Re: Troop Capacity

At 12:32 PM 6/12/98 -0400, you wrote:
>It's at times like this that I wish I had my rule books at work, so I
>could offer some ideas without fear that I'm just duplicating what's
>in there.  (8-)  

IIRC, the relevant numbers are:

1 Mass = 50 cargo

Vehicles require (4 x Size) cargo units each
Troops require 4 cargo units each for standard berths or 1 CU/ea for
cryo
berths.  The space requirement is the same for powered armor or
conventional troops.

Dropship capacity is 1 Mass for each 10 cargo units, but vehicle crews
do
not require additional space (they are buttoned up) and troops require 1
CU
each.

Marine contingents are 4 CU per unit of ships mass; therefore generally
about 1 trooper per unit mass.

>Hmmm.	Maybe a different multiplier for Cargo Space?  If we use FB 
>designs (which are roughly twice as massive for the same 'size'), 
>then something the size of a battleship (at 120 Mass) should be able
>to move a substantial force, (a couple of battlions, perhaps a
regiment),
>even when combat loaded.  

This is something I've been thinking about too for a couple of reasons.
First of all, the ships I use in my non-official background universe are
a
lot bigger  mass for mass than Jon's.  Second, I picked up a book on
modern
naval weaponry which has a very impressive illustration of the combat
load
of a 40,000 ton Tarawa class assault ship.  

I'm hesitant to quote specific numbers from that one until I get home,
but
I think it was 2900 men and equipment for 1 medium armored company, 1
light
armored company, 1 artillery company, plus 6 Harriers, 6-8 armed
helicopters, maybe a dozen transport helicopters, 4 (or was it 6?)
200-ton
capacity landing craft, dozens of trucks, jeeps, and many tons of
supplies.

Needless to say, this is more what I have in mind as a loadout for a
medium
to large transport vessel than the mass-60 transport described in MT. 
:)

>Yeah, this has always kind of bothered me as well.  Basically,
something
>that was the size of a battleship could only carry a combat company?  
>This implies that starships are extremely volume inefficient.	Now, you
>can argue anything you want (after all, it's a game! (8-) ), but I
guess
>I read Starship Troopers too many times, (or maybe Crusade (8-) )and
want
>the ability to drop entire divisions if necessary.  

Or the Honor Harrington books.	Her first command was a small (88 kton)
light cruiser with a marine contingent of 94.  Later she commands a
large
(880 kton) battlecruiser with a marine continent of one battalion.

Of course it depends on whether you background has small, higly
automated
warships or kilometers-long leviathans with hundreds of crew. 

Jeff