Concept Fanart of Future Terran Ship Designs

[Cy83r]

Dammit, fred, you're ruining my fun- okay, fine put railguns on the railguns, each one fires in sequence as the fleet accelerates... no wait, that's kinda dumb, the ships can't be accelerating fast enough to outdistance their first volleys... maybe, crap, I dunno

expendable drone screens then!

[DevilDalek]

I suppose it also comes down to finding a balance with what would make a good story.

Personally, I still think that the Terrans would be having to deal with such a rapidly escalating technological development rate that by the time one ship is built its likely to already be obsolete.
I am still a firm believer that ship designs that use modularized components are the way forward, so a mission specific pallet could be shipped to the front line and fitted with ease instead of the ship having to make the lengthy journey back home to spend a good deal of time in dock having systems replaced for an upgrade.

I will attempt to do some art on this and see how I go.

I would like to see the Terrans come out on top of course, but not to the level of 'Massive Manly Dreadnoughts hammering the enemy into submission to save our Spess Elf girlfriends.' ;P

[Cy83r]

Quite right, double-dee.

[DevilDalek]

Just a quick question to those out there.
considering we should be having an influx of technology if we did ally with others.
What technologies do people see changing the most in the first say decade?
(just looking to see which technologies would most likely be modular for quick upgrade)

[Ktrain]

Just a quick question to those out there.
considering we should be having an influx of technology if we did ally with others.
What technologies do people see changing the most in the first say decade?
(just looking to see which technologies would most likely be modular for quick upgrade)

Technologies that would change the most would be ones related to production and military. Chemical, metallurgy and perhaps biological (alien organisms and alien organic chemicals) knowledge and technology would be the most fundamentally changed sectors. Next would be applications of new knowledge to existing terrestrial technologies. This could include efficiency improvements in power generation, drive cores, engines, etc. Some terrestrial technologies might be supplanted (laser swapped for blasters) if the theory and practical expertise necessary to implement the changes are not too vast. New production techniques and methods would most likely follow this inflow of knowledge, how rapidly depends on future humanity's ability to adapt theory to production.

While it is fun to speculate on the effects a rapid flow of information can have on various technologies, the implications for the effects on education, workforce, the civilian sector, capital controls and government policy may be much more radical.

[Trantor]

Just a quick question to those out there.
considering we should be having an influx of technology if we did ally with others.
What technologies do people see changing the most in the first say decade?

Weapons.

[fredgiblet]

Manufacturing
Power Generation
Propulsion

I don't think the Loroi will be terribly eager to hand over weapons technology unless the war is still going strong in 5-10 years.

[DevilDalek]

True, but when it becomes apparent that humanity is woefully lacking in the military hardware department, our own scientists will likely pull out the stops to try and at least close the gap, so developments in weapons I think will be highly accelerated as well.

So ship systems wise we have Alien accelerated advancements in :-
Drive Cores (Fold Space engines)
Maneuvering Engines
Power Generation

Human accelerated advancements :-
Weapons
Sensors (I'm not sure the Loroi would feel comfortable sharing advanced sensors with us, since they cant see us in return.. or maybe they prefer to use PSI, something which it seems we cannot do.)
Armor (One thing human are is creative, and working on defensive systems after observing the effects of the enemies weapons I believe is something we will also be focusing on. maybe super heat resistant armor to defeat plasma or something, ceramics?)

So a hull designed to have modular upgrades would be fitted with as standard with :-
Life Support
Crew Quarters
Control Systems (Bridge, etc.)
Cargo / Stores
Navigation

Long Term Modules (would need a good few days and a littoral ship in attendance to change)
Drive Core
Power Generation
Armor

Short Term Modules ( Swap and change in a matter of a few hours)
Weapons
Maneuvering Engines
Sensors
Mission Specific modules

Hows that sound so far?

[Trantor]

Manufacturing

A heavily connected and dependend field. It´s a question of how fast productionsteps can be replaced without too much friction.

I don't think the Loroi will be terribly eager to hand over weapons technology unless the war is still going strong in 5-10 years.

Not the newest toys.

But like the Russians start selling their stuff when the newest generation goes into production the Loroi could give us their older stuff.
And there´s still the possibilty that the Historians or another party later will give tech to us before the Loroi get too mighty.

[Cy83r]

armor modules

My head is full of gundams.

[DevilDalek]

Ah! sorry, let me explain what i was thinking, the armor on the ship is in standard sized plates with the AUTOcad molds for these back at base, to replace the armor, all they would have to do would be to make some up, ship them out and bolt them on.

[Cy83r]

Ah! sorry, let me explain what i was thinking, the armor on the ship is in standard sized plates with the AUTOcad molds for these back at base, to replace the armor, all they would have to do would be to make some up, ship them out and bolt them on.

You'd need a mobile drydock for that, wouldn't you? Now my head is full of Zoids.

[javcs]

Ah! sorry, let me explain what i was thinking, the armor on the ship is in standard sized plates with the AUTOcad molds for these back at base, to replace the armor, all they would have to do would be to make some up, ship them out and bolt them on.

You'd need a mobile drydock for that, wouldn't you? Now my head is full of Zoids.

It'd depend on how large the plates were and how they were attached and connected to one another and the hull and frame. I can think of a few ways that probably wouldn't require a mobile drydock. Depending on the extent to be replaced, it could require a repair ship, though.
Still though, using modular armor would require a fair amount of downtime to replace sets. Though, it would probably make repairs easier.
The basic question is whether or not using a modular system would be less effective than using a non-modular system.

It also depends on what construction/fabrication techniques are used for both ships and armor. Plus, the armor is going to be specialized to defend primarily against energy weapons/effects, as pure kinetic weapons are not something that can be effectively defended against should one score a hit.

[discord]

javcs: in absolute performance, i'd say about 15% using the same technology, but given the ease of re using older parts and re fitting older ships, i'd say around 25% cheaper to run....and would more easily and faster to keep pace with technology advancement....so for humans early post-loroi intervention modular would most definitely be the way to go, due to very rapid deployment of 'new' technology.

since if you built a ship from scratch it would be better by 15% compared to the modular ones....but by the time it's actually built it's almost obsolete and a few months later it would be due to refits to keep up with new tech anyway.

modular in space is superior when it comes to logistics, ergo modular wins....unless you have a VERY stagnant tech, at which point purpose made stuff can be made interchangeable and thus be effectively modular.

[DevilDalek]

Theres also the time taken from the production lines to the front line, its going to take twice as long for the combat ship to travel back home, get fitted, then travel back to the front line, instead of the modules being shipped out one way.

So realistically we are looking at a supply / repair ship with some kind of semi dock for fitting.

Now would there be a mother ship like dock served with standard transports from earth, or a number of specialized transports that are equipped with some kind of lightweight folding dock..

Personally I figure the mother ship idea is leaving a glaring weak spot, where the fitted supply ships would take advantage of the more easily dealt with modular design for quicker refits to make a more robust supply line. I also figure the specialized supply ships would also have an extensive R&R facility for the combat ships crew.

Perhaps this is to much of a specialized vessel for supply? or would building just the one type make it easier on manufacture, training and fitting?

On the armor plates, I was looking at a 3 meter by 3 meter unit that could be cut to shape on the more awkward areas (joins, angles, etc)

[Sprawl63]

Given the HUGE amount of time the Loroi had to reach the current level of tech, I'd expect the Terrans to easily reach Loroi levels within Alex's lifetime, and that's without Loroi ad. The Loroi launched their first artificial satellite in 475CE, meaning it took 1685 years to reach current levels compared to humanities 203 at the launch of Sputnik. Arioch has stated that the Terrans (Terran sounds so much cooler then human) are about three tech generation behind the Loroi. The lengths of tech generations is determined by need- you don't build a better tank if the one you already have is the best on the field. Within a single Loroi lifetime, the tables could be completely turned.

[Grayhome]

I doubt it'll take till the end of this war for humans to catch up.

[javcs]

javcs: in absolute performance, i'd say about 15% using the same technology, but given the ease of re using older parts and re fitting older ships, i'd say around 25% cheaper to run....and would more easily and faster to keep pace with technology advancement....so for humans early post-loroi intervention modular would most definitely be the way to go, due to very rapid deployment of 'new' technology.

since if you built a ship from scratch it would be better by 15% compared to the modular ones....but by the time it's actually built it's almost obsolete and a few months later it would be due to refits to keep up with new tech anyway.

modular in space is superior when it comes to logistics, ergo modular wins....unless you have a VERY stagnant tech, at which point purpose made stuff can be made interchangeable and thus be effectively modular.

Ah, I was speaking purely in respects to the armor utilized.
For the internal systems used, of course the modular system will be better until tech levels are fully up to par, and even then it will still be useful, depending on tech advancement rates.
I don't think I see armor progressing at the same rate as weapons tech, however; plus, I'm not sure I see the difference between adjacent armor generations as being quite as important. Weapons tech will continue advancing rapidly, but I'm not sure that armor tech will progress at anywhere near the same rate - plus, in order to have a large amount of armor, you're sinking large amounts of mass into it, which reduces performance:mass ratios.

[Mayhem]

The Loroi launched their first artificial satellite in 475CE, meaning it took 1685 years to reach current levels compared to humanities 203 at the launch of Sputnik.

The Terrans are currently at the same tech level the Loroi were at about 800 years ago*, meaning 900 years of Loroi advancement in 200 Terran years.

So the Terrans should be naively** expected to reach technological parity with the Loroi in 150 - 200 years without outside assistance.

With Loroi assistance 30 - 40 years seems reasonable.

The thing is - until they get round to comparing technological development timelines*** - the Loroi may assume - having seen the "low tech" nature of human technology - that the Terrans are too far behind to be currently worth the resources presumed to be required to accelerate their tech level to a usable level.

* Arioch forum quote I am not in a position to look up about the Loroi using weapons similar to the Terrans during the Splinter Wars 1323-1402.
** Naively assumes linear technological development. A more realistic exponential-ish curve could give the 100 year estimate commonly referenced on the forums.
*** The Loroi will be in for a big surprise when discover that the Terrans developed so fast without access to Soia artifacts.

[bunnyboy]

The old artifacts can also hindrance technological development.
Security of artifacts are more important than development, because if they are lost, you don't have other chance.
Trust old texts, because they knew. Make the research by reading Aristoteles, Bible, Nostradamus, Book of Dead, Kalevala or Vedic text.
Telepathy helps education and secure old way of thinking. There is little of space for new ideas.

That idea is not supported by ancients.