Caribbean Buccaneers
14-03-2005, 20:04
Avast ye, scurvy interstellar politicians! If ye be here seekin’ knowledge on what the Caribbean Buccaneers be capable of, ye be comin’ to the right place. ‘eed these words, though; this all be OOC knowledge. If ye wants te’ use it IC, ye have to find it out first! Also, this be Future Tech, if ye be wonderin’.
Caribbean Buccaneers – Political
Most landmasses of Caribbean are abandoned, lost to nuclear bombardment and ne’er again resettled. Nuclear radiation is no longer a problem so many centuries after the end of the bombardment, but the simple fact is that there ain’t enough people to live on it all.
Most settlements be located in the Caribbean Proper, that bein’ the chain of islands in the New World. Aquatic ships are still an important part of life, simply ‘cause it be cheaper than flyin’. Each settlement acts individually of the other, all united under a single code.
A planetary government don’t exist; neither does any sort of universal policin’ force. Heinous crimes be dealt with by the buccaneers what inhabit the settlement where the crime were committed – if bad enough and in violation of the Code, the settlements may be gangin’ together to hunt ye down. Crimes at sea be dealt with in the old way; by sword or cannon. It ‘as been known for settlements to gang together to take out entire enemy settlements what fail to keep to the Code, but they be rare and largely hidden from common knowledge.
Leaders of settlements be elected by the townsfolk, as be the way on ships. They be expected to muck in with duties around the town as the rest of us, as well as fight with their troops should there be a need.
The Pirate’s Code, contrary to popular belief, be a recent development designed to end conflict between the settlements. Settlements what refused to sign ‘ave mysteriously ‘disappeared’. Basically, it limits thievin’ from other buccaneers to No-Man’s-Land, stops unnecessary slaughter an’ generally keeps them from stepping on each others’ toes. Basically, the Pirate’s Code can be summed up in a few points, and applies both on an inter-settlement level and on an individual level; a sort of universal law:
1. Stealin’ only be permitted in No-Man’s-Land, that be 50 miles out to sea, or anywhere in space. Breach of this code’ll likely get ye sunk, anyway, as ye’ll be right next to the docks.
2. Unless yer opponent is wavin’ a sword in yer face, or blastin’ at ye with an energy musket, ye not be killin’ people on their home ground. Try not to kill on the open seas either, if ye can be helpin’ it. If ye goes around slaughterin’ entire crews, people will likely become suspicious.
3. Treat women with respect. It don’t matter where ye be. Just do it.
4. Try an’ keep yer bloody curses to yerself.
5. Sackin’ settlements is bad form. If ye be sackin’ a settlement, the other settlements be lookin’ to sack you in turn.
The most powerful settlements’ll typically cooperate with each other, as it be in their interests to pool their resources an’ exploit the other settlements for bountiful loot. The most powerful settlements on Caribbean for the moment be:
- Campeche
- Port Royale
- Santiago
- Barbados
Campeche, Port Royale and Barbados all ‘ave what could be called an alliance with one another. Santiago is allied with a number of smaller settlements, but keeps to themselves.
Caribbean Buccaneers – History
In the 1600s, countries from a place called ‘Europe’ were colonisin’ an’ tradin’ in the New World; the Americas. A central hub for their efforts was the Caribbean; chains of islands in a tropical climate.
The nations weren’t best of friends though, an’ politics of the era frequently led ‘em down the path of war. The nations issued letters of marque to privateers to interrupt shipping of their enemies wherever they could, an’ perhaps even sack settlements. These privateers were frequently considered to be on the same level as pirates; they was scallywags.
By the 1800s these ‘ere wars had gotten so out of hand that trade in the New World was no longer profitable. So when the nations withdrew back to Europe, they abandoned the settlements they had built. The privateers had gotten so rich ‘n powerful that they had entire fleets, an’ they quickly filled the void of the European nations by takin’ control of nations fer themselves.
