ULTRA Mini-Contest #5: Apr 17 to May 1 [Closed]

[Cralis]

Greetings everyone, welcome to contest #5 of the ULTRA mini-contest series. This contest will run from April 17th to May 1st.

This contest is: BEST ULTRA-HIGH TECHNOLOGY CONCEPT

The idea here is to develop a technology concept that is intended to be between EL 20 and EL 40. It can be a branch from a lower tech tree, or it can be an entirely new tree. While we have filled the first 20 ELs with a wide variety of branches and trees, after EL 20 there tends to only be more advanced versions of the same. At some point, we'll need more! If used, the submitter will also have his or her name put into the rules as a contributor for that item.

Parameters:
1. Must be a tech tree or branch, not a single item (unless there is a reason for it to be alone in the branch, it's all in the presentation).
2. Must contain some pseudo-science assumptions, a description of the concept, and any specific rules that it will need to be usable.
3. A conceptual tech tree is a plus, even if it isn't fully filled in.
4. Unique technologies to other game systems will have to be disqualified. Generic weapons (like a "disruptor") can go either way depending upon the description, but please no photon torpedoes or protoculture canons. We'll have to disqualify those submissions.
5. Each submission must be in a separate post.

Good luck!

If we need to make clarifications we will update this post.

[krenshala]

OK, I have to say, this is one contest that I wish I wasn't disqualified from. ;D

Come on folks! Bring on the fancy new high-technology ideas here!

[Club]

Directional Shields

By limiting the coverage of a shield, designers can use smaller generators for the same power. The cut-down generators create either a disk to the fore or aft, or a band around the middle of the ship.

Directional shields have same cost as normal shields, but require only as many HS as the shields of a generation higher (eg, S4+ take up 1/5 HS, and cost 12MC.) They only absorb damage if the enemy ship is in the appropriate arc, per restricted arc weapons (D2.01.04). Recorded before normal shields on the system line, with a +, >, or ~ designation as appropriate.

Once directional shield tech is researched, they become available immediately as each new generation of shields is researched. Only one type of directional shield may be mounted on a single ship, though they are compatible with normal shields of the same generation

[Club]

XO point defense
Each point of XO-D takes 2 XO slots. Each point may engage a single inbound, at a kill-spread equal to that of the best internal (Non-capital) PD researched. XO-D suffers from all penalties applicable to normal point defense, but may not double or triple up shots. Each point of XO-D may be used once and is then expended. May be used INSTEAD of internal D/Dc systems for any given inbound. No BASV values; useless against smcrft.

[Club]

Neutron Beam (NBx)
Neutron beams deal very little damage to ships; what they destroy with great efficiency is crews. Sheets of lethal radiation scour ships hit by neutron beams, sentencing crews to inevitable and painful deaths.

The neutron beam is a branch off the standard (Non-capital) energy beam tree, despite the radically different damage code. It takes the same HS, cost twice as many MC, and uses the same to-hit and damage tables as the energy beam it is based on, but has a skipping value appropriate to it's SL. It deals standard energy beam damage to shields, and while it's damage is reduced by armor per standard skipping rules, it never actually damages armor. It also skips all internal systems with unlimited skipping, except for any Q systems. Those are destroyed, with no emergency repairs allowed. Referance ApxAA.Q.2 for rules on ships with no Q. Any ship with Q systems destroyed by neutron beams automatically loses a grade regardless of survival, as remaining crew are significantly sickened.

(Of dubious tactical value. Makes for great salvage after the battle is over, but since the enemy ships are combat effective long after they receive lethal rad doses, you'll keep getting shot by them)

[Club]

Antimatter Magazines (Mgg)

24 MSP. Ammunition stored in this system does double damage. If there is any ammunition in the system when it is destroyed, the mounting ship ceases to be, as well as any ships attached by @ racks. Can only feed to weapons after it in the damage track – so the magazine in Pte(Mgg)Pte can only feed the Pte to the right.

(Mgg)
cost:100 MC at a minimum
HS: 1

(Lets a LRW ship get a few good licks in, at the expense of decreasing it's endurance, increasing it's cost, and increasing it's vulnerability. The -g mod is superior in almost every way – this would have to come before)

Antimatter Kinetic Magazines (Mgg-k)
The kinetic antimatter magazine makes fairly large amounts of antimatter move at high speed and applies great forces to it – while it's still inside the ship. Each turn the (Mgg-k) is drawn upon, roll for internal explosion before the attack(s) are made; a dice roll on a d10. If equal or less than the number of K weapons using that particular (Mgg-k) is rolled, all such K weapons are destroyed and deal to their own ship damage equal to the damage they would inflict at range 0 (Before antimatter mod). Shots that hit with antimatter ammunition deal double damage.

(Mgg-k) may only supply weapons mounted after them in the damage track. They may carry effectively unlimited ammunition, but the number of shots they actually contain is usually arbitrarily limited, for if a (Mgg-k) with ammunition remaining is hit, the ship is destroyed.
(Mgg-k)
cost:50 MC at a minimum
HS: 1

(Like a long range (Dec) – but worse. Might be worth it if you need to deal damage in a hurry though. The -g mod is superior in almost every way – this would have to come before)

[Club]

Drone Communicator
When a drone's drive field is powered up, it normally cannot power down for any reason without destroying the coils utterly, and is so chaotic it disrupts any communications. This system allows a drone to receive orders from large ships, but only under specific circumstances.
The drone must be in the same hex as the ship it is receiving orders from
The drone's program must read – “go to X hex and receive orders” as the last instruction and cannot have orders to fire in the program. Programs that have orders to fire cannot use the (DCC) system.
The drone must spend an entire turn doing nothing but trying to receive orders
If no orders are received within that turn, then the stress on the drone's drive field tears it apart.
The orders must come from an APC, not a CIC

Code (DCC) cost: equal to drone installed on, Space = 40% (FRU) of drone installed on.

Commentary – expensive, relies on specialized ships to support it, and the battle going according to plan for at least one turn. I don't think this is particularly unbalancing.

[Club]

Qs/Qt

Better biotech and automation mean that high tech ships need less crew and crew support, and the Qs branches off Q at SL 20. It's supports the same number of crew as a standard Q of the same generation, but at twice the cost and half the size, eg,

Qsa .5 HS 20 MC supports 15/16 crew Sl 20
Qsb .5 HS 30 MC Supports 20/22 crew Sl 24
Qse .5 HS 40 MC supports 25 crew Sl 28

and so on. There may only be a single Qs per ship.

Qt branches off Qs at EL 30 – it supports the same # of crew per generation in 1/3 HS, at triple cost. Only one Qt per ship.

(Commentary – it makes little sense that a small ship uses the same quarters system at EL 50 as it did at EL 2 – this makes smaller ships more effective, but drives up their cost.)

[Club]

Anti small craft mod for D

This modification to the D system optimizes it to the anti-smallcraft role, at the expense of the ability to engage missiles. It is the same size as the standard D system, and is not compatible with the Z mod. It uses the Ds code

It has the same BASV as a Dc system of two generations lower, eg, a Dse has a BASV of 7/6/6, same as a Dca, but engages missiles as a D system of two generations lower, eg, the Dse engages missiles with 3 shots at 3, but can double or triple up, same as Da

The -s mod cannot be applied to a D system of less than e generation

(Commentary – without a z mod the Ds anti-smcrft ships would have to engage smcrft separately, but even so, might be too effective. But it's a reason to go after the D tree at higher levels, which I view as a lame duck compared to Dc.)

[Club]

Sniper Beams

Sniper beams exchange raw power for much greater range, and are in intermediate between LRW and SRW that branches off capital weapons of the same type.

Branch off capital weapon branch at SL 20 or so. Cost and HS per capital weapon of same type, but damage as per the base beam at twice the range; skipping as SL appropriate. Uses a -s code. Counts as two weapons each for purposes of (ATC). No precision or capital variants. Maximum range is always 50 due to light-speed targeting issues.

Esa; SL 20; 8 HS, cost 175 MC, Skipping 190,
damage 4/4/4/4/3/3/3/3/2/2/2/2/2/2/2/2/2/2/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1

Fsa; SL 21; 9 HS, cost 185 MC.
Damage 6/6/5/5/5/5/5/5/4/4/4/4/4/3/3/3/3/3/2/2/2/2/2/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1

Lsa Sl 20, 7 HS, cost 140 MC, 130 skipping
Damage 3/3/3/3/3/3/3/3/2/2/2/2/2/2/2/2/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1


Commentary – Cannot do the job of a either a dedicated LRW or SRW, but a decent JOAT. You might have to take some of the damage off the high end though – I'm just approximating in my head, but the curve might be too similar to standard K, and surpass equivalent capitals at some points.