stands for nuclear-
  enhanced mana area). It generates one ordinary Power Point
  and an additional Power Point that can only run magic-pow-
  ered systems. The disadvantage is a critical reactor meltdown
  can blow a hole in reality or release marauding demons; the
  effects are up to the GM, but they’re usually unpleasant. A
  NEMA operates 25 years on internal fuel, increased to 50 at
  TL9 or 75 at TL10+.
  Caged Spirit: These power plants draw magical energy from
  a trapped demon lord, ancestral spirit, ghost, minor god, or
  other spirit of great power (relative to the size of the ship). If
  the power plant or vehicle is destroyed, the entity is released –
  usually in a bad temper! Caged spirit power plants generate
  five magical Power Points.
  Parachronic and Time-Flux Drive Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  600K
  2M
  6M
  20M
  60M
  200M
  600M
  2B
  6B
  20B
  60B
  Repair Skill: Electronics Repair (Parachronic or Temporal).
  Costs are for the parachronic flux drive. A time-flux drive is 10 times cost. Multiply cost by 25 for the anywhere option and by
  0.5 for the speed-limited option.
  Ether Furnace Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  60K
  200K
  600K
  2M
  6M
  20M
  60M
  200M
  600M
  2B
  6B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Ether Furnace).
  
  POWER PLANT,
  ORGONE (TL^) [ANY]
  These use a technology distantly related to the soulburner
  (p. 13) to convert orgone, a type of life-force, to electricity. Each
  such engine generates two Power Points indefinitely. However,
  an orgone engine must remain within (SM-3 ¥ 10,000) miles of
  a planetary ecosystem to function. (It can
  operate in orbit around Earthlike worlds.)
  It only works in deep space by installing
  at least one open space system devoted to a
  functioning ecology of trees, plants, small
  animals, etc., or, optionally, if the spacecraft
  is itself a living creature. Unlike a soul-
  burner, an orgone engine does not destroy
  the life-force it feeds upon.
  If the engine is disabled or tampered
  with, roll vs. spacecraft HT. Failure means
  the engine malfunctions, producing deadly
  orgone radiation, a toxic anti-life exhaust.
  The radiation affects everyone in the radia-
  tion zone radius shown on the table includ-
  ing all occupants of the spacecraft. Living
  things slowly sicken, wither, and die. For
  each hour of exposure, roll vs. Will-3.
  Failure results in the loss of 1d HT. If his HT
  is reduced to zero, the victim dies; other-
  wise, lost HT is recovered at one HT per
  hour of rest outside the zone.
  At the GM’s discretion, orgone engines generate psi Power
  Points instead of regular Power Points, making them only use-
  ful for operating psi-powered (p. 21) equipment.
  If orgone energy does not exist as such, engine statistics can
  simply supply another name but have it work the same way,
  drawing on a living world’s life energy (psychic energy, chi,
  prana, etc.) for power and releasing anti-life energy as exhaust.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  14
  Magical Power Plant Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Souls*
  10
  30
  100
  300
  1K
  3K
  10K
  30K
  100K
  300K
  1M
  Cost ($)
  100K
  300K
  1M
  3M
  10M
  30M
  100M
  300M
  1B
  3B
  10B
  * The souls a soulburner requires to generate full Power Points.
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Magical Power Plant). NEMA also requires Mechanic (Fission).
  Multiply cost by 1.5 for NEMA and 8 for caged spirit.
  Power Siphoning
  Optionally, mages or psis can draw power (as FP) directly from any
  power plant that provides magical or psi Power Points, respectively. This
  does not require a spell or ability, but the user must remain in contact with
  a power outlet in a control station within either the power plant or the
  engine room. Mages can draw up to (HT ¥ 0.7 ¥ Magery squared) FP per sec-
  ond; those with Magery 0 draw HT/3 FP per second. Round up. Psis use the
  same formula, replacing Magery with their best psionic Talent. This FP only
  powers supernatural abilities; it cannot replenish the user’s personal points.
  On a small ship, or if many users are siphoning power at once, this
  fully uses one or more Power Points. Divide the ship’s weight in tons by
  four; round up. This is the maximum FP per second that each Power
  Point can provide.
  Up to 1/20 of this amount can be siphoned away with negligible effects
  – some lights dim and flicker. If more is used, the engineer must treat the
  users as a high-energy “system,” allocating one or more Power Points to
  them specifically for the purpose of siphoning.
  Orgone Power Plant Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Rad zone (yards) 20
  30
  50
  70
  100
  150
  200
  300
  500
  700
  1,000
  Cost ($)
  50K
  150K
  500K
  1.5M
  5M
  15M
  50M
  150M
  500M
  1.5B
  5B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Orgone Power Plant).
  POWER PLANT,
  PERPETUAL MOTION
  MACHINE (TL^) [ANY]
  These are divergent-technology power sources that operate
  without requiring fuel, in violation of thermodynamic laws such
  as conservation of energy. Typical devices are mechanical or
  electromechanical in nature and involve a complicated array of
  self-moving wheels, rolling balls, spinning disks, magnetic fields,
  or pressurized gases and liquid, all somehow managing to gen-
  erate more power than they consume in operation.
  Perpetual motion machines generate one Power Point. They
  never require fuel.
  Some divergent-technology power
  sources violate thermodynamic laws.
  
  POWER PLANT,
  PSYCHOTRONIC
  (TL9^) [ANY]
  This power plant draws energy
  from the minds of psionic individu-
  als connected to it. The plant may be
  able to tap any psi or it may require
  people with latent or actual teleki-
  netic or electrokinetic psi ability.
  Power
  Points
  from
  a
  psy-
  chotronic power plant can only be
  used to operate systems designed
  with the psi-powered design feature
  (p. 21). They cannot be used for
  other purposes.
  For the psychotronic power plant
  to work, a minimum number of indi-
  viduals serving as living psi-batteries
  must be hooked up to it with psi-
  amplifying helmets or other devices.
  This is in addition to the system’s
  workspace requirement.
  The GM may allow those with pow-
  erful psi abilities to count as two or
  more individuals. Every 10 character
  points worth of psi powers count as
  one person.
  If an Emergency Power Task (GURPS
  Spaceships, p. 52) for the plant fails, the
  plant is disabled and the psis powering
  it are reduced to 1 FP at the start of the
  next turn. On a critical failure, each psi
  must immediately roll against HT; suc-
  cess results in unconsciousness for 1d
  hours while failure causes a heart attack
  (p. B429).
  A psychotronic power plant gener-
  ates four psi Power Points if installed in
  an SM +5-6 ship, and two if installed in
  an SM +7 or larger ship. The table
  shows the number of psis needed (mod-
  ified as detailed above). Plants that need
  two or more psis but have fewer than
  the required number work with half the
  required psis and generate only one psi
  Power Point. Those with less than half
  don’t function at all.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  15
  POWER PLANT, SOLAR
  BOILER (TL7) [ANY]
  This system draws upon the intense solar radiation in outer
  space as a heat source. It is a steam engine whose heat comes
  not through fuel consumption but via a solar mirror (p. 18).
  The solar boiler is a closed-cycle steam engine designed to
  operate in vacuum. Large mirrors focus sunlight on water
  pumped through pipes on the sunward side of the spacecraft;
  the liquid is vaporized into high-pressure steam. This drives tur-
  bines to generate power. The steam is then pumped into pipes
  under shadow where it rapidly cools and condenses into liquid.
  Each solar boiler includes its own water and generates one
  Power Point indefinitely, but it requires a solar mirror system
  to do so. There must be solar mirror systems equal to the num-
  ber of boilers installed.
  A solar boiler is only useful when reasonably close to a star.
  Beyond a distance of two AU from a Sun-like star, it no longer
  produces significant Power Points.
  Perpetual Motion Power Plant Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  200K
  600K
  2M
  6M
  20M
  60M
  200M
  600M
  2B
  6B
  20B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Perpetual Motion Machine).
  Psychotronic Power Plant Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Psis
  1
  1
  1
  2
  4
  10
  30
  100
  300
  1,000
  3,000
  Cost ($)
  200K
  600K
  2M
  6M
  20M
  60M
  200M
  600M
  2B
  6B
  20B
  Repair Skill: Electronics Repair (Psychotronics).
  Solar Boiler Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  10K
  30K
  100K
  300K
  1M
  3M
  10M
  30M
  100M
  300M
  1B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Steam Engine).
  
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  16
  REACTION ENGINE,
  PLASMA (TL9) [REAR!]
  These are additional variations of the electric rockets
  described in GURPS Spaceships.
  VASIMR Electric Rockets (TL9): These variable-specific
  impulse magneto-plasma rockets heat reaction mass electri-
  cally (via radio waves) and expel it as plasma for thrust. They
  are fuel-efficient, but heavy and power-intensive. As the name
  suggests, they can vary their performance. Each engine is a
  high-energy system requiring one Power Point. It operates in a
  fuel-efficient low-thrust mode producing 0.0002G acceleration
  or in a high-thrust mode producing 0.002G. Each fuel tank of
  hydrogen reaction mass gives 10 mps delta-V in low-thrust
  mode or 0.5 mps in high-thrust mode.
  Plasma Torch (TL10^): This is a typical space-opera “plasma
  rocket” propulsion system. Each engine is a high-energy sys-
  tem that produces 5G acceleration. A fuel tank of hydrogen
  reaction mass gives 2.5 mps delta-V. It can also operate in a
  high-efficiency low-thrust mode: It gives 1G acceleration per
  engine, and each tank of hydrogen has 12.5 mps delta-V.
  REACTION ENGINE,
  SOLAR THERMAL
  (TL8) [REAR]*
  Solar thermal rockets use solar mirrors (p. 18) to directly
  heat reaction mass. The heated propellant is then expelled via
  the nozzle to produce thrust. Solar thermal engines offer bet-
  ter thrust than electric rockets without the costs and environ-
  mental concerns of nuclear engines.
  Each solar thermal engine system requires a functioning
  solar mirror system to focus sunlight; the combination produces
  0.05G acceleration. A fuel tank of hydrogen reaction mass pro-
  vides 0.3 mps delta-V (TL8) or 0.4 mps delta-V (TL9+).
  Acceleration is affected by the vehicle’s distance from a star.
  Divide this by the square of the average distance in AU. For
  stars with a different luminosity than our own sun, multiply by
  relative luminosity. However, acceleration can never increase
  to more than 0.2G per engine.
  * Requires one solar mirror system per engine.
  Vacuum Energy Power Plant Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  750K
  2.4M
  7.5M
  24M
  75M
  240M
  750M
  2.4B
  7.5B
  24B
  75B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Vacuum Energy).
  REACTION ENGINE, LASER ROCKET (TL9) [REAR]
  Plasma Engine Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  200K
  600K
  2M
  6M
  20M
  60M
  200M
  600M
  2B
  6B
  20B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Low-Performance Spacecraft) for VASIMR, or Mechanic (High-Performance Spacecraft) for plasma
  torch.
  Multiply cost by five for plasma torch engines.
  POWER PLANT, VACUUM
  ENERGY (TL9^) [ANY]
  This power plant draws energy from the random electro-
  magnetic fluctuations that exist even at absolute zero. The sum
  of all the possible frequencies is interpreted as a large (or for
  some methods of calculation infinite) energy density present
  even in vacuum. Each system produces three Power Points and
  operates indefinitely. It can be de-rated to produce two Power
  Points at 2/3 cost or one Power Point at 1/3 cost.
  This provides thrust by evaporating a reaction mass. A
  ground-based laser installation heats the mass; the ship needs
  no receiver. It provides 2G acceleration. A fuel tank of ablative
  plastic offers 0.5 mps delta-V. Each laser rocket engine
  requires one external laser battery. The required output
  depends on the size of the spacecraft.
  Laser Rocket Engine Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  60K
  200K
  600K
  2M
  6M
  20M
  60M
  200M
  600M
  2B
  6B
  Laser
  30GJ
  100GJ
  300GJ
  1TJ
  3TJ
  10TJ
  30TJ
  100TJ
  300TJ
  1PJ
  3PJ
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (High-Performance Spacecraft or Rocket).
  