In 1914, a massive war broke out in the Old World. It continued for years, until 1937. Then, a nuclear weapon was developed and produced on a massive scale. It was used by several nations, and everywhere ‘cept fer the New World was obliterated, with no survivors. The buccaneers of the New World found it tough at first, loosing their tradin’ partners, but soon recovered.
So they began to pilfer from each other. Settlements went to war frequently, until 2376 when the Pirates’ Code was instituted, an’ the settlements agreed on a common piracy law they could all profit from.
By 2178 they had took their piratin’ ways into space, with small, sleek ships. In 2381, two massive ships, the Red Horizon and the Black Sky, were commissioned, and were used by all the settlements to pilfer from the nearby ‘Ildonian’ civilisation, who frequently ran trade by Caribbean, not realising who lived there.
Caribbean Buccaneers – Culture
Culture of the pirates be a largely merry and liberal affair; brothels and pubs be frequent sights on Caribbean, an’ many, many buccaneers work at sea or in space. Indeed, piracy of the nearby Ildonian civilisation be a major part of the economy.
Pirates ne’er be stealin’ from people they don’t know, for fear of the repercussions. The Ildonian government has little problem with piracy unofficially, as the increased spendin’ in military hardware, security and insurance has boosted their economy as well. An’ pirates only be stealin’ from no-mans-land, ne’er official territory.
Most forms of drugs are legal, there ain’t no racism, ‘gays’ may be frowned upon but they be welcome as anyone else if they have doubloons. There may be a little sexism, as men prefer to protect the women rather than let ‘em ‘ave dangerous jobs, but they have mostly equal rights an’ as much say in politics as the next man. It be pretty liberal in most regards. Religion often discourages a pirates’ favourite pastime, an’ so it has since disappeared completely from society – an’ most people have noticed a significant improvement in pretty much everythin’ since it passed away.
Caribbean Buccaneers – Military
No standin’ army as such, but each of the settlements keep trainin’ an’ armin’ a militia for defence. Should an outside threat arise, all will band together an’ defend ‘emselves zealously.
If you were to take the total population of Caribbean an’ then find out what percentage were in the various militias, then about 1-2% are in service of settlement militias at any one time. That number don’t take into account the various buccaneers who are armed an’ have some experience from preyin’ on armed merchants an’ explorers both in space an’ on the high seas, who can also serve as privateers if need be.
Military – Weapons
If ye don’t ‘ave somefin’ with which to kill yer opponent, they will almost cer’ainly kill you. So weapons be understandably widespread on Planet Caribbean.
“Smithfield” Mark 7 Plasma Musket
Weight: 5.7kg
Range: 900 metres (atmosphere)
Ammunition (type/amount): Plasma/20
Rate of Fire: N/A
A large, powerful weapon designed for penetrating even the thickest armour, the Smithfield musket fires large plasma blasts which inflict thermal, electrical and kinetic damage to all they are unleashed against.
The Smithfield is not a rapid-fire weapon. It requires at least one second after each shot to charge up its plasma bank sufficiently to fire again.
The Smithfield accepts a plasma cell cartridge, slotted under the barrel.
Larger, ship-mounted versions of the Mark 7 exist, designed for maximum hull penetration.
“Vickers” Type 1 Phase Disrupter Rifle
Weight: 3.9kg
Range: 750 metres (atmosphere)
Ammunition (type/amount): Nadions/300
Rate of Fire: 6 rounds per second
The Vickers is a reliable and trustworthy weapon used by buccaneers for the past few decades. Using slow nadions, the yellow energy bolts fired by the Vickers forcibly remove matter from this continuum.
Although an individual pulse is far less destructive than those fired by the Smithfield, the Vickers can re-fire quite quickly, and because it’s less destructive and has no blast radius, it can be used to more accurately hit specific targets. It is also safe to use onboard a space vessel, unlike the Smithfield which should only be deployed in heavily armoured vessels or on the ground. The Vickers can be set to lower power settings to inflict non-lethal damage on targets, allowing interrogation.
The same phase disrupter technology is applied on a ship scale as a standard energy weapon, though Vickers is not their name.
