Random Questions

[Suicide Junkie]

How would you avoid it, anyways?

Not using carriers at all?

[Randallw]

Xrati said:
Units like that (mines, fighters and SATs) are carried in an inert state. They are not sitting there on racks 'ready to go' they have to be "launched or primed" for operation. They would be sitting there as "Space Junk" with maybe a small chance that a small percentage of them would be in an operational mode.

There was that epsiode of DS9 where they were preparing mines. Dax was demanding they hurry up and launch all the mines, while she avoided enemy fire. O'Brien told her she risked setting off every mine on the ship.

Edit: not that I wish to go on about it but if by some chance I've misunderstood his concern then I apologise for any seeming criticsm. I made the mistake once of failing to understand someone's point.

[Xrati]

Even a better example yet. A chain reaction explosion of ordnance on the ship. Nothing would be left except bits and pieces of the ship.

DS9 is SciFi. In REAL life any explosive ordnance is kept in an inert state. It must be set or primed for use. O'Brien's reference had to be all the mines blowing up as a result of some catastrophe (like one detonating early)!!!

[douglas]

Xrati said:
DS9 is SciFi. In REAL life any explosive ordnance is kept in an inert state. It must be set or primed for use. O'Brien's reference had to be all the mines blowing up as a result of some catastrophe (like one detonating early)!!!

If the SciFi technology is sufficiently advanced, there is at least justification for some non-inert storage - antimatter ordnance isn't really possible to store in an inert state.

[Sardia]

Is the distribution of ice, rock and gas planets equal in a bm +FQM game? I've noticed a lot more gas planets than rock and very few ice planets.

[Captain Kwok]

Yes, all 3 types are more or less equal.

[Randallw]

In one of my favourite series of books a ground crew is loading anti-matter missiles while the pilot looks on. They're being careful but no-one is overly tense or worried, after all if by some chance the containment fields go off no one on the entire ship is ever going to realise. A nearby ship is certain to notice the explosion, but no one on the carrier will have a chance to feel anything.

[Xrati]

Actually in a SciFi used system, the ordnance would be in a stasis field. That would make it inert.

[Suicide Junkie]

Not in a hard SF setting. Besides, if you break the containment and it leaks out, your stasis field isn't going to help.

[Xrati]

If you break containment on a stasis field, your a putz and don't belong traveling around in outer space.