  SAILS, RADIOISOTOPE
  (TL7) [HULL]
  Also known as a “fission sail,” this system uses a giant foil
  sail thick enough to provide some degree of radiation shield-
  ing. One side is coated with a thin layer of radioactive isotope;
  as it decays, radioactive particles escape in the unshielded
  direction, producing thrust.
  The isotope produces 0.000001G acceleration for about 14
  years. There is no fuel consumption, but as the substance
  decays thrust is reduced, so halve the thrust every 14 years (the
  isotope’s half-life).
  Unprotected individuals on the emitting side of the sail are
  exposed to some radiation, but since the isotopes are designed
  to emit particles stoppable by a thin foil, any radiation shielding
  (PF 2+) provides full protection. Assume exposure on the wrong
  side of the sail is rads/second equal to (2,000 ¥ thrust (in G) ¥
  spaceship mass divided by the square of distance in yards).
  These are exposed systems but more compact than light-
  sails: Use the spacecraft’s SM +2 instead of SM +3 to target
  them (see GURPS Spaceships, p. 66).
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  17
  SAILS, TACHYON
  (TL^) [HULL]
  What if a wind of faster-than-light particles blew out from
  the galactic core? Perhaps there are strange-matter hyperstars
  there, and these sails can catch the tachyon wind they emit! In
  conjunction with gravitational orbits around the galactic cen-
  ter and a system for charging the sails to use the galactic mag-
  netic field to make grand turns, a tachyon sailship can travel
  between the stars at high sublight speeds!
  Tachyon sails are similar to lightsails, but with far greater
  acceleration. Each system produces 0.1G acceleration.
  Tachyon intensities vary with distance from the core, but the
  nearby stars are at essentially the same distance so the effect
  is negligible. Like lightsails, the performance is direction
  dependent, which is unimportant on the scale of interstellar
  trips but limits the device’s usefulness as an in-system drive.
  As a result, a tachyon sailship may have to travel one direc-
  tion to build up speed before altering its heading for the
  intended destination.
  These exposed systems are targeted and affected as if they
  were lightsails.
  Tachyon Hypersails: What if hyperspace were like an ocean
  and the tachyon winds blew through that, rather than through
  normal space? A stardrive engine is needed to enter hyper-
  space, but once there, hypersails are unfurled and used for
  propulsion! As long as they are in use there is no energy cost to
  remain in hyperspace. FTL speed is based on sail thrust: Each
  0.1G of sail acceleration gives FTL 1. Hyperspacial storms or
  currents can also exist, further influencing FTL speed.
  Solar Thermal Engine Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  50K
  150K
  500K
  1.5M
  5M
  15M
  50M
  150M
  500M
  1.5B
  5B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Low-Performance Spacecraft).
  Radioisotope Sails Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  500K
  1.5M
  5M
  15M
  50M
  150M
  500M
  1.5B
  5B
  15B
  50B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Low-Performance Spacecraft).
  Tachyon Sails Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13 or more
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  –
  Cost ($)
  1.2M
  4M
  12M
  40M
  120M
  400M
  1.2B
  4B
  –
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Low-Performance Spacecraft).
  Hypersails cost twice as much as ordinary tachyon sails.
  I wish to have no connection with any ship that does not sail
  fast; for I intend to go in harm’s way.
  – John Paul Jones
  
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  18
  Sapient Brain Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  50K
  150K
  500K
  1.5M
  5M
  15M
  50M
  150M
  500M
  1.5B
  5B
  Repair Skill: Surgery.
  If the brain is psionic, multiply cost by four.
  TAIL (TL8) [REAR HULL]
  This is a long flexible tail attached to the rear of a spacecraft
  to strike or manipulate things. It can attack anything behind
  the vessel using d-damage for the spacecraft’s ST.
  Impaling Tail: The tail strikes for swing/impaling damage.
  Prehensile Tail: The tail functions as a robotic arm with
  Bad Grip (p. B123). It strikes for thrust/crushing damage.
  Striking Tail: The tail strikes for swing/crushing damage.
  Weapon Tail: The tail mounts a single weapon system equiva-
  lent to one medium battery (rather than the usual three weapons
  of such a battery) plus an integral power supply. It has the same
  arc of fire as a central turret (despite being mounted in the rear).
  The tail also strikes for thrust/crushing damage.
  SMALL UPPER STAGE
  (TL7) [SPECIAL]
  An upper stage (as described in GURPS Spaceships) does
  not have to take up all six systems; an alternative is the small
  upper stage. It occupies two systems in the front hull rather
  than the whole section. The small-upper-stage spacecraft is two
  SMs smaller than its “launching” ship; for example, an SM +10
  vessel’s small upper stage would be SM +8. If a hit location roll
  strikes these two systems, reroll the hit location and apply
  damage against the front hull of the upper-stage spacecraft.
  Otherwise, use the normal rules for upper stages.
  SOLAR MIRROR
  (TL5) [HULL]
  This is an array of large mirrors primarily designed to focus
  solar energy on a solar boiler (p. 15) or solar thermal rocket
  engine (pp. 16-17), but useful for other functions (e.g., signal-
  ing or mining). It is not a power plant as such, but each oper-
  ating solar boiler or solar thermal rocket requires a solar
  mirror system to power it.
  Solar mirrors are exposed systems. They can be attacked
  using the Targeting Exposed Systems rule (see GURPS
  Spaceships, p. 66) as if they were radiators, but unlike other
  exposed systems they are not diffuse: Mirrors sustain full dam-
  age from any attack that hits them.
  Solar Mirror Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  10K
  30K
  100K
  300K
  1M
  3M
  10M
  30M
  100M
  300M
  1B
  Repair Skill: Mechanic (Solar Power).
  There are two ways of
  spreading light: to be the
  candle or the mirror that
  reflects it.
  – Edith Wharton
  SAPIENT BRAIN
  (TL10*) [ANY]
  The spacecraft has an integral biologi-
  cal brain with sensory and nervous sys-
  tems that take up a significant amount of
  its total mass. A brain allows the space-
  craft to operate just like a vessel with an
  unmanned computer-controlled system.
  However, it does not have a Complexity rat-
  ing, and its Comm/Sensor level is equal to its SM-3.
  A brain system communicates via radio. It uses active sen-
  sors (radar) and passive sensors but not laser communication.
  The GM can vary this. A brain has no control stations.
  The GM assigns attributes, skills, and other traits. By
  default, assume a ship’s brain has DX 12 and IQ 7, but GMs
  alter these values as desired.
  Any damage sustained by a brain system is multiplied by
  four (after penetrating dDR). If the only brain system is dis-
  abled, the ship is unconscious and cannot control its own sys-
  tems; if it is destroyed, the ship is effectively disabled. If a ship
  has multiple brains, the workload is divided among them as
  if they had the Compartmentalized Mind advantage.
  An additional variation is available for a sapient brain:
  Psionic Sapient Brain (TL^): The brain also produces one
  psionic Power Point (see Psi-Powered, p. 21).
  * For genetically engineered ship brains. No TL for natural
  creatures.
  
  WEAPONRY
  This section expands the Weapon Types section of GURPS
  Spaceships (pp. 28-29) with beam, gun, and launcher types.
  Since ultra-tech weapons have been covered, the emphasis is
  on low-tech devices. Weapons batteries are available at TL2 to
  TL6. Turrets are not available until TL5.
  Beam Types
  Electromagnetic Disruptor (TL10^): This is a superscience
  weapon that affects electronics but not people, such as cine-
  matic versions of “ion cannon,” “magnetic pulse,” and “maser”
  technologies. See p. 30 for a description of the effects.
  Lightning Cannon (TL5+2^): A low-tech particle beam
  based around etheric science. It has a visible effect (even in
  vacuum) similar to a lightning bolt, due to the etheric distur-
  bances it leaves in its wake. See p. 30 for statistics.
  Mind Disruptor (TL11^): Fires a beam that only affects sen-
  tient minds. The effects are detailed on p. 30.
  Guns
  Conventional guns of TLs 3-6 run the gamut from black-
  powder muzzle loaders to rifled firearms. Their performance is
  greatly reduced since they do not fire guided munitions, but
  they are effective at point-blank or rendezvous ranges in space
  combat. Guns built at TL3-4 cannot have rapid fire or very
  rapid fire. Those built at TL5 cannot be very rapid fire.
  Catapults
  Space catapults (TL2) are direct-fire spring- or torsion-pow-
  ered devices. They fire iron balls or rocks rather than arrows,
  since there’s no need to stabilize flight in vacuum. They can be
  installed in place of guns. They have one-quarter the caliber of
  a gun, and cannot have the improved, rapid fire, or very rapid
  fire options. Thus, an SM +7 ship’s major battery could have a
  3.5cm catapult.
  Launcher Types
  TL3+ launchers may fire unguided rockets. Those at TL3-5
  use black-powder propulsion; higher TLs use modern solid
  fuels. Rocket launchers, unlike other launchers, use the same
  rapid fire or very rapid fire options as guns.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  19
  DESIGN FEATURES
  This is a list of options for sys-
  tems or vessels. They do not count
  as systems.
  Biomorphics
  Any vessel with an appropriate
  shape can be sculpted to resemble
  a statue or mannequin of a living
  thing; for example, a cylinder
  made to look like a giant whale or
  a space mecha with arms and legs resembling a
  humanoid giant. There is no extra cost for this;
  it’s just a matter of how the vessel’s appearance
  is described.
  Realistic Biomorphics (TL9): A spacecraft
  can be coated with a layer of real or synthetic
  tissue, complete with details such as hair,
  scales, fur, or even a face. This may fool some
  into believing it is a giant creature. A biomor-
  phic vessel’s cost depends on its SM.
  Biomorphics Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Cost ($)
  1M
  2M
  5M
  10M
  20M
  50M
  100M
  200M
  500M
  1B
  2B
  There is no cost or TL requirement if the spacecraft actually is a living thing.
  Only technology has
  permitted us to put a city to
  the sword without quite
  realizing what we are doing.
  – Joseph Wood Krutch
  Tail Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  0
  0
  0
  0
  0
  1
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  Cost ($)
  60K
  200K
  600K
  2M
  6M
  20M
  60M
  200M
  600M
  2B
  6B
  Repair Skill: Electronics Repair (Robotics or Mecha).
  
  Energy-Phasing Surface (TL12^)
  The spacecraft is surrounded by a superscience array
  of force lenses, which allows fixed beam weapons
  mounted anywhere aboard to fire through any point on
  the surface. They all effectively have universal arcs of fire.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  20
  Energy-Phasing Surface Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Cost ($)
  1M
  2M
  5M
  10M
  20M
  50M
  100M
  200M
  500M
  1B
  2B
  Essential Fuel
  The Essential Fuel spell (GURPS Magic, p. 179) increases
  spacecraft performance; the engine gets 10 times the delta-V.
  Since the spell’s energy cost is one point per pound of fuel, the
  efficient casting method is to enchant small quantities (e.g., 10-
  60 lbs.) repeatedly. As wages vary by TL, the additional cost per
  ton is $2,000 multiplied by the number shown on the table
  (depending on the TL of the mage).
  Grabber
  A robot arm (GURPS Spaceships, p. 24) can have reduced
  dexterity at a significantly lower cost. This cheap, clunky arm
  is only 10% the normal price, but operates as if it had two lev-
  els of Bad Grip (p. B123).
  Hidden Weapons Batteries
  At extra cost, weapons batteries can be hidden. They might
  be disguised as other systems (such as sensors or cargo doors),
  be concealed by false facades, use pop-up turrets, etc.
  Detection at point-blank or short range (see GURPS
  Spaceships, p. 44) does not reveal a hidden weapon battery
  unless it was fired on its last turn. They can be detected via a
  successful sensor analysis task.
  If using 20-second turns, it takes one turn to ready a hidden
  turret or to hide a revealed turret, during which time it can’t
  fire. No time is required for fixed batteries. If using longer
  turns, time requirements are ignored.
  A hidden weapons battery is 1.5 times the cost of an ordi-
  nary battery.
  Lacks Automation
  A spacecraft can have a reduced level of automation pro-
  vided it has a control room with at least one control station.
  This is the norm for vessels built at TL6 and lower, and com-
  mon at TL7. Higher TL vessels, especially manned warships,
  use it on the theory that a larger crew can absorb casualties
  and perform damage control. A lack of automation gives them
  intimate familiarity with the ship’s workings and prevents
  them growing bored with nothing but make-work duties.
  With this feature, systems require additional workspaces
  and all multitasking penalties are doubled. Spacecraft no
  longer require an engine room to perform onboard mainte-
  nance and avoid HT penalties.
  Lacks automation does not significantly reduce a vessel’s cost
  due to the need for extra maintenance facilities, etc. However,
  there are fewer things to break down (provided the maintenance
  crew is on the job) and therefore HT is raised by +1.
  If a system type installed on a vessel that lacks automation
  has a workspaces entry, calculate required workspaces using
  the Workspace Table (below).
  Magic Cost Table
  TL
  TL0
  TL1
  TL2
  TL3
  TL4
  TL5
  TL6
  TL7
  TL8
  TL9
  TL10
  TL11
  TL12
  Cost Multiplier
  0.89
  0.92
  0.96
  1
  1.1
  1.6
  2.3
  3
  3.7
  5.1
  8
  11
  15
  Workspace Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Workspaces
  1
  1
  1
  2
  3
  10
  30
  100
  300
  1,000
  3,000
  Magic-Powered
  A high-energy system [!] can be designated as magic-pow-
  ered. This means it uses “magic Power Points” as generated
  by a magical power plant (pp. 13-14). It cannot use ordinary
  Power Points.
  A magic-powered system is half-price and may be available
  at a lower or divergent TL.
  Magnetic Tractor Beams
  Tractor beams can be defined as superscience magnetic
  beams. Like heat rays, these are suitable TL7^ weaponry.
  They only affect vessels with an iron or steel armor system;
  otherwise they function just like tractor beams.
  
  Methane and Ammonia Reaction Mass
  GURPS Spaceships uses hydrogen as the standard reaction
  mass and provides an option to use water. Two alternatives are
  ammonia and methane, both of which are abundant on Earth
  and many celestial bodies. These increase acceleration at the
  expense of greater fuel consumption (i.e., reducing the delta-V).
  Antimatter thermal rocket, antimatter plasma rocket, anti-
  matter plasma torch, fusion rocket, fusion torch, nuclear ther-
  mal rocket, solar thermal rocket, super antimatter plasma
  torch, and super fusion torch engines can use these alternative
  reaction masses.
  Ammonia: Use of ammonia multiplies acceleration by 2.9
  but divides delta-V by 2.9. It costs $250 per ton. Extraterrestrial
  sources include gas giant atmospheres and comet ice.
  Methane: Use of methane multiplies acceleration by 2.8 but
  divides delta-V by 2.8. Methane costs $500 per ton.
  Extraterrestrial sources include the atmospheres of Mars and
  the gas giants, and methane ice from outer system moons,
  asteroids, and comets.
  Nautical Lines
  A streamlined vessel can have nautical lines.
  Its hull is boat-shaped like a ship or flying boat,
  improving its performance should it land in
  water (or other liquid). However, they are not
  optimal for air propulsion, and a streamlined
  craft with nautical lines has only 20% of its
  normal top air speed.
  At TL5 and lower, aerodynamic principles
  are poorly understood. The GM may require all
  streamlined vessels to use the nautical lines
  feature by default.
  Open-Frame Armor
  Armor systems can be designated as open
  frame. This has four times the normal dDR but
  only protects against crushing damage from
  collision with spacecraft and large objects of
  SM +4 or more. Open-frame armor gives no pro-
  tection against weapons fire (including missile impacts, even if
  the missiles are themselves SM +4).
  Phased Arrays
  Advanced laser weapons can incorporate phased-array
  optics: a two-dimensional emitter composed of numerous cells
  that projects either a single powerful beam or multiple smaller
  beams, of variable intensity.
  Any major battery equipped with a fixed mount or ultravi-
  olet laser can be designated a phased array. Such batteries
  appear two TLs later than usual (TL11 for lasers and TL12
  for ultraviolet lasers) and cannot be combined with the
  improved, rapid fire, or very rapid fire options. A phased-
  array laser or UV laser has the option of firing as a rapid fire
  weapon at one-tenth output or as a very rapid fire weapon at
  1/100 output. In addition, if a phased array does not fire it can
  perform the active sensor (ladar) or laser communicator func-
  tions (only) of an equivalent-SM tactical array.
  Psi-Powered (TL^)
  A high-energy system [!] can be designated as psi-pow-
  ered. This means it uses “psi Power Points” as generated by a
  psychotronic power plant (p. 15). It cannot use ordinary
  Power Points.
  This feature is most suitable for systems that can be
  explained as psionic in nature. In particular, contragravity
  lifters, cloaking devices, force screens, standard or rotary reac-
  tionless drives, and stardrive engines are appropriate expres-
  sions of psi-powered technology. So are weapons batteries that
  mount graviton or tractor beams (explainable as telekinesis)
  and heat rays (pyrokinesis).
  A psi-powered system is half-price and may be available at
  a lower or divergent TL.
  Psi Shielding (TL^)
  This psychotronic grid generates a telepathic mind shield
  that alerts the crew if a telepath outside the vessel attempts to
  affect or scan those within it. The system’s resistance bonus is
  its TL-6 (minimum +2). Add the resistance bonus to IQ or Will
  when the occupants resist a mind-disruptor attack (p. 30) or an
  advantage with a telepathic power modifier. The shield also
  resists attempts to locate the occupants’ minds using psionic
  abilities. Such powers must win a Quick Contest against an
  occupant’s Will + the shield’s resistance bonus. The GM may
  allow psi shielding to protect against Communication and
  Empathy or Mind Control spells (see GURPS Basic Set or
  GURPS Magic). The cost depends on the vessel’s SM; see the
  Psi Shielding Table (below).
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  21
  Psi Shielding Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Cost ($)
  500K
  1M
  2M
  5M
  10M
  20M
  50M
  100M
  200M
  500M
  1B
  
  These are setting-specific design “switches”; added to any
  spacecraft, they emulate various scientific or setting para-
  digms. Specific switches are sometimes applied to all space-
  craft in a campaign.
  Accelerator Tube Limits
  In a hard science campaign, GMs may rule certain weapon
  systems require massive linear accelerator tubes. This means
  they are only installed in spacecraft with a minimum hull size.
  This restriction is reasonably applied to particle beams,
  antiparticle beams, ghost particle beams, gamma-ray lasers,
  and X-ray lasers. The table below shows the minimum hull SM
  to install a weapon of this sort in a given battery. For example,
  a medium battery with a fixed mount weapon that required an
  accelerator tube could only be installed on an SM +11 or larger
  vessel. (Logically, if this switch is used, it means these weapons
  are unfeasible as personal weapons or on small vehicles.)
  Minimum Hull SM for Weapons Table
  Battery Type
  Fixed
  Turret
  Spinal battery
  +9
  N/A
  Major battery
  +10
  +12
  Medium battery
  +11
  +13
  Secondary battery
  +12
  +14
  Tertiary battery
  +13
  +15
  Drive Field
  The drive field option (GURPS Spaceships, p. 31) can also
  be applied to ether and astral propulsion. Often a life support
  field (p. 23) is the only option for such a drive.
  Exophase Drives: In some settings, the field generated by a
  warp or pseudovelocity drive is the same as that of an exophase
  field (p. 8). If this is the case, activating a warp drive automat-
  ically puts the spacecraft into exophase; it cannot be used with-
  out doing so. There is no added cost if this is a standard setting
  feature; otherwise, a drive that is also an exophase field costs
  double the price of both of these components.
  Etheric Cosmos and Ether Drives
  In the 19th century (TL5) light was shown to be a wave, like
  sound, but what did it travel through, especially in the airless
  void of space? Physicists speculated the universe was filled
  with a tenuous form of matter so thin, solid planets passed
  through it unhindered. They named this substance the luminif-
  erous (“light-carrying”) ether.
  In addition to Ether Propulsion (pp. 7-8), reactionless
  engines (GURPS Spaceships, p. 24) can be defined as “ether
  engines” that interact with that substance for propulsion. This
  is a divergent technology (splitting from the mainstream path
  at TL5). For example, a TL10 standard reactionless engine can
  become a TL5+5 standard ether reactionless engine.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  22
  DESIGN SWITCHES
  Ram
  A streamlined spacecraft with an armored front hull can be
  reinforced for ramming attacks. Double the dDR of its front-
  section armor vs. the crushing damage inflicted when it initi-
  ates a collision. The ram costs 50% of the price of the front
  section armor.
  Regeneration and Self-Healing
  The spacecraft’s hull and structure materials incorporate
  swarms of self-repair microbots or nanomachines or, if a living
  thing, their biological equivalent. Damage is rapidly patched. If
  the vessel is reduced to -5 ¥ HP, it can no longer repair itself:
  There isn’t enough structure left.
  Regeneration (TL^): The spacecraft regenerates 1% of its
  dHP every minute. This option costs $0.2M per ton of vessel
  mass, e.g., for an SM +7 (300 ton) spacecraft it costs $60M.
  Self-Healing (TL10 or TL^): As above, but the rate is per day.
  The option costs $0.02M per ton of spacecraft mass.
  Spin Tethers
  A common method of producing higher spin gravity on
  small vessels is a spin tether: Two separate spacecraft with the
  same Size Modifier are linked by a cable and spun using the
  vehicles’ reaction-control thrusters. Their separation is 100
  yards (300’) per G, and at least one of the vessels must have an
  external clamp system.
  The cable must be carried in one vessel’s cargo or hangar
  bay and is 1/20,000 of the mass of both vehicles per 100 yards
  of tether length. It costs $10 per ton of loaded mass. If suffi-
  cient cargo space is available, the tether can be retracted. A
  spacecraft using spin tethers must retract them and cancel its
  spin before accelerating or changing facing.
  Top Deck
  A spacecraft can have a flat upper deck (like that of a seago-
  ing ship) on one of its surfaces, where occupants can move
  about. A vessel with a top deck has a maximum air speed of
  500 mph.
  Behold the Wonkamobile. A thing of beauty is a joy forever. Places,
  please, the dance is about to begin. Better grab a seat, they’re going fast.
  – Willy Wonka, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
  
  Exotic Force Screen Variants
  The following expand the options for spaceship force
  screens. The cost modifiers need not be applied if the feature
  is standard for all force screens in the setting.
  Force Wings: A vessel with the adjustable force screen vari-
  ant can also try to extend and shape that screen to form
  streamlined, aerodynamic wings providing lift. Readjusting it
  to serve as force-field wings is an engineering task; it can be
  done whether the shield is powered up or not. When a screen
  is used this way its dDR is halved, but the spacecraft gains all
  the benefits of streamlining and the winged design option. (If
  it’s already streamlined, it gains the benefit of being winged.)
  This option is incompatible with the energy and nuclear
  damper force-screen variants. It adds +50% to force screen
  cost. The screen must also have the adjustable variant (GURPS
  Spaceships, p. 32).
  Life Support Field: A light force screen can have this
  option. It is low-powered (DR 0), sufficient only to create a
  bubble of atmosphere around the vessel. The field’s radius is
  equivalent to the spacecraft’s longest dimension (so a 100-
  yard ship has a field that protrudes 100 yards in either direc-
  tion extending out from the hull). It provides no protection
  against attacks, but keeps out rain, snow, or gases (up to five
  atmospheres of pressure), and there is no risk of depressur-
  ization even if holes are blown in the hull. Similarly, in space
  people can venture onto the ship’s surface without suits. A
  magically powered screen with a life support field is a good
  option for low-tech spacecraft (see the Sealed Vessels at Low
  Tech Levels, below). This is incompatible with other force
  field options. It is -80% to cost, and it can be integrated at no
  extra cost with a drive field (p. 22).
  Boost Drives
  Any reactionless drive (including ether or astral drives) can
  be designated a boost drive. Such designs instantly raise a ship
  to a substantial velocity without acceleration effects. Boost
  drives suffer other campaign-specific restrictions at the GM’s
  option, e.g., not functioning, or reduced function, when close
  to a planet or star’s gravity well.
  Boost drives have a limited top speed (less than reaction-
  less drives) but can reach that velocity immediately. Instead
  of constant acceleration, they have a set speed; the GM
  should establish a figure to suit his campaign. Multiply the
  acceleration of all boost drives by this base speed. Some sug-
  gestions are given below.
  One game-balance issue is speeds suitable for local maneu-
  vering and combat are too slow for lengthy interplanetary voy-
  ages. The GM can remedy this by giving boost drives a jump in
  performance under certain conditions, as when they are out-
  side a world’s gravity, or outside a solar system in interstellar
  space. A sample set of numbers for converting reactionless
  drives into boost drives is:
  • Top speed is 10 mps ¥ acceleration within 10 planetary
  diameters of a world or other large celestial body.
  • Top speed is 100 mps ¥ acceleration outside the above
  radius but within a solar system.
  • Top speed is that of light (as a lightspeed drive), or FTL-1
  per engine (if a stardrive with the reactionless design switch)
  once outside a solar system (e.g., about 75 AU from a Sun-like
  star; see Warp Drive, GURPS Spaceships, p. 41).
  The GM varies these figures as appropriate. For example, in
  a geocentric universe where solar systems sit within crystal
  spheres floating in an astral void, the GM may rule top speed
  (say, light speed or FTL) is only obtained when the crystal
  spheres are breached.
  Boost drives always use the pseudovelocity design switch
  (GURPS Spaceships, p. 33), so there’s no need to record this
  in the ship’s description.
  Boost drives can use cosmic power, drive field, negative
  mass propulsion, and stardrive (reactionless) design switches
  (GURPS Spaceships, pp. 31-33). Special rules apply to combat
  and travel with boost drives; see Chapter 2 for details.
  Maturing Living Ship
  Living spacecraft can become larger over time. To create such
  a race, the GM determines their longevity and growth cycles. A
  vessel can be bought as an infant and grown to adulthood. For
  simplicity, assume ships go through three growth phases and
  maturation takes (initial Size Modifier) years per phase:
  Initial SM: Infant (or egg).
  Initial SM + 1: Child (reached after (initial SM) years as
  an infant).
  Initial SM + 2: Adolescent (reached after (initial SM)
  years as a child).
  Initial SM + 3: Maturity (reached after (initial SM) years
  as an adolescent).
  Whether the individual systems of the ship become
  larger (the usual assumption) or actually change from
  infancy to adolescence is up to the GM.
  Higher-TL vessels benefit from bioengineering by
  maturing faster. At TL9, divide the time by 2; TL11, by 4; and
  TL12, by 8.
  Slower Industrial Systems
  The production capacity for industrial systems can be too
  high for economic realism or game balance (especially if they
  are owned by player characters). This design switch reduces
  the production or refining rate of mining, refinery, fabricator,
  robofac, nanofac, and replicator systems from “per hour” to
  “per day.” Systems at TL5 drop to “per month” and at TL6, to
  “per week.”
  Hazardous Drives and Power Plants
  Much of the mass of a fission rocket or reactor is radiation
  shielding. Any fission reactor, air-ram, or reaction engine can
  be built with minimal shielding. This doubles the acceleration
  of an engine or air-ram, or doubles the Power Points of a reac-
  tor, but makes the device dangerous. It is safe until turned on.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  23
  Sealed Vessels at Low Tech Levels
  Spacecraft designed prior to TL5 need force screens to
  seal occupied areas against vacuum; materials technology
  is inadequate to do so on its own. (The simplest method is
  a life support field; see Exotic Force Screen Variants, above).
  
