Which was why I suggested moving a Gate. Although that might break the link to the network.
I have been thinking about introducing a new FTL method from the WFC, something that enables a character to take a month off to do a bit of travelling/exploration/discovery and come back. However, it can’t be too easy or the setting as it stands unravels.
I’ve considered all the FTL methods I know…and my brain ignores me to keep popping up Nova Praxis Jump Gates.
Jump Gates are point-to-point folded space type systems, and they can go up to 2 light-years per jump.
There are three types in the NP setting:
Jump Drives – The ship opens a jump gate which envelops it and shifts everything up to 2ly.
Jump Gates – The ship has a ring structure to stabilise the gate, holding it open for an hour before acting like a jump drive. Good for a mothership and a fleet.
Jump Rings – Huge stationary structures linked to other rings in range. Acts like a Jump Gate without moving afterwards.
The blub has ship drives being able to jump every four hours, so 12ly per day. The Rings only at once every 8 hours.
Downsides? The main one is that you can’t use them in gravity wells. (OK, you can but they destabilise after a while. One of the original gates allowed you to walk from Italy to Mars, up until the gate destabilised and most of the Mars end tried fitting in the room at the Italy side). Second is they’re resource hogs (maintenance and power, they use anti-matter reactors). For ships there is the fact they’re not too accurate. The MINIMUM drift in the source is 2 AU, which is fairly bad as it takes the local ships ~10 days to cover an AU. That makes them useless for in-system travel. Rings are better there (point-to-point remember?), but fen-drives are far faster than Nova Praxis ones.
So, you’d need a BIG ship to have a jump drive, and a Jump Ring network needs investment to build and maintain (like a railway).
But given the ‘meh’, it’s probably not worth it.
I have been thinking about introducing a new FTL method from the WFC, something that enables a character to take a month off to do a bit of travelling/exploration/discovery and come back. However, it can’t be too easy or the setting as it stands unravels.
I’ve considered all the FTL methods I know…and my brain ignores me to keep popping up Nova Praxis Jump Gates.
Jump Gates are point-to-point folded space type systems, and they can go up to 2 light-years per jump.
There are three types in the NP setting:
Jump Drives – The ship opens a jump gate which envelops it and shifts everything up to 2ly.
Jump Gates – The ship has a ring structure to stabilise the gate, holding it open for an hour before acting like a jump drive. Good for a mothership and a fleet.
Jump Rings – Huge stationary structures linked to other rings in range. Acts like a Jump Gate without moving afterwards.
The blub has ship drives being able to jump every four hours, so 12ly per day. The Rings only at once every 8 hours.
Downsides? The main one is that you can’t use them in gravity wells. (OK, you can but they destabilise after a while. One of the original gates allowed you to walk from Italy to Mars, up until the gate destabilised and most of the Mars end tried fitting in the room at the Italy side). Second is they’re resource hogs (maintenance and power, they use anti-matter reactors). For ships there is the fact they’re not too accurate. The MINIMUM drift in the source is 2 AU, which is fairly bad as it takes the local ships ~10 days to cover an AU. That makes them useless for in-system travel. Rings are better there (point-to-point remember?), but fen-drives are far faster than Nova Praxis ones.
So, you’d need a BIG ship to have a jump drive, and a Jump Ring network needs investment to build and maintain (like a railway).
But given the ‘meh’, it’s probably not worth it.