Freedom Star

[Digital Vulpine]

     I've been kicking around a story idea for awhile, and finally got around to making something with it.  It's a fairly short story, but I'm hoping to make something more out of the universe it's set in.  What I'm aiming for is a combination of Freespace 2, Command & Conquer, and just about all the Star (noun) universes.  I've got quite a bit of background material on paper, and I plan on putting it up here as I get it into the computer.  For now, here's what I've got so far.

P.S. I normally write in third-person, but decided to try something new with this.

Update: For people who don't want to hunt through the posts for individual world building articles, the Freedom Star Database is now here.  

For people new to the series, Chapter 1 is attached below.
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7

[AlexShrub]

I liked it. Pretty cool.

[Tvorsk]

Not bad. Half of lightyear better than what I can write, that's for sure.
Need. To. See. More.

[KaiAdin]

haha Nice to see some Sci-Fi stuff here for a change! Yep I like to see more too!

[Digital Vulpine]

     Thanks, it'll probably be a while before part 2 is up, where we'll be seeing a bit of combat.  I'll be aiming to make part 2 heavy on description and light on dialog.  I've just finished copying the first section of background material, for people curious about the world the story is set in.
     Here's a quick explanation of how FTL (Faster Than Light) travel works in the Freedom Star universe, as well as a copy of the previous story in .rtf format, for anyone who doesn't use Open Office.

Edit: the FTL file has been updated regarding the installation of multiple FTL drives, and a quick list of the pros and cons of each drive type.

[KaiAdin]

Haha, apparently Office 2007 can read .odt files! so that was pretty cool! and YAY for background info, thats always a cool thing, especially with Sci-fi Stuff!

[Lopez]

Wow, I can't believe how much I still like science fiction. It's been so long since I've written or read any of it.

Good work with the first person perspective. I felt really inside this character.

The Wing leader is a human Ace.  He told me that most humans would rather work on capital ships,  but that he's a 'crazy SoB'.  After seeing how he flies in the simulator, I just might agree with the 'crazy' part.

This line is just beautiful. Keep it up.

There's still a lot of high tension. Will he survive? We'll have to see.

[Virmir]

Didn't read the background info yet, but liking the story a lot so far.  Looking forward to the next part.

[KaiAdin]

Oh interesting stuff on the FTL Drives! I recognize all the types from other sci-fi writings and movies and whatnot.

What I find interesting though is that you make all 3 available in the same universe... Since usually the flaws in one system make for interesting plot hooks, I'm wondering how this works out in Freedom star? Are all starships equipped with the three types of FTL? or are there financial or engineering limits that prevent them from the different techs from being used?

[Digital Vulpine]

     In general, a ship will only have one type of FTL drive installed due to both size and cost restrictions.  However, a Heavy Cruiser or larger (I'll probably have to get around to size classes now, but in general fighter <<<shuttle <<frigate <light cruiser <destroyer <heavy cruiser <battleship <dreadnought <juggernaut) would have sufficient space to mount two FTL drives, at the expense of whatever would normally occupy that space (usually the hangar).  Subspace drives can be built small enough to fit on a fighter, but their cost and size scales quickly with the size of the ship.  It's actually not possible to add a secondary drive to a Juggernaut if the primary is subspace. 

     As far as cost goes, Warp drives are the cheapest by far, so most twin-drive ships (which are still ridiculously expensive, but they exist) are Warp/something else.  Subspace drives are in-between, although their cost increases for larger ships.  Hyperspace drives are expensive and take up a the most space, but they don't scale much with ship size and so are suited for larger ships.  Hyperspace drives are actually not used much, because their performance is so similar to warp drives.  The main advantages that hyperspace drives have (besides actually becoming cost-effective for Battleship-class and up) are the ability to avoid collision with Realspace objects and the ability to actually hide in hyperspace without moving.  It's actually possible to hide an entire Star Base in hyperspace, keeping it supplied with hyperspace-capable ships.

Now that I think of it, I'll be adding this to the FTL file under the heading "Which FTL is right for you?" 

P.S. If you're wondering how those pirate fighters showed up in the story, they don't have FTL drives at all.  The pirates took advantage of the warp bubble generated by their LC.

tl;dr: One drive per ship, the file will be updated soon to list details and exceptions.

[Digital Vulpine]

Good news and more good news:

First, a recent conversation in the Chat has greatly accelerated the development of Freedom Star's defensive technology.  Thanks Lopez!

Second, I saved a bunch of money on-- part 2 of Freedom Star is moving along nicely and should be finished soon.

Attached files: Freedom Star defenses

Also, apologies for the double-post, but I didn't want to attach this to the text wall above.    

Edit: Part 2 is finished!  See attachment below.

[KaiAdin]

Haha! Interesting! I really like the amount of detail you put into this! and the foot notes for me are an added bonus. Who are/What is InOps though? is that some related govt organization?

On the defenses, why cant star bases mount jammers? It would seem prudent since they are less maneuverable than Capships and thus more venerable?

Anyway hope to see more!

[Digital Vulpine]

     Star Bases can mount jammers, they just usually choose not to.  The point of jamming is to make it hard for the enemy to locate, target, and attack you.  Star Bases are extremely large and don't move much, so most of the time equipping one with a jammer is something like hiding an elephant behind a potted plant.  If you want to make a secret base disguised as an asteroid, then jammers would be a good idea to keep the enemy from scanning you.  
     As for InOps, that will be revealed on time .  I can tell you that their motto is: "The Truth is what we make of it."  
     I've also got a WIP list of infantry weapons, although I'm going to be putting all the weapons used in this file.  That list will probably never get finished, just get bigger.  So I'm going to go ahead and upload it, updating the list when it's grown a lot.  Freedom Star has tons of weapons, I just haven't thought up most of them yet.  

Edit: Updated with the Javelin MkIII and a new weapon category: Grenades.

[KaiAdin]

Haha also i just realized Starbases would be in known/Plotted orbits and what not... and Probably have quite a Noisy radio signature from all the traffic!

This reminded me of something though, how are FTL comms handled?

[Virmir]

Caught up with this.  Not really a huge fan of space-y high-tech stuff, but still seems to be an enjoyable read so far.  Best of luck with this, and looking forward to reading the next part.