Second Sphere Craft Construction Rules
Overview
Craft represent (with the exception of particularly large transatmospheric craft like dropships, HLVs and the like) aerospace craft of less than ~200 tons, and mostly less than ~100 tons. Not surprisingly this substantial tonnage difference (a factor of ten at the minimum) results in equally substantial differences in how Craft operate, how they are designed and what roles they fill.
The primary differentiation is that Craft are designed for short-duration missions and are externally supported. Thus by offloading their support equipment and having limited power and munition reserves they have a much greater performance. The flipside of this is that they are tied to some other position or vehicle. In practice this results in the following differences:
Firstly, a squadron of attack craft can compare in both power and volume of fire to the typical direct-fire weapon arsenal on a warship. The only exception are heavy antiship cannons which can easily mass as much as an entire attack craft. The biggest and most fundamental difference and the reason why even for broadly comparable performance ship-mounted weapons tend to be substantially larger is that ship-mounted cannons will have much superior effective range. The demands of tighter beam collimation, enhanced stabilization and the like can drive mass up substantially. It's also worth noting that while the slug from a 100mm GIAT railgun possesses similar kinetic energy to a submunition from a TheissenKrupp 175mm turreted railcannon, up close where the latter can use unitary slugs that impart their entire muzzle energy on the target as opposed to firing a 'sheaf' of subcaliber projectiles, there is little comparison. This is why warship engagements at short ranges tend to be extremely devastating affairs.
This general rule does not apply to missiles however; exoatmospheric missiles are generally cross-compatible. The problem here is that while a squadron of strike craft might deploy a dozen long-range shipkillers, a warship could launch a hundred by flushing its racks. This is why (along with the velocity boost from being fired from a fast-movin and well-defended strike craft) most attack craft carry so-called 'assault missiles' as opposed to long-range shipkillers. Lacking much of the propellant of long-range missiles they can be carried in greater numbers and thus give strike craft a more substantial punch.
Secondary, while ships can and will have heavier defenses by simple virtue of size, attack craft are normally designed with optimised armor/defense schemes; they will attempt to engage from optimal angles and swiftly maneuver to change their facing if at a disadvantage. Ships massing ten thousand tons or more obviously find this rather more difficult. As well ships will generally have more open internal volume (crew and cargo, maintenance access, fuel, etc) which further increases the amount of armor required to protect them. Of course weapon strikes that would disable, destroy or otherwise disrupt a hundred-ton mobile suit might be completely incidental to a fifteen thousand ton cruiser.
Articles
Craft Construction Test Builds
Craft Bodies
Craft are designed slightly differently from warships; instead of simply having Spaces, they have both Spaces and Power. This is because Craft are much more size-constrained than ships; having a powerplant with the output of a miniature star doesn't mean you can dual-wield 2000mm hyper mega particle cannons.
- Body Expansions physically increase the size of the craft, enabling more stuff to be fitted inside the frame. Body expansions will progressively increase the size of the Craft. Each Body Expansion adds +2 Spaces.
- External Carriage is hot-swappable items, normally munitions. On aircraft it generally takes the form of pylon-mounted weapons, whereas mecha usually have one or more hand-carried weapons.
- Power is outputted by the Craft's onboard powerplant and is consumed by various items. Power is routed to any attached item, be it internal or external. Rules may exist to de-activate items in order to activate others. (expect this to only be available for 'roleplaying' scenarios)
Aircraft
Interceptor
- Base Spaces: 4
- Base External Carriage: 2
- Base Power: 2
- Base Size: 3
- Expansion Threshhold: +1 Size/3 Body expansions
- Transatmospheric
Space Fighter
- Base Spaces: 4
- Base External Carriage: 4
- Base Power: 2
- Base Size: 4
- Expansion Threshhold: +1 Size/3 Body expansions
Interdictors
- Base Spaces: 4
- Base External Carriage: 2
- Base Power: 2
- Base Size: 4
- Expansion Threshhold: +1 Size/3 Body expansions
- Transatmospheric
Bomber
- Base Spaces: 12
- Base External Carriage: 4
- Base Power: 4
- Base Size: 10
- Expansion Threshhold: +1 Size per Body expansion
- Transatmospheric
- Gains 2x spaces, 2x power, all propulsion and defenses take up 3x space and cost.
- Bombers can carry large internal payloads and consequently when loading missile/bomb weapons, for every 2 of a specific type loaded, a third may be loaded at no space requirement.
Mecha
Combat Frame
- Base Spaces: 5
- Base External Carriage: 3
- Base Power: 2
- Base Size: 4
- Expansion Threshhold: +1 Size/3 Body expansions
Assault Frame
- Base Spaces: 5
- Base External Carriage: 3
- Base Power: 2
- Base Size: 5
- Expansion Threshhold: +1 Size/3 Body expansions
Giant Frame
- Base Spaces: 12
- Base External Carriage: 6
- Base Power: 4
- Base Size: 8
- Expansion Threshhold: +1 Size per Body expansion
- Gains 2x spaces, 2x power, all propulsion and defenses take up 2x space and cost.
Super Aerospace
Mobile Armor
- Base Spaces: 25
- Base External Carriage: 10
- Base Power: 10
- Gains 4x spaces, 5x power, all propulsion and defenses take up 4x space and cost.
- Adapter Hardpoint Size: 1 hardpoint
- Adapter PIP cost: 25
- Adapter CIP cost: 20
Super Robot
Also usable for smashing things on the ground!
- Base Spaces: 30
- Base External Carriage: 20
- Base Power: 15
- Gains 6x spaces, 6x power, all propulsion and defenses take up 6x space and cost.
- Adapter Hardpoint Size: 2 hardpoints
- Adapter PIP cost: 50
- Adapter CIP cost: 40
Super Mobile Armor
- Base Spaces: 80
- Base External Carriage: 25
- Base Power: 40
- Gains 10x spaces, 10x power, all propulsion and defenses take up 10x space and cost.
- Adapter Hardpoint Size: 4 hardpoints
- Adapter PIP cost: 100
- Adapter CIP cost: 80
Exofortress
- Base Spaces: 80
- Base External Carriage: 25
- Base Power: 40
- Transatmospheric
- Gains 10x spaces, 10x power, all propulsion and defenses take up 10x space and cost.
- Adapter Hardpoint Size: 4 hardpoints
- Adapter PIP cost: 100
- Adapter CIP cost: 80
MA Enclosure
Super Aerospace can use Mobile Armor Enclosures. These provide larger stocks of consumables, spare parts etc as well as the ability to perform maintenance and support activities 'under armor'. An enclosure can support up to two mobile armors/super robots (or one SMA/Exofortress) and requires its own hardpoint, on top of those needed for the supported craft. Enclosures augment standard adapters, they do not replace them. Enclosures can also be used to support dropships or parasites, one enclosure per dropship/parasite.
- PIP cost: 20
- CIP cost: 40
Equipment
Propulsion and Defense
Armor
- Spaces: 1
- Power: 0
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Shields
- Spaces: 1
- Power: 2
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Thrusters
- Spaces: 1
- Power: 1
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Verniers
- Spaces: 1
- Power: 1
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Mobility
- Spaces: 1
- Power: 0
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Misc
Electronics
- Spaces: 1
- Power: 0
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Hardpoints
- Spaces: 1
- Power: 0
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
- Adds 1 External Carriage
Auxilary Generator
- Spaces: 1
- Power: 0
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
- Adds +2 Power
Laser AMS
- Spaces: 1
- Power: 0
- PIP cost:
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Melee Weapons
Alpha Edge Blade
- Spaces: 1
- Power: 0
- PIP cost:
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Alpha Edge Pole
- Spaces: 1
- Power: 0
- PIP cost:
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Alpha Buster
- Spaces: 2
- Power: 0
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Pilebunker
- Spaces: 1
- Power: 0
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Beam Saber
- Spaces: 0
- Power: 0
- PIP cost:
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Twin Beam Sabers
- Spaces: 1
- Power: 0
- PIP cost:
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Beam Saber Array
- Spaces: 2
- Power: 1
- PIP cost:
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- Requires Multi-Arm option
Plasma Lance
- Spaces: 1
- Power: 1
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Ranged Weapons
Huge Gatling
- Spaces: 4
- Power: 0
- PIP cost:
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Bazooka/Heavy Rocket Pod
- Spaces: 3
- Power: 0
- PIP cost:
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Carbine Rail
- Spaces: 2
- Power: 1
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Autorail
- Spaces: 3
- Power: 1
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Tank Railgun
- Spaces: 4
- Power: 1
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Frag Gun
- Spaces: 2
- Power: 1
- PIP cost:
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Pulse Gun
- Spaces: 2
- Power: 2
- PIP cost:
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Beam Gun
- Spaces: 3
- Power: 3
- PIP cost:
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Twin Beam Gun
- Spaces: 5
- Power: 6
- PIP cost:
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Burst Gun
- Spaces: 4
- Power: 3
- PIP cost:
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Mega Particle Gun
- Spaces: 2
- Power: 4
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Heavy MPG
- Spaces: 3
- Power: 6
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Plasma Gun
- Spaces: 2
- Power: 2
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Missiles
- Spaces: 1
- Power: 0
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost:
Funnel Array
- Spaces: 3
- Power: 2
- PIP cost:
- CIP cost: