Starship Engineering

Introduction

This section covers the use of the skills (A) Engineering: Starfighter (covering any small armed starship designed to carry no more than three crewmen, including any droids), (A) Engineering: Space transports (including any Starfighter-scale vehicle that does not fit the description of a starfighter, above, plus any lightly armed Capital-scale ship whose primary function is carrying passengers and/or cargo), and (A) Engineering: Capital ship (any Capital-scale vehicle that would not qualify as a Space Transport because of armament, purpose, etc.). Two related skills, (A) Engineering: Installation (from Hideouts and Strongholds) and (A) Engineering: Droid (from Cynabar's Fantastic Technology: Droids), have been detailed in WEG SW:RPG books and this section draws a lot of inspiration from them.

These (A) Engineering specializations have the following prerequisites (source: Hideouts and Strongholds):

• Starfighter: 5D Starfighter repair, 3D Starship weapons repair
• Space transports: 5D Space transports repair
• Capital ship: 5D Capital ship repair, 4D Capital ship weapons repair, 2D Computer programming/repair

To use this system, come up with an outline of the stats you want for your new vehicle (not including price or crew), then go through each subsection to find the cost of that component. Some things are dependent on the cost of other things, so you should go through this system in order! Assume that 1 pip = 1/3 of 1D. Remember that modifiers are cumulative and may be multiplied together when applicable.

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Independent Systems

Independent systems are those whose cost is not dependent on any other factor, but their costs (and sizes and weights) increase the cost of Dependent systems, below. Total the cost of all Independent systems before proceeding through the design process. The cost of Independent systems is doubled for Starfighters and halved for Capital ships.

Vehicle/Hangar Bay

Note: Starfighters may not have a vehicle bay.

Sensors

Cost: (1,000 × #D) × (Passive range/15) × (Scan range/30) × (Search range/50) × (Focus range/3)

• Ranges: Ranges must be progressively larger in this order: Focus, Passive, Scan, Search.
• Sensor dice: Sensor dice must be progressively larger in this order: Passive, Scan, Search, Focus. However, sensor modes may be excluded, starting with Focus and proceeding backward through this list.
• Note: If a starship has no sensors (i.e., 0D in all categories), then it must rely on visual perception: Passive 5/0D.

Passengers

Note: Starfighters can only have seats. Steerage accommodations can be used as barracks for troops or as prison cells (double cost for a +1D to difficulty to escape, triple cost for a +2D).

Cargo

Cargo costs 75 credits per ton. Assume that there is one cubic meter of storage space per two metric tons of cargo.

Accessories

Military versions of communications gear have built-in encryption.

Weapons Systems

Weapons costs are determined by type and the sum of fire control and damage dice. For these purposes, consider fire-linked weapons to be a single weapon (e.g., an X-wing's four fire-linked laser cannons are purchased as a single laser cannon with Fire Control 3D and Damage 6D).

Blasters (Starfighter-scale)

• Cost: 750 per 1D
• Range: 1-5/10/17
• Fire Control: 0D–3D
• Damage: 1D–6D

Lasers (Starfighter-scale)

• Cost: 1,000 per 1D
• Range: 1-3/12/25
• Fire Control: 0D–3D
• Damage: 1D–7D
• Total Dice: Cannot exceed 9D

Lasers or Turbolasers (Capital-scale)

• Cost: 8,000 per 1D
• Range: 3-15/35/75
• Fire Control: 0D–4D
• Damage: 2D–10D
• Total Dice: Cannot exceed 10D

Ion Cannons (Starfighter-scale)

• Cost: 1,000 per 1D
• Range: 1-3/7/36
• Fire Control: 0D–4D
• Damage: 3D+1–4D

Ion Cannons (Capital-scale)

• Cost: 8,000 per 1D
• Range: 1-10/25/50
• Fire Control: 2D+2–4D
• Damage: 3D–4D

Proton Torpedoes (Starfighter-scale)

• Cost: 500 per 1D
• Range: 1/3/7
• Fire Control: 0D–3D
• Damage: 7D–9D
• Ammo Capacity: +10% of base per torpedo
• Each Torpedo: 25% of base

Proton Torpedoes (Capital-scale)

• Cost: 4,000 per 1D
• Range: 2-12/30/60
• Fire Control: 2D–3D+1
• Damage: 6D+2–9D
• Total Dice: Cannot exceed 11D
• Ammo Capacity: +10% of base per torpedo
• Each Torpedo: 25% of base

Concussion Missiles (Starfighter-scale)

• Cost: 375 per 1D
• Range: 1/3/7
• Fire Control: 1D–3D+2
• Damage: 7D–9D
• Ammo Capacity: +15% of base per missile
• Each Missile: 50% of base

Concussion Missiles (Capital-scale)

• Cost: 3,000 per 1D
• Range: 2-12/30/60
• Fire Control: 1D–5D
• Damage: 4D–9D
• Total Dice: Cannot exceed 12D
• Ammo Capacity: +15% of base per missile
• Each Missile: 50% of base

Tractor Beams (Starfighter-scale)

• Cost: 2,000 per 1D
• Range: 1-5/15/30
• Fire Control: 2D–3D
• Damage (Strength): 2D–5D

Tractor Beams (Capital-scale)

• Cost: 16,000 per 1D
• Range: 1-5/15/30
• Fire Control: 0D–4D
• Damage (Strength): 4D–9D

Gravity Well Projector (Capital-scale only)

• Cost: 100,000 per 1D
• Range: 1-5/75/150
• Fire Control: 0D–6D
• Gravity Well Constant (GWC): 1–6 space units (each point counts as 1D for cost purposes).

A starship's range from the center of the gravity well determines the effect on its hyperdrive:

• Within 1×GWC: Cannot enter hyperspace
• Within 2×GWC: +30 to Astrogation difficulty
• Within 3×GWC: +20 to Astrogation difficulty
• Within 4×GWC: +15 to Astrogation difficulty
• Within 6×GWC: +10 to Astrogation difficulty
• Within 8×GWC: +5 to Astrogation difficulty

Note: See pp. 18–20 of Wanted by Cracken for details.

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Mass Modifier

To find the Mass Modifier, take the total cost of all Independent systems and divide by 50,000.

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Dependent Systems

Dependent Systems are those whose cost is modified by the mass and/or size of the independent systems, above. To calculate the cost of Space, Maneuverability, Hyperspace Multiplier, Hull, and Shields, find the base cost from the charts below and multiply by the mass modifier. The cost of Dependent systems is halved for Starfighters and doubled for Capital ships.

Hyperdrive: 20,000 / (Hyperspace multiplier)

• Hyperdrive multiplier cannot be lower than ×1.
• Hyperdrives slower than ×5 are usually used as backup hyperdrives.

Hull (Starfighter-scale): 4,000 per 1D

• Starfighters may not have a Hull over 4D+1.
• Space transports may not have a Hull over 7D.
• Hull normally includes 2D of Particle Shields (i.e., if Particle Shields are lowered because of power loss, missile/torpedo launches, or vehicle launch and recovery, lower the starship's Hull by 2D). If the vehicle's Hull is less than 4D, Particle Shields instead make up 1/2 the total Hull code, rounded down.

Hull (Capital-scale): 32,000 per 1D

• Capital-scale Space transports may not have a Hull over 5D+2.
• Other Capital ships may not have a Hull over 10D.
• Hull normally includes 2D of Particle Shields (i.e., if Particle Shields are lowered because of power loss, missile/torpedo launches, or vehicle launch and recovery, lower the starship's Hull by 2D). If the vehicle's Hull is less than 4D, Particle Shields instead make up 1/2 the total Hull code, rounded down.

Sublight Engines: 2,500 × Space

• Capital ships may not have a Space rating above 9.
• Space transports may not have a Space rating above 10.
• Starfighters may not have a Space rating above 12.
• Drop-ships are special cases: They may have a Space of 1–2 but move 5× as fast when heading toward a planet's surface (this should only work within 100 units of the atmosphere); however, drop-ship engines cost 2× as much as normal.
• If the starship cannot fly in a planet's atmosphere, its sublight engines cost 1/2 as much. Otherwise, look up its Atmosphere rating on the chart below:

Baffled Drive: 50,000 × Space

• Space cannot exceed 2.
• Fuel enough for 100 units of movement on a single tank.
• Each tank costs (engine cost) × 0.07 and occupies (cost / 3,500) tons of cargo per spare tank.
• This drive can allow movement even while powered down (adding +5 to difficulty to detect and identify).

Shields (Starfighter-scale): 6,000 per 1D

• These are Ray Energy Shields and have no effect on physical damage.
• Starfighters may not have Shields over 2D+2.
• Space transports may not have Shields over 4D.

Shields (Capital-scale): 48,000 per 1D

• These are Ray Energy Shields and have no effect on physical damage.
• Capital-scale Space transports may not have Shields over 3D.
• Other Capital ships may not have Shields over 8D.

Maneuverability: 3,750 per 1D

• Starfighters may not have Maneuverability over 4D.
• Space transports and Capital ships may not have Maneuverability over 3D.

Crew: 5,000 each (×1/5 if crewmen are seated)

Small ships such as light freighters or starfighters may have very small crews because a single crewman performs several tasks (e.g., a starfighter pilot acts as commander, pilot, astrogator, shield operator, comm specialist, sensor specialist, and gunner). However, larger ships such as capital ships (especially military vessels) usually have at least one to two crewmen dedicated to each task per shift (normally three shifts per day). Also, very large vessels may carry extra crewmen to compensate for combat casualties.

• Command: At least one, but usually three (captain, first officer, second officer) plus one per five crewmen.
• Pilot: At least three, but usually six (one pilot and co-pilot pair per shift).
• Astrogators, Sensor Operators, Shield Specialists, Comm Specialists: Three to six of each. These constitute the bulk of the bridge crew.
• Gunners: One per starfighter-scale weapon, two per capital-scale weapon, and four per tractor beam.
• Hangar crews and pilots/drivers: Three times the total of all carried vehicle crews (e.g., twelve TIE fighters have twelve pilots, so include at least thirty-six crewmen as deck crews and TIE pilots).
• Engineers: At least one per 60,000 credits of Dependent Systems, rounded up.
• Passenger Service: One per 50 Steerage, 20 Standard, 15 Cozy, 10 Comfortable, 5 Affluent, and 2 Luxurious accommodations. Droids are often used for these positions.
• Medical personnel: One doctor, nurse, or other medical specialist per 50 people aboard. Vessels with five or more medical personnel should have a Clinic Level, and those with twenty-five or more should have a Hospital Level (see Medical facilities under Independent Systems, above). Droids are often used for these positions because of the highly specialized physiological knowledge needed.
• Service: One service crewman (cooks, morale officers, etc.) per 50 people aboard. Droids are often used for these positions, especially those that might be viewed as "menial."
• General Maintenance: One mechanic per 50 aboard. Droids are often used for these positions as they often require extravehicular activities.
• Life Support: One per 100 people aboard. Life support is handled by Engineering on smaller vessels, but it is especially important (and hence the responsibility of an independent department) on larger ones.
• Security: One security guard/military policeman per 50 aboard. Carried troops also perform security tasks, but most vessels have a separate security contingent aboard.
• Other crewmen: Larger military vessels may have many more crew positions, such as intelligence officers, landing parties, cargo handlers, computer specialists, droid mechanics, entertainers, diplomatic personnel, sentientologists, astrocartographers, astrophysicists, xenobiologists, and public relations/media personnel. Star Destroyers, for example, would have thousands of these sorts of crew.

Consumables

Starfighters:

• Cost = (Independent Systems + Dependent Systems + Crew costs) / 600 per day.
• Maximum five days of consumables (one Galactic standard week).
• Drop tanks: Cost as per Consumables. A single drop tank cannot carry more fuel than the starfighter normally carries. For every +50% or fraction thereof added to the starfighter's range by drop tanks, subtract –2 pips from Maneuverability and –1 from Space, to a maximum of a +300% increase to range. A starfighter may not have its Maneuverability or Space reduced to zero.

Space Transports:

• Cost = (Independent Systems + Dependent Systems + Crew costs) / 1,200 per day.
• Maximum six months of consumables (one Galactic standard month is 35 days).

Capital Ships:

• Cost = (Independent Systems + Dependent Systems + Crew costs) / 2,400 per day.
• Maximum six years of consumables (one Galactic standard year is 368 standard days).

Base Cost

Base Cost is equal to the total costs of all Independent Systems, Dependent Systems, Crew Accommodations, and Consumables.

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Designing Starships

Step 1: The Design

First, the designer (or design team) has to draw up the plans (as above) to determine what the Base Cost will be for the starship. The time required to create the blueprints for this design = 10 × (square root of Base Cost) man-hours. After this time is spent, roll (A) Engineering against the following difficulty:

• Base cost up to 25,000: Very Easy
• Base cost up to 100,000: Easy
• Base cost up to 250,000: Moderate
• Base cost up to 1 million: Difficult
• Base cost up to 10 million: Very Difficult
• Base cost up to 100 million: Heroic
• Each additional 10× increase in cost: +10 additional points

Multiple engineers may work on the design to reduce the time required, but in this case they will roll the following number of dice for their (A) Engineering skill, rounding down to the nearest pip:

((Design team leader's skill) + ((Total of all other team members' skills) / (Number of other team members))) / 2

The maximum number of people who may work on a given task is equal to the cube root of the man-hours required (e.g., if 1,000 man-hours are required, no more than 10 engineers may work on the blueprints). Every engineer must have an appropriate (A) Engineering specialization to participate. Note that an average person will spend no more than eight hours a day working on the blueprints; if more time is required (up to 16 hours a day), overtime will have to be paid and the engineers will have to make Stamina rolls against a difficulty of (# hours worked – 8), increasing by +1 every day until the design is finished or the engineer collapses from exhaustion, at which point he needs a number of days off equal to (total # of overtime worked thus far) / 8, rounded up.

Compare the (A) Engineering roll to the difficulty:

• Missed by 10+ points or a Complication: The design is completely unworkable. All work (and money spent) is wasted and the engineers must start over again.
• Missed by 1–9 points: The design has one major flaw and 1–3 minor flaws (see below).
• Succeeded by 0–9 points: The design has 1–3 minor flaws (see below).
• Succeeded by 10+ points: The design is flawless, working exactly as intended.

Design flaws should be determined in secret; do not allow the players to know what they are or how many there are! They should only be revealed during the construction of the Prototype (see Step 2, below) or during Testing (see Step 3, below).

Design Flaws

Step 2: The Prototype

The time required to construct the prototype = 3 × (square root of Base Cost) man-hours. A maximum of (cube root of man-hours required) individual mechanics may be used to build the prototype. Note that an average person will spend no more than eight hours a day working on the prototype; if more time is required (up to 16 hours a day), overtime will have to be paid and the mechanics will have to make Stamina rolls against a difficulty of (# hours worked per day – 8), increasing by +1 every day until the design is finished or the engineer collapses from exhaustion, at which point he needs a number of days off equal to (total # of overtime worked thus far) / 8, rounded up.

During the building of the prototype, construction materials cost 100% of the Base Cost; if a workforce has to be hired, they cost an additional 500% of the Base Cost (before paying for overtime). Note that volunteers, droids, and slaves do not incur workforce costs (although volunteers will have to be fed, droids will have to be bought, and slaves will need both). Make an appropriate [vehicle] repair roll based on the average of all mechanics working on the prototype (e.g., if building a starfighter, use the mechanics' starfighter repair or Mechanical, whichever is higher), rolling against the following difficulty:

• Base Cost up to 10,000: Very Easy
• Base Cost up to 25,000: Easy
• Base Cost up to 100,000: Moderate
• Base Cost up to 250,000: Difficult
• Base Cost up to 2.5 million: Very Difficult
• Base Cost up to 25 million: Heroic
• Each additional 10× increase in cost: +10 additional points

After making the [vehicle] repair roll, compare it to the difficulty:

• Missed by 10+ points or a Complication: An industrial accident of some sort occurs. The prototype may be destroyed, there may be a fire, the mechanics may be injured, etc. The GM is invited to be creatively malevolent.
• Missed by 1–9 points: The prototype is completed, but takes twice as long to finish.
• Succeeded by 0–9 points: The prototype is finished on time.
• Succeeded by 10+ points: The prototype is finished on time, plus the mechanics discover half (round up) of the design flaws and fix them during construction.

Step 3: Test Piloting

This step is optional but very highly recommended. It allows the designers to spot design flaws before going into production. The time the pilot (or crew) spends on this "shake-down cruise" has a chance to discover one of the bugs.

Roll the appropriate Piloting skill once per 2D days and check the result:

• 10 or less, or a Complication: A serious accident occurs; roll as a Severe Damage result, possibly destroying the prototype and killing the crew.
• 11 to 20: No bugs are discovered that week. If there are any unfixed major flaws, it causes a serious accident, as above.
• 21 to 30: One flaw (at random) is discovered.
• 31 or more: All remaining flaws are discovered.

Remember: The GM should never tell the PCs how many bugs remain! It is up to the PCs to decide how long they will continue test piloting before they think they have found all the bugs. These design flaws are not obvious during routine flight, but they will reveal themselves during a complication or during combat.

Step 4: Fixing Design Flaws

Each design flaw requires the designers to go back to work. A minor bug requires 5% of the original design time to be redesigned, while a major bug requires 20% of the original design time. Then, roll the design team's skill against the design difficulty, as per Step 1:

• Missed by 10+ points or a Complication: The engineers think they have fixed the design flaw, but it (or a new, different flaw) remains in effect.
• Missed by 1–9 points: The engineers don't find a solution, but they can try again.
• Succeeded by 0–9 points: The engineers find a solution, removing that specific design flaw.
• Succeeded by 10+ points: The engineers find a solution, removing that specific design flaw in half the required time.

After a solution is invented, the prototype must be modified. This requires 5% of the cost and time required to build the prototype for a minor flaw, or 20% for a major flaw. If the prototype was wrecked as a result of testing, this extra time is not required: The new prototype (built in the normal time) will have the redesign built in. Design flaws left unfixed become a part of the final design and will be reproduced if the vehicle goes into production.

Step 5: Production

After this, the designers have the option of going into production:

• Limited production: The vehicle is produced with the same facilities used to build the prototype, taking 1/6th as long to build, costing 20% of the Base Cost in parts, plus 80% of the Base Cost in labor (if required).
• Mass production: The vehicle is produced in a mass production facility, costing 20× Base Cost to construct (design/construction time figured from Hideouts and Strongholds); each vehicle is produced in 1/20th the original design/construction time, costing 20% of the Base Cost in parts, plus 30% of the Base Cost in labor (if required). Note that vehicles built in mass production can be sold at their Base Cost for a 50% profit even including labor costs!
• Variants: A variant is a new design based on an existing vehicle, modified by up to +/–2 pips in any stat, +/–1 Space, +/–50% to the Hyperdrive multiplier, or +/–50% to the cost of all Independent Systems. This is designed as per a new vehicle, except that time for design is 10% of what would normally be required (the prototype still requires the same time). Also, add +10 to the (A) Engineering roll when drawing up the blueprints.