TEXT: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . ... ........ A']O~~~S~F~~:~L~~~~~L::~~~~:
  by CREAM POC 9
  
  r-;.]C!V IA N
  HRONICLES
  
  TABLE OF CONTENTS
  Chapter 1: Introduction
  4
  1.1 Anatomy of a Spaceship
  6
  1.2 Venusian Design Principles
  8
  Chapter 2: Irnperator Patrol Cruiser
  10
  2.1 Overview
  12
  2.1.1 Capabilities
  13
  2.1.2 Operational Role
  13
  2.2 Schematics: Side View
  14
  2.2 Schem atics: Front View
  15
  2.2 Sche matics: Top View
  16
  2.2 Sche matics: Cutaway View
  17
  2.3 History
  18
  2.4 Ship Systems
  20
  2.4.1 Ship Systems Descriptions
  22
  2.4.2 Ship Systems Descriptions
  23
  2.5 Ship Perso nnel
  24
  2.5.1 Interv iew with a Pilot
  24
  2.5.1 Interview with a Naviga to r
  25
  2.5.1 Interv iew with a Sec urity Officer
  25
  Game Stats
  26
  Interlude
  28
  Chapter 3: Huang-ti Observer
  30
  3.1 Overview
  32
  3.1.1 Capabil ities
  33
  3.1.2 Operational Role
  13
  3.2 Schematics: Side View
  34
  3.2 Schematics: Front View
  35
  3.2 Schematics: Top View
  36
  3.2 Sche mat ics: Cutaway View
  37
  3.3 History
  38
  3.4 Ship Systems
  40
  3.4.1 Ship Systems Descriptions
  42
  3.4.1 Ship Systems Descriptions
  43
  3.5 Ship Personnel
  44
  3.5.1 Interview with a Cloak Control Officer
  44
  3.5.2 Interview with a Sensors/Inte lligence Officer
  45
  3.5.3 Interv iew with a Drone Technician
  45
  Game Stats
  46
  Interlude
  48
  Chapter 4: Chieftain Escort Cruisar
  60
  4.1 Overview
  52
  4.1.1 Capabilities
  53
  4.1.2 Operationa l Role
  53
  4.2 Schematics : Side View
  54
  4.2 Schem atics: Front View
  55
  4.2 Schematics: Top View
  56
  4.2 Schematics: Cutaway View
  57
  4.3 History
  58
  4.4 Ship Syste ms
  60
  4.4.1 Ship Systems Descriptions
  62
  4.4 .2 Ship Systems Descriptions
  63
  4.5 Ship Personnel
  64
  4.5.1 Interview with a Helmsman
  64
  4.5.2 Interview with a Morale Officer
  65
  4.5.3 Interview with a Fighter Pilot
  65
  Gam e Stats
  66
  Interlude
  68
  Chapter 5: Satrap Transport/Carrier
  70
  5.1 Overview
  72
  5.1.1 Capabilities
  73
  5.1.2 Operational Role
  73
  5.2 Schematics: Side View
  74
  5.2 Schematics: Front View
  75
  5.2 Schematics: Top View
  76
  5.2 Schema tics: Cutaway View
  77
  5.3 History
  78
  5.4 Ship Systems
  80
  002
  
  TABLE
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  5.4.1 Ship Systems Descriptions
  82
  5.4.2 Ship Systems Descripti ons
  83
  5.5 Ship Personnel
  84
  5.5.1 Interview with an Aesthetics Officer
  84
  5.5.2 Interview with a Cargo Officer
  85
  5.5.3 Interview with a Deck Officer
  85
  Game Stats
  86
  Interlude
  88
  Chapter S: Tsar Heavy Cruiser
  90
  6.1 Overview
  92
  6.1.1 Capabilities
  93
  6.1.2 Ope rational Role
  13
  6.2 Schematics: Side View
  94
  6.2 Schematics: Front View
  94
  6.2 Schematics: Top View
  94
  6.2 Schematics: Cutaway View
  94
  6.3 Histo ry
  98
  6.4 Ship Systems
  100
  6.4.1 Ship Systems Descripti ons
  102
  6.4.2 Ship Systems Descripti ons
  103
  6.5 Ship Personnel
  104
  6.5.1 Interview with a Gunne ry Comma nder
  104
  6.5.2 Interview with a Psychologist
  105
  6.5.3 Interview with an Exo-Suit Pilot
  105
  Game Stats
  106
  Interlude
  108
  Chapter 7: S h a n -V u Battle Cruiser
  ., .,0
  7.1 Overview
  112
  7.1.1 Capabilities
  113
  7.1.2 Op erational Role
  113
  7.2 Schematics: Side View
  114
  7.2 Schematics: Front View
  114
  7.2 Schematics: Top View
  114
  7.2 Schematics: Cutaway View....................................... 114
  003
  OF CONTENTS
  7.3 History
  118
  7.4 Ship Systems
  120
  7.4.1 Ship Systems Descriptions
  122
  7.4.2 Ship Systems Descriptions
  123
  7.5 Ship Personnel
  124
  7.5.1 Interview with a Captain
  124
  7.5.2 Interview with a Security Officer
  125
  7.5.3 Interview with an Engineer
  125
  Game Stats
  126
  Interlude
  128
  Chepter B : Engineering [Operationsl
  130
  8.1 Operations
  131
  8.1.1 Crew Selection
  131
  8.1.2 Sound the Alarm
  132
  8.2 Dep loyment
  133
  8.2.1 Ship Status Descriptions
  134
  8.3 Career Path
  135
  8.3.1 Navy Pilot
  135
  8.3.2 Naval Officer
  136
  8.3.3 Exo-Engineer
  137
  8.5 Drones
  140
  8.5.1 Shipkiller Type I Drone
  138
  8.5.2 Exo-killer Type I Drone
  139
  8.5.3 Sentry Type II Drone
  139
  8.5.4 EW Type II Drone
  140
  8.5.5 Observer Type II Drone
  140
  8.5.6 Hunter-Killer Type III Drone
  141
  8.5.7 Hunter-Ripper Type III Drone
  141
  8.6 Exo-Suits
  142
  8.6.1 Exo-Suit: Kitsune
  142
  8.6.2 Exo-Suit: Tanuki
  143
  Index
  144
  
  ....•
  II•
  II
  I N T R ODUCTION
  -----------
  1.1 SHIPS OF THE C .V.N.A.
  In the face of the rapid military bu ildu p of the other solar nations,
  Venus cannot rely on its economic muscle to keep its citizens and
  assets safe from foreig n predation . It is also insufficient for Venus
  to have only a fo rce of exo -armors and other small craft, however
  numerous, as its sole martial arm. Warships are req uired to main-
  tain Venus' defensive pe rimeters and escort its many offplanet
  resources from location to loc ation . W ithout a space navy, Venus
  would be as vulnerable a target as Mars, whose extensive groun d
  fortifications did nothing to protect from orbita l attack in 2213 .
  Although Venus has had warships throug hou t most of its history,
  only recently have th e variou s corporation sth at cont rol the veiled
  planet deemed it necessary to work together to create a unified
  planetary naval force. By mutual agreeme nt betw een the corpo -
  rati ons , no Venusi an city -state is permitted to possess a force of
  warships. Rather, each city-state contributes mon ey, hardware and
  personnel (in equal proportions) to ward a unified space navy. This
  rather odd situation is the result of VenusBank's actions in the
  early part of the 23rd century, which resulted in a public relations
  nightmare for all of Venus . In an effort to curb th e abil ity of any
  one city -state to de cisively influence Venusian foreign affairs with-
  ou t at least tacit approval from the other city-state s, the Venusi an
  naval forces were co mbined into a single force, not controlled by
  any single Venu sian faction. Known as the Cooperative Venusian
  Naval Administration (CVNA), this new military power is in the
  process of upgrad ing older warships and creating a new genera-
  tion of technologically-overachieving battlewagons.
  Thi s manual presents information on the six most important Ve-
  nusian warships. Simple floorplans and syste m di agrams are pro-
  vided for each ship, as well as crew int erviews, histories and
  samples of some of th e ships' nam esakes. A lso included are sec-
  tions on drones (autonomous computer-controlled vehicles that
  serve numerous functions) and tw o of th e exo-suits used by ship-
  board security forces.
  004
  
  INTR ODUCT ION
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  DDS
  
  INTRODUCTION
  II
  11-..
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  Unde r Rot ation
  T
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  1.2 ANATO MY O F A SPACES H IP
  Each of t he solar nati ons has a specific goal in creat ing warships.
  The Venusians are focused pri marily on co ncealment and defense,
  and have lit tle need or desire to amass any kind of invasion ar-
  mad a. Venu sian ships are ext remely difficult to build and mai n-
  tain due to th eir numerous advan ced wea pons and defen ses, but
  are also both effect ive in co mbat and relati vely trouble-free when
  properly serviced .
  Venusian spacecraft are d esigned most ly for short-range opera-
  t ion. Few Venusian ship classes mount rotating sections, and in-
  stea d spin in th eir entirety t o g enerate an artificial gravity gradi-
  ent fro m their cent ral hull out to thei r larger main hulls. This al-
  lows Venusian ships to have faster scram ble times, sinc e there is
  no spinning sect ion that must be halted and locked down for
  combat maneuvering.
  006
  ~
  Drive Section
  The dr ives are kept far from the crew areas as both a safety mea-
  sure and an aesthetic preference. The drives and their associ -
  ated pla sma combustion chambers are sealed systems that are
  virtually impossible to service outside of a spacedock environ-
  ment.
  ~
  Mein Hull
  Venusian ships have two or more main hulls. Each one has its
  own life support system and control center, but both hull s are
  necessary for the ship to operate at full efficiency. For instance,
  the Shan-Yu's bridge is located in one main hull, while its strate -
  gic op eratio ns center is located in the ot her.
  
  INTRODUCTION
  ANATOMY OF A SPACE SHIP
  ~
  Shan-Vu-class Battla Cruisar
  ()
  _..- _._. -
  -
  _.- -
  -- -._.. ...-
  ._.- .._""jIA
  ... --e
  ...
  Secondary Hull
  The secondary hull is used to mount weapons and battl estations.
  Since the gravity gradient in these sectio ns is extreme ly slight,
  the secondary hulls are usually uninhabited when the ship is not
  in comb at.
  ...
  Central Hull
  In most Venusian ships, this section is unmanned in non -combat
  op erations and conta ins the primary sensors and comm equip-
  ment. On a few ships, like the Satrap, the central hull also con-
  tains a hangar bay and cargo area, as well as crew areas that do
  not req uire gravity.
  DO?
  •
  .-...
  
  INTRODUCT ION
  ~-- ---..,...- -- -
  ~
  ".3 VENUS DESIGN P RINCIPLES
  The ow ner has certain discretion regarding when and how such
  images and transmissions are to be shown. The leavening ele-
  ment, however, is the fact that the ship's namesake is consi dered
  financially and pe rsonally responsib le for any mishap that should
  happen to the ship or its crew due to an untimely advertisement.
  As a result, most ship owne rs do not require th eir hull spaces or
  transmission allowancesto be active in com bat situ ations. In most
  cases, however, th ere is little harm in leaving a few vid-prorno-
  tions playing on a ship'S hull , even in a pitched battle.
  A ship's visibility is based largely on th e emissions fro m its reac-
  tor, drives and we apons; compared to such vast projections of
  energy, a few be er commercials hard ly make any d ifference at all.
  Out of combat, however, the garish lights and broadcasts actu-
  ally serve a useful purpose, hel ping the warships to blend in with
  other Venusian ships and making them even harder to pick out.
  Older Venusian warships are easily identifiable as such, with vis-
  ible weapons turrets and drab military pai nt schemes . However,
  the newest generation of Venusian warship s look exactly like Ve-
  nusian civili an craft , and it is planned for most of the older Venu-
  sian ships to be retrofitted to sport non mi litary guises. Although
  they have been grouped into named classes in similar fashion to
  other navies, ships within the same class have cosmetic differ-
  ences to make them resemble one ty pe of civilian ship or an-
  other. For instance, no two Chieftain-class cruisers look quite the
  same; each on e has add it ional modules, windows or drive sec-
  tion s th at set it apart from its compatriots. Thus, in keeping with
  the CVNA's plan for eventual naval deployme nt and activity, an
  enemy encounter with any Venusian ship is potentially a military
  con frontation.
  All Venusian ships are named after outstandi ng citize ns as a form
  of recognition gift. Such a christening bears with it g reat ho no r
  I
  and respect . There is a potential financial benefit as well; a ship 's
  namesake gains full rights to large po rtions of the ship's hull, as
  well as a portion of any of the vessel's unsecured noncombat tran s-
  missions. These allowances are usually used to put huge adver-
  tising vid-me mbranes on the ships, although some owners choose
  to use their hull space for artwork, as a personal exp ression.
  Venu sian ship s tend to use a multi-hull design, with the drive units
  along a long central spar, and two or three main hull units at-
  tached to the spar at equidistant points, like outriggers. Thus, the
  ship can spin itself to generate artificial gravity, without having to
  mount a separate rotating section, as on Jovian and CEGA ves-
  I
  sels. The advantage of this system is th at it allows for a faster
  I I
  scramble time and more solid con str uction. The disadva ntage is
  I
  that it makes Venusian ships fairly sho rt-ranged compared to Jo-
  [
  vian and CEGA ships . Due to their relatively small number, as well
  as their need for self-sufficiency, all Venusian warships have inter-
  nal vehi cle capacity of some sort, as well as catapults.
  •
  II
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  II
  11
  -..
  008
  
  T
  1.3.1 Hull C ompo s itio n
  The skin of a Venusian warship is a complex multilayered cover-
  ing de signed for protection, disgu ise and attractiveness in equal
  measure. The ship's concealed systems are protected by advanced
  composite armor that combines heat-dissipation abilities with solid
  protection from physical impacts and penetration . Each secti on
  of armor is supported by a self-sealing membranous matrix; wh ile
  it provides some radiation protection, this layer's primary purpose
  is to seal hull ruptures from micrometeorite s and Kickslugs. Hid-
  ing the otherwise-conspicuous armor from unwanted inspe ction
  is a thin layer of radiation-absorbing material designed to look
  like decrep it civilian-g rade hull material.
  Atop all th is is a thin electronic mem brane. The membrane'sopac-
  I
  ity, color and luminance can be controlled electronically, turning
  it into a huge video screen for advertising, d isguise and conceal-
  ment purposes. Highly advanced fo rms of thi s video membrane
  are the basis for "cloaking" systems such as the one being tested
  on the Huang-Ti-c1ass Observer Ship.
  These layers are produced as interlocking segments of varying
  shap e and size that can be overlapped for redundancy or hinged
  to allow hidde n weapons and equ ipm ent to be deployed. To
  maintain the ship 's integrity and spaceworthiness, the interiors of
  all weapon and equipment bays are also lined with rad iation pro-
  tection and some armor, so that no real vulnerab le spots are ex-
  pos ed when the ship is preparing to fire.
  T
  1.3.2 Weapons and Sensors
  Systems on Venu sian ships are packed tightly into every avail-
  abl e nook and cranny, in an effort to decrease overall vessel size
  while increasing crew comfort. This feat of engineering is made
  all the more impressive by the fact that most Venusian ships carry
  much more equipment th an their Jovian or CEGA equ ivalents,
  and that all of this equipment is carefully hidden away from ex-
  ternal view.
  009
  INTRODUCTION
  ~ ~ ~ ~
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  Sensor dishes and communications antennae are considered by
  the Venusians to be aesthet ically unacceptable even on civilian
  vessels, and are stored under sliding covers when not in use. Ve-
  nusian warships carry this doctrine further, concealing all weap-
  on s and military equipment under sensor-defeating hull armor,
  enabling the warships to be disguised as unarmed merchant ships.
  Venusians tend to prefer using various types of missiles as pri-
  mary armament for their warships. In add ition to the standard
  heavy missile bays found on many Jovian and CEGA vessels, th e
  Venusians also make use of clusters of smalle r smart missiles de-
  signed to engage exo-armors and fighters at close range; these
  Cluster M unition Missiles (CMMs) are so maneuverable as to be
  able to reverse course after launch and pick off an exo-armor cling-
  ing to the launching ship's hull. On the other end of the guided-
  wea po ns scale are the autono mous Drones that come in a multi-
  tude of ty pes, from innocuous camera pods to self-destr ucting
  anti -ship t orpedoes. Laser weapons make up the majority of a
  Venusian ship's rem aining armament; kinetic kill we apons and
  particle beam cannon are rare, due to the difficulty of concealing
  such weapons as well as their pe rceived inelegance (acco rding to
  Venusian designers).
  11•.....•
  II•
  (I
  II
  
  IMPERATOR PATROL CRUISER
  In 2209, Citizen Akikumo wrote and directed Coals, an ext remely well-received
  document ary deta iling the events and aftereffects of the Birthing in Venusian his-
  tory. His status and popularity earned him the award of a ship name. Akikumo is
  now a professor at the Bisset School of Arts in the Jovian Confederation, but the
  ship that bears his name is part of a watc hdog fleet tasked with observ ing and
  regulating Jo vian military movements in the Belt.
  Engineer First-Rank Parkinson was one of the first proponents of the "hidden navy"
  princip le, emphasizing the need for stealth, concealment and guile in dealing with
  the changing balance of power in the solar system. His combination of loyalty,
  humility and intelligence, along with a photoge nic smile, made him th e perfect
  candidate for the namesake of the first ship in the new class. The Parkinson was a
  testbed for many of the design conventions that have become standard on allnew
  Venusian warships.
  One of a block of Bricriu-c1ass ships purchased from CEGA by the Venusian Bank,
  the Cha was named for one of the accountants who helped to broker the difficult
  deal. The ship went missing in 2202 while on patrol in the Belt. A Belter salvage
  team discovered the derelict in late 2213 and ret urned the hulk to Venus for a
  significant finder's fee. The bodies of the crew were mostly intact, and evidence
  pointed to a fatal collision with seve ral small objects susta ined while pursuing a
  pirate vessel. The crew's bodies were pro perly disposed of, and the ship is under-
  go ing a complete refit at the Carthage orb ital shipyards near Venus.
  Refit
  March 8, 2197
  August 24, 2206
  Home Defense
  January 22, 2212
  Belt Patrol
  CVNA Cha Haruna
  CVNA Jos eph Parkinson
  CVNA Akikumo Nakamichi
  Name:
  Name:
  Launched :
  Name:
  Status:
  Launched:
  Launched:
  Status:
  Notabla Ships
  Statu s:
  II
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  0010
  
  IMPERATOR PATROL CRUISER
  I
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  IMPERATOR PATROL CRUISER
  II••
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  2.1 OVERVIEW
  In bo th Venus' incomparabl y crowded local space and th e emp-
  ti ness of open space, there is a consta nt need fo r a small, nimble
  ship tha t can fulfi ll a variety of roles and be effective at all of
  them. Up unti l about 2206, eac h Venus ian corporation fielded
  its own model of patrol ship, most of them based off CEGA's
  ubiquitou s Bricriu-c1ass hull. W hile th ese ships we re certa inly ser-
  viceab le, they d id not excel in their duties as much as their mas-
  ters desired.
  Given th e vast numbers of these vessels already in service, how-
  eve r, it would have be en pointless to scrap them all in favor of a
  completely new de sig n. A comprehensive refit and up gra de pro-
  gram was instituted instead, th at took advantage of th e Bricriu's
  inherent customizability to an unprecedented ext ent . The result-
  ing ships, while retaining the Bricriu's basic fram e and internal
  systems, look nothing like th ey used to, and are far more potent,
  both in war and pe ace.
  Each Imperator- c1ass ship inco rporates th e basic frames and struc-
  tu res of two Bricriu-c1ass hulls , creating a double-hulled arrange-
  ment linked by a central unit containing the drives and sensor
  systems. One of th e hulls sup ports most of the crew areas; over-
  laid atop the Bricriu's existi ng fra mework is a sturdy Venusian hull.
  We apons and ship systems are stored between th e tw o layers,
  with the crew be ing well-protected by both the Bricriu's stru cture
  as we ll as the new armored coverings . The opposite hull is prim a-
  rily a hang ar and cargo section th at requires th e Bricriu structu re
  to be hollo wed ou t and reinfo rced from th e outside. The central
  unit is of complete ly new con st ructi on, making use of drive tech-
  nology acquired from the Jovians and typ ically effective Venusian
  senso r systems.
  The refit process saves on costs and produ ces a superb vessel.
  The Venusian government has access to hundreds of ag ing
  Bricrius. O nly a few of th ose that are combined into th ese new
  ships are actually turned into warships; the rest beco me leg iti-
  0012
  
  IMPERATOR PATROL CRUISER
  mate civilian ships that are widely reg arde d as being an inspired
  usage of decades-o ld te chn ology. A ll of the ships look similar,
  however, differin g on ly in minor cosmetic and nonvital details.
  More recentl y, the Venusians have beg un bu ilding vessels of this
  type from scratch , using lessons learned from th e Bricriu conver-
  sions . These newer ships (some of which are Imperators) are cos-
  metically ind istinguishable from the older ones, preserving th e
  natural cam oufl age of the Venusian fle et .
  'f
  2.1.1 Capabilities
  Although sma ll, the Imperator contains within its hull a surprising
  variety of equipment . Hig h levels of automation and robotic as-
  sistance allow an Imperator to ope rat e at full capacity with a crew
  approximately half the size of what would be expe cted for such a
  ship. Designed to engage fig hters, exo-armors and small er war-
  ships, the Imperator is armed mostly with light missiles and laser
  weapons. However, the qual ity of Venusian weapons is such th at
  the Impe rator is qu ite capable of ta king on an enemy ship of the
  line and make a good showing for itself. In additi on to six CM M
  pods scattered over th e hull and a pair of partially-turrete d lasers
  mo unted in a forward bay, th e Imperator also boasts a full-size
  anti-ship missile bay hidden behind its hang ar. The ab ility to com-
  bat-launch a pair of fi g ht ers o r exo -armors co mpl etes th e
  Imperator's hidden armament.
  facilities between the two hulls and still maintain acceptably eff i-
  cient use of space. The main hang ar conta ins space for up to
  th ree exo-arrn or-sized vehicles, and also has extra storage roo m
  for EVA pods and exo-suits. In a space-recovery situation, more
  than half the crew can be routed t o rescue and med ical du t ies,
  mak ing use of the secondary hull's compartment alized cargo ar-
  eas as temporary recovery areas for survivors or salvaged equip-
  ment. For more extreme situ ations, the secondary hull also has
  an unusually large and well-equ ipped sickbay and a sturdy and
  spacious bri g . Despite its small crew, th e Imperator supports
  roughly twice the number of me d ical and security perso nne l
  present aboard other similarly-sized vessels.
  'f
  2 .1 .2 Opera tiona l Role
  As its class des ign ation suggests, th e Imperator is me ant to oper-
  ate alone or in small groups, patrol ling various areas of the solar
  system. The nature of their task requ ires Imperators to be jacks of
  all trades; a given ship may be called upon to participate in a
  I
  salvage/ rescue operat ion, chase off pirates, transport prisoners
  and observe shipping act ivity all in th e course of a single patrol
  run. The Imperator is seco nd only to th e Chi eft ain in the num ber
  of recorded combat enga gem ents the class has participated in,
  and is th e only Venusian warship class ever identified as such by
  foreign intelligence agencies.
  II•.....•
  II
  11
  II
  I
  I
  I
  Imperators are assigned to home ports on a long-term basis. Many
  of these ports are stations and yards in Venus orbit, but most
  Imperators operate out of Venusian-owned bases near oth er plan-
  ets. A ship is usually sent to its home port aft er its initial shake-
  down , and is not reassigned excep t in extreme and unusual cir-
  cumstances. An Imperator's patrol run be gins and end s at its home
  port. After each patrol run, an Impe rato r is spacedocked for re-
  pair and general maintena nce; although th e Imperator is quite
  reliable (in relation to other Venusian warships), downtime for these
  ships averages twice that for ships of Jovian or CEGA design .
  An Imperator posesses extensive medical and rescue equipment,
  all locate d in its seco nd ary outrigger hull, partially as a quaran-
  tine measure , but also because it proved impossible to split the
  I
  Imperators are well-stocked with fuel and suppl ies, given that their
  assign me nts are generall y more long-lasting and solitary than th e
  duti es commonly underta ken by other Venusian warships. The
  ship 's doub le-hu ll desig n is put to good use, allowing simulate d
  gravity during large po rtions of the ship'sjo urney. Although speed
  is not a strict requireme nt for th e Imperator's mission envelope,
  these ships are nevertheless quite fast, enablin g superior response
  time in emergency/ d istress situations.
  0013
  
  IMPERATOR PATROL CRU ISER
  -..
  &I
  ~
  2.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS
  ()
  Side View
  •
  Legend
  I
  Om
  25
  i
  50
  1
  2
  3
  4
  S
  6
  7
  8
  9
  10
  Drive Fin
  Exhaust Collimators
  Engine Mount
  Main Hull Support Brace
  Maintenance Bot Exit Bay
  Rear Vid-Membrane
  Radiato r Fins (Retracted)
  Main Personnel Docking Ports
  Ob servation Deck (Closed)
  l aser Housing (Closed)
  11
  Airlock Hatch
  12
  Auxiliary Screen Generato r
  13
  Rotational Control Thruster
  14 Emergency Elevator Access Hatch
  15
  Emergency Gas Vent
  16
  Sensor Pod Mount
  17
  Sensor Cluster (Retracte d)
  18
  lateral PDS Emitter
  19
  lateral RCS Thruster
  20
  Radar/lidar Emitter
  001 4
  21
  Short Range Sensors
  22
  Hangar Door
  23
  Cargo Bay Doo r
  24
  Missile l oading Door
  25
  Missile Bay (Closed)
  26 Emerge ncy Elevator Access Hatch
  
  IMPERATOR PATROL CRUISER
  2.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS [CONT.]
  ....
  Front VielN
  ()
  Specificetions
  •
  --
  Name:
  Imperator
  Origin:
  Cooperat ive Venusian Naval Administration
  Manufacturer:
  Various Shipyards
  Type:
  Patrol Cruiser
  Control System:
  Bridge w/a stronomical display
  Length:
  100 m overa ll
  Width:
  20 m overall
  Om
  25
  50
  Empty Weight:
  Loaded Weight:
  Main Drive:
  Secondary Powerplant:
  Main Thrusters:
  Apogee Motors:
  Acceleration:
  Onboard Sensors:
  1000 Tons
  1 x 10 MW
  1 x 800 KW
  1 x 25,000,000 kg
  78
  2.0 g
  Fire Control Radar, Infrared/
  Ultraviolet , Lidar, Magnetometer,
  Microwaves, Motion
  Detectors, Radcounter, Search
  Radar
  11
  "
  Legend
  Fixed Armament:
  PDS, 1 x Laser Turret, 1 x Missile
  Bay
  Add itional Armament:
  n/a
  1
  2
  3
  4
  5
  6
  7
  8
  9
  10
  Auxiliary Screen Generator
  HullSupport Strut
  Lateral PDS Emitt er
  Radar/ Lidar Emitter
  Cargo Strut
  Vehicle Bay
  Docking Sensors
  Cargo Bay
  Cargo Bay Door
  Vehicle Bay Launch Door
  11 Emergency Elevator Access Hatch
  12
  Emergency Gas Vent
  13
  Outer Armor
  14
  Fake Maintenance Access Hatch
  15
  Forward PDS Emitt er
  16
  Main Personnel Docking Ports
  0015
  Defe nsive Systems:
  Equipment:
  Mag Screen
  Escap e Pods
  
  •
  ....
  •
  II•
  IMPERATOR PATROL CRUISER
  ~
  2.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS [CONT.]
  ()
  Top View
  •
  Legend
  1
  2
  3
  4
  Drive Fin
  Engine Mount
  Maintenance Access
  Rotat ional Control Thruster
  5
  6
  7
  8
  Airlock Hatch
  Central Hull
  Laser Housing (Closed)
  Observation Deck (Closed)
  0016
  9
  10
  11
  12
  Main Personnel Docking Ports
  Antennae Housing (Closed)
  Radiator Fins (Retracted)
  Drive Fin Mount
  
  IMPERATOR PATROL CRUISER
  I
  2.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS [CONT.)
  ....
  Cutaway Viaw
  ()
  II•
  •
  1 Plasma Combustion Chamber Drive
  'Y
  Lagand
  Primary Screen Generator
  Life Support Nodes
  Main Access Shaft
  Main Heat Exchanger
  Crew Quarters
  Supercondu cting Batteries
  Bridge
  t-
  Missile Bunker
  1
  Officers' Qu a rter~
  Observation Deck
  Capacitor Array
  Forward Laser Array (closed)
  Heat Exchangers
  Engineering Deck
  Storage Rooms
  Access Corrido;
  Equipment B'ays
  Phased Sensor Array Panel
  Forward Sensor Cluster
  Vehicle Bay
  Bay Door Hinges
  Cargo Door
  Docking Sensors
  Bulk Storage Bay
  Forwa'rd Storage Decks
  Bay Superconduetlnq Batteries
  Missiles
  Missile Loading Door
  Missile Launch Tubes
  II
  II
  --
  •
  •
  ..•
  25
  Om
  2
  3
  4
  5
  6
  7
  8
  9
  10
  11
  12
  13
  14
  15
  16
  17
  18
  19
  20
  21
  22
  23
  24
  25
  26
  27
  28
  29
  30
  +
  -
  -
  -
  -
  -
  -
  -
  -
  -
  -
  -
  -
  -
  --{14
  0017
  
  IMPERATOR PATROL CRUISER
  B
  II
  I!!I...
  II
  II
  II
  ~
  2.3 HISTORY
  Early on, th e military advisors to the Venusian Bank knew they
  would soon need a fast ship that cou ld travel far from home, pro-
  tectin g Venusian interests abroad as well as pe rfor ming many other
  tasks. The Chieftain-class vessels were adequate patrol bo ats and
  esco rt ships, but cou ld not operate independently for exte nded
  periods of time, limiting th eir effective range. Designing a new
  ship fro m scratch, however, would be a costly endeavor, and one
  not looked favorably upon.
  Ever since the late decad es of the twe nty-secon d centu ry, the
  Venusians had been acqu iring lots of Bricriu-c1ass spacecraft from
  CEGA. These ships were old and not te rribl y effective anymore,
  and did not correspond to the mo dern needs of the Hom e De-
  fense Force. Seeing a way t o resolve both issues at the same
  ti me, Engineer First-Rank Joseph Parkinson suggested that the
  Venusians implem ent a design program designed to make good
  use of the existin g Bricri us wh ile also adopting a whole new out-
  look on the philosophy of build ing warships. Despite com ing from
  a lowly clerical worker, the solution was too good to be ignored .
  The ambiti ous program made use of the sturdy and reliable Bricriu
  hull as the basis for a new type of spacecraft. Two ships would be
  used to create a "catamaran"-type hull that could be spun around
  its axis to create gravity without the need for a costly centrifuge.
  Sturdy support beams were soli dly attached to the Bricriu basic
  structure, de signed to be the hard iest elements on the ship . The
  Bricriu's bulk storage and gas storage tanks (both very reliable
  and proven design s) were move d into these new sections. New
  PCC engines we re de signed just for the new ship class; though
  th ey looked civilian on the outside, they cou ld produce military-
  gra de thrust, being extremely powerful fo r their size. The engines
  were equipped with as secondary collimator coi ls that cou ld be
  activated to reduce their signature, but this was very inefficien t.
  The engines' reaction mass tanks and associated plumbing were
  all taken from the Bricriu to save tim e and money.
  The work then moved to the extensive mo difications requ ired for
  th e older hulls. Many of th e int ernal systems were d iscarded and
  rep laced with modern control systems and fixtures. The Bric riu
  structure was holl owed out for the hangar bay. The rema ining
  crew quarters were left intact, however, and became the quaran-
  tine area, sickbay, EVA staging area, brig and expanded crew qua r-
  ters. The cargo bay was des ig ned to dou ble as the crew's recre -
  ation area. If necessary, it could be used to carry a fighter or shuttl e,
  albe it under cramped con ditions. The weapons and many other
  systems were mounted between th e Bricriu hull and an additio nal
  layer of Venusian-manufactured armor, providing lots of protec-
  tion for the crew as we ll as structural strength.
  The Bricriu nose sections were largely scrapped; most of the sen-
  sors and instruments were moved into the central sensor bay or
  simply replaced with new hig h-tech gadgets. The civilian version
  of the Imperator, however -
  which was de signed to be an excel-
  lent cargo ship in its ow n rig ht -
  reused all of the Bricriu's senso r
  suite , th us further red ucing costs.
  Many of th e Bricriu-mod ship s are still in service as cargo ships,
  and they are becoming a familiar sight in the space lanes of the
  solar system. Many foreign companies have expressed interest in
  buying the conversions, offering to supply their own outdated
  Bricriu hulls. The Venusians are more than wi lling to do this; it
  simply makes for more camouflage for their own Imperators.
  Imperators perform po lice and security duties in loc al Venus ian
  space, and are also occasionally called upon to serve as low-pro-
  file spy ships in the event tha t more specialized vessels are either
  unavailable or unnecessary.Approximately 321mperators are cur-
  rently in service with th e CVNA, and ano ther seven or eight simi-
  lar vessels are suspected to remain in covert use by th e larger
  co rporations. The CVNA plans to con stru ct between two and fo ur
  new Imperators each year, keep ing p ace with a rising need for
  Venus to be self-reliant in matters of ext ern al security.
  0018
  
  IMPERATOR PATROL CRUISER
  I
  II•
  ••
  I
  II
  I•I..-
  50
  25
  i
  ~
  !
  Om
  Irnp e ratar .class Vessals, e 1 sa
  CVNA H IK A R U SaVOCA
  ~~l
  0019
  CVNA Hikaru Sovoda: launched October 2192. This side view
  shows how t he t wo Bricriu-c1ass hulls have been mod ified to be-
  come the two halves of the Imperator. Both halves have been left
  largely int act -
  the early Imperator's armored hull concealed sys-
  tems t hat were integrated wit hin the Bricriu's hull. Bot h were then
  mou nte d on a new cent ral piece to create a double-hull arrange-
  ment . The crew sections were inside, surrounded by the Bricriu's
  structure; all the major ship systems were mounted around t hem
  for ext ra protection.
  -t- .....-.
  T
  Legend
  ...
  1)
  Upgraded Dr i ~e Design
  2)
  Crew Areas
  3) I
  Modified Nose Section
  4)
  Hull Braces
  5)
  Hangar Bay
  6)
  Cargo Bay
  The Sovoda is fairly typica l of the converted vessels fi elded by
  the CVNA in the early years of the program, before the design-
  ers agree t hat more drastic modfications were worth the added
  costs. More recent vesselshave compl etely reworked hulls which
  have no outward resemblances to t he Bricrius t hey originally
  came from.
  ~
  L-~,--,--,-_~-,--,--_w_-'--
  ~~"'"
  
  CRUISER
  •
  IMPERATOR
  ~
  2.4 SHIP SYSTEMS
  PATROL
  I
  .
  I
  AWof the propulslonsysterris are located in the
  central hull, well away from the main crew areas.
  The maiii' tankage sub-systems are also placed
  there, both for shielding purposes and to reduce
  the length and complexity'of th'e ducting. Strong
  vat-grown mono-spars form the basicstructure of
  the hullsupport pylons:'effidentlytransferring the
  thrust of the eng ine to'the rest of the ship.
  ~
  Waapon Systems ...
  1
  Area Defense Laser System
  :2
  Power Couplings
  3
  Forward Array, Laser PDS Cells
  4
  -l-
  Kinetic KillCannons
  S
  Aft Array, Laser PDS Cells
  6
  Heat Sinks
  7-,
  ......,.. Main Power Conduits
  I
  I
  Plasma Arc RCS Cluster
  ·i-lype..golic RCS Thrusters
  -
  Reaction Mass Tanks
  PlasmaC ombustIOn-Chamber
  Exhaust Collimator Coils
  EM Po.:iier Generation Syste m
  Heat Sink
  9
  -t 10
  11
  12
  13
  14
  1S
  The ship's weapon system are all concealed be-
  hind movable panels, or else mounted flush
  against thesurface of the hull. Armament varies
  between individualships, but most mount at least
  one- laser weapon (not counting the PDS array)
  along with kinetic kill weaponry of a very com-
  'pact design . The latte': can collapse its accelera-
  tor array in ~ tiny volurrie to allow it to'fullyretract
  intb its bay.
  '
  "
  i-
  i
  ()
  schematics
  r
  •
  ....
  •
  •
  0020
  
  IMPERATOR PATROL CRUISER
  The sensor array of the ship is fairly conventional
  and is distributed across the other hull. Most of
  the anten nae and basic processors are located in
  the centralhull's forward section, where they have
  a good field of vision. Additional sensors are lo-
  cated on the extremities of the two outrigger hulls
  to complete the sensor coverage.
  Like all modern spaceships, the Imperat or is
  equ ipped with extremely redundant life support -
  systems .The heat exchangers are coupled to pan-
  els in the outer skin of the vehicle to allow them
  to selectively radiate the ship's waste heat in a
  controlled matter. The main hangar has a sepa·
  rate high-powered life support node so the bay
  can be rapidlydecompressed or filled.
  "
  Ben or Byet;eme
  "
  1
  Docking Sensors
  2 Microwave Pulse.Ranging Antennae
  3
  Shortwave Instrument Clusters
  4
  Phased Array Radar
  5
  Laser Ranging and L1DAR Emitters
  6
  Optical Sensor Cluster
  ,, '
  Life Bupport; Byet;.
  "
  7
  Shield Generators
  B
  Hangar LSSystem~
  9
  Secondary Ls Nodes
  10
  Gas Storage
  11
  Superconducting Batteries
  12
  Heat Exchangers
  0021
  2.4 SHIP SYSTEMS
  ....
  e c h e m e t;lc e
  ()
  II
  •-..•
  •
  
  ~
  2.4.2 Downt:ime Room
  PATROL
  . .. . .. . . . . . 1.
  CRUISER
  -...,.-----,
  ...
  The downtime room is a large (compared to the rest of the habit-
  able areas) open room with soft ly-col ored walls. It is a mu lti-func-
  I
  tion area th at serves as a lounge, meeting place and di ning area.
  There are large vidscreens all over the wa lls, and a numbe r of
  fo lding tables that can retract out of the way outside of the d in-
  ner shift s. The majority of the ship'S crew must go to the down-
  time room to stretch out, assuming it is not already in use for
  some other function, because th eir own personal qu arters are too
  small and drab.
  ~
  2.4. 1 Officer's Guert:ers
  IMPERATOR
  The da ily duties of an officer unfortunately include lots of paper-
  work. This, in tu rn, requires a relatively qu iet and spacious place
  in wh ere to acco mplish the tasks properly. As a result, the officer's
  quarte rs on most Venusian vessels are reasonably large and com-
  fortable, and always include th e furniture required to allow it to
  serve as a pr ivate office.
  The room shown at righ t is typical of th e amenities provided to
  lowe r level staff on board the Imperator-c1ass ships. The cab in is
  recta ngu lar and shaped much like a con ventional planet-bou nd
  room for th e sake of the offic er's comfort. Like most spacecraft
  quarters, however, it is abo ut the size of a walk-in clo set -
  in
  other words, ju st big enough for someo ne to stand up and stretch
  out if he is careful where he sticks his arms. There are lockers
  strateg ically pla ced along the walls for storage and safe-keeping,
  one of which is equipped with a security system to lock in valu-
  ab les (the elect ron ic lock is fairly hard to defeat, though the code
  is g enerally ava ilab le to all superior off icers). Voice-directe d
  orientabl e lights and environme ntal controls ensure comfortable
  surroundings at all times.
  Beyond th e officer's pe rson al effe cts, the storage loc kers hold
  several large cushions. These com e in handy for several applica-
  tions, and can vary their size somewhat via an inflatable bladder
  hid den under layers of synthetic goosedown. Most of th e time,
  they are used to soften up the rath er spartan be dside arrange-
  ment, or to provide seat ing fo r guests.
  A combination desk and sleeping pallet folds down fro m one wall
  (the hing es have been omitted in the illustration), Hidden latches
  under the surface can be used to secure a sleeping bag for zero -
  gravity sleeping, or to hold the inflatable mattress tha t is nor-
  mally sto red in on e of the compartments. A computer terminal
  swings ou t of the wall so tha t the user can work facing the doo r.
  Almost all the paperwork is done using this terminal, so the desk
  seldom needs cleaning up for sleep .
  11
  II
  •..•
  ..-
  0022
  
  IMPERATOR PATROL CRUISER
  I
  There is a sma ll galley located to one side of the room's "lower"
  area; auto mated cooking device s can prepare a variety of mea ls,
  mostly based on prepackaged algae and vat-grown protein . De-
  spite th is, they are actually q uite palatable , mostlybecause of the
  inventive presentation and use of sp ices. The galley is open all
  day, though it is often prefera ble to wait for the designated din-
  ner time to have access to the tables.
  When not being used for d ining, this room is often set up as a
  "ga rden," with various relaxing images displayed on the walls
  and soft backgrou nd music. The back wall is covered with lock-
  ers; these store all manner of equipment used to convert the room
  for one functio n or anothe r, such as pillows and zero-gee clips
  and nets.
  T
  2.4 .3 B r ig
  The Imperator-c1ass ships have dedicated brigs to hold criminals
  or mutineers until they can be brought to trial. The typical brig is
  a room with two ce lls, placed side by side so that one guard can
  see both rooms from his workstation.
  Despite outward appearances , the cells have no access panels or
  hatches otherthan the main door. They are equipped with a single
  piece of lightweight multifurniture that serves as a bed, table and
  chair, and which folds up and clips to the wallfor storage. A small
  cabinet on the wall holds equipment for hygiene , though it is
  somewhat embarrassing as it must be use d in full view of the
  guard and the occupant(s) of the other ce ll.
  A security alarm is prominently placed on the wall of the sec urity
  station outside the cells, as we ll as a locked hatch that leads to a
  sma ll security locker. There are vidscreens on the wall in the secu-
  ritystation arranged forthe prisoners' entertainment, but the pris-
  oners must watch them through the com bination of bars and se-
  curity netting that seals each ce ll .
  0023
  -..
  ..•
  II
  II
  II
  
  I
  ~
  IMPERATOR PATROL CRUISER
  Current Assignment: CVNA Titus Grimaldi
  ...
  2.6." Int rvlew with
  Pilot
  "There is no better job to have in the
  CVNA t han a p ilot's posting on an
  Imperator. I'll tel l you why. You see, in
  other ships, with lots of pi lots, lots of
  exos, everyone has to share the credit.
  If the ship is attacked, and the pilots
  scramb le, it's all abo ut the team, yes? On
  this ship, there's only two pilots. I just
  have to be better th an one person, and
  the performance bonuses are all mine.
  Tai-i
  Paolo Dallaire
  "I know, 1sound like a foreigner, going on about 'personal fulfill-
  ment.' It's not my fault . An exo-armor is the most powerful war
  machine, you know, and it make s some people feel, well, very
  important . I'm part of something very big, yes, but I'm also pi lot-
  ing something very big too, you see? In fact, I truly answer only to
  the captain. I don't envy his job, though -
  we've got totally dif-
  feren t career goal, and I just don't want to rise to that level one
  day. I just can't relate to a ship com mand e job .
  Rank:
  Name:
  "I get a lot of respect on thi s ship. People let me get to the galley
  first. I get an officer's cab in. I earn it , though. My exo-armor is my
  exo-armor. If something goes wrong with it, I can't blame a backup
  pilot, or even the technicians. It's my fault if I don't take care of
  the machine I fig ht in. That's normal for any Venusian ship, but on
  thi s one, a mistake will be very quickly noticed. Also, as head
  pilot, I have to work with the captain and flight ops officer to work
  out schedules and procedures. Betwee n fly ing, maintenance and
  desk-jockeying, it's a wonder I have eno ugh free time to make
  the other pilot fee l useless."
  Captain
  First Officer ............................................................................................................ 1
  Supply Officer ........................................................................................................ 1
  Med ical Offi cer ....................................................................................................... 1
  EMf ............................................................................................................. 1
  Nu rse ........................................................................................................... 1
  Aesthetics Specialist .............................................................................................. 1
  EME Specialist ........................................................................................................ 3
  He lmsman/Navigat or ............................................................................................. 3
  Weapons Officer .................................................................................................... 1
  Gunner ......................................................................................................... 3
  Chief Engineer ....................................................................................................... 1
  Master Engineer ..........................................................................................2
  Engineer ......................................................................................................S
  Electronics Specialist ................................................................................... 1
  Computer Specialist .................................................................................... 1
  Security Off icer ......................................................................................................1
  Security Specialist ........................................................................................ 1
  Flight Operations Officer ....................................................................................... 1
  Catapult Specialist ....................................................................................... 1
  Ordnance Specialist ..................................................................................... 1
  Exo/Fig hter Pilot .................................................................................................... 2
  Mar ine .................................................................................................................... S
  ~
  2.5 SHIP PERSONNEL
  The Imperator-c1ass' crew is divided into four departments. Op-
  erations is comma nded by the First Offic er, which is respo nsible
  for day to day operations and anyth ing not covered by oth er de-
  partm ents. The medical crew falls under Operations. The Gun-
  nery Department is com mand ed by the Weapons Officer, while
  Engineering is commanded by the Chief Engineer. The crew as-
  signed to th e security pos itions fall und er Engineering and help
  the engineers in damage control duties. The Flight Operations
  Officer comma nd s Flight Operations Department, which includes
  the fighters and/or exo-armors and th e marine squad.
  OJ
  Crew Orgenlzetion Chert
  •
  II•....
  0024
  
  IMPERATOR PATROL CRUISER
  " If we end up having to open up on someone, I have to help hide
  the fact that we were ever there. Even if we don't get seen (and
  we haven't), there are so many ways someone could downgrade
  me for perceived mistakes in judgment. For instance, if I decide
  to burn a little extra remass to hit a checkpoint on time, the cap -
  tain can di ng me for 'engaging in maneuvering behavior incon-
  sistent with CVNA policy.'
  II
  I
  II
  II
  .-
  IiiI
  II•
  Chu-i
  Koji Shimizu
  CVNA Akikumo
  Nakamichi
  Rank:
  ...
  2.5.3 Interview with a Security Officer
  "Okay, so there's not a lot tha t needs
  security on a tiny little ship like this, right?
  Hmph. You are so wrong. Even on the
  routine trips, there's always someone
  wh o ge t s a case of cabin fever. The
  Imperator's just too small for a real Ve-
  nusian to be comfortable with for too
  long, and on the kinds of jobs we get
  sent on, it's always too long.
  Current Assignment:
  "We may on ly have about forty people aboard , but it doesn't
  take much t o get a fight started . Usually it's one of the pilots bul-
  lying a gunner, or som e navigator going off the deep end, but
  the end result isthat I have to rou gh 'em up a bit (for appearance's
  sake, you know), toss them in the brig for a few shifts, and then
  spe nd way too many hours doing paperwork. It's very much '!
  cultural req uirement -
  small ships are like frontier towns. You
  gotta show th em who's the boss once in a while or they will fo rget
  and try to stomp all over you .
  Name:
  "When we run into a pro blem on a patrol, then things get really
  interesting . Since we don't have many specialized crew members
  due to the ship's size, any boarding pa rties usually invo lve me
  and a bunch of half-trained vo lunteers from engineering who are
  probably more of a danger to my back than a help. That's always
  fun . Then there are the search-and-seizures, when I get to play
  EOD rat and inspect containers and packages for undesirable
  items like, oh , say, bombs. And of course, there's always paper-
  work. But I only talk like this when I have time to think about it,
  because the rest of the time, I'm having way too much fun ."
  Yingshu Lu
  Chu-sa
  CVNA Joseph
  Parkinson
  Current Assignment:
  Name:
  Rank:
  ...
  2.5.2 Interview with e Nevigator
  " I researched some statistics. Of all bridge pos itions, navigators
  become the least likely to make it to co mmand rank the longer
  they serve in that position. You'd better love you r job, because
  it's not going to take you anywhere but down and out. Most of
  the navigators retire after a few years and end up in stress-man-
  agement resorts for a while. Me, I love plotting courses; it's like
  juggling a dozen balls at a time, trying to balance everything out
  and still keep the whole thing moving along. I just hate the popu-
  larity contest I have to go through just to keep my job. If I ever
  get to be a captain, I'm going to make it a point to be extra nice
  to my navigator. It's just good karma ."
  "My job, accordin g t o my mentor offi cer
  back on Venus, is to make the ship look
  casual without actua lly being casual.
  That's all she had to say. Gee, very help-
  ful, isn't it? Do you have any idea what
  kind of hell my performance reviews are
  like? I have to plot courses th at take us
  pa st our assigned patro l point s, but
  which also look plausibl e for a cargo
  cou rier vessel.
  0025
  
  -..
  II
  II
  Irnperator-class Patr ol Cruiser
  .,
  Dverell Data:
  I Ttvwllt Value: 60800I
  Off TV
  I
  Def . TV:
  . I
  Mi sc. TV:
  . I
  CO$t :
  103.3M
  I
  Ind . lemon Dice:3
  .,
  Movement Data:
  I Mod . ,
  Space
  Combat:6 MP (0.6 9)1
  Top :12 MP11.2 g)
  I
  Maneuver:
  ·2
  Range :
  3000 h"
  ReMa5s:2000 BPs
  .,
  Sections:
  I "
  Main Hull
  I "
  Central Hull I "
  EVAHuH
  I
  I
  I
  I
  \
  I
  I
  .,
  O ff &
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  I "
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  I
  2.
  Laser Array
  I ..
  CMM
  I "
  Missil. Bay
  I
  I
  I
  I
  I
  Section: Main Hull
  Main Data:
  I TV,
  34000
  I
  Off. TV:
  83000
  I
  o.f. TV:
  2500
  Misc. TV:
  17000
  I
  Prod. Cost: 60M
  I
  1ndv.1emonDice: 2
  I Crew :
  18
  I
  Act ion s:
  6
  I
  SenSOf"!, :
  -212km
  Comm.: ·211Okm
  I
  Fir. Control :
  +1
  I
  I HullSize:
  36 I
  o.fault Size:
  32
  I
  Bas. Armor:
  50
  Light ,
  50
  I
  Heavy:
  50
  I
  Ov&rltill :
  50
  .,
  Main Data.
  I Modo,
  Towed
  I
  Combat:
  I
  Top:
  I
  ManucV&f :
  I
  Rang e: 1000 hrs
  I
  Re,M ast :
  .,
  Park.. & Flaws:
  Autopilot
  Lvi 1 Pilot
  Reinfon:e-d Crew
  3
  Absorbs first three · Crew· hits
  Backup Sytotems
  COfTNTI, FireCon, Uf eSupp. Sensor
  Steal th
  2
  Add to Conc ealment
  Comput er
  3
  eRE 0, KN O 0, PP3
  OiffiaJlt to Modify
  All
  Eject ion Systems
  Pods fOf 20 peop le
  HEP: Red
  4
  Screen
  HEP: Vile
  Against space
  u fe Support
  Fun
  Passenger Accom
  3.000m3
  .,
  Dffenslvs and Defanllive SYlltamll:
  Ct y
  Name
  A«.
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  Ace
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  Ammo
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  Laser Array
  F
  ><20
  7
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  + 1
  Inf
  AD2. Cone . (lnst .). HEAT
  14
  12214
  nI.
  1
  POS hng&dl
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  .10
  1
  +1
  +6
  Inf
  AM. Cone. (lnst ,). HEAT
  16
  1401
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  FF
  ><20
  M....
  +1
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  Cone. (Inst .), OM., E·9*t, H
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  53.
  3
  CMM
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  .' 8
  2
  .,
  ..
  32• •
  Cone.(lnst.), HEAT,Miss;1 •
  310S
  2.7
  Section: Central Hull
  .,
  Main Data:
  TV: 2800 Off. TV;
  I
  0
  o.f. TV:
  I
  2300
  Misc. TV: I
  6100
  Cos t: 2.4M
  I
  Indv. Lemon Dice: 2
  Crew : 6Act ion s; 4
  I
  Sensors: +1 /3 km I
  Comm: +1 / 15 km I
  Fire Control:
  o I
  Type:
  Um.Prod
  I
  Hull Size: 32C>ef.w1t ~ iz.: 148ase Armor : SO I
  Ught:
  50
  I
  Heavy:
  50
  I
  Overit ill:
  50
  I
  .,
  M ovemBnt D atil:
  Mode:
  Space
  I
  Comb..,23 12. 3 9) I
  Top:
  47 (4.7 9) I
  Maneuv e r:
  ·2
  I
  RaOQ4': 1.000 hrsRet¥tass: 8.000 BPs
  .,
  P erk ll & Flaws :
  Backup Syste ms
  Com m, FireCon. LifeSupp, Sens or
  Ste alth
  2
  Add to Conc ealn-.nt
  Cargo Say
  5.000 m3
  Difficult to Mod ify
  All
  Ejedion Syst em s
  Pods for 10 people
  HEP: Rad
  4
  5cr oon
  HEP: Vac
  Against space
  Ufe Support
  Full
  Reinforc ed Cre w
  3
  Absorbs first three "Crew· hits
  Stealth
  2
  Add to Conc ealment
  .,
  D ffenlliv e and Defenslva Sylltem ll'
  Qty
  Nam e
  k e
  OM
  8R
  Ace
  ROF
  Am~
  Special
  M5
  WC
  AC
  Section: EVA Hull
  .,
  Main Data•
  TV,
  24000
  I os.rv
  39000
  I
  Def . TV:
  2500
  I
  Misc. TV:
  31000
  I
  Cost:
  40.9M
  I
  lndv. t. man Dice:
  Crew :
  10
  I
  Actions:
  5
  I
  Sensors:
  -2J2km
  I
  Comm;
  -211Okm
  I
  Fire Con trol:
  0
  I
  Type:
  Um.Prod
  HuUSize:
  34
  I
  Def.wlt Size:
  2'> I
  Ba,. Armor:
  50
  I
  Ugh t:
  50
  I
  Heavy :
  50
  I
  Overkill:
  50
  .,
  Movement Data:
  Mode:
  Towed
  I
  Combat:
  I
  Top :
  I
  Range : 1,000 hrs
  I
  ReMa,,:
  I
  .,
  Perk.. & Flaw..:
  Backup Syst~s
  Comm, FireCon, UfeSupp, Sensor
  Reinfo rced C~ 3
  Absorbs first th ree · Crew· hits
  Cargo Bay
  JO.OOOm3
  Side.Bay
  2
  Two pati ents
  2x Cata pults
  (4501mass)mls 2
  Stealth
  2
  Add to Concealment
  Difficult to Modif y
  All
  Eject ion System
  Pod s fOf'16 People
  HEP: Rad
  4
  5<non
  HEP: Vac
  Against space
  Lab Ufe Sciences
  0
  Passe nge r Accom
  2.000 m3
  .,
  Off & Def Systema
  Ct y
  Name
  A«.
  OM
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  ROF
  Ammo
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  1
  Missile Say
  T
  ,30
  5
  ·2
  +5
  40
  Cone . (lnst.), HEAT, M lw le
  8
  2644
  2.3
  3
  CMM
  T
  . 1B
  2
  ·1
  +4
  32••
  Cone. (lmt .), HEAT;MiSSile •
  3106
  2.7
  0026
  
  Section: .
  ,.
  Main Data.
  rv.
  oarv
  I
  Oef.W
  M isc. TV:
  I
  Cost :
  I
  Indv lemon dice : •
  I Crew:
  I
  Actions :
  I
  s.nsors:
  Com m.:
  I
  Fire Control'
  I
  TyF!"':
  I Hull Size :
  I
  Defau lt Size:
  I
  Base k mOf:
  li ght :
  Heavy:
  Owtrkill;
  ,.
  Movement Data.
  I Modo,
  I
  CombM:
  I
  Top:
  Maneuver:
  I
  Range :
  Re. Mass:
  ,.
  Perks & Flaws.
  N.me
  Rat ing
  Game Effect
  Nam.
  Rating
  Game Effeet
  ,.
  Offensive and Defensive Syatem s .
  O1y
  Nam e
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  W
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  I
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  I
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  I
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  I
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  I
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  I
  Comm. :
  I
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  I
  Typo·
  Hull Size:
  I
  Default Size:
  I
  Base Armor:
  I
  Light:
  I
  Heavy:
  I
  Overkill:
  ,.
  Movement Data.
  Mode :
  I
  Combat "
  I
  Top:
  I
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  I
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  ,.
  Perks & Flaws.
  N. me
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  O1y
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  I oa.rv
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  I Cre w:
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  I
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  I Modo,
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  ,
  "
  I•....
  II
  0027
  
  IMPERATOR PATROL CRUISER
  ---------
  •......
  II
  •
  ~
  PART I: MIXED SIGNALS
  The b ridge of th e CVNA Chanta l
  O'Connor smelled like clea ning fluid.
  In fact, Tal-sa Taggart al-Raschid noted,
  even after two months, the whole ship
  still felt too new, too unused . Like her
  captain, he thought sourly as he pre-
  sented Sho-sho Joshua Gould with a
  folded data fax. Gould roused himself
  from his seat with a rum b le, and
  scanned the datafax. After a moment,
  his porcine eyes peeked out ove r the
  to p of the page.
  "You want th is man to be given a CVNA
  po sting on my ship?" Taggart heard
  the emphasis on 'my: and strugg led
  to hold down his anger; Gould was
  both a poor captain and an insincere
  Venusian. Gould continued, incredu-
  lous. "His naval tr aining is more than a
  decade old, he's bee n unemployed for years, and I notice you've
  conveni ently left out his criminal record. Gods , Taggart, have you
  ever even heard of this man?"
  "Yes, of course I've heard of him," Taggart retorted defensivel y.
  Then, soft ly, he admitted, "at least, I've heard of his family." He
  fingered the ornate sculpt-clasp at his neck. "They did a lot for us
  du ring the Birth ing ."
  "A century ago," Gould noted. Tagg art shook his head. Gould
  could not po ssibly understand.
  " l owe him. He's asked fo r my help, and I intend to give him a
  chance."
  "You're vouching for this man, then? On your personal credit?"
  Gou ld de manded. Taggart hesitated fo r only a moment.
  "Yes, sir," he affirmed. "As part of my intel team allocation, I'm
  req uesting the recruitment of one Mischa Katayama as a civilia n
  CVNA consultant and expe rt in Executor operation s."
  Gou ld shrugged. "It's your career, I gues s. We'll send the orders
  out immediately." Tagga rt coughed.
  " Gould- sarna, I don't think it's wise to make such a trans mission
  before mission completion. If someone were to intercept and
  decipher the orders-"
  "They would have to decipher them, wouldn't they?" Gould in-
  terjected. "I hardly think that's a concern. All the y'll see is an in-
  nocent civilian message with some signal noise. I think we are
  adequate ly p rotect ed . Anyway, I wa nt t o see this," Gould
  sniggered, " consultant of yours as soon as possible."
  "Yes, sir," Tagga rt clipped out, doing his best to keep any hint of
  further disagreement out of his voice.
  He'd argued against almost every one of Gould's decisions since
  the mission began, and each time, he'd been overridden. He'd
  been assigned to thisship asGould'sintelligence liaison, but Gould
  seemed intent on making sure all the glory was his.
  Turning to more pleasant thoughts, Taggart imagined what the
  scion of old Toji Katayama wo uld look like. He wondered about
  the questionable nature of the man's work and criminal record ,
  but qu ickly dismissed the worries. He'd done the right thing. Now
  it was in the hands of th e gods.
  *
  *
  *
  Looks like the gods dropped the ball, Taggart thought grimly.
  Floating in his spacesuit , he looked down conte mptuously at
  Gould, who hud dled, shivering in his suit, under his own chair.
  0028
  
  IMPERATOR PATROL CRUISER
  The bridge had already been evacuated, alarms were blaring all
  over the shattered cruiser, and the bridge viewscreen showed a
  gold and black Ryu exo-armor lounging casually atop the hull.
  Thi rty-two hours aft er th e transmission had gone out, th e STRIKE
  ships had attacked, with th e Ryu at their head. Tagg art had few
  doubts as to how STRIKE had managed to decode the O'Connor's
  communications. He waite d for the Ryu to open fire and fin ish
  them off, but instead, the transmission light on the captain's con -
  sole bega n to flash. Slowly, Taggart reached out and jabbed a
  button.
  The face that appeared on the viewscreen was entirely nonde-
  script, long, angu lar and Japanese. Taggart didn't not ice the face.
  He fo cused instead on the man's uniform, a twi n to his own black
  Intelligence Services attire, excepting the insign ia, which were
  definitely not of Venusian origin .
  " Are you the captain of thi s ship?" the face demanded. Taggart
  g lanced down, and knew there was on ly one answer to give.
  "Yes, I am."
  The traitor smiled, one side of his mouth curving up like a scythe.
  " No, you're not. But that's all right . Your captain's obviously not
  worth half what you are." The smile vanished. " Here's my offer.
  You will transfer to our ship. Once yo u are aboard, your remain-
  ing crew wil l be allowed to send a distress call. If you are not
  aboard our ship in ten minutes, we will kill them all. It's that simple.
  Nine minutes and fifty seconds left ."
  Taggart met the traitor's eyes, and knew there was no po int in
  arguing. He didn't look around him. He could still hear Go uld
  whimpering. There was little ho pe that the man was even capable
  of understandi ng what Taggart was abo ut to do fo r him . Grab-
  bing a hand ho ld, Taggart hauled him self out th e bridge door.
  *
  *
  *
  The re was barely enough light to make out t he Japanese charac-
  te rs. Mischa Katayama looked at the datafax held in his unsteady
  hands, and sat down heavily. He had n't expected any kind of re-
  sponse to his letter. Surely al-Raschid Tal-i wo uld have looked up
  his file, and seen the pages of black marks . It had been almost a
  joke, a final self-pitying scream . Yet, here was a serious answer, an
  invitation, addressed not to a penniless failure but to a fellow
  Venusian.
  Mischa looked down. On a table, near his elbow, were a dataslip
  with the word "Kinya" scrawled on the label and a charged pis-
  I
  tol. He swallowed . It had been so close. The order had been on
  his lips whe n the datafax came through.
  This is it, he thought. An end, or a beginning.
  A voice interrupted his thoughts. It spoke from every wall, quiet
  I
  and soothing. Like a human. Like him.
  " Execute final command? " it asked ind ifferently.
  " No," Mischa breathed at last. "Cancel th at," he d irected, louder.
  He took a deep breath, focused on a nearby wall camera, and
  anno unced, "Stand down self-destruct, and find me a civilia n flight
  to Mars. Time to meet my angel."
  As if in response to his sudden animat ion, the vo ice became dis-
  tinctly quizzical. " I don't unde rstand , but okay," it said . Mi scha
  smiled and rose fro m his seat.
  "You shouldn't understand," he said. "You're not me , after all."
  He picked up the dataslip and tossed it toward a recycling bin.
  Smiling faintly, he turned back to the wall camera.
  "At least, not yet."
  II•....
  II•
  11
  II
  II
  0029
  
  HUA N G - T I OBSERVER
  Currently being fitted out in a sealed and monitored bay at the Carthage orb ital
  shipya rds, the Hoechst is named after the Venus ian Bank agent who calmly and
  efficiently organized the Bank's withdrawal from the Jovian atmosphere in 2210
  afte r the Jovians discovered Project Met huselah. Hoechst, whose real name is highly
  classified, has very little use for such an honor, but it is reported that he does
  appreciate the symbolism.
  In a move approved by every Venusian espionage office except for those affili-
  ated with VenusBank, the next Huang-Ti-c1ass ship to be constructed will bear
  the name of the VAC agent who headed the op eration to reveal Venu sBank' s
  act ivities in 2210 to the rest of the Venusian corpo rations. Although the Venu-
  sian Bank, in its dealings with the ot her corporations, does acknowledge Salermo's
  role in bringing "fairness" to Venus' planetary po litics, most outside ob ser vers
  are certa in tha t th is rat her obvious jab has be en felt deeply by th e egos of
  VenusBank's board members.
  The Oyama was the first prototype of the Huang-Ti class, designed by the Venu-
  sian Bank as an experiment in standard izing spy ships and thus cuttin g costs .
  The real Oyama Hagane is th e Operat ions Director of VenusBank's External Se-
  curity Branch, and is we ll-known in the Bank's higher ec helons as the logistical
  mastermind beh ind Operation Methuselah's supp ly chain and facility construc-
  tion. The Oyama has recently completed its two-year series of field tests , and is
  currently undergo ing a complete overhaul for both maintenance and data-col-
  lect ion reasons.
  N/A
  Building
  N/A
  Commissioned
  December 26, 2210
  Refit
  CVNA John Salermo
  CVNA Vaclav Hoechst
  CVNA Oyama Hagane
  Launched:
  Name:
  Launched:
  Name:
  Status:
  Name:
  Launched:
  Notable Ship
  Status:
  Stat us:
  II
  II
  II
  I!!I..
  0030
  
  HUANG-TIOBSERVER
  II•....
  Ii
  II
  II
  11
  II
  
  ..-..
  II•
  HUANG-TI OBSE RVER
  - -----
  ~
  3 .1 OVERVIEW
  W hen the CVNA was formed, it was wi dely known in Venu sian
  executive circles that the Ven usian Bank had used a group of
  highly custom ized stea lth ships to fer ry cargo t o and from its
  Project Methuselah bases near Jupiter. Using this design (reluc-
  tan tly released to the CVNA by VenusBank) as a base, a team of
  engineers from seve ral arcol ogies created a warship that d id
  exact ly what it was supposed to - and not much else. The nu-
  merous bu lky sensor-fo oling devi ces that pack the Huang-ti's hull
  leave little room for weapo nry, and even less for armor. Properly
  deployed , it is a superlative scout, bu t if an enemy should get a
  solid combat lock, th e Huang-ti is little more than an expensive
  coffin for its crew.
  The Huang-Ti-c1ass ships are secrets among secrets; th eir names
  are classified and come from the ranks of Venus' intelligence com-
  munity, they are not liste d on any registry, and they bear no mark-
  ings of nationality or allegi ance. These ships are de signed to op-
  erate alone, without commu nicati on or resupply, for extended
  periods of time. A special committee reporting to both th e Venu-
  sian Planetary Advisory Board and the CVNA took six mo nths to
  select a crew fo r the first Huang-Ti-c1ass ship to see service, and
  the crew sele ction process for th e two next vessels is similarly
  intensive. It is unknown if more Huang-Ti-c1ass ships past the first
  th ree will be constructed ; th ey are proving to be both expensive
  to build and d ifficult to prop erly conceal.
  T
  3.1.1 Capabilities
  The Huang-Ti is the closest thing to an invisibl e ship the Venu sian
  Bank's engi neers were able to concoct. In addi tion to shielded
  eng ines, extensive temperature-control systems and a covering
  of radi ation-absorbi ng material, th e Huang -Ti is also equipped
  with a mu ch larger (and correspond ingly more d iffic ult to use)
  version of the visual masking tec hnology stol en by Venusian agents
  from CEGA's Lucifer and Typhon exo-arrnor projects. Linked into
  the ship's communications, sensor and hull vid-me mbrane sys-
  00 32
  
  •
  Ii
  II•-..
  3.".2 Operational Rola
  It is expecte d th at the Jovian Confederat ion will be the primary
  target of the three Huang-Ti-c1ass ships. CEGA is much more eas-
  ily observed using spies on Earth and in the Orbitals, and Mars
  has, as far as Venus is concerned, little to hide. The vast amount
  of space covered by the Confederat ion is a perfect roaming
  ground for the Huang-Ti class. Even th ough the events of t he
  Odyssey have put the JA F on guard fo r further Venusian incur-
  sions into Jovi an space, there is no evidence that the Jovians
  have managed to improve th eir detection system s such that the
  Huang-Ti would not be an effective spy.
  HUANG-TIOBSERVER
  I
  . . . . .
  "
  .
  I
  a rule, unaware that if their ship is discovered , it will be forced to
  I
  I
  self-de struct; their loyalty to Venus and the Venusian way of life
  does not extend to suicide. However, since no Huang-Ti-c1assship
  I
  has yet been put in this uncomfortable position, there is currently
  no shortage of eager Venusian intelligence officers happy to ac-
  cept a posting aboard one of the se vessels.
  The Huang-Ti, not being designed for frontline combat, is not
  terribly well-armed. Its lasers are powerful, but fixe d to fire out of
  tiny slits, restricting their effe ctiveness. It carries a few dozen
  drones, but rather than the torpedoes and hunter-killers used by
  other drone-carrying Venusian ships, the Huang-Ti is obliged to
  carry bulky observer and electronic-warfare drones that take up
  extra space (due to the modifications needed to keep them both
  stealthy and mainte nance-frien dly) and serve little purpose in open
  battl e. The Huang-Ti's array of CM M launchers is impressive , but
  it cannot carry enough ammunition to have any chance of fight-
  ing its way out of anything but the smallest skirmish.
  tern s, th is " cloak" can hide all of the Huang-Ti's visual signature
  while simultaneously transmitting false signals and sensor images
  to an ene my ship, tricking the ta rget into seeing noth ing at all.
  The system has proven effective in trials at even close distances
  of a few kilometers, but even with multiple skilled controllers aided
  by powerful computers, the system cannot keep th e Huang-Ti
  hidden if there are several enemies cooperating in a search.
  Each of the Huang-Ti's two primary hulls has a small vehicle bay
  eq uipped with a compact cata pult system . Any fighter or exo-
  armor may be carried, but the Huang-Ti's mission profile usually
  demands stealth and guile to the exclusion of all else (and with
  financial expense be ing the least important of worries). As a re-
  sult, the Huang-Ti is usually assigned a pair of G-8 Korikaze spe-
  cial-operations exo-armors, which are equipped with stealth and
  masking devices even more complex than th e Huang-Ti's own .
  These technologically bleeding-edge units can be used for ad-
  vance scouting, shadowing, ambush or sabotage, and are each
  almost as irreplaceable as their mothership.
  The crew of the Huang-Ti is a mix of hardened combat vetera ns
  with covert-operations experience and intelligence analysts with
  little to no military training. While the soldiers run the ship and
  are responsible for maintaining secrecy, the analysts gather data
  using the ship's sensors and use it to plan strategic moves or com-
  pose reports for transmission back to Venus. The analysts are, as
  Also of some importance is a systematic inspe ction of cland es-
  tin e activities in th e Belt. STRIKE is an ever-present concern, and
  th at organization's facil ity for predictin g Venusian movements is
  all the necessaryjustification for tasking the CVNA's most advanced
  I
  resources toward curtai ling STRIKE's activities. It is also suspected
  th at CEGA and the Jovians have num erous hidden outposts in
  the Belt; although these insta llations no doubt " go silent " th e
  moment they detect a nearby vessel, it is hoped that th ey will
  reveal th eir secrets to a ship that cannot be seen so easily.
  I
  If an armed conflict should ever break out, the Huang-Ti class wi ll
  be used to sow discord and confusion in enemy ranks, sabotag-
  ing key locations and carrying out hit-and -fade attacks on the
  enemy's bases. Even in the current, relatively warm political cli-
  mate, the Venusian corporations are rapidly findi ng much com-
  mon ground in their mutual desire to use the Huang-Ti-c1ass ships
  to plant evidence, make t roublesome individu als "disappear" and
  otherwise help turn the oth er solar nations against one another.
  0033
  
  HUANG-TI OBSERVER
  •-..
  II
  •
  f)
  Bide View
  "
  Legend
  1
  Drive Fin (Extended)
  10
  Drone Bay Actua to r
  18
  Telescope Cluste r
  2
  Drive Fin Mo unt
  11
  Drone Bay Cover
  (Extended)
  3
  Decoy Launcher Cover
  12
  Sensor Dishes (Closed)
  19
  Enhanced Instrument
  4
  Hangar Bay Door
  13
  Lidar/Ra ngefinder Emitter
  Cluster (Ext ended)
  5
  Rear Cloaking Transmission
  14
  Forward Weapons Bay
  20
  Gas Storaqe Access Bay
  Cluster (Retracted)
  15
  Cloaking System Transmission
  21
  Short Range Sensors
  6
  Instrument Cluster (Extended)
  Cluster (Extended)
  7
  Instrument Housing
  16
  Omnidirectional Antenna
  8
  Electronic Warfare Pod
  (Extended)
  9
  Personnel Airlocks
  17
  Directional Gas Vent
  0034
  ...
  -!
  1
  j
  I
  j
  I
  
  3.2 SHIP SCHEMATIC S
  [CDNT.)
  ....
  •
  •,
  ••
  •
  -! 1
  J
  Huang-TI
  Front View
  ()
  n/a
  Escape Pods
  Mag Screen
  Fire Control Radar, Infrared/
  Ultraviolet , Udar, Magn etometer,
  Microwaves, Motion
  Detectors, Radcounter, Search
  Radar
  PDS, 1 x Area Defense Laser Array,
  2 x KKC turret
  O BSERVER
  Speclflcetlons
  Equipment:
  Fixed Armament:
  Additional Armament:
  Defensive Systems:
  Onboard Sensors:
  Origin:
  Cooperative Venusian Naval Administrat ion..
  Manufacturer:
  Various Venusian Shipyards
  Type:
  Observer
  Control System:
  Bridge w/ast ronomical display
  Length:
  140 m overall
  Width:
  40 m overall
  Empty Weight :
  7,500Tons
  Loaded Weight:
  10,000 Tons
  Main Drive:
  1 x 20 MW
  Secondary Powerplant:
  1 x 4000 ~.
  Main Thrusters:
  ·1 x 25,000,000 kg
  Apogee Motors:
  80
  Acceleration:
  2.0 g
  l-.
  ..,
  HUANG- TI
  T
  25
  •
  Legend
  1
  Decoy Launcher Cover
  9
  Telescope Cluster
  2
  Hangar Door
  (Ext ended)
  3
  Drone Bay Cover
  10
  Gas Storage Access Bay
  4
  Inst rument Housing
  11
  Drone Bay A.ctuator
  5
  Electronic Warfare Pod
  12
  Instrument Cluster (Ext ended)
  6
  Forward Weapons Bay
  13
  Short Range Sensors
  7
  Cloaking ?ystem Tra~sm i ssi on
  14
  Lidar/ Ranqefinder Emitter
  Cluster (Extended)
  15
  Enhanced Instrument
  8
  Omnidirectional Ante nna
  Cluster (Extended)
  •
  •
  (Ext ended)
  16
  Directional G~ s Vent
  J
  0035
  
  HUANG-TI OBSERVER
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  3.2 SHIP SCH E M A T IC S [CONT.]
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  .
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  -
  Cluster {Retracted} · .... -'--r ... - ciusiJr(EXtended)
  .. .
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  -.. - .
  "--
  InStrument Housing
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  -...
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  Elect ro;;ic'Warl~re P~d
  3
  4
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  0036
  
  HUANG-TI OBSERVER
  II
  --
  11•
  •
  •
  I
  I
  1
  I
  25
  Om
  ...
  PlasmaCombustion Chamber
  "
  '
  Reaction Mass Tanks
  I
  Supercondu cting Batteries
  Hangar (Obscures Bulk Storage)
  Drone Storage
  Instrument Bay
  Drone Prep Bay
  Bridge
  Drone Bay
  Crew Recreation Area
  Laser
  Laser Capacitors
  Cloak Cent ral Processing Bay
  •
  Cloak Room
  Heat Exchangers
  Crew Quarters
  Engineering Bay
  Gas Storage
  Commp n Rooni-
  Analysis Room
  Analysts' Quarters
  Bulk Storage (Obscures Hangar)
  -
  .
  -
  Mci"in-EievatorShaft ""
  Cut:away Vlaw
  T
  1
  2
  3
  4
  5
  6
  7
  8
  9
  10
  11
  12
  13
  14
  15
  16
  17
  18
  19
  20
  2122
  23
  3.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS [C O N T .]
  ....
  11
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  0037
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  HUANG-TIOBSERVER
  ___J
  I
  . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. .
  •II I
  I
  II
  II
  II
  II•
  II
  ~
  3.3 HISTORY
  In the early days of th e col oni zation of Venus, it was not unusual
  for a corporat ion to commission the creation of private space-
  ships that wo uld answer its own peculiar needs. The old er
  VenusBank ships used fo r the top secret Project Methuselah were
  primarily cargo vessels, design ed to ferry suppl ies and be as in-
  visib le as possible. They had huge cargo holds in each main hull,
  along with large hangars sto cked with transport shuttles. Ar ma-
  ment was limited to two pairs of conc ealed kinetic kill cannons.
  The Venusian Bank's Project Methuselah transport ships came very
  close to being revealed in 2210; one was even attacked and was
  forced to self-destruct to avoid captu re or close inspection. The
  CVNA has every intention of continuing Venus Bank's policy re-
  garding the d ispo sition of stealthed spy ships, preferring to sacri-
  fice the entire vessel alon g with its crew rather than risk expo sing
  Venus' enti re military build up to the rest of the solar syste m.
  Most of the vessel's concep tion was based on th e need to be as
  discreet as possible. The drive was effectively stealthed, but was
  very bulky and inefficient as a result . Sensors were relatively un-
  important; like a packhorse, the ship d id not need to be able to
  see much in orde r to make a delivery. A standard civilian-grade
  ship sensor dome was mounted, with some added layering to
  reduce electron ic em issions. No active concealmen t technology
  was carried; the ship relied primarily on old er passive stealth tech-
  nology and decoys along with a rudimentary visual masking sys-
  tem. The idea of actively sending false projections and signals at
  a ta rget observer was not feasible until later.
  When VenusBank was forced to turn the stealth-ship design over
  to the Planeta ry Advisory Board, the consensus was th at the Bank
  had built an excellent ship , de spite some flaws and shortcom-
  ings. The Board needed a hidden source of info rmation in orde r
  to maintain Venusian power, and these ships seemed like the way
  to go. Plans were drawn up to update the design to more mod-
  ern specifications and correct th e afo rementioned flaws.
  The existing vessels were towed to a small and very discreet ship-
  yard in high orbit. The main hulls were shortened by about forty
  pe rcent, and almost all of the cargo space was converted to other
  uses. The front cargo bays were modified to carry and launch
  Drones. Huge folding sensor d ish arrays, which would supple-
  ment the new instrument clusters install ed in the central hull, were
  installed around the Drone bays. The main hangar was shrunken;
  a complement of tw o exo-armors were deemed suffici ent. A small
  cargo bay was left over in each hull to be used as necessa ry.
  Each hull now cont ained both a hangar and a bulk sto rage/cargo
  area. The new drive system maintained the same level of ste alth
  but was only half the size, tha nks to new and more efficient drive
  coils. A set of powerful lasers was inst alled in the forward weap-
  ons bay, giving the ship som e very impre ssive first-strike capabi l-
  ity. Some anti-exo missiles were added , too, but the lack of any
  backup anti -ship weapons made the Huang-Ti (as th e revised
  design was now called) a poor ship of the line.
  The advanced cloaking system went th rou gh a lot of trial and
  error, and in fact is still being perfected. The current group of
  th ree ships will be th e testbeds for the next generation of Huang-
  Ti, which will hopefully be abl e to stay hidden without the mas-
  sive expend iture of power and mass current ly req uired . The
  present system is only effectively ab le to hide the ship from one,
  pos sibly tw o enemy units at a time. Since much of th e visual com-
  ponent involves sending images that th e enemy expects to see,
  multiple observers wh o can compare th eir viewpoints will be able
  t o pick out di screpancies and pinpo int the Huang-Ti's locati on .
  Unlike most other Venusian ship classes, the Huang-Ti has no real
  civilian eq uivalent. A lthough there are cargo ships that roughly
  resemble it in size and ge neral shape, anyone who gets a reason-
  ably close look at the Huang-Ti will realize that it is something out
  of the ordi nary. Whereas th e other Venusian warships are com-
  pletely indistinguishabl e from civilian ships, it was impossible to
  totally hide the Huang-Ti's natu re.
  0038
  
  HUANG-TI OBSERVER
  I
  The original engine was housed in an extended housing in the hope of im-
  proving its heat management by increasing the total radiating surface. Later
  enhancements to the coo lant circulation system made this unnecessary, and
  most Observers were late r ret rofitted with the shorter (and lighter) drive
  mount used to day.
  CVNAOctavius Munchstra ken: launched May 2208. The Munchstraken was
  one of the first ste alth cargo whose existence was revealed to the other
  corporations of Venus. It was very much a pure tra nsport ship at this point,
  with large cargo bays extending from the back of each main hull.The ship's
  electronics were not as sophisticated as those found ?n more modern ves-
  sels, and were barelysufficient to keep it hidden from most casual looks.
  •
  II
  I
  II
  II
  II
  I
  II
  25
  I·
  Orn
  3
  000
  Stealth Cargo Vessal. e e 1 0
  f)
  A OCTAVIUS MUNCHSTRAKEN
  ~
  t··
  t-
  ... ;
  f -
  ...
  ,
  Shielded Cargo Section
  2
  Expanded Hangar Bay
  3
  Forward Cargo Section
  4
  Light KKC armament
  S
  Sta ndard Sensor Dome
  6
  -t-
  •
  Large Engine
  ...
  Legend
  ..,
  t"
  0039
  
  ,
  HUANG
  TI OBSERVER
  _ __--.J
  ~
  3.4 SHIP SYSTEMS
  •
  .- .~1
  "Rcs"cTusier
  i
  Reaction'Mass Tanks
  -+-
  ."..
  +-
  'I
  (interior to Decoy System)
  Plasma' C~mbusi iori Chamber
  Shielded Thermal
  Exh~u st Coilimator and Iris
  EM Power Generation System
  ..
  ··'1
  'Radiator Fin
  I
  .~
  10
  11
  12
  13
  8
  T
  t 9
  r
  t
  TIi~bulk ofihe·ciiittiJlliuliistak~ii upoy the drive -
  system, with the two main reactio n mass reserves
  ,
  being placed on either's ide within"the reinforced
  ,
  hull support pylons. The resenies serve a ~ addi-
  ' ti61iar shielding for the liangar bays and
  i:~ytar, .
  eas and abs6rbstray'pai-ticleiiemitted by the fu,
  sioriC/rive, lowering th1 ship's signat ure. Variable
  ···· alb'edo h'eat 'sink'panels sLirroim'd bot htile engine '
  !
  bay and the reaction mass r~serves . '
  .....
  ... r ....-. t··
  ........;
  t
  -t
  .. ...
  ... l'
  • 1
  y
  Weapon Systems
  ,'"
  ..+
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  t
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  ~ •
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  ' Laser I
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  i· ..i.. .
  Laser Capacitor ..
  ., 3
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  Fo~ard PDS Emitter
  ]
  r .L... · 4
  -t
  Drone Launch Bay
  ~!...-
  I . l
  .5
  ;
  CMMCluster
  J
  -t-
  i·"
  t
  6
  Main Power Conduit
  I
  r
  7
  Decoy System (exterior
  i
  to Reaction Mass Tanks)
  !
  ... t·
  The ship's armament israther light. Laser systems
  ...•
  are-mounted in-retractable housingsa t the·prow
  • .
  of both main hulls.The main bite of the ship, how-
  ever, is p r'tvided bythe m·~ lt ip le d rone launch
  tubes mounted underneath armored panels at the
  front. The latte-rs a lso' se~e as hardpoirits for th~
  ve~sersdeployable antennae a ~ray:
  ~~~
  00 40
  ..
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  Weapons & Propulsion Systems
  L
  I
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  t.
  I
  Ii
  II
  II••
  ••-..
  
  HUANG-TIOBSERVER
  -,
  -----
  The ship's life suppo rt nodes are more clustered
  than usual for a ship of t his size. Most of the pri-
  mary systems are fo und in the hull support pylons
  and the innermost side of the hulls. This makes it
  easier t o manage th eir heat output.
  The Huang-Ti is equipped with an'extensive sen-
  sor network to enable it to fulfill it s mission. The
  sensors are clustered in five main groups. The for:
  ward array is composed mostl y of long range an-
  tennae which can be extended to improve
  perfomance. The side arrays deploy from the
  drone bays' armored doors to create a very large
  detection surface around each hull. The rearmost
  mounts are blister housing s wit h trai ling anten-
  nae, which can also be extended out for better
  reception.
  'f
  Sensor Systems
  Ii
  •
  •-..
  ...... _-~
  3.4 SHIP SYSTEMS
  ....
  Sensors end Life Support Systems
  ()
  ...
  Screen Generator
  Heat Exchangers
  Gas Storage
  Local Life Support Systems
  Superco~duct i ng B!!ttefi es
  ~---- ---~........-
  Life Support Sys.
  ...
  Telescope Cluster
  Expandable Enhanced
  . Det ection Array
  Lidar/Rangefind er Emitter
  ECM/ ECCM Pod
  Synthet lc-ApertureSensor Cluster
  Sensor Dishes
  7
  8
  9
  10 f-
  11
  3
  4
  5
  6
  'f '
  1
  2
  
  HUANG-TIOBSERVER
  T
  3.4.1 Drane Prep Bey
  Dron es form a large part of th e ope rational capabilities of the
  Huang-Ti class. They serve as the ship'seyes and ears, and some-
  times as its hands and weapons. In fact, a sig nificant volume of
  the internal hulls is taken up by Drone storage and handling
  eq uipment.
  The Dron e Preparation Bay, also known under the simpler moni-
  ker of "P rep Bay," is a combination workshop/torpedo room
  where the Drones are checked and maintained befo re be ing sent
  t o the launch bay in the bow of th e ship. The room is located
  between the Drone stor age bays near th e back of each main
  hu ll (right next to th e vehicle hangars) and th e forward airl ocks
  and launch bay s.
  Each main hull stores twenty or so Dron es, depending on their
  types, and each hull has its own Prep Bay. The Huang-ti 's Drones
  are rath er large, averaging five meters in length, to accommo-
  date th eir extra stealth eq uipment. The Drones enter the Prep
  Bay on a tubular conveyor that can function both under accelera-
  ti on and zero-gee. The conveyor leavesthe room to ward the ship's
  bow and carries Drones " up" into one of the launch airlock s. In
  the event of a mechan ical failure, tw o sets of doors allow crew to
  move Drones from storage to launch manually.
  The Prep Bay contains many storage lockers and features d iag -
  nostic equipment on th e walls beh ind pro tective pan els. Two
  rep air cradles occupy the cent er of the room, and a large ro-
  botic crane arm is attached to one wall. The arm is strong enough
  to assist in moving Drones from the conveyor to the cradles if
  need be .
  Due to the sensit ive nature of the equipm ent, the Prep Bay is a
  clean-room env ironment with its own special life support system.
  Access to the room is via a positive-pressure internal airlock lo-
  cated opposite the conveyor. Outside, sealed clean -suits are lined
  up in a rack next to a scrubdown kiosk .
  T
  3 .4.2 Cloek Roam
  The Cloak Room is the location fro m which the ship's active stealth
  systems are controlled. It is a small room with th ree operator chairs,
  all equipped with the necessary controls to supervise th e status
  of the ship 's stealth and "silent running " systems. The room is
  located in one of the main hulls, near most of the crew recreati on
  and off-time faciliti es.
  Each chair has a VR headset and a set of small control panels that
  can fold out of the way. The arms of each chair are actually linear
  I
  frame limbs; a clo ak controller sits com fortably in th e chair and
  places his arms into the linear frame, which reads his arm and
  hand movements, allowing manipulation of the virtual environ-
  ment displayed on the headset. There is enough room between
  each chair so that a user can make grand sweeping gestures (similar
  in purpo se to a painter's stro kes) without obstructing his neigh-
  bors' ow n activities.
  0042
  
  HUANG- TIOBSERVER
  I
  Othe rwise, the room is quite cramped. Big manual co ntrol pan-
  e ls and mon itors fold ou t of the wall so th at the cloak can be
  controlled via keyboard, should the main cloa k inte rface fail.This
  manua l con trol setup is dup licated for each seat , and is easily
  th e most da unting set of buttons and d ials on the entire ship.
  Data and power lines , covered by lightweight polymer pane ls
  for protection and aesthetics, are grouped into an ea silyaccessed
  "trunk" located between the seats .
  Y
  3.4.3 Analysis Room
  This is the room where all the data gathered by the Huang-ti's
  sensors is collated , inspected, and evaluated by the onboard sp e-
  cialists. It is located in the same positio n as the Cloak Room and
  recreation roo ms inthe opposite main hull,and is fairly large for a
  room aboard a spaceship of th is size.
  The inner roo m is spherical; since the correspond ing space in the
  other main hull is square-edged, the Analysis Room is actually a
  sph ere positioned within a recta ngular volume. The space out-
  side the crew sphere is taken up by computers and data storage
  equipment which is accessible via access panels in the walls. A
  tiny bathroom and a snack bin are located right outside the main
  door for convenience during long shifts.
  The room has many chairs along the walls, but the central space
  is clea r of permanent furniture. The walls are covered in mon itors;
  threat boards and other large displays can unfold from the walls,
  allowing even more data display space. In its fully "open" state,
  the who le room is packed so lid with display devices. Many crew,
  however, prefer to use virtual rea lity hea dsets and use the central
  space as a virtual environment. Up to a dozen people can work in
  th is roo m in total comfort (as far as elbow room goes, at least).
  This room is not set up for ship con tro lfunctions; it is a think tank,
  not much else.
  0043
  II•
  I..-
  II
  II
  I•
  II
  I•
  
  HUANG-TI OBSERVER
  ____I
  ~
  3.6.1 Interview with a Cloak Control Officer
  "Yeah, I know they say we're crazy. I don't care if they think we're
  dead , as long as th ey don't bother us. We need calm and con-
  centration to do this. Can't concentrate if there's a con stant ring-
  ing in ou r ear fro m the intercom.
  "Ve nusBank tested a bunch of people fo r this job. Fifteen people
  out of nine hundred passed. Fifteen. We're getting rich off this
  job, you can be sure of that, as long as we don't screw up. Not
  much chance of that, though, at least not for me. On my test, I
  got within three hund red meters of th e test ship before th ey saw
  me. Dead meat."
  Jan Topol
  Chu-j
  CVNA O. Hagane
  Current Assginment:
  Name:
  "Most of the time , only one of us really needs to be on duty. We
  basically keep the ship's hull looking like exte rior space, and moni-
  tor all sorts of emissions. If someone rubs their socks on the rec
  room carpet, we'll know abo ut it. It's wh en we encounte r another
  ship that all of us have to work at once. In addition to the photoskin
  covering, we have to create false sig nals and sensor images to
  transmit to the target to make them think they're seeing nothing
  but empty space.
  Rank:
  " Come in, sit down, and stay out of the
  way. We don't like guests in the cloak
  room . We don't even like talking to the
  bridge, so we turn th e speakers way
  down. It's not as if they ever have any-
  thing important to say to us anyway.
  'Keep us hidden.' 'Maintain cloak.' Duh.
  That's all we do. Day in, day out . It's like
  chess, but only if every chess move in-
  volved painting a portrait .
  The Huang-Ti has an unusual crew arrangement. Most depart-
  me nt s are standard; the exception is the Diversions Department,
  which includes all those assigned to the advanced electronic war-
  fare systems and half of the ship's compliment of Electromag-
  netic Emission s (EME) Spec ialist (sensor operators that double as
  communications specialists).
  Captain
  First Off icer ................................................... ........................................................ 1
  Supply Officer ........................................................................................................ 1
  Supply Clerk ................................................................................................ 2
  Aesthetics Specialist .................................................................................... 1
  Morale Officer ........................................................................................................ 1
  EME Specialist ............................................................................................. 6
  Helmsman/ Navigator ..................................................................................3
  Weapons Off icer .................................................................................................... 1
  Gunner ......................................................................................................... 3
  Chief Engineer ....................................................................................................... 1
  M aster Engineer .......................................................................................... 2
  Engineer ...................................................................................................... 9
  Electron ics Spe cialist ................................................................................... 9
  Comput er Specialist .................................................................................... 1
  Security Off icer ...................................................................................................... 1
  Security Specialist........................................................................................ 3
  Flight Operations Officer .......................................................................................1
  Deck Off icer ........................................................................................................... 1
  Catapult Spe cialist ....................................................................................... 2
  Or dnance Specialist ..................................................................................... 2
  Exo-armor Pilot ............................................................................................ 2
  Diversions Off icer...................................................................................................1
  Cloak Specialist ........................................................................................... 3
  EMESpecialist .............................................................................................6
  Compute r Specialist ........................................................................, .......- 3
  ~
  3.5 SHIP PERSONNEL
  rn
  Crew Organization Chart
  •
  It
  II
  II
  I!!I-
  •
  11
  0044
  
  HUANG-TIOBSERVER
  3.5.2 Interview with en Intelligence Officer
  "The captain likes to come down and chat with us. He's a pretty
  nice guy, but I think he gets a bit too seriou s about the military
  side of things. Procedures and traditions mean little to us-
  we' re
  too busy looking for patterns in the data.
  •
  --
  II•
  11•
  Jun-i
  Lorna Skipworth
  CVNA O. Hagane
  "They have names. All forty of them.
  They're like children really, inquisitive and
  eager to please . It's my job to make sure
  tha t each of them is well-taken care of
  and in perfect working order. These
  are n't your normal dron es, afte r all.
  They're each specially mod ified to be
  stealthy and have greater range and en-
  durance than typical Class II Drones. It
  wo uldn't do for us to launch a normal
  drone, considering that we're supposed
  to be invisible, right?
  Rank:
  "B efore the ship leaves port, I always make sure we have all th e
  spare parts and equipment Ithink we're going to need. The drones
  themselves are loaded in a shut-down state and don't need any
  babysitting. For most of the tri p out, I serve as a backup hangar
  bay crewer, and if there's nothing to do in th ere, I usually end up
  cooking fo r the analysts.
  Name :
  ...
  3.5.3 Interview with a Drone Technician
  Current Assginment:
  "When we 're near a surveillance site, though, I go down into the
  drone bay, put on a clean suit (woul dn 't want stray hair or bad
  breath to ruin the stealth coating) and do my real job . Once th e
  drones are mo ved up from storage, I run their system checks,
  power-up th eir systems and run the proper encouragement pro-
  grams to get the Executor bra ins in the right 'mood.' Then I kick
  th em out th e door and wait. Som etimes th ey com e back, and I
  spend most of the trip home fixing th em back up. Somet imes,
  they don't come back, and we have a funeral. Like I said, they're
  like kids."
  Chu-sa
  Geoff Niekerk
  CVNA O. Hagane
  Name :
  Rank:
  Current Assignment:
  "No, I'm not a naval officer. I'm just a
  techie, okay? They pay me, I ship out.
  Me and the rest of the infor mation-analy-
  sis gan g, we spend most of our time in
  the analysis room, or th e Tank, as we call
  it. We're restricted from the military por-
  ti ons of the ship, but most of us don't
  mind. There's lots to do in the Tank, from
  playing games and watching vidshows
  to actua lly getting work done.
  " Usually, there's not much to do on the first leg of any given trip ,
  but once we get on station and turn on the bugeyes, things make
  a one-eighty. We practically live in the Tank, eating and sleep ing.
  We let the computers coll ate all the info that comes in, and th en
  spend days up on days decidi ng which bits of data are actua lly
  important.
  "The brass also gets really insistent when we're at a surveillance
  site and he needs us to have a data analysis done yesterday.
  We're not be ing lazy whe n we're slow with that stuff. It's just th at
  somet imes we have a lot of infor mation to integrate before we
  can decide on an appropriate cou rse of action. The captai n may
  be used to making snap judgments on limited information, but
  frankly, doing th at in our job could get the who le ship di scov-
  ered and captured."
  0045
  
  '"
  Overall Dat:e:
  I Threat VaIUll:60900 I
  Off. N :
  I
  Def . TV:
  - I
  Misc.lV:
  I
  Cost :
  246 .6M
  I
  Indv.l~onO i c.: 3
  '"
  Movement: Dat:a:
  I Moo.,
  Space
  I
  Com bat: S MP 10 .5 91
  Top:10 MP (1.0 9)
  Maneuver:
  ·3
  ReM an : 2000 BPs
  '"
  Section.:
  "
  Main Hull wlB ridg.
  I "
  Main Hull w/Cloak Room
  "
  Cen tral Hull
  I
  I
  I
  I
  I
  I
  '"
  Off & Def Syet:em.
  I 1x Point Defens. S)'1tem
  4)1, U Hf' Array
  I
  6x CMM
  I
  I
  I
  I
  I
  I
  I
  .....-
  II
  iii
  Huang Ti Observer
  Section: Main Hull wlo Bridge
  '"
  Main Det:e:
  I W2SOOO Off. W
  I
  35000
  DoI. W
  I
  2500
  Misc. TV:
  38OOOCost : 101 M
  I
  Indv. Lemon Dice: 1 I
  I Crew: 28Actions: 6 I
  Sensors: +2J4k m
  I
  Com m : +2120 Ir:m
  Fire Control :
  +1
  I
  Type : lat. Prot o
  I
  I Hull Size:
  36
  I
  Default Size:
  29
  I
  Armor : 50
  Ught:
  50
  I
  Heavy:
  100
  I
  Over\.iJI:
  ISO
  '"
  Movement: Dat:a:
  I Modo ,
  Towed
  I
  Com b,,:
  I
  Top ·
  Rang e: 2,500 tvs
  I
  ReMass :
  I
  '"
  Perk. & Flaws:
  N. me
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Name
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Backup System s
  Comm, FireCon, lifeSupp , Sen sor
  HEP
  Rad4, vee
  Cargo Bay
  1,500 m3
  HoIofi. ld
  2
  Catapults
  (450/ mau)m/s2
  Lab Int ellige nce
  0
  2)1;Com pute r
  3
  CRE 0 KNO 0 PP3 (one for Holof~J
  uf e Support
  FuJI
  Decoy System
  3
  Sensor & Visual
  Pau enge r Accom
  3,000m 3
  DiffiOJIt to Modify
  All
  +2 Lemon Die
  ECM 4, ECCM 4
  Problem Prone
  Reinforatd Crww
  3
  Absorbs first th ree "Cr_" hits
  Eject ion Systems
  Pod s for 24 People
  Stea lth
  •
  Add to Con<:ea!ment
  '"
  Offensive and Dafanelve Syat:ema.
  Ct,
  Nam e
  k c
  OM
  BR
  A<c
  ROF
  Ammo
  Spec ial
  M5
  WC
  AC
  2
  Las... Array
  F
  ><20
  7
  0
  +1
  Inf.
  AD2, Cone. (1rndl. HEAT
  12
  8143
  nI.
  3
  CMM
  T
  , 18
  2
  -,
  +4
  32••
  Conc.(1mdJ. HEAT, Mis.
  8
  2071
  2.7
  II
  Section: Main Hull wlBridge
  '"
  Main Dat:a:
  TV,
  sooeo
  I
  Off. TV
  57000
  I
  Def. TV:
  2500 I
  Mise. TV:
  32000
  I
  Cost:
  129M
  I
  Indv.1<mon Dico, 1
  Crew: 28Actions: 6
  Senson: +214«m
  Com m: +2120 km
  Fire Control:
  +'
  I
  Type:
  Late Prot o
  Hull Size'
  36
  I
  Default Size:
  J1
  I
  Almor :
  so l
  Ugh"
  SO
  I
  Heavy:
  100
  I
  Overkill:
  ISO
  '"
  Movement: Dat:a:
  Mode:
  Towod
  I
  Combat:
  I
  Top:
  . I
  Rangll': 2.000 hrs
  I
  ReM. s, :
  - I
  '"
  Perka &
  Flawe:
  N. me
  Rating
  Gam. Effect
  Name
  Rat ing
  Game Effect
  Aut opilot
  Lvl 1 Pilot
  Eject ion Systems
  ·Pods for 20 PeopkJ
  Backup S~t.ms
  Com m, FireCon, Uf. Supp . SensOf
  HEP: Rad 4
  Cargo Bay
  1,500 m3
  HEP: Vole
  Catapults
  (4S01mass)rnls2
  ut. Support
  Full
  Computer
  3
  e RE 0 KNQ 0 PP3
  PasH4"l94tr Accom
  3.000m 3
  o.c:oy System
  3
  S&nSOF & Visual
  Reinforcltd Crew
  3
  Absorbs first thnM -er.w"hits
  Difficult to Modify
  All
  SteMth
  4
  Add to Concealment
  ECCM
  •
  Defensive Elec. Warlare
  '"
  Dffenalve and Dafenalve Byet:ema:
  Ct,
  Name
  kc
  DM
  8R
  A<c
  ROF
  Ammo
  Special
  MS
  WC
  AC
  2
  Laser Array
  F
  ><20
  7
  0
  + 1
  Inf.
  AD2, Cone. (1rndl, HEAT
  12
  8142
  nI.
  1
  PDS (rang6'dJ
  T
  , 10
  1
  +1
  +.
  Inf.
  AM, Cone. (Instant), HEAT I.
  1401
  nI.
  PDS (shie ld)
  FF
  , 20
  M.I ..
  +1
  +.
  Inf.
  Cone.(Inst.l. De(E.SNd,H
  te
  539
  nI.
  3
  CMM
  T
  , 18
  2
  -1
  +4
  32e.
  Cone.(1mdl, HEAT, Missil
  8
  2071
  2.7
  Section: Central Hull
  '"
  M ain Dat:a:
  W
  5900
  I
  Off. W
  o I
  Def. TV:
  1600
  I
  Misc;. TV:
  16000
  I
  Cost:
  1e.6M
  I
  Indv.1emon Dice: 1
  I C"" "
  12
  Act ions:
  5
  I
  Sensors:
  OI2k m
  I
  Com m:
  0I10km
  I
  Fire Control:
  o I
  Type :
  Late Proto
  Hull Size :
  32
  I
  Default Size :
  18
  I
  Anno<'
  50
  I
  u gh t:
  50
  I
  Hu vy:
  100
  I
  Overir.ill:
  150
  '"
  Movement Outs:
  Mode:
  Space
  I
  Combat:19 MP ( 1.9 g~
  Top:39 MP (3.9 g)
  I
  Mane uver :
  ·3
  I
  Rang e : 2.500 hn
  I
  R.M.:
  8,000 BPs
  '"
  Perke & Flawa.
  N•.".
  Rating
  Game Effect
  NAme
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Backup Systems
  Comm. FireCon. UfeSu pp. Sen sor
  Stealth
  •
  Add to Concealm&nt
  Cargo Bay
  10,000 m3
  Difficult to Modify
  All
  Ejection System
  Pod s for 12 People
  HEP: Rad
  •
  HEP: Vac
  life Support
  Full
  Reinforced Crew
  3
  Absorbs fir$t thr" "Crew- hits
  '"
  Dffenelve and Defenelve Syst:em.:
  Ct,
  Name
  kc
  DM
  8R
  ACC
  ROF
  Ammo
  Spe d al
  M5
  WC
  AC
  00 46
  
  Section: .
  "
  Main D a1:a,
  W
  Off. TV:
  I
  Def. TV:
  I
  M ise. TV:
  I
  COlt :
  I
  tndv lemon dice: •
  I Crew:
  I
  Actions:
  I
  Senson :
  I
  Com m.:
  I
  Fir. Con trol:
  I
  Type:
  I Hull Size:
  I
  Dttfault Size:
  I
  Base Armor:
  I
  Light:
  Heavy:
  I
  CMH-kill:
  "
  Movement Da1:a,
  I Mod"
  I
  Combat :
  I
  Top:
  I
  Maneuver:
  Range:
  R• . Mass:
  "
  Perke & Flawa:
  Nom.
  Rating
  Game Eff ect
  Name
  Rating
  Game Eff ect
  "
  D ffenalv e a nd Defenalv e B ya1:ema,
  O1y
  N"""
  p",
  OM
  BR
  ACC
  ROF
  Ammo
  Sped ill
  MS
  WC
  AC
  Section: .
  "
  Main Da1:a,
  TV,
  I
  Off. TV:
  I
  Owf. TV:
  I
  Misc.. TV:
  I
  Cost:
  I
  Indv lemon dice: -
  Cr~
  I
  Actions :
  I
  S. nson :
  I
  Comm .:
  I
  Firfl Control:
  I
  Typo,
  Hull Size:
  I
  o.fault S iz. ~
  I
  BiliH Armor:
  I
  li ght:
  I
  Heavy.
  I
  Overkill :
  "
  Movement: Da1:a.
  Mod e:
  I
  Combat :
  I
  Top'
  I
  Maneuv er:
  I
  Range:
  I
  Re. Mass :
  "
  P a rke & Flawe.
  Nom.
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Name
  Rating
  Game Effect
  "
  Dffenalve end Defenalve Bye1:eme,
  O1y
  N"""
  p",
  OM
  BR
  ACC
  ROF
  Ammo
  Spec ial
  MS
  WC
  AC
  00 47
  Section: .
  "
  Meln Dat:a'
  W
  I
  Off. TV,
  I
  Dof.W
  Misc:. TV:
  Cost:
  Indv lemon dice: •
  I u-
  I
  Actions:
  I
  Sensors:
  Comm.:
  I
  Fire Cont rol:
  I
  Type :
  I Hull Size:
  I
  D. fault Size:
  I
  Base Arm or :
  Light,
  I
  Heavy:
  I
  Over kiU:
  "
  Movement Dat:a'
  I Modo ,
  I
  Combat:
  I
  Top :
  Maneuver:
  I
  Range :
  I
  Re.Mass:
  "
  Perka & Flawa,
  Nom.
  Rating
  Game Eff ect
  No"'"
  Rating
  Gam. Effect
  "
  Offenalve and Defe nalve B y . 1:ema,
  Oty
  N"""
  p",
  OM
  BR
  ACC
  ROF
  Ammo
  Speci al
  MS
  WC
  AC
  Section: .
  "
  M ain D a 1:a ,
  I w
  I
  Off . N :
  I
  Dof.W
  MiK . TV:
  I
  Cost :
  I
  Indv ~Ofl dice : •
  I Crew:
  I
  Actions:
  I
  Sensors:
  Com m.:
  I
  Fir. Cont rol:
  I
  Type :
  I Hull Size:
  I
  Defauh $iz. :
  I
  8a~Armor:
  Light:
  I
  Heavy:
  I
  Overkill:
  "
  Movemen 1: Da1:a:
  I Mod.,
  I
  Combat :
  I
  Top:
  I
  Maneuv er :
  I
  Range:
  I
  Re. Mass:
  "
  P erka & F law a ,
  Nom.
  Rating
  Game EffKt
  Name
  Rat ing
  Game Effect
  "
  Dffenalve and Defensive Bye1:ema:
  O1y
  Nomo
  ""
  OM
  BR
  ACC
  ROF
  Ammo
  Special
  MS
  WC
  AC
  •-..
  II
  I•
  III
  
  HUANG-TIOBSERVER
  ,-- --
  •....
  II•
  ~
  PART II: GUID PRO GUO
  Taggart hit the airlock floor hard. The
  Kitsune standing behi nd him planted
  one foot firmly in the small of his back,
  pinning him like an insect. A ha nd
  grabbe d his hair, dragging his head
  pa infully upward, and he found him-
  se lf staring once again at the face he'd
  grown to hat e since the day th e
  O'Connor was destroyed.
  "Hello, Nakama . Miss me?" he rasped.
  Nakama laughed, making a sou nd like
  clot h on glass.
  "Of course we missed you, Taggart.
  How impolite, to try to leave our hos-
  pitalitywithout saying goodbye."
  "I was getting tired of the room ser-
  vice," Tagg a rt muttere d . He had
  waited two months to make this attempt. They'd caug ht him just
  as he was about to make it out the main airlock.
  Nakama smiled, tha t same hooked sneer he used whenever he
  talked to Tagga rt. "I've been humanita rian about allthis, haven't
  I? Honestly, I've managed a minor miracle in persuading STRIKE
  to continue wasting oxygen , water and energy on you. You've
  been fed well, and allowed to converse."
  "Drugged and interrogated, you mean," Taggart spat. Nakama
  let out an exagge rated sigh. He released Taggart's hair and be-
  gan to pace.
  "I'm sorry, Commander al-Raschid, but we paid a price to get
  you," Nakama said . "We're go ing to get some use out of you to
  repay that price. In this organization, you must understand that
  he who wastes, wants."
  Taggart understood exactly what Naka ma was talking about.
  STRIKE's hatred of Venusians was well-known, and Taggart was
  sure that Nakama's continued survival, much less the exorbitant
  fees he was no doubt receiving, depended solely on STRIKE's
  continued need for his services. IfSTRI KE decid ed that Nakama
  was not providing as much aid as he ought, it was unlikely that
  they would simply fire him and send him home. The drugs had
  been mild so far, in an effort to keep him mentally capable of
  accurately repeating technical informa tion, but that couldn't last
  forever. Nakama was still pontificating.
  "It's a shame you couldn't just cooperate. Now my employers will
  be wanting proof that I'm not go ing easy on you just because
  you' re a fellow Venusian. It's either you or me, Taggart."
  Nakama glanced over to a nearby medic dre ssed in CEGA fa-
  tigues with STRIKE insignia. "His eyes," he commanded. "If he
  cannot see, he cannot escape."
  The medic's gaunt face betrayed no emot ion. The man nodded
  once, and began to rummage in a nearby toolbox. Taggart felt a
  pit growing in his stom ach. He fought to keep it dow n.
  "What happe ned to being humanitarian?" he quipped, certain
  that there hadn't been a quaver in his voice . Nakama's angular
  face softened, and he leaned over to stroke Taggart's head.
  "You're not leaving us much choice, Taggart. Any more drugg ing,
  and we might destroy exactly what it is we need from you. So, if
  we can't pe rsuade your mind, then I'm afraid all that's left is to
  persuad e your bo dy."
  Taggart looked straight up at Nakama, ignoring the pain in his
  spine, and set his jaw.
  "Iwill get out of here, Nakama."
  Nakama's face hardened.
  0048
  
  HUANG-T IOBSERVER
  "I won't let that happen," he growled. " Every time you try to
  escape, I will remove another bod y part from yo u. If you keep
  trying to escape, eventually you will have nothing left, but your
  mind. But trust me, "II still keep you alive. Even if you end up as a
  brai n in a jar on my desk, I won't let you go until you give me what
  I want." By th e time he finished, Nakama was screaming, flecks of
  spittle flying fro m his lips. He nodded to the exo-suit, and then
  walked out of the airlock.
  Taggart heard approaching footste ps, and the medic leaned over
  him , raising a pair of sharpened tongs. Leaning in close, the medi c
  whispered, "It's okay to scream . Everybody does."
  They will rescue me, Taggart thought. They will rescue me. He
  repeated it to himself for a very long time.
  * * *
  He's probably already dead, Mischa th ought as he walked along
  th e Martian station's observation deck. There's nothing Ican do.
  He'd been saying it to himself for nine hours.
  He had received the news of the O'Connor's destruction with the
  loss of almost all hands when he arrived at Mars and reported to
  Sho-sho Yang's office for his assignment. He'd also been told that
  there would be no rescue and no ransom payment for the single
  known survivor still in STRIKE hands. Apparently, th e risk was not
  worth the return. He hadn't taken it well. Making th ingsworse,Yang
  had then presented what he must have thought wasthe good news.
  "B ased on al-Raschid Tai-i's evaluation and recommendation,"
  he'd said, "we're willing to overlook some of your, ah, offenses,
  and offer you a probationary civilian position in the CVNA. It's
  unusual, but al-Raschid's record and judgment were impeccable,
  and I wouldn't want to dishonor the request of a dead man."
  A dead man, Mischa thoug ht, making his twentieth circuit of the
  deck. They've already buried him. The offer had only made him
  feel worse. Tagg art had been willing to put his entire career on
  the line for a debt th at Mi scha barely knew anyt hing about. It was
  temptingly easy to write Taggart off as a fanatic clinging to an old
  tr adition. It should have been even easier to simply forget about
  the man and get on with his new life. Somehow, it just wasn't
  working.
  "Damn it," he muttered. "We ll, 1guessthere's only one thing to do."
  Mischa pau sed in his walk, and looked out the window. Mars'
  dusky red sphere filled the background , but what drew Mischa's
  eye was the massive triple-hulled freighter ponderously pulling
  I
  into a nearby docking com plex. An idea came to him, and mental
  wheels that had sat still for a decade began to spin up. Mischa
  activated his earring communicator.
  "Hello, Mi scha," came the qu iet voice. Even through th e ear-
  phone, it still seemed to be speaking from every wall.
  " I'm going to need a ship," Mischa directed, sotto voce. "The
  one that's docking right now at Bay K-12 will do. When I get you
  aboard, yo u'll take it over and get the crew to evacuate . Under-
  stand?"
  "Of course, Mischa," the voice said, almost eagerly. "Th e proce-
  dure should take abou t five hours."
  " Good." Mischa grinned. He could feel a sense of adre naline and
  excite ment he hadn't felt in years. For that alone, he owed Taggart
  his life. " It's your first field test in ten years. Do n't screw this one
  up. It's important, this time." Mischa ta pped his earlobe and cut
  the connection.
  Hang on, Taggart, he th ought . A debt's a debt.
  ••
  II
  •
  ••
  •
  0049
  
  CHIEFTA I N
  E S C O R T
  CR U ISER
  I
  Sinclair-otome is th e niece of Waldsen-N ishiyama's Vice-President of Urban Plan-
  ning, Erik Waldsen. The Sinclair is Waldsen's gift to Calico for her seventeenth
  birthday. The ship's vid-membranes are currently being used for self-promotional
  purposes by their owner, who is both an accomplished poet and art ist. The ship
  itself is one of the newest Chiefta in-class ships, and is expected to rema in on low-
  priority duty until it has been adequately shaken down.
  Dr. Hamm is the research head at Durbruck Medical Technology Center, respon-
  sible for designing the compact medical minibot s that staff mod ern spaceship
  sickbays. The ship tha t bore her name was attacked and destroyed, with the loss
  of all hands, by unknow n assailants in the Belt. Recovered debris suggested a
  CEGA raiding force , but no hard evidence exists. Dr. Hamm was quite fond of
  "her" ship, and has a small memorial to its crew in her office.
  Haji ai-Rahman was voted "Most Likeable City Administrato r" in a 2206 planet-
  wide publicity conte st. Like many civilianswhose names adorn warsh ips, al-Rahrnan
  is unaware of "his" ship's true nature, and believes it to be a simple courier vessel
  with no real outstanding features. In keeping with standard policy, ai-Rahman is
  only pe rmitt ed to view the ship via video -link, for the ostensible reasons of safety
  and uninterrupted crew efficiency. The CVNAai-Rahman has been responsible for
  the destruction of three raiding ships of various origins over the past five years .
  July 9,2207
  Convoy Escort
  February 1, 2214
  Local Patrol
  February 12, 2208
  CVNA Elke Hamm
  CVNA Calico Sinclair
  CVNA Haji el-Rehrnen
  Lost on March 4, 2213
  Launched:
  Launched :
  Name:
  Name:
  Launched:
  Name :
  Status:
  Status:
  Status:
  Notable Ships
  II
  II
  11
  I!I....
  0050
  
  CH I E FT A I N
  ESCORT CRU ISE R
  •
  ........................................J
  J
  ••....•
  II
  •
  III
  III
  0051
  
  CHIEFTAIN ESCORT CRUISER
  I
  J
  II
  11
  I!!I..
  II
  •
  ~
  4.1 OVERVIEW
  Altho ugh the Mercurian Merchant Gu ild maintains a strong grip
  on much of the interplanetary trade in the solar system, each of
  the solar nati ons also possess es its own trading fleet, for use in
  sensitive or high-priority situations, or simply wh en a Guild vessel
  is not conveniently available. In the current cold-war clim ate , how-
  ever, few merchant vessels are truly safe. Piracy and other forms
  of raiding are rampant, and at the moment, th e majo r mili taries
  of the solar system are too busy eyeing each other to have ti me
  to worry about neutra l shipping. Just as the Me rcurians are ac-
  cepting the necess ity of supplying their own co nvoy de fense, so
  have the Venusia ns spen t the last decade gradually becoming
  aware that a neutral flag is qu ite me aningless to a raider atta ck-
  ing in the depths of interplanetary space.
  As a class, Chieftains exhi bit more variab ility in terms of cosmetic
  appearance than any other classof warship. Nicknamed both "The
  Wolf" and "The Sheepdog " by its crews, th e Chieftain is the Ve-
  nusian warship most commonly encountered by pirates and priva -
  teers. One or more of th ese ships accompanies every convoy of
  Venusian civilian vessels, blending in perfectly with their wards.
  Should th e convoy come under attack, the Chieftain's speed al-
  lows it to intercept hostile ships be fore they come within firing
  range ofthe real civilian ships, and its firepower is enough to handle
  even military ships. Forewarned attackers are not necessarily out
  of danger, since the Chiefta ins can wait, und etected , for the most
  opportune mo ment to reveal itself.
  ~
  4.1.1 Capabilities
  The Chieft ain has relatively small reaction mass reserves; it spe nds
  most of its time traveling alon gside slug gish cargo vesse ls, and is
  usually within easy reach of refueling facilities. This limitation makes
  its scope of duties more restrictive than those of other Venusian
  warships, which are de signed for independent operation. In its
  assign ed task, however, th e Ch ieftain is a superlative ship.
  0052
  
  CHIEFTAIN ESCORT CRUISER
  The Chieftain's eng ines, though designed to look like standard
  civilian drive units, are cap able of generating huge amounts of
  thrust over a short pe riod of time, allowing the Chieft ain to in-
  tercept attackers and cover multiple trouble spots. Like mo st of
  the long-rang e civilian vessels it im personates, the Chieft ain has
  a rotating section that increases crew endurance by generating
  sim ulated gravity. Altho ugh combat maneuvers cannot be ex-
  ecuted whi le the rotating section is act ive, the ring is heavily
  reinforced and equipped with heavy-d uty drive motors, which
  enable extreme ly fast spin-down in the event of an attack. Alter-
  natively, the Chieftain can choose to remain hidden among its
  charges, waiting for an enemy ship to close to point-blank range
  before opening fire.
  The Chieftain's primary armament consists of a ty pically effective
  array of lasers concealed in each of the main hulls . Mounted on
  pop-up turrets, the lasers cover all incoming angles and can be
  deployed and fired in less than three seconds. Secondary weap-
  onry consists of a quartet of kinetic kill cannon, hidden with in
  fixed mou nts in each of the Chieftain's secondary hulls. Most Ve-
  nusian vessels are not equipped with KKCs; not only is there a
  perception of such weapons as inelegant, but there is also the
  practica l problem with concealing turrets for guns of such size.
  For the Chieft ain, the KKCs were deemed necessary because of
  th eir abi lity to quickly disable a target's systems, thus redu cing
  the ti me spent in broadside combat; whereas the Chieftain itself
  can take quite a pounding, the cargo ships it is meant to escort
  cannot. The KKCs can only fire forwa rd, limit ing their role to that
  of first-pass weapons. The initial barrage of kickslugs, however, is
  usually enough to either disarm or d issuade a raider.
  The Chieftain's hangar bay is located in the centra l hull, in order
  t o allow for immediate scramble of the ship 's two combat ve-
  hicles, whi ch can provide defense and initial screening for the
  Chi efta in while the ship de-s pins its gravity wheel to prepare fo r
  combat. Most often, the carried units are Siefried or Brunnhil de
  fighters, whic h are better interceptors tha n exo-armors. However,
  0053
  the assignme nt of vehicles is often largely determined by the ship'S
  expected location and situation, as wel l as the preference of the
  captain. As a result, some Chiefta ins carry exo-armorsfor defense,
  and a few are equipped solely with squads of exo-suited marines.
  ...
  4.1.2 Operational Role
  There are about forty Chieftain escort cruisers in service with th e
  CVNA, making th is class the most numerous of Venusian warships.
  Al most every Venusian commercial or government convoy is ac-
  companied by one or two ofthese ships, and many Venusian space
  stations have a Chie ftain assigned to regular patrols (carefully
  timed to appear as cargo runs or other civi lian activities).
  Almost all incidents requiring a Chieftain-class vessel to defend
  its "flock" have involved pirates or privateers with no solidly trace-
  able links back to any solar nation. On a few occasions during the
  Martian War, CEGA and Jovian ships opened fire on Venusian
  vessels that strayed into battlezones. In these instances, the Chi ef-
  tains launched their fig hters to warn off the combatants, and no
  shots were returned, thus preserving Venusian neutrality. It is not
  known whether CEGA or Jovian inspections of the Chieftains was
  close or detailed enough to reveal them as anything more tha n
  cargo ships with makeshift hangars.
  The ships are popular assignm ents; they see qu ite a bit of action ,
  compared to the rest of the Venusian fleet, but are also small
  enough that individual crewmembers receive significant amounts
  of responsibility and credit for any victories the ship wins . As Ve-
  nusian shipping increases in volume, it is expected that the need
  for more Chieftains will increase correspondi ngly. Already, a short-
  age of logistically available escorts has resulted in a few convoys
  leaving Venus without any real protection, much to the Venusians'
  discomfort.
  &1•....
  II
  II
  II
  
  C H I E F T A I N
  ESCORT CR U IS ER
  -----
  R
  ()
  Side View
  II
  ..
  II
  II•
  II
  II
  •
  •
  ~
  4.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS
  1I
  I
  I
  j
  I
  T
  Legend
  I
  Om
  :
  25
  i
  100
  I
  200
  1
  Drive Fin
  2
  Drive Fin Mount
  3
  Exhaust Collimator
  4
  Drive Housing
  5
  Reaction Mass Access Door s
  6
  Rotat ion Collar
  7
  Emergency Elevator Access Hatch
  8
  Main Hull Support Brace
  9
  Main Hull Vid-Membrane
  10
  Laser Turret Bay
  11
  Maintenance Bot Exit Hatc h
  12
  Lidar/ Rangefinder Emitters
  13
  Engineering Airlock
  14Comm Antenna Clust er (Retracted)
  0054
  1S
  Hangar Bay Door
  16
  Forward PDS Array
  17 Primary Sensor Cluster (Extended)
  18
  KKC Housing
  19
  Main Rot or Block/ Gyro Housing
  20
  KKC Loading Bay
  
  CHIEFTAIN ESCORT CRUISER
  I
  II
  I
  --
  •
  Chieftain
  210 m overall
  92
  1 x 39 MW
  40 m overall
  3,940 Tons
  1.4 g
  5,200 Tons
  1 x 10,000 KW
  Carried Vessels
  1 x 14,560,000 kg
  Bridge w/astronomical display
  Fire Control Radar, Infraredl
  Ultra violet, Lidar, Low-light,
  Magnetometer, Microwaves,
  Motion Detectors, Radcounte r,
  Search Radar, Telescope
  PDS, 4x Laser Array, 6x CMM, 4x
  KKC
  Name:
  Specifications
  Front Vie\N
  ()
  Width:
  Origin:
  Cooperative Venusian Naval Adm inistration
  Manufacturer:
  Various Venusian Shipyards
  Type:
  Escort Cruiser
  Control System :
  Additional Armament:
  Main Thrusters:
  Empty Weight:
  Main Drive:
  Length:
  Acceleration:
  Onboard Sensors:
  Loaded Weight:
  Apogee Motors:
  Secondary Powerplant:
  Fixed Armament:
  4.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS [CONT.)
  ....
  Legend
  5}----------\
  4}--
  -
  -
  -
  -
  -
  -
  -
  --fI
  •
  1
  Railgun Firing Ports
  2
  Fake Cargo Door
  3
  Lifepod Cover
  4
  EmergenCy Elevat or Access Hatch
  5
  Main Hull Support Brace
  6
  Laser Turret Bay
  7
  Lidar/Rangefinder Emitters
  8
  Rotation Collar
  9
  Armored Housing
  10
  Hull Suppo rt Strut
  11
  Forward PDS Array
  12 Primary Sensor Cluste r (Exte nded)
  Defensive Systems:
  Equipment:
  Mag Screen
  Escape Pods, Laboratory, Vehicle Bay
  _~J
  0055
  
  CHIEFTAIN ESCORT CRUISER
  •
  ~
  4.2 SHIP S C H E M A T IC S [CONT.)
  ..
  ~
  ,-
  f)
  Tap View
  1
  1
  1
  i
  .~.
  •
  !
  • i-
  t
  200 !
  •.•J..
  ,.-..
  Dri~e Housing
  Exhaust'Collimator
  'Drive'Fin Mo;;nt
  Drive Fin
  5 : Primary Sens~r-Cluster (Extendedi'
  6 •Comm Antenn a Cluster (Retracted )
  ' 7
  '-',
  -
  KKC\oadlng B~y
  8
  Reaction Mass Access Doors
  .~
  ..,..
  .~+
  ,--'---',--! -e-
  ~
  ~
  " .
  _.. - ."
  ."
  Fake,Rear Cargo DOor
  Engineering Airlock
  Armored Housing
  Forward Hull Armor
  'l'
  !
  Om
  I
  ... 1 Legend
  1
  2
  3
  4
  I
  ! .
  I
  I
  I
  ,
  .~..
  I
  -<
  I
  ;
  T t
  1-···..··
  1-
  + -+
  •
  •
  •
  ..
  n
  II
  0056
  
  CHIEFTAIN ESCORT CRUISER
  T
  4.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS [CONT.)
  ....
  •
  •
  ,
  .I
  j
  I
  ~ 1
  -
  i
  Cutaway View
  t)
  Om
  25
  -..
  II
  II
  ~
  Legend
  1
  Plasma Combustion Chamber
  11
  Forward Crew Quarters
  20
  Storage Hold
  2
  Reaction Mass Tanks
  12
  Laser Gunnery C!!nte r
  21
  Sensor Cluster
  3
  Elevator Nexus
  13
  Laser Capacitors
  22
  Workshop
  I
  4
  Storage Bay
  14
  Laser Turret (Retracted)
  23
  Primary Elevator Shaft
  1
  5
  Gas St orage
  15
  Heat Exchangers
  24
  KKC Breech (not shown)
  • .
  6
  Superconducting Batteries
  16
  Bulk Storage
  25
  Hanqar Personnel Corridor
  j
  7
  Heat Exchangers
  17
  Engineering Bays
  26
  Rotation Motors ,
  8
  Officers' Quarters
  18
  Lab Bay
  27
  Heat Exchangers .
  i
  9
  Crew Quarters
  19
  Hangar
  28
  Auxiliary Control Center
  10
  Bridge
  0057
  
  CHIEFTAIN ESCORT CRUISER
  .".-
  II
  II
  ~
  4 .3 HIST O R Y
  Venus ian ships generally make good targets for pirates, priva-
  teers and political disside nts (like STRIKE and other known te rror-
  ist groups). Venusian ships are alm ost guaranteed to be carrying
  items of value, and they work for a nation that has a politi cal struc-
  ture most people see as expansionist, cruel and feudal. Faced
  with this situation, it is not surprisi ng that the Venusians have bee n
  arming their vessels for som e time.
  Until 2206, the Chieftain class was made up of partially-co nverted
  cargo ships armed with surplus weaponry bought fro m CEGA.
  These low-end escort ships could give pirates a run for their money,
  but were alread y obsolete when th ey were first put into service.
  They were slow and unm aneuverable, poorly armored , and their
  second hand targeting systems could not adequately track some
  of the more advanced spacefighters deployed by attackers. Things
  only got worse when pirates and other raide rs started using exo-
  armors, which, alth oug h not as fast as fighters, were even more
  agile and maneuverable.
  In conju nction with th e production of a new class of merchant
  ships, the Venusian Bank began prod uction of a new block of
  redesigned Chieft ains, built to conform to th e new Venusian na-
  val standard set by the Imperator class (see page 30). Whereas
  th e older Chieft ain was hardly a threat to any kind of real milita ry
  ship, the new vessel would be te chnologically superior in every
  way. O n June 8, 2206, the existing Chieft ains started their refur-
  bishing rotation at the Sokama Heavy Industries shipyards near
  th e Alpha-3 sunshade group.
  The new configuration now moun ted all of its weapons on hid-
  den hardpoints.The new cargo ships had cargo modules mounted
  late rally on th e hull, which made a perfect place to hide railgun
  batteries. This location restr icted the arc of fire, but the element
  of surprise th us gained was deemed an acceptable trade. The
  lasers were moved to the main hulls and hidde n under movable
  covers. The main hulls themselves were largely slimmed down;
  on the cargo version, the slimmer main hul ls still had cargo bays
  as wel l as crew quarters towa rd the fro nt. Since the Chieftains
  had lasers up fro nt, the cargo bays were removed, disgu ised with
  a fake cargo bay door, and th e crew q uarters and other vital ship
  system s were mo ved rearward . A rotation ring was added to th e
  cargo ship s to allow the vessel to spin around its axis and gener-
  ate gravity, increasing crew comfort. The Chiefta in was given a
  similar system, both for camoufla ge and to simplify docking with
  the hangar in the non-rotating central hull.
  Not all the vessels underwent the costly process. Many of th e old
  Chieftai ns have undergone only a few minor upgrades (consisti ng
  mainly of new KKCs and screen eq uipment purc hased from the
  Jovians) and remain in service for appearance'ssake. The y are low-
  end assignments usually given to officers and crew who wish to
  redeem themselves for prior failures or who are judged as being
  insufficiently motivated for service in a more prest igious posting.
  As a class, Chieft ains exhibit more variability in terms of cosmetic
  appearance than any other class of warship. The new Chieft ains
  have alread y unde rgone some minor up grades since th eir entry
  into service, in order to keep th e ship'Sstealth profile in line with
  improve men ts in detection syst em technology, and to boost its
  acceleration and efficiency.
  In 2210, a program was started to replace all the older laser sys-
  tems (even on th e new warships, the lasers were of an obsolete
  de sign) with newe r, more powerful systems designed on Venus.
  Waldsen-Nishiyama, with its contacts on Earth, had been instru-
  mental in providinq weapons fo r the older Chieftains. Since the
  new system s were entirely of Venusian manufacture, its help was
  no long er requ ired and W-N was left out of the new design pro-
  cess. Wh en VenusBank offered the new Chieft ain for sale to the
  other co rporations, Waldsen-Nishiyama was fo rced to buy at full
  price; VenusBank's profits from the sales financed a significant
  portion of Operation Methuselah.
  0058
  
  CRUISER
  ESCORT
  CHIEFTAIN
  . .. . . . ..... . . ..... .... .. . . ... . . . .... .. . . . .I
  .
  I
  0059
  II
  •
  .....
  ~
  -.-
  CVNA SAM WIGGEN
  ....
  ...1
  -
  -t· ····t-··
  , .
  ..;
  "t
  t
  50
  25
  Om
  ~
  . Legend
  CVNASam Wiggen: launched April 2201. The Wiggen is typical of the early vessels of J
  the class. The outer hulls are boxy and somewhat crude. and the kinetic killcannons are ,
  carried on either sidesof the prow. From the beginning. the Chieftain was de signed to '
  be a highly modular vesse l. While this did nothing for the ship's maintenance schedule• •
  which was as grueling and demanding as that of any warship of Venusian design, it did
  allow for quick modifications to the ship's oirter appearance. EXtra ca~go pods, brackets
  and other external decora.t i~:ln s per.mi~ the c1as~ a~ a whole to al"l"ays look e.~actly like the I
  rest of die ships in their convoy,tHen and now.
  ,
  ,
  !
  T
  f
  t
  •
  1
  Main Hullwith Cargo Bays
  2
  Heavy Cargo Loading Door
  -3
  CEGA Surplus Laser Turret
  4
  CEGA Surplus KKC Turret
  5
  Main HullLocked to Drive Section
  
  CHIEFTAIN ESCORT CRUISER
  •
  ~
  4.4 SHIP SYSTEMS
  !"!'"
  ...
  Main Power C-;)nduit
  Kinetic.KiIlCannon
  Fo.ward PDS Emitter
  Laser Turret (Retracted)
  .•
  . Laser Capacitors
  CMM Cluste rs
  "-1-
  _.
  +
  •
  RCS Cluste r
  Reaction Mass Tanks
  Plasma Combustion Chamb er
  Exhaust Collimator
  EM Power Generation System
  ,
  Radiator Fin
  Propulsion Byst;....
  + ..
  7
  8
  9
  10
  11
  12
  7
  -
  .1.
  + ..,
  ..1.
  ..~
  _.
  ~ .
  _. 1.
  t
  t-
  ~~~~~r ~
  3
  4
  5
  6_
  ~
  Though the early versions of the ship housed'their kinetic killcannons in the forward section of
  the main hull, only part of the point defense system grid rema ins there now. The forward
  cent ral hullis taken up by the auxiliary craft hangars, with the main armament being moved to
  the outrigger hulls and side sponsoo~ s in the centr al hull.
  Propulsion and Weapons
  In many ways, the Chieftain is a fusion of modern shipbuilding theory and Venusian te ch-
  niques. The inte rnalconfiguration of it~ elongated central hullis quite standard, w~h the plasma
  combustion chambers be ing located at the back behind the rows of reaction mass tan ks. The
  onlynotable difference is the shape of the main nozzle, which uses a bowl-shaped exhaust coil
  for better containment.
  ()
  I
  ..
  [.
  •
  o
  II•....
  -
  -
  _,
  -
  It-
  0060
  
  CHIEFTAIN ESCORT CRUISER
  4.4 SHIP SYSTEMS [CONT.]
  ~
  Sensors end Life Support
  ()
  •
  (I
  II
  II
  II
  I
  I
  •
  •
  -..
  . .,
  -i
  ,--
  I
  0061
  Most of the ship's sensor systems are located in ,t he main hull, wit h the exception of a few
  clusters spread across the outer skin of the outriggers. Blisters and retra ctable mounts hold
  the various long range antennae, while surface panels forma phased radar network. Antennae
  and short -ranged docking sensors are placed on either side of the vehicle bay:
  ~
  _....
  ~!
  1
  1
  The ship's life sUpp'0rt equipm.ent is wide ly distributed th,,?ughout the hull, wit h "so~e lmpor-
  1
  tant components like the gas storage being located in the main hull pylons to beneficiate from
  I
  the easier thermal regulation effect of their large hull surfaces.The rear section of each outrigger
  hull is a large heat-ex changer for the main crew compartments, radiat ing w;ste heat away
  ~
  ... from the forward sensors.
  __j
  8
  6
  • •
  '-.r-
  --
  - - :..
  OO-
  , • • •:
  8
  Screen Generators
  9
  Superconducting Batteries
  10
  Gas Storage
  11
  Local Life Support Systems
  12
  Heat Exchangers
  'f
  Sensor Systems
  • <:::::;;iiijjjjii
  1
  Optical Sensor Clusters
  2
  Radar Syste ms
  3
  Docking Sensors
  4
  Primary Instrument Cluster
  5
  Lidar/ Rangefi"nder Emitters
  6 Microwave Pulse-Ranging ~ntennae
  7
  Communications Ant ennae
  'f
  Life Support Syst!f
  
  CHIEFTAIN ESCORT CRUISER
  The gunnery stations and the ir display are re latively low-te ch.
  This reduces the costs, simplify maintenance and brings ad di-
  tional reliability. Instead of using virtual reality headsets like most
  other ships, each seat has a large panoramic viewscreen around
  the users' head whe re the data is projected. Control is assured
  via keyboa rds , spatial-motion tracke rs and joysticks. Eye-po int
  I
  sensors are also used to provide acc uracy and a faster reaction
  time; a ring of these sensors is mou nted aro und the edge of
  each user's viewscreen.
  11•
  I!!!II..
  •
  •
  ~
  4.4.1 Laser Gunnery Room
  The Chieftain and all larger Venusian ships have turreted laser
  systems mou nted on pop-up turrets; the smaller ships use fixed
  mounts or limited-swivel mounts which are simpler and take up
  less internal space. Each laser system is concealed under mov-
  ab le armor plates and is revealed only before attacking. They are
  controlled from an armored chambe rcalled a Laser Gunnery Cen-
  te r, which houses both the gunners themselves and the main fire
  control computers.
  Each Chieftain has two Lase r Gunnery Centers. This room is lo-
  cated nearthe bridge atthe end of a small shaft.The space around
  the shaft is filled with diagnostic equipment, power lines and data
  fee ds, all accessible through removable par.els, There is an emer-
  gency escape hatch located in the "ceiling" of the room in case
  pressure is lost in the lower levels; it is practically never used in
  the day to day operations of the ship.
  There is not a whole lot of visible equipment within the cram ped
  room itself. The furniture consists of four gunne ry chairs facing
  toward each other to emphasize teamwork. The main hatch is
  located in the middle. Above each chair is a smallmonitor listing
  the current status of the turret: power output, heat leve ls, etc. An
  engi neering panelwith powerand life support output can be found
  at each corner of the room to let the gun ners patch their com bat
  space suits into the ship's main life support system.
  ~
  4.4.2 Leb Bey
  Shipboard labs are genera lly small and cramped, when they are
  present at all. The Chieftain's lab is similar to the ones found on
  Imperator and Huang-ti-c1ass ships, and is used for simple tests
  to detect the presence of biologicalor chemical agents. It ismostly
  used to inspect questionable materials or to determine the need
  for a quarantine.
  The Chieftain's lab is located in the central portion of the ship,
  right next to the hangar. It is practically a closet: there is room for
  one pe rson to sit and work, the rest being filled with equipment
  and lockers. Instruments (microscopes, spectrometers, geiger
  counters, etc) are stored in wall cabinets or velcroe d to conve-
  nient hold ing brackets. The lab door leads right out into the han-
  gar, allowing the lab to be op e n to space if necessary. There is a
  mass of tubing on the far wall, supplying water, oxygen, vacuum
  and a variety of other needed supplies. The lab has its own life
  I
  suppo rt node and can contain both open flames and free water.
  DDb2
  
  CHIEFTAIN ESCORT CRUISER
  ...
  4.4.3 Vehicle Bey
  The Chiefta in's ma in veh icle hanga r is a relative ly small chamber
  located in the front portion of th e ship's cent ral hull. It ta kes up
  most of the internal volume of the section, and is capped by two
  matching hatches on either sid e. Since there are two main hangar
  bay hatc hes, one on the "top " of the central secti on and th e other
  on t he " bottom," the hangar is effectively a large ho le right
  th rough th e ship. The catapults, normall y stored in folded posi-
  tion, extend out from these two hatches to ward th e bow (one is
  not shown in the illustration at right so as not to obscure the rest
  of the equipment).
  There is roo m in th e hangar fo r two exo-arrnor-sized vehicles and
  th eir repair and maintenance cradd le. Though it may look spa-
  cious when empty, the hangar is really quite crampe d . With all
  the support scaffolds and service equ ip ment in place, the two
  exo-a rmors are practically cocoon ed in place. W ith some efforts,
  many more vehicles can be carrie d, with a corresponding decrease
  in reliab ility and de ployment ti me.
  Large carg o doors lead to a pair of small hol ds on eith er side of
  th e main hanga r. These are no rmally used t o store parts and
  non-explosive material. There is an arm ored locker in on e of the
  bay s for the missiles and weapon s. A personn el hatc h at the rear
  of the bay leads to the crew areas; equipped with an airlock.
  Anothe r nearby hatch leads t o the lab bay, whi ch is det ailed
  above.
  0063
  II•....
  II
  II••
  III
  II
  
  CHIEFTAIN ESCORT CRUISER
  B•..
  IiiI
  ..
  •
  ~
  4.5 SHIP PERSONNEL
  The Chieftain has five departments. The Operations Department
  is man aged by th e First Officer, but heavily influenced by the
  Morale Officer. Althou gh the Aesthetics Officer falls under the
  Operations Dep artmen t, he is responsible for not only placing
  the displays, but for getting new sponsors and making sure that
  the displays are up to date. The other four departments are Gun-
  nery, Engineering, Security, and Flight Operations, comm anded
  by the Weapo ns Officer, Chief Engineer, Security Officer, and Flight
  Ope rations Officer, respectively.
  [l]
  Crew Orge nizatlon Chart
  Captain
  First Offi cer ............................................................................................................ 1
  Supply Officer ........................................................................................................1
  Supply Clerk ................................................................................................1
  Med ical Officer ....................................................................................................... 1
  EMT ............................................................................................................. 1
  Mora le Officer ............................................................................................. 1
  Aesth etics Specialist .................................................................................... 1
  EME Specialists ...................................................................................................... 3
  Helmsman/ Navigator ............................................................................................. 3
  Weapons Officer .................................................................................................... 1
  Gunners ....................................................................................................... 4
  Chief Engineer ....................................................................................................... 1
  Ma ster Engineer .......................................................................................... 3
  Engineer ...................................................................................................... 7
  Electronics Specialist ................................................................................... 5
  Computer Spe cialist .................................................................................... 2
  Security Off icer ...................................................................................................... 1
  Security Spe cialist ........................................................................................ 4
  Flight Operations Officer ....................................................................................... 1
  Catapult Specialists ..................................................................................... 1
  Ordnance Specialists ................................................................................... 9
  Exo Engineer ............................................................................................... 1
  Exo/Fighter Pilots .................................................................................................. 4
  T
  4.6.'1 Interview with a Helmsman
  Name:
  Rosemary Wunderlich
  Rank:
  Sho-sa
  Current Assignment: CVNA H. ai-Rahman
  "I used to helm one of the Huang-Ti. All
  I ever did on that ship was " hold her
  steady." It was all in the hand s of the
  cloa k room and analysis tec hies. On this
  ship, I actually get to do some piloting.
  It's got a lot of thrust available, once
  Engineering gets the ord er to go to full
  military power, and there are plenty of
  RCS thrusters to give us some serious
  ma neuverability.
  "It's a great feeling to be pressed back in you r seat and barrel-
  ing at full burn toward a raider who th ought he was about to hit
  an easy mark. And it gets better! Since the kickers on the Chief-
  ta in are in fixe d mounts, I'm tied directly into th e weapons and
  target ing stations, and get to aim them as well as give the initial
  clearance to fire. It's like flying a fighter, more so than most oth er
  capital ships.
  "The only real restrictions involve waiting for the gravity wheel
  to lock (wouldn't want to twist the hull by applying thrust while
  the wheel's spi nning) and holding still for docking procedu res.
  Unfortunately, the old adage about combat is all to o true in my
  case. A pocket calcu lator could pil ot th is ship ninety-nine-po int-
  nine percent of the time. In fact, in most situations, th e naviga-
  tor is actually controlling the ship .
  " O nly in those ever-so-rare occasions when we have to drop
  the big disguise and do som e damage do I get to show off. The
  rest of the time, it's like I'm back on a Huang -Ti."
  0064
  
  CHIEFTAIN ESCORT CRUISER
  4 .5.2 Int:erview wit:h a Morale Officer
  Current Assignment:
  CVNA H. ai-Rahman
  111I-
  &1•
  Chu-j
  Lek Venugopal
  " Most Chieftains carry fig hters instead
  of exos, because we can reach target
  zon es faster than most exos. That's a
  definite advantage when you're try ing to
  hit a raider before he ge ts within firing
  range of your convoy. Because of the
  need for the ship to stay low-profile, we
  don't fly reg ular patrols. If we're in a
  heavily-t rafficked area, th ere'stoo much
  chance we 'll be seen launching.
  Rank:
  Current Assignment: CVNA Calico Sinclair
  Name:
  ...
  4.5.3 Int:erview wit:h a Fight:er Pilot:
  Chu-i
  Michael Skilton
  "So, what's your pleasure? Never let it
  be said th at the CVNA doesn't take care
  of its employees. I may not have a lot of
  space to work with, but it's eno ugh to
  keep everyone on this ship hap py and
  relaxed, which is all I need to move me
  toward a promotion planetside . I handle
  scheduling of entertainmen t aboa rd the
  ship, which sounds easy to do until yo u
  start th inking about all the little details.
  Name:
  Rank:
  " It's part of my duti es to set up and clean up the rec areas fo r
  various acti viti es as we ll as making sure that no one fee ls left
  out. That's hard when the shift structure means that someone's
  always on duty somewhere. For crewmembers who want som e
  peace and quiet, I also manage the ship's library and entertain-
  me nt data fil es. If som eon e want s something specific, it's my
  job to find a time to get it transmitted to us with out com prom is-
  ing security.
  "B ecause of that, we get a lot of time in the simu lators to keep
  in pract ice . The Chieftain's small, so there's roo m for on ly one
  simu lator pod. It's located in the main hull, just d own the corri-
  dor from the lab bay. Simtime is really important for all CVNA
  pilots. It's not q uite as good as actually flyin g , but it's pretty
  close. We don't get the full feedback that we get fro m the full
  simu lat or setu ps they have on the bi g space stations, but at
  least there's a complete linear frame in th e simpod.
  " Some peo ple might say th at my job aboard ship is unn eces-
  sary. Wh at they don't get is that fo r a busy and harried naval
  officer, even decidin g what kind of fu n to have can be too much
  of a chore. All it takes is one miserable pe rson to make life a
  living hell fo r every oth er crewme mber. I'm there to make sure
  that nobody has a chance to fee l miserable, and also to decide
  what's fun so th at other people don't have to. Unlike the way it
  is for other officers, It's the times between the battles when my
  job is the most importa nt. W ithout me, when a fight starts, no-
  body may care enough to make sure we win ."
  "Because even our fighte rs are supposed to stay out of sight,
  most of ou r real-world flying is done in modified Wraiths and
  ot her CEGA hand-me-downs. We get rotated out regu larly so
  that we can keep in pract ice with both th e fu ll sims and t he
  CEGA ships. I've flow n a real Siegfreid-c1ass fighter on a bunc h
  of mission s, and I have to say th at the sims are actua lly pretty
  close to th e real thin g. Still, I somet imes wonder how much
  better I'd be if I cou ld fly a real Sig all the time ."
  0065
  
  I!!I
  IiiI
  Cheftian-class Escort Cruisar
  ~
  Overell Data :
  I l'l'natValue:
  I
  Off TV·
  I
  Def TV'
  . I
  Misc. rv.ce«. • M I
  tndvL.emonDice:3
  I
  ~
  Movement D a t a :
  I Mode,
  Space
  I
  Combat:S MP (0.5 gil
  Top, 'OMP(' .Og)
  I
  Man.-uver:
  ·3
  I
  Re Mass: 2000 BPs I
  ~
  Sections :
  I ' ,
  Main Hull w/Bridge
  I
  t x
  Ma'n Hull w/o Bridge
  I
  2x
  Battl. Hull
  I "
  Central Hull
  I
  I
  I
  I
  I
  ~
  Off & Oef Syetems
  I "
  Point ~f.nse System
  1 2,
  Laser-Array I .,
  CMM
  12<
  KKC I
  I
  I
  I
  I
  Section: Main Hull \N/Bridga
  ~
  Meln Data ,
  I Th,• • t Value '
  Off TV,
  Def. TV
  Mise . TV
  Cost ;
  Indv lemon Dice : 3
  1 0 ow·
  ' 9
  I
  Actions'
  I
  Sensors :
  ·212km
  C04'TIm.: ·2110km
  I
  Fir. Control:
  +'
  I
  Type :
  I HullSize"
  36
  I
  Default Sizl!':
  I
  Armor:
  75
  Ugh"
  75
  I
  Heavy'
  'SO I
  Overkill:
  225
  ~
  Movement Oeta,
  I Mod.,
  Towed
  I
  Combat :
  I
  Top :
  Range: 1,SOO nrs
  I
  Re M"s, :
  I
  ~
  Per k s & F la ws:
  N....
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Name
  Rating
  Game effect
  Autopilot
  Lvi 1 Pilot
  Passeng.r Accorn
  3.000m3
  B~ up S yn.ms
  Comm, FireCon, lifeSupp. Sensor
  Re inforced C.......,3
  Absorbs first ltvee ·Crew- hits
  Computer
  3
  e RE 0 KNO a PPJ
  Stllil.lllth
  2
  Add to Conc••lment
  Difficu lt to Modify
  All
  Eject ion Systems
  20 people
  HEP: RiK:I
  •
  HEP: Vac
  u fe Support
  Full
  ~
  Offens ive and O efenslve S y stems :
  Ct,
  Name
  A"
  OM
  BR
  ACC
  ROF
  Ammo
  Special
  M5
  WC
  AC
  2
  l aser Arra y
  F
  , 20
  7
  0
  +1
  Inf
  AD2 , Co nc. (Inst.), HEAT
  14
  12214
  .v.
  1
  PDS (ra nge d)
  T
  "0
  ,
  +'
  +6
  Inf
  AM, Con c. (lnst.), HEAT
  ' 6
  1401
  .va
  POS (shie ld)
  FF
  <20
  M. I..
  +1
  +.
  Inf
  Cone. (lnst. ), DEF, E.Shld ,H
  '6
  539
  .v.
  2
  CMM
  T
  " 8
  2
  -,
  +.
  640.
  Cone . (lnst.), Miss ile , H.
  9
  3' 06
  2.7
  Section: Meln Hull \N/o Bridge
  ~
  Main Data:
  nve at Value :
  Off. TV:
  Def . TV:
  Misc . TV:Cost: • M I
  Indv.lemon Dice:3
  I
  CrltW:
  ' 6
  I
  Actio ns :
  I
  Se nso r,: -2/ 2 km
  I
  Comm. ·2/ 10 km I
  Fire Control:
  + 1
  I
  Type :
  Hull Size:
  36
  I
  Defa ult Size:
  I
  Armor:
  75
  I
  ught:
  75
  I
  He avy:
  ' SO
  I
  Overk ill:
  ' SO
  ~
  Movement Oeta:
  Mode:
  Towed
  I
  Combat:
  I
  Top:
  I
  Range: 1 ,SOO lvsRe~ ss :
  I
  ~
  Perk.. & Flawe:
  N....
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Name
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Backup Systems
  Comm, FireCon, UfeSupp, Sensor
  Side: Bay
  2
  Two patien ts
  Difficult to Modify
  All
  Stealth
  2
  Add to Concealment
  Ejection Systems
  20 people
  HEP: Rad
  4
  HEP: Vac
  Ufe Support
  Full
  Passeng. Accom
  3,000m3
  Reinforced Crew
  3
  Absorbs firs' thr.. "Crew" hits
  ~
  Offsnslve e n d Defen.lve Systems,
  Ct,
  N....
  A"
  OM
  BR
  ACC
  ROF
  Ammo
  Special
  MS
  WC
  AC
  2
  las. Array
  F
  <20
  7
  0
  +'
  Inf
  AD2, Cone. (Inst.I, HEAT
  14
  12214
  .v.
  2
  CMM
  T
  "B
  2
  .,
  +4
  640.
  Cooce. (Ins1.1. H., Missile
  9
  3'06
  2.7
  Section : Central Hull
  ~
  Meln Data:
  nveat Value :
  I
  Off. TV:
  I
  Def . TV:
  I
  Misc.1V:
  I
  Cost:
  · M
  I
  Indv.lemonDice: 3
  I Crew:
  '2
  I
  Actions:
  I
  S."SOI'"$: +1/2 km
  I
  Comm.: 0/15km
  I
  Fire Control
  0
  I
  Typtt:
  I Hull Size :
  34
  I
  Default Size :
  I
  Armor:
  65
  I
  Light:
  65
  I
  Heavy:
  '30
  I
  OveriliU :
  '95
  ~
  Movement Data:
  I Modo,
  Towed
  I
  Combat:
  I
  Top:
  Range: 1,500 hrsRe ....ss;
  I
  ~
  P e r k s & Flaws:
  N....
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Name
  Rat ing
  Game Effect
  Backup Syst ems
  ute Support
  Full
  Cargo Bay
  12,OOOm3
  Reinforced CrltW
  3
  Absorbs first three "Crew· Hits
  2)( Catapults
  (4SO/mass)m/s2
  Ste.lth
  2
  Add to ConceaJ~t
  Difficult to Modify
  All
  Eject ion Syst em
  Pods for 16 people
  HEP: R&d
  •
  HEP: Vac
  Lab li fe Sciences
  0
  ~
  Offens ive end Defens iv e
  S ystems :
  Ct,
  Name
  ,"C
  OM
  BR
  ACC
  ROF
  Ammo
  Special
  M5
  WC
  AC
  00 66
  
  Section: ex Bettie Hull
  ~
  Meln Dete.
  I Threat Value:
  I
  Off. TV
  I
  08f. TV:
  Mise. TV:
  I
  Cost:
  I
  Indv.l.monOK:e: 3
  I Crew :
  8 I
  Actions:
  I
  Sensors: .2/2 km
  Com m.; ·2110 km
  I
  Fire Control +'
  I
  Type :
  I Hull Size:
  30
  I
  De-faun Size:
  I
  Armor :
  75
  Light :
  75
  I
  Heavy:
  '50
  I
  Ov erkill:
  225
  ~
  Movement Date:
  I Mode:
  Towed
  I
  Combat :
  I
  Top:
  Range: 1,500 IvsRetw1ass:
  I
  ~
  Perks & Flaws:
  Name
  Rat ing
  Game Eff ect
  N."",
  Rat ing
  Game Eff ect
  Backup Syste ms
  Weapon Link
  KKC s
  Cargo Bay
  1,000 m3
  Ste ah:h
  2
  Add to ConcealmlMt
  Difficult to Modif y
  All
  Ejection System
  10 people
  HEP: R~
  ,
  HEP: vee
  Passenger Accom
  1,000 m3
  ReinfOf"ced Crew
  3
  Ab$Ofbs first three · Crew" hits
  ~
  O ffenslvs a n d D ef ensiv e S ystsm s .
  Q1y
  Nam.
  "',
  OM
  "R
  ACC
  ROF
  Ammo
  Spec ial
  M5
  WC
  AC
  2
  KKC
  FF
  ,30
  7
  -2
  +,
  4,OOOea
  AP,Conceal ed (Instant )
  20
  16230
  3.2
  1
  CMM
  T
  , ' 8
  2
  -,
  +,
  ....
  Conc.(lnst.l, HEAT,MiS5n&
  9
  3106
  2.7
  Section: .
  ~
  Meln Date.
  TV
  Off. TV:
  I
  Def.1V :
  Mise . TV:
  I
  Cost :
  I
  Indv Ifm'lOfl dice: -
  I Crew "
  I
  Act ions ·
  I
  Sen r.ors:
  Comm .:
  I
  Fire Control:
  I
  Type :
  I Hutl Size:
  I
  De fauh: Size:
  I
  Base Armor:
  lig ht:
  I
  Heavy:
  I
  Overkill:
  ~
  Movement Data:
  I Mod.,
  I
  Combat :
  I
  Top:
  ManflU\l&r:
  I
  Range :
  I
  Re. Ma ~$:
  ~
  Perks & Flaws.
  Name
  Rat ing
  Game EffK1
  Name
  Rat ing
  Game Effect
  ~
  Offensive and Defensive Systems.
  Q1y
  Name
  "',
  OM
  "R
  ACC
  RO F
  Ammo
  Spec ial
  M5
  WC
  AC
  0 0 67
  Section: •
  ~
  Msln Dete.
  I w
  I
  Off. TV:
  I
  Def . 1V:
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  I
  Cost:
  I
  Indv lemon dice: -
  I Crew:
  I
  Action~ :
  I
  Seraors:
  Comm .:
  I
  Fire Cont rol :
  I
  Type :
  I Hull Size:
  I
  Default Size:
  I
  Ba ~e Armor:
  Light :
  I
  Heavy:
  I
  Overkill:
  ~
  Movement: Data:
  I Mod . ,
  I
  Com bat :
  I
  Top:
  I
  M aneuve r:
  I
  Range:
  I
  Re. Mass:
  ~
  Perks & Flaws.
  Name
  Rat ing
  Game Effect
  Name
  Rat ing
  Game Effect
  ~
  Offensive a nd Dsfenslve Systsm. :
  Q1y
  N."",
  "',
  OM
  SR
  ACC
  ROF
  Ammo
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  M5
  WC
  AC
  S e c tio n : .
  ~
  Mein Data:
  I w
  I
  Off . TV:
  I
  Daf. TV:
  I
  Mise. TV:
  I
  Cost :
  I
  Indv lem on diea: -
  I Crew :
  I
  Actions:
  I
  Sensors:
  Com m.:
  I
  Fire Control:
  I
  Type :
  I Hu ll Size:
  I
  Default Size:
  I
  Base Ar mor:
  light:
  Heavy:
  I
  Overkill:
  ~
  Movement: Data:
  I Mod.,
  I
  Comb at:
  I
  Top :
  M aneuver :
  I
  Range'
  I
  Re. M ass'
  ~
  Perks & Flaws.
  Name
  Rat ing
  Game Effect
  N. "",
  Rll1ing
  Gllme Eff.a
  ~
  Offenslvs end Defenalve Syat:emll :
  Q1y
  N. "",
  "',
  OM
  "R
  ACC
  ROF
  Ammo
  Special
  M5
  W C
  AC
  I
  I•
  ....
  II
  II
  
  CHIEFTAIN ESCORT CRUISER
  ~
  -------
  I
  I••
  II
  II
  II
  11
  ~
  PART III: THE VENUSIAN WAY
  Tal-sa Yvette Antonova cou ldn't quite
  figure out what to feel. She was afraid
  that she might die on this mission . She
  was worried that the inte l this whole
  raid was based on might be totally
  false. She was also unspeakably excited
  to be a part of what had to be th e no-
  blest rescue operation in recent history.
  Yvette had been involved from the be-
  ginning. Four months ago, a man
  named Mischa Katayama, who had van-
  ished several years ago, contacted the
  CVNA Director ial Board, requesting
  help in mounting an operation to res-
  cue a CVNA officer from a STRIKEcom-
  pound. He offered intelligence gleaned
  from who knew where, information that
  would, if true, make the raid childis hly
  easy to pull off.The Board was skeptica l; the information was go od ,
  but Katayama 's refusal to meet in person or reveal his location
  seemed too strange to accept. Even after Katayama delivered mo re
  inte lligence of unbelievable quality, and promised to turn his ship
  over to the CVNA after the rescue, the Board remained suspicious.
  Yvette had com e forward, arguing Katayama's case. She'd received
  Katayama's first communication while on deep patrol, and had
  spoken to him at length . She had been struck by how ord inary he
  looked, how completely unlike her own ideas of someone who
  would make such a sacrifice fo r a near-stranger.
  She'd heard of Birth ing Debts, the obligations taken on by th ose
  who had survived Venus' po st-Fall years with th e help of the more
  fortunate. In mo st cases, the debts were called in by those ow ed,
  and used fo r blackmail or extortion. There were precious few in-
  stances of someone voluntarily repaying a Birthing Debt.
  In any case, the concept of the debt was something she'd grown
  up with . This cause, she arg ued, was wo rth help ing even if
  Katayama were still penni less and in possession of nothing use-
  ful; thi s, she said , was a test of the Venusian way of life, a chal-
  lenge of faith and loyalty.
  Many capta ins and officials applauded her statements, but when
  the uproar settled, she was st ill th e on ly CVNA captain will ing to
  actually go out and perform the mission. Nevertheless, she stood
  her ground . If her battered old Chieftain was all that coul d be
  spared, the n so be it. If Katayama's information was false, then
  she would die, and a lesson wo uld be learned . If, however,
  Katayam a was exactly what he said he was, then she woul d res-
  cue Taggart al-Raschid, and another, much mo re important les-
  son wou ld be learned. It hardly concerned her at the time that
  Katayama wou ld not personally participate in the raid , claiming a
  need to occupy STRIKEattention elsewhere as a diversion.
  Now, however, sitt ing on the Leon Marten's bridge and looking at
  the looming asteroid base on which Katayama insisted Taggart
  was to be found , Yvette could think of only one thing. I wonder
  where Katayama actually is, anyway?
  *
  *
  *
  Wh en the exo-suits burst into the control center, Taggart was al-
  ready diving for cover. He didn 't know who was atta cking the
  outpost, but he wasn't about to bet that any stray rounds wo uld
  know friend fro m foe. He heard gunfire, the sound of breaking
  armor, and several heavy objects fall ing down . There were a few
  loud footsteps, and then a clipped, professional voic e spoke over
  a tin ny 'suit microphone.
  "Taggart al-Raschid Tai-i?Are you all right?We're here to rescue you."
  The words hit Taggart like a thunderclap. Bolting upright, he felt thirty
  I
  months of pain, slavery and humiliation vanishing, fog dissolving be-
  fore sunlight. He turned toward the voice and grinned cheerfully.
  0068
  
  CHIEFTAIN ESCORT CRUISER
  "Well, I'd say I'm happy to see you, but I seem to have lost my
  glasses," he anno unced, straightening his tattered jumpsuit. A
  nearby explosio n rocked the floor, but Tagg art kept his balance .
  "Where's Nakama? " he shouted.
  "He's already escaped," the trooper said q uickly. Tag gart could
  hear the 'suit looking back and forth anxiously. "We've got inter-
  ceptors going after him, but we need to get you out now." The
  trooper picked Taggart in a fireman's carryand bolted out the hatch .
  Jouncing atop the 'suit's armored shoulde r, Tagg art's mind filled
  with questions. His body had other ideas, however, and as the
  exo-suit ran down the hallway, dodging gunfire and kicking do wn
  barricades, Taggart closed his eyes and slept peacefully for the
  first time in two years.
  *
  *
  *
  It had taken the Marten's cargo crew five hours to find the sculpt-
  clasp in one of the boxes se ized from the STRIKE facility. When
  the feather-light meta l ornament was placed in his hand, Taggart
  had sobbed, tears streaming from beneath his newly-ba ndaged
  sockets. He'd kept it close throughout his entire stay inthe Marten's
  sickbay, slowly growing used to the idea that he was, at last, free.
  When the doctor finallygave her approval for visitors, Antonova-
  kancho had come in, ecstatic to meet him. They'd been talking
  for over an hour.
  "Tell me about the sculpt-clasp, " she entreated. Her open admi-
  ration was beginning to make Taggart uncomfortable, but he an-
  swered her inquiry ag reeably.
  "It belonged to Toji Katayama, the man who ga ve his life for my
  family. Toji gave it to my great-great-great-grandfather before he
  died. It's always been a symbol of loyalty and honor for me."
  Anto nova drew another breath, but whatever she was about to
  ask was silenced by the beeping of the comm console.
  [)[)69
  "At last," she gushed. "He must be on the other side of the sys-
  tem, for the lag to be this long."
  She tapped a control on a nearby console, and the transmission
  began to play. The voice tha t spoke from the speaker was gentle
  and soothing,fullof inte lligence. It seemed to Taggart tha t it cam e
  from all around him, through every corn er of the room .
  "He llo, Taggart-san. I'm honored to finally be able to speak to
  you. I've read the medi cal report that Antonova-kancho sent. I'm
  so sorry about youreyes. IfIhad worked faster, harder, this wouldn't
  have happened. Please excuse my inefficiency. Regardless of my
  performance, tho ugh, Iam overcome with joy tha t you are at last
  free of your capt ivity and able to return home."
  "What does he look like?" Taggart whispered to Antonova, en-
  tranced . In response, she reached ove r and plugged a haptic dis-
  play into the commset's video output jack. Instantly, the tablet's
  flat surface began to deform, creating a raised image of Katayama's
  face. Antonova placed the display in Taggart's hands.
  "The CVNA has kindly re-extended their offer for the position
  you secured for me," Katayama continued. "Iam eternallygrate-
  ful for what you d id for me . Without your invitation, and trust, I
  wou ld surely be long dead . My son Kinya has sen t word that he
  will meet me back on Ven us. 1will begin the journey myself very
  soon. Live well, Taggart-san . May we meet soon." The screen
  went silent.
  Tagg art's hands were resting atop the haptic display's image.
  "He looks like a Katayama," he whispered, and leaned backin his
  bed. Afte r a while, Antonova left quietly. In the da rkness, Taggart
  waited to meet his savior.
  II
  II..
  IiiI
  
  SATRAP TRANSPORT CARRIER
  Mr. Chou is Venus' most well-known tenor, a consummate performer who to urs
  across the solar system. Mr. Chou is reportedly disgruntled that the honor of hav-
  ing a ship named for him has been so soured by the fact that the vessel is a "fat,
  inelegant cargo tug." Unbeknownst to Mr. Chou, however, the carrier that hides
  under his tug's skin has been responsible for overseeing the safe passage of nearly
  a dozen shipp ing convoys since its launch.
  The von Borsody is a slightly-modified Satrap that has kept one of its outer hulls in
  a luxury-liner configuration, making it an excellent transport for diplomats and
  other politicos. Often seen docking or departing Pyrea Stat ion. the von Borsody's
  primary duties involve shuttling back and forth bet ween the home of the United
  Space Nations and transfer ports in Venus orbit. The ship has never had need to
  reveal its combat capabilities, but it is certain that the ot her solar nations at least
  know that a Venusian delegate would not be so na"lve as to trave l unprotected.
  Von Borsodykancho is a noted merchant captain who owns several ships of hisown
  and has never so much as seen the vessel that bears his name.
  In an incident th at the Ven usian Bank has successfully downplayed, abou t half of
  the IranI's crew mutinied on Nove mbe r 30, 2209, apparently as a result of fac-
  tional differences between segments of the crew. The mutineers then attempted
  to deliver the ship to the Jov ians. In order to preven t th is, the Irani's capta in
  apparently escaped from the brig and act ivat ed th e ship's se lf-dest ruct system,
  destroying the entire vessel along with all hands. Even with the increased diver-
  sity in perso nnel brought on by th e formation of the CVNA, the grueling psycho-
  logical scree ning procedu res that resu lted from this incide nt are still in place
  and app ear to be work ing.
  July 1, 2213
  Co nvoy Escort
  CVNA Julius Chou
  February 5. 2209
  CVNA Mar zieh Irani
  Diplomatic Service
  September 28. 2211
  Lost on December 2. 2209
  CVNA Hermann von Borsody
  Launched:
  Launched :
  Name:
  Launched :
  Name:
  Name :
  Status:
  Status:
  Notable Shipe
  Status:
  .....
  0 07 0
  
  SATRAP TRANSPORT CARRIER
  -
  ~
  0071
  II
  II....•
  II
  II•
  II
  
  11•
  I!!I-
  TRANSPORT CARRIER
  •
  5.1 OVERVIEW
  There are two classes of large-scale carg o haulers in use by the
  Venusian shipping fleet. One is a huge vesse l used for nonstop
  transport of bulk cargo from one point to another; this vessel was
  used as a template forthe gargantuan Shan-Yu-class battlecruise r.
  The second class of cargo vessel is a slight lysmaller ship designed
  to ferry both cargo and passengers on runs with multiple stops
  and transfer po ints. These vessels have huge rotating rings for
  passenger comfort as we ll as extensive docking facilities for trans-
  port shuttles and dropships, and were used as the basis for a
  singu lar new concept in warship design.
  The modern Satrap carrier is based on two civilian variants of the
  ma in hull class . On e of these is a long-range cargo vessel de-
  signed for multiple cargo transfers and coach-class personnel
  carriage. Most of the Satraps in service are disguised to look like
  one of these ships, which gives them a better excuse to be wan-
  dering out in the middle of the Belt and beyond. The other com -
  mon use for the Satrap-style hull is as a luxury liner. These ships
  are operated by transport compan ies across the solarsystem, and
  are the pinnacle of luxurytransport. They do not have cargo trees;
  instead of drab grey hulls, they are festooned with windows and
  observation galleries for passengers. These add a great deal of
  mass due to added structura l reinforcement requirements. They
  also have larger habitat rings, to support passengers who are used
  to having an excess of space. All the facilities are desi gned to
  provide passengers with the impression that they are still on their
  planet or station of origin. For instance, liners on the profitable
  Moon -Orbital routes have a secondary habitat insta lled closer to
  the central hull, so that passengers from the Moon can pass the
  trip in normal grav ity conditions.
  T
  5.1.1 Capabilities
  The Satrap has four large hangar bays . On e, in the central hull, is
  openlyvisible and serves as a shutt le bay and cargo transfer area .
  0072
  
  SATRA P
  TRANSPORT CARRIER
  The other three bays are carefully concealed in the th ree mai n
  hulls and carry the Satrap 's complement of combat vehicles. Four
  exo-armors or fighters can be comfortably supported in each bay,
  for a total standard load of twelve vehicles. In more extreme situ-
  ations, up to doub le this number can be carried, at the cost of
  mu ch of the ship's available repair space. Powerful drive motors
  are used to split the fron t end of each main hull to reveal the
  hangars, each of which is equippe d with a pair of de ployable
  catap ults. The central shuttle bay is also equipped with two cata-
  pults, for additional combat launch capability.
  Each of the main hull hangars is adjoined by a large Drone bay
  designed to support the "smarter" variants of Drone, such as elec-
  tro nic warfare or hunter-killer units. The Dro nes are launched and
  recovered in the main vehicle bay or via the cargo doors outward
  from the hangar. Since torpedo-class Dro nes are unab le to launch
  without ded icated loading and release mechanisms, the Satrap is
  unable to deploy such Drones. However, there is little need for a
  ship like the Satrap, which projects most of its power with its com-
  bat vehicles , to act as a torpedo boa t, so the omission is of no
  great consequ ence. The Satrap 's workshops and repair bays can
  return recovered Dron es to service extremely qu ickly, and can
  also assemble new Dro nes, given adequate supplies. This ability
  gives the Satrap a much larger effe ctive supply of Drones tha n
  smaller ships like the Huan g-Ti, which are unable to do more tha n
  make min or repairs to their Drone supply.
  The Satrap does not mount the usual laser weaponry found on
  most Venusian vessels, relying on it s combat vehi cles to provide
  d irect offensive firepower. The Satrap's large array of missile bays
  is used primarily fo r point defense and heavy fire support, and is
  generally not sufficient fo r a full ship-to-ship engagement. There
  have been some concerns expressed over resupply issues, but
  the design's proponents point out th at the standard desig n of the
  missile bays allows them to make use of Jovian and CEGA mis-
  siles, with only minor alte rat ion s.
  The Satrap 's size all ows it to retai n a measure of its civilian
  equivalent's cargo capacity in th e form of cargo trees towed be-
  hind each main hull. Wh ile visually similar to the storage arrange-
  ment on popular transports like the Ebiiru, the Satrap'scargo spar
  and containers are actu ally reasonab ly well armored and shielded,
  fu lfilling the necessary specifications for military transportation.
  The retention of the habitat ring gives the Satrap huge amo unts of
  I
  available passenger space. Even though much of the ring is taken
  up by the layers of armor and structural reinforcements necessary
  to bri ng the fragile-loo king section up to military spec, the size of
  I
  the crew qu arters aboard the Satrap is rivaled only by those on the
  large Shan-Yu-c1ass battlecruisers. During battle alerts, the habitat
  ring is evacuated and sealed; despite its increased protection, it is
  still th e most easily-damaged part of the ship.
  ...
  6.1.2 Operat;ional Role
  Should open war ever break out, the Satrap's function woul d be-
  come that of a mobi le fleet tender, cap able of self-defe nse and
  moving from one troubl e spot to another. It co uld also serve as a
  fleet carrier, although it wou ld require a sign ificant esco rt in order
  to do so.
  Many strateg ists fee l that th e Satrap tries to do too much and
  thus fails in all its tasks. The Satrap's cargo capacity is reduced to
  accommoda te its veh icle squadron, which results in limited loite r
  time and fleet-servicing capability, and the pre sence of the vu l ~
  nerable cargo trees reduces the ship's effe ctiveness as a battle
  carrier. The arguments surrounding the Satrap's effectiveness will
  likely not be resolved for some time, but they have produced
  some interesting ideas. O ne of th ese involves using th e carg o
  ,
  trees as additional storage space for attack veh icles, which wo uld
  com pletely eliminate the ship's cargo functions and replace them
  with as many as three full squadrons of exo-armors or fighters,
  creating an overwhelming hidden strike force.
  II•.....
  II
  II
  II
  I
  I
  0073
  
  II•
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  SATRAP TRANSPORT CARRIER
  ~
  5 .2 S H IP
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  0074
  
  SATRAP TRANSPORT CARRIER
  5.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS [CONT.J
  .....
  II
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  ()
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  6
  Forward RCSCluster
  7
  Antenna Mounts
  8
  ' Lidar/Rangefinder Emitters
  9
  Short Range Sensors
  10
  Instrument Cluster Bay
  11
  Docking Target
  12
  Cargo Hangar Doo;
  13
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  14 r-
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  0075
  
  ~
  SATRAP TRANSPORT CARRIER
  ~
  5.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS [CONT.]
  o
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  5.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS (CONT.]
  ....
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  Plasma Combustion Chamber
  2
  Reaction Mass Storage
  3
  Crew Quart ers
  4
  Officers' Quart ers
  5
  Heat Exchangers
  6
  Storage Bay
  7
  Weapons/Eng. Control Center
  8
  Cargo Containers
  9
  Traff ic Control Center
  10
  Bridge
  11
  Drone Storage and Prep Bay
  12
  Missile Bay
  13
  Drone Bay
  14
  Cargo Bay
  15
  Catapul~
  16
  Bulk Storage
  17
  Superconducting Batteries
  18
  Launch Bay Actuator
  19
  Heat Exchangers
  20
  Hangar
  21
  Missile Storage
  22
  Gas Storage
  23
  Structural Reinforcement
  24
  •
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  25
  Storage Bay
  26
  Primary Instrument Cluster
  27
  Workpod and Exo-Suit Airlckks
  28
  .,.
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  29 .
  Habitat Rotation Motors
  30
  Workshops and Equipment Bay
  I
  -3
  11•..-
  II
  II
  •
  
  SATRAP TRANSPORT CARRIER
  ~
  5.3 HISTORY
  In 2207 , the new principle in ship de sign -
  warship s hidden un-
  der civilian appearances -
  had percol ated its way down to all
  the various Venusian corporation s. The Venusian Aerospace Cor-
  poration, in particular, fo und the idea to be both noteworthy and
  cost-effective, and began a design effort to create its ow n series
  of disguised warships. Rather than pu rchase hulls from VenusBank
  (or worse, Earth), VAC decided to fin d a use for some of its sur-
  plus large cargo vessels. Man y sugge stions were put fo rth, but
  most involved an unacceptably large number of mod ification s to
  the ship's basic st ructure that would be both expe nsive and d iffi-
  cult to hide. Tyler Ne rou lis, a junior engineer with a spotty track
  reco rd up to that point, produced wh at ended up as th e most
  workable soluti on.
  Rather th an spe nd excessive effort to tu rn the ships into battle-
  ships, Neroulis outlined a cost- effective plan by which th e cargo
  ships' forward carg o bays could be converted into missile, Drone
  and veh icle bays, creating an effective carrier. His de sig n not only
  allo wed th e retention of the rotating section that the other plans
  regarded as a weakness, but also made the system work in con -
  junction with the hangars, such that the ship would be able to
  scramble-launch its entire vehicle complement witho ut de-spin -
  nin g its habitat section. The result was the Satrap, wh ich has be-
  come the CVNA's only dedicated carrier. It comes in both liner
  and cargo variants, the better to hide among the civilian flee t.
  The liner'sengines are the same as th e freighter-type ships, plod-
  din g and reliable. The ship is at least as massive as its cargo-ship
  brethren, due to th e added mass of the win dows and passeng er
  amenities. Add ing even more mass are the attract ive flourishes
  added to the ship 's hull by many cruise lines, such as th e fifteen-
  meter-tall figureheads th at adorn the hulls of the CEGA-run Bo-
  realis Line company. However, there is seldom any need for a
  ship oft his type to accele rate powerfully or reach a destination in
  record time; the entire concept of luxury space ships is to take a
  leisurely approach to the normally frenetic pace of space tra vel.
  A few Satraps were di sguised as liners, so as to loo k inconspicu-
  ous in the inner solar system. The von Borsody, fo r instance, looks
  like a liner in order to better fulfill its role as a d iplomati c ferry
  between Earth and Venus. It is not a true Satrap-class ship, be-
  cause on e of its hulls (along with most of its habitat ring) rema ins
  in a luxury-liner configuration, fo r appearance's sake. Oth er Sa-
  traps that are disguised as liners have no passenger capacity what-
  soever; only the von Borsody actually has need of the pal atial
  environm ent of a real luxury ship.
  The von Borsody is sometimes used to host dip lomatic di nner
  parties and meetings when in Earth space. This has occurred du r-
  ing diplomatic junkets when other Venusian territory was not avail-
  able for use. The habitat ring is fitted with several posh ballroom s
  and lounges, and the liner hull contains a full-size conference cham-
  be r capable of seating the enti re CEGA cou ncil. The liner hull is
  also reinfo rced with extra armor and structural support, bringing
  its defenses in line with the rest of the ship. Shou ld a catastrophe
  occur despite th ese precautions, th e liner hull also carries dozens
  of large escape pods and several thickly-armored "storm room s"
  (small chambers designed to withstand extremes of te mperature
  and radiation, and which can sustain their occupants even if the
  rest of the ship is vaporized).
  The centra l hull (which is th e on ly hangar bay in civilian Satrap-
  style ships) also remains in a civilian configuration . Visitors to the
  ship dock in the central bay and are escorted to the line r hull,
  where they are allowed free run. The liner hull is even equ ipped
  with a fake bridge that allows passeng ers to watch th e captain
  and crew " at work." Passengers are also allowed to freely wander
  two-thirds of the habitat ring, but are stopped by locked bulk-
  heads at the junction s of each of the two other hulls. Behind the
  bulkheads are armed guards and additional security systems;
  passengers are always warned to not attempt entry into the "pri-
  vate diplomatic areas" of th e ship.
  007 8
  
  CARRIER__
  I
  TRANSPORT
  .~ 1...,.,
  SATRAP
  ---
  ~
  I
  11 o
  ~
  5.4 SHIP SYSTEMS
  -,
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  Weepon Syst:ems
  "
  1
  .
  Main Power Conduit
  2
  MissileBay
  3
  PDS Emitt er
  4
  Missile Storage
  5
  Drone Bay
  6
  Drone Storage
  7
  I
  CMMCluste r
  ~
  Prcipulslon Syst:.
  "
  8
  RCS Cluste r
  9
  Reaction Mass Tanks
  10
  Plasma Combustion Chamber
  '11
  E~haust Collimator Coils
  12
  EM Power Generation System
  13
  Radiator Fin
  The bulkof the Satrap's offensive power is consti-
  tut edof itsfnany att ack craft, which are fiou'sed in
  the concealed launch bays that occupy the for-
  ward third of all6utrigger hu lls~They are backed
  by\nissile bays, both conventional and duster-fir-
  ing, and ";,,(jltiple dro Mes. Th'e ship's' laser array
  most oftEm '~erve in a defensive capability only. .
  ....__
  ,I.
  +
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  .
  •
  The layout Ofthe Satrap-class ships is divided into
  sharp sect ions, eac h with its own purpose and
  equipment.The propulsion section, loeatecfat the
  rear ofthe Centralhull, houses a number of plasma
  combustion charitbe"rs along with the ir support
  equipment in a sealed environment wellshielded
  by both co,{ventional a~dscreei\ shielding. Safety
  .is -~ 'paramotmt feature'on this type of vessel. and
  the engines are known for their reliability.
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  0080
  
  SATRAP TRANSPORT CARRIER
  5.4 SHIP SYSTEMS [CONT.)
  ...
  II
  Sens ors e nd L ife Support
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  Local LifeSupport Syst~ms
  Screen Generators
  Life Support Syst •
  7
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  9
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  11
  The des igner s of the ship took advantage of the
  large surface of bot h the hulls and the habitat rings
  to lay down an extensive network of sensory ele-
  ment s slaved to a central dataprocessing corn-
  puter. This compensates for the average quality
  of the ship's sensor processing equipment, whidi
  was chose n more for cost -effectiveness than effi-
  ciency.
  The life support system is highly modular and thor-
  oughly distrib uted within the various sections of
  the hull to ensure maximum redundancy. Each
  segment of the habitat ring has its own node and
  heat exchanger. as well as an independent back-
  up power sup ply. This was to ensure the safety of
  the passengers of the liner vers ion, but it has
  proven useful in battle as well.
  ...
  Sensor Systems ..
  1
  Lidar/Rangefinder Emitters
  2
  Radar Systems
  3
  Docking Sensors
  4
  Primary Instru ment Cluste rs
  5
  Communication Antennae
  6 Microwave Pulse-Ranging Anten nae
  ...
  0081
  
  ~
  SATRAP TRANSPORT CARRIER
  •
  R
  ....
  ~...
  Ii
  II
  II
  II
  II
  II
  'f
  5 .4.1 Habitat Ring
  The illustration at right is a large-scale view of a cross-section of
  the Satrap's main habitat ring's structure. The ring houses both
  crew areas and ship system s as we ll as serving as a major struc-
  tural brace for the vessel's th ree-hull con figuration, hel ping to
  spread the load of the cargo modules throughout the ship. The
  habitable area is only one floor high; the rest of the ring's cross-
  sect ion is taken up by armor, structure, shielding and support
  machinery (both ship and life support).
  The crew area is located deep inside th e ring, where it gets maxi-
  mum shielding and protection from th e syste ms around it. Gen-
  tly -sloped corridors make their way around the ring, linking the
  var ious areas to gether. They are fairly small and include non-slip
  surfaces, ladders and handho lds on two sides so th at they can
  be used regard less of the current orientation of th e gra vity gra-
  d ient.
  The crew cabins are quite spacious fo r a warsh ip (or any space-
  ship for that matter), and are arranged in row s alo ng the rim of
  the ring. Officers' quarters run back and forth alo ng the ring, and
  a recreation area/garden is located near th e middle.
  Several heavy-duty elevators carry crew "up" to the cen tral sec-
  tion or "down" to the co mbat hang ars (assuming the ship is un-
  der rotation) . The elevators and their well s are heavily armored
  and stru ctura lly reinforced ; in fact , the enti re supporti ng strut for
  each main hull is an extremely soli d ly-b uilt structure that can
  surv ive incred ible tensile stresses th anks to nano-vat grown main
  spars.
  Airlocks can be found in bo th the "floor" and "ceiling " of the
  habitat ring (aga in, assuming the ship is under rotation). There
  are also numerous escape pods located alon g th e rim of the ring :
  small segments of the ring 's outer hull break open, revealing the
  row of escape pods nestled within , ready for launch.
  'f
  5 .4.2 H a n g a r
  The Satrap's hangars are much more well-equipped than the
  smaller ones found on other Venusian vessels. The Satrap has
  th ree main auxiliary craft hangars, each with two cata pul ts, along
  with a pressurized cargo bay in th e centra l section . The illu stra-
  tion at right de picts one of the hangars on the outer hull s in the
  deployed (or "ope n") pos ition. It is a comba t hangar, complete
  with four exo -armorlfighter ma intenance and rep air bays as well
  as a central staging area that can, in a pinch, store ano ther two
  exo-armors. Because the ship cannot, when fully loaded, provide
  much acceleration, all hangar equipment is oriented for a rota-
  tion-generated gravity.
  The catapult mechanism can fold upon itself and slide in and ou t
  of a recessed bay under the main floor. Both catapults start inside
  the staging area, so that the exo s can be on the line whi le the bay
  is still hidden and be ready to launch th e mome nt the forward
  hul l splits open.
  0082
  
  SATRAP TRANSPORT CARRIER
  Ii
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  Located in the central sect ion of the vessel, just off the cargo
  hangar, this room is the center of all security-related activities on
  the ship . There are smaller security offices throughout the rest of
  the hull, but this one is the security chief's home base . The ma-
  rines aboard the Satrap get their assignments through the secu-
  rity office, and the main armory and weapons storage lockers are
  also located here .
  The room is quite spacious, with seve ral doors which can all be
  locked securely. One leads to the hangar and is quite larg e an-
  other leads out to a main corridor. A th ird door leads to a walk -in
  storage closet for body armor, and th e last door leads to the br ig.
  There are several workstations in th e office for the security direc-
  tor to do paperwork on . On on e wall, a heavy security panel cov-
  ers the weapons locker, wh ich contains pistols, masers and shot-
  guns as well as some anti-boarding-party mines and exp losives.
  Acc ess to th e locker is via keypad and bio-ID (a rand om selection
  of DNA, ret ina, fingerprints or voice); weapon carriage aboard
  ship is extremely restrictive, and is usuall y limited to security crew
  and, occasionally, senior staff. There are secu rity cameras on the
  walls, linked to reco rders that can on ly be accessed with simulta-
  neo us approval fro m the secur ity chief and captain. The rest of
  the room is usable as bri efing or stag ing space; cargo inspections
  tak e place here, as do interrogations.
  ...
  6.4.3 Security Office
  In the floor of the bay (th e surface facing away from the centra l
  sect ion), behind th e catapu lts, is a large airlock hatch th at leads
  t o a small cargo bay that also has a hatc h for a floor. This hatch
  leads to open space; in emergencies, the hangar crew can use
  both hatches to d rop exos directly out th e bottom of the hangar,
  using the ship's spin to g ive them an initial velocity. There is
  deployable emergency netting at the back of the bay, right in
  fron t of large doors that lead to the rest of the ship . The hangar
  adjoins both the hull's Drone bay as well as a fully-equipped ma-
  chine shop and exo-limb repair faci lity.
  
  ~
  SATRAP TRANSPORT CARRIER
  II•....
  Ii
  II
  II•
  II
  II
  ~
  5.5 SHIP PERSONNEL
  There are five departments on the Satrap-class carrier. Although
  the security crew be long s to th e Engineering Department and
  reports to the Chief Engineer, th ey often help the Supply Officer
  and his Cargo Depa rtment. Flight O perations Departm ent is lead
  by the Flight Operations Officer and covers all combat EVA ac-
  tivities, includ ing Marine troop deployments.
  II]
  Crew Organization Chart
  Captain
  First Offic er ............................................................................................................ 1
  Aesthetic s Specialist .................................................................................... 1
  Morale Officer ........................................................................................................ 1
  EMESpe cialists ...................................................................................................... 4
  Helmsman /Navigator ............................................................................................. 4
  Medical Officer ....................................................................................................... 1
  Ass t. Doctor .................................................. .............................................. ........... 1
  Nurse s............................... ........................................................................... 2
  EMTs ............................................................................................................ 2
  Weapons Officer .................................................................................................... 1
  Gunner ........ .............. ................................................................................... 4
  Chief Engineer ....................................................................................................... 1
  Master Engineer .......................................................................................... 1
  Engineer ...................................................................................................... 8
  Electronics Specialist ................................................................................... 5
  Computer Specialists .................................................................................. 4
  Security Offi cer ..... .................................................................... ............................. 1
  Security Specialist ................................................................................. ..... 19
  Flight Op erations Officer ....................................................................................... ,
  Deck Officer ........................................................................................................... 1
  Catapult Specialists ..................................................................................... 7
  Ordnance Specialists ....... ......... ................................................................... 8
  Exo Engineers............................................................................................ 12
  ExoJFighter Pilots ........................................................................................ 8
  Mari nes ............................................ .......................................................... 20
  Supply Officer ...................•.................................................................................... 1
  Supply Clerks ............................................................................................... 4
  ~
  5.5.1 Intarvlew with an Aaethatlcs Offlcar
  Name:
  Petra Hofstadt
  Rank:
  Tai-i
  Current Assignment:
  CVNA Julius Chou
  " First off, I'm a Corporate Liaison Officer.
  'Aesthetics Officer' makes me sound like
  some kind of secretary. My job is to make
  sure that all those pretty vid -membranes
  on the ship's hull get used for wh at the
  ship's own er wants, without causing se-
  curity issues with the ship's military op-
  erations. O n other ships, I've heard this
  can be a pro blem, espe cially in combat
  situations.
  "On a Satrap, thoug h, there's hardly ever a reason to turn off the
  membranes. It lets people know exactly who we are and where
  we're from , whi ch is just good marketi ng . I get requ ests for vid -
  time and -space from hom e base whenever the ship is capable of
  receiving civilian transmission s, and I then sit down and turn those
  requests into coherent image s and advertiseme nts for display on
  the hull.
  "I don't get final say on when the membranes are on or off, though,
  which is really irritating . I can spend days wo rking on a new visual
  scheme tailored for current events and synced to a broad-band
  transmission, and the whole thin g can be cancelled if th e captain
  decides he wants to be paranoid and overcautious . Sometimes, I
  guess, it's justified , like the time we had to go hunting for a pirate
  that had struck one of our convoys. If they'd seen us coming , they
  wou ld have run for sure. As it was, we caught them by surp rise
  and wiped them out. The captain gave me permission to wel-
  come the pilots back with video fireworks. Maybe he's not so para-
  noid after all."
  0084
  
  SATRAP TRANSPORT CARRIER
  "
  5.5.2 Interview with e Cergo Officer
  " Let's say war breaks out, and we get assigned to act as a fleet
  tend er. As ships match vectors with us, we'll need to get them
  fixed up and back out into the field as soon as possible. If I don't
  remember what I've got and where I've got it, I could end up with
  a complete back log, and a lot of dead Venusians. I know, it's not
  an important job unless there's a war, but then again, in a war,
  everyone on this ship suddenly becomes very important."
  II
  Ii
  II
  II•
  •
  11.....
  ..
  " Recovery's a bit trickie r. Unlike a launch situation, a recovery re-
  quires th e ship to be at a standstill, both in terms of maneuvering
  and the gravity whe el. We prefer to recover units through the
  main doors, because it allows the grea test margin for error. We
  can set up safety nets in the hangar, and we can even set up
  catch-cables on the catapult s for use in dece lerating incomi ng
  units. Unfortuna tely, it's oft en more secure for the ship's sake to
  reco ver exo sthrough th e small cargo hatch, since the cargo hatch
  doesn't req uire splitting the hull in two. In that case, the incoming
  has to match vectors and get reeled in. If something goes wrong,
  we'll de finitely feel it ."
  "
  5.5.3 Interview with e Deck Officer
  "The Satrap 's hangars are huge , consid-
  ering that we usually on ly tran sport fou r
  exos or fighters per bay. When they're
  all snug in their cradles, there's a huge
  empty space right in the middle, where
  t he catapu lt dollies are locked back.
  Wh en we're doing scram ble launches,
  we can move two vehicles out into the
  central area and get th em prepped on
  the catapu lt while th e hangar doors are
  sti ll closed. That me ans that when the
  hangar does get opened to space, we've got two units already
  hot and ready to go. That's assuming, of course, that we've de -
  spinned the gravity wheel. If we haven't, and there's still gravity in
  th e bay, then we just open up the bay in th e middle of the central
  area and drop the unit right out , letting centrifugal force do all
  th e work .
  Name:
  Christiane Muller
  Rank:
  Sho-i
  Current Assignment:
  CVNA Julius Chou
  " Because we 're both a warship and a
  cargo, I have a lot more duties than your
  average civil ian cargo officer. In addition
  to maintaining the flow of traffic in and
  out of the holds and the hangar, I also
  have to keep up security proto cols and
  perform damage control duties. In emer-
  gencies, I even have to take on the role
  of a de ck officer, if we end up transport-
  ing extra combat units and have to use
  the central catapults as combat cats.
  Name:
  Bernho Bouise
  Rank:
  Sho-i
  Current Assignment:
  CVNA von Borsody
  ,)
  '00'
  "That's when th ings get really hectic. The cargo duties don't go
  away. They just have to be hand led with a bunch of exo -armors
  standing in the way. And if you think it's easier to move the cargo
  modules out of the way with big exo s and micro-gravity, well,
  there's a nice place I'd like t o sell you in th e Venusian low lands ...
  " Most of the ti me, though , th ere's not hing to do in the hangar,
  and so I can spend my shift in one of th e cargo bays, double-
  checking inventory or inspecti ng the containers. I need to know
  I
  at a glance where any given ite m is in the cargo bays.
  '"
  0085
  
  ~
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  Ind v.temon Dice 3
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  Movemen t Data:
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  Comb at:4 MP (0.4 g}1 Top : 8 MP (0.8 g)
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  M aneuver :
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  Actions:
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  Actions:
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  Sensors: ·2/2 km
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  Heavy:
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  O verkill :
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  Name
  Rat ing
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  6
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  27000
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  00. W
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  DoI.lV
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  Cost: 4
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  Indv.lemon Dice :2
  I Crew:
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  Actions:
  7
  I
  Sensors:
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  Fir-e Control:
  +1
  I
  Typo'
  Lim.Prod
  I Hull Size:
  40
  I
  Default Size:
  - I
  ,"mo<.
  75
  I
  Ught,
  7S
  I
  He avy:
  150
  I
  Overkill:
  225
  ~
  Movement: Cata:
  I Mod"
  Towed
  I
  Combat:
  I
  Top·
  I
  Range : 2,000 hrs
  I
  ReMass:
  - I
  ~
  P erka & Flaws:
  N. me
  Rat ing
  Gam e Effect
  Nom.
  Rating
  Gam e Effect
  Backup Syst ems
  PassliHlger Accom
  1,000rn3
  Cargo Bay
  100,000 m3
  Re inforc ed Crew
  3
  zx Catapult
  (bOO/mass) m/s2
  ax Tool Arm
  20
  Cannot Punch
  DiHicun to Modify
  All
  Ejection Syste ms
  Pod s for 40 People
  HEP: Rae!
  4
  HEP: Vac
  Life Support
  Full
  ~
  Offsnslve and Dafanslvs Systs",s:
  aty
  Name
  ,",
  DM
  8R
  A"
  ROF
  Ammo
  Special
  M5
  WC
  AC
  3
  CMM
  T
  , 18
  2
  -1
  +4
  640.
  Conc .Unst.I, HEAT, Misslkl
  9
  3106
  2.7
  1
  Missile Bay
  T
  ,30
  5
  -2
  +5
  40
  Cone.(lnst.), HEAT, Miss"
  8
  2644
  2.3
  Saction: Main Hull wlBridge
  S atrap Transpo r t Carriar
  ~
  ~
  B
  01
  II
  II
  11
  •
  •
  I!!I..
  ..
  ~
  00 86
  
  ~
  Meln Oet;e:
  rv.
  '4000
  I
  Off TV,
  o I
  D.IlY
  6400
  Mise . TV:
  37000
  I
  Cost :
  19.8M
  I
  1I"Idv.l emon Dice :
  v_
  16
  I
  Actions
  6
  I
  SensOf"s: +0/2 km
  Comm:
  0115 km
  I
  Fire Con tr ol:
  o I
  Typo
  Lim .Prod
  Hull Size :
  14
  I
  o.f.uh Size'
  . I
  Armor:
  75
  Ught
  75
  I
  Heavy:
  150
  I
  Overkill:
  225
  ~
  Movement; Det;e:
  Mod .
  Space
  I
  CombIIt :S8 MP(S,8gll
  Top:l 11 MP (1' .7 9)
  Maneuv .,. :
  -4
  I
  Range: 2.000 hrs
  I
  R.M .: 15,000 BPs
  ~
  Perk. & Flew.:
  N._
  RatIng
  G ame Eff~
  Namo
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Backu p Systems
  lab s.curity
  1
  2x Catapuh
  (4SO/manl mlsl
  Ui. Support
  Full
  Cargo Bay
  25,000 m3
  Reinforced CIWW
  3
  Dffficultto Modff y
  A"
  Eject ion System
  Pod s for 30 P.-op'-
  HEP: Rae!
  4
  HEP: Vac
  High Towing Capacity.
  Daub "
  ~
  Offenelve e n d Defensive Syst;eme:
  Cty
  N. "",
  A"
  DM
  BR
  A"
  ROF
  Ammo
  Special
  MS
  WC
  AC
  ~
  Mein Det;e:
  W
  - I oarv
  ·
  I
  Del W
  · I
  Mise. TV:
  ·
  I
  Cost:
  - I
  Inctv lemon dlC. : •
  Cre w:
  - I
  Act ions:
  I
  5enloors:
  Comm. :
  I
  Fire Con trol :
  - I
  Typo'
  Hull Size:
  - I
  Default Size :
  I
  Base Armor :
  ·
  I
  Light ,
  · I
  Heavy-
  ·
  I
  Overkill :
  ~
  Movement Data:
  Mode:
  I
  Combat ,
  ·
  I
  Top,
  · I
  Maneuver'
  · I
  Rang e:
  - I
  Re.Mass:
  ~
  Perks & Flew.:
  NJim.
  Rating
  GarM Effect
  N."",
  R. ting
  GameEff.et
  ~
  Dffenelve end D efe n s i v e S y ete m e :
  Qty
  Nam e
  A"
  OM
  BR
  ACC
  ROF
  Amm o
  Specia l
  MS
  WC
  AC
  ~
  ~
  Section: Centrel Hull
  Section: 24x Pressurized Cergo Module
  ~
  ~
  Section: •
  Section: •
  R
  11
  'ill'"
  ."II!.
  •
  II
  II•
  II
  ~
  Meln Det;e:
  I TV,
  3500
  I
  Off. TV,
  o I
  Del.rv
  400
  Mise . TV:
  10000
  I
  Cost :
  1.6M
  I
  ''''''.IomonDko,3
  I C....,
  o I
  Actions:
  o I
  Sensors :
  NtA
  Comm :
  NJA
  I
  Fire Control'
  ·5
  I
  Typo'
  MassProd
  I Hull Size:
  16
  I
  Default Size :
  15
  NrTlOf:
  20
  light:
  20
  I
  Heavy:
  40
  I
  Owrkill:
  60
  ~
  Movement; Dat;e :
  I Mod.
  Towed
  I
  Combat:
  - I
  Top·
  Range : 5,000 hn
  I
  ReMan :
  .
  I
  ~
  Perks
  & Flaws:
  Name
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Namo
  RJlting
  GameEHect
  Cargo Bay
  6,000 m3
  HEP: Rad
  3
  HEP: Vae
  lif e Support
  Full
  No Sen sOfs
  No Communication
  ~
  Offensive end Defensive Syet;ems:
  Cty
  Nomo
  ""
  OM
  BR
  ""
  ROF
  Ammo
  Special
  MS
  WC
  AC
  0087
  ~
  Meln Dete:
  I W
  - I oa.rv
  · I
  DeI.W
  · I
  MiK .TV:
  · I
  Cos t :
  · I
  Ind v lemon dice ;·
  I Crew:
  - I
  Actions:
  ·
  I
  Sensors;
  I
  Comm.:
  I
  Fire Control:
  - I
  Typo'
  I Hull Size:
  Oefauh Size'
  - I
  Bn.Armor:
  · I
  Ligh.,
  I
  Heavy :
  · I
  o-kl' ·
  ~
  Movement; Det;e:
  I Mod.,
  . I
  Combat:
  · I
  Top'
  Maneuver :
  - I
  Rang . :
  R•. Mass :
  ~
  Perks & Flews:
  N....
  RJlting
  G~eEffK1
  Nam e
  Rating
  Game Effect
  ~
  Offensive end Defensive Syst;ems:
  Qty
  N. me
  lVe
  DM
  BR
  ACC
  ROF
  Ammo
  Special
  MS
  WC
  AC
  II
  
  ~
  - ---
  I ---- --- -
  The transmission ended, and Taggart shut the display down.
  You and me both, Mischa-san, he thought. A few more months
  won't matter.
  "I know you may be unable to contact me ," the transmission
  went on, as if reading his thoughts, "but don't worry. At this
  point, there's all the time in the universe for us to me et. I'm very
  patient."
  *
  *
  *
  "Taggart?" the traitor breathed. "Where-"
  Taggart gestured toward one of his analysts, and immediately,
  the directives began flowing through the ship. Reports began to
  pop up in rapid-fire succession under Taggart's fingers. The
  Hammerhead's comms were being jammed, its se nsors blinded,
  and its inte rnal messaging system overridden by the Huang-Ti's
  electronics suite. After a momen t, a familiar face appeared on
  Taggart's d isplay, accompanied by sounds of confusion and ter-
  ror.
  It's taken two long years, Tagga rt thought triumphantly, but it's
  worth it.
  The Huang-Ti had performed beautifully for eighteen months,
  hiding out all over the so lar system, using its active stealth sys-
  tems to elude all man ner of detection . They had gathe red vast
  amou nts of da ta that wou ld be used to finish the specs for the
  production model ofthe stealthed observation ship. Ithadn 't taken
  much effort to persuade the captain to let the ship's mission end
  on a high note, especiallyonce he explained the natu re of their
  target. They'd spent a few months spying and gathering data,
  I
  and another few weeks picking out vectors and getting in posi-
  tion. Now, it was all about to payoff.
  All around him, he could hear his analysts qu iet ly passing infor-
  mation between one another, filling the Huang-Ti's analysis room
  I
  with a low hum. Running his hands over his command chair's half-
  dozen haptic d isplays, Taggart felt the clear image of a Ham mer-
  I
  head-class dreadnought drifting along serenely less than te n ki-
  lometers away. The exo-armors were in position, and the bridg e
  was waiting for his signal to begin.
  ; "Hello ag ain, Nakama," Taggart purred. "Miss me?"
  Taggart felt Nakama's eyes widen, and he smiled.
  "It sounds like they really want you to
  earn all that back pay you've accu mu-
  lated, " Katayama quipped. "I hope
  four weeks of medi cal leave was suffi-
  cient rest time for you ."
  On the haptic d isplay insta lled in his
  com mand chair, Taggart felt Katayama
  shaking his head in amusement. "This
  is how the fat es wo rk, 1 suppose,"
  Katayama was saying. Taggart nodded
  in agreement. He had not been nea rly
  so cheerful when he found that he
  would be long gone from Venus by the
  time Katayama's ship arrived.
  PART IV: RISING STAR
  ~
  Taggart wished he could tell Katayama
  about his new assignment. Practica lly
  the moment he'd been given his medi-
  cal release, he had rece ived orders to
  act as an inte lligence advisor ab oard a prototype ship dubbed
  the Huang-Ti class. The whole project was a complete secret; it
  seemed that the CVNAwas satisfied with Taggart's ability to keep
  his mo uth shut. The ship's mission length was indeterminate, and
  he would be out of contact for the duration. Taggart hoped that
  Kataya ma would not view his silence as an insult.
  (I
  II
  II
  •
  II
  ••....
  0088
  
  SATRAP TRANSPORT
  -~- --- --
  I
  CARRIER
  •
  " Right here, you bastard," Taggart growled. Around him, the ana-
  lysts let out an appreciative cheer.
  Precisely on time, Taggart heard the Huang-Ti's main batteries
  open fire, and on his display, felt the Hammerhead's prima ry drive
  chamber vanish in a clo ud of vapor.
  "Taggart, wait," Nakama be gan, his eyes flicking back and fo rth.
  " I can make a deal. I can make you rich."
  Taggart had to laugh . Nakama's gall, especially in the face of to-
  tal defeat, was unbelievabl e.
  "An eye for an eye, Nakama," Taggart declared. " It'sthat simple."
  O n one of his displays, Tag gart felt two STRIKE exo-arm ors exit-
  ing the Hammerhead, only to seemingly self-destruct while still
  on th eir launch rails. Taggart's smile grew wider. Behin d Nakama,
  mo re alarms were blaring, and on another hapt ic tactical di s-
  play, Taggart could feel the shapes of two Korikaze exo-armors
  that had seeming ly appea red out of nowhere, right next to the
  Hamm erhea d. Nakama opened his mo uth aga in, but no sound
  came out. The display couldn't show it, but Taggart knew t hat
  Nakama was, for the first time he'd ever known, sweating. Sweat-
  ing, and afraid.
  "No need for int errogation th is time, Nakama," Taggart wound
  up, savori ng th e momen t. "H ere are the research projects you
  wanted to know so much about. Take a good look. Oh," he added,
  "and just so I don't seem impolite this time," he paused to wave
  at the viewscreen, "goo dbye , Nakama."
  Nakama didn't get a chance to reply, but Taggart really wasn't
  interested in anything he had to say, anyway.
  *
  *
  *
  When the Leon Marten showed up to escort th e Huang-Ti on the
  final leg back home, Taggart couldn't help but be impressed.
  0089
  Antonova 's ship had undergone a complete refit , and was now
  sleek, smooth and deadly, a sign of its captain's ascendant rep u-
  tation .
  When Yvette called over, asking to speak to Taggart, he was al-
  ready waiting.
  " Hello, Antonova-kanjo," he said cheerfully. " Did you get the
  package I sent?" Yvette laughed, shaking her head.
  " It arrived five mo nth s after yo u starte d your assignment," she
  said between chuckles. "I don't know what to say. VenusBank execs
  have trouble affording some of that stuff." Taggart shrugged.
  " It's my mo ney," he said, serious. "I'll do what I want with it, and
  I wanted, in some minuscule way, to thank yo u for yo ur help."
  "You're more than welcome," Yvette acknowledged, bowing her
  head very low.
  "Anyway," Taggart said, sudde nly smiling again, "I'll make it all
  back aft er I get home. After all, this ship just elim inated a tr aitor
  and seized a CEGA warship, without a singl e scratch. We' ll all get
  com men dations, pro bably promotions, too. It's a great ship, and
  a great crew. I'm almost sorry to leave."
  "What about you r next assignment?" Yvette asked, a hint of her
  old hero-worship showing through .
  "Absolutely nothing," Taggart anno unced happily. " It's been two
  years since I've set foot outside this very expensive and very com -
  fortable tub, and I've got some major leave coming to me. I thi nk
  it's about ti me I went and finally met som ebody."
  Antonova's face sudde nly hardened.
  "If you 're talking about who I think you're talking abo ut," she said,
  "I'm afraid you' re not goi ng to like what I'm go ing to tell you."
  •
  •
  ....
  ,....
  •
  •
  
  TSAR HEAVY CRUISER
  The Galim Meshenak is, to date, the only Tsar class ship to have made use of its
  orbital bombardment capabilities. In a Republic-Federation border skirmish, sev-
  eral touring Venusian vehicles were caught in the crossfire. When the orbiting
  Meshenak was alerte d to the situation, its crew de livered a precise pattern of warn-
  ing shots in less tha n th ree minutes, halting both forces in their tracks and allowing
  the Venusian citizens to move to safe ground. Once the Venusians we re safe, the
  skirmish was allowed to proceed uninterrupted.
  Expected to be the last Tsar-class ship to be built for some time, the Antonescu is
  named after a young girl who, in late 2213, led her three younger siblings out of
  the Chilean wilderness after a plane crash. Anto nescu kept her charges safe, fen d-
  ing off wildlife, procuring food and exhibiting superhuman determination and in-
  te lligence. The facts that Anto nescu's flight was both unlisted and unautho rized,
  and th at no names of any of the crash's victims have been released, have been
  largely overlooked.
  The Dexter Siobotnik is the first non-refit Tsar-class ship to be completed. As such,
  it has experienced a number of minor bugs and quirks not present in the Tsars that
  are conversions, a result of supposedly updated manufacturing and assemblytech-
  niques. Untilthe Siobotnik is running at acceptable levels, it is being kept close to
  Venus for testing and troubleshooting. Results of the tests are expected to smooth
  trials for later Tsars. The ship's status is quite pleasing to its namesake, who is
  using th e opportunity to broadly advertise his financial management firm.
  N/A
  Commissioned
  Home Defense
  January 2, 2213
  CVNA Galim Meshenak
  Mart ian Patrol
  CVNA Dexter Siobot nik
  CVNA Mathilde Antonescu
  December 12, 2207 ; re-launched September 28,221 3
  Launched:
  Status:
  Status:
  Launched:
  Name:
  Launched:
  Status:
  Name:
  Name:
  Notable Ships
  II
  II
  Ii
  11
  •
  •
  •
  •-..
  009 0
  
  •
  II
  II
  ....•
  II
  '[600
  
  -..
  Ii
  II
  II•
  II
  R
  HEAVY CRUISER
  ~
  6.1 OVERVIEW
  Until recently, Venusian warships we re loyal only to their home
  co rporation, operating without any know ledge of the activities of
  other Venusian naval ships that might be in the area. W ith th e
  formation of the CVNA, however, the various groups of Venus-
  built warships were gathered together and united into a singl e
  force. The Cooperative Venusia n Naval Administration is funded
  by all th e major Venusian corporati ons, and makes up 99% of
  Venus' warship fleet. The only warships not und er CVNA control
  are the pri vate transports of co rpo rate heads, and even these are
  req uired to be under close observation.
  Since 2200, th e largest warships in service with the Venusian cor-
  porations were the Gao-Tzu-c1ass cruisers. The nine known ships
  of this class served as corporate flagships and comm and centers,
  but were in trut h quite unremarkable in comparison to most Jo-
  vian or CEGA warships of the time . With th e fo rmation of th e
  CVNA, all th e corporations turned over th eir Gao-Tzu-class ships
  (along with the rest of their private navies) and implemented a
  joint project to thoroughly upgrade th e vessels using th e massive
  technological strides Venus had made ove r the past decade.
  O ne group of engineers, upon hearing that th e CVNA would likely
  be in need of vessels capable of perfo rming orbital bo mbard-
  me nt duties, po inted outthat th e Gao-Tzu was an excell ent cho ice
  for such a ship. Approval to proceed followed quickly on the heels
  of an exte nsive com puter-prot otyping test, and on June 20,22 13,
  the first of a new class of warships left the Carthage orbital ship-
  yards for a shaked own cruise.
  The new class, des ignated Tsar, replaces one of the Gao-Tzu's
  three identical hulls with a long er, narrower construct of identical
  mass. Whereas the rema ining twin hulls contain vehicle hangars ,
  lasers and missile bays, the new hull's internal space is almost
  completely taken up by three massive railgu ns and th eir associ-
  ated targeting equipment. The enti re ship's outer appe arance has
  also been subtly altered to mo re resem ble Venusian civilian ships.
  0092
  
  TSAR HEAVY CRUISER
  ...
  6 .1 .1 Capabilities
  The Tsar was conceived by engineers from the Waldsen-Nishiyama
  corporation in 22 13, amid con cerns that Venus' military role in
  the Solar System might eventually require orb ital bombardment
  of selected enemy assets. Realizing that most weapons that ex-
  celled in space combat had, at best, mediocre pe rformance when
  fired through an atmosphere, the CVNA felt it had little choice
  but to create a warsh ip specially armed fo r planetary bombard-
  ment. Using technology acquired from the Jovians and CEGA,
  W-NTC subm itted an extensive modification package fo rthe out-
  dated Gao -Tzu-c1ass cruisers.
  The Tsar'sthree heavy railguns are capab le of striking a five-meter-
  d iameter target zone from orbit with metal slugs of varying size.
  Col latera l damage can thus deva state a square kilometer, or be
  limited to th e point that bystanders with in a few meters of ground
  zero are practic ally unaffected. The railguns are also very effec-
  tiv e in space, des pite their high po wer req uirements and poor
  firing arcs. Alth oug h the Tsar carries an abundance of ammuni-
  tion for the railguns, th e wea pons themselves have a limited num-
  be r of uses; after several dozen firings, the weapons tend to lose
  both accuracy and reliability. Unlike the massive massdrivers used
  on the surface of Earth's Moon, the Tsar's railguns do not have the
  abi lity to correct th eir align men t. The heavy and bulky equipment
  required for such calibrations are found only at major space docks;
  the need for conti nued secrecy further restricts the possible loca-
  tions fo r th is equ ipm ent to a handful of stations in Venus' orbit.
  The Tsar's two remaining main hulls contain its remaining arma -
  ment . Each one mounts a pair of powerful and accurate laser bat-
  teries mo unted in retractab le turret s, an assortment of missile
  launchers, and two vehicle bays. The vehicle bays are extremely
  cramped, but do have sufficient space to allow exo-su its and work
  pods to move in and out through the hangar doors even when
  exo-armors or fighters are under repair. Storage space is at a pre-
  mium aboard the Tsar; since th e vessel keeps with the Venusian
  habit of maximizing crew comfo rt at the price of taki ng space
  0093
  away from ship systems, there is barely enou gh room for the ship's
  standard marine complement and EVA crew, meaning that no extra
  exo-arm ors or fighters can be squeezed into the bays.
  Crew qu arte rs are spread out over all three hull s, and are qu ite
  comfortable by warship stand ards. Large numbers of robots and
  automated systems reduce th e necessary crew size, allowi ng for
  a larger living space for each human crewmember. The main bridge
  can be located in either of th e main hulls; the railgun hull con-
  tai ns a control center used specifically for target ing th e railguns.
  The hull conta ining th e bridge is referred to as th e command
  hull, while the other main hull has extra recreational and storage
  facilities and is refer red to as the habitat hull.
  Several Gao-Tzu-c1ass ships remain in service. These have been
  upgraded with new technology and the now-typical Venusian ci-
  vilian camouflage, and wi ll continue to fill the role of medium
  ships-of-the-line in the CVNA. The upgrad ed Gao -Tzu class ships
  have, inste ad of th e railgun hull, a third main hull, giving them
  increased vehicle capacity and conventiona l firepower.
  ...
  6 .1.2 Operational Role
  A lthough th e Tsar's primary purpose is to proje ct Venusian mili-
  tary power on a planet without requiring th e need for ground
  dep loyment, the actual implem entation of th is role is somewhat
  problematical. Planetary orbits are usually quite crowded , mak-
  ing it difficu lt for an artillery vessel to open fire without being
  noticed . Given that one of the CVN A's major adva ntages is the
  fact th at its existence is unknown to the ot her solar nati ons, the
  use of Tsars for th e duty at which they excel most must necessar-
  ily be kept to an absolute minimum. This has led to criticisms th at
  the Tsar is a very expensive toy th at cannot be played with, mak-
  ing it no better th an the ship from which it was modified.
  Only four Tsar-class ships were approved for construction; three
  of thes e are now in service. CVNA analysts predict that there
  should be little need for more such vessels.
  ••--
  II..
  II•..
  II
  
  _~l-~
  CRUISER
  HEAVY
  3)
  I
  4)
  I
  I
  =
  I
  1q}
  \ ~
  ~
  6.2 SHIP SCHE
  o
  Side Vie w
  TSAR
  II
  II
  II
  II
  II
  11
  -
  .,.
  •
  •
  I
  :
  i
  i
  I
  i
  I
  i
  Om
  25
  50
  100
  150
  200
  250
  300
  ~
  Legend
  1
  Forward Weapons Bay
  11
  Railgun Target ing System
  21
  Forw ard RCS Cluste r
  2
  Hangar Bay Doo r
  12
  Railgun Bay
  22
  Comm Antennae (ret racted)
  3
  Rear Hull Vid-Membrane
  13
  Fake Access Bay
  4
  Doc king Hardpoint
  14
  Short Range Sensors
  5
  Drive Fin
  15
  Engineering Airlock
  6
  Drive Fin Mount
  16
  Sensor Cluster
  7
  Engine Mount
  17
  Maintenance Bot Exit Port
  8
  Drive Section Attachment Ring
  18
  Instrument Cluster (extended)
  9
  Hull Support Brace
  19
  Lidar/Rangefinder Emitter
  10
  Emergency Elevat or Access
  20
  Op tical Sensors
  009 4
  
  6.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS [CONT.]
  ....
  II
  II
  II
  II
  II
  II
  •
  •-..
  T
  Tsar
  75
  1.0 g
  5,800 Tons
  2x43MW
  3,580 Tons
  z x sooo KW
  2 x 29,000,000 kg
  Fire Control Radar, Infrared!
  Ult raviolet , Lidar, Low-light,
  Magnetometer, Microwave s,
  Motion Detectors,
  Radcounte r, Search Radar,
  Telescope
  CRUISER
  210
  Name:
  Empty Weight:
  Acceleration:
  Loaded Weight:
  Main Drive:
  Origin:
  Cooperat ive Venusian Naval Adm inistrat ion
  Manufacturer:
  Various Venusian Shipyards
  Type:
  _
  Heavy Cruiser
  Control System:
  Brid ge w!a strohom ical display
  Leng th:
  270 m overall
  Width:
  230 m overall
  Apogee Motors:
  Main Thrusters:
  Front View
  ()
  Specifications
  Secondary Powerplant:
  On board Sensors:
  HEAVY
  TSAR
  !
  150
  I
  100
  3)
  Yb hro'0~lol ?~('--------"'(4
  1
  50
  25
  I
  Om
  Additional Armament:
  T
  Legend
  T
  1
  Sensor Cluster
  2
  Docking Sensor
  3 Auxiliary Antenna Array (retracted)
  4
  Railgun Targeting System
  Fixed Armament:
  Defensive Systems:
  Equipment:
  PDS, 4x Laser Array, Rail Gun, 6x
  CMM, 2x Missile Bay
  Carried Vessels
  Mag Screen
  Escape Pods, Laboratory, Vehicle Bay
  I
  I
  J
  0095
  
  300
  '"":""'" 1
  ,250
  --_. --
  t
  -!"- ...
  Comm Antej,-na'(E,ctE!nded)
  Forw~r~_~e~pons ~y
  Engineering Airlock
  Hangar Bay Door
  Railgun Housing'
  9
  Drive Fin Mount
  10
  . "-1"
  "
  -1-,--"-,,--,,,
  .+-
  .,
  Engine Section
  11
  Hull Support Strut
  12
  . ~----
  A\--~I~
  2
  ,
  "~_..
  25
  ~......
  ·1
  ..
  Drive Fin
  S
  Drive Housing
  .6
  Railgun:Target irigSystem
  ,
  1'7
  Railgun Cover Hinges -"
  8
  Om
  ~
  "1"--'-
  !
  t·
  _.+. ..•
  1
  2
  :3
  4
  .+
  ...
  ~
  6.2 SHIP S C H
  (J
  Tap View
  TSAR
  I
  I
  •
  !
  i
  i
  1
  !.
  (Vi
  II r
  ,
  "I
  II. '===! .'\ '
  t
  ..-.;
  0096
  
  Ii
  II
  II
  II
  II
  B•
  •
  -
  ...
  ~
  Cutaway View
  ()
  CRUISER
  T
  Legend
  T
  1
  Laser Turret (retracted)
  2
  Missile Bay
  3
  Missile Storage
  4
  Bridge
  5
  Hangar
  6
  Equipment/Exo-Suit Bay
  7
  Storage Bay
  8
  Heat Exchangers
  9
  Superconducting Batteries
  10
  Crew Quarters
  11
  Plasma Combustion Chambers
  12
  Reaction Mass Tanks
  13
  Backup Capacitors
  14
  Gas Storage
  15
  Elevator Shaft
  16
  Target ing Center
  17
  Storage Bay
  18
  Storage Heat Exchangers
  19
  Superconducti ng Batteries
  20
  Crew Quarte rs
  21
  Railgun Radiator Fins (retracted)
  22
  Railgun Barrels
  23
  Accelerat or Column
  24
  Railgun Mount
  25
  Railgun Capacitors
  26
  Bulk Storage
  27
  Sensor Pod Access Tunnel
  28
  Sensor Mon itoring Room
  29Primary Optical Sensor Cluste r (ret.)
  30
  Engine Monitoring Room
  HEAVY
  6.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS (CONT.)
  TSAR
  ..... ... .... ...... .. ....... ... .r
  I
  0097
  
  TSAR HEAVY CRUISER
  II•-..
  II..
  II
  IJ..
  II
  ~
  6.3 HISTORY
  The Tsar is a recent development of one of th e older Venusian
  spacecraft designs, the Gao-Tzu de fense cruiser. The or ig inal ves-
  sel used a lot of secondhand technology because the Venusians
  had, at the time, neither the desire nor ability to build a state-of-
  the-art naval fo rce. The Gao-Tzu was used as a local patrol vesse l,
  performing duties th at were gradually taken over by the Imperator-
  class ships . However, since the new ships made use of the new
  Venus ian doctrine of disguising warships, the Gao-Tzu remained
  (and stil l rem ains to this day) the pr imary face of the Venusian
  navy to the rest of the solar system .
  Each of the ship 's three hulls housed a large veh icle bay in their
  forward half for shuttles and fig hters; normally, the Gao-Tzu could
  support four figh ters as we ll as a transport shuttle in each bay.
  The full complement of twelve fighters was impressive for any
  warship of the period, but the lackluster qua lity of the previous
  generation of Venusian fighters redu ced the potential th reat posed
  by the dozen-strong squadron .
  The Gao-Tzu used an aging military sensor cluste r that functioned
  po orly at long ranges. The cluster's computer ban ks oft en had
  trouble processing the enormous amount of data coming from
  th e ship'S large hull sensory elem ents, and th is degraded perfor-
  mance as larger and larger vo lumes of space need ed to be
  scanned and analyzed. In the field , the Gao-Tzu often ended up
  relying on smaller scout ships like the Ch iefta in to spot enemy
  movements and provide it with strateg ic information .
  In 2210, the Board gave the go-ahead to an upgrade program
  that wo uld recycle the agi ng Gao-Tzu into a mo re aggressive class
  of ship . The Tsar proje ct included a comprehensive refit of all the
  Gao-Tzus, during whic h most of th eir mission -criti cal syste ms
  would be exchang ed for mo re modern and better-p erforming
  models. The old sensor array was rep laced with a new, more com-
  pact system with top-of-th e-line capabilities, th e weapons bays
  were moved forward and the front of each hull was slimmed dow n.
  The space left behind by the d isp lacement of the missile bay was
  used for a new, smaller hangar de signed to support exo-armors
  rather than fighters. Automati on allow ed fo r a smaller crew, in-
  creasing th e size of crew quart ers without req uiring more room.
  The main difference betw een the new Tsar class and the olde r
  Gao-Tzu wou ld come from an unexpected place, however. In 22 11,
  agents working fo r Venusian Aerospace Corp 01AC) manage d to
  covertly acqu ire advanced railgun technology from both CEGA
  and Jovian sources . VAC then offered the "new" technology as
  part of its contribution to the project, sign ificantly improving its
  position on the Boa rd of directors and indi rectly placin g it on a
  seq uence of events that wou ld increase its power even more in
  mid-22 12.
  The data submitted by VAC was used to design a new, large railgun
  model known on ly as the Type 21 . This weapon and its support
  equipment was too large to incorporate in the central hul l, but
  also proved impossible to effectively miniaturize. In the end, most
  of one of the Tsar's three hulls was nearly emptied of all its equip-
  ment to make room fo r the gun, whose barrel still jutted out of
  the front of th e hull . In keep ing with Venus ian shipbuild ing policy,
  the weapon was concea led with in a retractable housing. The shape
  of the railgu n hull was alte red to be similar to that of th e new
  "pius-size" cargo pods being used on som e Venusi an freighters,
  thus keeping up the illusion of innocence. Despite their dispa rate
  appea rances, all three hulls were carefully design ed to be bal-
  anced with one another, allowing th e ship to be spun around its
  axis to create a gravity gra dient.
  To maintain appearances, many of the older Gao -Tzus are still in
  service, and some have even been cosmeti cally ba ck-engineered
  to look like th ey used to (with fake gun turrets and other equip-
  ment). The rest have been "scrapped" and re-Iaunched as " new"
  ships with new reg istries. Seve ral of these still make use of old
  t echnology, and are thus safe for visitors and foreign officials to
  board and inspect.
  0098
  
  TSAR HEAVY CRUISER
  sel. 2206·221 1
  "
  Legend
  ~
  1
  Third Primary Hull
  2
  Civilian-grade Sensors
  3
  CEGA-surplus Laser Turrets
  4
  Large Vehicle Bay
  3
  4
  I
  Om
  25
  ~
  f)
  11
  II
  IftI..
  B
  m
  •..
  II
  .
  Gao-Tzu Defense Cruiser: As a local defense ship, the original ship was lightly armed,
  using surplus laser tur rets from CEGA Hachiman-c1ass destroyers and standard missile
  bays. The Gao-Tzu was used as alocal patrolvessel, performing dut ies that were gradu-
  ally taken over by the imperator-c1ass ships. It is to the CVNA's great amusement that
  publications on military powe r rate the Gao-Tzu class (and hence the enti re Venusian
  navy)as "oversized border cutters with delusions of grandeur."
  Each of the ship's three hulls housed a large vehicle bay in their forward half for shutt les
  and fighters; normally, the Gao-Tzu could support four fighters as well as a transport
  shuttle in each bay. Because,of the amount of volume taken up by the bays and their
  ass'Ociated support equipment, the rest of the ship was very cramped, requiring fre-
  t_._quent : ,:w rotations. .
  _
  0099
  