  However, during operation it gives off a lethal radiation flux
  (6,000 rads/second). Once used it remains highly radioactive
  for the next few thousand years. The worst of the waste prod-
  ucts decay after a few weeks of disuse, dropping the radiation
  to 2,000 rads/hour.
  Full radiation applies only in the same system (e.g., in a
  workspace). Exposure is divided by 25 elsewhere within the
  same hull section and is negligible in other hull sections.
  Spacecraft with unshielded engines or power plants are
  harder to maintain due to the difficulty of working with irra-
  diated systems, and the risk of cumulative damage to other
  components such as electronics. Apply a -1 to the vessel’s HT
  for each hull section that contains any unshielded systems.
  Hyperdynamic Field (TL^)
  What if hyperspace is filled with a medium significantly
  denser than vacuum (or the ether)? A vessel with a hyperdy-
  namic field generates a superscience energy field across its
  body surface that extends into this hyperspace even as the ves-
  sel itself occupies normal space. This generates friction; the
  result is that a spacecraft can then maneuver through space as
  if it were in an air-filled zero-g environment. Power require-
  ment is negligible. The cost depends on the vessel’s SM;
  see the Hyperdynamic Field Table (below).
  For more details see Hyperdynamic Cosmos (p. 26) for
  operating parameters. The maximum speed a vessel can
  achieve varies, but depends mainly on its drag: Fast hyper-
  dynamic craft are streamlined!
  In some universes, a hyperdynamic field is an integral
  part of all reactionless drives. If so, the GM may assume
  the hyperdynamic field is part of the drive and need not be
  purchased separately.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  24
  Hyperdynamic Field Table
  SM
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  +14
  +15
  Cost ($)
  500K
  1M
  2M
  5M
  10M
  20M
  50M
  100M
  200M
  500M
  1B
  No Computer
  This is applied to a control room, particularly in divergent-
  technology vessels with (TL5+1) or (TL5+2). Computerized
  systems are completely replaced with manual systems. For tar-
  geting and navigational calculations officers rely on their own
  abilities and charts, slide rules, books of logarithmic tables,
  etc. Encyclopedias of planetary data, large libraries of expen-
  sive photo-slides, complex mechanical steering and stabiliza-
  tion systems, and bulky electromechanical keypunch devices
  all take the place of computers (and are just as expensive!).
  A control room with no computer cannot be unmanned
  (i.e., built with no control stations).
  In addition to being unable to benefit from any computer
  programs or run AI software, the following effects are applied:
  Multitasking: All multitasking penalties are doubled. Ships
  with no computers tend to have larger crews!
  Gunnery Tasks: Attacks are made at a -5 penalty. Point-
  defense fire is realistically impossible, but the GM may allow it
  at a further -5 penalty (total -10).
  Sensor and Navigation Tasks: These take 10 minutes each;
  apply haste penalties from p. B346 to do them faster. Thus, try-
  ing to fight in 1-minute turns while performing navigation or
  sensor analysis requires a really skilled crew.
  Communication Tasks: The rules for sensor and navigation
  tasks apply to signal-enhancement tasks.
  Pre-Radio
  This option, typical of TL5 and lower designs and their
  divergent technologies, can be applied to a control room or
  comm/sensor array. Sensor arrays use only optical telescopes
  (with no active sensors). No comm systems are included at TL3
  or lower, and at TL4+, radio and laser communications are
  replaced with a heliograph for signaling.
  Zombie Spaceships
  These are undead vehicles created and reanimated via
  magic. They appear badly damaged or crippled, showing the
  violence that disabled them. They do not hold atmosphere, or
  do so only in a few compartments.
  A zombie vessel behaves as if it had the Automaton
  meta-trait, with an IQ equal to its (modified) computer’s
  (Complexity/2) + 3, regardless of whether originally sentient!
  If it did not possess any computer system, assign IQ 2.
  They appear (and show on sensor arrays) as cripples. Their
  drives and power plants have no IR signature (GURPS
  Spaceships, p. 44); treat as minimal power.
  Despite apparent damage, most systems still function.
  Exceptions are noted below.
  Armor: Functions normally.
  Control Room: Reduce computer Complexity by 1.
  Comm/Sensor Array: Signals are scarily distorted, as if the
  person or machine using the communicator had Disturbing
  Voice (p. B132).
  Force Screens: Zombie ships can spontaneously develop
  other force screen variants such as nuclear damper (“Nukes
  won’t stop it!”), opaque (“Its screen was solid black”), or real-
  ity-stabilized (“Why can’t we teleport out of here?”).
  Habitats: These no longer function (or optionally, only func-
  tion if the spaceship wishes, so it can turn life support on or
  off, usually at inconvenient moments for any visitors). If they
  don’t function, occupants have to look after their own life sup-
  port needs. Automeds appear to function (“Looks like sick bay
  was sealed off”) but may be imbued with the vessel’s malign
  spirit. If used, they inflict 1d+1 cutting damage per turn as they
  flay and dissect the patient. (To escape, roll vs. ST-5 each turn
  to force the automed’s lid open or disable it.) If a corpse is left
  in the automed for an hour or more, it is reanimated under the
  ship’s control as per the Zombie spell (p. B252).
  
  Power Systems: These provide exactly enough Power
  Points to operate all high-energy systems, but do not con-
  sume fuel, use up endurance, or produce excess power.
  Fuel Tanks: These are no longer required, though the GM
  may rule a vampire ship needs a tank full of blood, which it
  devours at the usual rate of fuel consumption. Reaction
  engines no longer require reaction mass, effectively becom-
  ing reactionless engines, yet somehow are unable to accel-
  erate faster than their original delta-V.
  Weaponry: Ammunition is still required. If the battery
  runs out, it can’t be used unless the vessel has appropriate
  factory systems to produce it or it captures more.
  Except as noted above, a zombie vessel’s performance sta-
  tistics remain as they were in “life.” Undead vehicles don’t
  require maintenance, but lost HP are repaired normally.
  Zombie vessels that had Regeneration or Self-Repair design
  features by virtue of being living creatures lose their abilities
  upon becoming undead.
  SPACECRAFT DESIGN OPTIONS
  25
  Zombie Vehicle Spell
  Creates an undead vehicle. The target must be disabled
  (i.e., 0 HP or less) but not utterly destroyed (-5 ¥ HP or
  worse). Robotic vehicles must also have an intact computer.
  Duration: Remains animated until destroyed.
  Cost: 400 energy points per ton; minimum cost is 8.
  Time to Cast: 1 minute.
  Prerequisites: Animate Machine and Zombie.
  STATISTICS
  Statistics for divergent and paranormal spacecraft are cal-
  culated normally, but certain design choices and systems affect
  crew numbers and the performance stat block.
  CREW
  Some spacecraft are more labor-intensive than high- and
  ultra-tech vessels, as detailed in the lacks automation design
  feature (p. 20).
  Nonhuman Accommodations
  and Crew Stations
  Statistics assume the occupants are typical humans: 1.5 to 2
  yards tall, less than a yard across, around 150 pounds, and of
  course, human-shaped. The GM may modify the cabin equiva-
  lents in a habitat, control stations in a control room, workspaces
  in any system, or seats in passenger seating by the difference
  between the race’s SM and the standard SM 0. For example, an
  SM +5 race treats its habitat as five SM smaller when determin-
  ing the number of cabin equivalents. In general, large nonhu-
  mans have a minimum spaceship size of (their own SM + 4). So
  an SM +4 race operates ships of at least SM +8.
  Races with the same SM but different body shapes can use
  each other’s stations, seats, or quarters, although not comfort-
  ably. Assess a -1 (or worse) penalty on skill rolls when using
  controls designed for a significantly different species.
  BASIC STATISTICS BLOCK
  HT: The lacks automation feature adds +1 to HT. For each
  hull section with hazardous drives, apply a -1 to HT.
  Hnd/SR: If the vessel’s control room is one SM smaller,
  reduce Hnd and SR by 1.
  AIR PERFORMANCE
  Certain design features affect air performance.
  Nautical Lines: The top speed is multiplied by 0.2 after other
  calculations.
  Top Deck: The top speed cannot exceed 500 mph.
  See also the description of ornithopther wing (p. 12) and
  helicopter rotor (p. 10) systems.
  BOOST DRIVE
  Boost drives further change performance calculations.
  Hnd/SR: Replace the acceleration-derived modifier on the
  Hnd Modifier table (GURPS Spaceships, p. 35) with a flat +3
  for the boost drive. Thus, a boosted spacecraft’s Hnd is the Hnd
  value from the Hull Table + 3 (or +2 at TL7-8).
  Move: Do not record an acceleration or delta-V. Instead, list
  a boost-drive spacecraft’s (sublight) speed in miles per second,
  e.g., “Move: 300 mps.” If the GM determines speed varies
  depending on proximity from a gravity well (or some other lim-
  itation), record the slowest speed and indicate the others with
  a footnote.
  Air Speed: If capable of operating in atmosphere, use the
  space performance rather than the air performance. In prac-
  tice, the speed can’t exceed orbital velocity.
  There were on board the ship a great
  number of officers and seamen, who had
  never yet gone South of the Tropics,
  consequently were to be initiated into the
  mysteries of crossing the Equinoctial line,
  and entering the dominions of Neptune . . .
  – John Bechervaise, Thirty-Six
  Years of a Sea Faring Life
  
  Spacecraft with boost and pseudo-atmospheric drives have
  special rules for travel and combat. This chapter explains how
  to use these drives and provides mechanics for the weaponry
  presented in Chapter 1.
  Divergent and paranormal vessels may exist in a cosmos
  very different from our own. The bizarre features of such a uni-
  verse affect how space travel works, as described in the
  Fantastic Cosmology section.
  TRAVEL AND COMBAT
  26
  CHAPTER TWO
  TRAVEL AND
  COMBAT
  In some fantasy and science-fiction settings, space itself
  behaves differently.
  THE CRYSTAL SPHERES
  In early models of geocentric cosmology, the sun and planets
  rotated around Earth, attached to invisible crystal spheres pow-
  ered by divine movers, with the “fixed stars” on the outermost
  non-rotating shell. The universe’s boundaries may be somewhat
  circumscribed: For example, in Ptolemy’s cosmos (a standard
  model in the Middle Ages) the moon was the correct distance
  from Earth, but other planets were much nearer, and the fixed
  stars a mere 80,000,000 miles (0.86AU) away. Complicated sub-
  motions, called epicycles, were invented to ensure they matched
  the observed motions of the sun and planets, but a fantasy world
  could avoid this with heavenly bodies in circular orbits.
  If the crystal spheres are themselves ethereal in nature (as
  was often believed), it’s possible a vessel simply passes through
  them to visit other solar systems (if these exist). Outer spheres
  might form a barrier to travel, in which case a stardrive engine
  is required to “break through” them. What lies beyond may be
  some form of astral space or hyperspace – perhaps best treated
  as if it were hyperspace, with the normal rules for travel in place.
  THE EDGE OF THE WORLD
  A flat or gently curving world can have a literal edge! If so,
  there may be no such thing as a planetary orbit. Perhaps air
  and gravity terminate as soon as this limit is crossed and a ves-
  sel pushed or sailed off finds itself drifting in space.
  HYPERDYNAMIC COSMOS
  In this universe, hyperspace has friction, and spaceships
  extend special fields or wings into it to maneuver much like fly-
  ing in the air. This is a justification for having spaceships
  maneuver in cinematic fashion.
  The GM must set the hyper-factor of hyperspace. A factor of
  100 (constant at all TLs) is the default, but it can be less or
  more. It’s possible various “levels” of hyperspace exist, with
  other factors accessible to higher-TL fields, or the value can go
  up with increasing distance from a stellar or planetary mass.
  The hyper-factor could vary by region of space. Hyperspace
  might even have currents, winds, or calms that locally modify
  the hyper-factor or the vessel’s speed.
  A spacecraft in a hyperdynamic field maneuvers exactly like
  an aircraft, flying in a pseudo-atmosphere in zero gravity.
  Thus, it has no stall speed but is still affected normally by the
  gravity of planets and stars.
  With this option, spacecraft benefit from streamlined hulls
  even if they never enter atmosphere.
  Handling: Use the Air Performance Hnd/SR modifiers.
  Hyperdynamic Top Speed: Use the top air speed except the
  acceleration performance is based on those engines that func-
  tion in vacuum (that is, jet engines and rotors don’t count).
  Then multiply the top speed by the hyper-factor, representing
  the reduced drag of hyperspace compared to normal air.
  AIR-FILLED COSMOS
  What if the universe was full of air and the motions of the
  planets and stars were driven by aetherial winds? In game
  terms this works just like a hyperdynamic cosmos, except
  there’s no need for a doubletalk hyperdynamic field generator
  and top speed is not multiplied by a hyper-factor. If the
  medium is breathable the vessel doesn’t require air, and habi-
  tats get by with no life support even without magic. If so, the
  bonus doubles the effective number of cabins, as for Magical
  Life Support (p. 9). These qualities might only exist in or near
  planetary- and solar system-scale megastructures.
  Interstellar voyages are possible in an air-filled cosmos. The
  GM may determine the stars are a lot closer or allow vessels to
  sail into natural wormholes (“aether vortices”), or the eye of a
  celestial storm could emerge in another star system!
  FANTASTIC COSMOLOGY
  
  Spacecraft using boost-drive movement can instantly accel-
  erate or decelerate, so all that matters is their top speed (in
  miles per second).
  TRAVEL
  A vessel traveling with a boost
  drive typically cruises at its top
  speed, but it can operate at any
  velocity up to that value. Since it
  doesn’t accelerate, the calculation
  for travel time is simple: multiply
  the cruising speed by the time
  spent cruising. The formulas given
  below specify how to calculate
  travel times for various distances.
  Getting into Space
  The requirements for Getting into Space (see GURPS
  Spaceships, p. 37) apply to boost-drive ships, but use the top
  speed instead of delta-V. There is no need for acceleration to
  exceed the world’s gravity since acceleration is instant. Thus,
  to reach orbit, a vessel needs a top speed of 80% of that
  world’s escape velocity. Time required to get into space is sim-
  ply the time needed to boost from the surface directly out of
  the planet’s atmosphere.
  Space Travel with Boost Drives
  For long-range journeys measured in astronomical units,
  the formula is:
  Travel time (days) = tD ¥ 1,076/V.
  tD is the distance to the destination in astronomical units
  (AU). V is the cruising speed in miles per second, up to a max-
  imum of the spacecraft’s top speed using boost drive.
  Since planets and other bodies in a solar system orbit the
  star at different velocities, a boost drive needs a higher top
  speed than the difference between the orbital velocity it begins
  with and the orbital velocity of the destination. (This assumes
  the bodies orbit the star in the same direction, as is normally
  the case. If not, use the sum of their velocities.). For orbital
  velocities for planets in our solar system, see the Solar System
  Travel Table (GURPS Spaceships, p. 37).
  Example: The starship Dawn’s Arrow has a boost drive with
  a top speed of 60 mps. Traveling from Earth to Mars (1.5 AU)
  takes 1.5 ¥ 1,076/60 = 26.9 days (or 26 days, 21 hours, and 36
  minutes). Earth orbits the sun at 18.5 mps; Mars at 15.1 mps;
  the difference is 3.4 mps. This is well within the top speed of
  Dawn’s Arrow, so there is no problem matching velocities.
  Limitations
  The GM may opt to limit boost drives in much the same way
  as stardrives. For example, they may not work in close proxim-
  ity to a planet’s gravity well, thus requiring some other propul-
  sion system to reach orbit or fly in atmosphere. The boost-drive
  design switch (see p. 23) presents one possible set of modifiers.
  BASIC COMBAT
  Boost drives move differently from other drives, and this
  affects combat.
  Turn Length and Encounter Distance
  If the reference vessel (see Turn Length in GURPS
  Spaceships, p. 48) uses a boost drive, refer to the table below to
  determine a suitable combination of turn length and encounter
  distance. Find the top speed of one of its boost drives (its fastest
  boost engine, sail, etc.) and cross-index it with the chosen
  encounter scale to find the suggested turn length. A “no” means
  none of the turn scales are suitable; try a different encounter dis-
  tance or use another vessel as the reference spacecraft.
  Scale Table for Boost Drives
  Top Speed
  Close-Scale
  Standard-Scale
  Distant-Scale
  3 mps+
  20-second
  1-minute
  10-minute
  10 mps+
  no
  20-second
  3-minute
  30 mps+
  no
  20-second
  1-minute
  100 mps+
  no
  no
  20-second
  Example: The starship Dawn’s Arrow has two boost engines,
  each rated for a top speed of 30 mps. If we chose a standard
  scale (based on its weapon ranges), a suitable time scale would
  be a 20-second turn.
  Acceleration Bonus and Speed Bonus
  Boost drives don’t accelerate; instead they have a speed
  bonus. A speed bonus is used in all respects like an accelera-
  tion bonus. When pilot maneuvers refer to an acceleration
  bonus, read it as a speed bonus.
  To achieve a speed bonus, the spacecraft requires at least
  one functional boost drive. Drives are rated for their top speed,
  and high-energy systems [!] only apply while allocated power.
  To determine the speed bonus, refer to the Acceleration
  Bonus Table (GURPS Spaceships, p. 55). Ignore the require-
  ment for acceleration (G) in the “Requirements” column.
  Instead, use the parenthetical miles per second (mps) as the
  minimum top speed required for a +2 speed bonus. (Each +1
  bonus is half the required mps).
  Example: The starship Dawn’s Arrow has two engines with a
  top speed of 30 mps each for a total of 60 mps top speed if both
  are powered up. It is fighting a space battle at standard scale
  with 20-second turns. The Acceleration Bonus Table shows the
  requirement is 10 mps per +2. Therefore, if it moved at 60 mps,
  its speed bonus is +12.
  TACTICAL COMBAT
  These rules explain how to adapt boost-drive vessels to the
  tactical combat system presented in GURPS Spaceships 3:
  Warships and Space Pirates.
  A boost-drive spacecraft in this system is rated for its
  Movement Points (MP). Using its top speed, calculate MP
  based on the hex scale and turn length on the Movement
  Points Table (p. 28).
  TRAVEL AND COMBAT
  27
  BOOST-DRIVE MOVEMENT
  
  If boost-drive engines can be powered up individually, cal-
  culate the MP per engine.
  Movement Points Table
  Turn Scale
  10-mile
  100-mile
  1,000-mile
  10,000-mile
  20-sec.
  mps ¥ 2
  mps/5
  mps/50
  mps/500
  1-min.
  mps ¥ 6
  mps ¥ 2/3
  mps/15
  mps/150
  3-min.
  mps ¥ 20
  mps ¥ 2
  mps/5
  mps/50
  10-min.
  mps ¥ 60
  mps ¥ 6
  mps ¥ 2/3
  mps/15
  Example: The Dawn’s Arrow has a top speed of 30 mps per
  boost drive. If the tactical space battle is fought at 100-mile hex
  scale using 20-second turns, each engine has 30/5 = 6 MP. Note
  this value is identical to the speed bonus it receives in the basic
  space combat system.
  Movement Points
  Vector counters are not used for boost-drive movement.
  Spacecraft move during their pilot’s maneuver step rather than
  the space movement phase. Vessels expend some, none, or all
  of their MP during a turn; unused MP do not accumulate from
  turn to turn. A spacecraft regains all its MP each turn, provided
  its drives are powered up.
  It costs one MP to enter each hex when moving forward.
  “Forward” is a move into one of the spacecraft’s three front
  hexes. Going directly ahead, facing doesn’t change. Otherwise
  the spacecraft turns one hex side (if it goes into its forward-left
  hex, it must turn one hex side to the left as it goes). Thus, a
  boost spacecraft can change direction or even turn about while
  moving “forward” by maneuvering in a wide circle. A vessel
  can keep its original facing by spend-
  ing an extra MP.
  At the end of a pilot’s turn, if his
  spacecraft used up to half its MP it
  can turn to face any direction. If it
  used more than half its MP, it can
  change facing by one hex-side. It
  can also change facing before or
  during movement, but this costs
  one MP per hex side.
  Boost
  Drives
  and
  Vector
  Movement: GMs may combine the
  vector and boost-drive movement
  rules. A boost-drive spacecraft may
  also have a vector counter if it’s
  affected by gravity, or was launched
  by a moving ship, or has a conven-
  tional maneuver drive rated for
  acceleration in G. It is possible to
  move using boost-drive and vector
  movement simultaneously.
  TRAVEL AND COMBAT
  28
  PSEUDO-ATMOSPHERIC
  MOVEMENT
  This movement system lets spacecraft maneuver like air-
  planes. It is suitable for both a fantastic air-filled cosmos and
  spacecraft using hyperdynamic fields.
  TRAVEL
  Spacecraft can accelerate to their top speed in a matter of
  minutes; thus, space travel is effectively the same as for boost-
  drive vessels (p. 27).
  BASIC COMBAT
  Spacecraft maneuver using the normal basic combat rules,
  with the following exceptions to the pilot maneuver rules.
  These are drawn from the optional rules in GURPS
  Spaceships 4: Fighters, Carriers and Mecha:
  1. You cannot choose a controlled drift maneuver – you
  have to pick a maneuver that requires acceleration, or use an
  uncontrolled drift.
  2. You cannot choose a closing maneuver against an enemy
  spacecraft if the target was, on its last turn, advantaged against
  you, and the target’s pilot decided that your vessel’s rear hull
  faced toward his craft.
  3. Fast passes are not allowed.
  TACTICAL COMBAT
  Use the rules as described in Spaceships 3, except as
  noted below. The rules for vector counters are not used.
  Instead, record each spacecraft’s or missile’s current velocity
  in hexes/turn on scrap paper.
  Heliographs
  Heliographs are a means of signaling with the pre-radio design switch. A stabi-
  lized heliograph is standard equipment in a control room or comm/sensor array
  built at TL4 and higher.
  A heliograph consists of a mirror and a sighting device. A pulse code is sent by
  moving a reflected beam from the mirror on and off the target. Messages cannot be
  sent while the vessel is maneuvering or using spin gravity.
  The transmission rate is the same as telegraphy (see Electronics Operation
  (Communications) skill, p. B189). Use the Active Sensor and Comm Range Table
  (GURPS Spaceships, p. 45) to determine range, reading the range on the table as
  “tens of miles.”
  For interplanetary communications, a solar mirror or lightsail can be pressed
  into service as a giant heliograph. Look up the operating ship’s SM on the Active
  Sensor and Comm Range Table, reading that as the “level” of the array. The result is
  the range in AU. A solar mirror sends signals at the same speed as a heliograph. A
  lightsail is slow to manipulate and can send, at best, a few characters per hour.
  
  Tactical Maneuvering
  Spacecraft do not wait until the movement phase to move.
  Instead, they move during their tactical maneuvering phase,
  combining maneuver and movement.
  Each turn, a vessel gets thrust points equal to its current
  thrust rating. The pilot spends any thrust points during phase
  4, piloting tasks, on his turn. He must also move his vessel.
  Spacecraft can launch, enter formation, rendezvous, and
  recover under certain circumstances. All happen during the
  same piloting phase. However, acceleration or deceleration
  must occur before movement.
  At the start of a spacecraft’s turn its pilot can use thrust
  points to accelerate or decelerate, or can choose to coast and
  retain its current velocity. Then the spacecraft moves in the
  direction it faces. Unused thrust points can change the space-
  craft’s facing and thus its direction of movement.
  A spacecraft can accelerate or decelerate before it moves.
  The thrust points used are added to or subtracted from its
  velocity. For example, if a spacecraft at velocity 5 uses two
  thrust points to accelerate, its velocity becomes 7. A spacecraft
  cannot decelerate below 0 velocity.
  When a spacecraft moves, its position counter is moved
  directly forward into the hex in front of it. Unless the vessel
  turns, it moves forward a number of hexes equal to its cur-
  rent velocity (after any acceleration or deceleration). A vehi-
  cle at velocity 7 moves seven hexes directly forward unless it
  turns (see below).
  Moving spacecraft can change facing during their move-
  ment by expending any remaining thrust points that were not
  used for acceleration or deceleration. It costs a number of
  thrust points equal to the spacecraft’s current velocity to
  change facing by one hex side. This also changes the space-
  craft’s direction of movement.
  Spacecraft are also limited by the Facing Change Table in
  Spaceships 3 (p. 28). Thus, a SM +13 vessel in a 20-second
  turn could not change facing by more than one hex side, even
  it had sufficient thrust points left to do so.
  To dodge, a spacecraft must have spent at least one thrust
  point. To qualify for an evasive maneuver bonus, it must have
  changed facing this turn. (There is no need to both change fac-
  ing and accelerate, as in the standard rules.
  Fractional Thrust and Extended Burns
  If a spacecraft has a fractional thrust rating, it requires mul-
  tiple turns (an extended burn) to accumulate thrust points. It
  can only accelerate, decelerate, or turn; it cannot combine
  these. For example, a vessel with thrust rating 1/50 requires a
  50-turn extended burn to produce one thrust point.
  Launched Craft
  Launched craft always have the
  same facing as the launching vehicle.
  Formations,
  Rendezvous,
  Docking, and Recovery
  A spacecraft is considered to be “in
  formation” (see Formations, GURPS
  Spaceships, p. 65) with another vessel if
  their position counters are in the same hex ; both craft face the
  same direction; and both have the same velocity.
  Gun and Missile Salvos
  Place the salvo’s position counter in the same hex as the
  launching vessel’s position counter, facing the same direction,
  and give it the same velocity. Missile counter facing is impor-
  tant; use the same rules as spacecraft.
  TRAVEL AND COMBAT
  29
  CONSUMABLES
  In addition to those fuels and consumables listed in GURPS
  Spaceships (pp. 46-47), the following logistical considerations
  are significant.
  FUEL
  Ablative plastic (for laser rockets) costs $80 per ton.
  Nebulonic fuel (for ether furnaces) costs $4,000 per ton.
  Recharging an ether furnace power plant is 25% of the cost to
  refuel a tank for that same SM of vessel.
  SUPPLIES
  Low-tech spacecraft face additional challenges since they
  lack advanced life support systems. Even if a ship has magical
  life support, much of its magical enchantment is invested in
  providing air. Whether it offers drinking and bathing water,
  fresh food, etc. is up to the GM (and the availability of spells
  like Create Food and Create Water).
  Before TL5, canning hasn’t been invented and fresh food
  tends to spoil within a month or so. There are plenty of other
  foods that keep longer, but scurvy (induced by vitamin-C defi-
  ciency, caused by a lack of fresh fruit) is a serious threat after
  several weeks in space.
  The figures for supplies given in GURPS Spaceships (Food,
  p. 47) assume partial recycling of water via the ship’s life sup-
  port system. If a spacecraft has magical life support based on
  Create Air spells but lacks the ability to Create Water, the mass
  required is one ton of water per 100 man-days ($20 per ton).
  These issues can be avoided with the listed spells; by using
  crews who need not eat or drink, such as golems or zombies;
  or even by placing passengers in suspended animation or turn-
  ing them into stone for the voyage. GURPS Magic provides
  many spells that can help with logistical problems.
  WARHEADS
  Ammunition for TL3-6 conventional guns has its usual
  mass but is one-tenth the cost. Catapult ammunition has the
  same mass as that of electromagnetic guns, and rocket launch-
  ers use missile ammunition; both of these are also one-tenth
  the cost. Nuclear warheads are unavailable before TL7.
  
  TRAVEL AND COMBAT
  30
  WEAPONRY
  Special rules apply to some of the weapons described in this
  book.
  Slow Rate of Fire for TL3-5 Guns,
  Rockets, and Catapults
  Catapults, rocket launchers, and TL3-5 guns use the Slow
  Rate of Fire Table (below).
  Slow Rate of Fire Table
  Class of Weapon
  20-sec.
  1-min.
  3-min.
  10-min.
  Catapult,
  TL3 Gun, to 20cm†
  1*
  1
  3
  10
  TL4-5 Gun, to 14cm†
  1
  3
  10
  30
  TL4-5 Gun, over 14cm†
  1*
  1
  3
  10
  Rocket Launcher,
  TL3 Gun, over 20cm†
  1‡
  1‡
  1‡
  1
  * Takes two 20-second turns to reload after firing.
  † If fixed mount, multiply RoF by the number of fixed
  mounts in the battery. Double the RoF of improved guns, but
  note these are only available for TL5 guns of 6cm or less and
  for TL6 guns.
  ‡ Takes 30 turns (20-second scale), 10 turns (1-minute
  scale), or three turns (3-minute scale) to reload after firing.
  Proximity and Timed Fuses with
  TL3-6 Guns, Rockets, and Catapults
  Proximity fuses are unavailable at TL3-6. Instead these
  weapons use timed fuses on their warheads.
  Timed Fuse: These are treated as proximity fuses, but reduce
  the bonus they provide to +1 at TL4-5 or +2 at TL6.
  Electromagnetic
  Disruptors
  (EM Disruptors)
  These superscience beam weapons
  temporarily disrupt electronics or com-
  puter systems without affecting the ves-
  sel itself or its occupants. They have no
  effect on non-sentient entities or those
  with the Digital Mind advantage.
  DR protects normally against them, but they do not inflict
  their damage on the ship’s HP. If the beam’s penetrating dam-
  age is at least 10% of the ship’s dHP, whichever TL7+ system it
  hits is disabled as vital electronics fail. (Exceptions: armor,
  cargo hold, engine room, hangar bay, fuel tank, radioisotope
  sail, soft landing, solar mirror, and any previously disabled sys-
  tems.) If the penetrating damage exceeds half the ship’s dHP, it
  affects any such vulnerable systems in the hull section hit. If it’s
  equal to or greater than the ship’s dHP, it affects every vulner-
  able system in the entire vessel.
  No damage is actually inflicted to the vessel’s dHP, nor is
  damage cumulative over time.
  Mind Disruptors
  These beam weapons affect occupants without affecting the
  vessel itself. They have no effect on non-sentient entities or
  those with the Digital Mind advantage.
  Normal DR is ineffective against them but force screens pro-
  tect at 1% of dDR. If the beam’s penetrating damage is at least
  10% of the ship’s dHP, any being in the system struck is affected.
  They must make a Will-6 roll to resist (Will-3 beyond 1/2D
  range). If the penetrating damage exceeds half the ship’s dHP, it
  affects anyone in the hull section hit. If it is equal to or greater
  than the ship’s dHP, it affects every being in the entire vessel.
  No damage is actually inflicted to the vessel’s dHP, nor is
  damage cumulative over time. A mind disruptor has the No
  Wounding modifier: Damage is only rolled to determine
  whether people are affected.
  Mind shields and psi shielding (p. 21) add to the roll to resist.
  Mind disruptor hits produce one of the following effects,
  chosen before firing.
  Hypnagogic Beam: The standard mind disruptor fires a
  beam of telepathic noise. If the victim fails to resist, he suffers
  the daze incapacitating condition (p. B428). He is unable to act
  until struck or shaken, or until a number of minutes pass equal
  to his margin of failure. If he fails by 5 or more he falls uncon-
  scious (p. B429) and is dazed as above after recovery. It also
  disrupts short-term memory: Victims never remember what
  happened to them during the second they were shot, or the sec-
  ond before that.
  Death Beam: This beam carries a hypnotic compulsion to
  die. If the resistance roll fails, the victim suffers the choking
  incapacitating condition (p. B428) for a number of seconds
  equal to twice his margin of failure. There’s nothing lodged in
  his throat, but he loses 1 FP per second unless he doesn’t need
  to breathe. If he fails by 5 or more, the victim
  suffers the heart attack mortal condition.
  Insanity Beam: This beam unleashes
  bizarre and terrifying visions from the vic-
  tim’s subconscious mind. He suffers the hal-
  lucinating
  incapacitating
  condition
  (p. B429) for one minute times his margin
  of failure. If he fails by 5 or more, the result
  is a coma (p. B429) in which he is tor-
  mented by horrific dreams. If the victim sur-
  vives the coma, he gains the Nightmares
  (12) disadvantage for 1d weeks after.
  Psionic Neutralizer: If psychotronic technology exists, psionic
  neutralizer is another possible setting for neural and mind dis-
  ruptors. The beam scrambles the areas of the nervous system
  that control psi powers. Anyone struck loses all his psionic pow-
  ers for a number of minutes equal to his margin of failure.
  New Beam Weapons Table
  TL
  Weapon
  Damage
  sAcc
  Range
  Rcl
  5+2^ Lightning Cannon* burn sur(2)
  -3
  R1
  1
  10^
  EM Disruptor
  special
  0
  R2
  1
  11^
  Mind Disruptor
  special
  0
  R2
  1
  * See p. 19 for details.
  
  This chapter presents examples of unusual spacecraft
  designed with this expansion. These vessels draw from several
  tech paradigms, but all involve the use of divergent technology,
  magic, or superscience.
  GURPS has no default interstellar background setting,
  so there are thousands of possible combinations of spaceship
  systems and degrees of superscience. However, since the
  basic GURPS Spaceships system is modular, it’s easy to swap
  out components and adjust designs to fit a campaign. Feel
  free to remove any system and replace it with another, adjust-
  ing statistics according to GURPS Spaceships rules.
  FANTASTIC SPACECRAFT
  31
  CHAPTER THREE
  FANTASTIC
  SPACECRAFT
  MAGICAL SHIPS
  GURPS Spaceships is optimized for vessels TL7 and up.
  However, low-tech spacecraft exist in some fantasy settings
  where the cosmology makes it possible. In a world where
  sails catch the astral winds, and planets and stars move on
  crystal spheres, who is to say an enterprising wizard cannot
  reach these heavens?
  Vessels of this sort often have the boost-drive design
  switch (p. 23), but this option has not been added to allow
  easier customization.
  STAR GALLEON (TL4^)
  A star galleon is a wooden-hulled sailing ship, but it is
  equipped with enchanted astral sails enabling it to fly in the air
  and voyage through space. It uses a 300-ton (SM +7) stream-
  lined hull 90 feet long with nautical lines. It also functions as a
  conventional sailing ship. Most crew are gunners and loaders
  for the several black-powder muzzle-loading cannon carried
  aboard. They also serve as a boarding party when capturing
  other vessels or raiding ashore.
  Front Hull
  System
  [1]
  Etherwood Armor (dDR 1).
  [2]
  Wooden Armor (dDR 1).
  [3-4]
  Habitat (magical life support; four
  bunkrooms each).*
  [5]
  External Clamp (for ship’s boats).
  [6]
  Cargo Hold (15 tons capacity).
  Central Hull
  System
  [1]
  Etherwood Armor (dDR 1).
  [2]
  Wooden Armor (dDR 1).
  [3]
  Secondary Battery (six fixed mounts with 10
  cm guns; six tons cargo).*
  [4]
  Astral Sails (0.1G acceleration).*
  [5]
  Cargo Hold (15 tons capacity).
  [6]
  Astral Sails (0.1G acceleration).*
  [core]
  Habitat (magical life support; three
  bunkrooms and one cell).*
  Rear Hull
  System
  [1]
  Etherwood Armor (dDR 1).
  [2]
  Wooden Armor (dDR 1).
  [3]
  Habitat (magical life support; bunkroom and
  three-bed sickbay).*
  [4]
  Medium Battery (two fixed mount 12cm
  guns; five tons cargo).*
  [5]
  Habitat (magical life support; two cabins, two
  bunkrooms).*
  [6]
  Control Room (three control stations,
  pre-radio, no computer).*
  [core]
  Cargo Hold (15 tons capacity).
  * One workspace per system.
  I must down to the seas again,
  to the lonely sea and the sky,
  And all I ask is a tall ship and a
  star to steer her by,
  And the wheel’s kick, and the
  wind’s song and the white sail’s
  shaking . . .
  – John Masefield, “Sea Fever”
  
  SOUL SLAVER (TL3^)
  An enchanted warship created by a mighty necromancer,
  this dread craft is built with a 300-ton (SM +7) streamlined
  hull 90 feet long. The sleek exterior is decorated with sinister
  sigils and the bow terminates in a skull-headed adamantine
  ram. It has ether sails, but its real speed comes from its astral
  screw, the power for which is provided by a soulburner. The
  vessel is also armed with a magical artifact: a powerful light-
  ning-bolt thrower fed by the souls of the damned! To sate the
  ravenous appetite of this infernal device, Soul Slaver holds
  room for a few dozen captives, who rot in its brig until their
  souls are devoured. In addition to its crew (see below), the
  ship’s master can pack the cargo holds with undead, who
  won’t strain its life support.
  Soul Slaver is designed as a comfortable nest for an evil
  mage, with a luxury cabin and a magical laboratory. Unlike
  other low-tech ships, it does not have the lacks automation fea-
  ture. The necromancer has spirits bound into the vessel to per-
  form such routine tasks.
  Front Hull
  System
  [1-2]
  Adamant Armor (total dDR 4).
  [3]
  Etherwood Armor (dDR 1).
  [4!]
  Medium Battery (fixed mount 30 MJ lightning
  beam, magic-powered; 10 tons cargo).
  [5]
  Habitat (magical life support; four
  bunkrooms).
  [6]
  Cargo Hold (15 tons capacity).
  Central Hull
  System
  [1]
  Etherwood Armor (dDR 1).
  [2-4]
  Habitats (magical life support; four cells
  each).
  [5]
  Habitat (magical life support; four
  bunkrooms).
  [6]
  Astral Sail (0.1G acceleration).
  [core]
  Cargo Hold (15 tons capacity).
  Rear Hull
  System
  [1]
  Etherwood Armor (dDR 1).
  [2]
  Habitat (magical life support; magical
  laboratory, luxury cabin).
  [3]
  Engine Room (one workspace).
  [4]
  Cargo Hold (15 tons capacity).
  [5]
  Control Room (three control stations,
  pre-radio, no computer).
  [6!]
  Astral Screw (magic-powered; 0.2G
  acceleration).
  [core]
  Soulburner (two magic Power Points when
  fed).
  The ship has nautical lines and a ram. It has the drive field
  design switch with a low-power life support field.
  Crew consists of three officers (including the master), one
  sailor, and one gunner. Several additional minions can serve as
  companions, a boarding party, and prison guards.
  The ship has nautical lines and a top deck, and lacks
  automation. It has the drive-field design switch with a low-
  power life support field.
  Crew consists of a captain, two officers (one of whom is
  usually a mage, if the captain is not), a surgeon, 10 sailors (who
  also serve as loaders), and six gunners.
  FANTASTIC SPACECRAFT
  32
  TL
  Spacecraft
  dST/HP
  Hnd/SR
  HT
  Move
  LWt.
  Load
  SM
  Occ
  dDR
  Range
  Cost
  PILOTING/TL3 (HIGH-PERFORMANCE SPACECRAFT)
  3^
  Soul Slaver
  50
  -3/4
  13
  0.3G/c
  300
  63.2
  +7
  82ASV
  5/1/1
  –
  $6.15M
  In atmosphere, air speed is 300 mph and Hnd/SR is -1/4.
  TL
  Spacecraft
  dST/HP
  Hnd/SR
  HT
  Move
  LWt.
  Load
  SM
  Occ
  dDR
  Range
  Cost
  PILOTING/TL4 (HIGH-PERFORMANCE SPACECRAFT)
  4^
  Star Galleon
  50
  -3/4
  13
  0.2G/c
  300
  62.4
  +7
  64ASV
  2
  –
  $5.59M
  In atmosphere, air speed is 200 mph and Hnd/SR is -1/4.
  He’s the king of the
  ninth world,
  The twisted son of
  the fog bell’s toll.
  In each and every
  lobster cage,
  A tortured human
  soul.
  – Sting,
  “The Soul Cages”
  
  What if Victorian inventors had developed spaceships?
  They’re just the thing for extending the Earthman’s Burden to
  Mars or Venus, don’t you know. Or perhaps these ether iron-
  clads are the answer to Mr. Wells’ Martians if they get uppity!
  Other divergent technological and superscience assump-
  tions lead to different sorts of spacecraft. The psi-jammer
  (detailed below) comes from a universe advanced in both
  psionic research and psi-technology (“psychotronics”).
  ETHER STEAMSHIP
  (TL5+2^)
  An elegant spaceship from a Victorian
  age that never was, it may be the pioneer-
  ing creation of a brilliant inventor, or a
  space yacht carrying bureaucrats and
  adventurers to the farthest corners of Her
  Majesty’s Solar Empire. This 300-ton ves-
  sel (SM +7) uses an unstreamlined, iron-
  clad
  etherwood
  hull
  to
  reach
  high
  altitude, then ether screws powered by a closed-cycle solar
  steam engine for interplanetary travel. Despite the limited
  space aboard, the interior is luxuriously fitted out with fine
  woods, paintings, and furnishings. There are cabins for the
  captain and passengers and bunks for the crew, as well as a
  small library and science lab. There are no weapons aboard
  aside from any small arms carried by the crew.
  Front Hull
  System
  [1]
  Iron Armor (dDR 2).
  [2]
  Etherwood Armor (dDR 2).
  [3-4]
  Habitats (one luxury cabin each).*
  [5]
  Habitat (cabin and office [as library]).*
  [6]
  Habitat (cabin and bunkroom).*
  [core]
  Control Room (three control stations,
  comm/sensor 3, no computer).*
  Central Hull
  System
  [1]
  Iron Armor (dDR 2).
  [2]
  Etherwood Armor (dDR 2).
  [3]
  Habitat (lab).*
  [4]
  Habitat (two-bed sickbay).*
  [5]
  Habitat (two bunkrooms).*
  [6]
  Cargo Hold (15 tons capacity).
  Rear Hull
  System
  [1]
  Iron Armor (dDR 2).
  [2]
  Etherwood Armor (dDR 2).
  [3]
  Solar Mirror (powers solar boiler).*
  [4!]
  Ether Screw (0.2G acceleration).*
  [5-6]
  Cargo Holds (30 tons total capacity).
  [core]
  Solar Boiler (one Power Point with solar
  mirror).*
  * One workspace per system.
  It has artificial gravity and lacks automation. Crew con-
  sists of three control room officers, a surgeon, a purser, and
  11 technicians.
  FANTASTIC SPACECRAFT
  33
  STEAMPUNK AND
  WEIRD-SCIENCE SHIPS
  ETHER IRONCLAD (TL5+2^)
  The naval cousin of the ether steamship, this 10,000-ton
  ironclad space battleship shows the flag and projects imperial
  power to distant parts of an interplanetary empire. It has an
  unstreamlined hull 300 feet long (SM +10).
  It is heavily armed with two batteries of six-inch turret-
  mounted rifled guns, a battery of two-inch mechanical rotary
  cannons, an experimental heat-ray (based on a recovered
  Martian artifact), and a magnetic tractor beam.
  The ironclad carries a complement of marines for colonial
  operations; to that end, it is capable of deep space flight and
  serves as an aerial battleship. It is waterproof and lands on the
  ocean where a space port is not available. However, its two
  etherwood systems provide 2/3G of lift – sufficient for levita-
  tion on Mars, the Moon, or Mercury, but not to overcome
  Mother Earth’s embrace. Thus, it was probably built in space
  or at a colonial navy yard.
  Front Hull
  System
  [1-2]
  Iron Armor (total dDR 14).
  [3]
  Etherwood Armor (dDR 4).
  [4]
  Habitat (5 cabins, 25 bunkrooms and 150
  tons cargo).*
  [5]
  Medium Battery (three turrets with 20cm
  TL5 guns).*
  [6]
  Solar Mirror (for one solar boiler).*
  [core]
  Control Room (10 control stations,
  comm/sensor 6, no computer).*
  Central Hull
  System
  [1-2]
  Iron Armor (total dDR 14).
  [3!]
  Medium Battery (two turrets with 1 GJ heat
  rays and one turret with 1 GJ magnetic
  tractor beam).*
  [4]
  Solar Boiler (one Power Point).*
  [5]
  Solar Mirror (for one solar boiler).*
  TL
  Spacecraft
  dST/HP
  Hnd/SR
  HT
  Move
  LWt.
  Load
  SM
  Occ
  dDR
  Range
  Cost
  PILOTING/TL(5+2) (HIGH-PERFORMANCE SPACECRAFT)
  5+2^ Ether Steamship
  50
  -3/4
  13
  0.2G/c
  300
  47
  +7
  20ASV
  3
  –
  $4.92M
  In atmosphere, air speed is 100 mph and Hnd/SR is -1/4.
  
  Central Hull
  System
  [6]
  Tertiary Battery (10 turrets with TL5 7cm
  rapid fire conventional guns; 300 tons
  cargo).*
  [core]
  Habitat (25 cabins, 25 bunkrooms, briefing
  room, two offices, one science lab, and
  five-bed sickbay).*
  Rear Hull
  System
  [1]
  Iron Armor (dDR 7).
  [2]
  Etherwood Armor (dDR 4).
  Rear Hull
  System
  [3]
  Medium Battery (two turrets with 20cm TL5
  conventional guns; 150 tons cargo).*
  [4]
  Solar Boiler (one Power Point).*
  [5-6!]
  Ether Screws (0.2G acceleration each).*
  * 10 workstations per system.
  It has artificial gravity and lacks automation. Crew consists
  of a captain and nine control room officers, a surgeon, 15 gun-
  ners, and 130 technicians. It also carries a company of marines.
  FANTASTIC SPACECRAFT
  34
  PSI-JAMMER (TL11^)
  This is a multipurpose vessel for a universe where psi pow-
  ers have merged with science and starships are powered psy-
  chokinetically. A psi-jammer serves as a commercial trader, an
  explorer, and, if necessary, a warship. Psionic energy powers all
  major systems. It uses a 100,000 ton (SM +12) unstreamlined
  hull 600 feet in diameter.
  It has a large suspended-animation capacity for transport-
  ing a mass of “normals” to new worlds; psi-jammer crews pre-
  fer not to carry normal passengers as the buzz of their
  unshielded thoughts is distracting. The vessel has two minor
  oddities for its size: It has no briefing rooms (as everyone is
  telepathic!) and no sickbay (as psionic healers are used).
  Front Hull
  System
  [1]
  Nanocomposite Armor (dDR 100).
  [2-4!]
  Stardrive (subwarp, psi-powered).*
  [5]
  Habitat (2,000 hibernation chambers; 500
  tons cargo).*
  Front Hull
  System
  [6]
  Psychotronic Power Plant (two psionic Power
  Points; 100 psis).*
  [core]
  Control Room (C11 computer, comm/sensor
  12, and 20 control stations).*
  Central Hull
  System
  [1]
  Nanocomposite Armor (dDR 100).
  [2!]
  Major Battery (fixed 30 GJ mind disruptor,
  psi-powered).*
  [3]
  Cargo Hold (5,000 tons capacity).
  [4]
  Psychotronic Power Plant (two psionic Power
  Points; 100 psis).*
  [5!]
  Light Force Screen (dDR 300; psi-powered).*
  [6]
  Major Battery (fixed 30 GJ tractor beam; psi-
  powered).*
  [core]
  Habitat (250 cabins, five establishments, 10
  science labs, and 1,600 tons cargo).*
  Rear Hull
  System
  [1]
  Nanocomposite Armor (dDR 100).
  [2]
  Hangar Bay (3,000 tons capacity).*
  [3!]
  Contragravity Lifter (psi-powered).*
  [4]
  Open Space (one acre of gardens, for medita-
  tion and extra life support).*
  [5-6]
  Cargo Holds (total 10,000 tons capacity).
  * 10 workspaces per system.
  It rotates for spin gravity (0.5G) and has the FTL
  comm/sensor array, multiscanner array, stardrive (reaction-
  less), and boost-drive design switches. The force screen is
  adjustable and reality-stabilized.
  Crew consists of 20 control room crew, 20 scientists (some
  of whom may be psionic healers), 200 psis for the generator,
  and 150 technicians.
  TL
  Spacecraft
  dST/HP
  Hnd/SR
  HT
  Move
  LWt.
  Load
  SM
  Occ
  dDR
  Range
  Cost
  PILOTING/TL11 (HIGH-PERFORMANCE SPACECRAFT)
  11^
  Psi-Jammer
  300
  1/5
  13
  1,500 mps‡
  100,000
  20,150
  +12
  500ASV*
  100†
  3¥
  $7.982B
  * Plus 2,000 in suspended animation.
  † Plus dDR 300 if force screen is powered up.
  ‡ Slowest speed, within 10 AU of world; see Boost Drives (p. 23).
  TL
  Spacecraft
  dST/HP
  Hnd/SR
  HT
  Move
  LWt.
  Load
  SM
  Occ
  dDR
  Range
  Cost
  PILOTING/TL(5+2) (HIGH-PERFORMANCE SPACECRAFT)
  5+2^ Ether Ironclad
  150
  -4/4
  14
  0.4G/c
  10,000
  626
  +10
  260ASV
  18/14/11
  –
  $275M
  In atmosphere on a world with no more than 0.66G, air speed is 200 mph and Hnd/SR is -2/4.
  
  These are living spaceships. They are created through
  genetic engineering (or magic), or evolve naturally.
  GOD SHIP (TL3+4^)
  God Ship is the upper torso, head, and arms of a colossal 150-
  foot-tall humanoid. It masses 1,000 tons (SM +8) and is
  unstreamlined. It is the corpse of a star god, piloted by his priests
  and followers. They built a temple inside and kept the body pre-
  served, vitrifying it into adamant via strange rites that maintain
  their deity’s cosmic energies. Perhaps they’re on a mission to
  bring his remains back to heaven, or were the losing side in a
  war of the gods and are on a quest to resurrect him. The dead
  god’s brain still functions but is now under the priests’ control,
  who give it orders through prayers from their temple.
  Front Hull
  System
  [1]
  Skystone Armor (dDR 5).
  [2-3]
  Adamant Armor (total dDR 10).
  [4!]
  Major Battery (turret with 300 MJ heat ray,
  magic-powered).
  [5]
  Habitat (magical life support; luxury cabin,
  seven cabins, briefing room, and two-bed
  sickbay).
  [6]
  Hangar Bay (30 tons capacity; in mouth).
  [core]
  Sapient Brain (comm/sensor 5).
  Central Hull
  System
  [1]
  Skystone Armor (dDR 5).
  [2-3]
  Adamant Armor (total dDR 10).
  [4-5]
  Robot Arms (ST 700).
  FANTASTIC SPACECRAFT
  35
  BIOSHIPS AND SPACE MONSTERS
  TL
  Spacecraft
  dST/HP
  Hnd/SR
  HT
  Move
  LWt.
  Load
  SM
  Occ
  dDR
  Range
  Cost
  PILOTING/TL12^ (STARSHIP)
  12^
  Operator-class
  100
  +1/5
  14
  500G/c
  3,000
  152
  +9/+1*
  20ASV
  70
  1¥
  $20.982B
  * SM +1 is external size.
  † Plus dDR 150 if force screen is powered up, or 300 with second Power Point.
  Top air speed is 5,600 mph and Hnd/SR is -1/5.
  OPERATOR-CLASS REALITY
  POLICE CRUISER (TL12^)
  This capable vessel carries “reality police” troubleshooters to
  deal with crises anywhere in the multiverse, and provides them
  with the support needed to save the day. On the outside, it’s a
  small (SM +1) box or sphere (about 80 cubic feet), easily dis-
  guised by its holoprojector as an innocuous object such as a
  large bush, packing crate, refrigerator, phone booth, sentry box,
  or public restroom. Once past its concealed doorway, however, a
  visitor finds himself in a 3,000 ton (SM +9) ultra-tech space/time
  vessel fully equipped to meet any contingency!
  Front Hull
  System
  [1]
  Exotic Laminate Armor (dDR 70).
  [2]
  Habitat (10 cabins with total life support).
  [3]
  Defensive ECM.
  [4]
  Multipurpose Array (comm/sensor 12).
  [5]
  Control Room (C10, comm/sensor 10, six
  control stations).
  [6]
  Cargo Hold (150 tons capacity).
  Central Hull
  System
  [1]
  Exotic Laminate Armor (dDR 70).
  [2!!]
  Heavy Force Screen (dDR 150).
  [3!]
  Reconfigurable System (configures into fixed
  Major Battery with 1GJ tractor beam or
  1GJ graviton beam).
  [4!]
  Replicator (15 lbs./hr.).
  [5]
  Engine Room (two workspaces).
  [6]
  Holoprojector.
  [core!!]
  Extradimensional Interface.
  Rear Hull
  System
  [1]
  Exotic Laminate Armor (dDR 70).
  [2]
  Total Conversion Reactor (five Power Points).
  [3]
  Total Conversion Reactor (five Power Points).
  [4!]
  Time-Flux Drive (Anywhere).
  [5!]
  Subwarp Drive (500G).
  [6!]
  Stardrive (jump drive).
  [core!!]
  Extradimensional Interface.
  It has artificial gravity, gravitic compensators, and
  an energy-phasing surface. It uses the following design
  switches: FTL comm/sensor arrays, multiscanner array,
  pseudovelocity, and boost drive.
  It’s still a police box!
  Why hasn’t it changed?
  Dear, dear – how very
  disturbing!
  – The Doctor,
  Doctor Who
  (1963) #1.2
  
  Central Hull
  System
  [6]
  Habitat (magical life support; five temple
  establishments, one office, 2.5 tons cargo).
  [core]
  Caged Spirit Power Plant (the god’s spirit; five
  Power Points).
  Rear Hull
  System
  [1]
  Skystone Armor (dDR 5).
  [2-3]
  Adamant Armor (total dR 10).
  [4!]
  Powered Astral Sails (0.3G acceleration,
  magic-powered).
  Rear Hull
  System
  [5!]
  Stardrive Engine (FTL-1, magic-powered).
  [6]
  Habitat (magical life support; two cells, two
  craft shops, 15 tons cargo).
  It has the (basic) biomorphic feature: It resembles half a
  crystal giant. Crew consists of 20 priests performing various
  duties. Novices live in the cells unless they’re occupied by
  unbelievers or sacrifices.
  FANTASTIC SPACECRAFT
  36
  TL
  Spacecraft
  dST/HP
  Hnd/SR
  HT
  Move
  LWt.
  Load
  SM
  Occ
  dDR
  Range
  Cost
  PILOTING/TL^ (HIGH-PERFORMANCE SPACECRAFT)
  ^
  Space Amoeba
  1,000
  -4/5
  13
  0.9G/c
  3,000,000
  0
  +15
  0
  300
  –
  N/A
  SPACE WHALE
  This space-going leviathan is a vaguely whale-shaped star-
  beast that swims through the ether. (In settings without an
  ether cosmos, it might use a biological reactionless engine
  instead.) As an adult it has a streamlined 300,000-ton (SM +13)
  body 900 feet long.
  The space whale’s production line represents a womb that
  “manufactures” additional space whales, although genetic
  engineering might reconfigure it to make other products. The
  GM may assume space whales reproduce through partheno-
  genesis, or call this a female and invent a male version that
  lacks a fabricator.
  The hangar bay represents a “brood pouch” that holds one
  SM +10 baby space whale. The cargo in the habitat is filled
  with biomass: spongy, air-filled tissues that contain “space par-
  asites” (or lost adventurers). Half the beast’s total mass is
  usable as meat (should anyone eat the space whale).
  SPACE AMOEBA
  A giant blob of protoplasmic matter, this starfaring horror
  masses 3,000,000 tons. Its semi-solid nucleus is equivalent to
  an unstreamlined SM +15 hull occupying a 700 yard diameter.
  Its undulations warp space-time around it, allowing it to move
  as if using ether sails. It may or may not be sapient, but it is
  hungry! Its normal prey is other star beasts but it has no com-
  punction about absorbing and devouring ships and space sta-
  tions. This size amoeba cannot survive in a gravity field,
  however, so it stays away from planets.
  Although its core is a few hundred yards, its highly diffuse
  bulk covers several hundred miles. Spacecraft maneuver inside
  the amoeba without doing it (or themselves) any damage; the
  creature’s ability to grasp, slow, and eat objects within that area
  with its cilia is represented by batteries of tractor beams,
  which capture food and propel it toward its nucleus. The space
  amoeba was built as if it were a TL12 vessel.
  Front Hull
  System
  [1-3]
  Organic Armor (total dDR 300).
  [4!]
  Powered Ether Sails (0.3G).
  [5!]
  Tertiary Battery (30 turrets with 30 GJ tractor
  beams).
  [6!]
  Digestive System (corrosive).
  Central Hull
  System
  [1-3]
  Organic Armor (total dDR 300).
  [4!]
  Digestive Systems (corrosive).
  [5!]
  Powered Ether Sails (0.3G).
  [6!]
  Tertiary Battery (30 turrets with 30 GJ tractor
  beams).
  [core]
  Sapient Brain (comm/sensor 12).
  Rear Hull
  System
  [1-3]
  Organic Armor (total dDR 300).
  [4!]
  Powered Ether Sails (0.3G).
  [5!]
  Digestive System (corrosive).
  [6!]
  Tertiary Battery (30 turrets with 30 GJ tractor
  beams).
  [core]
  Total Conversion Power Plant (five Power
  Points).
  It has regeneration and total automation. It has no crew.
  TL
  Spacecraft
  dST/HP
  Hnd/SR
  HT
  Move
  LWt.
  Load
  SM
  Occ
  dDR
  Range
  Cost
  PILOTING/TL(3+4) (HIGH-PERFORMANCE SPACECRAFT)
  3+4^ God Ship
  70
  -3/4
  12
  0.3G/c
  1,000
  49.9
  +8
  24ASV
  15
  1¥
  $61.7M
  In atmosphere, air speed is 100 mph and Hnd/SR is -1/4.
  
  TREE SHIP (TL10^)
  This ship consists of a ball of cometary ice and dirt out of
  which grows a giant tree (a Dyson tree, after scientist Freeman
  Dyson, who came up with the idea). Its trunk and branches are
  modified with toughened bark and roots, plus symbiotic bacte-
  ria that enable it to tap the comet’s icy body for nutrients. Most
  of its space-black leaves function as a vast solar collector, while
  the rest are part of its sensors’ detector array.
  The tree ship has an SM +13 hull and masses 300,000 tons.
  Its trunk is thin but over 1,600 feet tall; the branches extend out
  over a much greater distance.
  The rear hull represents the comet; the other components are
  the tree. The occupants and systems are in capsules attached to
  the branches and trunk, or integrated into the base comet body.
  This ship is equipped with a stardrive and designed as a mobile
  interstellar cruise ship or space commune. Its occupants can be
  a bio-tech oriented race or culture, nature lovers, tourists, or
  even members of a tree-worshipping cult.
  Front Hull
  System
  [1]
  Organic Armor (dDR 50).
  [2]
  Habitat (500 luxury cabins with total life
  support).*
  [3]
  Control Room (C10 computer, comm/sensor
  12, 30 control stations).*
  [4-5]
  Solar Panel Array (one Power Point each).
  [6]
  Enhanced Array (comm/sensor 14).*
  Central Hull
  System
  [1-2]
  Organic Armor (total dDR 100).
  [3]
  Hangar Bay (10,000 tons capacity).*
  [4]
  Open Space (2.5 acres).*
  [5]
  Habitat (500 luxury cabins with total life
  support).*
  [6]
  Habitat (800 establishments; 100 offices;
  200-bed hospital; 500 tons cargo).*
  [core!]
  Rotary Reactionless Engine (0.1G
  acceleration).*
  Rear Hull
  System
  [1-4]
  Ice Armor (total dDR 28).
  [5]
  Fabricator ($15M/hour).*
  [6]
  Cargo Hold (15,000 tons capacity).
  [core!!]
  Super Stardrive Engine (FTL 2).*
  * 30 workspaces per system.
  The vessel is self-healing. Crew consists of 30 control crew,
  10 medics, and 300 technicians.
  Front Hull
  System
  [1-2]
  Organic Armor (total dDR 60).
  [3]
  Maw.
  [4!]
  Digestive System (corrosive).
  [5-6]
  Habitat (each has 10,000 tons cargo and/or
  biomass).
  [core]
  Sapient Brain (comm/sensor 10).
  Central Hull
  System
  [1-2]
  Organic Armor (total dDR 60).
  [3!]
  Contragravity Lifter (10G).
  [4-5]
  Orgone Power Plant (four Power Points).
  Central Hull
  System
  [6]
  Hangar Bay (10,000 tons).
  [core!]
  Fabricator: Bio-Tech Production Line
  ($15M/hr, 1,500 lbs./hr.).
  Rear Hull
  System
  [1-2]
  Organic Armor (total dDR 60).
  [3-5!]
  Ether Flukes (0.2G each).
  [6!]
  Tail (striking).
  It is biological with total automation and self-healing, and
  has nautical lines. It uses the etheric cosmos design switch.
  FANTASTIC SPACECRAFT
  37
  TL
  Spacecraft
  dST/HP
  Hnd/SR
  HT
  Move
  LWt.
  Load
  SM
  Occ
  dDR
  Range
  Cost
  PILOTING/TL10 (HIGH-PERFORMANCE SPACECRAFT)
  10^
  Tree Ship
  500
  -4/5
  14
  0.1G/c
  300,000
  25,700
  +13
  2,000ASV
  50/100/28
  2¥
  $41.585B
  TL
  Spacecraft
  dST/HP
  Hnd/SR
  HT
  Move
  LWt.
  Load
  SM
  Occ
  dDR
  Range
  Cost
  PILOTING/TL^ (HIGH-PERFORMANCE SPACECRAFT)
  ^
  Space Whale
  500
  -4/5
  14
  0.6G/c
  300,000
  30,000
  +13
  0
  60
  –
  $29.28B
  In atmosphere, top air speed is 1,900 mph, with -2/5 Hnd/SR.
  The Consul remembered his first
  glimpse of the kilometer-long treeship as
  he closed for rendezvous, the treeship’s
  details blurred by the redundant machine
  and erg-generated containment fields
  which surrounded it like a spherical mist,
  but its leafy bulk clearly ablaze with
  thousands of lights which shone softly
  through leaves and thin-walled
  environment pods, or along countless
  platforms, bridges command decks,
  stairways and bowers.
  – Dan Simmons, Hyperion
  
  Ablative plastic fuel, 29.
  Accelerator tube limits, 22.
  Adamant armor, 6.
  Additional tech level restrictions, 9.
  Afterburning turbofan system, 10.
  Air performance, 25.
  Air Speed (statistic), 25.
  Air-filled cosmos, 26.
  Alien accommodations and crew stations,
  25.
  Ammonia reaction mass feature, 21.
  Amoebas, space, 36.
  Antigravity gas, 9.
  Antimatter rockets, 21.
  Anywhere flux drive option, 13.
  Armor, options, 21; smaller, 4; systems, 5-7.
  Astral, flukes, 7, 8; propulsion system, 7-8;
  oars, 7, 8; sails, 7-8; screws, 7, 8;
  example ship, 31-32; see also Ether.
  Automation, lacking, 20.
  Basic combat, 27, 28.
  Basic statistics block, 25.
  Beam weapons, 19, 30; see also Weaponry.
  Biomorphics feature, 19.
  Bioships, 23, 35-37.
  boost-drive design switch, 23, 25;
  movement, 27-28.
  Cage-spirit engines, 13, 14.
  Cargo holds, smaller, 5.
  Catapults, 19, 29, 30.
  Consumables, costs of, 29.
  Contragravity lifters, smaller, 4.
  Control rooms, smaller, 4.
  Cosmology, fantastic, 26.
  Costs of consumables, 29.
  Craft shops, 9.
  Crew, determining, 25.
  Crystal spheres (cosmology), 26.
  Death beam weapons, 30.
  Defense systems, larger, 4.
  Design features, 19-22.
  Design switches, 22-25.
  Digestive system, 7.
  Drive field design switch, 22.
  Drives, systems, 7-8, 11-13; options, 4.
  Edge of the world (cosmology), 26.
  Electromagnetic (EM) disruptors, 19, 30.
  Energy-phasing surface feature, 20.
  Engines, options, 20, 21; smaller, 4; see
  also Drives, Power Plants.
  Essential fuel feature, 20.
  Ether, design switch, 22; flukes, 7, 8;
  furnaces, 13, 29; ironclad, 33; oars, 7,
  8; propulsion system, 7-8; sails, 7-8;
  screws, 7, 8; steamship, 33-34.
  Etheric cosmos design switch, 22.
  Etherwood armor, 5.
  Exophase field, drive design switch, 22;
  smaller, 4; system, 8.
  Exotic force screen variants, 23.
  External clamps, smaller, 4.
  Extradimensional interface system, 8-9.
  Factory system, 9; smaller, 4, 5.
  Fantastic, cosmology, 26; spacecraft,
  31-37.
  Features of ships, 19-22.
  Fission air-ram system, 10, 23-24.
  Fission reaction engines, 23-24.
  Fission sails, 17.
  Force lenses, 20.
  Force screens, smaller, 4.
  Force wings design switch, 23.
  Fuel, costs, 29; smaller tanks, 4, 5.
  Fusion air-ram system, 10.
  Fusion rockets and torches, 21.
  Gasbag system, 9-10.
  Getting into space, 27.
  God Ship, 35.
  Grabber feature, 20.
  Guns, 19; salvos, 29; see also Weaponry.
  GURPS, 12, 31; Basic Set, 21; Magic, 6,
  20, 21, 29; Space, 3; Spaceships, 3-6,
  9, 10, 12, 13, 15-25, 27-29, 31;
  Spaceships 3: Warships and Space
  Pirates, 27-29; Spaceships 4:
  Fighters, Carriers and Mecha, 28;
  Steampunk, 3; Vehicles Expansion,
  3; Ultra-Tech, 3; Undead, 3;
  Warehouse 23, 3.
  Habitats, options, 9; smaller, 5.
  Hazardous drives design switch, 23-24.
  Helicopter rotor system, 10; smaller, 4.
  Heliographs, 28.
  Hidden weapons batteries feature, 20.
  Hnd/SR (statistic), 25.
  Holoprojector system, 10.
  HT (statistic), 25.
  Hyperdynamic cosmos, 26.
  Hyperdynamic field design switch, 24.
  Hyper-factor, 26.
  Hypersails, 17.
  Hypnagogic beam weapons, 30.
  Insanity beam weapons, 30.
  Iron armor, 6.
  Ironclad, ether, 33.
  Jet engine system, 10-11.
  Lacks automation feature, 20, 25.
  Larger systems, 5.
  Laser rocket reaction engine, 16, 29.
  Launchers for weapons, 19, 29, 30.
  Life support field design switch, 23.
  Lifting gas, 9.
  Lightning cannons, 19.
  Lightspeed drive system, 11; smaller, 4.
  Living ships, 23, 35-37.
  Magical, life support system, 9; power
  plants, 13-14; ships, 31-32.
  Magic-powered feature, 20.
  Magnetic planetary drive system, 11.
  Magnetic tractor beams feature, 20.
  Mana engines, 13, 14.
  Maneuver enhancement system, 11.
  Maturing living ship design switch, 23;
  see also Bioships.
  Maw system, 12; melee attacks and, 12.
  Methane reaction mass feature, 21.
  Mind disruptors, 19, 30.
  Minimum hull SM for weapons, 22.
  Mining systems, smaller, 5.
  Missile salvos, 29.
  Move (statistic), 25.
  Movement points, 28.
  Nautical lines feature, 21, 25.
  Nebulonic fuel, 29.
  NEMA reactors, 13, 14.
  No computer design switch, 24.
  Nonhuman accommodations and crew
  stations, 25.
  Open spaces, smaller, 5.
  Open-frame armor feature, 21.
  Operator-class reality police cruisers, 35.
  Orgone power plants, 14.
  Orichalcum armor, 6.
  Ornithopter wings system, 12; smaller, 4.
  Parachronic flux drive system, 12-13.
  Passenger seating (system), 9; smaller, 5.
  Perpetual motion machine power plants,
  14-15.
  Phased arrays feature, 21.
  Plasma reaction engine, 16, 19.
  Plasma torch engines, 16, 19.
  Police cruisers, reality, 35.
  Power plants, hazardous drives and,
  23-24; smaller, 5; systems, 13-16.
  Power siphoning, 14.
  Pre-radio design switch, 24, 28.
  Production lines, 9.
  Proximity and timed fuses, 30.
  Pseudo-atmospheric movement, 28-29.
  Pseudovelocity drive option, 22.
  Psi shielding feature, 21.
  Psi-jammer ships, 34.
  Psi-powered feature, 21.
  Psionic neutralizers, 30.
  Psionic sapient brain, 18.
  Psychotronic power plants, 15.
  Radioisotope sails, 17.
  Ram feature, 22.
  Rate of fire, 30.
  Reaction engines, fission, 23-24; systems,
  16-17.
  Reaction mass options, 21.
  Reactionless drives, 7, 11; as boost drives,
  23; as ether drives, 22; hyperdynamic
  fields and, 24.
  Realistic biomorphics feature, 19.
  Reality police cruisers, 35.
  Refinery systems, smaller, 5.
  Regeneration feature, 22.
  Rocket launchers, 19, 29, 30.
  INDEX
  38
  INDEX
  
  Sails, smaller, 4; systems, 17.
  Sapient brain system, 18; smaller, 4.
  Scale table for boost drives, 27.
  Sealed vessels at low tech levels, 23.
  Self-healing feature, 22.
  Ship design, 4-5.
  Shops, factory, 9.
  Skystone armor, 6.
  Slow rate of fire, 30.
  Slower industrial systems design switch,
  23.
  Small upper stages, 18.
  Smaller systems, 4-5, 25.
  Soft-landing system, smaller, 4.
  Solar boilers, 15.
  Solar mirror system, 18.
  Solar thermal reaction engine, 16-17, 21.
  Soul Slaver, 32.
  Soulburner engines, 13, 14.
  Space amoebas, 36.
  Space monsters, 35-37.
  Space travel with boost drives, 27.
  Space whales, 36-37.
  Spacecraft, examples, 31-37.
  Speed-limited flux drive option, 13.
  Spin tethers design switch, 22.
  Star galleon, 31-32.
  Stardrive, smaller, 4.
  Stasis web, smaller, 4.
  Statistics, determining, 25.
  Steampunk ships, 33-35.
  Steamship, ether, 33-34.
  Streamlined vessels feature, 21.
  Structural field armor, 7.
  Supplies, 29.
  Switches for settings, 22-25.
  System descriptions, 5-19.
  Tachyon sails, 17.
  Tactical combat, 27-29.
  Tactical maneuvering, 29.
  Tail system, 18-19.
  Tech level, restrictions, 9, 30; sealed vessels
  at low, 23.
  Thermal rockets, 21.
  Timed fuses, 30.
  Time-flux drive system, 12-13.
  Top deck feature, 22.
  Tractor beams, magnetic feature, 20.
  Travel, special rules, 27, 28.
  Tree ships, 37.
  Turbofan system, 10.
  Upper stages, small, 18.
  Vacuum energy power plants, 16.
  VASIMR electric rockets, 16.
  Victorian-inspired ships, 33-34.
  Vorkosigan Saga Sourcebook and
  Roleplaying Game, 3.
  Warheads, replacing, 29.
  Warp drive option, 22.
  Weaponry, 19, 20, 30; special rules,
  22, 30.
  Weird-science ships, 33-35.
  Whales, space, 36-37.
  Wooden armor, 5.
  Zombie spaceships, 24.
  Zombie Vehicle spell, 25.
  INDEX
  39
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SOURCE: textdata/thevault/GURPS [multi]/4th edition/GURPS 4e - Spaceships 7 - Divergent and Paranormal Tech.pdf