Spelljamming in GURPS
Spelljammer Movement
Spelljammers move differently depending on the
circumstances. When being operated by a helmsman, they can fly in the
atmosphere, through the wildspace, or through the Flow, also known as
Phlogiston. Spelljammers based on naval vessels may land on water. If they are
to sail on water, they use the normal statistics for the ship of their class.
In atmosphere: When flying through the
atmosphere, a spelljammer has Move 1/7 per ShR. Thus, a ship with ShR 4 will
have Move 4/28. Only ships capable of landing on water or land can do so and
take off safely. Any ship can crash onto a planet or its ocean, but then taking
off again iss guaranteed to be a problem.
In wildspace: Traveling in a straight
line, spelljamming ships can attain high velocity relatively quickly, spanning
the great emptiness between the planets in a short time. Upon making a turn, or
coming into the gravity field of another large body, the spelljammer helm
automatically decelerates to a more manageable atmospheric speed. This sudden
slowdown does not cause whiplash. Returning to the proper wildspace speed
required leaving the gravity well and warming up the spelljammer helm for 2d
minutes. For such objects as other ships, the gravity well usually extends to 1,200
yards. This is a function of all spelljamming, regardless of the type of helm
or owning race of the ship. A “large body” is any body of 10 tons or greater
space displacement (100 cubic yards, or a cube slightly less than 14 feet on a
side with an effective SM+4), which includes most spelljamming ships, planets, stars,
and other worthwhile celestial bodies. A ship can travel 100 million miles per
day regardless of its ShR, size, or the Piloting (Spelljammer) skill of the
character manning the helm. This means that any spelljammer can travel 1 A.U.
per day.
In the Flow: The rainbow ocean allows
spelljamming ships to attain greater velocities. These speeds have defied
measurement since the phlogiston is without permanent landmarks or markers.
Time is the only constant.
In
general, it takes 2dx10 days to travel from one crystal sphere to another. The
sphere reached is random unless a successful Navigation (Phlogiston) roll was
made to find a particular sphere. Unless the helmsman has a locator device ($2,000;
5 lbs.), this roll is made at -5 for no equipment. Some spheres are unreachable
from others due to the Flow itself, and travelers must go through a third or
fourth sphere in order to reach their goal. A ship’s last port of call
determines which spheres it can move to. Port of call is the sighting or landing
within a crystal sphere.
Ships
in the Flow slow down to atmospheric speed when they encounter other bodies,
such as ships and rogue planets, but this does not affect total travel time.
Spelljammer Helms
Ships
travel through wildspace by means of the helm – a magical device which converts
mystical energy into motive force, the push that moves the spelljammer. This
allows rapid movement from planet to planet. Some of the specifics vary from
race to race. In general, however, most ships are equipped with a magical
device known as a spelljammer helm.
A
helm can be operated only by a character with magical or divine abilities. The
character sitting at the helm acts as a living engine, providing the mystical
power to move the ship through wildspace and to perform some basic maneuvering
as well. The better the Piloting (Spelljammer) skill of the pilot, the faster
and further the ship can move.
Each
minor and major spelljammer helm allows the individual seated upon it to move a
large mass through space by means of channeling mystical energy directly into a
motive force. The power of the force is known as the ship’s rating (ShR). A
minor helm provides ShR = Piloting (Spelljammer)/4, rounded up, a major helm
provides ShR = Piloting (Spelljammer)/3, rounded up.
As
soon as the character sits on the helm and becomes aware of the ship, he
becomes unable to use any of his magical or divine abilities for 24 hours. In
effect, the helm “drains” the helmsman of all his supernatural powers the
moment it is activated. Using a helm costs 1 FP per hour, but the helmsman can
use his ER (Magical or Divine) to power it as well. The helmsman is aware of
damage to the hull as bright flashes of pain. Thus, damage to the hull imposes
shock penalties to the helmsman’s actions, and major wounds may stun or knock
him out.
An
individual seated upon a helm can talk and act normally. The sensation of using
the helm is akin to being immersed in warm water. As a result of the magical
nature of the helm, the spelljamming character using the helm can see things
around the ship as if he were standing on the deck. The ship becomes an
extension of his body, and responds to his demands in movement. The maneuverability
of a craft is a reflection of both the spelljamming character’s ability and the
Handling class of the ship.
A
minor helm can move a ship up to 50 tons. A major helm can move one up to 200
tons.
Only
one helm may be in service at a time, though backups are possible.
A
minor helm costs $250,000 and weighs 80 pounds. A major helm costs $750,000 and
weighs 160 pounds. It can be installed on any vehicle or structure, typically a
naval vessel, but there are spelljammer hulls specially made for traveling in wildspace.
The minimum weight of the hull is 1 ton.
Series Helms
Series
helms were invented by the mind flayers, but the idea has been adapted for a
number of other psionic races. Series helms look like the gamut of major and
minor helms, running from simple-looking to ornate, but unlike the spelljamming
helms, the series helms can be linked together, one to another, to increase
their power.
For
each helm in a series manned by a mind flayer (or whatever creature the helm is
designed for), the ship has an ShR of 1. In general, mind flayer ships will
have between two and five series helms, though they may not all be occupied.
For the purpose of maneuvering the ship, use the highest Piloting (Spelljammer)
skill from among the helmsmen.
If
a mind flayer in a series helm is slain, then the series is broken for one
minute, and the ship loses all power and movement. Further, all mind flayers in
the series must roll against Will-5 or drop to -1xHP. In other aspects, such as
FP drain, awareness, and shock penalties, series helms work like spelljamming
helms. However, instead of blocking out magical and divine abilities, series
helms block psionic abilities. Instead of being able to drain ER (Magical or
Divine), series helms can drain ER (Psionic).
Series
helms can move up to 50 tons. Their lower limit is a 5-ton ship.
Each
helm in the series costs $100,000 and weighs 60 pounds.
Pool Helms
Developed by the mind flayers, the pool helm
uses the natural life-pool of the mind flayers to power the ships, as opposed
to illithids themselves. Such ships have an automatic ShR of 5 and are used
primarily as transports. The pool counts as two crew members and has an
effective Piloting (Spelljammer) skill level of 15. Current rumored maximum
size of a ship powered by a pool helm is 200 tons.
A
pool helm costs $1,200,000 and weighs 100 lbs.
Orbus
The orbus is a living being that functions much
like a series helm on the beholder tyrant ships. For each living orbus (maximum
of five for the typical tyrant ship), the ship has an ShR of 1. The effective
Piloting (Spelljammer) level equals to 6 + 2 per living orbus.
The
orbi are usually found near the center of a beholder ship, surrounding the
Great Mother or Hiveleader. If an orbus is slain, the ShR and Piloting
(Spelljammer) are diminished accordingly.
Orbi
appear as blind beholders, with milky skin over all their eyes. They are pale
and practically helpless on their own. They have been bred to serve and have
almost no will of their own. A single orbus can create spelljamming energy for
20 tons of ship.
An
orbus costs $200,000.
Forges
Dwarves have large asteroid ships powered by
magical engines they call forges. These forges are huge foundry rooms at the
base of the ship where dwarves work around the clock, building, carving,
creating, and forging. The basic idea of the forge is the conversion of
creative energy into movement.
A
forge requires at least 200 cubic yards (2 tons) for every 50 dwarves involved.
For every 100 dwarves at work, the ship has an ShR of 1. The minimum size of a
dwarven ship is 100 tons, with a maximum size of 700 tons. Non-dwarves do not
produce energy when operating the forges.
Installing
a forge costs $1,000,000 initially, and $200,000 per year to maintain it. The
positive side effect is that the dwarves always have fully stocked armories and
a lot of goods to sell. The negative side effect is that the asteroid is likely
to run out of ore to mine and hence be abandoned.
Gnomish Helms
Gnomish helms should not function, and many of
them do not function. They include a large number of bells and whistles and
very little substance, but some of them contain a very well-hidden minor
spelljamming helm. A gnomish helm costs $150,000 and weighs 1 ton. Only about
60% of Gnomish helms work (due to having an actual minor spelljammer helm built
into them), and the remaining 40% are so much bunk and hokum.
Those
foolish enough to purchase a Gnomish helm that works should also hire two to
eight gnomes to serve as repairmen. Any time the helm is used, it is treated as
having Malf 12. Fixing it requires 1d hours.
Crown of the Stars
This magical item distills the abilities of a
minor helm into a portable item that can be worn, allowing the helmsman to move
normally in addition to commanding his ship. Despite its name, a crown of the
stars is not necessarily a crown; it may be a torc, a necklace, a girdle, or
any other worn item, but not a ring.
If
the crown is used to power a ship for one week or more, it becomes bonded to that
ship. It cannot be used to power a different ship unless it has been away from
its bonded ship for at least one week, thereby severing the bond.
The
crown of the stars is effective up to one mile away from the ship it is bonded
to, so a helmsman can operate the vessel even if he is not on board. A crown of
the stars will not affect a ship with an active helm on board.
A
crown of the stars costs $1,500,000.
Furnaces
Furnaces take their power not from living
supernatural energy, but from magical items. The items are fed into the furnace
(and destroyed) to power the ship. As a rule of thumb, every EP an item is
worth, the furnace will function for one week at ShR 2. The effective Piloting
(Spelljammer) skill is 10.
A
furnace costs $100,000 and weighs 300 lbs.
Artifurnace
An artifurnace is the ultimate stage of the
development of the furnace – a magically-powered spelljamming device which
draws its power from a magical artifact. Each is a custom-made, priceless
device tailored to contain and siphon energy from a specific artifact. Because
an artifact is practically eternal, the power derived from it is equally so.
Once installed, an artifurnace provides ShR 5 and an effective Piloting
(Spelljammer) skill of 15. The artifurnace is destroyed if the artifact is ever
removed.
Lifejammer
The lifejammer acts as a minor spelljamming
helm, but drains the life force from any individual placed inside (usually
against his will). Once it has depleted all FP, it begins to drain HP,
potentially killing the operator. It requires a helmsman that will actually
control the ship, determining its ShR, but that helmsman does not lose any FP
or experience any shock or stun from hull damage.
A
lifejammer costs $300,000 and weighs 100 pounds.
No comments:
Post a Comment