“Napoleon” Duelling Pistol
Weight: 600g
Range: 400 metres (atmosphere)
Ammunition (type/amount): Nadions/80
Rate of Fire: N/A
The Napoleon is similar to the Vickers, only it uses fast nadions to generate a more energy-efficient, but less destructive, energy pulse. The increase energy efficiency allows for 80 rounds to be fired, much more than it would if based on Vickers technology. It isn’t automatic though, meaning its refire rate is limited only by how fast the trigger finger is.
Ship-mounted versions exist, but not used as mainstay weapons.
“Debilitator” EMP Blaster
Weight: 3.5kg
Range: 500 metres (atmosphere)
Ammunition (type/amount): EMP/1000
Rate of Fire: N/A
The Debilitator is designed for disabling electrical components, such as stationary guns, ground-based vehicles, small planetary fighters, armoured ground vehicles or even hand-held weapons, if they can be hit. Even if targets are shielded against EMP, the weapon doubles as a shield drainer, causing far more damage to shields than normal weapons, but no damage at all to anything else.
Cutlass
Length: Anywhere from 70cm to 100cm
Powered: Fusion cell / N/A
The cutlass is the typical melee weapon of a buccaneer. Its heavy weight allows for powerful but slow swings, whilst its broad blade combined with this weight increases its defensive properties. The curved blade can deliver deadly slashing and brutal stabbing attacks.
Approximately half of the cutlasses in circulation are powered – a tiny energy field causes the blade to vibrate on an atomic level, invisible to the naked eye and not noticeable to the owner, but it causes more damage with a hit; energy cutlasses have been known to literally slice through conventional blades, even armour. Non-powered cutlasses are usually sufficient due to their sheer weight.
This ‘vibroblade’ is typically powered by a tiny fusion power cell, slotted into the hilt of the blade – such a cell is usually sufficient to power it indefinitely due to the low power drain, although replacements are available.
Rapier
Length: Anywhere from 88cm to 120cm
Powered: Not usually, few fusion cell powered blades exist though
Elegant weapons, their lighter weight and longer, thinner blades allow for much more skilled, fast combat, however this requires some degree of training, and their defensive properties are mooted by the sheer power of a cutlass.
Rapier versus rapier fights tend to be long, drawn-out battles when fought with two skilled swordsmen. Frantic action can last for a long time.
Rapier versus cutlass fights are generally much shorter though. The rapier user either gets in a jab whilst the cutlass user is drawing back for a swing, or the cutlass user breaks through the rapier’s comparatively weak defence.
Few powered rapiers are in use. The fusion cell required to fit in the rapier must be smaller, due to the hilt, and also must be lighter as to not detract from the rapier’s inherent advantages. This makes the process expensive, and only skilled swordsmen or wealthy buccaneers bother.
Military – Ships
Stealth be important in a buccaneer’s line of work, so most Caribbean ships you’ll be encounterin’ will not necessarily be big ‘n butch, but more likely refined, fast and hard to detect. There be only one grand exception to this rule, of which we be proud.
“Red Horizon”
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/MattLever/Caribbean%20Buccaneers/red_horizon.jpg
[The Red Horizon, still active in the Mutara sector]
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/MattLever/Caribbean%20Buccaneers/black_sky.jpg
[The Black Sky, lost a week after launch. Fate unknown.]
Length: 6,728m
Class: Flag Galleon
Propulsion: Ion mass sublight drives, quantum slipstream FTL drive
Power: Fusion reactors + antimatter reaction chambers
Armaments: 50x Smithfield Plasma Cannons, 220x Vickers Phase Disrupter Turrets, 150x Fast-Nadion Pulse Blasters, 70x EMP Cannons, 8x DU Slug Turrets
Shielding: Complete Armour Coverage (700mm tenalium alloy/ceramic broadside armour, 550mm tenalium alloy/ceramic dorsal and ventral armour, 600mm tenalium alloy/ceramic forward armour, 650mm tenalium alloy/ceramic aft armour), mark 3 anti-radiation shielding, mark 2 particle shielding (20,000,000 terrajoules total combined capacity)
Stealth: Cloaking shield, stealth charging
Crew: 9,500 (can support 15,000)
Onboard Ships: 260 stealth fighters, 20 armed boarding craft
The Red Horizon is one of a pair of such ships specially commissioned in a joint operation by all the major settlements, the first such endeavour in recorded history. Her sister-ship, the Black Sky, was similarly well-equipped; however she was lost in deep space with no trace some ten years ago, mere weeks after she was launched, and no explanation has been provided for her disappearance. There was no debris, no engine signatures, no lifeboats and no signal devices. She literally vanished.
The Red Horizon, on the other hand, has had a highly successful career in her ten years of life. Her powerful shielding and incredibly powerful offensive capabilities make her a force to be reckoned with, and her substantial fighter compliment makes her a one-ship-fleet. Few ships are likely to survive a direct confrontation with the Red Horizon.
Her speed is equally impressive; being designed to outrun all known ships at the time in order to ‘acquire’ their cargo, the Red Horizon is fully capable of sublight speeds approaching 3/4 lightspeed, and her quantum slipstream drive allows incredibly fast FTL travel. Although large, her agility at both speeds is quite high.
However, this is largely moot. Due to her incredibly high value, she rarely engages ships one-on-one. Instead, she hangs back out of sensor range and uses her fighters as a weapon. The fighters jump to the target and cripple it. After this, two things can happen. If the vessel has a shielded cargo hold, then boarding craft will arrive and capture the cargo manually, then return to base. If the vessel has an unshielded cargo hold the Red Horizon will move in and use powerful teleportation devices to instantly secure the cargo. These teleportation devices cannot transport lifeforms, as it results in instant death and frequently severe mutilation, but they can easily move inanimate objects without damaging them in the slightest – especially important when ‘acquiring’ stores of gold.
Although the second ship of this class was lost so soon after being commissioned, there will never be another vessel of this class constructed. Apart from anything else, it is far too expensive and human resource intensive to build and maintain; smaller ships such as the Shark are far more suited for pirate activities and far more flexible. The Red Horizon would be highly useful in a homeworld defence scenario, however, and its extreme range capabilities often have it exploring beyond Caribbean territory.
Shark-class Sloop
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/MattLever/Caribbean%20Buccaneers/sloop.jpg
Length: 181 metres
Class: Sloop (Closest Common Comparison: Destroyer/Light Cruiser/Gunship)
Propulsion: Ion pulse sublight drives, quantum slipstream FTL drive
Power: Fusion reactors
Armaments: 1x Smithfield Plasma Cannons, 20x Vickers Phase Disrupter Turrets, 5x Fast-Nadion Pulse Blasters, 10x EMP Cannons
Shielding: Complete Armour Coverage (80mm tenalium alloy /ceramic broadside armour, 90mm tenalium alloy /ceramic dorsal and ventral armour, 100mm tenalium alloy l/ceramic forward armour, 100mm tenalium alloy /ceramic aft armour), mark 2 anti-radiation shielding, mark 2 particle shielding (700,000 terrajoules total combined capacity)
Stealth: Cloaking shield
Crew: 300
Onboard Ships: 2 stealth fighters, 1 armed boarding craft
The Shark is a far more common sight than the solitary Red Horizon. The above specification is only the ‘stock’ specification; each ship is slightly different as their crews have made alterations or upgrades to them over the years.
The Shark-class is not especially heavily armed, nor particularly heavily shielded or armoured. Instead, its strength lies in raw speed and manoeuvrability; indeed, it can outmanoeuvre all vessels except for those of the fighter class. At sublight speeds, the Shark is unmatched. As with the Red Horizon, the Shark-class is generally fitted with a cloaking shield. Unlike the Red Horizon, this cloaking shield can be used in conjunction with defensive shields, but not with weapons.
It is estimated that there are anywhere between 500 and 750 Shark-class sloops at present; 234 are known to be owned by various settlements, but private ownership has never been comprehensively determined. Running costs are low enough to be affordable to independent buccaneers, whilst initial construction costs can vary due to the personalised nature of the ships.
Piranha-class Stealth Fighter
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/MattLever/Caribbean%20Buccaneers/fighter.jpg
Length: 12 metres
Class: Fighter
Propulsion: Ion glide sublight drive, photon jump drive
Power: Fusion reactor
Armaments: 4x Vickers Phase Disrupter Guns, 1x EMP Cannon
Shielding: 55mm tenalium / ceramic armour, mark 1 anti-radiation shielding, mark 1 particle shielding (30,000 terrajoules total combined capacity)
Stealth: Cloaking shield
Crew: 3
Onboard Ships: N/A
The Piranha is a nimble fighter. Although the above specifications are stock, the actual configurations differ from fighter to fighter. The Piranha is a highly popular craft, both from a tactical point of view and purely as a method of personal transport similar to a car.
The fighter is equipped with a photon jump drive, as a quantum slipstream drive could not be installed on such a small vessel. This allows short-range interstellar jumps (between two close star systems, for example), but it cannot travel great distances without a carrier. The maximum jump distance the Piranha is rated at is 200 lightyears, this is taking into account food rations and air supply (fighters are also too small for oxygen converters).
Ramrod-class Boarding Craft
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/MattLever/Caribbean%20Buccaneers/boarding.jpg
Length: 40 metres
Class: APC
Propulsion: Ion glide sublight drive
Power: Fusion reactor
Armaments: 4x Vickers Phase Disrupter Guns, 2 Vickers Phase Disrupter Turrets
Shielding: 70mm tenalium / ceramic armour (800mm forward armour), mark 1 anti-radiation shielding, mark 1 particle shielding (50,000 terrajoules total combined capacity)
Stealth: Cloaking shield
Crew: 20 (+ 60 boarding personnel)
Onboard Ships: N/A
The Ramrod-class is so named because it literally rams into an enemy vessel. Its hardened ‘nose’ allows for maximum penetration with minimum damage, and it has sufficient speed to penetrate most unshielded hulls. Powerful inertial dampeners are specifically tuned for this exact sort of impact, whereas enemy ships will feel a substantially harder jolt, giving boarding personnel an advantage.
The Ramrod also has an airlock at the rear, capable of interfacing with most airlocks, to allow for conventional boarding procedures wherever possible.
Ramrods are typically used to secure a vessel’s cargo and then leave, although it has been known for ships to be captured and kept for future use. For the latter, the Ramrod will make every effort to find a place to dock, for the former it will simply ram the vessel if only for the tactical advantage the jolt gives their passengers.
The Ramrod lacks any form of FTL, with most of its limited internal space being used as seating for passengers. As such, it is usually deployed by capital ships.
Caribbean Buccaneers – Political
Most landmasses of Caribbean are abandoned, lost to nuclear bombardment and ne’er again resettled. Nuclear radiation is no longer a problem so many centuries after the end of the bombardment, but the simple fact is that there ain’t enough people to live on it all.
Most settlements be located in the Caribbean Proper, that bein’ the chain of islands in the New World. Aquatic ships are still an important part of life, simply ‘cause it be cheaper than flyin’. Each settlement acts individually of the other, all united under a single code.
A planetary government don’t exist; neither does any sort of universal policin’ force. Heinous crimes be dealt with by the buccaneers what inhabit the settlement where the crime were committed – if bad enough and in violation of the Code, the settlements may be gangin’ together to hunt ye down. Crimes at sea be dealt with in the old way; by sword or cannon. It ‘as been known for settlements to gang together to take out entire enemy settlements what fail to keep to the Code, but they be rare and largely hidden from common knowledge.
Leaders of settlements be elected by the townsfolk, as be the way on ships. They be expected to muck in with duties around the town as the rest of us, as well as fight with their troops should there be a need.
