Year 1911 AC (After Colonization) Cold Season, Revision Phase
Proposal: Gavrilium Engine
Gavrilium Engine: Steam engines are so last century. Combustion engines are a dead-end technology, that will never amount to much. Gavrilium Engines are where it's at.
A Gavrilium Engine consists of Gavrilium rods surrounding a central crankshaft, upon which are mounted metal plates made of certain alloys. As a plate passes a rod, it draws energy from it, which is transformed into mechanical energy, propeling the plate, rotating the shaft. It somewhat resembles an electrical motor, except that the energy is drawn directly from the Gavrilium (hence not requiring separate batteries), and the mysterious energies that Gavrilium produces are stronger than regular magnets (hence resulting in more powerful motors at smaller sizes)(in theory magnets of equal or greater power could be created, but this is beyond our means at present).
The Gavrilium rods are enough to power an engine of moderate size non-stop for days on end, but eventually they will be depleted, whereupon they can be removed by a technician and replaced with fresh rods. (We may be able to find a use for Depleted Gavrilium in the future)
Prototype Gavrilium Engines have been built by eccentric sciency types for decades, but it is high time we dedicated our military budget to developing effective models that can be used to do... well, all sorts of things.
PS: The engine glows blue when in use. This has been identified as "well cool", potentially boosting morale, but in cases where a glowing blue engine would be a hindrance, a simple cowl can be placed over it.
Difficulty: Hard
Result: 10 (6+5-1) =
Superior CraftsmanshipThe Gavrilium Engine is a simple design with brilliant results. A central drive shaft runs through the motor. At the middle of the shaft is a cylindrical rotor with a number of slightly angled thin metal slats composed of an iron-nickel alloy mounted on it. Just clear of the rotor are a number of Gavrilium rods dependent on the size and power requirements of the engine. Once the shaft begins rotating (either through manual cranking or an ignition mechanism) it will continue to run for around a week as the Gavrilium rods produce a magnetic field created when the slats move past them, spinning the rotor, which causes the slats to pass the rods until they're spent. The engine can be turned off and on freely: the reaction between the rods and the alloy almost completely stops once the rotor stops spinning. The energy transferred electromagnetically from the rods to the rotor translates to an immense amount of power in relation to the cost of conventional engines in both resources and space. An 8-Rod Engine produces roughly the same amount of power as the increasingly popular V8 Engine at roughly 1/3 the size and at a lower cost.
The only issue with the engine is heat - or the lack thereof. Drawing energy out of Gavrilium and depleting it causes a
massive drop in temperature - enough so that handling Depleted Gavrilium without proper protection will immediately begin to freeze and kill off any bare skin it contacts. While handling the material is dangerous this does mean overheating isn't an issue. What we are calling "overcooling" however, is. Currently in extremely cold environments the engine can begin to freeze over, potentially seizing the drive shaft and immediately cutting out the engine. This can be fixed by removing the rods before applying some sort of heat to the engine to thaw it out.
Also of note is the "well cool" blue glow emanating from the engines as a result of the reaction taking process.
A design using a Gavrilium Engine will have an additional cost of
1 Ore. The vehicles will cost no Oil, instead costing
1/2 the amount in Gavrilium rounded up. For example if you designed a vehicle that would normally cost 6 Ore and 6 Oil or 2 Ore and 3 Oil their costs would become 7 Ore and 3 Gavrilium and 3 Ore and 2 Gavrilium respectively.
We have also learned that it is
possible to extract energy from Gavrilium electromagnetically and that it
freezes when inert.
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Proposal: GA1 Cannon
GA1 Cannon (please for the love of god give me better names please please)
Okay, so traditional Gavrillium exposed to traditional explosives melts the Gavrillium really fast.
We believe that by using a powdered form of Gavrillium intermixed with regular gunpowder Cordite condensed into relatively tight volumes, we can create an extraordinarily effect explosive. The exact nature in which Gavrilium melts -- extraordinarily rapidly, among other things -- combined with traditional gunpowder could very well allow us to make an explosive orders of magnitudes better than just gunpowder.
We aren't exactly reader to put the "Gavpowder" in infantry rifles yet, so we'll use it in a different vital piece of kit - artillery. The GA1 (Gavrilium Artillery) Cannon is a breech-loading 150mm caliber howitzer, designed to fulfill our artillery needs. Gavpowder allows the shells to go at significant speeds, causing more damage and at longer ranges than a similar conventional piece of artillery.
Difficulty: Hard
Result: 5 (3+3-1) =
Below AverageThe GA1 is Salvios' first attempt at heavy weaponry, and unfortunately it shows. The GA1 Cannon is a 150mm artillery piece loaded through an interrupted screw breech. While the GA1 can be fired by a trained crew at a rate of 3 to 4 rounds per minute, we failed to take into account the excess heat from the newly formulated "Gavpowder" into account. As a result, continued usage of the GA1 can result in barrel warping and ultimately failure of the piece. Crews are therefore ordered to fire no more than a half dozen rounds before letting the GA1 cool for an extended period of time. The GA1 is moved using a sled and horses.
While it can be fired accurately up to six kilometers, the Gavpowder allows for highly inaccurate shots out to nine.
The GA1 Cannon costs
5 Ore and
3 Gavrilium, making it
(Very Expensive).
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Proposal: M2 Dispersion Grenade [Revision]
Revision: M2 Dispersion Grenade
A small traditional charge inside the Gavrilium Grenade causes the superheated Gavrilium to rapidly disperse across a wide area. The casing switch is removed, as we don't have the time to make it useful at the moment. Bits of molten Gavrilium flung across a wide area should be extraordinarily devastating to enemies.
As the Gavrilium only melts after the charge goes off, we really have no other concerns. The charge should go off when the grenade is in its desired position, like literally every other grenade ever.
Difficulty: Normal
Result: 9 (6+3+0) =
Above AverageThere is one major difference between the M1 and M2: the M2 works. The first thing we did was take another look at the design of the grenade, and it turns out there were a lot of issues.
The M2 has a reliable six second fuse as opposed to the M1's "anything goes" fuse. Our soldier no longer need to fear loss of limb the moment they prime the grenade. The selector switch is gone now, as it was shorting out when flipped and was immediately setting off the charge. The third issue had to do with the grenade's casing. The Gavrilium in the grenade never had time to build up pressure in the casing and was too heavy to be easily dispersed by the charge, so the charge was weakened enough to keep from damaging the now reinforced casing. As the Gavrilium rapidly heats and expands, the casing now holds for that extra split second the Gavrilium needs to build up enough pressure in the grenade to violently erupt from it. The intense blast of heat is capable of inflicting serious burns within 4 meters, and the globs of molten Gavrilium are lethally concentrated within 3 meters but can and often do fly as far as 10.
The M2 still costs
1 Ore and
1 Gavrilium, thereby remaining
(CHEAP) and replacing the M1.
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Thanks to each one of you our military is now ready to push into the Lowlands and pacify the rebellion taking place there. You've all earned your keep and then some this season, so do not be surprised when a bottle of the finest Bryor Wine shows up on your workbenches. We will be in touch again once we know how things turn out in the Lowlands.
Infantry
Senapang Pattern Rifle: A 110 cm, 4 kg dark wood masterpiece. 7.7mm rounds are fed via 5-round stripper clip into the 10-round internal magazine, which can also be loaded with rounds individually. It has an adjustable rear sight with 100 meter increments. It also has a bayonet lug and comes with a bayonet. Padded for operator comfort, extremely dependable and reliable. The Senapang outclasses many rifles of our time. Costs 2 Ore and 2 Wood. (CHEAP)
M2 Dispersion Grenade: A fantastic incendiary weapon. Effectively a canister on a stick that explodes in a burst of heat and molten metal. The sudden burst of wilting heat causes intense burns out to three meters while the flying molten Gavrilium can inflict serious wounds out to ten. Costs 1 Ore and 1 Gavrilium. (CHEAP)
GA1 Cannon: A 150mm piece of artillery that uses a mixture of cordite and powdered Gavrilium to fire rounds fairly accurately to six meters but potentially out to nine if accuracy isn't really a factor. The barrel warps from extended use so teams are asked to restrict themselves to six rounds at a time before needing to cool for an extended period. Costs 5 Ore and 3 Gavrilium. (Very Expensive)
BSU: The Berani standard uniform is made of light cotton dyed khaki. A wide brim steel helmet offers some protection, and leather patches on the elbows and knees provide a level of comfort and protection when kneeling or leaning on something. The uniform has a large number of pockets, belts, and satchels made of cotton webbing in order to carry large amounts of equipment such as ammo and grenades. Entrenching tools are provided to all soldiers.
Vehicles
Gavrilium Engine: An engine run by extracting electromagnetic energy from Gavrilium rods and converting it to mechanical energy. Much more powerful and cost efficient than standard combustion engines. The engine's only flaw is overcooling in very cold environments as the rods freeze as their stored energy depletes, seizing the engine and shutting it down. The Depleted Gavrilium rods must be handled with proper protective equipment. Glows blue. Adds 1 Ore to the price of the base vehicle design and converts Oil cost into 1/2 the cost in Gavrilium
Specialty Resource
Gavrilium: A wondermaterial with many unknown qualities. So far we know that low applied heat produces a slow burn with results similar to coal, a sudden explosive force agitates it until it becomes a molten blob, electromagnetic energy can be drawn from it, and depleted gavrilium has a dangerously low temperature.
Salvios: 3 Ent., 2 Ore, 2 Oil, 2 Wood, 2 Gavrilium // 100% Control
Ore: 2
Oil: 2
Wood: 2
Gavrilium: 2
Poll
2 (14.3%)
Author
Topic: Industrialized Warfare: Salvios Thread / 1917 A.C. Cold Season (COMPLETE) (Read 101787 times)