• Creating construction projects (not ordnance or fighter projects)
  
• Controlling terraformers (covered later)
  
• Setting local mining mass-driver destinations (if applicable)
  
• Setting civilian transport contracts (covered later)
  
• Setting the colonization status of your colony (covered later)
  
• Setting the active/inactive status of your colony's production capabilities (covered later)
  

Frosted Flake fucked around with this message at 20:43 on Apr 2, 2012

Frosted Flake fucked around with this message at 00:25 on Apr 3, 2012

• Automated Mine Cost: 240 Construction Capacity (CC), 120 Duranium, 120 Corundium. Automated mines utilized advances in TN computing, miniaturization, and robotics to allow a mining facility to work with no production staff. The annual mining output of an automated mine is the same as a traditional TN mine, but the construction cost is doubled. This makes automated mines less efficient than normal mines on a cost/output basis, but there are circumstances where standard mines are infeasible (uncolonizeable worlds, for example, or those with a prohibitively high colony cost.
  
• Commercial Shipyard Complex Cost: 2400 CC, 1200 Duranium, 1200 Neutronium. A commercial shipyard complex is used to construct commercially-rated space craft. When first built, it will have a single slipway with a 10,000 tonne construction capacity. It requires 100,000 population per yard, plus 1,000,000 per slipway to operate. Each commercial shipyard slipway can construct 400 build points / year. I.e., one slipway can construct one 400-BP ship in one year. Several teams have collaborated to determine ways to improve this rate. Note that I forgot the base tonnage of a commercial shipyard is 10,000 tonnes, so I went ahead and updated the ISS to that. I'll edit my previous post as well.
  
• Commercial Spaceport Cost: 1200 CC, 300 Duranium, 150 Corbomite, 150 Boronide, 300 Mercassium, 300 Uridium. A TN commercial spaceport is used to faciliate space-ground cargo loading/unloading operations (mineral loading, unloading, installation loading/unloading, troop strategic loading/unloading) by utilizing TNEs for mass-reduction lifts and cargo handling equipment. Each load/unload operation has its time reduced by (Spaceport level + 1). As you might expect in a game this spergy, cargo loading/unloading is not instant. Large ships without cargo handling facilities or operating at a world without a spaceport can take significant time (days!) to complete operations.
  
• Construction Factory Cost: 120 CC, 60 Duranium, 30 Tritanium, 30 Vendarite. TN Construction factories make extensive use of TNEs in their fabrication facilities, assembly lines, and logistics networks. We estimate that by making widespread use of TNEs in our construction facilities, we will see an initial 10-fold improvement in our construction capacity (10 CC / year / factory, compared to 1 CC / year / factory for our conventional industry). Further improvement may be seen through further research. Each factory requires 50,000 workers for peak performance.
  
• Convert CI (Conventional Industry) to Counstruction Factory Cost: 20 CC, 10 Duranium, 5 Tritanium, 5 Vendarite. This allows the conversion of 1 unit of conventional industry into one construction factory. Note that the cost is 1/6th what it costs to construct a CF from scratch. We cannot emphasize strongly enough the need to begin converting our conventional industry to use TNEs.
  
• Fighter Factory Cost: 120 CC, 30 Duranium, 90 Vendarite. Fighter factories fall under the purview of the Department of Defense and Procurement. TNEs allow systematic miniaturization of normal shipbuilding processes for the small components generally found on fighter-class spacecraft. Our current construction rates for fighters are 10 Build Points / year / factory. I.e., one fighter factory could produce one 10-BP fighter in one year. Each factory complex employs 50,000 workers.
  
• Convert CI to Fighter Factory Cost: 20 CC, 5 Duranium, 15 Vendarite. This allows the conversion of 1 unit of conventional industry into one fighter factory. Note that the cost is 1/6th what it costs to construct a fighter factory from scratch.
  
• Fuel Refinery Cost: 120 CC, 120 Duranium. Fuel refineries convert raw sorium into refined sorium fuel, used as a fuel in both conventional and Trans-Newtonian engines. There is a fixed rate of 1 tonne of raw sorium for 2000 tonnes of refined sorium fuel. Currently available technology allows our refineries to produce 20,000 litres of fuel / year / refinery. We are looking at ways to increase this rate, which will also increase the rate of sorium consumption, since the raw:refined rate is always fixed. Each refinery complex provides employment for 50,000 workers.
  
• Convert CI to Fuel Refinery Cost: 20 CC, 20 Duranium. This allows the conversion of 1 unit of conventional industry into one fuel refinery. Note that the cost is 1/6th what it costs to construct a fuel refinery from scratch.
  
• Mine Cost: 120 CC, 60 Duranium, 60 Corundium. Current-tech TN mines are roughly 10-times more efficient than conventional mines (10 tonnes / year / mine for accessibility 1.0 minerals). Each massive mining complex, with its deep-core mining gantries and other supporting establishments, requires 50,000 workers to operate.
  
• Convert CI to Mine Cost: 20 CC, 10 Duranium, 10 Corundium. This allows the conversion of 1 unit of conventional industry into one TN mine. Note that the cost is 1/6th what it costs to construct a mine from scratch. We want to emphasize that we should make haste on converting mines. The Federation is sure to be close behind us on technology, and will be greedily consuming corundium to expand its mining establishment, just like we plan to. Converting from CI saves an extraordinary amount of corundium compared to building TN mines from scratch, much less automated mines.
  
• Ordnance Factory Cost: 120 CC, 30 Duranium, 90 Tritanium. Ordnance factories construct missile bodies, warheads, drives, and other ammunition-related supplies. 50,000 workers are required to staff each factory, each of which provides 10 missile build points / year / factory. Experts in construction efficiency are working on ways to improve this rate. Note: Despite the flavor text here, ordnance factories ONLY build missiles. Railgun and gauss cannon ammunition is essentially 'free,' which seems like an odd oversight in a game where everything is modeled so granularly.
  
• Convert CI to Ordnance Factory Cost: 20 CC, 5 Duranium, 15 Tritanium. This allows the conversion of 1 unit of conventional industry into one ordnance factory. Note that the cost is 1/6th what it costs to construct an ordnance factory from scratch.
  
• Convert Mine to Automated Cost: 150 CC, 75 Duranium, 75 Corundium. Converts a regular TN mine to an automated one. Note that the total cost of a regular mine built from scratch and converted to automated is 280 CC, 135 Duranium, and 135 Corundium, which is more expensive than just building the automated mine in the first place, so this is of limited use.
  
• Deep Space Tracking Station Cost: 300 CC, 150 Duranium, 150 Uridium. Creates a new Deep Space Tracking Station. Each tracking station at a colony expands the Deep Space Tracking Station level, but they can also be transported to other colonies. Our current Deep Space Tracking sensor strength is 250 (units: 1000s of km / megawatt), i.e., something with a thermal signature of 1 MW would be detectable at (250 * 1000 km/MW * 1 MW) = 250,000 km (about 2/3 of the way to the moon). The sensor strength of a population is equal to its planetary sensor strength * its sensor level. Building another DSTS would double its current range, for example.
  
• Ground Force Training Facility Cost: 2400 CC, 1200 Duranium, 1200 Neutronium. Allows the training and raising of new ground force battalions. We are currently looking into ground military applications of TNEs, and initial findings are very promising.
  
• Mass Driver Cost: 300 CC, 100 Duranium, 100 Neutronium, 100 Boronide. Allows transport or receipt of mineral packets. We recommend building a pair as soon as possible in order to facilitate any future off-world mining ventures.
  
• Naval Shipyard Complex Cost: 2400 CC, 1200 Duranium, 1200 Neutronium. A naval shipyard complex is used to construct military-rated space craft. When first built, it will have a single slipway with a 1000 tonne construction capacity. It requires 100,000 population per yard, plus 1,000,000 per slipway to operate. Each naval shipyard slipway can construct 400 build points / year. I.e., one slipway can construct one 400-BP ship in one year. Several teams have collaborated to determine ways to improve this rate.
  
• Research Lab Cost: 2400 CC, 1200 Duranium, 1200 Mercassium. Expands the research capabilities of the colony it is built on. Labs can be assigned to scientists working on research projects. Each lab produces 200 research points per year. TNEs are enabling massive computational power increases, so this research rate will likely be able to be improved.
  
• Terraforming Installation Cost: 600 CC, 300 Duranium, 300 Boronide. One intriguing application of Trans-Newtonian technology is the ability to use them as atomic-level "philosopher's stones", enabling the ability to produce various gases and compounds from essentially any material (like, for example, rocks and dirt). By releasing these compounds into the air, the atmospheric composition of a body may be altered, increasing (or decreasing) its temperature or changing its breathability. So-called "terraforming" complexes will enable, over long time periods, the complete reshaping of a world's habitability.
  

bgreman fucked around with this message at 19:07 on Apr 5, 2012

• Genome Sequence Research*
  

• Construction Rate 12 BP Cost: 3000 RP Description: Annual construction rate for one unit of industrial capacity.
  
• Expand Civilian Economy by 20%*
  
• Fighter Production Rate 12 BP Cost: 3000 RP Description: Annual production rate for a fighter factory.
  
• Fuel Production 24,000 Litres Cost: 3000 RP Description: The annual fuel production for each fuel refinery. Note: The actual in-game description is one of many typos in various fields in the game.
  
• Mining Production 12 tonnes Cost: 3000 RP Description: Annual production of accessibility 1.0 minerals for each mine or automated mine. Small amounts of lower accessibility minerals will be produced; half annual rate for 0.5 accessibility, one tenth annual rate for 0.1 accessibility, etc.
  
• Research Rate 240 RP Cost: 5000 RP Description: The basic number of research poitns produced by each Research Facility per year. This can be increased by the research bonus of the scientist leading the project.
  
• Shipbuilding Rate 560 BP Cost: 5000 RP Description: The number of build points produced by each Shipyard per year. This can be increased by the Shipbuilding bonus of the planetary administrator.
  
• Shipyard Operations: 5% Time/Cost Saving Cost: 2500 RP Description: Making changes to shipyards, such as adding slipways and capacity or retooling for different classes requires 5% less time than normal. Shipyard operations will be covered in a future update.
  
• Terraforming Rate 0.0012 atm Cost: 3000 RP Description: The amount of gas (measured in atmospheric pressure) produced in one year by one terraforming installation or terraforming module. Terraforming will be covered in a future update.
  

• Asteroid Mining Module Cost: 5000 RP Description: A ship component that allows a ship to perform the same task as an automated mine when it is in orbit of an asteroid or comet. TNEs allow for massive miniaturization, to the point that the actual mining equipment of an automated mine can be packed onto a ship hull. These ships are only able to mine from asteroids, since the lower gravity allows the ship to use relatively weak station keeping thrusters to maintain position over the asteroid, much like some varieties of oil rig did in the early 21st century.
  
• Sorium Harvester Cost: 5000 RP Description: A ship module that allows a ship to extract sorium from a gas giant and convert it into fuel. This works automatically if the ship is in orbit of a gas giant. Current research indicates that sorium should be plentiful in the atmospheres of many gas giants. This module miniaturizes the infrastructure of a fuel refinery, allowing the complicated machinery to be fitted to a ship hull.
  
• Terraforming Module Cost: 5000 RP Description: A ship component that allows a ship to perform the same task as a terraforming installation when it is in orbit of a colony. Miniaturization of the atomic crucibles present in terraforming installations allows the use of the atmospheric modification process from a ship-borne platform.
  

• Alpha Shields Cost: 1000 RP Description: The level of shield technology. Higher level shields provide more protection for the same size shield generator. Shields regenerate over time. A very exciting development occurred during Dr. Slaan's research when a group working at Lawrence Livermore discovered that passing a high-voltage electric current through a woven Corbomite lattice caused a physical field to be created, in much the same manner as an electric current in a regular wire producing a magnetic field. The difference here is that the Induced Corbomite Energy Field (ICEF) provides resistance against both physical forces and electromagnetic radiation. The researchers speculate that with a high enough voltage and a strong enough lattice, the ICEF effect could be used as a form of energy shielding.
  
• Cloaking Theory Cost: 10000 RP Description: Basis of various cloaking technologies. Another remarkable new physics enabled by TNEs is the cloaking effect. The same researchers working on the shielding prototypes reasoned that since a moving electric field creates a magnetic field and a moving magnetic field creates an electric current, perhaps a similar relation would hold for the Trans-Newtonian "electromagnetic" analogue. However, the analogy didn't appear to hold, as no electric current or field was observed. What they discovered, however, was that inducing a magnetic field through the Corbomite lattice caused the lattice to dampen the gravitation signature of whatever was contained in the lattice. They reasoned this could be useful for masking the mass of a ship from gravitational-based sensors. It was decided the effect was more of a curiosity than anything readily applicable.
  
• Damage Control Cost: 5000 RP Description: A system that allows ship to carry out emergency damage repairs without the need for a shipyard. Utilizing TNE-based lift-assists and bulkheading, the damage control system would allow a ship to move heavy parts to where they are needed quickly.
  
• Duranium Armour Cost: 500 RP Description: Armour is used for the hull of all ships. TNE researchers discovered that a simple duranium slab, when treated with a high-frequency AC electric current, becomes dozens of times harder and more impact resistant than even the strongest pre-TNE materials, making it a valuable armoring material. Curiously, duranium does not exhibit the ICEF effect, and this technique is more akin to tempering steel.
  
• Shield Regeneration Rate 1 Cost: 1000 RP Description: The amount of power that a shield generator with this technology will regenerate over a 300 second period. Researchers working on primitive energy shielding technology quickly determined that repeated energetic impacts or radiative impulses on the energy field would deplete its resistive strength, and rigged up a high-voltage transformer to "recharge" the field after depletion. This technology would expand on that notion.
  
• Thermal Reduction: Signature 75% Normal Cost: 1500 RP Description: Reduces the thermal output of engines, making them harder for thermal sensors to detect. Another byproduct of the ICEF effect is that a fraction of any energy directed into the lattice will be re-radiated into the Trans-Newtonian dimension. Harnessing this effect will allow for masking the thermal signature of engine flares.
  

• 10cm Laser Focal Size Cost: 1000 RP Description: Allows the creation of lasers with a 10cm Focal Size (or calibre). Lasers of this type cause a maximum of 3 GJ of damage. The primary issue with weaponizing directed energy sources in the past had been powering them. With refined sorium being so much more energy dense than anything else in pre-TNE world, researchers are moving forward at a brisk pace with laser technology.
  
• 10cm Meson Focal Size Cost: 1000 RP Description: Allows the creation of meson cannon with a 10cm Focal Size (or calibre). Early experiments with TNEs and conventional particle physics revealed an interesting phenomenon: TNEs appear to be completely transparent to certain kinds of mesons. Additionally, mesons seem to penetrate ICEF-based energy shields. Work on weaponizing this phenomenon ensued quickly.
  
• 10cm Microwave Focal Size Cost: 1000 RP Description: Allows the creation of high power microwaves with a 10cm Focal Size (or calibre). Another interesting feature of TNEs is that electronics based on them are extremely vulnerable to high energy microwave radiation. Microwaves appear to interact in a novel way with TNEs at the atomic level, causing a cascading energy buildup that results in a burst of energy that will overload any traditional electronic components. Obviously the defense implications of this phenomenon are huge. However, ICEF-based energy shields do affect microwaves.
  
• 15cm Carronade Cost: 1000 RP Description: Allows the creation of a plasma carronade of 15cm calibre. Researchers working with advanced ICEF prototypes determined that through careful field shaping, a hollow sphere of very weak shielding could be created. Combining this with a high-powered plasma generator, they were able to project explosive balls of plasma against targets, with the plasma remaining in a coherent and high-energy form until impact with the target, at which point the "shell" would deteriorate quickly and the plasma explode violently. The theoretical range for this weapon is quite limited, but the damage potential is very high. They called the device a plasma carronade.
  
• Infrared Laser Cost: 500 RP Description: Laser wavelength technology. The higher a laser wavelength, the less the laser loses power with range. Therefore, higher wavelength lasers will cause more damage at longer range than lower wavelength lasers of the same focal size. With the energy-source problem for lasers solved, the problem turned to targeting and coherence. Corundium-based optics were found to result in extremely tight coherence of the beam. Manufacturing these optics is proving to be difficult, with the difficulty increasing as the wavelength of the laser increases. Currently, only prototypes for infrared laser optics are available.
  
• Meson Focusing Technology 1 Cost: 1000 RP Description: Improved focusing technology increases the range of meson cannons. Focusing is an issue with meson technology as well, as any imperfections in the beampath result in massive scatter. As such, mesons are an inherently short-ranged weapon, but there are improvements to be made.
  
• Microwave Focusing Technology 1 Cost: 1000 RP Description: Improved focusing technology increases the range of high power microwaves. Microwave-based TN weapons suffer from similar problems as both laser and meson based weapons.
  
• Particle Beam Range 60,000 km Cost: 1000 RP Description: The maximum range for a particle beam. TNE-based particle collimators and ICEF-based beam guides could potentially concentrate the output of high-powered particle accelerators into an extremely consistent stream, preventing the sort of scatter normally seen in charged-particle beam-based weapons and hugely extending their range.
  
• Particle Beam Strength 2 Cost: 2000 RP Description: Affects damage done by particle beams. TN researchers discovered that particle accelerators built with TNEs could reach energies and beam densities significantly higher than traditional devices, meaning a weaponized form could be fitted into a relatively small form factor.
  
• Reduced-size Laser 0.75 Size / 4x Recharge Cost: 5000 RP Description: A modification to lasers that reduces their size by removing part of the recharging mechanism, dramatically increasing the recharge time.
  
• Turret Tracking Speed (10% Gear) 2000 km/s Cost: 1000 RP Description: Speed of target that a turret can track using rotational gear equal to 10% of the weapon mass. 2x gear = 2x tracking speed, 3x gear = 3x tracking, etc. TNE-based materials in turret machinery allow swifter traverse and therefore tracking of quicker targets.
  

• Lasers are the staple energy weapon. They have the longest ranges of any energy weapon at a comparable tech level, but they also have a steep damage drop-off with range. Lasers can be mounted in turrets. Focal size determines damage and wavelength determines damage fall-off. Both interplay to determine range.
  
• Mesons do very little damage per shot (they are fixed at 1), but they ignore armor and shield. They can be turret-mounted. Focal size and focusing technology interplay to determine range.
  
• Microwaves also do little damage per shot (fixed at 1), but they ignore armor. They do bonus damage (3) to shields, and once shields are down, microwaves only affect electronic components. They are short-ranged like a meson cannon and more expensive, but effective if used properly. Focal size and focusing technology interplay to determine range.
  
• Particle Beams have no range drop-off. Their range is slightly worse than lasers, and at equal tech levels, a particle beam will do its full damage at max range while a laser will do only a portion of its damage. Particle beams cannot be turret mounted. Particle Beam Range determines range and Particle Beam Strength determines damage.
  
• Plasma Caronnades have the highest damage of any energy weapon, but are extremely short-ranged. They have only one background tech besides capacitor recharge rate: Plasma Carronade calibre. They are generally larger than other energy weapons of equivalent tech level and thus more damaging, but their extemely short range renders them with limited use. They cannot be mounted on turret.
  

bgreman fucked around with this message at 19:08 on Apr 5, 2012

Farecoal fucked around with this message at 01:04 on Apr 3, 2012

• Survey Solar System for TNE
  
• Create a deterrent for Eurasian aggression
  
• Claim and develop strategic planets/moons/asteroids
  

• Dr. Slaan: Laser Focal size
  

• Colonization Cost Reduction 5%: Cost 10000 RP Description: Reduces the colony cost of planets or moons by the specified amount. By making heavy usage of TNEs in colonization infrastructure, the amount necessary to support a given number of colonists decreases.
  
• Ground Unit Strength 12: Cost: 1000 RP. Description: Base strength for this race's ground forces. The attack and defence strengths for each type of ground unit are based on this technology. Improved battlefield communications, improved logistics support, and TN-based small arms all increase the fighting capability of our round forces, and all thanks to a relatively limited introduction of TNEs.
  

• Additional Maintenance Storage Cost: 1000 RP Description: Allows a ship to carry additional maintenance supplies. By developing a TN computing-based stores system, ship spares can be organized more efficiently with an automated inventory retrieval system.
  
• Cargo Handling System Cost: 1000 RP Destruction: Used by cargo ships, colony ships and troop ships to enable faster cargo loading or unloading. Increase in load speed is calculated by dividing total load time by tractor strength. Each beam of this type adds 5 to tractor strength. By utilizing ICEF-based energy shields in reverse, they become remote manipulator fields. These fields greatly improve the efficiency of cargo loading and unloading operations by allowing computer controls to precisely maneuver various cargo pallets with maximal efficiency. More expansive tractor field systems increase cargo handling capabilities concomitantly.
  
• Combat Drop Module - Battalion Cost: 3000 RP Description: Provides enough capacity to combat drop a Battalion. TN mass-reduction technologies as well as propulsion capabilities provided by refined sorium fuel (ReSor) allow individual soldiers to be launched into an atmosphere, a barren asteroid, or an enemy space craft. This module houses a battalion's worth of individual assault pods and the loading, supplying, and refurbishing infrastructure necessary to support them.
  
• Combat Drop Module - Company Cost: 6000 RP Description: Provides enough capacity to combat drop a Company. Similar to the battalion-sized module, this module houses a company's worth of individual assault pods. More sophisticated TNE miniaturization is utilized to keep the support infrastructure mass down.
  
