Mobile Planetary Survey Bases (MPSBs)

JCab747's picture
JCab747
February 16, 2019 - 4:56pm
Here's an idea I posted on the Star Frontiers Alive & Well FB page. I don't think I ever put it here. It might make a good magazine story with some fleshing out.

It is a very, very big vehicle that is supposed to be on conceptvehicles.blogspot.com. I've dubbed it a "Mobile Planetary Survey Base" or MPSB.

What could the purpose of a mobile planetary exploration base? I could see a group of three of these operating several kilometers apart onVolturnus... Rival groups from Streel, the PGC and Cassidine.

Players could be attached to one of these groups during the Mechanon Revolt and have to make their way back to Volkos.

Type: Mobile Planetary Survey Base

Manufacturers: Pan Galactic, Streel, Cassidine Development and others


Movement
Type: Wheeled or Tracked

Alternative Movement: On planets with water, most MPSBs would be equipped with a supplemental water jet propulsion system to cross rivers, small lakes or inland seas, but they are not generally used for oceans. These vehicles are not submersibles.

Size: 60-75 meters long, 12-16 meters wide, 25-30 meters tall

Power: typically a chemical/fuel cell powerplant (similar to a Size A Chem Drive in Knight Hawks) supplimented by two large power generators along with 4 banks of six Type 4 parabatteries that are used for motion, life support, and general functions. May have supplemental solar arrays for recharging batteries during daylight.

Range: about 4,000 kilometers at maximum power and a life support

Land Speed: Cruise: 15 kph, Top: 25 kph. Hey, these things aren't built for speed.

Water Speed (if applicable): Cruise: 10 kph, Top: 18 kph.

Crew Size: 12 to 16 with temporary accomodations for up to 24 survey crewmembers (8 fold-out triple bunks in what is otherwise a common room/recreation room)

Life Support: These vehicles are generally watertight and can be sealed against hostile environments. Main life support will accommodate 13-20 beings. May or may not have a supplemental life support system.

Robotic support: 0-2 warbots; 0-4 combat and/or security; 0-1 robot brains; 2-4 heavy-duty robots for excavation, quarrying, etc.; 2-4 maintenance; 0-1 medical; 0-2 reconnaissance robots (Eleanor Moraes type); 0-2 repair/engineering; and 0-2 service robots. The number of robots depends on the type of mission and size of the vehicle. On a contested world, such as Laco, the mobile base typically would have a full compliment of warbots and combat/security robots.

Typical Sensors: Type G: Radar, 15-50 km range; Type F: Infrared, Radioactivity, Seismic, Sonar, Ultraviolet, Visual, VS Zoom Lens; Type D: Beam, Intense Light, Parabolic, Direct Micro; Type B: Shape and Odor.

Typical vehicles: 1 jetcopter or aircar (depending upon world); 2 Explorers (or 1 normal Explorer and 1 Heavy Explorer); 2-6 personal vehicles (glijets, land or hover bikes, etc.); 0-2 survey airships (Eleanor Moraes type). If need be, one of the explorers could be swapped out for a Manta mini-sub or Bathyxplorer.

Deck 0: Fly Bridge. At the very top of the Mobile Planetary Survey Base. This is typically an open-air level though models made for hostile environments will have this area enclosed. This is where the antennas and much of the sensing equipment is located. In the open-air configuration, there are four heavy weapon mounting points, two forward and one to either side. Accessed from stairs from Deck 1 A.

Deck 1 A: Main Bridge, computer room, commander's ready room, navigation room, heavy weapons locker (if applicable). Accessed from exterior and interior stairs, 2 elevators (1 passenger, 1 service).

Deck 1 B: Air pad, for the jetcopter or aircar. This is located roughly mid-vehicle. Accessed from exterior ladders/stairs.

Deck 2 A: Recreation, sleeping quarters, common room (auxiliary bunkhouse). Accessed by stairs, ladders, and 2 elevators (1 passenger, 1 service)

Deck 2 B: Engineering Control (accessed from Deck 3 stairs/ladders, central engineering elevator, or exterior doors)

Deck 2 C: Rear Bridge (accessed from Deck 3, stairs/ladder and rear elevator)

Deck 3 A: Forward briefing room, offices, laboratories. Access: stairs/ladders (internal and external), 2 elevators.

Deck 3 B: 2 generators, chemical fuel storage. Access: central and rear engineering  elevators, stairs, ladders.

Deck 4 A: Mess hall, forward observation lounge, additional sleeping quarters, medical, laboratories.

Deck 4 B: generators, chemical fuel storage, life support, parabattery banks.

Deck 5 (sometimes called 4-M): This is a half-level that is normally accessed by technicians and repair robots, it is where much of the plumbing, waste treatment, water/air recirculation and other life support and HVAC systems are located.

Deck 6: Hanger Mezzanine. This is part of the vast hanger level and contains store rooms. On the exterior of the vehicle, more cargo boxes and fuel storage tanks may be mounted. There are vast doors, one forward and one aft, with large cargo elevators/ramps capable of lifing vehicles from the ground to the hanger level.

Deck 7: Vehicle and robot storage, vehicle and robotic repair equipment; crawlspace access to the "drive cars" -- where the external wheels or treads and their electrical motors are located. 

Deployment: Typically the Moble Planetary Survey Base is built at an industrial world, loaded onto a system ship/lander, which is then towed to the appropriate star system by a Void jump-capable tug.

Cost: Big Credit-Os (OK. I need to calculate the cost)

Use: a MPSB is part exploration vessel, part home base/resupply and repair shop, part laboratory, and part light manufacturing facility. The megacorporations will deploy these mobile bases in groups of three that may be 1-2 days apart from each other via ground or jetcopter flight. In addition to its own crew, it may service 0-8 other exploration teams that may be equipped with Explorers, Heavy Explorers or ARCs (see Frontier Explorer magazine), that are conducting their own scouting missions.

Most MPSBs have 4 coats of spray armor already applied to their exteriors. They typically do not mount weapons though exterior mounts are usually already in set locations that can accept man-portable heavy weapons (the typical heavy laser, sonic devastator, rocket launcher, etc.).

They have 2 powerful spotlights mounted on towers, one to either side of the front of the vehicle, that can cover a 270-degree arc (both cover the forward hemisphere while the left light can cover the leftside of the vehicle and the right light the right side). Plus there are supplemental external lights.

If needed, two medium turrets can be mounted to the MPSB to carry vehicle heavy weapons, though this will reduce its cargo/laboratory/passenger carrying capabilities. Usually that's why warbots maybe assigned to help escort the vehicle backed up by armed vehicles.


Joe Cabadas
Comments:

JCab747's picture
JCab747
February 16, 2019 - 5:05pm
Or, I may have posted this information before, but I can't seem to find it when searching through my previous postings. Is it possible some information has been zapped off of this website when it's gone down?
Joe Cabadas

JCab747's picture
JCab747
February 16, 2019 - 6:45pm
An idea for what one might look like:

Image result for planetary exploration vehicle

Joe Cabadas

JCab747's picture
JCab747
February 16, 2019 - 6:46pm
Or this one:

Image result for planetary exploration vehicle
Joe Cabadas

JCab747's picture
JCab747
February 16, 2019 - 8:32pm
I went to the Knight Hawks rules to try to get a cost estimate for one of these things.

Let's see, for size, it would fall around a HS 4.5 craft. I imagine these mobile bases would actually be transported in a compact shape and have fold-out sections once it is on a planet.

So, the hull would be: 4.5 x 50,000 = 225,000 Credits

One Size A Chem Drive: 50,000 Credits
Fuel: 1,125 Credits (seems low)
Life Support for 20 w/ computer program: 3,500 Credits
Backup life support: 3,500 Credits

Some equipment:
Videocom Radio: 1,000 Credits
at least 10 view stations: 10,000 Credits
Subspace Radio: 20,000 Credits
Intercom System: est. 2,000 Cr
Portholes: est. 30 at 50 Cr. each = 150 Credits
Cameras (6) and control panel: 25,000 Credits
Skin sensors: 4,500 Credits
Cargo Arm: 5,000 Credits
First Class Cabins (2): 2,000 Credits
Journey Class Cabins (10): 10,000 Credits (yes, there are some extra cabins)
Laboratory: 100,000 Credits
Mineral Refinery (since this unit wouldn't havea full-fledged mining operation): 100,000 Credits
Solar Collectors: 18,000 Credits

Some computer programs:

Alarm 1 (1) 1,000 Cr
Computer Lockout 3 (4) 4,000 Credits
DCR 1 (1) 1,000 Credits
Chem Drive Program 1 (3) 1,000 Credits
Lab Program 3 (9) 4,000 Credits
Refinery Program 4 (12) 12,000 Credits
Excavation Program 2 (4) 4,000 Credits.

Subtotal to date: 

approx. 610,000 credits
Joe Cabadas

JCab747's picture
JCab747
February 16, 2019 - 9:59pm
Other considerations:

Fully equipped vehicle/robotic repair facilities: 200,000 Credits
Sick bay (1/2 benefit of a hospital): 100,000
Two Type 3 Power generators (1 is a backup): 40,000 Cr ea. = 80,000

Other computer programs: Analysis 4 (8) = 8,000 cr
Bureaucracy 4 (8) = 8,000 Cr.
Commerce 1 (3) = 3,000 Cr.
Communications 1 (3) = 3,000 Cr
Computer Security 3 (8) or 4 (16) = 8,000 or 16,000 Cr
Industry 1 (3) = 3,000 Cr 
Information Storage 4 (16) = 16,000 Cr
Installation Security 3 (12) = 12,000 Cr
Language 3 (4) or 4 (8) = 4,000 or 8,000 Cr
Maintenance 1 (2) = 2,000 Cr.
Robot Management 5 (32) or 6 (64) = 32,000 or 64,000 Cr.

Approx. Computer Size: 5 or 6 (AD cost 1,000 Cr. x FP) ... Zeb's Prices: 250,000 or 400,000 Cr

24 Type IV parabatteries: 108,000 Credits

Subtotal this section: Max. cost approx. 1.05 million credits
Joe Cabadas

JCab747's picture
JCab747
February 16, 2019 - 9:54pm
Sensor Costs

Type G (15-50 km range)

Radar 3,500 Credits

Type F (1-5 km)
Infrared           1,800 Credits
Radioactivity      900 Credits
Seismic              900 credits
Sonar              1,500 Credits
Ultraviolet        1,800 Credits
Visual              1,650 Credits
VS Zoom Lens   600 Credits

Type D (151-400 meters)
Beam                  800 Credits
Intense Light       800 Credits
Parabolic          1,400 Credits
Direct Micro         160 Credits

Type B (10-50 meters)
Shape                 1,000 Credits
Odor                       400 Credits

Sub-total Sensor Costs: 17,210 Credits

Joe Cabadas

JCab747's picture
JCab747
February 16, 2019 - 10:08pm
The MPSB would probably have a number of floodlights... 250 Cr. each

The spray armor runs 5% per vehicle cost per layer... with 4 layers that's 20%... I'll base the cost off of the Hull Size price which is 225,000 Credits... so spray armor would cost: 270,000 Credits

Without any other gear, robots, support vehicles, the MPSB with the top of the line computers and programs would be approx.: 1.14 million Credits, so Big Credit Os at this point.


Joe Cabadas

jedion357's picture
jedion357
February 17, 2019 - 6:36am
Haven't read all of this yet but are you thinking something like this:

http://www.starfrontiers.us/node/8263

if so we're going to need to bring in cartographers and artist on this

RE: multiple mega corps having this on Volturnus, the eorna retain some authority and the UPF appoints a governor and the 3 primitive races would be protected by both the eorna and the UPF such that I dont know if multiple megacorps would be allowed to do this on a planet like Volturnus. something like this would tear up the landscape.

However, What if the machine in the elmore artwork was originally a the Von Nueman machine of the Polyhedron article? sort of a repurposed sathar mobile factory? Disney's the Black Hole meets Ravenloft meet Star Frontiers. use of the mobile factory is a violation of UPF law since its sathar in origin.
I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers!

jedion357's picture
jedion357
February 17, 2019 - 7:10am
I'm going to say that this would have a nuclear reactor that uses the same fuel as a KHs Atomic drive.

much more effecient and one pellet would power it for what? 1-5 years maybe. a KHs engineer could thus operate or do things with the reactor.
I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers!

JCab747's picture
JCab747
February 17, 2019 - 7:52am
jedion357 wrote:
I'm going to say that this would have a nuclear reactor that uses the same fuel as a KHs Atomic drive.

much more effecient and one pellet would power it for what? 1-5 years maybe. a KHs engineer could thus operate or do things with the reactor.
 

That was another thought. It could be nuke powered.
Joe Cabadas

JCab747's picture
JCab747
February 17, 2019 - 8:01am
jedion357 wrote:

RE: multiple mega corps having this on Volturnus, the eorna retain some authority and the UPF appoints a governor and the 3 primitive races would be protected by both the eorna and the UPF such that I dont know if multiple megacorps would be allowed to do this on a planet like Volturnus. something like this would tear up the landscape.

However, What if the machine in the elmore artwork was originally a the Von Nueman machine of the Polyhedron article? sort of a repurposed sathar mobile factory? Disney's the Black Hole meets Ravenloft meet Star Frontiers. use of the mobile factory is a violation of UPF law since its sathar in origin.
 

Yes, the MSPBs would tear up the landscape.

But these aren't the Sathar mobile factories. Though I could see those being problematic.

There's also this artwork I found online:

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&id=0C85B6E9ADFA68117BEDA74BCB49C1851D2162AC&thid=OIP.hK9j1ALSGorOcq1DYi3-zgHaDt&mediaurl=https%3A%2F%2Forig00.deviantart.net%2Faf62%2Ff%2F2015%2F101%2Ff%2Fd%2Fd_s_i_heavy_harvester_platform_by_adamburn-d5zcg7l.jpg&exph=852&expw=1700&q=sci+fi+enormous+land+vehicle&selectedindex=179&cbir=sbi&ajaxhist=0&vt=0&eim=1

See the source image
Joe Cabadas

jedion357's picture
jedion357
February 17, 2019 - 10:25am
JCab747 wrote:
jedion357 wrote:
I'm going to say that this would have a nuclear reactor that uses the same fuel as a KHs Atomic drive.

much more effecient and one pellet would power it for what? 1-5 years maybe. a KHs engineer could thus operate or do things with the reactor.
 

That was another thought. It could be nuke powered.


frankly a reactor makes a lot fo sense, bringing in fuel would become tedious.
I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers!

JCab747's picture
JCab747
February 17, 2019 - 11:02am
Ah, keep in mind the chem drive is supposed to be a massive fuel cell powerplant. So, on a planet with water, the MSPB could make its own fuel. But, on an airless world/one without a lot of H2O, a nuke reactor would make sense.

I come up with some stats for a nuke one.

A few more ideas:

A fully equipped armory with extra secure weapons lockers: 200,000 Credits.

This would provide the mobile survey bases with various weapons, defensive suits, energy screens, and heavy weapons (but not vehicle weapons). Plus repair facilities, ammo, etc.


Joe Cabadas

ChrisDonovan's picture
ChrisDonovan
February 19, 2019 - 10:08am
Hey, thanks for the ARC appearance! :D

As for appearance, how about?

https://cdn.cgsociety.org/t/g81/353281/1351100_large.jpg

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSC_utSxVj5ZJ8Xi7JWOB_P8OZ5f_7qawqMQ_0D2P6Ex-KDeOH9zw


JCab747's picture
JCab747
February 19, 2019 - 11:07am
Hi Chris,

Yes, they could look like that too. 

So, my basic description would have to be fluid. But, I'll fall back on the Knight Hawk rules that say something like "there is no typical starship design..." except when there are typical starship designs...
Joe Cabadas

jedion357's picture
jedion357
February 19, 2019 - 9:20pm
ChrisDonovan wrote:
Hey, thanks for the ARC appearance! :D

As for appearance, how about?

https://cdn.cgsociety.org/t/g81/353281/1351100_large.jpg

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSC_utSxVj5ZJ8Xi7JWOB_P8OZ5f_7qawqMQ_0D2P6Ex-KDeOH9zw



Now this strikes me as something a mega corp would put down on a planet or build on a planet to run around and set up infrastructure- cargo modules dropped from orbit in locations and this shows up to set up domes, habitats, and etc. ahead of personnel arriving then it moves on. Latter it gets repurposed as a heavy hauler for mining or what have you.
I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers!