Well of Souls Forums

ShadowDragon8685 wrote:1: Loroi are said to have highly efficient digestive systems, and only need to eat once a day. Does this mean they can somehow be as active as a human on far fewer calories/protein/etc, or that they can eat one super-nutrient-packed meal and it lasts them all day? If so, do they necessarily always do so, or do they sometimes/often/rarely eat smaller meals more often?

maybe that's why Alex got so nauseated eating Loroi food? not enough fiber! heh.

ShadowDragon8685 wrote:2: Do Loroi drink tea, or is it just something other races drink? If so, does it have the same sort of implications/status as human tea? Think "Hikaru Sulu drinking a cup of tea on the bridge of Excelsior during the opening of The Undiscovered Country." If so, would Stillstorm in particular drink a cuppa on the bridge when all was quiet?

tea is an earth plant, maybe there is a Loroi equivalent?

thicket wrote:

ShadowDragon8685 wrote:2: Do Loroi drink tea, or is it just something other races drink? If so, does it have the same sort of implications/status as human tea? Think "Hikaru Sulu drinking a cup of tea on the bridge of Excelsior during the opening of The Undiscovered Country." If so, would Stillstorm in particular drink a cuppa on the bridge when all was quiet?

tea is an earth plant, maybe there is a Loroi equivalent?

Tea is an Earth plant, but tea is also a human drink which is made from plant materials that can include, but is not required to be exclusively, nor is required to be partially, obtained from the tea plant (e.g. nettle tea and raspberry leaf tea are real drinks, and don't have to include "tea" tea to actually be counted as tea).

Source: I used to work in a health food store, tea out the wazoo.

hi hi

It is possible that the Soia-Liron ecology uses molecules with higher energy density than fats, not sure if Arioch has said one way or another on that.

That being said, human digestion is only about 85% efficient on average. On top of that, we generate ATP at about a 40% efficiency rate. In the end, only 18-26% of the stored energy we eat gets translated into mechanical energy.

icekatze wrote:hi hi

It is possible that the Soia-Liron ecology uses molecules with higher energy density than fats, not sure if Arioch has said one way or another on that.

That being said, human digestion is only about 85% efficient on average. On top of that, we generate ATP at about a 40% efficiency rate. In the end, only 18-26% of the stored energy we eat gets translated into mechanical energy.

I suppose this translates into lower body temperature.

I cannot find this in the FAQ or the Insider lexicon. Can the author please give us the general idea about the individual population sizes and number of colonized worlds, fully self-sufficient colonies and outposts each star faring nation has? Fleet sizes would be nice to know as well.
Not just for the Loroi Union and their allies but also for the Umiaks and the Humans. Having the answer in one single post would be nice to have just for order's sake.

@Durabys

I think that its common with writers to have such stuff only mentally outlined in order to allow flexibility in their story telling.

ShadowDragon8685 wrote:Loroi are said to have highly efficient digestive systems, and only need to eat once a day. Does this mean they can somehow be as active as a human on far fewer calories/protein/etc, or that they can eat one super-nutrient-packed meal and it lasts them all day? If so, do they necessarily always do so, or do they sometimes/often/rarely eat smaller meals more often?

Loroi get more out of their food and waste less energy (they're smaller than humans, run at a lower temperature, and have more efficient metabolisms), so they need to eat less. An active Loroi will still need more food than an inactive Loroi.

ShadowDragon8685 wrote:Do Loroi drink tea, or is it just something other races drink? If so, does it have the same sort of implications/status as human tea? Think "Hikaru Sulu drinking a cup of tea on the bridge of Excelsior during the opening of The Undiscovered Country." If so, would Stillstorm in particular drink a cuppa on the bridge when all was quiet?

Loroi have a tea that is a stimulant, that serves a purpose similar to coffee. It does not have any particular froo-froo status implications.

Durabys wrote:I cannot find this in the FAQ or the Insider lexicon. Can the author please give us the general idea about the individual population sizes and number of colonized worlds, fully self-sufficient colonies and outposts each star faring nation has? Fleet sizes would be nice to know as well. Not just for the Loroi Union and their allies but also for the Umiaks and the Humans. Having the answer in one single post would be nice to have just for order's sake.

I like to add a lot of detail, but in some cases I've found that adding too much unnecessary detail serves little purpose other than giving people rope to hang you with. So when it comes to things like census numbers, I try to be a little bit vague. But I can collect what I've already said about the subject:

Humanity has Earth plus a colonial population of about 200 million divided among 5 colony worlds. Humanity has about 50 armed starships if you include local police vessels.

The Union contains roughly 150 inhabited worlds, of which about 40 have populations of more than 100 million. This includes both Loroi and alien populations. My best estimate for the size of the combined Loroi fleet is around 30 divisions, or between 2-3,000 vessels.

The size and population of the Hierarchy is not well-known, but it's larger than the Union. The total size of the Umiak fleet is not known, but Loroi intelligence estimates vary from 3:1 to 5:1 the size of the Loroi fleet.

Arioch wrote: I like to add a lot of detail, but in some cases I've found that adding too much unnecessary detail serves little purpose other than giving people rope to hang you with. So when it comes to things like census numbers, I try to be a little bit vague. But I can collect what I've already said about the subject:

Humanity has Earth plus a colonial population of about 200 million divided among 5 colony worlds. Humanity has about 50 armed starships if you include local police vessels.

The Union contains roughly 150 inhabited worlds, of which about 40 have populations of more than 100 million. This includes both Loroi and alien populations. My best estimate for the size of the combined Loroi fleet is around 30 divisions, or between 2-3,000 vessels.

The size and population of the Hierarchy is not well-known, but it's larger than the Union. The total size of the Umiak fleet is not known, but Loroi intelligence estimates vary from 3:1 to 5:1 the size of the Loroi fleet.

Total we have about 12-15 billion humans on the 6 planet, and if we estimate statistics, 150 worlds and ~ 10-12 species, if we consider / not consider Pol and Nissek, is roughly 200 billion. Hierarchy, considering the ratio of area size has increased by at least five times, given quantitative ratio, up to 20 times.

If the 51st at the time of the meeting with Bell was composed of 28 ships, and they suffered some losses, total, we assume in the original part of the ship was 32 (8 ships in 4 divisions). Assume also that both these groups act, given the length of the Loroi-Umiak/Morat front and the fact that the interception in Naam sent 3 groups, ~ 7-10 group + reserve, up to 700 ships out. It's raider fleet, defensive fleets and The Main fleet is likely to total more than four to five times for a total of about 2500-3500 warships in general. That's if you count general all and not to count how many of them are currently standing in the dock, or have been destroyed, as well as ships, built to replace lost.

Umiak fleet at a specified factor should be up to 18 kiloships.

Arioch wrote:

Durabys wrote:I cannot find this in the FAQ or the Insider lexicon. Can the author please give us the general idea about the individual population sizes and number of colonized worlds, fully self-sufficient colonies and outposts each star faring nation has? Fleet sizes would be nice to know as well. Not just for the Loroi Union and their allies but also for the Umiaks and the Humans. Having the answer in one single post would be nice to have just for order's sake.

I like to add a lot of detail, but in some cases I've found that adding too much unnecessary detail serves little purpose other than giving people rope to hang you with. So when it comes to things like census numbers, I try to be a little bit vague. But I can collect what I've already said about the subject:

Humanity has Earth plus a colonial population of about 200 million divided among 5 colony worlds. Humanity has about 50 armed starships if you include local police vessels.

The Union contains roughly 150 inhabited worlds, of which about 40 have populations of more than 100 million. This includes both Loroi and alien populations. My best estimate for the size of the combined Loroi fleet is around 30 divisions, or between 2-3,000 vessels.

The size and population of the Hierarchy is not well-known, but it's larger than the Union. The total size of the Umiak fleet is not known, but Loroi intelligence estimates vary from 3:1 to 5:1 the size of the Loroi fleet.

So about a total population of 20 Billion Humans in existence (Homeworld + colonies) and about 90-100 Billion Loroi (and 70-100 worlds) and another 100-200 Billions from other Union member states (around 50-70 worlds)?

With the Umiak's themselves being in the 2-3 Trillion range with their subjugated races having their population held down artificially at around 200-300 Billions?

The Union contains roughly 150 inhabited worlds, of which about 40 have populations of more than 100 million. This includes both Loroi and alien populations.

How many of those 40 worlds have a population that is exceeding 1 billion?
Is it unusual that worlds are as densly populated as earth?

Suederwind wrote:

The Union contains roughly 150 inhabited worlds, of which about 40 have populations of more than 100 million. This includes both Loroi and alien populations.

How many of those 40 worlds have a population that is exceeding 1 billion?
Is it unusual that worlds are as densly populated as earth?

Eyup. Even in Babylon 5, Earth was know among the Younger Races as the largest single-planet-economy/industrial center in existence and was considered the most densely populated world (close to 20 Billion people) even by First One standards (because most FO Elder Races are born and live on starships and habitats anyway..aka: any Homeworlds and Colonies are basically recreational resorts for them).

Suederwind wrote:

The Union contains roughly 150 inhabited worlds, of which about 40 have populations of more than 100 million. This includes both Loroi and alien populations.

How many of those 40 worlds have a population that is exceeding 1 billion?
Is it unusual that worlds are as densly populated as earth?

This depends on the migration and the heap of population growth modifiers. In fact, to feed and accommodate the world by land area like Earth may potentially much more like 20-50 billion. On the other hand, they had almost 2k years. Even for a (relatively) long-lived Loroi this period will suffice, which would at least triple their population with respect to precosmic.

Do the Loroi small-arms armories contain an SMG analogue?

In Page 36, three Soroin crew are armed with what I would classify as carbines and holster pistols; the carbines look to be too long to be ideal in close quarters, but better than a full-length rifle would be. I would assume that something shorter would be more ideal in closer quarters, where a desperate prisoner might do something rash, though Tempest's brig is large enough for the carbines to be fine.

shadow: those are some awfully short carbines, bordering on SMG territory...how short would you consider optimal?

discord wrote:shadow: those are some awfully short carbines, bordering on SMG territory...how short would you consider optimal?

Note the full, fixed stocks, and the way the main body of those weapons is at least two feet long, yielding a weapon that's about three feet long.

For getting frisky in close quarters on a ship, in "the other guy might conceivably grab the gun" range, I'd consider something about a third that length to be in the realm of ideal, in the ballpark of an H&K MP5k (12.8-13.7 inches/325-349mm), but anything that's about half a meter, give or take ~15% would be fine. Ex: the H&K MP7, which is 16.3 inches with the stock collapsed, and 25.1 with it extended (415mm-638mm.)

ShadowDragon8685 wrote:
Note the full, fixed stocks, and the way the main body of those weapons is at least two feet long, yielding a weapon that's about three feet long.

For getting frisky in close quarters on a ship, in "the other guy might conceivably grab the gun" range, I'd consider something about a third that length to be in the realm of ideal, in the ballpark of an H&K MP5k (12.8-13.7 inches/325-349mm), but anything that's about half a meter, give or take ~15% would be fine. Ex: the H&K MP7, which is 16.3 inches with the stock collapsed, and 25.1 with it extended (415mm-638mm.)

If you ask about the weapons firing range, Jim somewhere here wrote (could not find, I'm sorry) that focus distance can be adjusted, so that distance "point-blank" can shoot a pistol and a heavy beamgun. If the question of weapons of size, the fact that we have seen in the hands of Reed and other Soroin the path of Alex to the shuttle, charges according somewhere here left outline is rather an assault rifle. Model smaller, too, I have now look for drawing, I have it stored somewhere.

Here:

Tamri wrote:Here:

SpoilerShow

Ahhh, that's why they're all fixed-stock: they're all bullpups!

They also seem smaller in the concept art than they did on page 36, but either way, that third one down (counting the pistol as #1) is closest to what I would say is SMG sized.

The carbines are quite compact and well-suited to close-quarters shipboard combat; you have to remember that the characters holding them are only ~170-175 cm tall.



Measuring the height of the characters against the length of the weapons gives a figure of about 650mm (25.6") for the length of the carbine. Compare to:

P90 505 mm
MP5 (fixed stock) 680 mm
MP40 (stock folded) 630 mm
Thompson (fixed stock) 810 mm
M4 (stock folded) 756 mm

You haven't answered the following question to your post btw:
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Arioch wrote:

Durabys wrote:I cannot find this in the FAQ or the Insider lexicon. Can the author please give us the general idea about the individual population sizes and number of colonized worlds, fully self-sufficient colonies and outposts each star faring nation has? Fleet sizes would be nice to know as well. Not just for the Loroi Union and their allies but also for the Umiaks and the Humans. Having the answer in one single post would be nice to have just for order's sake.

I like to add a lot of detail, but in some cases I've found that adding too much unnecessary detail serves little purpose other than giving people rope to hang you with. So when it comes to things like census numbers, I try to be a little bit vague. But I can collect what I've already said about the subject:

Humanity has Earth plus a colonial population of about 200 million divided among 5 colony worlds. Humanity has about 50 armed starships if you include local police vessels.

The Union contains roughly 150 inhabited worlds, of which about 40 have populations of more than 100 million. This includes both Loroi and alien populations. My best estimate for the size of the combined Loroi fleet is around 30 divisions, or between 2-3,000 vessels.

The size and population of the Hierarchy is not well-known, but it's larger than the Union. The total size of the Umiak fleet is not known, but Loroi intelligence estimates vary from 3:1 to 5:1 the size of the Loroi fleet.

So about a total population of 20 Billion Humans in existence (Homeworld + colonies) and about 90-100 Billion Loroi (and 70-100 worlds) and another 100-200 Billions from other Union member states (around 50-70 worlds)?

With the Umiak's themselves being in the 2-3 Trillion range with their subjugated races having their population held down artificially at around 200-300 Billions?