• Command Module Cost: 2000 RP Description: Provides life support for up to 20 crew. A ship design must always include sufficient life support for the crew. Providing the same amenities as a tradition ship's bridge, but in a condensed manner, the command module provides a more compact alternative for smaller ships.
  
• Crew Quarters - Small*
  
• Cryogenic Transport Cost: 1000 RP Description: Provides transport for colonists. Each Cryogenic Transport module can transport 10,000 colonists. One of the most promising of the technologies enabled by Trans-Newtonian technology is a cryogenic transport capability. With the extreme energy density of ReSor, the difficulties of early attempts a cryogenics are no more. Large capacitors store huge amounts of energy to flash freeze colonists in mere nanoseconds, avoiding the cell damage that plagued earlier techniques. The cryogenic casks are then loaded into a double vacuum bottle and an ICEF-based field is erected around the structure, preventing the entry of any thermal energy. When frozen in such a fashion, colonists are essentially in stasis. A TNE-based power grid maintains the system, and the colonists can be very densely packed, allowing moderately sized spacecraft to carry thousands of colonists for a relatively minimal overhead.
  
• Engineer Brigade Cost: 5000 RP Description: Ground Unit (150 Training Points to raise). A brigade of military engineers equipped with TN tractor fields, mass lifts, and computers has the construction capability of an entire TN construction complex. They are also given extensive training in foreign technology, allowing them to study and utilize these foreign assets.
  
• Engineering Section - Small Cost: 2000 RP Description: Engineering Space. Reduces chance of failure and adds maintenance supply capacity. The small engineering section provides an alternative to the full-sized module to keep the mass of smaller or less complicated ships down. Spares support infrastructure utilizes a moderate level of TN-based miniaturization.
  
• Flag Bridge Cost: 1000 RP Description: Houses a Task Force Command Staff. The TNE-based flag bridge provides an impressive suite of CIC functionality and provides for all the computing and analysis needs of an entire Task Force Command staff.
  
• Fuel Storage - Small*
  
• Garrison Battalion Cost: 1000 RP Description: Ground Unit (60 TP to raise). Equipped with TNE-based fortification aids, including ICEF barricades, garrison battalions would be able to provide for the defense or policing of a minor colony with the strength of a whole brigade of our current infantry. However, they are not well-equipped for offensive operations.
  
• Improved Command and Control*
  
• Maintenance Modle Cost: 5000 RP Description: A ship component that is added to the total maintenance facilities of a population if the ship/PDC is on the same planet or in near orbit. Trans-Newtonian technology like ICEF manipulator fields, TNE-based atomic furnaces, and TNE-based miniaturization and automation techniques allows a ship to take on the functionality of an entire ground-based ship maintenance facility.
  
• Mobile Infantry Battalion Cost: 2500 RP Description: Ground Unit (100 TP to raise). Equipped with TNE-based small arms, light tanks, and reconnaissance aircraft, a Trans-Newtonian Mobile Infantry Battalion has the offensive capabilities and defensive capabilities of an entire low tech infantry brigade. They can hold their own in an offensive fight, but shine when used in support or to hold recently captured territory.
  
• Orbital Habitat Module*
  
• Replacement Battalion Cost: 500 RP Description: Ground Unit (40 TP to raise). Replacement battalions are support formations designed to reinforce-in-place any type of combat formation in their vicinity. An extreme use of TNE-based logistical infrastructure (depots, ground transports, etc) enable this quick response.
  
• Salvage Module 500 Cost: 5000 RP Description: A ship component that allows a ship to salvage wrecks. TNE-based tractor fields, atomic furnaces, and processing facilities allow this module to efficiently process any hulk or derelict in microgravity. This module provides for the ability to process 500 tonnes of debris per day.
  
• Small Troop Transport Bay Cost: 2000 RP Description: Provides enough capacity to transport a company of troops. This module provides the infrastructure necessary to support a company's worth of troops for a long-term strategic relocation. TNE-based miniaturization is employed to reduce the amount of infrastructure mass present.
  
• Troop Transport Bay Cost: 2000 RP Description: Provides enough capacity to transport one battalion of ground forces.
  

• Ordnance Production 12 BP Cost: 3000 RP Description: Annual production rate for an Ordnance Factory. Utilizing TNE-based production techniques and tooling increases the efficiency of existing assets.
  

• 10cm Railgun Cost: 1000 RP Description: The railgun shoots four projectiles at once and has a total damage output one third higher than a similar tech laser. However, due to the lower damage of each shot, it is more susceptible to armour and is shorter ranged. TNE-based capacitors allow the huge power rates necessary to launch a railgun projectile at a sufficient velocity to cause damage. A burst-fire mechanism improves the odds of hitting something. The projectile itself contains a minimal duranium shell that mass-masks the contents of the projectile. However, as with ships, this causes the projectile to experience Trans-Newtonian drag. Coupled with the lower mass of the projectiles necessitated by the burst-fire mechanism, this causes railguns to have shorter ranges than would otherwise be expected.
  
• Boat Bay Cost: 1000 RP Description: Allows a fighter or ship of up to 250 tons to dock within the mothership. ICEF tractor fields, mass-maskers and refuel/resupply infrastructure enable quick servicing and re-arming of parasite ships.
  
• Enhanced Radiation Warhead (50% Yield, 2x Rad) Cost: 1000 RP Description: Increases radiation output of missile warheads and reduces the blast damage. Useful against populations where the intention is to cause harm by radiation and decrease industrial damage. By "salting" the nuclear charge with a certain mixture of TNEs, the radiation output of a nuclear explosion can be increased by up to 100%. However, the interactions of the TNEs with the explosion shunts approximately half the explosive yield into the Trans-Newtonian dimension.
  
• Gauss Cannon Launch Velocity 1 Cost: 1000 RP Description: Speed at which the gauss round leaves the cannon. Higher velocity provides better accuracy at long ranges. High-powered TNE-based capacitors enable the rapid polarization of the gauss cannon's barrel, propelling a duranium encased shell without ever making contact with the barrel. ICEF-based baffles ensure smooth passage for the projectile.
  
• Gauss Cannon Rate of Fire 1 Cost: 1000 RP Description: The rate of fire for a gauss cannon per 5 seconds. ICEF manipulator fields provide a completely automated and rapid reloading procedure for the gauss cannon.
  
• Implosion Fission Warhead: Strength: 3 x MSP Cost: 2000 RP Description: Current nuclear warheads are predominantly of the "gun" type, in which a slug of fissile mass is explosively launched into another slug of fissile mass, creating a supercritical mass and settin off the nuclear explosion. 50% better yields can be achieved by encasing one subcritical mass inside another with a thin TNE baffle between, inhibiting the nuclear reaction. A shaped charge of high-powered explosive surrounds the nuclear assembly, with a final layer of tempered duranium surrounding the entire assembly. When detonated, the explosive charge rebounds off the ultrahard tempered duranium and forces the outside critical mass through the weak baffle into the inner mass, resulting in a powerful nuclear explosion.[/i]
  
• Magazine Ejection System - 70% Chance Cost: 500 RP Description: The percentage chance that a magazine with this technology will successfully eject ordnance if the magazine is destroyed. Failure will result in a magazine explosion. TN computing allows attosecond-rate disaster analysis, allowing the ship's computer to automatically attempt to eject an ordnance magazine if it feels it will keep the ship safe.
  
• Magazine Feed System Efficiency - 75% Cost: 1000 RP Description: How efficiently magazine systems store ordnance. The percentage is the amount of space used for storage rather than for the feed mechanism. Incorporating ICEF tractor fields and conveyors allows the magazine feed system to be reduced in size, which increases the amount of actual ordnance that the magazine can hold.
  
• Missile Agility 32 per MSP Cost: 2000 RP Description: Missile Agility improves the Manoeuvre Rating of a missile, which in turn will increase its chance to hit. TN maneuvering computers and ReSor thrusters are used to allow missiles to intercept targets throughout the flight envelope. Miniaturizing thruster hardware and increasing computing power will both allow for more agile missiles.
  
• Missile Launcher Reload Rate 2 Cost: 2000 RP Description: The reload rate is the size of launcher that can be reloaded in 30 seconds. Smaller launchers with this technology will reload more quickly and larger launchers will require more reload time. Improvements in TN electronics allow for faster cycling of the ICEF manipulators that hoist the missiles into the launcher from the magazine.
  
• Railgun Launch Velocity Cost: 1000 RP Description: The muzzle velocity of the railgun. Railguns with higher velocities can shoot their ammo further and inflict damage at greater ranges. This works in a similar wave to laser wavelengths. Better TNE-based power conduits and capacitors allow a better power impulse delivery to the barrel conductors, increasing the energy imparted to the projectile and thus increasing its range.
  
• Reduced-size Launcher 0.75 Size / 2x Reload Cost: 1000 RP Description: A modification to missile launchers that reduces their size by removing part of the reloading mechanism, dramatically increasing the reload time. In a similar manner to lasers, UN defense scientists looked to ways to offer more flexibility in the weapon configuration.
  

• Capacitor Recharge Rate 2 Cost: 2000 RP Description: The amount of power which an energy (or kinetic) weapon will recharge every 5 seconds. Boronide capacitor plates allow unparalleled electric energy densities, and TNE power conduits allow this energy to be delivered at fantastic rates, compared to pre-TNE materials.
  
• Fuel Efficiency 1. Fuel Usage x0.9 Cost: 1000 RP Description: Improves fuel efficiency. Engines with this technology use only 90% of the fuel used by engines with no fuel efficiency. ICEF-based thrust manifolds increase the amount of thrust extracted from the engine, ICEF-based filter fields extract "uncombusted" ReSor from the exhaust plume, and TN computers continually monitor the combustion process and adjust engine parameters as necessary. All three combine to increase fuel efficiency.
  
• Hyper Drive Size Multiplier 2.0 Cost: 2000 RP Description: If an engine is equipped with hyper drive, the multiplier determines how much larger than a normal engine of the same type it will be. One of the fundamental attributes of TNEs is the mass-reduction effect they exhibit. Dr. Slaan's new theory shows that this effect can be made even more pronounced by a particular manipulation of the mass-field properties. However, due to a gravitational interaction with the Trans-Newtonian dimension, this is only possible when the local gravitational topology is rather "flat." When these conditions prevail, the mass-field manipulation provided by the so-called "hyper drive" allows the engine to produce nearly ten times as much apparent thrust. The equipment necessary to do so is bulky, and further miniaturization studies are warranted.
  
• Jump Point Theory Cost: 5000 RP Description: Precursor technology for the various jump drive technologies. Using new gravitational sensors developed from TNEs, a team working at an observatory in Chile discovered a number of gravitational fluctuations throughout our own space-time with no obvious cause. They theorized that these fluctuations might be caused by the existence of invisible wormholes forming between the gravitational wells of stars and that study of the gravitational fluctuations in a star system would provide the locations of these wormholes. Experimentation with the creation of tiny wormholes provided exactly the readings expected and the scientists theorized that travel between star systems might be possible if the wormholes could be located and a way found to open them. Refinement of these gravitational sensors and configuring them for fitting on a starship should be a priority, since remaining confined to the Sol system will inevitably result in conflict with the Federation over the limited resources our system holds.
  
• Power Efficiency 05%, Power Reduction 2.5%, Exp 5% Cost: 2000 RP Description: Used for engines and power plants. Provides the stated increase in fuel efficiency, decrease in power and percentage chance of explosion if damaged in combat.
  
• Power Efficiency -10%, Power Increase 5%, Exp 7% Cost: 2000 RP Description: Used for engines and power plants. Provides the stated decrease in fuel efficiency, increase in power and percentage chance of explosion if damaged in combat. Minor tweaks to TNE manifolds in thrust collimators, TN engine computing software changes, and other techniques can be used to extract more thrust from engines or power from reactors, at the expense of fuel efficiency. Alternately, better fuel efficiency can be gained for the loss of a modicum of power.
  
• Pressurised Water Reactor Cost: 1500 RP Description: Base technology used for creation of power plants. Pre-requisite tech for nuclear thermal engines. A TNE-salted PWR produces an abundance of cheap, clean power. Civilian power agencies are already beginning construction of these plants to provide plentiful power to UN citizens. Utilizing TNE miniaturization and manufacturing processes, these reactors can be made small enough to fit on a spacecraft, providing power for ships systems, energy and kinetic weapons, and, if used as the energy input of a nuclear thermal engine, propulsion. Traditional nuclear thermal engines for missile drones are currently available.
  

• Planetary Sensor Strength 300 Cost: 3000 RP Description: Increases the sensor strength of each Deep Space Tracking Station. A population has a sensor strength equal to the Planetary Sensor Strength x Number of Tracking Station. Incorporating TNEs into the electronics and analysis computers for the Deep Space Sensor network will allow the resolution of finer signals at greater ranges.
  

• Active Grav Sensor Strength 10 Cost: 1000 RP Description: Active sensor strength per hull space of the component. Provides the strength of the output pulse for active sensors, which are used to detect alien ships based on their size. The active pulse can be detected by EM sensors. Of all the Trans-Newtonian elements, Uridium is most sensitive to electromagnetic radiation. Surprisingly, it is also extremely sensitive to gravitational fluctuations (suggesting to some wayward UN researchers a possible avenue of approach for a new TOE or GUT). Prototype gravitational sensors were used to detect the gravitational fluctuations leading to the discovery of the jump point theory. Further refinements of these devices may allow them to be used to detect mass fluctuations of space craft. This is, however, an active sensor mode. The uridium-based device emits an oscillating gravitational-electomagetic 'ping' and observes the resulting axis-reversed electromagnetic-gravitational "bounceback" from any massive objects. This 'ping' is detectable by normal electromagnetic sensors. An analogy with passive and active sonar can be made, or with radar vs radar detectors.
  
• Beam Fire Control Range 10,000km Cost: 1000 RP Description: Maximum beam fire control range for a size 1 beam fire control ship component. Components may be built up to size 4 with a corresponding linear increase in range. Utilizing active gravitational sensors to track and lock massive objects, these fire controls are capable of unprecedented levels of target tracking. While 10,000km might not seem like a long range when distances in space are considered, compared to all prior targeting tracking systems, it is the most accurate ever known. It can also be built more precise at longer ranges, at the expense of a larger detector.
  
• Electronic Hardening Level 1 Cost: 2500 RP Description: Protects an electronic system against anti-electronic weapons or effects, such as a high power microwave. Level 1 provides a 30% chance of protection. By weaving a non-TNE conductor into a TNE electronic circuit and wiring the non-TNE conductor to a designated discharge collector, TNE electronics can be protected from microwaves and other electronic-damaging weapons.
  
• Electronic Warfare Cost: 5000 RP Description: Prerequisite technology for Electronic countermeasures and Electronic counter-countermeasures. TNE electronics can be used much like conventional electronics to jam and scramble other electronic devices, albeit with much greater efficacy.
  
• EM Sensor Sensitivity 6 Cost: 2000 Description: Electromagnetic sensor strength per hull space of the sensor component. EM sensors detect alien active sensor emissions and the shield output of alien ships. They provide the 'listening' portion of active sensors. Uridium-based EM sensors can be tuned to very fine wavebands on the EM spectrum, or can be detuned to intercept emissions from a wide variety of sources.
  
• Fire Control Speed Rating 2000 km/s Cost: 2000 RP Description: The maximum target speed that a beam fire control ship component can engage without a penalty to accuracy. Components may be increased in size to increase their speed rating. TNE-based detectors are still rather fragile devices, and so panning and slewing them must be done with care. Improvements in manufacturing techniques and ICEF manipulator fields will undoubtedly improve the ability of beam fire controls to track fast-moving targets.
  
• Geological Survey Sensors Cost: 1000 RP Description: Allows a ship to survey system bodies for mineral deposits or alien ruins. Provides 1 survey point per hour. All TNEs are "radioactive" in a sense, in that they emit very low levels of Trans-Newtonian radiation into their own dimension. Uridium is extraordinarily sensitive to this radiation, and detectors built using TNEs can be used to locate more of the same. Miniaturizing and space-rating the detectors should be a priority, so that TNE prospecting in the greater Sol system can begin.
  
• Max Tracking Time Bonus vs Missiles 20%*
  
• Thermal Sensor Sensitivity 6 Cost: 2000 RP Description: Thermal sensor strength per hull space of the sensor component. Thermal sensors detect the engine output of alien ships. While EM sensors can in theory (but not in game) be used to detect thermal emissions, Thermal sensors tuned particularly to the signature of Trans-Newtonian drive plumes are orders of magnitude more sensitive.
  

Becase we have the two pre-researched base technologies EM and Thermal Sensor Sensitivity 5, we can build EM and Thermal sensors. Right now the Deep Space Tracking Network acts as a giant combined EM/Thermal sensor.


This is the component design screen. The Empire combobox allows selecting the actively designing empire. Research Project Type is one of the following list, representing the type of component we are designing:

• Active Sensors / Missile Fire Control (do not meet tech requirement: missing Active Sensor Strength)
  
• Beam Fire Control (do not meet tech requirement: missing Beam Fire Control Distance Rating)
  
• CIWS (Close in Weapons System, to be discussed in a later update)
  
• Cloaking Device (do not meet tech requirement: missing Cloaking Efficiency and Cloaking Sensor Reduction)
  
• EM Detection Sensors
  
• Engines
  
• Gauss Cannon (do not meet tech requirement: missing Gauss Cannon Rate of Fire and Gauss Cannon Velocity)
  
• High Power Microwave (do not meet tech requirement: missing Microwave Focal Size and Microwave Focusing)
  
• Jump Engines (do not meet tech requirement: missing Jump Drive Efficiency, Max Jump Squadron Size, and Max Jump Squadron Radius)
  
• Lasers (do not meet tech requirement: missing Laser Focal Size and Laser Wavelength)
  
• Magazine (do not meet tech requirement: missing Magazine Feed System Efficiency and Magazine Ejection System)
  
• Meson Cannon (do not meet tech requirement: missing Meson Focal Size and Meson Focusing)
  
• Missile Launchers
  
• New Species (can technically research, but contains only default tolerances).
  
• Particle Beam (do not meet tech requirement: missing Particle Beam Strength and Maximum Particle Beam Range)
  
• Plasma Carronade (do not meet tech requirement: missing Plasma Carronade Calibre)
  
• Power Plants (do not meet tech requirement: missing Power Plant Technology
  
• Railgun (do not meet tech requirement: missing Railgun Type and Railgun Launch Velocity)
  
• Shield - Standard (do not meet tech requirement: missing Shield Type and Shield Regeneration Rate)
  
• Thermal Sensors
  

The background technology is where you configure your component. Each component technology usually has several levels available to it (if you've researched them for applicable techs). Often there is a size parameter as well, with bigger generally being more capable but also more massive.

For our EM Detection Sensor, our three background techs are EM Sensor Sensitivity, Total Sensor Size, and Hardening. These techs were all discussed above. We only have the default value for sensitivity and hardening tech available to us (Sensitivity 5, Hardening 0), but we can make the sensor any size we want between 0.1 hull spaces and 50 hull spaces (a hull space is 50 tonnes). Sometimes techs like this come pre-researched, and other times it isn't a tech at all but just a configuration option for the component, as is the case with size, here.

The Notes section will contain any relevant information about equations used to calculate component effectiveness (except, inexplicably, for EM and Thermal sensors, whose formulae took me a while to figure out on my own).

Proposed System Parameters lays out the performance characteristics of the component. I have left size at 1 for demonstration purposes. The parameters for different types of components differ, but some are common, like Cost (in CC or BP), Crew required to operate the component, and the TNEs required to construct it. The size is usually listed, as well as a HTK.

HTK is a value that indicates how many hits it takes to destroy the component on average. With a HTK of 1, any hit destroys the component. With a higher HTK, the chance of destruction on a hit is (damage of hit / HTK). Therefore a 6 HTK component hit by a 3 damage shot would have a 50% chance of being destroyed.

For EM and Thermal sensors, the performance calculation is fairly straightforward. The range at which a contact can be detected is given by:

Range = Sensor sensitivity x target signature strength x 1000 km. A 10-sensitivity thermal sensor can detect the 300-signature drive plume of an enemy ship at 3,000,000 km. A 300-sensitivity sensor could detect a 10-signature plume at the same range. Sensor sensitivity is given by the product of its Sensor sensitivity background tech selection and its size in hull spaces. Using EM Sensor Sensitivity 5 and Total Sensor Size 1 gives us a Sensitivity 5 EM sensor.

The Proposed System Parameters box contains a box for naming the component, so if we chose, we could name this the Raytheon SearchMaster 5000 EM Sensor. However, you usually want to give some indication of the system's capabilities, so the game defaults to the component type and a designator that attempts to communicate the abilities of the system. Here we have the "EM1-5", which means "EM sensor, 1 hull-space large, 5 overall sensitivity."

Pressing Create finalizes the design.

It is important to understand what you are doing on this screen. You are not designing a component that you can immediately go plop onto a ship design. You are creating your own research project (as indicated by the window title). Think of it as creating the plans and theory for a new component. You have to construct a prototype and put it through all sorts of tests before it is field-ready. Pressing Create adds the new project to your available tech lists on the Research tab of the Populations/Productions screen. The cost for the project is shown in the Proposed System Parameters pane.

Show Sizes in Tons converts any size display in the Proposed System Parameters pane between hull spaces and tonnes.

I must admit, this mechanism, whereby you must research your components before you can build them, is what drew me into Aurora. It might seem tedious, but it adds a layer of realism and immersion that tickles me just the right way.