Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[tryrar]

I went back and filled in the proper mass for the ship and calculated travel time using the spreadsheet, and it appears the travel time is a hair under 18 years. 4 years of that have already passed, so after this turn we'll have turnover. Also, approximately 10.5 units of fuel remains, so we're good there. Still need a plan for this travel roll, or I default to basic maintenance and nothing else.

[tryrar]

One last bump before I run the turn. Speak now or I'll just have them do something silly like put on a circus

[tryrar]

Years 2062-2066
Fuel:10.5 units->9 units
Travel Time:14 years->10 years
Crew:40 awake 50 podded->35 awake 50 podded

>Morale:1-20=-19(!)
They say fear is the mind killer, but they lie. Boredom. Boredom is the mind killer. This is demonstrated in the sixth year of travel when several crew members, unable to take the increasing burden of being away from Earth and having nothing to really distract them, simply walk out the airlock without suits. This shocking turn of events has the whole crew in a funk that threatens to descend into full blown depression. (-20 to morale roll; 5 crew lost!)

>>Maintenance:26(!!)

Things only get worse at year 8. As turnover approaches, maintenance is performed, but in a rather desultory fashion given the mood of the crew, and nothing is really checked thoroughly. So it perhaps shouldn't be a surprise when a command fault in the ship's computer causes an OS crash that takes life support offline, and threatens to kill all the cryo'd crew unless something is done! Worse, the reactor has also been affected, and is going into supercritical...
Command Center offline
Life Support offline
Cryopods have suffered a power failure
Reactor malfunction, chance of containment breach

Event:
 >Only about 8 of the 35 remaining crew are actually awake, the rest are asleep. What are your orders?

[10ebbor10]

(We got -20 because we gave then nothing to do ? Or is that because of overpopulation.)

- Okay, actions :

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

- Quickly point out that since this is a fusion reactor, containment breach and supercriticality aren't actually a thing (well, both are a thing, but kind of harmless). All fusion reactors operate with their plasma densities a good dozen orders of magnitude below atmospheric pressure. Supercriticality, while a physically correct term, is also kind-off irrelevant. In a fusion reactor, power is controlled by the gradual insertion of fuel. Thus, the reactor can only increase power if you add more fuel. (As opposed to a fission reactor, which starts with all fuel in the reactor). Kind of like a gas turbine.

However, most likely, adding more fuel will cause the plasma to break magnetic containment, hit the reactor side and cool down immediately, stopping the fusion reaction. Or even better, the sudden addition of fuel cools the plasma too much to continue the reaction. Plasma hitting the walls is not entirely harmless as the plasma contains a significant current, which can shock and damage electrical components, such as the containment magnets. (The heat itself is neglible, due to the low plasma density).

Thus actions:

 - For the reactor, shut down the fuel injection and plasma heating. Reaction should run out of fuel within a fraction of a second, and shut down immediately.
 - Unfortunately, that results in us being without power. But, since the reactor uses external cooling panels, which are blown off during re-entry, we know that it can't be operated during reentry.
 - We thus know that the vessel is by necessity, equipped with auxiliary power supplies. Activate those, and hope they're re-usable.
 - Meanwhile, have some control room people restart the OS.
 - Also do a manual start on cryo and lifesupport systems.

Note: I don't think I shouldn't have taunted the RNG gods.

[tryrar]

Well, not really some much overcrowding as because you have 40 people not doing anything but basic maintenance for 4 years. Even with a well stocked VR, that's not very conducive to good morale(idle hands and all that). Having them do SOMETHING, even as simple as coding the next Halo, helps avoid this. (Also, you didn't say you had Anna awake. Generally speaking, if you don't say you have your heros unfrozen, I don't assume they are)

Speaking of which, is the captain awake for this stretch of travel?

[Aseaheru]

Oh, that was rude, only giving us an hour to do things.

Turnover is this turn, right? If so, thats twice the rude, since I was gonna suggest that the turn before the turnover we get everything ready to maintain everything during the turnover.

[10ebbor10]

What happened with the First generation fusion reactor suggestion I made. Seems to have been simply ignored despite being backed up by at least 1 person, having no one against it, and being plausible and useful? Ignoring that and then slapping us with a hefty morale penalty for not acting seems kind of unfair.

And yes, let's awake our hero.

[tryrar]

Well, I generally want at least one other person in agreement with an idea to roll with it, though maybe in this case since reading back it doesn't seem like I needed to worry since you were the only one with a real idea at the time. Then again, it's pretty academic since a one is still a one

Also, I don't think I was too unfair with the timing, since there was at least 6 hours between my last past and the post warning of imminent turn, and I waited at least an hour after that *shrug*

[10ebbor10]

Let's use the VR program to design a first generation fusion reactor. One that uses the more available deuterium-tritium reaction rather than requiring He-3.

+1

At least 1 person found.

[Generally me]

Let's use the VR program to design a first generation fusion reactor. One that uses the more available deuterium-tritium reaction rather than requiring He-3.

+1

At least 1 person found.

+1... Cause I can

[VoidSlayer]

This is why we needed a backup air supply.

-Okay, 4 crew to shut down and restart the fusion reactor manually, cutting it from computer control for now. 

-3 crew starts whatever emergency power we have in life support, cut it from the computer and prep it for full use after the power comes back on. 

-One person goes to command to do damage control on the computer (stop it from doing anything else wrong, I assume someone was at command anyway because it needs 5 crew) and hit red alert to wake up the rest of the crew.

Without life support we are dead, no backup air supply.

[10ebbor10]

Actually no. Lifesupport is the least urgent off all these things. Even if this ship has no chemical oxygen generators, or passive Co-2 filters, it will still take the crew days* to deplete the oxygen  to dangerously low levels. Though actually, Co2 poisoning is more dangerous and will happen earlier, foolproof soda filters have been used since the mid twentieth century. Only real danger is the loss of ventilation, so crew needs to keep moving. Standing still means breathing the same air over and over again, ... We should wake up everyone sleeping ASAP.

*one person takes 1.5 hours to deplete 1 cubic meter of air to levels where activity can no longer be safely sustained. Halve that if there's no way to remove Co2.

We need to shut the reactor down, fix cryo, then worry about life support.

[VoidSlayer]

(We got -20 because we gave then nothing to do ? Or is that because of overpopulation.)

- Okay, actions :

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

- Quickly point out that since this is a fusion reactor, containment breach and supercriticality aren't actually a thing (well, both are a thing, but kind of harmless). All fusion reactors operate with their plasma densities a good dozen orders of magnitude below atmospheric pressure. Supercriticality, while a physically correct term, is also kind-off irrelevant. In a fusion reactor, power is controlled by the gradual insertion of fuel. Thus, the reactor can only increase power if you add more fuel. (As opposed to a fission reactor, which starts with all fuel in the reactor). Kind of like a gas turbine.

However, most likely, adding more fuel will cause the plasma to break magnetic containment, hit the reactor side and cool down immediately, stopping the fusion reaction. Or even better, the sudden addition of fuel cools the plasma too much to continue the reaction. Plasma hitting the walls is not entirely harmless as the plasma contains a significant current, which can shock and damage electrical components, such as the containment magnets. (The heat itself is neglible, due to the low plasma density).

Thus actions:

 - For the reactor, shut down the fuel injection and plasma heating. Reaction should run out of fuel within a fraction of a second, and shut down immediately.
 - Unfortunately, that results in us being without power. But, since the reactor uses external cooling panels, which are blown off during re-entry, we know that it can't be operated during reentry.
 - We thus know that the vessel is by necessity, equipped with auxiliary power supplies. Activate those, and hope they're re-usable.
 - Meanwhile, have some control room people restart the OS.
 - Also do a manual start on cryo and lifesupport systems.

Note: I don't think I shouldn't have taunted the RNG gods.

How about:

• 4 to Stabilize reactor first, shut down if necessary and activate backup power
• 2 to take manual control of command and wake up crew
• 2 to check cryo pods

I guess with less people we have a small margin with life support.  Silver lining.

[tryrar]

So, comment's on void's plan?

[Aseaheru]

It looks fine to me, lets also bring up everyone we can.

Also, a comment: I was sleeping during that time. Just about the moment I worke I got on and commented on the thread, and I was waiting for more data before I put forward an action, as shown by

We coast during the center, but I agree that we need to know howmany turns till then so we can prepare.