Flying through an asteroid belt.

[Herolover]

I am going to be running a space opera adventure and part of it is going to have the player's ship fly through a dangerous asteroid belt.

 

I am wanting something very dramatic were all the players on the ship get into the action, not just the pilot.

 

If you were going to do this how would you do it?

[Herolover]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

Okay. Here is the deal. I am going to be running a Star Hero adventure for a local convention. The setting is the Terran Empire setting and I am going to have the group fly through a very rough asteroid belt in the spaceship. The basic idea I want is for role playing drama and not to painstakingly map out some realistic combat (this is space opera after all). (Yes, I own the Ultimate Vehicle and using some things from it.)

 

What I am wanting is feedback on how I plan to do it, suggestion, or maybe alternates. The basic idea is that the ship is going to have to fly through a very intense asteroid belt. As I see it there are three basic methods to do this:

 

1) Map out everything.

I personally don't want to do this because I get the feeling it would devolove into the pilot making rolls and would just be a ship flying through an obstacle course. Realistically this is more accurate, but I want drama and roleplaying.

 

2) Here is how I am thinking of doing it. I am basing it, very loosely, off the Dogfighting rules.

Each Turn there are a number of potential asteroid impacts. I haven't really thought of how many yet.

 

 

"Combat"

I am going to use the speed chart.

Sensor Operator

Will make sensor rolls to avoid asteroids from the next Turn. How well they roll will determine how many they asteroids they avoid.

 

Pilot

Will determine what manuever the ship does. (Of course will have to make a control roll.) This will effect how directly the ship flies through the field and give bonus-penalties to the ships OCV & DCV. Could possibly make an emergency piloting roll to avoide an asteroid.

 

Engineer

Can boost power of ship's engines making ship fly faster.

Can boost power of ship's weapons making them do more damage

Can boost power of ship's sensors giving a bonus to Sensor Operator.

Can repair damage to ship.

 

Example:

The Sensor Operator will make an initial roll to avoid any asteroids the next turn.

The pilot will perform his whatever manuever.

The weapons people will try to take out the remaining targets.

[Trebuchet]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

I am going to be running a space opera adventure and part of it is going to have the player's ship fly through a dangerous asteroid belt.

 

I am wanting something very dramatic were all the players on the ship get into the action, not just the pilot.

 

If you were going to do this how would you do it?

You'll be hard pressed to beat the version from The Empire Strikes Back. Either have other crew members manning weapons, looking for a safe flight path with sensors, or doing damage control as they get hit by small asteroids and/or enemy ship's weapons.

 

BTW, IIRC in real life asteroids in our solar system are separated by about 100,000 km on average. They are not close together like in the movies.

[austenandrews]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

I assume this is one of those goofy Star Wars asteroid fields where giant rocks hurtle around at high speeds and decameter distances? The obvious option would be to have a couple of PCs manning laser cannons to blast approaching asteroids, an engineer frantically trying to keep the shields up and everybody else repairing damage before the ship falls to pieces. You could also have a science officer-type character manning sensors, trying to calculate which approaching asteroid can be blasted to pieces in time to allow passage.

 

If you want to mix it up a little, you could have some asteroids that are clusters of smaller (but still enormous) rocks that can be pushed apart to allow passage. For that matter, if the characters found such a cluster that was going in the right direction, they could squeeze into the middle and use it as shielding.

 

Another obstacle might be a region of iron-rich asteroids locked in magnetic orbit with a very large iron asteroid. The result would be a "whirlpool" effect, but with giant boulders. (I dunno how the very large asteroid would get magnetized. We're already in fantasy land with the initial premise.)

 

Come to think of it, the PCs might be able to magnetize an asteroid themselves (insert rubber science method) to draw off asteroids and clear a passage.

 

If you want to work at lower speeds than the ESB standard, you could send a demolitions team ahead of the main ship to plant charges on asteroids in the flight path.

[Herolover]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

Yeah, the whole idea of "flying through an asteroid belt is dangerous" is way of the mark. Of course this is Space Opera, like Star Wars that has been mentioned, and I am going for drama.

[shadowcat1313]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

you could throw in a hungry asteroid worm looking for a random snack to liven things up if your going the Empire route

[Herolover]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

I won't do any "space worms." This is real basic adventure. Basically the characters are the crewmembers of a very small Exploration-Survey ship and are ordered to go explore planet X. Instead of having them just land on planet X I am going to give them some drama. They have to "navigate" through a dangerous asteroid field to get to planet X.

[Foxiekins]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

Realistically, the only time you're going to find lots of asteroids close together is if some are in orbit around another, or if they've been moved into a dense cluster...

 

There was an old sci-fi novel titled "Raiders from the Rings" that I read long ago... The personnel of the Russian and American orbital nuke garrisons decided to abstain from WW3, and were exiled, living in space and surviving by occasionally raiding Earth for supplies...

 

Asteroid Central, their home base, was protected by The Maze, a swarm of asteroids deliberately put into orbit to block ship and missile approaches...

[Trebuchet]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

I suppose, particularly in a space opera, that there's no convincing reason an asteroid belt can't be far denser than the one in our solar system. We have no real way of knowing if ours is typical.

 

Perhaps a belt created by the impact of two large planets which then disintegrated into billions of asteroids is possible? Or in this case, a shattered moon's remnants have surrounded the planet the moon once orbited? (And in Star Wars didn't the Millenium Falcon come out of hyperspace into an asteroid field created by the destruction of Alderan?)

 

In any case, go with what feels right to provide your players with an exciting time.

[Agemegos]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

I suppose' date=' particularly in a space opera, that there's no convincing reason an asteroid belt can't be far denser than the one in our solar system. We have no real way of knowing if ours is typical.[/quote']

 

Just as you say. The star Tau Ceti is surrounded by a disk of dust and rubble that is orders of magnitude denser than that surrounding the Sun. Xi Boötis, on the other hand, has no detectable dust disk at all. Even if our system is middling, the range is very wide.

[austenandrews]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

Way overthinking for space opera, of course, but the density of asteroids isn't the implausible part (though at some density an asteroid field is better classified as a large asteroid or planetoid). It's the "giant rocks flying around with random high velocity" that makes no sense. One expects a sort of large-scale Brownian motion, even in systems as dispersed as our asteroid belt, but ESB-level chaos would require the catastrophic input of widespread, random energy - the destruction of Alderaan, for example, or the intrusion of a fragmented comet.

[GreyGuardian]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

I hate to go here but - like in Lost in Space, there has been some sabotage aboard the ship. So you have the pilot, sensors, weapons stuff going on, and the engineer and anyone else available are trying to find the sabotage and repair it to get "manuever" systems back on line to make the pilots job easier / possible. Or add a saboteur (or squad) that they become aware of just outside the asteroid field that is on the shop and needs to be apprehended. Or fighters harrassing them a la star wars And / or the villain saboteur taunting them over their comms as they race towards distruction because of various system malfunctions.

 

Just a few ideas.

[Curufea]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

Why do you need a dense asteroid belt? Just try flying through it at a higher speed

[Supreme]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

I just wanted to add that the biggest danger in flying through an asteroid belt could be in the smallest bits. Asteroids the size of marbles don't sound like much, but hitting your hull at the relative speed of 100,000 kph, or whatever your sub-light speed is, could be pretty dangerous. Especially if you don't have force-fields or methods of detecting them in time.

[Herolover]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

As I said above, I realize that "flying through an asteroid" in a realistic manner isn't exciting. There would have to be some kind of crazy other action acting on the asteroids and then they wouldn't be in a "belt."

 

The crew is 7 members in a small little ship so here is what I am doing:

• 
  Sensor Operator makes sensor scans affects Next Turn.
  Sensor Operator’s roll Pilot & Weapon Modifiers
  Make Roll by +6 more +3
  Make roll by +4 to +5 +2
  Make Roll by +1 to +3 +1
  Even 0
  Fail roll by -1 to -3 -1
  Fail roll by -4 to -5 -2
  Fail by -6 o more -3
   
  Pilot chooses do to one of the following Maneuvers:
  Maneuver Pilot roll Modifier Maneuver Effects
  Close Fly-By -6 +3 OCV against one target.
  Offensive Maneuver -2 +1 OCV against single designated target
  Extreme Offense -6 +1 OCV against up to four designated targets
  Defensive Maneuver -2 +1 DCV against single designated target
  Extreme Defense -3 +1 DCV against up to four designated targets
  Emergency Stop -3 +5 DCV against all targets.
  Evade -6 Evade one target; -2 DCV against all other targets.
  Rapid Fire
   
  Engineer decides to do one of the following actions:
  Action Roll Required Action Effects
  Repair ship System Varies Returns damaged ship system to active status.
  Flying Faster SS: Starship Engineering +1†of Flight per amount roll made by.
  More Power SS: Starship Engineering +2 END per amount roll made by.
  Increase Thruster efficiency SS: Starship Engineering +1 bonus to Pilot’s Combat Piloting roll for every 2 roll is made by.
  Increase Power to Weapons SS: Starship Engineering +1 OCV or +1 DC to a single Weapon.
  

 

I plan on using the speed chart and having a random number of asteroids "attack" the ship per turn.

[Foxiekins]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

I think Supreme has an answer I like... You have a concentration cluster, with lots of space between the really big asteroids... The pilot thrusts, and heads through the cluster... And then, the shield generator conks out...

 

If the Engineer has to constantly nudge the generators to keep them working, that lends a certain psychotic air to the whole mess...

 

If the generators are working, you don't worry about small meteoroids... While they aren't working, anything at least the size of a marble is a hazard, and there are a *LOT* more meteoroids in that size range... Plus, the pilot can't count on the generator working all the time, and knows it...

 

Poor pilot...

[shem_whistler]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

As I said above, I realize that "flying through an asteroid" in a realistic manner isn't exciting. There would have to be some kind of crazy other action acting on the asteroids and then they wouldn't be in a "belt."

 

The crew is 7 members in a small little ship so here is what I am doing:

• 
  Sensor Operator makes sensor scans affects Next Turn.
  Sensor Operator’s roll Pilot & Weapon Modifiers
  Make Roll by +6 more +3
  Make roll by +4 to +5 +2
  Make Roll by +1 to +3 +1
  Even 0
  Fail roll by -1 to -3 -1
  Fail roll by -4 to -5 -2
  Fail by -6 o more -3
   
  Pilot chooses do to one of the following Maneuvers:
  Maneuver Pilot roll Modifier Maneuver Effects
  Close Fly-By -6 +3 OCV against one target.
  Offensive Maneuver -2 +1 OCV against single designated target
  Extreme Offense -6 +1 OCV against up to four designated targets
  Defensive Maneuver -2 +1 DCV against single designated target
  Extreme Defense -3 +1 DCV against up to four designated targets
  Emergency Stop -3 +5 DCV against all targets.
  Evade -6 Evade one target; -2 DCV against all other targets.
  Rapid Fire
   
  Engineer decides to do one of the following actions:
  Action Roll Required Action Effects
  Repair ship System Varies Returns damaged ship system to active status.
  Flying Faster SS: Starship Engineering +1†of Flight per amount roll made by.
  More Power SS: Starship Engineering +2 END per amount roll made by.
  Increase Thruster efficiency SS: Starship Engineering +1 bonus to Pilot’s Combat Piloting roll for every 2 roll is made by.
  Increase Power to Weapons SS: Starship Engineering +1 OCV or +1 DC to a single Weapon.
  

 

I plan on using the speed chart and having a random number of asteroids "attack" the ship per turn.

 

 

Just a thought, but none of the available maneuvers have any effect on the speed or time of the whole scene.

 

I'd be inclined to use this and set a fixed amount of turns that the 'encounter' within the field will last. And then give modifiers to the total time dependent on what maneuvers are selected.

 

For example;

 

Fly defensivly pluses to DCV but +2 turns.

 

Blast through at max speed minuses to DCV but -2 turns.

 

This way they can decide to take their time and be as safe as possible or try to belt it through and take their chances.

 

This may allow for slightly more tactics, rather than essentially the same eac turn.

 

Just my 2 creds

Shem

[Herolover]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

That might be fine for some adventures. However, not for this one. I will have 4-6 players (I hope 6). I want something very dramatic where all the players are on the edge of their seat.

 

I want each player to have to make decisions that they feel will effect the outcome.

 

Some of the methods listed are nice, but the end up being Pilot make a roll. That is fun for the pilot, but what about everyone else.

[austenandrews]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

I had great luck in my 50's space opera short-run, where the PC engineer had to manage the rocket's "atomic batteries." His job was to route power (END) to various systems without overloading them and to arrange intentional overloads (Push w/Side Effects) in emergency situations, which happened at least once every two or three Turns. I built the batteries as an END Reserve with a Recovery every Turn. Overloads had a Burnout roll for individual batteries (I had it split into something like ten different batteries) as well as reducing the REC. At the start of combat the rocket had enough REC to power up most systems continuously, but overloads to the engines, plasma cannons, magnetic armor and whatnot slowly reduced the batteries's longevity. It made for a tense combat that was great fun.

[Herolover]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

Sorry Shem, I missed you post.

 

I am thinking, just thinking, of using some of these ideas and writing up an article so I wanted to keep some of the things very generic.

 

If you will notice the engineer can get the ship to fly faster. I figure this is pushing the engines in HERO system terms. My thoughts are that the GM decides the "width" of the asteroid field based upon the ship speed and how long he wants the encounter to last.

 

Example. The PC's ship flies 35" per phase x 4 speed or 140" per turn. I want the encounter to last 3 turns so the asteroid belt is 3 x 140" =420" wide.

 

Now the engineer can decrease time in the belt by "pushing the engines." (I am assuming the Pilot is flying balls to the wall already).

 

Also, the pilot can go Emergency Stop and get nice bonuses to DCV, but this doesn't last that long and will increase time in the belt.

 

Should I re-post with more explanation?

 

PS I am thinking of using the Velocity DCV modifier chart and just reversing it. Generally Velocity adds to your DCV. Here, in the belt, the faster you go the harder it is to miss objects so the DCV bonus turns into a penalty. You can fly fast, but get hit by more objects or fly slow, get more potential impacts, but have a better chance of missing them.

[austenandrews]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

PS I am thinking of using the Velocity DCV modifier chart and just reversing it. Generally Velocity adds to your DCV. Here' date=' in the belt, the faster you go the harder it is to miss objects so the DCV bonus turns into a penalty. You can fly fast, but get hit by more objects or fly slow, get more potential impacts, but have a better chance of missing them.[/quote']

That sounds like a simple and very playable way to go. Nice work.

[Herolover]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

I looked at the DCV velocity chart and it isn't worth it.

Velo Base DCV

1-32 1

32+ 3

 

Admitedly this is based upon the ship I am using. It will an added amount of complexity for very little gain. Basically the ship, if I was going to use it, would have an extra -2 DCV only when going full speed.

[Sketchpad]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

Throw some mag mines in to mix it up a bit ... or maybe some mining pirates?

[austenandrews]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

I looked at the DCV velocity chart and it isn't worth it.

Velo Base DCV

1-32 1

32+ 3

 

Admitedly this is based upon the ship I am using. It will an added amount of complexity for very little gain. Basically the ship, if I was going to use it, would have an extra -2 DCV only when going full speed.

How about a DCV penalty based on Turn Mode?

[shem_whistler]

Re: Flying through an asteroid belt.

 

Sorry Shem, I missed you post.

 

I am thinking, just thinking, of using some of these ideas and writing up an article so I wanted to keep some of the things very generic.

 

If you will notice the engineer can get the ship to fly faster. I figure this is pushing the engines in HERO system terms. My thoughts are that the GM decides the "width" of the asteroid field based upon the ship speed and how long he wants the encounter to last.

 

Example. The PC's ship flies 35" per phase x 4 speed or 140" per turn. I want the encounter to last 3 turns so the asteroid belt is 3 x 140" =420" wide.

 

Now the engineer can decrease time in the belt by "pushing the engines." (I am assuming the Pilot is flying balls to the wall already).

 

Also, the pilot can go Emergency Stop and get nice bonuses to DCV, but this doesn't last that long and will increase time in the belt.

 

Should I re-post with more explanation?

 

PS I am thinking of using the Velocity DCV modifier chart and just reversing it. Generally Velocity adds to your DCV. Here, in the belt, the faster you go the harder it is to miss objects so the DCV bonus turns into a penalty. You can fly fast, but get hit by more objects or fly slow, get more potential impacts, but have a better chance of missing them.

 

Glad you liked the ideas.

 

I'd be inclined to keep it as simple as possible, as you'll already have lots of different rolls going on from the different players.

 

The size of the belt probably isn;t needed unless your players are really into all the details or unless you are known for your crunchiness in game.

 

I'd go this route. "As your head towards your destination your sensors pick up an asteroid belt up ahead"

 

"Can we go round it?" "No"

 

"How long to get through it?" "At normal speed, x turns".

 

I see that the velocity chart idea didn't work out, so I still think that sticking with your original idea of maneuvers coupled with penalties or bonuses to travel time would be simplest.

 

I was thinking about how I described it before and have a clearer explanation now. If they choose a cautious maneuver consider how this affects their speed, if it's an alls top then that is a 0 turn, if they are flying slowly then maybe 1/2 turn, recklessly 1 1/2 turns.

 

Another thought as I was typing that is to give the belt an arbitrary width say 10 for example, then assign each maneuver a distance travelled value. Again all stop = 0, defensive 1, normal 2, reckless 3.

 

Either way each maneuver will have 3 values OCV, DCV and travel mod/distance.

 

I would then have each of the pilot, sensor, engineer rolls give extra travel mods something like fumble -1, failure -1/2 success +1/2 and critical +1.

 

This will allow for some variation of totals. All 3 PC's critical that's +3 fumble -3 , but for the most part it would be a mixture. I think it might be quite fun for the pilot and sensor operator to roll well and have that undone by a fumble from the engineer.

 

"Ok I've spotted a gap through this next cluster" - Sensor Op

 

"Course plotted into the NavComp ready to engage" - Pilot

 

"Ooops, I've unplugged the engines" - Engineer

 

 

I think that keeps the whole thing fairly basic, select the maneuver, try and augment with the various skill rolls, and take your licks.

 

On a slightly different note I'm always concerend with situations like these, where potentially a bad roll could wipe out the party, these situations always need a back door.

 

I'm curious what yours would be

 

Again, just my 2 creds

Shem