Topic: Boar Merchant Patrol Vessel

[markc]

 For a game I am thinking about making a merchant patrol vessel based on the Warthog from SM:P VM. I am thinking about upping the armor from CAT XiV to CAT XVI, but I wanted to try and keep the detection of the difference from the Warthog as small as possible. Do you think changing the CAT will/would make a big difference in detecting the differences in the two crafts? Or IYO should I keep the CAT the same and make other mods to the medium freighter to help it keep hidden. IE they think it is just a Warthog and since its arms and armaments are hidden when they do detect the changes it will be too late.


Thanks
MDC

[David Johansen]

Well, maintaining the silohette would mean having more mass without increasing power.  If you up the power, you'd probably want to run two power plants to keep the energy signature / IR signature the same when trawling for pirates.  Getting the IR signature right might be tricky given different rates of radiation and absorption from the different thickness and materials.

I'd probably increase the volume of retractable weapons by a factor of two.  Of course you could just fill the hold with missiles

[markc]

David Johansen;
 I think the ruling on the old Forums was x5 or something I will have to check my files.


 Yes I was thinking about running 2 power plants, maybe some extra mass and volume tied up in dampening, hidden weapons, hidden launch tubes (or built to look like cargo hatches) and maybe a hidden torpedo launcher. With some vol left over to carry cargo or take acquired cargo from the bad guys.


MDC

[Marc R]

I'd design the ship around the logic of piracy. . .like you heave to, let them get close, then cream them with no notice close up.

Counter piracy is tough on making a profit though, as with nukes in play, how badly do you want to trash the pirate rather than just enough to take it over? Like, with the tonnage allowed for with a merchant ship, you could likely hide one really nasty pow in there, and just surrender, then dust the pirate with a sneak shot, but I dunno that you want to risk "Mostly dead" vs a vessel likely in the police or military model range.

If word got out about an X ton merchie with a surprise, you might get pirates holding off at stand off ranges of targets that size and sending shuttles in, then only closing in after the ship is confirmed captured, which would screw that up.

Historically, judas goat ships like that tend to work either vs shambolic pirates, or when funded by a national government or major corporation, so the ship is actually a military grade ship pretending to be a merchie, rather than an armed merchant vessel.

It might work if you have pirates akin to the Malay and Chinese pirates of the 18-19th century, where the tech level disparity meant that even armed European merchant vessels could take on a swarm of pirates. . .if you establish a setting where the pirates are numerous but weak, the armed merchantmen makes more sense.

[markc]

Historically, judas goat ships like that tend to work either vs shambolic pirates, or when funded by a national government or major corporation, so the ship is actually a military grade ship pretending to be a merchie, rather than an armed merchant vessel.

 I agree I just could not remember the official name for a military armed merchant. I also agree with the support by a/the government idea and depending on the number and how bad ships and men are needed in a covert or overt conflict would depend on the number and who could crew them. ie just not anybody who came asking would get to put forth and ply the trade.


MDC 

[Marc R]

Q-ship is a military decoy vessel intended to draw in attackers by looking like a target, when it's actually a wolf in sheep's clothing.

Privateers are privately funded psudo military vessels with official government sanction. They are more often accused of piracy than known for suppressing it.

Technically a judas goat would be more like using an actual target vessel and then following it with a stealthed or cloaked military vessel and waiting for someone to jump on it so you can jump them. . .it has more of an implication of using someone as bait than using yourself.