The Demographics of Space stations

jedion357's picture
jedion357
June 2, 2009 - 10:52am
The Frontier contatins a total of:
5 SF (space fortresses)
4 FSS (fortified Space stations)
13 ASS (armed space stations)
8 TS (trading stations)
5 RRS (rest & relax stations- resorts?)
7 DS (docking stations)

The Rim
1 FFS
1 ASS
4 TS
2 RRS
4 DS

In comparing the KHs list of space constructions centers I to the list of stations in ZEBs I at first expected that the construction centers would coincide with the docking stations but that was not the case. Some of the construction centers must be on ASS, FSS and SF stations. That clashed with another assumption of mine that the ASS, FSS, SF stations were really only about defense and military issues (not sure why I made that assumption). It now seems to me that the TS, DS, & RRS stations are dedicated to one purpose while the armed stations may be a more general purpose station catering to all areas: industry, docking, trade, R&R, and defense with a few exceptions.
The FS over Morgaine's world, being the heart of the UPF, is probably dedicated to the Navy pure and simple and has a no fly zone around it plus a military dock yard.


I also find it interesting that the Rim as so few armed or fortified space stations, that could indicate several things:
1. they did but were destroyed by the sathar  2. a belief in the best defence being a good offense  3. the Rim was intended to be even more of a frontier than the cosmopolitan Frontier sector by the writers
I also find it interesting that the Rim has a higher proportion of RRS stations than the Frontier which would seem to speak against option 1 for the reasons of so few armed stations.

I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers!
Comments:

Rum Rogue's picture
Rum Rogue
June 3, 2009 - 5:48am
I always got the impression that, until recently, the Rim was heavily occupied by the Sathar.  That would explain why there are so few stations.  Most of them are new.  Some of them, the RRS & DS might have been original stations that the Sathar captured and used to move the native populatio/slaves around.  Those some stations were later recaptured (liberated?) from the Sathar and are back in normal use.
Time flies when your having rum.

Im a government employee, I dont goof-off. I constructively abuse my time.

jedion357's picture
jedion357
June 3, 2009 - 9:10am
both are good points- and I had the impression from Zebs that contact with the Rim was seen as a boon for the new ally, but if they came to the UPF after having suffered a rape by the sathar then their situation would be much more shaky than I had originally thought. The RRS stations could be a similar reaction to what occured in Europe after the plague had killed so many and people had been so oppressed by the amount of death that they turned to colorfull, gay clothing and amusement to try to forget death.

This could create an under current of fustration in the UPF of, "Hey, spend money on defense not amusement!" And a feeling of we're bailling these guys out.
I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers!