Thinking Of A New Story Thread

[Sprayber]

I have some pictures of various cityscapes if anyone is interested. Here is an example.

[Mr. President]

Glad you like the idea, Mr. Sprayber. I think I should make a correction, and set the top speed to around six or seven times the speed of light, just so some of the dates in our chronologies make sense. Very absent-minded of me.

I learned in my astronomy classes this year that something like half of all stars have at least one partner. I wouldn't have guessed it either.

[Alynzia]

I would just like to say how much I liked Sprayber's star thing and his solar system thing. I was mightily impressed and I should try to do an imitation Gaian one.

I have posted my timeline in the sign-in thing along with my territories and population distribution. If anything is wrong and/or stupid tell me so that I can edit it, for I like post editing. I know I picked some really bright stars for my two settlements, but I figured if the planets were far enough away they could be habitable. I should run up some figures for my fictional planets. The amount of sunlight received and the gravitational field strength operate by inverse square law, I assume. But feel free to correct me if my stuff is rubbish.

Alynzia.

p.s. I will go with whatever method of FTL drive you can agree on. Also I may go searching for some Gaian type pictures.

Both kind of FTL drives could exist...mainly 1, but don't exactly see this tunnel (want to see stars fling by)...but 2 requires having all of the damn high techs of SMAX!!! I can't see the game being fun after researching all of the bloody darn techs in the tech tree....... 1 would need buoys, but with good research on astro physics, and etc.... knowing best you can where the stars are and first time exploring ships into a new system requires getting out of FTL sometime before entering the system.

Lets do the Master of Orion 3 way......... there is Fields and then there is particular techs you can develop base on the research done on those fields.......... So, can have you darn temporal mechanics, etc... just the research on those fields are not complete. So not getting the full complete tech in SMAX....
This also allows be low enough in weaponry and armor techs that the game will be fun in comparison... big bad ship with string disruptors and blows ships instantly....

As anyone played Darkspace? game is free at the moment. Quantum tunnel thing looks similar to the Tachyon Drive tunnel effect in Darkspace...just in darkspace, its short jumps within the system....meaning have to make sure the planet isn't between of your travel path, or crash into the planet.

-LMP

Originally posted by Mr. President
More insanity from the brain of Mr. President:

Breaking The Light Barrier - Idea 1 (The Quantum Method)

Quantum tunneling is commonplace among stray particles in the void. This method involves using advanced resonation techniques to amplify the disturbance into a "hole" large enough for a starship to pass through. The ship appears up to three light-years away in almost no time. Problems (for users): Not all quantum tunneling events are stable; it is very difficult to reliably position the exit point. It can be done with comm buoys broadcasting faster-than-light string-level resonations; but without these buoys it is extremely unsafe.

Breaking The Light Barrier - Idea 2 (The Brute Force Method)

Vizorium-5 and Kalciate are forced together under extremely high temperatures in the presence of an artificial singularity (the equipment for this reaction can only be carried on the largest classes of ship). The energy generated is channeled into string resonators that set up an enormous force at the level of the Planck length, propelling the ship in the opposite direction at nearly twice the speed of light. The ship is quite literally hurled away from the space it just occupied, by that space itself. The equations of temporal mechanics are the basis for the creation of a stasis field around the ship, which allows time on board to run in a "normal" fashion. (Particles such as tachyons which travel faster than light experience time in the opposite direction from the rest of the universe.) Problems (for users): The ship is unable to use conventional sensors while travelling faster than light; it is almost impossible to change direction once the FTL engines have been fired; requires almost an entire light-year as stopping distance. Emergency stops or direction changes may be effected by firing string disruptors; this usually damages the ship severely.

***

I like your solar system Mr. Sprayber. How did you make it?

[History Guy]

Well, I'm not sure how those pictures are done, but if you can do a city scape that looks like a Morgan city that'd be pretty interesting for me to see, for obvious reasons.

And you know, our Morgan slogan is "What Goes Up Better Doggone Stay Up". We have so little competition because our products our simply so good that no one had found the need to compete with us. So always remember to buy Morgan Products. And hey! I, CEO Morgan was right, we did get up to Nessus Prime and most of our industries are moved up there, how 'bout that?

[History Guy]

Spraybayer--

What solar system would be best for the old CEO and his bunch? When I find one, I'll classify the planets using Dr. Who, so we'll have Skaro, Mondas, etc...ok, ok, maybe I won't classify 'em that way...

[History Guy]

BTW, will any of the aliens already have FTL Drive?

[Sprayber]

Ive gotten one of the applications that lets you make the cityscapes and 3d planet renderings. Im just trying to work the kinks out of it.

History Guy: I picked an actual star for my home planet by going throught the site I posted and just picking one that was about the right distance and that could possibly support planets. A lot of the planets had companion stars way to close and had messed up orbits that would have torn any kind of planet to shreds long ago. You either can do that or simply create on out of your head. I would put it closer to chiron then I put the Spartans. Just try and think of what Morgan would have been looking for.

The Gorn, Bree, Fraal and the Tarn all have FTL drives. But are mostly far, far away. The various primitave species that you may encounter would mostly be in the stone age or earlier. They are very primitive.

[Sprayber]

LMP: We don't have to have all the techs researched. That was just an idle comment I through out. The Terran factions will be a little behind at first but eventually caught up with the Chiron decended factions.

One question to everyone, should the Terrans have a presence outside the Sol system. OR a substanstial one anyway..

[Mr. President]

LMP, I genuinely do not understand why you do not want to play with the likes of matter editation, applied gravitonics, and controlled singularities. What about these would make the story less fun?

[Mr. President]

OK, this isn't a very original picture, but it's a start.

The sun sets, both literally and metaphorically, on Free Drone Central on Chiron. The administrative center of the Republic is to be moved to Serene Bay on Vega Prime as the last step in the Long-Term Plan.

(Photograph was originally taken from the Spartan Chronicles website. Sorry, Googlie!)

By the way, Alynzia, I don't think the brightness of the star really matters. Vega Prime, my soon-to-be-home planet, orbits a giant young blue star.

Okay, there is somethings we need to deal with before seriously making up faction histories and what they have for territory....

Technology: the starting average tech would be? Do you people like the MOO3's Field and Application way of going with technology? won't exactly be a tech tree, but still can do some research on whatever field, but developing technologies out of those fields are an different matter. Also, need to figure out the average weapons, armor, etc techs. Can have a faction that are into missiles, or another into beam weaponry or another into projectiles, etc....... just no fancy exotic weaponry please, ruins the game quickly i think :P weaponry doesn't have to solely be base on SMAX techs. Fraal is the most advance aliens, and have been around in the galaxy for quite awhile... long enough to see the rise and fall of various stellar civilizations.

Starmap: Need a starmap, which i am willing to create base on the real stars....with Sol in the center. So need distances of stars from Sol, remember the formula of the pythagerum(whatever) theorum and a simple top view map of the area, generally showing where each of the stars are located.

Travel Time: after figuring out the distances and location of stars...need to agree you upon how fast FTL will going to be..... can have the more advance powerful FTL to go faster then the older smaller ones.

A GENERAL human chronology: so we can easily base our faction histories on..........which i am willing to do. When did University invent Chiron's first FTL? when did the prototype made the successful FTL jump to Sol and then quikcly jump back without staying around to realize humanity is thriving... etc....

Also need to refigure this starting date or refigure the population level of some worlds....Can't exactly have Heavily Populated worlds after such quick rate of colonization/expansion in just over two centuries.... unless your definition of Heavily Populated is a few millions. From Planet Fall to invention of FTL in the mid or late 2400s....about 80-100k in 2100 to barely a billion by the 2400s.... and we did have various wars and the long out war to eradicate the proginators on chiron too..... thats combine population of chiron by the way....... then you want to move/colonize other planets, expecting to be heavily populated (to me is 5-10 billion or more) by 2700. Like come one :P Only humans of Sol can achieve that if they discovered FTL before Chiron did.

There is also the matter of fleet sizes, ship sizes, etc.... Dreadnought ships during the 2600s? so soon after rapid colonization/expansion? how big is a Dreadnought to you?

Ship sizes can be base on the ones MOO2/3, with added few.......from - Scout, Corvette, Frigate, Destroyer, Light Cruiser, Cruiser, Heavy Cruiser, Battlecruiser, Battleship, Dreadnought and Super Dreadnought - To

I know i may be picky...but better to have some structure to guerantee the success of Beyond Alpha Centauri... to prevent exagerations, inconsisties (mispell), power play (MOO2 after finishing all of the tech or like Total Annihilation in a way), who as the bigger gun attitude and erotic strange stuff which ignores the basic realitic universal laws, etc.......

-LMP

Originally posted by Mr. President
LMP, I genuinely do not understand why you do not want to play with the likes of matter editation, applied gravitonics, and controlled singularities. What about these would make the story less fun?

Look, lets destroy a star with a Singularity Bomb..........

the idea to start the game with Singularity powered ships is a spoiler and limits pretty high, allowing very fast FTL drive, big bad weapons, singularity anti-ship missiles, and etc....... then, to develop more means developing means more super techs. Spoiler to me and dislike Godder/Power Play/Who has the bigger Gun games.

anyway, better to use the idea of Field and Application way of pursuing tech with limits and speciaties to the average starting techs.

-LMP

[Mr. President]

No-one is going to blow up stars. I will see to it personally if you want. This entire story cannot take place if we assume a level of technology below about Alpha Centauri's Level 10.

edit: By the way, wars usually boost science, industry, and economy, rather than hold them back.

***

Firebrand Omega weapons satellites protect Vega Prime, the richest and most populous planet in the Free Drone Republic.

(Thanks to Isaac Asimov's Foundations Universe for the photograph.)

Okay, fine...... but don't want to see ships right away using Singularity Reactors, String Disruptors, Singularity Lasers and other high tech fancy weapons, except from Proginator ships.

Chaos Weaponry is Disruptors.
Plasma Shaft is Plasma Cannons
Impact is Gauss/Rail Guns, etc....

Fraal as big bad Phasers, just practicly no one ever seen them... (well, probebly except the Proginators when they decided one century to attack some Fraal ships).


Most common type of ship weaponry among the human ships would like to see, with reason:

-Projectile (Impact, Gauss, Rail Guns, Gracers etc)
-Projectile/Energy (Plasma Cannons)
-Energy/Beam (Pulse, Ion, Laser, Masers, etc)
-Missile (Missiles like Space: Above and Beyond, Honor Harrington[not in large numbers thought], Concussion Missiles from Starwars, Master of Orion style, etc)
-Torpedoe (Proton Torpedoes from starwars, Starlancer/Wing Commander torpedoes that look like submarine ones, etc)
-Space Mines
-Bombs (drop by starfighters on ships[release and let them drift to the target base on the speed of the fighter/bomber, use for planetary bombarment ala Master of Orion
-Other?

-LMP

[Sprayber]

LMP: This was on page 1. everyone look it over and see if it is acceptable. Remember it is a rough draft of events and can be chaged. So no one get excited. the dates are probably the most important and some may be changed.

2221-Progenators Land on Alpha Centauri
2301-Combined Spartan-Pirate-Peacekeeper-Hive armies overrun the last Progenitor stronghold. Conqueror Marr interred in a punishment sphere. University instrumental in providing technological support to Human Alliance.
2303-Morganites-Gaians-Believers are given back lands formerly liberated by Human armies.
2336-Universty and Morgans become the first factions to colonize Nessus and Pholus.
2354-Spartan and Hive forces attempt take over of Nessus mining operations.
2355-Moon Accords are finalized allowing Spartan and Hive to mine small portion of Nessus.
2379-Unversity scientist field first prototype FTL drive.
2381-Improved version of FTL drive is completed. Data Angel probes steal design for first prototype drive. Information is spread across Chiron.
2382-Spartans and Hive threaten war if all information on the new FTL is not released.
2384-University is forced to release information but withholds vital specifications about minerals need to power the drive. At least four different ores are found to work but University only mentions Kalciate as mineral needed.
2388-Peacekeepers attempt to get the factions to agree on equal shares of the FTL drive technology. Spartans and University refuse to cooperate with each other. The Hive-Spartan alliance crumbles and the two factions start small scale fighting. University is relieved of the Spartan Hive threat.
2390-University, with Morgan financial backing, produced the first fully operational FTL ship.
2399-Morgan and University begin production on Colony and Mining ships.
2400-Spartans and Hive launch separate attacks on University territory. Peacekeepers intervene on behalf of the University.
2401-Spartans launch first space attack on a University-Morgan space station. Two completed FTL ships are captured.
2402-Ceasefire is declared and peace returns to Chiron. FTL treaty is signed.
2406-Cyborg Scientists prefect first FTL Comm device. Information is shared to all factions but gets little fanfare initially. (Cyborgs will always seem to be able to communicate better than every other human faction.)
2417-Morgans move their headquarters off of Chiron and become the first faction to leave Chiron. They retain a few assets on Chiron and Nessus, But majority of Morgan employees move with Headquarters.
2420-University sets up their headquarters off world as well. Find out of the way planet to continue research. They maintain relations with Morganites and Peacekeepers.
2424-Spartans join exodus off planet. They wonder for years to find the right planet to take.
2428-Spartans land at Spartan Point on a planet they name Sparta.

[Sprayber]

Originally posted by [LordLMP]
Technology: the starting average tech would be? Do you people like the MOO3's Field and Application way of going with technology? won't exactly be a tech tree, but still can do some research on whatever field, but developing technologies out of those fields are an different matter. Also, need to figure out the average weapons, armor, etc techs. Can have a faction that are into missiles, or another into beam weaponry or another into projectiles, etc....... just no fancy exotic weaponry please, ruins the game quickly i think :P weaponry doesn't have to solely be base on SMAX techs. Fraal is the most advance aliens, and have been around in the galaxy for quite awhile... long enough to see the rise and fall of various stellar civilizations.

I dont' have a problem with that way of keeping track of techs. The University should get a little leeway with having a more advanced tech base. But as usual they are not going to have massive fleets. They will only have a smaller fleet.

Starmap: Need a starmap, which i am willing to create base on the real stars....with Sol in the center. So need distances of stars from Sol, remember the formula of the pythagerum(whatever) theorum and a simple top view map of the area, generally showing where each of the stars are located.

I've been looking and found a good one or two, but if you have something then go ahead and share it. We need to settle where everything is as far as boundries. I may have to rewrite my own history. my star is real and it has all its stats on an easy to read template. As for other stars i've mentioned, well lets just say that we cant see all of them from earth.

Travel Time: after figuring out the distances and location of stars...need to agree you upon how fast FTL will going to be..... can have the more advance powerful FTL to go faster then the older smaller ones.

shouldn't be too fast even by 2700. at least for humans...

A GENERAL human chronology: so we can easily base our faction histories on..........which i am willing to do. When did University invent Chiron's first FTL? when did the prototype made the successful FTL jump to Sol and then quikcly jump back without staying around to realize humanity is thriving... etc....

see above post. for some reason I put the Gaians being the first ones to go back to earth. I think that the first tests would be held somewhere else besides earth. by that time, earth really was a memory in everyone's mind. Hell, only a few would be alive that were there. for what ever reason i had a Gaian scout ship visit the Sol system in 2515(i think was the date. see spartan history thread) I honestly think that Earth was an afterthought by then. Of course when they find an advanced civ there, they may change their mind. But as you noticed the Spartans really didn't care too much about earth. At least not yet..

Also need to refigure this starting date or refigure the population level of some worlds....Can't exactly have Heavily Populated worlds after such quick rate of colonization/expansion in just over two centuries.... unless your definition of Heavily Populated is a few millions. From Planet Fall to invention of FTL in the mid or late 2400s....about 80-100k in 2100 to barely a billion by the 2400s.... and we did have various wars and the long out war to eradicate the proginators on chiron too..... thats combine population of chiron by the way....... then you want to move/colonize other planets, expecting to be heavily populated (to me is 5-10 billion or more) by 2700. Like come one :P Only humans of Sol can achieve that if they discovered FTL before Chiron did.

I think that in two hundred years, with non-natural means pf reproduction, a population can achieve high numbers. Not in the billions, but in the hundreds of millions. I know the Spartans don't have no billion people anywhere. Several hundred million maybe spread out over maybe four or five close systems. (maybe) I would say that the Terrans enjoy a population advantage, but lag in the ability to exploit it.

There is also the matter of fleet sizes, ship sizes, etc.... Dreadnought ships during the 2600s? so soon after rapid colonization/expansion? how big is a Dreadnought to you?

(LMP-look at the picture on the bottom of the first page that i put up. the caption states : Spartans attack Coventry. That ship is a Spartan Dreadnaught. It is the biggest, at that time that the Spartans had. Now its not a big ship but is the biggest at that time. By 2700 those wouldn't be near as effective against newer more powerful ships, even those that mayb be smaller.)

Ship sizes and designations change over time. Star fleet had had a dreadnought early on but it wouldnt be match of even small vessel in the 2400's. In star wars, the old republic had dreadnoughts, but wouldn't stand a chance against a star destroyer.

dreadnought:3 : one that is among the largest or most powerful of its kind.

during the early years that could be just about any large ship. When the game starts Sparta will be working on a Command carrier. Now sparta doesnt have a large fleet compared to Star fleet or the Emperial fleet. spartan fleet is composed of three or four battleships, one dreadnaught, and bunch of smaller ships. corvetts if you will, That leaves a small fleet of smaller ships to protect the home system when the larger fleet is away. Thats why I said that one faction cannot defeat the Bree by themselves. If the Bree ever massed all their ships, sparta would be gone. And thats why I put the gorn out there. The Bree's main enemy are the Gorn. humans are just a side show.

I know i may be picky...but better to have some structure to guerantee the success of Beyond Alpha Centauri... to prevent exagerations, inconsisties (mispell), power play (MOO2 after finishing all of the tech or like Total Annihilation in a way), who as the bigger gun attitude and erotic strange stuff which ignores the basic realitic universal laws, etc.......-LMP

I understand your concerns trust me. If you notice my time line the Spartans could beat the PK fleet but could not hold a relitively small planetery population. I think, (and hope) that everyone here will realize thats there is no winning here. Its just about having fun and telling a story. Everytime one starts to get too agressive there are always going to be someone stepping in and halting their advance. People should be using this as an opportunity to explore and build their factions from within. And then throw in the occasional space battle. For people Like Natan who is taking on a small independent planet, fleets are not going to be a problem. but playing the PKs off against the Spartans and the Morgans off against the Spartans and pks will be his challenge.

[Sprayber]

Just an idle question.

Would it be better to post the pictures and things in a separate thread, or along with the post? I got to thinking that it would be better to create a picture thread for BAC. What do my fellow BAC'ers think?

Separate thread

Or same thread

[History Guy]

Well, I personally see no problem in posting the pictures in the main thread, although I still haven't a clue as to how it's done anyway.

[Sprayber]

Originally posted by Sprayber

Mr. President: When you go to post a message, look below the text box, then below the little blue smilies, then below the the options boxes, you will then find Attach file. I usually move the image onto my desktop, which makes it easier to find. Just click browse and it will show all the files on your desktop, just click the desired file and press your submit reply button. You can only have one image per post and the Maximum size is 500000 bytes. Most of the time you have to resize or crop. That and use jpg and gif files.

I just love to hear myself talk.

[Kassiopeia]

I recall someone (Sprayber?) asking about Terran presence outside Sol.
I came to the conclusion that 42 LY away at Capella, there's a small Earth colony, on a planet two thirds the size of Mars, colonized by Coalition citizens.
What comes to outside-Sol history, I am indifferent. As long as no-one's able to invade Earth with their left arms bound and blindfolded, I'm fine.

This SSSH pic (It's an old model, from the 26th century) was much larger at first, but the size restriction forced me to resize it.

[Kassiopeia]

I mean, a cheap model. For the lower class of workers.

[Sprayber]

I was going to use Capella as the Spartan home system until I read about the conditions there.


Here is a description from one of my linked sites.

Capella is a complex system with two giant yellow stars at its heart, orbiting a common centre of gravity every 104 days. These two are not alone - they are accompanied by at least eight other stars in the general area

http://www.glyphweb.com/esky/default...ienah.html</a>


And here is another description

A Pair of Giants

Capella is a quadruple system consisting of two giants and two dwarves. The A and B components are a close binary consisting of a yellow G5IIIe giant having 7.2 times the diameter of the sun 2.67 times the mass and a yellow G0III giant having 5.6 times the diameter of the sun and 2.55 times the mass.
The two stars individually have 80 and 50 times the luminosity of the sun. The data of the The Bright Star Catalog seem to indicate that the G5 star is the brighter of the pair.

The spectral types imply temperatures near that of the sun, 5600 K for the G0 star and 5000 K for the G5.

The two stars are separated by about 65 million miles and revolve with a period of 104 days.

The Red Dwarves

The remaining pair of stars in the system are two red dwarves of spectral type M1 and M5 designated as Capella H. These stars appear at Visual Magnitude 10.0 and 13.7 respectively. The separation between the stars is 2 sec of arc, corresponding to a projected distance of 26 A.
The pair of dwarves appear separated from the AB pair by 12 minutes of arc, a projected distance of at least 0.17 ly.

The dwarves are small stars having approximately 40% and 10% of the mass of the sun respectively with 60% and 30% of the sun's diameter. The stars have respective luminosities of about 1.4% of the sun and 0.05%.

http://einstein.stcloudstate.edu/Dom...s/capella.html


So I opted not to take Capella since my little diagram would have been far more complex.

[History Guy]

I was thinking of Morgan inhabiting a system in the constellation of either Cephesus or Pegasus, but I've found too little info.

[Kassiopeia]

Oh.
But the planet there could be undergoing a large scale greenhouse affect due to getting more close to one of the stars. So the place would probably be completely uninhabitable in a few hundred years. Enough remaining time to mine it clean, however.
And the name is catchy. Capella. There was a destroyer called Kapella in Homeworld.

[History Guy]

How's this star system sound for the homeworld of Morgan Interstellar?

http://einstein.stcloudstate.edu/Dom...s/algenib.html


http://www.glyphweb.com/esky/default...rs/gienah.html

It's either that or


http://www.glyphweb.com/esky/default...rs/gienah.html

EDIT: Hmmm...there is obviously something wrong here. In the electronic sky links it should link to Pegasi and 70 Virginis b.

[Kassiopeia]

The star's luminosity is 660x the Sun. So, Morgan would love to wire the place with energy collecting satellites. Sounds like a perfect system for Morgan to utilize.
The planet they would live in would have to be far away from the star, though, since... Well, they would have to wear some pretty dark Ray-Bans, not to mention the effect it would have on the skin. Instant sun tan, only ten seconds!

Depends on our decision of the drive system whether it would be within a reasonable range. 330 LY sounds like awfully much.

[History Guy]

Yes, that's what worries me, and unfortunately I can't seem to find anything around Sol and Alpha Centauri that seems suitable for Morgan Interstellar.

[Kassiopeia]

How about Propus? It's a bright yellow giant, in the constellation of Gemini, less then 35 LY away. The Morgans could then inhabit Castor and Pollux also.

---------

Did you know, that if the star Deneb would be only ten parsecs (about 30 LY) away from Earth, it would be as bright as the full moon! It's so immensive...
It would be a good star to use, but it's a full 3000 light years away.

[History Guy]

Thanks for the ideas! I think I will use them, and claim Propus, Castor, and Pollux (if no one minds) as I think the old CEO would dance around in mad laughter if he himself could get his grubby little paws on those systems. I'll do some research on them in a while and write down planet names, descriptions, etc. Thanks alot, Kassiopeia.