Subj:	TRAVELLER digest 379
Date:	95-08-15 17:14:25 EDT
From:	traveller@mpgn.com
Sender:	traveller@mpgn.com
Reply-to:	traveller@mpgn.com
To:	traveller@mpgn.com (Multiple recipients of list)

			    TRAVELLER Digest 379

Topics covered in this issue include:

  1) Re: Peaceful Uses: Battleriders	by George Herbert <gherbert@crl.com>
  2) Signal-GK in Canada?	by Boris Zaidfeld <cs911408@red.ariel.cs.yorku.ca>
  3) Re: TRAVELLER digest 375	by library@dss.gov.au (DSS Library)
  4) Mertactor	by Hans Rancke-Madsen <rancke@diku.dk>
  5) Classic Traveller Stuff for sale	by Goldman of Chaos <goldman@winternet.com>
  6) Travel Faster Than Light (?) (fwd)	by Shalom Zaidfeld <cs911408@red.ariel.cs.yorku.ca>
  7) Pulse Rifle	by Liam_McCauley@qsp.co.uk

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: Mon, 14 Aug 1995 14:26:11 -0700
From: George Herbert <gherbert@crl.com>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Cc: gherbert@crl.com
Subject: Re: Peaceful Uses: Battleriders
Message-ID: <199508142126.AA24914@mail.crl.com>

>Has anybody ever used the "battle tender" portion of a battle rider combo to
>other uses? This was inspired by a recent episode of Babylon 5 in which it
>appeared that a research ship was carried by a larger (jump capable)
vehicle.
>One could see reserve tenders being put to use in the Imperium to carry
>fleets of (cheap) non-jump capable research vehicles. The tender would drop
>the research vehicles along a route, then return along the same route to pick
>them up.

Sure, all the time... if you build tenders which are less combat capable,
they make excellent large merchants which are easy to reincorporate into
the Navy if hostilities break out (run, don't walk, to the nearest Depot
or equivalent and grab the nearest rider squadron...).

Taking this a bit further, if you use riders and auxiliaries such as
troop landers etc. which are the same size, you can use the tenders in
multiple roles (rider tender, invasion lander tender, tanker, etc.)
by just swapping out the carried vehicles.

-george william herbert
gherbert@crl.com


------------------------------

Date: Mon, 14 Aug 1995 22:05:18 -0400 (EDT)
From: Boris Zaidfeld <cs911408@red.ariel.cs.yorku.ca>
To: TNE Mailing List <traveller@MPGN.COM>
Cc: Xboat Traveller Mailing List <xboat@MPGN.COM>,
Subject: Signal-GK in Canada?
Message-ID: <Pine.SOL.3.91.950814214832.14019A-100000@blue>


Hello everyone,

Does anyone here know if Signal-GK 'zine is available in Canada, or in the 
US?, if so where (address) and what is the latest issue.

I just borrowed Signal-GK 1 to 9 from a friend and really liked what I 
read.  Excellent zine from england.  I was wondering how much is a 
subscribtion to it and if they can be contacted by Email.

And one last thing, are there any Writing Guidelines for S-GK?

Thanks,
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shalom Zaidfeld  					      Toronto, CANADA
Email: cs911408@ariel.cs.yorku.ca
(GEEK CODE 3.0)  GU>GSS d- S+:- a-- C++ US E---- W++ N++ w++ O-
                 M+ V- PS++ Y+ PGP- t+ 5+ X+ R+++ tv@ b++ D++
                 G e>e++ h! r++ y+


------------------------------

Date: Tue, 15 Aug 1995 17:48:27 -0500
From: library@dss.gov.au (DSS Library)
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Re: TRAVELLER digest 375
Message-ID: <199508160050.RAA06812@babylon5.dss.gov.au>

Dear Folks -

HEAVY PASSENGER AIRCRAFT

The _Tokyo_-class Heavy Passenger Transport from COACC is a fairly obvious copy of
a Boeing 747. The following stats were given:

Displacement: 1500 tons
Loaded Weight: 400 tons
Crew: 15 (pilot, co-pilot, flight engineer, 12 flight attendants)
Passengers: 400
Cargo: 20 tons
(_COACC_, Terry McInnes, GDW, USA, 1989, p 81)

Sorry, at the moment I don't have the stats for the real plane handy.

JUMP DRIVES

In digest #373, "Commander X" wrote:

>: That right boys and girls, if we open our FF&Ses to page 42, under Important
>: Note, we see the
>: following statement:
>: 
>: "The smallest J-drive at any tech level is 2m^3 in volume."

..and Jerry replied:

>Uhm, but isn't there a rule somewhere in the depths of Traveller lore
>that states jump-capable ships have to be at least 100 tons?

I asked this a few digests ago, but no-one replied. Certainly Jerry is
correct in terms of Classic Trav, but I have not found anything in
TNE to support a limit (beyond a passing comment in BL).

Maybe a worthwhile "Commodore Bwana" question??

- Hyphen
  (David Jaques-Watson)


------------------------------

Date: Tue, 15 Aug 1995 14:42:26 +0100 (METDST)
From: Hans Rancke-Madsen <rancke@diku.dk>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Mertactor
Message-ID: <199508151242.OAA15841@embla.diku.dk>

Christopher Griffen wrote:
>      RICE Paper #SM-1537:  Mertactor/Plankwell
>      
>      Mertactor (Plankwell:  Spinward Marches/1537) B262732-B  S   Cp      
>      610 RE G1 V
>      Mertactor was settled relatively late compared with the other worlds 
>      of Plankwell Subsector.  It wasn't until 486 that the first colonist 
>      set foot on the system mainworld's terra firma.  

The maps in the article "History of the Spinward Marches" (published in
several CT modules) shows that Mertactor was settled by 300 (it dosen't
say how much earlier) and already independent. It was part of the jump-1 
route to Glisten (which was colonized in 298). Of the other worlds in 
District 268 (I suppose Plankwell is an official new name for it?) the 
worlds to trailing are shown as being within the settled area. Over half 
of the planets to spinward are not yet settled.

>Mertactor was designated as a place where the Morans could stow their 
>population overflow.  

Have you ever tried calculating the amount of tonnage you need to export
a significant part of a planetary population? It's quite expensive even
if you export to a world just one jump-1 away. Expenses rise _rapidly_
if the "sinkhole" is more than one jump away. Mora to Mertactor is - let's
see, jump-4 hasen't been invented yet, has it? - NINE jumps by jump-3,
14 by jump-2. There's no way such an operation could have any useful
effect (Hmm.. Except as a phony propaganda stunt to give psycological
relief to the people at home (just like the Aslan ihatei expeditions).
That might work. But even then it dosen't make economic sense to send
them all the way to Mertactor. There were planets within two jumps-3 of
Mora that were outside the Imperium at the time.

The Relocation Initiative of 486 was 
>      not looked well upon by the unwilling colonists.  To villify the Moran

>      Matriarchs, the colonists named their world after the notorious 
>      freebooter, Wilhelm Mertactor, who had raided, raped and pillaged the 
>      Old and New Islands Subsectors of Reft in the twilight years of the 
>      Ramshackle Empire.  

The Old and New Islands Subsectors were unknown until a scout vessel
misjumped into them in... I forget the year, but it was quite recent.
The inhabitants had never heard of anyone from outside and noone outside
had heard of them.

>The Mertactan colonists had become 
>      accustomed to their small but verdant new home and the majority 
>      decided to stay.  
>
>[...]
>
>      While dodging free traders and air/rafts, visiting travellers will be 
>      impressed by the lush earth and blue skies of Mertactor.  

Not a correction, just a comment: Mertactor is between 15 and 24% covered
with water. There can undoubtedly be lush and verdant spots on it, but 
overall the planet must be quite arid.

>However, when the Mertactan Chamberlords 
>successfully lobbied the Archduke to establish the capital on 
>Mertactor, 

That's a neat trick! How did the lobby pull that one off? Collace must have
several hundred times the ressources to spare for lobbying than Mertactor.