  ~
  6.4 SHIP SYSTEMS-
  . ~ ~ .U. I.r~
  1
  .
  HEAVY
  TSA R
  u•
  II I
  II I
  ...
  Main Powe r Conduits
  CMM Cluster
  Railgu ri Capacito rs
  •
  Ra;lguns
  Laser Turrets
  ,Laser Capacitors
  Missile Bay
  Forward PDS Emitter
  ,.- ,,':1
  Mane~vering Jets
  Fo~~rd RCSCluster
  +. Re~ctionMass Tanks
  Plasma Combustion Chamber
  8;ha-;;-st Cc;lIimator Coils
  EMf'ower Generation System
  Radiator Pane ls
  .......
  ... Backup'..Capacitors
  ...
  Weapon Sys10ems
  ...
  1
  2
  3
  4
  5
  6
  7
  8
  •
  ~-'--~_'" --'-' .........
  •
  Propulsion Sys1o.
  9
  10
  11
  12
  13
  l~
  15
  •. .16.
  , .
  .
  I.
  The plasma drives make up one full th ird of the
  central hull: Part of that space is occupied by the
  reaction mass tankage and the various power con-
  've-rters req'uiredrfor ttle wiiapon systems. The
  power grid supp lies en ergy to the concealed gun
  turrElt;arid laser"pbS 'artilY which are housed in
  th,: outrigger hulls.
  '
  I'r
  The large Type 2.1 r'iiilgun occupies mosfof the
  internalvolume of the gunnery outrigger hull.The
  gun b'arrel Is -only 'about fYid:third of the lerigth;
  though it extends by about 20% once deployed.
  Huge' servomech'iinisms' sjJlinlie'hull to expose
  the gun for firini;j;"redud ng-Itsvulnerability du ro
  "•
  ingCtrans port. Heavyd~tX power co~du its snake
  their way -doWhthe pylon'to'connect the gun di-
  reStly;to the ship :s ";l.a;n p0w.erplants .
  .....
  ..j.
  .j
  1""
  .+.-.....;.--...
  .....
  .....
  '10)
  I '
  •
  ---j--
  Propulsion snd W e a p o n s
  ~....-~.....
  ~~~--~-~-
  ()
  I~~
  .~
  ~
  .
  ...
  ·6·
  i'
  f
  l-
  I
  I
  (I
  II
  II
  II
  •
  •
  I
  00100
  
  T S A R
  ,-
  HEAVY CRUISER
  6.4 S H IP SYSTEMS [CDNT.J
  ~
  I•
  Seneors e nd Life Support:
  ()
  •
  Crew quarters are spread out over all thre~ hulls;
  and are quite comfortable by warship standards.
  As"with all Venusian warships, large numb1ers of
  robots and automated systems reduce the neces-
  sary crew size, allowing for a larger living space
  for each human crewrnernber,
  The main brid ge can be located in eit her of the
  main hulls; the railgun hull conta ins a cont rol cen-
  ter used specifically for targeting the railguns.The
  hull cont aining the brid ge is referred to as the
  command hull; while the other m a i~ hull ha; extr a
  recreational and storage facilit ies and is referred
  to asthe' habitat hull. >
  II
  II
  II
  II
  11•
  ....
  +..L
  .j
  1
  _'_.~Il...-.J
  L
  •
  (3
  .+
  +-
  0.:/
  ..._Y"
  7
  _
  _....0..-, _
  -.
  \
  .... "
  '.
  ~
  ' ~
  //
  i.
  '.\ ~~:_ ':_ >
  ...~
  _. _. -
  !
  ~
  ,
  .-!l;: ,Sr
  J3 : _ '~
  , mm~
  (6
  1V
  I~
  Heat Exchanger
  Superconducting Batteries
  Gas Storage
  Life Support Nodes
  Screen Generators
  9
  10~
  11
  12
  13
  '"
  Sensor Syst:en1s ..
  1
  .Primary Radar Systems
  2
  Laser Ranging and L1DAR Emitters
  3
  Primary Optical Sensor Cluster
  4
  Active Sensor Emitter Antennae
  5
  Secondary Radar Syste m
  6
  r-
  Sensor Cluster
  7
  Docking Sensors
  8
  Planetary Observat ion Sense>¥
  '"
  Life S u p p o r t: Syst:.
  00101
  
  TSAR HEAVY CRUISER
  ____I
  II
  I
  III--
  Ii
  II•
  11
  iii
  II
  T
  6.4.1 Engine Monitoring Roo.,.,
  There are few crew-accessible areas within th e ship 's central hull;
  the Engin e Monitoring Room is one of them. Also known as " Main
  Eng ine ering " (a common but inaccurate term, since not all eng i-
  neering funct ions are supervised from here), this chamber is
  where the activity of the p lasma combustion chambers th at pro-
  pel the vessel is carefully monitored and adjust ed . This roo m is
  used as a preventive measure for reactor mai nte nance; lots of
  data from the engines passes through here, alo ng with oth er
  informati on concerning thrust levels, fuel con sumption and other
  drive co nd itions.
  The Eng ine Mon itori ng Room is located near the middle of the
  centra l section of the ship. It is small, with two chairs in front of
  large conventi on al monitors and control boards. There are exits
  on the left and right sides of the room , and there is enough space
  behin d the chairs for pe ople to easily move th rough th e room
  from one door to the other. Both exits are equipped with blast
  doors th at can be lowered as needed . Escape pods are located
  in sid e co rridors just outside .
  Because of its location, the roo m is also one of the ship 's ma in
  damage con trol nexus. The wall behind th e chairs is t aken up by
  several damage con trol lockers (other DC lockers are scattered
  around the ship). Several main power relays also pass close to the
  mon itoring room, making th is room a crucial componen t of th e
  ship's continued safe operation.
  In battle, this station is always manned and can prov ide th e bridge
  with much more com prehensive (and relevant) data than the com-
  put er-disti lled reports that appear on mon itors. There is little that
  people in this room can do if som ething goes horribly wrong ,
  however; the mon itoring room is as isolated and shielde d from
  the pla sma combustion chambers as any other inhabited area of
  the ship. The monitoring room is act ually one of th e most dan-
  gerous places to be during a battle, as are most central-huilloca-
  tions in Venusian warships.
  T
  6.4.2 Crew Buerters
  Venusians like to cram most of their ship systems into really tiny
  spaces to make more roo m for the crew. As a result, a crewman 's
  quarters on a Tsar-class vessel are somewhat roomier tha n the
  crew qu arters on a CEGA or Jovian warship, th ough not by much.
  The room pictured at right show a spacehand 's cabin, which houses
  two lower ranking technicians. Higher-ranking crew generally rate
  a similar cabin all to themselves; on e of the bunks is removed to
  make roo m for either a larger hygienic facility or a small desk.
  There is room to both sit up and stretch out (the entire roo m
  measures about 3x2x2 meters). The ceiling is still a bit low, bu t
  there is room to unfold a table and chair and sit down fo r a meal
  or to do som e work. Personal items are store d in a wall locker at
  the ba ck of the room, opposite the doorway. There are two
  vidscreens, one of which is large and can function as a window or
  video-mirror.
  -
  -'--'-- -~~-"---~
  001 02
  
  TSAR HEAVY CRUISER
  In the image, a small fe rn in a sealed zero-gee glob ular pot is
  attached to one wall, brin ging a touch of green and life to th e
  room . Such " ecosystems in a bubble" are marketed unde r vari-
  ous trademarks by all the major Venusian corporations, and are
  ext remely popular among ship crews. Each ecosyste m con tains a
  number of plants (and occas iona lly, small anima ls like insects or
  fish) along with enough nutrients and organic recycling bacteria
  to keep the globe's occupants alive for up to a year. Ecosystems
  come in various sizes and shapes; all are completely enclosed in
  shatterproof, flexible plastic casings and require only light (or
  occasi onally small batteries) to function .
  ...
  6.4.3 Targating Cantar
  The ship's awesome main weapon is controlled from th is tiny room
  located within the railgun hul l. The Targeting Center's occupants
  are responsible for util izing the data from the sensor stations
  around the ship and integrating th em into co herent targeting in-
  formation. This is especially important in bombardment situations,
  where the target zone may be only a few met ers in dia meter.
  The overall shape of the roo m is a rough hemisphere facing to-
  ward th e bow of th e vessel. There are screens on the dome, show-
  ing the entire front half of the space around the ship. The rear
  view is not d isplayed since the gun cannot be brought to bear
  there. Wha t most common ly serves as the floor of the room has
  an entry hatch and three seats arranged so tha t th eir occupants
  can look comfortably at the dome, particularly the top part wh ich
  shows where the ship's railguns are currently pointing.
  Targeting data is displayed direct ly on the dome's screens, over-
  laid and incorporated on the view of th e outside world. Individua l
  data screens for each chair bring more specialized information to
  the attention of each gun servant.
  0010 3
  ••--•
  II
  II•..
  II
  
  TSAR HEAVY CRUISER
  ,
  _____----'1
  ...
  B.5.... Interview with e Gunnery Commander
  " In the Targeting Center, I can see everything within a ninety
  degrees of the railguns' muzz les, allowing me to be fully aware
  of any objects that might get in t he way or observers t hat might
  noti ce us. Based on t hat information, coupled with multiple
  close-up visuals of the ta rge t zone , I make th e decision as to
  what size of slug to load , how many shots to fire, and when to
  fire them.
  "The captain of the ship has nothing to do with this process; once
  he says 'fire at will: I can hit the button immediately, or wait unt il
  I've decided the moment is right. The captain can tell me to stand
  down, but he can't give the order to fire. If I decide that the shot's
  not safe, then all he can do is log the incide nt and keep on mo v-
  ing. I've got three such logs on my record . Each time, I've been
  commended for making the right decision. My capta in's not happy
  about it, but it's not my job to make him happy."
  Chu-sa
  CVNAGalim
  Meshenak
  Nomadlozi Moyo
  Rank:
  Current Assignment:
  Name:
  "They call us the 'Hands of God' up on
  the bridge. I th ink it's a sick joke. Just
  because I'm responsible for the target-
  ing and firing of th e ship's artillery bat-
  tery doesn't mea n th at I'm in it to blow
  th ings up . This job is not abo ut hitting
  targets. It's abou t missing everyt hing
  except your target . That's an important
  d istinction when you 're using a weapon
  that can, from orbi t, obliterate everything
  within a two-hundred -meter rad ius.
  OJ
  Crew Organization Chert
  ~ 6.5 SHIP PERSONNEL
  The Tsar has fou r departments, with its design putting a lot of
  pressure on th e We apons Officer and his Gunnery Department.
  Two of both the EME Specialists and Co mputer Specialists are
  assigned to th e Gunnery Department to create a coherent bom-
  bardment firin g team. The First Officer command s the Opera-
  tions Department and the Flight Opera tions Officer runs Fligh t
  Ope rations. The two squads of Marines, though commanded by
  a Lieutenant, fall into the Flight Operations Department. The Chief
  Eng ineer commands the Engi neering Department.
  Captain
  First Officer ............................................................................................................ 1
  Supply Officer ........................................................................................................ 1
  Supply Clerk ................................................................................................ 2
  Aest hetics Specialist ...................... ...............................,........................................ 1
  Mora le Offi cer ............................................................_.................................,......... 1
  ME Specialist ..................................................................................... .................... 6
  Helmsm an/N avigator ........................ ............. .................................... ..... .............. 4
  Weapons Office r .................................................................................................... 1
  Gunner .............................. ........................................................................ 12
  Computer Specialist ....................................................... ....................................... 2
  Chief Engine er ........................................................................... ........................... 1
  Master Engineer ........................................................................... ....... ...... 3
  Engineer .................................................................................................... 16
  Electronics Specialist ................................................................................... 6
  Exo Engineer ............................. .................................................................. 8
  Security Officer ...................................................... .................................... ........... 1
  Security Specialist ........................................ .. ............................................ 8
  Flight Operat ions Officer ....................................................................................... 1
  Deck Officer ........................................................................................... .... 1
  Catapult Specialist s .................................................................................. 4
  Ord nance Specialists .................................................. ... ............. .... ...... .. 8
  Exo/Fight er Pilots ........................... .................. ..... ........ ............ .............. 4
  Marines .................................................................. .. ............................... 10
  II
  I
  II
  It
  II
  II
  II
  II
  •
  ..-
  0010 4
  
  TSAR HEAVY CRUISER
  "The laws governing ship psych ologists are actually internati onal
  conventions that just happen to make a lot of sense. There are
  exceptions, of co urse, such as information involving mu rder or
  treason , but even then , my rights as a practic ing medical officer
  are we ll-protected by Venusian law."
  " Because of my role as a safety valve for th e crew, I am given
  some very unusual job specifications, conside ring who my em-
  ployers are. I am under no circumstances ever to discuss anythin g
  I hear in the course of th ese sessions with anyo ne. I'm not to
  make recordings, and if I do , th ey're not admissible as any kind of
  evidence. I cannot be ordered to divulge any information g iven
  to me in confide nce by any member of the crew; any attempt to
  do so is an offen se punishable by immediate d ismissal.
  II
  Ii
  II
  II
  II
  II
  II•
  ......
  Jun-i
  CVNAGalim
  Meshenak
  Daisuke Asai
  T
  6.5.3 Interview with en Exo-Suit Pilot
  Current Assignment :
  Rank:
  "There are only ten marines aboard this
  ship, so we won't be boarding any large
  ships anytime soon. However, that's not
  ou r job. O ur primary assign me nt is to
  make sure this ship doesn 't get boarded.
  If we were an offensive group, they prob-
  ably wo uld have given us Kitsunes, whic h
  are the be st saboteur 'suits ever made .
  Instead , we all get issued Tanukis, which
  are essent ially roadbl ocks with guns.
  "The Tanukis are stored in th e main hang ar of each hull, and it's
  ou r responsibility to make sure they stay in working orde r.We can
  ge t help from th e techs, but only if th ey're not too bu sy with the
  exos and fighters. I guess I can see the logic, since if the exos do
  their jobs at fu ll effectiveness, we'l l never ge t boarded in the first
  place, bu t it still makes me and the boys feel like second-c1assers
  on this tub."
  Name:
  " In the event th at the ship is_boarded, we sp lit up and ta ke up
  positi on s in each of the s hi p'~ajo r corridors. A Tanuki is so big
  that it fill s the corridor fro m top to bottom , total ly blocking pas-
  sage. W hen boarde rs start coming in, we open fire and hope that
  the ship ma nage s to shoot down any reinfo rceme nts. It might
  seem stupid to use yourself to bloc k a co rridor, but it's th e best
  way to keep the enemy away from th e vita l sections of the ship.
  Anyway, if we get boarded , we're already in deep troubl e any-
  way, so it's either us or the whole ship.
  Tai-sa
  CVNA Dexter
  Siobotnik
  Shifang Zhang
  Rank:
  Current Assignment:
  Name:
  6.5.2 Interview with e Psychologist
  T
  " I serve as th e ship's counselor, talking
  to the crew about the thing s they can't
  d iscuss with each other or the captain.
  For th at matter, I eve n talk to the cap-
  tain about th e things he can't discuss
  with the crew. No matter how hard th e
  mora le officer works , there will always be
  problems aboard a vessel of war, and it's
  my job to ma ke sure those problems
  don't ball oon into instab ilities that will
  get us all killed . I'm one of the few people aboard a ship (along
  with th e chief me dical officer and the fir st officer) who has the
  power to relieve a captain of du ty on the grounds of medical
  unfitness.
  00105
  
  "
  Overell Data:
  I Threat Valuq:327100 1
  Off. TV:
  .
  I
  Det. TV,
  .
  I
  Mise. TV:
  . I
  Cost :
  175.5M
  I
  Ind v.Iemon Diat : 3
  "
  Movement Data:
  Mod.,
  Space
  Combat:S MP (0.5 g)
  Top:10 MP (1.0 g )
  Maneuver:
  -3
  Range:
  2000 hrs
  ReMMs:2000 BPs
  "
  Sactlons:
  I Ix
  Main Hull wlBridge
  I
  1lC
  M.in Hull w/Rail G.....,
  I
  1)(
  Centr al Hull
  I Ix
  Main Hull w/o Bridge
  I
  I
  I
  1
  I
  ."
  Off & Oef S yeteme
  I Ix
  Point DefQn,. System
  I
  3x
  RailGun
  I
  2)(
  Missil. Bay
  I 'x
  laser Array
  6x
  CMM
  I
  I
  I
  ."
  MaIn Data.
  I TV,
  46000
  I
  00. TV-
  93000
  1
  Del . TV-
  10000
  Misc . TV:
  35000
  I
  Cost:
  92M
  I
  Indv .Jemon OiC8:2
  I (Jew,
  36
  I
  Actions '
  7
  I
  Sensors:
  ·2J2 km
  Comm: ·2/ 10 km
  I
  Fir. Control:
  +1
  I
  Type :
  Urn.Prod
  I Hull Size:
  36
  o.fault Size:
  36 I
  A.-~ ,
  100
  Ught :
  100
  I
  Heavy:
  200
  I
  Overitill :
  300
  ."
  Movement Data:
  I Modo,
  Tow ed
  I
  Com bat:
  - I
  Top'
  RlJn~:
  3,000 Ivs
  I
  ReMass :
  ."
  Perka & Flaw."
  Na"",
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Name
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Autopilot
  Lvf 1 Pilot
  HEP:Va<;
  Backup Systems
  life Support
  Fun
  Cargo Bay
  10,000 m3
  Passeng er Accom
  4,000m3
  2x Cataputt
  (600/mass) mls2
  Reinforced Crew
  3
  Computer
  3
  eRE 0 KNO 0 PP3
  Stealth
  2
  Add to Conc ealment
  Difficuh to Mod ify
  All
  Ejection Systems
  Pod s for 40 Peop le
  HEP: R-d
  a
  ."
  Offen.lve a n d Oefenslva Sy.tems:
  aty
  Nam.
  A.-'
  DM
  BR
  A<,
  ROF
  Ammo
  Sp-cial
  M'
  wc
  AC
  2
  Laser Array
  F
  xlO
  7
  0
  +'
  Inf.
  AD2, Cone . (Inst. ), HEAT
  "
  12214
  nla
  1
  PDS (rang.dl
  T
  xl0
  1
  +1
  +6
  Inf.
  AM, Cone. (Inst.), HEAT
  16
  867
  nla
  POS {shi&id>
  FF
  x30
  M.I..
  +'
  +.
  Inf.
  Cone. (1nst.),Def,E-Shld.,H.
  16
  1444
  nla
  3
  eMM
  T
  xlB
  2
  ·1
  +.
  644a
  Conc.{Instant) , Missile
  9
  3'06
  2.7
  1
  Missile Bay
  T
  x30
  s
  -2
  -s
  '0
  Cone. (lost.), HEAT;Missile •
  2644
  2.3
  ."
  Main Dat a :
  N
  23000
  I
  00. N
  46000
  I
  Det. N
  5600
  I
  Misc. TV:
  19000
  I
  Cost :
  32.2M
  I
  Indv.1emon Ok . : 2
  Cre w:
  16
  I
  Actions:
  6
  I
  Sensors:
  OI2km
  I
  Comm:
  0/ 10 km
  I
  Fire Control:
  +1
  I
  TYF""
  Urn.Prod
  HuUS i~ :
  40
  I
  Oftfauh: Size :
  2.
  I
  A.-~ ,
  75
  l>9ht,
  75 I
  Heavy:
  150
  Overkill :
  225
  ."
  Movement OatH:
  Mode,
  Towed
  I
  Combat:
  . I
  Top ,
  - I
  Rang&:
  3,000 m
  I
  R.Mass:
  .
  I
  ."
  Perks & Flaws:
  Name
  Rat ing
  Gam e Effect
  Nam.
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Backup Systems
  Problem Prone
  1 extra lemon Die
  Difficult to Modify
  All
  Reinforced Crew
  3
  Ejection Systems
  Pod s for 20 P&op l&
  Stealth
  2
  HEP: Rad
  4
  HEP; Vac
  Lab Navigation Space 1
  +1 to Nev Space Rolls
  li fe Support
  Full
  Passenger Accom
  2,000m3
  ."
  Offenslvs and DefensIve S yatems:
  aty
  Nam.
  A.-,
  DM
  S"
  A<'
  ROF
  Ammo
  Special
  M'
  WC
  AC
  3
  Rail Gun
  FF
  x70
  7
  0
  +1
  soo..
  Concealed (1rnd>, PH6
  "
  5310
  9
  Section: Main Hull wlRail Gun
  Saction: Main Hull wlo Bridga
  ~
  ~
  ."
  MaIn Data:
  TV,
  .3000
  I
  00. N
  .8000
  1
  Del . N
  10000
  Misc. TV:
  30000
  I
  Cost :
  41 .8M
  I
  Ind\I.lemon Dtce :2
  Crew :
  28
  I
  Actions:
  6
  I
  Sensors:
  -212km
  Comm: -2110 km
  I
  Fire Control:
  +1
  1
  Type,
  lim.Prod
  Hull Size :
  36
  I
  Default Size:
  35
  I
  Armor : 1
  00
  Light ;
  100
  I
  Heavy:
  200
  I
  Overkill :
  300
  ."
  Move men t
  Data:
  Mode:
  Towed
  I
  Combat :
  - I
  Top,
  Range:
  3,000 hrs
  I
  R&Mass:
  .
  I
  ."
  Per k e & Flaws:
  Name
  Rat ing
  Gam . Effect
  Nam e
  Rating
  Gam e Effect
  Backup Systems
  Pass enger Accom
  4,5OOm3
  Cargo Bay
  ro.ooo ee
  Re inforced Crew
  3
  2x Catapult
  (600/man) mls2
  Stealth
  2
  Add to Concealment
  Difficult to Modify
  All
  Ejection Systems
  Pods for 30 People
  HEP: Rad
  4
  HEP; Vac
  Ufe Support
  Full
  ."
  Offen.lva and Defensive Syatems:
  aty
  Name
  A.-<
  DM
  SR
  A<'
  ROF
  Ammo
  Spec ial
  M'
  WC
  AC
  2
  Laser Array
  F
  x20
  7
  0
  1
  lnf.
  A02 , Cone. (Inst.), HEAT
  "
  12213
  nla
  3
  CMM
  T
  xl.
  2
  ·1
  +.
  644a
  Conc .(lnstantl, Missile
  9
  3106
  2.7
  1
  Missile Bay
  T
  x30
  s
  -2
  5
  40
  Cone . (Inst ,), Heat ., Missile •
  2644
  2.3
  Tsar Haavy Cruiser
  Main Hull wlBridga
  ~
  ~
  iii
  rt
  II
  II
  II
  Ii
  IJ
  --•
  00106
  
  ,.
  Main Da"'",
  I TV,
  8100 I os. rv
  o I
  Dol. TV,
  3400
  Mi sc. TV:
  21000
  I
  Cost :
  9.SM
  I
  Ir"Idv.lemon Dice :2
  I
  Cr~:
  10
  I
  Actions:
  5 I
  Sen 5Ol'"S: +214 km
  Comm : +1/15 km
  I
  Fir. Control:
  o I
  Typo'
  lim. Prod
  HuUSize:
  34
  DefaulT: Size:
  20
  Ar rnot":
  7S
  Ught :
  75
  I
  Heavy:
  150 I
  Ov8'fkilt:
  22 S
  ,.
  M ovam a n t Data:
  I Mode,
  Space
  Com~ t :26 (2.6 9)
  To p:
  53 15.39)
  Maneuver:-) Range : ~ , OOO tv-sReMass: lo,OOCI BPs
  ,.
  P a r k a & Flaws.
  N. me
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Nome
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Badup Systems
  Stealth
  2
  Cargo eay
  20,000 m3
  Difficult 10 Modify
  An
  Eject ion System
  Pods for 12 Peop le
  HEP: Roid
  4
  HEP: Vac
  life Support
  Full
  Reinforced Crew
  3
  ,.
  Offensive a n d Dafanslve Systama.
  01,
  N.me
  A"
  OM
  8R
  A«
  ROF
  Ammo
  Special
  MS
  WC
  AC
  ,.
  Meln Date.
  I -w.
  ·
  I
  Off.-w.
  ·
  I
  Oof.-w.
  Mise. TV:
  · I eo."
  - I
  Indv Iomondice: -
  I Crew:
  ·
  I
  Act ions:
  ·
  I
  Senson:
  Com m .:
  · I
  Fire Con trol:
  ·
  I
  Typo'
  I Hull Size :
  ·
  I
  Defaul t Size :
  ·
  I
  BaM Armor :
  Ugh"
  · I
  H•.".,
  - I o-kill,
  "
  Movamant Data.
  I Mod . ,
  · I
  Combat:
  - I
  Top,
  Maneuv er :
  · I
  Rang e:
  ·
  I
  Re. M lIss:
  ,.
  Parks & Flaws.
  N. me
  R~ ing
  Game Effect
  Name
  Rating
  Gam e Effect
  ,.
  Dffanslva and Dafanslva Systams.
  01y
  Name
  Arc
  OM
  BR
  ACC
  ROF
  Ammo
  Speci al
  MS
  WC
  AC
  ,.
  Main DDt...
  I TV,
  - I os.rv
  .
  I
  Dof.-w.
  - I
  Mis e. TV:
  - I
  COst :
  Indv lemon dice: •
  I c,.,,,
  · I
  Actions'
  I
  s.nsors:
  - I
  Com m.:
  ·
  I
  Fire Con trol:
  · I
  Typo,
  I Hull Size:
  ·
  I
  Default Size:
  I
  Base Armor :
  - I
  Ugh"
  ·
  I
  Heavy:
  · I
  OY8rkill:
  ,.
  Movamant DDta.
  I Mod "
  · I
  Com bo<'
  I
  Top'
  - I
  Maneuver:
  ·
  I
  R. ngO'
  · I
  Re . Mass :
  ,.
  Parka & FIDws,
  Nom.
  Rating
  Game Eff ect
  Nom.
  Rating
  Game effect
  ,.
  Dffanalve Dnd Dafanslva S yatama .
  01y
  Name
  Arc
  OM
  "R
  ACC
  ROF
  Ammo
  Special
  MS
  WC
  AC
  ,.
  MDln DDta:
  W
  ·
  I oarv
  ·
  I
  Dol. W
  I
  Misc. TV:
  - I
  Cost:
  · I
  Indv lemon dice : •
  Crew:
  ·
  I
  Act ionl:
  ·
  I
  Sensors:
  .
  I
  Com m.,
  ·
  I
  Fire Con trol:
  - I
  Typo'
  I Hull Size :
  ·
  I
  Default Size:
  ·
  I
  Base AtmOf:
  . I
  light,
  - I
  Heavy:
  · I 0,"",,",
  ,.
  Movamant Deta.
  Mod e:
  ·
  I
  Comb at:
  ·
  I
  Top'
  I
  Maneuv er:
  - I
  Rang e :
  ·
  I
  Re. Mllu :
  ,.
  Perks & Flews.
  Name
  Rat ing
  Game Effect
  Name
  Rating
  G am.Eff~
  ,.
  OffenslvB a nd Defens ive Sylltems:
  01y
  Name
  Arc
  OM
  "R
  ACC
  ROF
  Ammo
  Spec i..l
  MS
  WC
  AC
  ~
  ~
  S e c t io n : C e n t r e l H u ll
  Section: •
  00107
  ~
  ~
  Sectio n: •
  Section: •
  R
  I•
  II
  11•,
  (I
  
  TSAR HEAVY CRUISER
  i
  ...
  ••--•
  II
  IJ
  •
  ~
  PART V: A FATHER'S LEGACY
  As mysteriously as they had opened,
  the hangar bay doors shut themselves
  as Taggart landed his shutt le in the
  cave rnous chamber. He could hea rfans
  blowing outside , and within minutes,
  the bay was fully pressu rized. Cau-
  tio usly, he popped the hatch and
  stepped out into an echoing silence.
  The Satrap-class ship had been float-
  ing dead in space, millions of kilome-
  ters above the plane of the ecliptic. It
  hadn't been easy to find. Antonova-san
  and the rest of the CVNAbelieved that
  Katayam a had rene ged on his word,
  and had already written him off as a
  mistake, blac klisting his entire family.
  A search for Katayama's son, Kinya, had
  turned up nothing; the boy had d isap-
  peared from Venus.
  It was only after carefullyreviewing allof Katayama's old tra nsmis-
  sions that Tagga rt finallyspotted a pattern, revealing a numbe r of
  possible trajectories. It had taken him a few weeks to buy a trans-
  port ship and modify it for his use, and a few months to travel to
  the first likelysearch po int. He had virtually no money left, and he
  would be AWOL long before he could poss ibly get ba ck to Ve-
  nus, but he didn't care. He had waited a long time to meet the
  archite ct of his rescue.
  Taggart wasn't given a chance to get lost. Whenever he walked,
  quiet bells would sou nd, po inting the way. He was distinctly un-
  nerved, but he was determined to forge onward. He tried not to
  think about all the th ings that could possibly be around him, si-
  lently watching, laughing at his blindness. He just followed the
  bells, teeth gritted and jaw set, unt il his outstretched fingers
  pushed up against a human-s ized door.
  The door slid open, and Taggart stepped through. The echoes
  told Taggart that the room was quite large, perhaps a stateroom
  or rec bay.
  "Who the hellare you?" A voice rasped out at him from a corner.
  Taggart jumped.
  "Mischa-san?" he aske d, unce rtain. The voice sounded nothing
  like the one he remem bered. It was weak, tired, and it sou nded
  very young, no more than sixteen yea rs old.
  "No, " the voice snorted. "I'm Kinya. My father's not here."
  "Can you please te ll me where he is?" Tag gart asked, breathless.
  He had so many questions, but on ly one of them really mattered
  at the moment. "I'm Taggart al-Raschid, and I've been looking
  for him for a long time. "
  The boy laughed miserably.
  "You're too damned late, Taggart," Kinya said. "My father's been
  dead for two years."
  *
  *
  *
  A small service robot zipped up next to Tag gart and deposited a
  ste aming plate of someth ing that smelled like oatmeal next to
  him. Taggart sat in du llshock. Kinya had apolog ized for his rude-
  ness, and led Taggart to a seat, but Tagga rt was stilltrying to shift
  mental gea rs.
  "How," he finally managed to whisper.
  "There was an accident just before your rescue," Kinya said, seem-
  ing to gain animation with the presence of a human listene r. "The
  ship tried to keep him alive, but there were n't enough medical
  supplies left."
  00108
  
  TSAR HEAVY CRUISER
  "The ship?" Taggart asked lamel y. His fing er swirled absently in
  th e oatmeal.
  "Yeah," Kinya affirmed. "You knew he was an Executor tec h from
  his record, right? You saw his criminal record, too? Good. " The
  boy to ok a dee p breath, as if preparing to give a long-rehearsed
  speech.
  "See, aft er my mother died, I got sent to schoo l offplanet. My
  fath er paid for everything th rough his job , until he lost it due to
  "perpetual distraction " or something. He joined the com pany's
  naval unit, but he didn 't really fit in there, eith er. Wanted all sorts
  of research equipment th ey didn't see a need for. Finally, they
  got sick of it all and just asked him to leave.
  " He tried to take some ofthe equipment with him. They caught
  him, and gave him a prison sentence. You know how it is. After-
  ward, he couldn't find anyone who wo uld even listen to him, much
  less hire him.
  "Turns out th e stuff he needed was material to upgrade the hobby
  Executor he'd been buildin g since I was born. The Executor was
  supposed to shut down the alarm system s by hacking in, but it
  botched th e job . Nobody found out about it, though. After he
  got out of prison, my father found som e alternate materials and
  started work on the thing again . Eventually, he ran out of money,
  and still nobody woul d talk to him. He kind of lost hope. I t hink he
  was go ing to get the Executor to help him make his suicide look
  like murder, so I could get government benefits. I guess that's
  when he sent a letter to you , asking for help." Kinya paused.
  Taggart nodded, finally beginning to understand.
  "One hundred and twenty years ago," he said slowly, "your an-
  cestor gave almost everything he owned so tha t my fam ily could
  survive. After the Birthing, th e al-Raschids and Katayamas became
  equals. We remembered the debt, but never had a chance to pay
  it. When I got yo ur father's letter, there was no question that I
  would help him." Taggart fe ll silent , and Kinya resumed his verbal
  00109
  catharsis.
  "Th e Executor was still with him when he fo und out that you were
  captured. When he made it take over this ship, it used the entire
  ship's computer system , along with most of th e medical supplies,
  to up grade itself. He used it to crack all those computers, to get
  your ransom. It's scarily smart. It's still growing, too. I th ink it migh t
  even be self-aware , though it might just be faking ."
  "So I never even really spoke to him," Taggart said . Kinya audi-
  bly shrugged.
  "You were talking to th e ship. It was designed to sound like him,
  and it learns really fast. It was starting to sound too much like him,
  so I told it to shut up. It hasn't said anything for a year or so now.
  I fo und the ship same way yo u did, after my father didn't show up
  at Venus. Been here ever since. I can't leave . The ship can hack,
  but it's a lousy navigator. Ran out of fuel. If I send a distress call,
  SolaPol wi ll prob ably be the first to find me, and th is ship is th e
  biggest Edict violati on I can think of, not to me ntion one of the
  CVNA's oh-so-secret warships. We 're st uck out here." Kinya
  seemed to suddenly lose energy. He slum ped over, continuing to
  mutter qu ietly.
  "The stupid robots bring me fo od and clothes and anyt hing else
  I need, but they can't get me out of here. We're dead, " he re-
  peated.
  Taggart fingered his sculpt-clasp thoughtfully. "Not if I can help
  it," he mused. " I'll figure something out. I have to. It's duty."
  •
  II..
  IiiI
  II
  II
  II•
  II
  II
  
  S HAN-YU BAT TL E
  --
  CRUIS ER
  I
  -
  Tzen Ming-Shang, Rising and Reborn, 2100
  "If you destroy a foe, then you have destroyed doubly; the foe's ability to serve
  you has been destroyed, and you have de stroyed yourself in the process of build-
  ing sufficient force to destroy the enemy. Thus, the most dangerous of times is
  when one's power is at its peak , because if one cannot persuade the foe to give up
  withou t a fight, even if th e batt le is won, one's decline and death are certain."
  The second of the new ships to be laid down, the Kadokawa is already proving to
  be a troublesome project. Many of the standardized proced ures that have worked
  flawlessly on the Takizawa project have been dismal failures with the Kadokawa ,
  either because of logistical differences in the construction sites or inadequate per-
  sonnelefficiency. As a result, the Kadokaw a is more than two weeks behind sched-
  ule, much to the chagrin of the real Kadokawa, who occu pies a powerful and se n-
  sitive position just below the Venusian Bank's top echelons.
  Building
  N/A
  N/A
  Building
  CVNA Kadokawa Nami
  CVNA Takizawa Toshiyuki
  Name:
  Launched :
  Launched:
  Status:
  Status:
  Name:
  The namesake of the mightiest warship in the CVNA is a schoo lteacher. Formerly a
  VenusBank exo-pilot, Takizawa-sensei resigned from his post after an exemplary
  career. He invested his earnings wisely, wrote a number of well-received plays and
  self-help manuals, and settled back into his home arcology to do exactly what he
  wanted to do since he was ten years old. Somewhat to his irritation, he has also
  become the Venusian Bank's public-relations posterfigure, an ideal example of the
  sort of peaceful and yet fulfilling life the Venusian society offers . The first of the
  Shan-Yu battlecruisers was named without Takizawa-sensei's permission, and he
  has no stated plans to make any particularly noteworthy use of his award.
  Notable S h ip s
  Ii
  01
  II
  II
  II
  11•
  •
  ....
  00110
  
  II..
  11
  II
  II
  -..
  '['['[00
  C:l3SlnC:l8
  3--'..!-..!-'\18 nA-N'\1HS
  
  B•-
  I1iI
  &I
  II
  II
  SHAN-YU BATTLE CRUISER
  ---
  ~
  7.1 OVERVIEW
  The VenusBank-man ufactured Shan-Yu-c1ass battlecruiser will be
  th e largest military vessel in service with th e CVNA, being at the
  up per limit of size for a ship th at must be di sguised as a reason -
  ably co mmonp lace civilian ship. Two of these colossal vessels are
  currently under const ruction in secret shipyards near Venus, and
  wi ll, when completed , perfectly resemble the largest class of ci-
  vili an cargo haulers used by the Venusians. The massive expen se
  involved in constructing th ese vessels (as we ll as questions relat-
  ing to Venus' need fo r such ships) wi ll probably limit Shan-Yu co n-
  stru cti on to these two vessels unl ess th e political situation in th e
  solar system significantly deteriorates.
  A lthough it is smaller than th e battleships and fleet carriers of
  other nations, the Shan-Yu is more tha n a match for any of these
  ships. Its vast array of firepower, co upled with a respe ctab le
  complement of exos and fighte rs, make the Shan-Yu th e closest
  thing to a one-ship fle et in th e Solar System. The Shan-Yu is also
  designed for com fort; its crew areas are mo re spacious and luxu-
  rious than passeng er quarters on ma ny interplanetary transport
  lines. It is expected that th e Shan-Yu will be the preeminent war-
  ship in the solar system for man y years to come, and the Venusian
  Bank is well aware of the irony in the fact that no other solar na-
  tion will have any idea th at the ships exist at all.
  ,.
  7. 1 • 1 Capabilities
  The Shan-Yu is being desig ned as a self-sufficient battleship able
  to launch long -range attacks, provide support and coordi nation
  for other warships and , most importantly, win any ship-to-ship
  engagement it ente rs. To this end, nearly all the usable space in
  th e ship's vast superstructure has been packed solid with elec-
  tronics, weapons and backup systems . Given the Venusian te n-
  dency to miniat urize eq uipm ent and cram it into the small est
  possi ble space, th e result is a ship that wi ll trul y be able to per-
  fo rm all the tasks that it is de signed to do.
  00112
  
  SHAN-YU BATTLE CRUISER
  In addition to a heavy armament of lasers and missiles, the Shan-
  Yu also mounts a pair of heavy particle accelerators, huge weap-
  ons larger than any other naval particle weapon ever devised .
  On e of these skyscraper-sized weapons is mounted in each of the
  Shan-Yu's secondary hulls, and is capable of coring a battleship
  with a sinqle shot. The cannon make use of ext ensive Venusian
  research into large-scale particle-beam generation and targeting,
  and are more advanced tha n the heavy spinal lasers currently in
  use by the Jovi an Navy.
  The Shan-Yu has two hangar bays, each one able to support three
  comb at vehicles. Each hangar is equ ipped with several catapults
  that deploy from hidden sheaths in the hull. The catapults are of a
  dual-purpose design that allows them to serve as torpedo launch
  rails as well as normal vehicle catapults. The Shan-Yu can, as a re-
  sult, launch any type of Drone, and the contents of its two cavern-
  ous Drone storage bays reflect th is abil ity. When used for torpedo
  launching, the catapu lt rails can be detached from their mounts
  and swiveled like turrets; thi s cannot be done for exo launches,
  because of the much greater stress involv ed in those operations.
  In order to fulfill a pote nt ial role as a fleet command center, th e
  Shan-Yu will have a large strategic op erations cente r, from which
  a flag officer can inte grate and act upon information collected
  from an entire fleet's sensors and communications arrays. How-
  ever, since there is at the moment little need for such a facility in
  the CVNA, it is likely that the first two Shan-Yu-c1ass ships will be
  launched and put into service with incomplete operations cen-
  ters. At later dates (likely after a year or so), the final installation of
  the operations computers and systems will be completed.
  The Shan-Yu is built for long voyages; large sections of its vast
  internal space are given over to storage of water, food , gas and
  other supplies nece ssary fo r long-term human survival. The ship
  also has several large cargo bays that can be fitted out to serve as
  additional living space or hydroponics bays, further extending
  the crew's endurance. Despite this heavy load of material, the
  00113
  Shan-Yu will still be capable of more acceleration than Jovian and
  CEGA battleships. It is hoped th at th is "city in space" arrange-
  ment will allow the Shan-Yu-c1ass ships to spend as little time re-
  fueling and re-equipping as possible, thus keep ing them out of
  publi c sight at all ti mes.
  ...
  7.'1.2 Operational Rola
  The Shan-Yu-c1ass vessels will be able to be assigned to a variety
  of duties, from leading task forces to performin g lone long-range
  patrols. For th e time being , it is expected tha t they will spend
  most of th eir time traversing th e inner solar system, working out
  bugs and undergoing surreptitious field tri als. These ships wil l be
  the height of Venusian warship construction, and will probably
  on ly ever be fully put to the test in th e event of all-out war. The
  project has, in fact, been plagued with complaints that such ships
  are of no use to Venus unless the worst of all possible situations
  comes to pass; they cannot be revealed in peacetime, because
  to do so wo uld remove the element of surprise that so much of
  the Venusian long-term strategy rides upon.
  The common re-
  sponse to such critici sms is that Venus should always be pre pared
  for the wo rst, and that to trust in the goodwi ll of the other solar
  nations is a foll y clearly demonstrated by recent events in th e
  solar system.
  The Venusian Bank is currently assigning crew to the new ships.
  Although both captainswill be employees of th e Bank, other ship-
  bo ard department heads will likely be drawn from the ranks of
  other companies. Although the CVNA is supposed to be a uni-
  fied force th at is free of corporate dist inct ions, th e truth of the
  matter is th at in this case, th e Venusian Bank is unwilling to put its
  most expensive new toy in the hands of another corporati on, and
  is apparently exercising as much of its remaining clou t as it can to
  retain effective control of the Shan-Yu class. The oth er corpora-
  tions are aware of VenusBank's intenti ons, but are relatively un-
  concerned, since the ships' crews will consist of an even mix of
  personnel from all the Venusian corporate factions.
  •
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  SHAN-YU BATTLE CRUISER
  11•
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  7.2 S HIP SCHEMATICS
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  7
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  11
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  12
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  SHAN-YU BATTLE
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  7.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS [CONT.)
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  Modular Armor Panel
  13
  Emergency Elevator Access Bay
  14
  Personnel Airlock
  15
  Particle Beam Housing
  16
  Laser Housing
  17
  Missile Bay
  18
  Enhanced Instrument Cluster
  19
  "RCS Cluster
  20
  Optical Sensor Cluster
  21
  Lidar/Rangefinder Emitter
  22
  Weapon Bay Actuator Block
  23
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  ~
  7.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS [CONT.]
  ()
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  SHAN-YU BATTLE CRUISER
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  7.2 SHIP SCHEMATICS [CDNT.)
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  2
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  Laser Capacitors
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  Recreation Area
  5
  Officers' Quarters
  6
  Gas Storage
  7
  Superconducting Batteries
  8
  'VIP Quarters/Rec Area
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  Workshops
  10
  Superconducting Batteries
  11
  Cargo Bay
  12
  Bulk Storage
  13
  Drone Bay
  14
  Hangar
  15
  Structural Reinforcement
  16
  Plasma Combustion Chamber
  17
  Reaction Mass Tanks
  18
  Primary Elevat or Shaft
  "19
  Strategic Operations Center
  20
  Missile Storage
  21
  Missile Tubes
  22
  Particle Cannon Capacitors
  23
  Laser Turret
  24
  Laser Capacitors
  25
  Particle Cannon Firing Port
  26
  Heavy Particle Beam Cannon
  27
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  Security Office
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  SHAN-YU BATTLE CRUISER
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  7.3 HISTORY
  Venusian bulk freighters are almost the size of the new Jovian
  battleship s, so big that there is really no standardized configura-
  ti on for them. The Shan-Yu-style hull shape isvery comm on, but it
  is modular and mass produced, so some of the freighters only
  use one (with cargo trees or small hulls in the other three " arms"),
  and others use four.
  The engi nes are civili an-grade, which makes the bu lk freighters
  extremely sluggish. The ships are meant to carry hug e amo unts
  of cargo from one point to another, with no stops in between.
  These ships sit at the uppe r limit of practical size fo r cargo ships;
  past this poi nt, it is often more economical to hire Mercurian
  magsail or solar-sail barges to carry one's cargo.
  The Mercurian Merchant Guild is not happy about the fact that
  Venus has these ships, because they take business away fro m the
  Guild. However, the Mercurians have also purchased some ofthese
  ships from the Venusiansto supplement the Guild fleet . The larger
  Martian companies, like Martian Me tals, also own a few bulk
  freig hters fo r use in ferrying large loads of material under short
  notice. Both th e Jovians and CEGA also use bu lk-freighter-c1ass
  ships, but both of the superpowers are capable of constructing
  their own such vessels; the Jovians, in particular, have many large
  vessels with pressurized ho lds, most of th e based off the JAF's
  Gagarin and Lennox-class ships.
  Some bulk freighters are openly armed, but this is rare and re-
  ally doe s little good against modern attackers. Still, a couple of
  KKCs on exte rnal turrets can help to ward off weaker attackers.
  The weapons are modu lar and are attached to hard points as
  needed; control system s are plu gged into existing ship systems
  and are ge nerally of ext remely poor quality. Most bu lk freighters
  do carry a few fighters for defense; these are usually corporate-
  owned security vehicles manned by retired or washed-up mi li-
  tary pilots.
  The Shan-Yu is based off of these ships be cause there are no
  larger civilian ships in Venusian service aside from the Satrap and
  the immense long-transit cargo barge s. They will likely also com e
  in a number of different configu ration s, but most of the differ-
  enc es will be cosmetic, involving fake cargo doors, trees and hull
  add-oris to make the smaller hulls look like the larger hulls. Unlike
  most bulk freighters, the Shan-Yu is designed to be capable of
  handling the stresses of spinning such vast bu lk, thus allowing its
  crew to forgo the ti me-consuming and uncomfortable require-
  ments of spending an entire voyage in zero-gee. This is espe-
  cially important for th e Shan-Yu, given that its mission s are ex-
  pected to last for many month s without any external conta ct. It is
  hoped that crews will find the Shan-Yu at least as livab le as the
  mu ch-loved Satrap-cl ass ships.
  The Shan-Yu's engines will be complete ly different from the ones
  used on the bulk freighters. Compact yet powerful , th e d rives are
  cluste red to gether in the ship's two oddly tiny drive sections, which
  are attached to th e central hull by a set of fragi le-looking struc-
  tural sup ports. Although thi s engine arrangement is acceptable
  fo r the bulk freighters, it pos es some serious problems fo r a war-
  ship whose engines mu st withstand combat damage as well as
  generate uncomm only large amo unts of thrust. The prote ction
  and reinforcement of the drive supports was one of the major
  de sign challenges in creati ng the Shan-Yu. Although the result is
  certainly aesthetically pleasing , only th e ship'Sfield trials will show
  wh ether the effort was a success.
  The first of the Shan-Yus will launch in late 2214. It will have the
  configuration described in the rest of th is chapter, with two large
  hulls containing crew quarters, supplies and hangars, and two
  small hulls containing reaction mass and the ship's primary arma-
  ment. Future Shan-Yu-c1ass vessels, if built, will likely incorporate
  various upgrades; fo r ships of this size and uniqu eness, every ex-
  ample is merely the latest in a series of prototypes.
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  Inany stories tall 'and can cont ain enough equipmentand parts to build a small space
  station. The freighters are capableof spinning to generate gravitYalong their extremi:
  tles, but rare seldom at liberty to do so because of the .Ioose cargo-storage arrange-
  ~ents a~d th~ flimsiness of the eXterio; cargo setup:'As a result, freighter crews must
  exercise for much of their spare time, and must also maintain strict diet ary requirements.
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  The Sha n-Y~ aoes not ~ppe ar very dangerous at
  first giance; even its powerfu l point defense laser
  array do ' not seem v~ry threatening. This all
  changes, however, when the ship deploys its mul-
  tiple hidden turrets and begins firing.Heavy laser
  turrets are housed in the forward section of the
  outrigger hulls, while the rest of the heavy arma-
  ment is found in the gunnery hulls located on ei-
  ther side of the central section.
  The latter is fairly small when compared to the
  rest of the ship,-serving primarily as the main an-
  chor point between the four hull pylons and the
  main propulsion blocks. Strong nano-built spars
  from the core structure, making it extremely rigid
  and sturdy.
  •
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  Primary Laser Turret
  2
  Primary Laser Capacitors
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  4
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  Particle Beam Capacitors
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  Secondary Laser Turret
  7
  Secondary Laser Capacitors
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  Main Power Conduit
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  RCSThrusters
  10
  Reaction Mass Tanks
  11
  Plasma Combustion Chamber
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  Exhaust Collimator Coils
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  EM Power Generation System
  14
  Radiator Fin
  00120
  
  SHAN-YU BATTLE CRUISER
  7.4 SHIP SYSTEMS [CONT.]
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  The ship's main instrument cluster is located at
  the forward end of the central hull. Though itsfiel d
  of vision is severaly restricted by the bulk of th e
  rest of th e ship, its prima ry funct ion is to scan
  ahead for targets and potential dangers. The sides
  and rear of t he ship are covered by a large num-
  ber of smaller detection eleme nts which are all
  networked th rough the main battle computer.
  All of the ship's life·support equipment is located
  in the two main hulls. The gunnery hulls have only
  limited life support capabi lity, since they are only
  manned for maintenance or combat (the latter
  requiring the use of pressure suits anyway). Since
  the ship is so large and the crew sections are far
  from the main engines, only a compa ratively small
  screen generator is used.
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  Heat Exchangers
  9
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  10
  Supercond ucting Batteries
  11
  Local Life Support Systems
  12
  Hangar Life Support Systems
  13
  Screen Generators
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  Optical Sensor Clusters
  2
  Lidar/ Rangefinder Emitters
  3
  Main Instrument Cluster
  4
  Enhanced Instrument Clusters
  SRear Instr ument Cluster s (Retracted)
  6
  Docking Sensors
  7 Microwave Pulse-Ranging Antennae
  00 121
  
  SHAN-YU BATTLE CRUISER
  •
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  7.4.1 SCracegic Operaciana Cencer
  The Strateg ic Operations Center is a room tha t will be present on
  every Shan-Yo. It occupies a larg e spherical vo lume in th e center
  of one of the main hull s, exact ly in the same locat ion as the bridge
  but within th e oppo site hull. The O perations Center's primary func-
  tion is to coordinate fleet activities, but it can also serve as a backup
  bridge if necessary. At all ti mes, operators mo ve between sta-
  ti ons, compiling intellige nce and battle reports with the help of
  the onbo ard computers to present up-to-date tactical advice to
  th e officers in charge . A numbe r of heavy-duty walkways and lift-
  lines crisscross the room to hand le foot traffic, which is much in-
  creased in this roo m com pared to the bridge.
  The ma in level is placed at the "eq uator" of the roo m. Com puter
  terminals and monitors line the wall, alo ng with compact and
  space- saving seating for a large numbe r of operatives. The wall
  mon ito rs are set to show external views of the ship or other im-
  portant data. Two extra floor tiers, commonly called the "Tropic
  of Cancer" and th e "Tropic of Caprico rn," are located midway
  further up and down alo ng the wall. These partial floors are ac-
  cessible via ladders or zero-gee flo ating, and consist primarily of
  walkways aroun d the rim and several extra wor kstations and moni-
  toring panels.
  A large chair sits on a raised da is at the back of the room. It is
  meant for use by the Strate g ic Operations Coordinator, who is
  usually a flag officer. This seat, unlike th e captain's chair on the
  bri dge, is designed not fo r maximum view but rath er fo r easy
  access to human resources; th ere is an endless stream of peo ple
  co mi ng up to the dai s to provide updates, explanation s and ad-
  vice. The Coo rdinator's chai r is surrounded by the majority of the
  room's floor space, which is fitted with clips for fo ld-down chairs
  and a small table/threat board fo r impromptu conferences. From
  this seat, a Venusian admiral can guide the moveme nts and ac-
  tivities of dozens of warships, making use of the Shan-Yu's exten-
  sive comm unications array to assign new orders and ta cti cs.
  T
  7.4.2 Bridge
  The bridge of th e Shan-Yu battlecruiser is a sph erical chamber
  which takes up the same volume as the Strateg ic Operations Cen-
  t er. Just like th e latter, th e entire room can be rotated so that its
  overall gravity grad ient is aligned with the ship's axis (when under
  acceleration) or the outside of the hull (when the ship is under
  rotation). Entry and exit are accomplished via several large hatches
  that line up with the ship's co rridors; in the event of a rotation
  malfunction, emerge ncy cutting tool s stored in a locker on one
  wall allow the bri dge crew to cut their way ou t of the bridge.
  The Shan-Yu's bridge has the same general layout as th e bridges
  of most modern military spacecraft . It has fewer stations tha n the
  SOC, and a much more delicate-seeming fra mework around the
  seats (the eq uipment is just as structurally sound as the ones used
  by other nations, but is more aesthe tically pleasing). The captain
  sits right in the middle of the roo m in a gimbaled seat that can
  swivel to face any di rection in the room and its wall monitors.
  00 122
  
  S HAN - Y U
  B A T ':T LEe R U I S E R
  The rest of th e crew stations are scattered aroun d, above and
  be low the captain's seat, and are all linked t o a walkway and lad-
  ders that ring the bridge. Each crew station is surrounde d by
  mon itors , facing both inward and outwa rd, that complement th e
  "big picture " presented on the main spherical viewscreen. When
  full y active, the bridge is a riot of multimed ia d isplays that a good
  capta in must be able to interpre t and analyze at a glance.
  ~
  7.4.3 Drone Storege
  The Shan-yu has two of these chambers, one in each of the large
  main hulls. Each Drone storage bay is a spacious room with row
  upon row of stored Dron es in shock-resistant polymer cocoons,
  all of th em color and pattern-coded de pend ing on their type.
  Airlocks and clean roo ms must be crossed to access this section;
  th is operation requires secu rity clearance codes known on ly to a
  select few officers. Not onl y are th e Drones themselves cutting-
  edge wo nders arme d with powerful and compact weap ons, but
  the Executor brains used t o pilot them are Edict-restricted, ex-
  tremely advanced and highly prized on the black market. Should
  a Drone be stolen, the ent ire ship's crew would come under in-
  vest igation by Venusian authorities, and th e secrecy of the enti re
  I
  CVNA wo uld be endangered.
  The inner chamber is not designed for casual human access, and
  th ere is little room to mo ve inside be cause of all the machinery. A
  roboti c conveyer similar in design t o the ones used on the Huang-
  Ti-class ships pic ks Drones of the ty pe requested by the fire con -
  trol di rector fro m individual racks. Afte r a br ief automated diag-
  nostic, the conveyor crosses a series of airlocks before putting
  th e Drone inside a tr ansport tube that will carry it to the main
  hangar where the Drone will launch alongside exo-armors and
  fighters. A lternatively, the conveyer can also carry the Dro ne to
  th e hull's rep air bay, where it can be serviced alongside exo-ar-
  mors and fighters. Since the Shan-Yu's Drones lack the delicate
  stealth coverings of the Drones used by the Huan g-Ti , a c1ean-
  room service facil ity is gene rally not required .
  00123
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  'Y
  7.5.1 Interview with a Ceptaln
  Preparing to take command of the Takizawa has resulted in the
  longest stay I've ever had in one part of the solar system . Do ing
  this job isn't about being abl e to spout comp any lines or be the
  stereotypical go od Venusian. The CVNA needs someone who can
  operate on her own, but who also won't let power go to her head .
  After all, out in the big black, the captain is the Venusian Bank.
  I'm just immodest enough to say that I'm definitely the right pe r-
  son for the job.
  "My qu arters are go ing to be huge, almost as large as the admi-
  ralN IP quarters' in the other main hull. Som eon e higher up ob vi-
  ously thought I'd be spending a lot of time goofing off. Ridicu-
  lous. I expect I won't be getting much sleep for the first few
  mo nths. No new ship is free of bugs and gre mlins, and th is is
  probably the most complex vessel eve r built. I'll have to both
  command from the bridge and do hands-on work down in the
  engineering tun nels. It's a wo rthwhi le challenge, th ough . Once I
  get this ship running at full efficiency, it will tru ly be mine."
  Sho-Sho
  CVNA Takizawa
  Toshiyuki
  Darquisa Tamilar
  Name:
  Rank:
  Current Assignment:
  "I worked hard for th is position. I didn't
  get it just because I'm a Bank employee .
  I've been working around spaceships
  since I was nine. I got my first command
  at sevente en, and my record on that ship
  got me everything that came afterward.
  I'm forty-fi ve years old now, and I've
  spe nt maybe a grand tota l of eig ht
  months of that life on th e surface of Ve-
  nus itself.
  The Shan-Yu-c1ass has five departmen ts. Operations is co m-
  manded by the First Officer, Gunnery by the Weapons Officer,
  and Engineering by th e Chief Eng ineer, while Flight Operations
  belongs to the Flight Operations Officer. An additional depart-
  ment is not liste d on the crew roster. Fleet Operations is com-
  manded by the Inte llige nce Officer. Though the Fleet Officer is
  almost always of higher rank than the Ship's Captain, the Ship's
  Captai n is in charge of the ship and retains overa ll authority.
  ~ 7.5 SHIP PERSONNEL
  CD
  Crew Organization Chart
  Capt ain
  First Officer ................................................................................................... ....... 1
  Medical Officer (Dr.) ................................................................... ........................... 1
  EMT ............................................................................................................. 2
  Nurse ..................................................... ...................................................... 2
  Supply Officer ........................................................................................................ 1
  Supply Clerk ................................................................................................ 4
  Aesthetics Specia list .............................................................................................. 1
  Mo rale Officer ............................................................. .......................... ................. 2
  EME Specialists ...... ....................................................... ............ ............... 8
  Helmsman/ Navigator .................................................................................. 4
  Weapons Officer ................................•..................................................... ............. 1
  Gunner ......... ................................................................................................ 4
  Chief Engineer ........................ .................................. ............................................. 1
  Master Eng ineer .......................................................................................... 3
  Eng ineers .......... ......................................................................................... 20
  Electronics Specialist ..................................................................... ............ 10
  Exo Engineer ............................................................................................... 8
  Security Officer .....,......... .........................................................•.............. .............. 1
  Security Specialists ........... ......................................... .................... ... ..... 13
  Flight Operations Officer ............ .......................................... ........ ............... ....... 1
  Deck Officer ........................................................................................................... 1
  Catapult Specialists ............................... ...................................................... 6
  Ordnance Specialists ................................................................................. 12
  Exo/Fighter Pilots .................................. ........................................................... ..... 6
  Mar ines .................................................................•............................................... 10
  II
  II
  II••
  IJ•
  •
  -..
  00124
  
  SHAN-YU BATTLE CRUISER
  " Because thi s ship is so much larger than, say, an Imperator, the
  onboard culture is a lot different. I can't use a lot of fo rce, be-
  cause the crew won 't respect that as much as someone who exer-
  cises restraint and discretion. It's diffe rent in battle. If the ship is
  boarded, I have to manage the internal defense. But that's much
  easier tha n my day-to-day work, because during a boarding ac-
  ti on, I get to shoot first ."
  Ii
  II
  II
  II
  II
  II
  11•
  ..
  IiII
  Sho-i
  Mikiko Nakadai
  CVNA Kadokawa
  Nami
  ~
  7.5.3 In t e r v ie w with an Engineer
  Rank:
  Current Assignment:
  Name:
  "Well, it's going to look nice when it's
  done, but I'm not happy about some of
  the compromises they made in order to
  get th is big boy to look like a cargo
  hauler. Most of th e bi g cargo hau lers
  accelerate and decelerate once per tri p,
  so they don't need much remass. Not
  only will the Shan-Yu have to maneuver
  regularly, but its engin es are a whole lot
  more powerful than normal civvie drives,
  and so they suck up a lot more remass. The end result is that
  those little tanks in the drive section aren't nearly enough to last
  the Shan-Yu th rough a military operation.
  "Oh, I guess there're other things to worry about,too, like the power
  feedsfor those overcompensating particle cannon, or the heat gen -
  eration from the strategic ops center, but if I let myself worry about
  everything at once , then I might as well be a naviga tor."
  "T he answer? Well, they put all the extra remass in the weapon
  hulls, right be hind the particle accelerators, qu adru pling the tota l
  capacity. The problem lies in the plumbing that runs between the
  tanks and the d rive sect ion. It's long, convoluted and overly com-
  plex. The designers assure me that it's all going to work fine, but
  I'm not so sure. On e little kink in the works, and the whole ship
  wi ll be dea d in space. Of course , I hope it doesn't happen, since
  I'm the one who'll have to find a fix, but I just have a bad feel ing
  about it.
  Tai-i
  Iman Dhaliwal
  CVNA Kadokawa
  Nami
  Current Assignment:
  Rank:
  Name:
  7 .6.2 Inter vie w with e Security Officer
  ~
  "This ship 's go ing to be a nightmare to
  manage. The crew is huge. More than
  one hundred people tryi ng t o work and
  live in an encl osed space, you gotta ex-
  pect some serious pro blems. I know how
  roomy the ship is. I've stud ied the sche-
  matics. It sti ll doesn't matter. They'll get
  claustrophobic soo n enough. It'sjust the
  way humans work. We adapt to our avail-
  ab le space and then want more.
  "We Venusi ans, being better than the no rmal crowd, have pro -
  portionally greater abi lity to both adapt and want more stuff. So
  what happens if someone decides to steal something from stores,
  or gets violent because his significant other decided to visit richer
  turf? Well , the good thing is that I've got a pretty well -staffed
  se,furity department on the ship, so it's not as if I have to do ev-
  erything myse lf. Unless I'm overidden by the captain, I can de-
  cide whether someone just needs to be confined to their qu ar-
  ters to cool down for a while, or whether th ey need to be re-
  strained and dropped in the brig.
  00125
  
  .,
  Overall Oete:
  I Threat Value: 144000
  Off . TV;
  Dei. TV:
  Mise. TV:
  Co st :
  331M
  Ind....Ie mon Dice : 3
  .,
  Mov e m e n t Oete:
  1 Mod . ,
  Space
  I
  Combat :S MP (0.5 gll
  Top:10 MP (1.0 gJ
  I
  MaM UY8f':
  -4
  I
  Range :
  2000 hI'S I
  R.Mn s:2500 BPs
  .,
  Bectlons:
  I "
  Main Hull wlBridge
  I
  2x
  Weapon Hull
  I
  1II:
  Centraf Hull
  I "
  Main Hull wlFlHt 8f'idge
  I
  I
  1
  1
  1
  .,
  O ff &
  O s f Byst ems
  I "
  Point Defense S)'Ite«l
  I
  6x
  CMM
  I
  2,
  Missil. Say
  1 . ,
  unr Array
  I
  2x
  P.IMams I
  I
  1
  I
  .,
  Main Oat:a:
  TV,
  ' 5000
  1
  Off. TV
  84000
  0.# . TV:
  1 0ססoo
  I
  Misc. TV:
  - Cost :
  77 .1M
  I
  lndv.lemon Dice: 2
  (Jew.
  42
  I
  Action s:
  7
  I
  5en SOl""s:
  -212km
  I
  Comm: ·2110 km
  I
  Fir. Con trol:
  . ,
  1
  Type '
  Urn.Prod
  Hull Size:
  42
  I
  Default Size:
  36
  I
  ATmo"
  100
  I
  Ught,
  100
  I
  H.~ :
  200
  I
  Overkill:
  300
  .,
  M ovement D a te :
  Modo,
  Towod
  I
  Combat,
  .
  I
  Top ,
  .
  I
  Rang e: 3.<XXIhl'l
  I
  ReMu s:
  .
  1
  .,
  P ark. & F laws:
  Name
  Rating
  Game Effect
  NamilJ
  Rating
  Gamv Effect
  Backup Syst &ms
  Lif. Support
  Full
  Ctr go Bay
  15,000 m3
  Passen ger Accom
  5.5OOm3
  3XClltllpu lt
  (6OOImass) mls2
  Reinforced Crew
  3
  Computer
  3
  eRE 0 KNO 0 PP3
  Stealth
  2
  Difficult to Modi fy
  All
  Eject iOfl Syste ms
  Pod s for SOPeop le
  HEP: Rad
  •
  HEP: Vac
  .,
  Offanslve and Oafaneiva Bystams:
  Ory
  Name
  IV<
  OM
  BR
  Ace
  ROF
  Amm o
  Special
  M5
  WC
  AC
  z
  laser Anay
  F
  ,.zo
  7
  0
  .,
  Inf
  A02, Con e. (Inst.), HEAT ,.
  12214
  nla
  1
  POS (rangftd )
  T
  ,10
  ,
  .,
  . 6
  Inf.
  AM, Conc. (Inst.). HEAT
  16
  867
  nla
  POS (shield)
  FF
  , 30
  Mel.. ., ..
  Inf.
  Cone. (Inst.),Def.E-SNd.,H.
  16
  ,....
  3
  CMM
  T
  ,1.
  2
  ., ..
  644a
  Cone .(lnst.). HEAT, Mis.
  •
  3106
  2.7
  Section: Main Hull wI Fleet Bridge
  Section: Main Hull wlRaii Gun
  ~
  ~
  .,
  Main O ..t:a:
  TV
  23000
  Off . TV:
  46000
  I
  o.f.TV,
  S600
  Misc. TV:
  ,ססOO
  1 Co",
  32.2M
  1
  Indv.1emon [);co, 2
  I Crew :
  16
  I
  Act ion s:
  6
  I
  Sensor s:
  onkm
  I
  Com m:
  0/ 10 km
  I
  Fi,.. Con trol:
  +1
  I
  Type:
  lim.Prod
  I Hull Size:
  40
  I
  Default Size:
  26
  I
  Anno"
  75
  u ght,
  75
  I
  Heavy:
  150
  I
  Ove rkill:
  22 5
  .,
  Movemant Date:
  Moo.:
  Tow ed
  I
  Com bat :
  . I
  Top'
  . I
  Rang e: 3,000 hrs
  I
  ReM ass:
  . I
  .,
  Perk. & Flaws:
  Name
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Name
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Back up Syst~
  Prob lem Prone
  1 ext ra Lemon Die
  Difficult to Modify
  All
  ReinfOfced Cre-w
  3
  Eject ion SY1tems
  Pod s fOf'20 People
  Stealth
  2
  HEP: Rae!
  •
  HEP: Vac
  Lab Navigation Space 1
  +1 to Nav Sp KII Rolls
  Life Support
  Full
  Passe ng .... Acco m
  2.000m 3
  .,
  Offensive and Defensive Bystams:
  Ory
  Name
  IV<
  OM
  SR
  Ace
  ROF
  Ammo
  Speci al
  M5
  we
  AC
  3
  RailGun
  FF
  , 70
  7
  0
  .,
  500..
  Conc ealed (1m dl, PH6
  ,.
  5310
  9
  .,
  M ain Date'
  I TV,
  41000
  1
  Off. TV,
  80000 I
  o.f. TV,
  toooo
  MiK . TV:
  52000
  1 Co",
  8O.6M
  I
  Indv.lemon Di<»: 2
  I c-...,
  42
  I
  Actions:
  7
  I
  SenSOl"S:
  ·212km
  Comm: ·2110 km
  I
  Fire Con trol :
  +1
  I
  Typot:
  Um.Prod
  I Hull Size:
  42
  I
  Default Size :
  36
  I
  A"" o<"
  00
  Ught:
  ' 00
  Heavy:
  200
  Overkill:
  300
  .,
  Movament Oet:a:
  I Modo,
  Towed
  I
  Com bat:
  .
  I
  Top'
  Rang e:
  3,000 tvs
  ReM ass:
  .,
  Parks & Flaws:
  Name
  Rating
  Gam e Effect
  Nam.
  Rat ing
  Game Effect
  Backu p S)" tem s
  lab Tact ics
  ,
  +1 to Tactics rolls
  CArgo Bay
  15,000 m3
  LabLeadershi p
  1
  +1 to Leadersh ip roll,
  3.1( Catapult
  C600lmassl m1s2
  Lif. Support
  Full
  Com put...
  3
  eRE 0 KNO 0 PP3
  Passenger Accom
  S,5OOm3
  Oifficuh:to Mod ify
  All
  ReinfOf"atd Crew
  3
  EjtKt ioo System s
  Pod s fOf'SOPeo ple
  Steald,
  2
  HEP: Rad
  •
  HEP: Vac
  .,
  Offensive and Oefansive Bystsms:
  Ory
  Nam.
  Are
  OM
  6R
  Ace
  ROF
  Am~
  Spac ial
  M5
  WC
  AC
  2
  LaHf' Array
  F
  ,.zo
  7
  0
  .,
  Inf.
  AD2. Cone . (Ins.l, HEAT
  ,.
  12214
  nla
  l
  CMM
  T
  , 16
  2
  ., ..
  644a
  Conc .(lnstantJ. H., Missit. •
  3106
  2.7
  Shan·Vu
  Sact io n : Main Hull w lBrid g e
  ~
  ~
  II
  II
  II
  II
  II
  11
  •
  -...
  00126
  
  l'
  Main Data.
  I lY
  33000
  I
  0/1. rv
  26000
  I
  Do!.rv
  2500
  MisG.lV:
  13000
  I
  Cost :
  181.6M
  I
  Indv.Iemon Dice: 2
  Crew :
  18
  I
  Actions:
  6
  I
  Sensors: -212 km
  Comm: ·2/ 10 !em
  I
  Fite Contr ol: .,
  I
  Typo '
  Lim.Prod
  I Hull Size:
  30
  I
  o.tauh: Size:
  32 I
  An""',
  SO
  Light:
  50
  I
  Heavy:
  100
  lOver-kin:
  ' SO
  l'
  Mov a m e n t
  D a 1:8.
  I Mod e:
  Towed I
  Com bat:
  - I
  Top'
  . I
  Rillnge : 3,000 hrs I
  ReM .ss:
  - I
  l'
  Perka & Flawe.
  Nome
  Rating
  Gam_ Effect
  Na"'"
  Rating
  Game Effect
  Backup Systi&ffiS
  Stealth
  2
  Cargo Bay
  l ,OOOm3
  Diff icuh to Modify
  All
  EjKtion Syst8iTl
  Pods for 20 piK)ple
  HEP: Rae!
  4
  HEP: Vac
  PaS5eng er Accom
  l, 5OOm3
  Reinforced Crew
  3
  l'
  O ffensiv e a n d Daten. lve Byete.....:
  ,
  LaM'f Array
  F
  ><20
  7
  0
  .,
  In!.
  AD2. Cone . (lnst .), HEAT
  "
  12213
  nI,
  ,
  P. Beam
  FF
  .35
  7
  -2
  . 4
  SO
  .A03.Conc.{lmdlHwr.H.;-H4 •
  2559
  5 1
  ,
  MissikiBay
  T
  . 30
  5
  -2
  . S
  40
  Cone..(lrlSO , HEAT. Miu ile
  8
  2644
  2.3
  l'
  Main Data.
  TV
  - I
  0/1. TV
  - I
  Dof.lY
  · I
  Misc:. TV:
  - I
  Cost:
  - I
  IndY lemon dice: •
  Crew ;
  · I
  Act ions :
  ·
  I
  Sen sors:
  · I
  Com m.:
  ·
  I
  Fire Cont rol:
  - I
  Typo,
  Hull Size:
  · I
  Dvt'ault Size :
  ·
  I
  Base AfmOl :
  · I
  li ght:
  ·
  I
  He..lIY:
  - I o-k;ll,
  l'
  Movamant Da1:8.
  Mode:
  - I
  Combat ,
  - I
  Top '
  - I
  Mal"l8UY«:
  - I
  Range,
  - I
  Re. MaS$.:
  l'
  Perk. & Flew••
  Nom.
  Rating
  Game Effect
  N, ,,,,,
  Rating
  Game Effect
  l'
  Offen.lva and Datanelve By.tem••
  01,
  Na"",
  Aro
  OM
  SR
  ACC
  ROF
  Amm o
  SpKial
  MS
  WC
  AC
  ~
  ~
  Section: ex Weepon Hull
  Section: Centrel Hull
  ~
  ~
  Section: •
  Section: •
  •
  •--
  II,•
  II
  I
  II
  l'
  Main Da1:8.
  I lY
  ' 9000
  0/1. rv
  0
  Def.lV:
  '900
  Mise-. lV:
  S6000
  I
  Cost,
  - I
  lndv.lernon Dke: 2
  I Crew :
  24
  I
  Action s:
  6
  I
  s.nsors: +2/ 4 !em
  Comm: + 1115!em
  I
  Fire Cont rol:
  o I
  Typo ,
  Lim.Prod
  I Hull Size:
  32
  I
  Default Size:
  27 I
  An"o"
  7S
  Ugh"
  7S
  I
  Heavy.
  '50
  I
  Over kiU:
  22S
  l'
  Movement Da1:8.
  I Mod . ,
  s"..,.
  I
  Combat,37 MP IHgII
  To p,75 MP (7.5 g)
  Marwuver :
  ....
  I
  R. ng e: 3.000 tvs
  I
  ReM .: 2O,OXl BPs
  l'
  Perke & Flawe.
  N ~m.
  Rat ing
  Game Effecl
  Na me
  Rat ing
  G~me Effect
  BKkup Syst ems
  Sat~ lit e Uphnk
  Carg o Bay
  25 ,000 m3
  Sid Bay
  4
  Four patients
  Diff icult to Mod ify
  All
  Stea hh
  2
  Add 10 C~all'T'l8nl
  Eject ion Syste m
  Pod s for 28 Pe~e
  HEP: R.d
  •
  HEP: vee
  lif e Sup port
  Full
  Reinforced Crew
  3
  l'
  Offenelve end Defenelve By.teme.
  01,
  Na"'"
  Aro
  DM
  SR
  Aco
  ROF
  Ammo
  Special
  MS
  WC
  AC
  00127
  l'
  Main Da1:8.
  l TV
  - I
  0/1. TV
  - I oef.lY
  Misc. 1V:
  - I Co",
  Indv lemon dice: •
  I C_
  ,
  ·
  I
  Act ions :
  - I
  SensO<"
  Com m.:
  ·
  I
  Fire Cont rol;
  - I
  Typo '
  I Hull Size:
  ·
  I
  Defauh Size:
  ·
  I
  Base Arm Ol:
  light:
  - I H."""
  - I o-kill,
  l'
  Movemant Da1:8.
  I Mod.,
  - I
  Combat,
  - I
  Top '
  M ~rwtuvet:
  - I
  R, "9'"
  . I
  Re . M ~ss :
  l'
  Perke & Flewe.
  Nome
  R~t ing
  Game Effecl
  Na",.
  R ~ting
  Game EffiKt
  l'
  Offenelve and Defenelve Bya t e m e.
  O1y
  Na"'"
  Aro
  DM
  BR
  ACC
  ROF
  Amm o
  Sp.aal
  MS
  wc
  AC
  M
  
  SHAN -YU BATTLE CRUIS ER
  II
  II
  "'1Ii'
  ......
  II
  II•
  II
  II
  ~
  PART VI: ..JOURNEY OF THE CORPSE
  There had been barely enough reac-
  tion mass in Taggart's transport to fill
  even one of the Satrap's dozens of
  tanks. Still, it would have to be enough.
  Kinya watched Taggart, acco mpanied
  by a gaggle or service bots , drift in
  th rough the main airlock.
  " So what happens now?" he asked.
  Taggart rem oved his hel met before
  answering.
  " I'll pilot this one home. It' ll need hu-
  man gu id anc e, I imagine. " Taggart
  began to tick off points on his fingers.
  "You stay with the transport, and send
  the distress call when I'm far enough
  away. SolaPol wi ll show up, search the
  ship, find nothing out of the ordinary,
  and tow you back home. Stay coo l, decline to answer any qu es-
  tions, and they'll have no choice but to drop you off at Venus and
  maybe seize the ship, jf they're fee ling really cranky. Either way,
  you 're in the clear. I'll take a roundabout route, making sure no-
  body sees me, and use the remass to get home. I'll sign al you
  when we get close. If all goes well , this ship will be back in Venu-
  sian hands, with SolaPol none the wiser." He'd th ought up the
  plan wh ile rigging th e fue l transfer. It had be en th e best th ing he
  could come up with.
  "There's not much remass there, for a ship this size," Kinya said.
  " It cou ld take years. Wi ll you be okay?"
  "I think so," Tagga rt said . He paused, turning his head side to
  side, sweeping the room with his ears. "I have a lot of ta lking to
  do with a dead man ."
  *
  *
  *
  "We're almost home, Mischa, " Taggart said to a wall camera. As
  he had every day since his rescue, he ran his fingers lightly over
  the sculpt-cl asp at his throat.
  "I know," came the reply, every wall resonating with sound. "The
  journey is almost over."
  It had taken four years, a period double the du ration of his im-
  prisonment by Nakama. This time, though , there had been no
  pain, no desire to escape. The voice had spoken to him the in-
  stant Kinya had left the ship, and Tagga rt had not yet seen a need
  to ask it to be silent. There had been tense mo ments, du ring
  eq uipm ent failures or close flybys, but Mi scha had always been
  there, guiding Taggart through th e dese rted corridors, his robotic
  servants seeing to his every need.
  Along the way, Taggart had bee n allowed to enter th e Executor's
  central node, a freezing room packed solid with data storage drives
  and del icate filigrees of neuronal stalks. The entire system must
  have massed at least two tons. Buried deep in the middle of the
  mass was the original Executor Mischa had built on his hobby
  table, barely four centimeters long.
  "You must have been an amazing man in life, Mischa, " Taggart
  said, leaning against a wall in Kinya's old stateroom .
  "Thank you, Taggart-san, " the voice repl ied . " In life, I tried my
  best. O nly in death did 1actually succeed in accom plish ing any-
  th ing, though."
  "Do you regret th at? Dying to save my life?"
  "I don't think I wou ld ," came the serene reply. "I thi nk I was al-
  ways too focused on what needed to be done to bother thinking
  about what ought to have be en done."
  Taggart nodded. It was the best answer he could expect.
  00 128
  
  SHAN-YU BATTLE CRUISER
  "The ships of the CVNA will be here soon," he murmured . "Wh at
  will you do?"
  "These routin es are abou t to be de leted," the voi ce said immedi-
  ately. "I di dn't care much about the Edicts, but I did thi nk th at
  onc e I'd finished my duty, I shouldn't leave anything of myself still
  in the world."
  Taggart was silent fo r some time .
  " Suicide at last?" he asked qu ietly.
  "No, Taggart, not suicide," the vo ice corrected gently. " It's nice
  of you to think of me as alive, but I died in an accide nt six years
  ago. No w it's just time to turn off the answering machine."
  "You've grown out of that," Tagga rt argued. "In time, you might
  become truly self-aware . You might already be."
  "Maybe," Mischa admitted. "But ifthat were true, then I wo uldn 't
  be able to do this."
  W ith th at, the walls went silent fo r the last time. Taggart waited,
  stunned, but the whole ship had gone quiet . The comm channels
  began to hisswith the sound of approaching CVNA escorts. Barely
  hesrinq them, Taggart al-Raschid sank to the floor and wept for a
  dead friend.
  *
  *
  *
  Few Venusians merited coffin space in the ground of an arcology.
  It was a terrible waste of space . The CVNA obviously felt that it
  owed Katayama more th an a simple cremation.
  Most of the CVNA brass we re in att endance, Taggart noted. It
  was only fitting . Even though the computer was "dead," the files
  and routines that were left in th e central node would keep the
  CVNA's researchers occupied for years. Already, Taggart was read-
  ing reports of how Katayama 's work wou ld give new insight on
  00129
  min iaturizing and enhancing Executors. The most amazing th ing
  was that mu ch of Katayama's work had bee n accomplished, and
  recorded, while he was wo rking in the naval branch a decad e
  ago; nobody had bothered to take his writin gs seriously, and th e
  files were only just now being dredged up and reopened . At the
  head of th e coffin, the chaplain was saying as much.
  "We greatly misjudged Katayama-san in his life," the off ice r
  droned . " But , in doing so, we allowed him to become an ex-
  ample to all of us, a teacher of a lesson many of us have fo rgot-
  ten. In dying for the sake of loyalty, he has inspired others to give
  t hemselves similarly to a higher cause. Let us pray that we may all
  learn from Mischa Katayama, and remember what it means to be
  a Venusian."
  It took hours for the funeral procession to wend its way down to
  the artificia l river and back up. Whe n the ceremonies were all
  over, Taggart and Kinya stood side by side, gently touching the
  ornate ebony marker.
  " It's a new ship ," Taggart was saying . "A Shan-Yu. It needs an
  intelligence officer. I'm not flag rank. I'm not even close. They
  gave it to me anyway." He shook his head, amused. "It's a long
  assignment. I'll probably get back every couple of years. If yo u
  need me, you know how to reach me."
  Kinya nodded without loo king up from his father's grave.
  "They're giving me my father's old job, " he mused by way of
  rep ly. "Probationary, but it's a hell of a start. I'll be here. Look me
  up . You, or anyone else in your family."
  There was nothing left to say.
  Both men bowed deeply before Mischa Katayama's ceno taph.
  When they straightened, they walked off in separate directions;
  remain ing between them was the memory of a man neithe r one
  had eve r tru ly met.
  iii
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  B.1 LIVING AND WORKING
  The CVNA ad heres to the tradition al twenty-four-hou r day cycle
  used on Earth and in the Jov ian Confederation. Smaller CVNA
  ships use a three-shift schedu le for the crew, which splits the crew
  into thirds and alternates them between work-rest-s leep shift s.
  This structure is de signed to allow the crew ample tim e to work
  on any other responsibilitiesthey may have, or simply relax. Larger
  ships, whi ch have more room and larger crews, use a four-shift
  schedu le that reduces crew wo rkload. The four-shift struct ure also
  allows some crewmembe rs to wo rk double shifts . This is an op-
  tion oft en chosen by officers near promotion or crewmembers
  wan ting additional train ing.
  The atmos phe re aboa rd a Venusian ship is very much one of com-
  petitive teamwork. A lthough th e str ict chain of command required
  fo r any milita ry to functi on smooth ly is present in the CVNA , it is
  also an unspoken understanding that everyone on th e ship has
  loy alties aside from the CVNA. This does cause som e issues when
  crew be longs to corporations th at are at odds with one another.
  Venusian intraship politics are essent ially a microcosm of the swirl
  of corporate co mpetition and backstabbing that exists back on
  Venus. Indi viduals with high rank must constantly beware of syco-
  ph ants and excessive ambiti on, wh ile simultaneously encourag-
  ing growth and innovation with in the crew. Enlisted crew work
  closely to com plete projects and earn merit, but are also always
  on the lookout for opportunities to leave their comra des behi nd
  in the race for promotions. In such an environ ment, information is
  power. Security officer ranks are intentionally low, thus balancing
  the massive amounts of personal data they have access to with
  an increased vulnerability to retrib ution from above if misconduct
  should occur. Crewmem bers with highly placed corporate con-
  tacts or other sou rces of favor are both respected and loathed .
  Although it would seem improbab le that a warship cou ld func-
  ,
  tion with all of this subterfuge going on, th e practical reality is
  that th e harsh req uirements fo r surviving in space leave little time
  ENGINEERING
  for actively offensive beha vior aga inst one'spe ers. Crimes are easy
  to track down on a small ship. Lega l issues aside, a rep utation for
  treachery can be as deadly to one's career as any criminal co nvic-
  tion; this basic logic keep s most of th e one-upmanship aboard
  CVNA vessels to a fairly safe mi nimum .
  It is said in the CVNA tra ining scho ols that there is no such thing
  as a bo red Venusian crewmember. Unlike Jovian or CEGA ves-
  sels, a crewmember's free ti me is seldom used for entertainm ent.
  In additi on to physical workouts and training to adv ance one's
  skills and knowledge, a good dea l of internal polit ickin g occ upies
  much of the average Venusian crewmember's tim e. Requests to
  senior officers fo r training or tutoring , taking on of extra projects
  or shift s and active pursuit of friendships in other ship depart-
  ments are all normal and healthy meth ods for Venusian naval crew
  to both survive and th rive in the CVNA.
  A lthough CVNA pe rsonnel are supposed to be free of lingering
  corporate loyalties, the CVNA as a whole is sti ll to o you ng an
  organization to be able to truly expect such easy change from a
  culture built on a century of intercorporate squabbling. Politica l
  pressure and favor-trading results in ships with crews divided along
  lines of company loyalties. One example is the CVNA Karl Krupp,
  whose command crew is mostly drawn from th e Venusia n Bank. A
  recent crew turnover resulted in th e fligh t, engineering and han-
  ga r crews all be ing ex-employees of the Venusian Aerospace
  Corporation. Venus ian psych analysts have noted that, with each
  succeeding month, th e status reports from department heads have
  been increasingly blam e-oriented and accusatory; the ship's overall
  efficiency has dropped twelve pe rcent. Such extreme situations
  are rare, and are quickly remedied by act ions from the CVNA
  high command. However, th e chance for life-th reatening human
  errors remains higher on CVNA ship s th an on warships bel onging
  to other navies.
  001 30
  
  OPERATIONS AND ENGINEERING
  I
  ...
  B. '1. '1 Crew Selection
  Given the secrecy surrounding th e CVNA and its ships, t he
  organization'screwmembers are sup posed to be selecte d fo r their
  loyalty to both Venus and their co rporation. Strings are pu lled ,
  favors are called in and debt s are rep aid to get a position aboard
  one of the new ships .
  Crewmembers are attracted to th e smaller ships, like the Chief-
  tain and Imperator. The amount of presti ge and status that can
  be earned is greater than on a larger ship , where the presti ge is
  spread thinly amongst the crew. The advantage of a large ship is
  that a crewmember is mo re likely to survive an engagement, since
  the larger CVNA vessels have yet to enter com bat with any vessel
  they did not overwhelming ly outmatch . Also, the larger ships usu-
  ally have more recreation areas, larger living areas and a shorte r
  work cycle .
  Oft en, in a con voy of ships, a CVNA vessel most not on ly hide its
  presence from ships of the other solar nations, but also from the
  other Venusian ships in th e convoy. This places varying degrees
  of stress upon the handl ing of any social event that might occ ur
  betwee n th e convoy and the CVNA. Most CVNA captains have a
  prepared list of excuses, prob lems and ot her incidents th at will
  keep the other ships from find ing out its true nature.
  ...
  B . '1.2 Sound the Alerm
  CVNA ships use a number of alert conditions to qu ickly infor m
  the crew as to the ship's current statu s. A ship's condition is d is-
  played on both wall monitors and on each crewmember's pe r-
  sonal data d isplay. In the event of combat alerts, alarms will also
  sou nd .
  o
  CVNA Alert Conditions
  Condition AA : This rare condition is used to de note a state of near complete cessa-
  tion of ship functions. Used when a ship is waiting in dock for cargo loading or in
  other cases when the ship is large ly shut down. Condition AA cancels the normal
  shift schedule for the entire crew, with the exception of the com mand staff and a few
  engineers, who stay on duty to monitor life support status and oth er vital syst ems.
  The crew is unable to leave the ship, but may relax within the bounds of CVNA
  regulations. Condition AA , when declared, seldom lasts for more than tw elve hours.
  Condition A: This condition represents an all-clear status. No rmal shift schedule is
  maintained, and crew recreation activities are permitt ed . The ship 's aesthetics of-
  ficer is free to make use of the hull's vid-membranes, as well as make broadcast
  transmissions for advertising purposes.
  Condition C: Under condition C, the normal shift schedule is maintained, but with
  somewhat t ighter security. Crew recreation is limited in scope, and the hull vid-
  membranes are most likely shut down. Crew offenses committ ed when the ship is
  under cond ition C are punished more severely that offenses comm itted under con-
  dition A. This condition is used when the ship is not in any apparent danger, but the
  captain has reasons to believe there may be troub le approaching.
  Condition L: Condition L is a combat-ready status. Used when approachin g battle
  or encounte ring unknown and potentially dangeroussituatio ns (such asdist resscalls).
  this condition requires all hangar and EVA-trained personne l to report for immed i-
  ate duty. Ship weapo ns are not active, so gunnery crews and the engi neering de-
  partm ent adhere to the normal shift schedule. Under this cond ition, vehicles and
  EVA crews can be launched to either engage in combat or perform rescue opera-
  tions.
  Condition R: Cond ition R is similar to condition L, except that the entire crew must
  be ready to report to batt le stations. All recreational activities are canceled, and the
  entire crew is expected to be able to be at cond ition X or S readiness in less than
  five seconds.
  Condition X: When condition X is declared, the ship's crew is to move to batt le
  stations immediately. Combat maneuvers are imminent, and it is likely that the ship's
  weapons will be activated. Any personnel who would normally be off duty are as-
  signed to damage control teams. The ship is complete ly de pressurized, and the
  gravity wheel, if present, is immediately de -spinned and locked.
  Condition S: Condition 5 also req uires all crewme mbers to be ready fo r duty, re-
  gardl ess of the shift schedule. Condition 5 is used when the ship is trying to avoid
  detection, and is virtually identical in execution to condition X. The difference is that
  under condition 5, the crew must be alert and extremely careful to minimize any
  activity that might reveal the ship's po sition. This status is also used when hiding
  amongst other ships. In that case, the vid-membrane is still active and emissions are
  kept to a level common for the ship that it is hiding as.
  •
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  OPERATIONS AND
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  B.2 DEPLOYMENT
  The CVNA com prise s about one hundred ships, a fraction of the
  fleet power pos sessed by the Jovians or CEGA. Even though the
  individual ships are far more powerful and effective than their
  foreign equ ivalents, the CVNA is still , in sum, the weakest of the
  three major space navies. It will thus be to Venus' benefit to con-
  tinue hid ing their fle et and allowing the rest of the solar system to
  believe that there are only two major space navies in existe nce.
  A few incidents have occurred over the course of the past decade
  that have endangered the secret of th e Venusian fleet's existence,
  but carefu l analyses have reassured the Planetary Advisory Board
  that the dam age was localized and slight. In one case, a docking
  tug near Pyrea Station accidentally rammed a Satrap-class cruiser,
  exposing part of its armored hull to view. The mo dification was
  quickly exp lained as a perfectly sensible customization for a dip-
  lomatic transport, an excuse th at was apparently accepted at face
  value. At the moment, Venusian intelligence sources report that
  th e general perception of the other sola r nat ions is that Venus
  possesses a few ships with unique mod ifications, but no true stan-
  dardized navy.
  CVNA warships are repaired and serviced by authorized person-
  nel at a number of secure spacedocks in stati ons scattered across
  the inner solar system and the Belt . For security, most of these
  facilit ies only have standard civilian-g rade replacem ent parts, so
  a ship in need of rep airs to its military equ ipment will have to
  return to Venus for servicing . This is an obvious logistical weak-
  ness th at has yet to cause any problem s; no CVNA ships that
  have been forced to enter combat have sustai ned damage tha t
  prevented them from either finishing their duties or retu rnin g to
  Venus for full repairs. A few Venusian ships have been lost in ap-
  parent battle, but the evaluations of these cases show that the
  ships were destroyed withou t eve r having the opportunity to try
  to reach a repair site.
  ENGINEERING
  The CVNA's goal in main taining such levels of secrecy is so that it
  can serve Venus' pri mary interest, which is to affect solar politics
  in such a way as to weaken both the Jovians and CEGA and allow
  Venus to take supremacy. With an openly visible navy, Venus would
  only become part of the arms race, effect ively forcing the other
  solar nations to try to match its technology. Venus wou ld also no
  long er be perceived as a peaceful world , which wo uld open it up
  to pote nti al military aggression. Since the other solar nations do
  not know of th e CVNA's existence, th ey will continue to assume
  that their warships, exo -armors and fighters rep resent the pin-
  nacle of human technical achievement.
  With th is assumpti on firm ly entrenched in the minds of both the
  Jovians and CEGA, the CVNA is relatively free to act with cau-
  tion , using gui le, stealth and misdirection to further inflame the
  enmity between the two superpowers, while reinforcing the per-
  ception of Venus as a concerned ally of both nations . Chiefta in-
  class ships eliminate pirates in the Belt, freeing up Jovian resources
  to move further insystem. At th e same ti me, other CVNA ships
  are roo ting out STRIKE faci lities inside the orbit of Mars, allowing
  CEGA to fo cus more of its attention towa rd Jupite r. When the
  Huang-Ti ships are fu lly tested, th ey will begin a series of opera-
  tions to selectively leak classified information from one superpower
  to the other, as well as taking other covert actions to increase
  distrust between the supe rpowers.
  Curre ntly, the CVNA's deployments are geared toward observing
  the acti ons of the superpowers and stress-testing the effective-
  ness of the warships' disguises. As a result, the majority of the
  CVNA is kept near Venus, so th at if a ship req uires assistance,
  help wil l be clo se by. A few Chieftains and Imperators are as-
  sign ed to duties around Mars and in the Belt, but even these are
  to be rotated back to Venu s regu larly. The Satraps and Tsars tend
  to travel betw een Earth and Venus, maki ng simulated cargo and
  passenger runs.
  00132
  
  OPERATIONS AND ENGINEERING
  T
  8.2.1 Ship St:at:us Dascript:ions
  Home Defense: The ship performs patrol and police duties near
  Venus. Local Venus space is extremely bu sy and crowded; both
  accidents and incidents are common. The ship shou ld not acti-
  vate its main weapo ns, but can, if nece ssary, launch vehicles.
  Local Patrol: The ship perfor ms patrol and police duties in the
  inner solar system (not including Mars). The ship respo ndsto ge n-
  eral calls for aid , and otherw ise keeps a low profile and makes
  observations. Main weapons are to be activated on ly in cases of
  extreme danger or need.
  Martian Patrol: The ship is assigned to guard Venusian interests in
  the Martian system. The curre nt atmosphere in th is section of the
  solar system makes th is duty fairly high-risk. Both the Federation
  and the Free Republic have been known to "accidental ly" strike
  Venusian assets, and piracy is rampant. The area's high visibility
  restricts main we apon usage to cases of extreme danger or need.
  Convoy Esco rt: The ship is made part of a shipping convoy of
  civilian vessels, and is responsible for their protection. The ship
  may also travel alo ne, posi ng as a civilian ship in order to lure
  attackers. The use of main weapons is approved if the ship is
  traveling alone. If the ship is part of a non-securi ty-c1eared con-
  voy, actions shou ld be limited to vehicle launc hes unless one of
  the convoy vessels is in immed iate danger.
  Diplomatic Service: The ship is assigned as a diplomatic tr ans-
  port. It can be used to ferry passengers between Venus and the
  oth er solar nations, or assigned as a courier ship for data and
  documents. In rare cases, the ship may simp ly be used in Venus-
  local space for display or parade pu rposes. The captain is autho-
  rized to use forc e to prote ct the ship's passengers and cargo.
  Covert Assignment: The ship is given a specific task to pe rform.
  These are, for the most part, observation missions involving stealth
  and surveillan ce. Sometimes, however, orders are given to plant
  00133
  evidence, sabotage a facility, or quietly elim inate a target vessel.
  These missions are always high-risk. Authorization for weap ons
  use varies according to the nature of the mission.
  Belt Patrol: The ship is assigned to patrol the Belt, protecti ng
  Venusian interests and keeping watch ove r th e various Nomad
  factions. The Belt is home to many cland estine elem ents; th e ship
  is also tasked with reporting any encounters with such group s.
  Weapons usage is strongly discouraged ; the Belt is nominally al-
  lied with th e Jovian Confederation. However, if th e ship is in dan-
  ge r, th e captain may use his or her discret ion to take appropriate
  action in keeping with Venusian interests.
  Spec ial Assignment : A special assignment is any duty not cov-
  ered by the above categories. These will almost always be secret
  missions ordered by the PAB, with very few (or no) physical records
  maintained. The lack of acco untability makes th ese missions ex-
  tremely risky. A large proportion of special assignments is related
  to Edict-violating projects.
  Fitting Out: The ship's hull is complete, and the interior sections
  are being prepared for human habitation. When th is step is com-
  plete, the ship is crewed and launched.
  Build ing: The ship's basic frame has been laid down in a spacedock,
  and th e construction process has begun. After the ship's hull and
  primary systems are in place, the ship is moved to a fitting slip.
  Commissioned: Financial allocationsfor the ship have been made,
  and plans are either in the works or on file . When the pla ns are
  ready and shipyard facilities become available, actual construc-
  tion will begin.
  Refit: The ship has returned to port aft er bei ng in service, and has
  been placed in spacedock fo r replacement of basic ship systems.
  This process is more lengthy than a no rmal maintenance check,
  and often requ ires several months to complete. During this time,
  the crew is reassigned to shore duties.
  ••-..
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  B.3 WAR FOOTING
  When the CVNA was formed, it was understood th at part of its
  pu rpose was to prep are Venus for th e possibility of open war with
  either the Jovian Confederation , CEGA or, in th e worst case, bo th
  of the solar superpo wers at once. Thus, all of the CVNA's activi-
  ties to date have had the dua l purpose of mainta ining the illusion
  of Venusian weakness as we ll as planning for the eventual need
  to fight a full-scale war.
  It is the CVNA's most sincere hope that war will not be necessary.
  Any co nfl ict would be extremely da maging to th e Venus ian
  economy (there are those who argue , in the wake of the Shan-Yu
  financial allocation, that the war effort has already damaged the
  Venus ian economy). War would also signify th at Venus had failed
  in its primary goa l of gaining th e willing and open fri endship of
  th e other solar natio ns, whi ch wou ld mean that decades of hard
  work and financial maneuvering had proven worthless. The blow
  to Venus ian morale woul d be severe.
  There is every sign th at both the Jovians and CEGA are contem-
  plating armed confli ct with Venus. Neither nation has been suc-
  cessful in matching Venus' economic successes. The Jov ians are
  still incensed regarding Operation Methuselah, and many ele-
  me nts in the CEGA cou ncil are beg inning to reg ard Venu sian
  adv ice as a takeover attempt. Even th ough the Jovians and CEGA
  are currently at odds with one ano th er, th ere is a chance, espe-
  cially if the cease-fire con tinues, th at on e or both of the super-
  powers will attempt to remove the perceived threat of Venus.
  It is understood by the CVNA that there would be little hope of
  fighti ng an offensive battle against either CEGA or the Confed-
  eration. The majority of th e fleet would fall back to Venus, where
  it would organize into task forces, each one led by a Shan-Yu-
  class ship. The task fo rces would stay close to Venus, where th ey
  would benefit from the support of the orbital defense batteries.
  The Tsar-class ships, however, would be kept in the reserves, both
  in the event of an enemy ground invasion and for use later on.
  ENGINEERING
  The first battle wou ld be carefully chosen to be as potentially
  da magi ng to th e enemy as possible, since at this point, the CVNA
  would still have the elem ent of surprise. The idea wo uld be to
  lure as many ships into supposed ly undefended Venusian space,
  and then pounce on them with a sign ificant po rtion of th e CVNA's
  complement, eith er wiping out the enemy fleet or capturing them.
  After th isfirst battle, the CVNA's existence wo uld be op enly known,
  and the civilian disguises would no longer be effective. The CVNA
  task forces would then take on fortress-defense roles and pre-
  pare for a long siege.
  Meanwhile, the Huan g-Ti-c1ass ships would pe rform select ive
  strikes against enemy facilit ies, weakening the enemy's war effort
  and lowering mora le. It is hoped that , should war co me to pass,
  Venus wi ll have more than three Huang-Ti-c1ass ships in service,
  such that it wo uld be able to inflict noticeable damage on either
  superpower's assets. Hopefully, allies would come to Venus' aid,
  relieving the siege and allo wing Venus to tak e the offe nsive. The
  enemy fleets wou ld be trapped between th e allied fo rces and
  wiped out. At that po int, the task forces would be ta sked with
  protecting the Tsar-class ships. The forces would travel to the
  enemy nat ion and proceed to force a surrender. Aided by its al-
  lies, Venus wo uld survive the war with acceptable damage to both
  its navy and its or bital facilities.
  A little-know n fact abo ut the CVNA's war plans is that without
  excepti on, all of th eir project ion s that involv e open war with one
  of th e superpowers require the overt aid of th e oth er sup erpow er
  in order to produce any chance of victory. The most optim isti c
  pred ictions state th at, without support, Venus would be overrun
  by eith er CEGA or th e Confederation in about six years. If, fo r
  some reason, the enemy decid ed to forgo a siege and simply
  attack Venus with full force, th e projections drop the likely sur-
  vival ti me to less th an th ree years. Knowing this, the CVNA and
  th e Planetary Advisory Board are focusing all their power to ward
  keeping th e two sup erpowers at odds with one another while
  improving Venusian relati ons with the rest of th e solar system.
  001 34
  
  OPERATIONS AND
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  . . . . .. . . . .
  ENGINEERING
  ...
  8.4.1 Career Path: Navy Pilot
  For the first several years of their d uti es, Venusian pilots do not
  even see the vehicles th ey wi ll eventually pilot. Only after a pilot
  has proven his skill and tru stworthiness in mod ified CEGA and
  Jovian surplus fighters and exos can he get a chance at promo-
  tion into the ranks of the " real" pi lots who are assigned to the
  Venusians' top-of-the-line mach ine s like th e Ryu and Siegfried.
  Thi s is nece ssary because of the secrecy of the Venusia n mili tary.
  Once a pilot is assigned to a Venus ian-bui lt machine , he will have
  few opportunities to fly no n-simulator missions, so it is vital that
  all such pilots are already consummate ly skilled in their primary
  du ties.
  ()
  Aptitudes
  CVNA pilots are expected to maintain both combat and adminis-
  trative skills. Motor skills and mu ltitasking abi lities are essenti al;
  all Venusian-built exos and fighters use linear-frame control sys-
  tems, which require superior balance and physical awareness to
  use effe ctively. The initial Pilot Aptitude Exam tests little more
  than raw talent; if this is present in sufficient quantity, then lack of
  experience can be remedied with intensive traini ng .
  Flight Training School tends to cover basic skills required by all
  pilots, but can be tailored to cover an individual's personal weak -
  nesses (this usually invo lves extra classes and study) .The mentored
  training that follows th e School is essent ially a one-on-one ap-
  prenticeship period with an psycho logic ally-matched experienced
  Venusian pil ot; in this portion of his training , the fledgling pi lot's
  remaining weaknesses are rooted out and remedied, pro ducing
  (in theory) a superior officer and pilot .
  o
  Primary Duties
  In addition to pi loting their assig ned vehicle on patrols and com -
  bat missions, CVNA pilots are also responsible for the upkeep of
  th eir vehicle . CVNA procedure dictates that when working on a
  gi ven vehicle, a technician is under the direct com mand of th at
  vehicle's pilot. If something is done incorrectly, it is thus the pilot's
  own fault. This encourages pilots to be aware of the inner wo rk-
  ings of their machine and also improves their managerial skills.
  Upon retirement, pilots usually receive lucrative and prestigiou s
  positi ons as design consultants and instructors. Most pilot s also
  retu rn to the pilot schools to serve as mentors t o ind ividual pilots,
  gu iding new pilots through the intricacies of space com bat.
  rn
  Sample Career Chronology
  Year 1:
  Nava l enrollment. Basic training. Pilot Aptit ude
  Exam.
  Year 2:
  Flight Training School
  Year 3:
  Mentored training pe riod
  Year 4:
  Assignment to Venus-loca l post
  Year 5:
  Assignment to local patrol
  Year 6:
  Advanced mentored tra ining in Venusian vehicles
  Year 7:
  Assignment to warship flight group
  Year 9:
  Promo tion to Flight Leade r
  &1•..
  IiiI
  Ii..
  II•
  II•
  lJlJ135
  
  OPERATIONS AND ENGINEERING
  ••-
  111I
  II
  II••
  II
  II
  ,.
  8.4.2 Career Path: Naval Officer
  A ll CVNA pe rson nel are volunteers. The age range fo r new re-
  cruits runsfrom eigh teen to thirty years of age, although age does
  pl aya part in on e's training and eventu al potential d uty assign -
  me nts. To be con sidered fo r an officer position (i.e. the head of a
  department aboard a ship), a candidate must either have joined
  the service at a you ng age or possess extensive prior experience
  in comm ercial shippi ng, th e HDF or som e other associated orga-
  nizati on. CVNA off icers must, regardless of background , go
  throug h basic crew training and serve as crewmen for severa l tours
  in order to gai n the experience needed to com mand an enti re
  department and, eventually, an entire ship.
  o
  Aptitudes
  The primary requiremen t for a departmen t head abo ard a war-
  ship is th at he be intimately familiar with every sing le aspect of
  the duties of his subordi nates. A gunnery officer must be ab le to
  operate and service every weapo n on th e ship. A chief engi neer
  mu st be aware of every quirk and undocumente d modification
  present in the ship's systems. Only aft er gaining experience in
  performing the d uties of several positions will a crewm ember be
  recommended by his or her captain for a promotion interview.
  Cand idates who fail th eir promoti on interview may be recom-
  men de d again immed iately by another capta in, or by the same
  captain aft er the passage of one year.
  o
  Primary Dutias
  Naval officers act as midd lemen between the captain and the
  crew. They must possess suffic ient comm and skills to properly
  delegate tasks within their own depart ment, but must also main-
  tai n a camara derie with their subordinates in order to keep up
  good working relationships. Unlike the captain, who is primarily
  an organizer and central processing node fo r the crew, the de -
  part men t heads must still do all th e hands-on work that their sub-
  ordinates do.
  The eventu al goal of mo st officers is to achieve command rank
  and be given a ship captaincy. From th at point, a CVNA officer
  can either wo rk on getting flag rank or eventually leave the CVNA
  in search of a corpo rate executive posi tion.
  ill
  Sample Carear Chronology
  Year 1:
  Nava l enrollment. Basic training . Declaration of of-
  ficer candidacy.
  Year 2:
  Assig nment to orbital dock , various duties .
  Year 3:
  Ope rations School
  Year 4:
  Assignment to local patro l ship as engineering hand
  Year 5:
  Reassignment as navigator
  Year 6:
  Mento red piloting and tacti cs training
  Year 7:
  Assign ment to warsh ip, various crew duties
  Year 9:
  Command School
  Year 10: Assignment to warship as helmsman
  Year 12: One-year tour as training instructor
  Year 13: Assignment to warship as gunnery chief
  Year 14:
  Prom otion to Executive Officer
  00136
  
  OPERATIONS AND ENGINEERING
  'Y
  8.4.3 Career path: Exo Enginear
  Venusian exo-armors are the most complex combat machines ever
  designed, making th ose built by CEGA and the Jovians seem like
  manneq uins by compa rison. The men and women who work on
  these machines are vo lunteers drawn fro m Venus' many engineer-
  ing and technical academies. Generally uninterested in achiev ing
  high military rank, these recru its mostly want to gain field experi-
  ence working under senior engineers, as we ll as face the chal-
  lenge of practic ing their chosen trade aboard a vessel designed
  to be shot at. Success as a naval exo engineer usually results in
  lucrative advisory or teaching posi tions back home. Most aspir-
  ing exo engineers, however, do not make it quite so far and end
  up either retu rning to corporate life or attempting to gain rank by
  transferring over to ship's engineer duties.
  <>
  Aptitudes
  An exo-engineer should be able to completely build an exo-ar-
  mo r or fighter from its base parts. Repairing parts or fabricating
  new parts are additional skills an exo-engi neer should have. To
  gain this high level of mechanica l and electronic aptitude, exten-
  sive training and on-the-job work is an absolute necessity. Not
  only must th is work be made to incredible tolerances, but this
  work could be under battlefield conditions; th e exo eng ineer must
  be able to keep his coo l and concentrate on his wo rk at hand.
  Selection for naval duty is based more on consistency tha n bril-
  liance; to the CVNA, a reliab ly mediocre engineer is of far greate r
  use th an a brilliant eng ineer who only manages to correctly repair
  something ten percent of the time.
  <>
  Prin1ary Duties
  Exo eng ineers are primarily responsibl e for maint aining and re-
  pairing the ir ship's complement of exo-armors and fighters. They
  must work alongside the vehicles' pilots, who are usually less in-
  te rested in new innovations or theoretical designs than they are
  in simply making sure their machine wo rks the way they want it
  00137
  to. Exo engineers participate in most pi lot and deck meetings,
  and are also in charge of the ship's machine shop (if present). In
  addition to their shipboard duties, mo st exo-enqineers also work
  on research projects assigned by CVNA's engineering boa rd. The
  published works that result from these projects can form th e ba-
  sis of an engineer's future in both the CVNA and corporate life,
  making such publications extremely important entries on the typi-
  cal exo-engineer's timetable.
  rn
  Ban1ple Career Chronology
  Year 1:
  Volunteer for the CVNA, Basic Training, Exo-Engi-
  neer Aptitude Exam
  Year 2:
  Basic Mechanics and Material Handling, Proper
  Tool Use Training
  Year 3:
  Assignment to a Depot Repair Facility, Basic Elec-
  tronics and Energy Systems Training
  Year 4:
  Assignment to an Electronic Depot Repair Facility,
  Advanced Energy Systems Traini ng
  Year 5:
  Assignment as a Catapult Specialist
  Year 6:
  Advanced Schooling on Exo-Armaments, Fire Con-
  trol and Gui dan ce
  Year 7:
  Assignment as an Ordn ance Specialist
  Year 8:
  Advanced Schooling on Exo-Armor Design, Repair
  and Upkeep
  Year 9:
  Assignment as an Exo-Engineer
  Year 10:
  Assignment as an Exo Designer, Instructor for Ba-
  sic and Adva nced Training Cou rses
  iii
  m..-
  II
  II
  II•
  II
  II
  
  OPERATIONS AND ENGINEERING
  II
  I
  11-..
  Ii
  II••
  II
  II
  ~
  B.5 DRONES
  A Drone is an unmanned vehicle that is able to pilot itself with
  little or no guidance from a human operator. Drones are useful
  for performing taskstoo dangerous fo r humans. Several Venusian
  ships are equ ip ped with Drones that either deploy from special-
  ized bays or fro m the main hanga r.
  Modern Drones are co ntrolled by rud imentary cybernetic organ-
  isms known as Executors. Con sisting of data storage devices and
  computer processors linked to an organic neura l net, Exec utors
  are legal under the Edicts, but only with certa in limitations. For
  inst ance, although Executors are theoretically capable of exten-
  sive growth (and hence, intellige nce) when supplied with special-
  ized nutrients and hardware upgrades, the Edicts requ ire that
  Drones of a certain age be "starved" or destroyed. Although some
  concerned groups have equated this law to legalized murder of
  chi ldren, the usefu lness of Drones for industrial, research and mili -
  tary applications has prevented any changes in their legal status.
  Class I Drones are simpleminded mach ines designed to find a
  target, get close and blow up. The smart ant i-ship m issiles used
  by the Jovian Jave lin and the CEGA Uller mi ssile cruisers are ex-
  amples of Class I Drones. These Drones require launch rails and
  specia lized targeti ng systems for proper use, restricting them to
  ships that are equipped to handle th em .
  Class" Drones are usually surveillance and non-offensive Drones.
  They are not qu ite as single-m inded as Class I Drones, but are
  still quite devoted . Class II Drones are usually given a single, spe-
  cific instruction, which they will do th eir best to obey.
  ClassIII Drones con tain some of the most advanced Executors in
  com mon use. These Drones are capab le of understanding co m-
  plex sets of instructions and prioritizing tasks based on their own
  judgment. In battle, such Drones are usually armed with exo-ar-
  rno r weaponry and assign ed to combat duty. The use of Class III
  Drones is clos ely monitored by Edicts enforcement offices.
  •
  B.S.'I Class I S h lp k llla r
  D r a n e
  The Shipkiller is a Drone with a death wi sh. The onboard Execu-
  tor has survival programmi ng that enables it to dodge incoming
  fire with great facility, but once it nears its target, a hardwired
  " dumb " computer trigge rs the Drone's de tonation seq uence. The
  warhead is made up of hundreds of submunitions that are launched
  wh en the Dro ne is a f ew kilo m et ers from its t arget . The
  submunitions are propelled by the Drone's detonation to extremely
  high ve locity, and are capable of shredding a ship if th ey hit.
  Class I Drones are unable to use standard hangar faci lities for
  launch and require specia l links to the ship 's systems to down load
  target information . Because they te nd to carry very little spare
  reaction mass, Class I Drones also need to be launched from rails
  in the general d irection oftheir target. As a result, few ships, exo -
  armors or fighters are equipped to handle Class I Drones.
  TV:
  200
  I os,
  180
  I
  DS:
  410
  I
  MS:
  4
  Crew: 0 (Act.: +0) I
  Size:
  4 I
  Default Size:
  6 I
  Armor:
  316/9
  Production Type:
  Mass I
  Indv. Lemon Dice:
  3 I
  Cost :
  $lS0.000
  MOVEMENTMODE:
  Space
  20 (2.0 G) I 40 (4.0 G) I
  Maneuver:
  0
  Deployment Range:
  SOhrs I
  React ion Mass:
  100 BP
  Se nso rs:
  0 / 2 km I
  Ccrn m.:
  0/10 km I
  Fire Cont rol:
  0
  PERKS & FLAWS:
  Autopilot
  Acts as Levell pilot
  Computer
  2
  (CRE 0, KNO 0, PP2. Flexible)
  HEP: Rad
  3
  Protects against up to 1000 rads
  HEP: Vac
  Stea lth
  2
  Add to Concealment
  Brittle Arm or
  Double Armor loss after damage
  Difficult to Modify
  ·2 to modify or repair all systems
  Exposed AUXsystems
  AUX hits are one level worse
  Vulnerable to Haywire
  Haywire attacks cause three damage rolls
  WEAPONS:
  Warhead (FF, BR2, ACC 0, ROF 0, DM x3S, HEAT, SD, WC~180 . MS-4)
  00138
  
  OPERATIONS AND ENGINEERING
  y
  8.5.2 Class I Exokiller Drone
  Exokiller Dro nes are almo st exactly like shipkiller Drones . The only
  difference betwee n the two lies in th e warhead; whereas the
  shipkiller is de signed to attack large, slow-moving targets, the
  exokiller's warhead detonates in a spherical pattern in order to be
  an effective weapon against small and fast exo-armors and fight-
  ers. Cons ide ring th e effe ctiveness of exo-armors against ships, it
  is not surp rising th at many Drone -capable vessels are beginning
  to carry large complement s of exoki llers.
  Class I Drones are widely used by CEGA and the Jovians because
  they are relatively inexpensive and are quite effective. The only
  Venusian warships to use Class I Drones are th e Shan-Yu-c1ass
  battlecruisers, which are still under constr uction. Other Dron e-
  carrying Venusian ships have neither the room nor the special
  launching equ ipment . The Venusians consid er Class I Drones to
  be somewhat brutish weapons, lacking finesse.
  TV:
  340
  I os.
  600
  I os.
  410
  I
  MS:
  4
  Crew: 0 (Act.: +0) I
  Size:
  4 I
  Default Size:
  7 I
  Arm or:
  3/6/9
  Production Type:
  Mass I
  Indv. Lemon Dice:
  3 I
  Cost:
  5300,000
  MOVEMENT MODE:
  Space
  20 (2.0 G) / 40 (4.0 G) I
  Maneuver;
  0
  Deployment Range:
  SO hrs I
  React ion Mass:
  100 BP
  Sensors:
  0/2 km I
  Camm:
  0 /1 0 km I
  Fire Control:
  +1
  PERKS & FLAWS:
  Auto pilot
  Acts as Level l pilot
  Computer
  2
  (CRE 0, KNO 0, PP2, Flexible)
  HEP: Rad
  3
  Protects against up to 1000 rads
  HEP: Vac
  Stealth
  2
  Add to Concealment
  Brittle Armor
  Dou ble Ar mor 1055 after damage
  Difficult to Mod ify
  -2 to modify or repair all system s
  Exposed AUX systems
  AUX hits are one level worse
  Vulnerable to Haywire
  Haywire attacks cause three damage rolls
  WEAPONS:
  Warhead (F, BR 1, ACC +2, ROF 0, OM x20, HEAT, SO, WCQ 300, MS-4)
  Y
  8.5.3 Class II Sentry Drone
  One of the fe w arm ed Class II Drones, sentries are used to guard
  specific locations in space from selected enemies. The onboard
  Executor is capabl e of memorizing th ousands of vehicle configu-
  ration s. However, it is easily confused if too many parameters are
  added to its orders, so these Drones are usually simply told to
  atta ck any unit with an invalid IFF signatu re, regard less of its ot her
  characteristics. Sentries have extremely small reacti on mass re-
  serves; aside from performing stationkeeping duties, these Drones
  are not me ant to move once depl oyed.
  Most sentries are arme d with a sing le, inexp ensive weapon tha t
  is des ign ed for use against exo-armors and fighters. Missile clus-
  ters are popul ar choices, since the y are by nature disposable. Some
  sent ries are armed with lasers from exo -armors, however, and a
  few very large and expensive sentr ies use kinetic kill cannon to
  engage large targets such as warships.
  TV:
  1000 I
  OS:
  310 0 I
  OS:
  7
  I
  MS:
  10
  Crew: 0 (Act.: +0) I
  Size :
  4 I
  Default Size: 10 I
  Armor:
  3/6/9
  Production Type:
  Mass
  I
  Indv. Lemon Dice:
  3 I
  Cost:
  51,2S0,OOO
  MOVEMENT MODE:
  Space
  1 (.1 G) / 2 (.2 G) I
  Maneuver:
  -1
  Deployment Range :
  100 hrs I
  Reaction Mass:
  10 BP
  Sensors:
  +2/ 2 km I
  Ca mm .:
  0/ 10 km I
  Fire Control:
  +1
  PERKS& FLAWS:
  Autopilot
  Acts as Level 1 pilot
  Computer
  3
  (CRE 0, KNO+1, PP3, Flexible)
  HEP: Rad
  3
  Protects against up to 1000 rads
  HEP: Vac
  -
  Stealth
  3
  Add to Conceal ment
  Brittle Armor
  Do uble Ar mor 10 5s after damage
  Difficult to Modify
  -2 to modify or repair all systems
  Exposed AUX systems
  AUX hits are one level worse
  Vulnerable to Haywire
  Haywi re atta cks cause three dama ge rolls
  WEAPONS:
  Auto Missile CT, BR4, ACC -1, ROF4, OMx18, Ammo 16, HEAT,Missile, Stealth , WC-849,
  AC-1, MS-3)
  ••-..•
  II
  II•
  II
  II
  00139
  
  OPERATIONS AND ENGINEERING
  &I
  11
  JJ!I...
  II
  II
  II•
  II•
  ,..
  8.5.4 Class II Elactronic Warfara Orona
  The EW Dro ne is equipped with a powerful ECM pod capable of
  jamming communications and sensor systems . When deployed ,
  it is usually instructed to activate its ECM and then evade enemy
  retaliation for as long as possible. Since ECM transmission s are
  easily traced back to their source , EW Drones have a very short
  exp ected battl efield lifespan, and are thus best used as decoys
  or distracti ons.
  There are no Dro nes equipped with ECCM system s; the Executor
  brains are too unre liable to be given control of such systems on
  the battlefi eld. It is far easier for huma n operato rs to make the
  judgme nt calls needed to prope rly make use of ECCM. Some
  ECM Drones are eq uipped with small decoy systems in an effort
  to increase their survivability, but this is seldom effe cti ve. Even
  th e most advanced EW Drones, which are heavily stea lthed , are
  invisible only as long as they do not activate their ECM pod s.
  TV:
  Z60
  I os.
  0 I os.
  160
  I
  MS:
  6Z0
  c....w: 0 (Act.: +0) I
  Size:
  4 I
  Default Size:
  6 I
  Armor:
  316/9
  Production Type:
  Mass I
  Indv. Lemon Dice:
  3 I
  Cost:
  $195 ,000
  MOVEMENTMODE:
  Space
  15 (1.5 G) 130 (3.0 G) I
  Maneuver
  -1
  Dep loyment Range:
  100 hrs I
  Reaction Mass:
  ZOO BP
  Sensors:
  +l/ Z km I
  Comm.:
  +1/10km I
  Fire Control:
  -5
  PERKS& FLAWS:
  Autopilot
  Acts as Levell pilot
  Computer
  3
  (CRE 0, KNO+l , PP3, Flexible)
  ECM
  4
  Offensive Electronic Wa rfare Equipment
  HEP: R.d
  3
  Protects .g.inst up to 1000 rads
  HEP: V.c
  Ste. lth
  3
  Add to Concealment
  Brittle Armor
  Double Armor 1055 afte r damage
  Difficult to Modify
  -Z to modify or repair all systems
  Exposed AUXsystems
  AUX hits are one level worse
  Vulner.ble to H.ywire
  Haywire attacks cause three damage rolls
  Weapons:
  None
  ,..
  8.5.5 Class II Obsarvar Orona
  Observer Dro nes are used by pi cket ships and scout vessels, and
  the less expensive models of th is Drone are qu ite common. An
  observer Drone is equipped with an extensive sensor suite, and is
  designed to enter a combat zone and transmit valuable informa-
  tion back to its home base. Wh en operating in groups, observer
  Drones can create extremely detailed intelligence images of tar-
  gets by linking their sensor units together.
  The Huang-Ti-c1ass observer ship carries about two dozen ob-
  server Drones, along with an assortment of other Class II Drones.
  The Huang-Ti's Drones are custom-modified to be stealthy and
  have greater endurance, making them more useful in covert op-
  erati ons (the Huang-Ti's Class II Dro nes have 200 BP and Stealth
  6, and are Size 5). The increased size ofthe modified Drones means
  that each of the Huang-Ti's tw o Drone bays can carry a maximum
  of twenty-four Drones.
  TV:
  180
  I
  OS:
  0 I
  OS:
  410
  I
  MS:
  l Z0
  Crew: 0 (Act.: +0) I
  Size :
  4 I
  Def.ult Size:
  6 I
  Armor:
  3/6/9
  Production Type:
  Mass
  I
  Indv. l emon Dice:
  3 I
  Cost:
  $135,000
  MOVEMENTMODE:
  Sp.ce
  ZO(Z.OG) 1 40 (4.0 G) I
  Maneuver:
  0
  Deployment R.n ge:
  100 hrs I
  Reaction Mass:
  100 BP
  Sensors:
  +Z/Z km I
  Comm.:
  +Z / 10km I
  Fire Control:
  -5
  PERKS& FLAWS:
  Autopilot
  Acts as Levell pilot
  Computer
  3
  (CRE0, KNO+l , PP3, Flexible)
  HEP: R.d
  3
  Protects .g.inst up to 1000 rads
  HEP: V.c
  Stea lth
  Z
  Add to Concealment
  Brittl e Armor
  Dou ble Armor loss after damage
  Difficult to Modify
  -2 to modify or repair .11systems
  Expose d AUXsystems
  AUX hits are one level worse
  Vulner.ble to H.ywi....
  Haywire attacks cause three damage rolls
  Weapons:
  None
  00140
  
  OPERATIONS AND ENGINEERING
  T
  B.5.6 Cless III Hunter-Killer Drane
  The most co mplex of Drones, the Hunter-Killers contain the most
  advanced Executors permissible under the Edicts. These Execu-
  tors have a basic sense of self-worth, and are capable of exhibit-
  ing be havioral traits likened to malice or anger. Requ iring many
  mo nths of carefu l nurturing, th ese Executors are extremely ex-
  pensive and are not considered expendable on the battlefield .
  Although hum an lives still take prio rity in emergencies, most cap-
  tains will make efforts to recover all Class III Drones.
  The de cision-making processes of Class III Drones are advanced
  enough such that they can be trusted with weapons and the dis-
  cretion to use them on the battlefield . Hunter-Killer Drones are
  usually arm ed with exo-armor-class weaponry, such as lasers or
  particle beam weapons. Their targeti ng systems are of high qual-
  ity, and they have exce llent fuel reserves. O n t he batt lefield ,
  Hunte r-Killers are skilled dogfig hters, if somewhat pre dictable.
  TV:
  1100 I os.
  940 I
  DS:
  420 I
  MS:
  2000
  Crew: 0 (Act.: +0) I
  Size:
  4 I
  Default Size: 10 I
  Armor:
  4/8/12
  Production Type:
  Mass
  I
  Indv. Lemon Dice:
  3 I
  Cost:
  $1,37S,OOO
  MOVEMENTMODE:
  Space
  20 (2.0 G) 1 40 (4.0 G) I
  Maneuver:
  0
  Deployment Range:
  SO hrs I
  Reaction Mass:
  100 BP
  Sensors :
  +1/2 km I
  Comm.:
  +1/10km I
  Fire Control:
  +1
  PERKS8< FLAWS:
  Autopilot
  Acts as Level 1 pilot
  Computer
  4 (CRE+1, KNO +1, PP4, Flexible)
  HEP:Ra d
  3
  Protects against up to 1000 rads
  HEP: Vac
  Stealth
  2
  Add to Concealment
  Brittle Armor
  Double Armor loss after damage
  Difficult to Modify
  -2 to modify or repair all systems
  Exposed AUXsystems
  AUX hits are one leve l worse
  Vulnerable to Haywire
  Haywire attacks cause three damage rolls
  WEAPONS:
  Laser (FF, BR3, ACC +1, ROF 0, DM x17, LU6, AD1, HEAT, Stealth, WC-468, MS- 4)
  T
  B.6.7 Cless III Hunter-Ripper Drane
  Hunter-Rippers are variants on the Hunter-Killer design. Instead
  of long-range targeting equipment and beam weapons, Hunter-
  Rippers are equ ipped with multiple stereoscopic sensors and ex-
  tra maneuvering jets for pre cise close-quarters maneuvering. Most
  of them are equipped with simple arms and claws that allow them
  to latc h onto a target or grapple with an opponent. The Execu-
  tors used for Hunter-Ri ppers are less metho d ical and more ran-
  dom than those used in Hunter-Killers. This makes them more
  effective close combatants. More advanced Executors have been
  tested (illegally) as Drone brai ns, beyond a certain po int, the Ex-
  ecutors' sense of self de veloped into apparent fe ar, making th em
  uselessas reliab le weapons of war. The current ge neration of Class
  III Drone brains appears to be th e upper limit for a non -sentient
  artificially intelligent soldier.
  TV:
  1800 I
  OS:
  2600 I
  DS:
  420 I
  MS:
  2400
  Crew: 0 (Act.: +0) I
  Size :
  4 I
  Default Size: 12
  I
  Ar mor:
  4/8/12
  Production Type:
  Mass I
  Indv. Lemon Dice :
  3 I
  Cost:
  $2,700,000
  MOVEMENTMODE:
  Space
  20 (2.0 G)1 40 (4.0 G) I
  Maneuver:
  0
  Deployment Range :
  50 hrs I
  Reaction Mass:
  100 BP
  Sensors:
  +1/2 km I
  Camm.:
  +1/10km I
  Fire Control:
  +1
  PERKS8< FLAWS:
  Autopilot
  Acts as Level 1 pilot
  Computer
  4 (CRE +1, KNO +1, PP4, Flexible)
  HEP: Rad
  3
  Protects against up to 1000 rads
  HEP: Vac
  Manipulator Arm
  S
  Can Punch
  Stealth
  2
  Add to Concealment
  Tool Arm
  S
  Holds Plasma Lance
  Brittle Armor
  Double Armor loss after damage
  Difficult to Modify
  -2 to modify or repair all systems
  Exposed AUX systems
  AUX hits are one level worse
  Vulnerable to Haywire
  Haywire attacks cause three damage rolls
  WEAPONS:
  Plasma Lance (F, Melee, ACC +1, ROF 0, DM x17, LU6, HEAT, WC~ 1300,
  MS~4)
  ••....•
  II
  II•..
  II
  00141
  
  . .
  I
  R
  R
  II..
  Ii
  II
  II•
  I
  II
  II
  OPERATIONS AND ENGINEERING
  ...
  8.6.1 Kitsune Commendo Exo-Buit
  Similar in function and size to th e Jovian Decker, th e Kitsune is an
  extreme ly small and agile exo-suit designed to operate stealthily
  in enclosed spaces. Designed by the Venusian Aerospace Co rpo-
  ration , the Kitsune is an expensive and relatively rare unit assign ed
  mostly to covert-operations vessels. The new Huang-Ti-c1ass O b-
  servers will each be assigned tw o squads of these exo-suits, whi ch
  will be piloted by elite commando troops. The Kitsune has no pro-
  vision for arm-mounted weapons, but its nimble hands are capab le
  of using any standard infantry weapons. It is also very agile in clo se
  combat, and can perform rolls, leaps and kicks with grace almost
  equivalent to an unarmored human. Due to its light armor and
  weaponry,Kitsunes make poor shipboa rd defenders. However, th ey
  are unequaled when used as infiltration or sabotage units.
  TV:
  360 I os.
  860
  DS:
  91 I
  MS:
  130
  Crew:l (Act.: +2) I
  Size:
  2
  Default Size:
  7 I
  Armor:
  6/12/18
  Production Type:
  Mass I
  Indv. Lemon Dice:
  3 I
  Cost:
  $630,000
  MOVEMENTMODE:
  Walker
  4 (24 kph) / 8 (48 kph)
  M aneuver:
  +1
  Space
  S (.S G) /1 0 (1.0 G)
  Man euver:
  0
  Deployment Range:
  250 hrs
  Reaction Mass:
  50 BP
  Se nso rs:
  +1 / 2 km I
  Comm.:
  0 / 10 km I
  Fire Control:
  +1
  PERKS & FLAWS:
  Backup Life Suppo rt
  Absorbs first LS hit
  Computer
  1
  (CRE 0, KNO 0, PP1, Flexible)
  HEP: Rad
  3
  Protects agains t up to 1000 rads
  HEP: Vac
  Ufe Support Umited
  Loudspeakers
  2x Manipulato r Arm
  2
  Can Punch
  Difficult to Modify
  -2 to modify or repair all systems
  WEAPONS:
  Assault Rifle (F, BR 2, ACC 0, ROF 3, DM x4, Ammo 80, AI, WC-17, AC=O.Ol , MS=2)
  VibroBlade (F, Melee , ACC +1, ROF 0, DM x6, Inf. Ammo, WC-1 01. MS-2l
  2x Umpet Mine (F, Melee, ACC -2, ROF 0, DM x20, AEO, HEAT, SD, TD, WC=1S0,
  MS=2)
  001 42
  
  OPERATIONS AND
  ENGI N EERING
  T
  B. S .2 T a nukl H aavy Exa-Sult
  The Tanuki appears at first to be an unusually large exo-suit, and
  is in fact classified as such for maintenance and deployment pur-
  poses. From a technical standpoint , however, the Tanuki is actu-
  ally a tiny exo-armor, its mech anized body controlled from a com-
  pact cockpit equipped with a specially-designed linearframe. The
  design is expe nsive but popular, and is th e primary exo-suit used
  aboard CVNA ships. Despite its size, the Tanuki is deadly in board-
  ing actions, both on defen se and offense. The suit's legs can fold
  up into a compact wheeled configuration, allow ing it to quickly
  scuttle along cramped ship corridors . When defending a ship ,
  the Tanuki's size enables it to serve as a massively armored road -
  block that can physically block enemy progress even if disabled.
  The Tanuki can block escape routes, quickly eliminating resistance.
  TV:
  830
  I os. 2
  100
  os.
  220
  I
  MS:
  180
  Crew :1 (Act.: +2) I
  Size:
  7
  Default Size:
  9 I
  Armor: 14/28/42
  Production Type:
  Mass I
  Indv. lemon Dice:
  3 I
  Cost:
  5530,000
  MOVEMENTMODE:
  Walker
  2 (12 kph) 1 4 (24 kph)
  Maneuver:
  0
  Ground
  4 (24 kph) 1 8 (48 kph)
  Maneuver:
  0
  Space
  S (O.S G) 110 (1.0 G)
  Maneuver:
  -1
  Dep loyment Range :
  2S0 hrs
  Reaction Mass:
  100 BP
  Se nsors:
  0/2km I
  Comm.:
  0/1 0 km I
  Fire Control:
  0
  PERKS& FLAWS:
  Backup Life Supp ort
  Absorbs first LS hit
  Compute r
  1
  (CRE0, KNO 0, PP1, Flexible)
  HEP: Rad
  3
  Protects against up to 1000 rads
  HEP: Vac
  Life Support Limited
  2x Ma nipulato r Arm
  7
  Can Punch
  Difficult to Modify
  -2 to modify or repair all systems
  WEAPONS:
  2x Grena de Launchers (F, BR1, ACC 0, ROF 1, OM x15, Ammo 20 (each), HEAT, Missile,
  WC-297, AC-0.93, MS-4)
  Autocannon (F, BR 3, ACC 0, ROF 4, OM x10 , Ammo 250, Clip, WC-176, AC-0.S1,
  MS- 4)
  2x Plasma Lances (F, Melee , ACC +1, ROF 0, OM x15, LU5, AC, HEAT, WC-S90, MS-5)
  00143
  L-..-....
  , .......
  +
  _.~_._.
  1
  .~
  I•
  I•
  I-
  111I
  Ii
  II
  II
  B
  II
  II
  I
  I
  I
  I
  
  APPENDIX
  "
  E
  "
  D
  Cooperative Venusian Naval Ad ministration
  ... 132
  .... 130
  ................ 134
  ...............
  ..
  143
  .
  ~
  ..... ....... ~
  ............ 16
  ..........M
  114
  .94
  1~
  ...~
  Side View, Huang-Ti
  .
  Side View, Imperator .....
  "
  p
  Satrap Transport/Carrier
  70
  Service Designations
  133
  Shan-Yu Battle Cruiser .
  ..
  , 10
  Shift Schedule
  130
  .54
  .. 34
  ..... 14
  ..... 74
  114
  .. 94
  ...... 132
  132
  STRIKE . .
  Side View, Satrap
  ..
  Side View, Shan-Yu
  ..
  Side View, Tsar
  .
  Spacedocks .
  Tanuki Exo-Suit ..
  Side View, Chieft ain
  .
  "
  S
  O perations .
  Top View, Chieftain .
  Top View , Huanq-Ti .....
  Top View, Imperator ..
  Top View, Satrap . .
  Top View, Shan-Yu..
  Top View, Tsar
  ..
  Training
  .
  Tsar Heavy Cruiser
  Planetary Advi sory Board ....
  War Footing
  Venusian Design Principles
  _
  8
  Vid-membranes
  ,
  8
  "
  V
  "
  D
  "
  T
  "
  W
  r
  30
  94
  Huanq-ti Observer .
  Front View, Tsar ..
  Game Stats, Chieftain
  .. 66
  Game Stats, Huang-Ti ..
  ..
  46
  Game Stats, Imperator ...
  ..
  26
  Game Stats, Satrap .. ..
  .
  86
  Game Slats, Shan-Yu
  126
  Game Stats, Tsar
  106
  Gao-Tzu-closs Escort Ships
  ..
  98
  Gravity Grad ient
  .
  6
  Imperator Patrol Cruiser
  ,
  10
  Interview with a Ca ptain _, _,
  .
  124
  Interview with a Cargo Officer .
  ..
  85
  Interview with a Cloak Control Officer
  44
  Interview with a Deck Officer
  8S
  Interview with a Drone Technician
  4S
  Interview with a Exo-Suit Pilot
  105
  Interview with a Fighter Pilot
  65
  Interview with a Gunnery Commander
  104
  Interview with a Helmsman
  64
  Interview with a Mor ale Off icer ..
  _
  6S
  Interview with a N avigator.
  .
  " .. 2S
  Interview with a Pilot
  _
  24
  Interview wit h a Psycholog ist
  ..
  105
  Interview with a Security O fficer
  125
  Interview with a Security Officer
  2S
  Interview with a Sensors/Intelligence Off ic.45
  Interview with an Aesthetics Officer
  84
  Interview with an Engineer
  125
  Intraship Politics
  130
  "
  "
  H
  "
  G
  . 50
  ...... 8
  .
  8
  see CMMs
  CVNA . .......
  Edicts, the
  138
  Executor '" .
  .
  .
  138
  Exo Engineer, Career Path
  ..
  137
  Deployment
  132
  Design Principles, Venusian
  8
  Drone, r:w Type II
  140
  Drone, Exo-killer Type I
  139
  Drone, Hunter-Killer Type III ...
  141
  Drone, Hunter-Ripper Type III
  141
  Drone, Observer Type II
  140
  Dron e, Sent ry Type II
  139
  Drone, Shipkiller Type I
  ..
  138
  Drones
  138
  Cutaway View, Imperator
  .
  Cutaway View, Satrap
  .
  Cutaway View, Shan-Yu
  .
  Cutaway View, Tsar .
  CMMs.
  Chieftain Escort Cruiser .
  Civilian Craft, Venusian .
  Cluster Muni tion Missiles
  see CVNA
  Crew Selection
  130
  Cutaway View, Chieftain .
  .
  57
  Cutaway View, Huang-Ti
  37
  .......... 17
  ....... 77
  ..... 114
  .... 94
  .. 4
  Alarm Conditions, CVNA
  . . 131
  Anatomy of a Spaceship
  6
  "
  C
  "
  A
  •
  II
  II
  II
  JII
  •
  •....
  I
  ~
  "
  F
  "
  K
  Kitsune Exo-Suit
  142
  Front View, Chieft ain ..
  ..
  55
  Front View, Huang-Ti
  35
  Front View, Imperator
  15
  Front View, Satrap
  .
  ..
  75
  Front View, Shan-Yu
  114
  "
  N
  Naval Off icer, Career Path ...
  Navy Pilot, Career Path ...
  .. 136
  ... 135
  001 44
  
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  A .:JOVIAN € HRO NICLES PROJECT
  -------------------
  SHWS.Of Tt-iE .F.Lr=~T Vo.L~M~ fOWR
  .
  VENUS FLEET
  • C00perativ~-Venusian IN
  I
  I
  I
  I
  I
  I
  I
  I
  I
  I
  I-+--+- H- ures'anO·deployment.
  I
  I
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  E1I
  E1
  ;
  IJ
  I
  •I
  by CREAM POC S
  www.dp9.com
  DP9-319
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Dream Pod 9/Jovian Chronicles/319 - Ships of the Fleet 4 - Venus.pdf