Re: Tech & SJ

From: "Steven" <steven.james.1@??????????.??.uk>
Sent: Monday, August 27, 2007 2:20 AM


><snip>...But "tech" does not necessarily mean *EARTH* tech, again, this
> is what folk get caught up on, because...all we know is our own tech ;)
>
> Since steam power and gunpowder are impractical (and steam requires
> precision machining, that's another problem), what other things can be
> done?
> Elven ship tech, yes, very good point! So are Accelerators, alas I don't
> have the Hackjammer book, but magical or unusual things can be used.
>
> Ever seen the old British film, "The First Men on the Moon" (if I get
> the name correct), based off an H G Wells (?) novel? The idea is a
> peculiar material cancels or reverses gravity...now why not take such a
> thing into SJ but with a twist...

Wow! Why put in a twist? I've seen "The First Men on the Moon" and loved it. 
I think the antigravity paint would work fine as it was portrayed in the 
film.

(For those who haven't seen "The First Men on the Moon": the ship is a giant 
sphere with glass windows similar to portholes. Each window has a blind on 
the inside covered in antigravity paint. Paint only works when exposed to 
the sun and the ship can be steered by closing and opening different 
blinds.)

If I was going to use this paint in SJ, I would rename it "reverse gravity 
paint" and make it only work in a gravity field. So I would allow it to be 
used to lift a spelljamming ship out of a planet's atmosphere (for free), 
but make it unable to propel a ship through wildspace.

This would put the paint on a similar level with things like flying carpets.

> ...Imagine exotic material applied to a
> ship that increases its maneuverability, maybe this is the elves'
> secret, the plant "sails" on the Man-O-War give it added responsiveness,
> that is their "tech".

I'm a bit unsure about things that increase maneuverability, but if I wanted 
to bump up a Man-O-War I might give it wings that were animated and somehow 
mentally connected to the helm. This would allow the ship to read the mind 
of the helmsman and act in a way that helps him to steer.

"...but remember: you must *think* in Elvish! You cannot think in Common and 
transpose..." ;-)

> One thing I mentioned before I'd like to see though, is each of the main
> ship types should have some special ability, built into it, as a major
> design point.

A different special ability for each ship, could be a bit of a stretch. 
Especially when you consider all the variant designs. More general abilities 
that could apply to several similar hull designs would be something I would 
be more likely to believe in.

> For example, the Man-O-War could be said to have a *specific* inherent
> bonus to Manouverability.

I would prefer to see something applied to all of the elven ceramic ships 
and something else applied to all ships that resemble dragonflies. And I 
would want each "Ship Ability" to somehow be related to its hull shape, 
construction and/or built in ram.

I would also prefer to see this sort of feature done as something that 
helmsman or captains somehow have to pay for. If a helmsman had to pay 1 
TR/round to access ship features, low level helmsmen wouldn't be able to use 
them, but high level helmsmen on Major Helms would be able to afford to pay. 
(As a ship of class A does not have to pay TR to change its facing, it might 
be cheaper for a helmsman of a class B ship to pay one TR to bump up his 
ship's MC before spending the rest on movement.)

Alternately you could have an "Improved Helmsman" feat and then still make a 
helmsman with the feat pay 1 TR per feature per round to use the abilities. 
This would stop a high level groundling outfighting a spacefarer.

> I say this after looking at the Hammership and Squidship, really, they
> are much the same, I've yet to build the Hammership, but I suspect it's
> actual mass isn't greatly different from the Squidship...so all you get
> is a blunt of piercing ram as their design points, which is a bit sad,
> really.
>
> I'd think that the Squidship should do extra damage from it's massive,
> tri-headed ram, and the Hammership be very sturdy (extra AC, hullpoints,
> or whatever)

There are times when weapons that do piercing damage or bludgeoning damage 
have an advantage and this should apply to those two hull types. I think 
that some undead take extra damage from blunt weapons, so an animated dragon 
skelleton with a spelljamming helm attached to it should be more vulnerable 
to getting broken in half from a blunt ram.

You could argue that all ships with rams should allow a helmsman to make 
improved ramming attacks (eg: "You may pay 1 TR to increase attack and 
damage rolls during that round by one point"). However, I think that 
piercing rams like the one on a Squidship should provide some chance of a 
grapple attack, while blunt rams should normally hit another ship and bounce 
off.

> Another point is, SJ ship design would be a blend of technology, magic
> and experience. The classic SJ ship types offer benefits?

SJ is already a blend of technology, magic and experience.

The ships are the technology. You can always come up with new ideas for 
ships: detachable outriggers to increase a ship's air envelope to 50 or 100 
tons or barbed rams that grapple a ship from the inside of a hull breech.

The helms are magic. You can always come up with new ideas for helms: a 
bardic helm that allows a bard helmsman to inspire courage in the crew or a 
divine helm that allows a cleric of the correct god to gain an additional +1 
TR whenever they are in a sphere where they can contact their god.

Finally the helmsmen have the experience. You can always come up with 
special feats that allow a helmsman to do tricks with all spelljamming ships 
or to gain fine control over ships with specific hull types.

David "Big Mac" Shepheard
Virtual Eclipse Role Playing Club
http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/virtualeclipselrp/links/d20_system_001071937434/Spelljammer_001071430476
http://www32.brinkster.com/virtualeclipse/