>      Within the last 80 years, the rimward encroachment of aslan ihatei 

Ouch! Well, let's not get into that one again... ;-)



      Hans Rancke
University of Copenhagen
     rancke@diku.dk
------------
        "The referee should determine the nature of subsequent
         events based on the individual situation."
                                _76 Patrons_, p. 8


------------------------------

Date: Tue, 15 Aug 1995 08:09:49 -0500 (CDT)
From: Goldman of Chaos <goldman@winternet.com>
To: traveller@MPGN.COM, xboat@MPGN.COM
Cc: goldman@winternet.com
Subject: Classic Traveller Stuff for sale
Message-ID: <199508151309.IAA24736@parka>


I have the following Classic Traveller books for sale.  All are
in very good condition.  I'll be accepting bids for the next few
weeks or until bidding stops, using the going, going, gone
format.  Minimum bid is listed, and buyer pays shipping.

Matt

	$10	JoTAS #15
	$10	JoTAS #16
	$10	JoTAS #19
	$10	JoTAS #21
	$10	JoTAS #22
	$10	JoTAS #24
	$10	Best of JoTAS #3
	
	$15	Book 4: Mercenary
	$15	Book 5: High Guard (2nd Edition)
	$15	Book 6: Scouts
	$15	Book 7: Merchant Prince
	$15	Book 8: Robots
	
	$10	Supplement 1: 1001 Characters
	$10	Supplement 2: Animal Encounters
	$10	Supplement 4: Citizens of the Imperium
	$10	Supplement 7: Traders and Gunboats
	$10	Supplement 8: Library Data (A-M)
	$10	Supplement 11: Library Data (N-Z)
	$10	Supplement 12: Forms and Charts
	
	$10	Adventure 1: The Kinunir
	$10	Adventure 2: Research Station Gamma
	$10	Adventure 3: Twilights Peak
	$10	Adventure 9: Nomads of the World Ocean
	
	$20	The Traveller Book
	$15	The Traveller Adventure
	$10	Glimmerdrift Reaches Guidebook (Judges Guild)
	
	$25	Fifth Frontier War
	$25	Invasion Earth (Unpunched)


P.S.	Contact me via e-mail, since I've dropped off of the 
	traveller mailing lists.
-- 
Matthew Goldman  E-mail: goldman@winternet.com Home: (612) 593-1148
                           Work: (612) 829-6008 Fax: (612) 829-6250
My day today? Nothing major, just Xenon base gone, Scorpio gone, 
Tarrant dead, Tarrant alive and then I found out Blake sold us out.

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 15 Aug 1995 09:28:24 -0400 (EDT)
From: Shalom Zaidfeld <cs911408@red.ariel.cs.yorku.ca>
To: TNE Mailing List <traveller@MPGN.COM>,
Subject: Travel Faster Than Light (?) (fwd)
Message-ID: <Pine.SOL.3.91.950815092717.5480B-100000@blue>

Here is something I thought would intrest some of you.

Enjoy,
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shalom Zaidfeld  					      Toronto, CANADA
Email: cs911408@ariel.cs.yorku.ca
(GEEK CODE 3.0)  GU>GSS d- S+:- a-- C++ US E---- W++ N++ w++ O-
                 M+ V- PS++ Y+ PGP- t+ 5+ X+ R+++ tv@ b++ D++
                 G e>e++ h! r++ y+


---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Tue, 15 Aug 1995 01:08:48 -0400
From: Chris Rowan <chris@tenet.edu>
To: Educational Space Sims Project <ESSP@listproc.hcf.jhu.edu>
Subject: Travel Faster Than Light (?)


Subject: Travel Faster Than Light (?)

"There must be some way out of here, said the Joker to the
Thief" -  Bob Dylan (from 'All Along the Watchtower')

***************************************************************

From:  David Key Canfil
       22 St. Leonard's Road
       Headington, Oxford
       England
       OX3  8AA

       email:  d8782@cix.compulink.uk.co

****************************************************************


RE:  'ASTRONOMERS PREDICT FASTER THAN LIGHT SPACE TRAVEL'

by Johnathan Leake, _The Sunday Times_, London,

13 August 1995, front page, lead story -

It is boldly going where no reputable scientific body has gone before.
Contradicting Einstein, the normally conservative Royal Astronomical
Society is about to publish a report predicting that mankind will be able
to travel faster than the speed of light. 

The breakthrough means that Star Trek fantasies of intersteller
civilisations and voyages powers by warp drive are now no longer the
exclusive domain of science fiction writers. 

The report was written by Ian Crawford, an astronomer at University
College London, who believes not only that man will one day see stars at
close quarters, but that we had better sart preparing ourselves for the
consequences, including contact with aliens. 

His paper, Some Thoughts on the Implications of Faster-Than-Light Travel,
has been validated by independent referees in the scientific community and
will be published next month. Its publication coincides with the formation
by British and American scientists of the Interstellar Propulsion Society
(IPS) which is dedicated to finding a means of taking astronauts to the
stars. 

Crawford argues that modern physics may allow two possible ways around
Einstein's theory, which says that because bodies have infinite mass at
the speed of light, no amount of energy can make them go faster. 

The first is to pass through "wormholes", rifts in the fabric of space
caused by intense gravitational fields such as those found around the
collapsed stars known as black holes. 

Crawford says that such fields may allow the traveller to enter a wormhole
from one point and then to leave it at another, possibly thousands of
light years away. 

Previously, scientists have assumed that any astronaut who was caught in
such a powerful gravitational field would be pulled into something
resembling a piece of spaghetti. 

However, Crawford said last week that recent research had suggested
wormholes could be stablised and manipulated to create short cuts between
any two points in space. "The proofs are complex and mathematical, but
more and more astrophysicists are satisfied that in theory it is
possible," he said. 

Should wormholes fail, however, Crawford proposes a second possible route
to the stars. He draws on a recent paper by Miguel Alcubierre, of the
University of Wales, in the journal Classical and Quantum Gravity to
suggest the possibility of propulsion systems which distort space by
compressing it in front of a spaceship while expanding it behind. 

Such a system would effectively bend space, creating a form of "warp
drive" reminiscent of the Starship Enterprise of Captain James T. Kirk in
Star Trek. 

The theories will boost growing interest among scientists in the
possibility of travelling faster than light. The IPS, whose members
include several NASA engineers, starts its first conference shortly in
Halifax, Nova Scotia. 

Patrick Moore, the astronomer and presenter of The Sky At Night, said he
believed interstellar travel would one day be achieved. "Television would
have seemed impossible 200 years ago and faster than light travel is no
more outrageous than that," he said. 

Arthur C. Clarke, the science fiction writer and futurologist, was equally
enthusiastic. His first novel, Against the Fall of Night, presumed that
man would be able to travel faster than light. Speaking from his home in
Colombo, Sri Lanka, he said: "That was just a dramatic device which all
science fiction writers have to use in space travel, but I have always
believed it may one day be possible." 

Sir Martin Rees, the Astronomer Royal and Professor of Astronomy at
Cambridge University, was more cautious, however, saying the proofs were
purely theoretical. 

<END>



------------------------------

Date: 	Tue, 15 Aug 1995 15:23:28 +0100
From: Liam_McCauley@qsp.co.uk
To: traveller@MPGN.COM
Subject: Pulse Rifle
Message-ID: <030ae580@pc173.qsp.co.uk>

     I am trying to re-engineer a Pulse Rifle (from Aliens) using FF&S, but 
     it has ended up about twice the weight it should do (using "ALiens, 
     Colonial Marines Technical Manual" by Lee Brimmicombe-Wood and the 
     Aliens RPG by the Phoenix Command people as reference).
     
     Most of the weight is in the receiver and magazine (to hold 99 or 95 
     rounds).  I seem to remember that someone posted information on 
     lighter weight materials for FF&S designs.  Could you please e-mail me 
     with that info, again.
     
     There doesn't seem to be any differentiation made between cased and 
     caseless ammo in FF&S (other than a comment saying all non-ETC ammo 
     above a certain TL will be caseless).  Has anyone come up with their 
     own rules?
     
     I'll post the final design to the list when I finish it.
     
     Next, the M56 Smart Gun (what do you mean "Inertial Compensators are 
     TL14"?).
     
     Cheers,
     Liam
     
     Liam_McCauley@QSP.co.uk

------------------------------

End of TRAVELLER Digest 379
***************************