The Pirate’s Code, contrary to popular belief, be a recent development designed to end conflict between the settlements. Settlements what refused to sign ‘ave mysteriously ‘disappeared’. Basically, it limits thievin’ from other buccaneers to No-Man’s-Land, stops unnecessary slaughter an’ generally keeps them from stepping on each others’ toes. Basically, the Pirate’s Code can be summed up in a few points, and applies both on an inter-settlement level and on an individual level; a sort of universal law:
1. Stealin’ only be permitted in No-Man’s-Land, that be 50 miles out to sea, or anywhere in space. Breach of this code’ll likely get ye sunk, anyway, as ye’ll be right next to the docks.
2. Unless yer opponent is wavin’ a sword in yer face, or blastin’ at ye with an energy musket, ye not be killin’ people on their home ground. Try not to kill on the open seas either, if ye can be helpin’ it. If ye goes around slaughterin’ entire crews, people will likely become suspicious.
3. Treat women with respect. It don’t matter where ye be. Just do it.
4. Try an’ keep yer bloody curses to yerself.
5. Sackin’ settlements is bad form. If ye be sackin’ a settlement, the other settlements be lookin’ to sack you in turn.
The most powerful settlements’ll typically cooperate with each other, as it be in their interests to pool their resources an’ exploit the other settlements for bountiful loot. The most powerful settlements on Caribbean for the moment be:
- Campeche
- Port Royale
- Santiago
- Barbados
Campeche, Port Royale and Barbados all ‘ave what could be called an alliance with one another. Santiago is allied with a number of smaller settlements, but keeps to themselves.
Caribbean Buccaneers – History
In the 1600s, countries from a place called ‘Europe’ were colonisin’ an’ tradin’ in the New World; the Americas. A central hub for their efforts was the Caribbean; chains of islands in a tropical climate.
The nations weren’t best of friends though, an’ politics of the era frequently led ‘em down the path of war. The nations issued letters of marque to privateers to interrupt shipping of their enemies wherever they could, an’ perhaps even sack settlements. These privateers were frequently considered to be on the same level as pirates; they was scallywags.
By the 1800s these ‘ere wars had gotten so out of hand that trade in the New World was no longer profitable. So when the nations withdrew back to Europe, they abandoned the settlements they had built. The privateers had gotten so rich ‘n powerful that they had entire fleets, an’ they quickly filled the void of the European nations by takin’ control of nations fer themselves.
In 1914, a massive war broke out in the Old World. It continued for years, until 1937. Then, a nuclear weapon was developed and produced on a massive scale. It was used by several nations, and everywhere ‘cept fer the New World was obliterated, with no survivors. The buccaneers of the New World found it tough at first, loosing their tradin’ partners, but soon recovered.
So they began to pilfer from each other. Settlements went to war frequently, until 2376 when the Pirates’ Code was instituted, an’ the settlements agreed on a common piracy law they could all profit from.
By 2178 they had took their piratin’ ways into space, with small, sleek ships. In 2381, two massive ships, the Red Horizon and the Black Sky, were commissioned, and were used by all the settlements to pilfer from the nearby ‘Ildonian’ civilisation, who frequently ran trade by Caribbean, not realising who lived there.
Caribbean Buccaneers – Culture
Culture of the pirates be a largely merry and liberal affair; brothels and pubs be frequent sights on Caribbean, an’ many, many buccaneers work at sea or in space. Indeed, piracy of the nearby Ildonian civilisation be a major part of the economy.
Pirates ne’er be stealin’ from people they don’t know, for fear of the repercussions. The Ildonian government has little problem with piracy unofficially, as the increased spendin’ in military hardware, security and insurance has boosted their economy as well. An’ pirates only be stealin’ from no-mans-land, ne’er official territory.
Most forms of drugs are legal, there ain’t no racism, ‘gays’ may be frowned upon but they be welcome as anyone else if they have doubloons. There may be a little sexism, as men prefer to protect the women rather than let ‘em ‘ave dangerous jobs, but they have mostly equal rights an’ as much say in politics as the next man. It be pretty liberal in most regards. Religion often discourages a pirates’ favourite pastime, an’ so it has since disappeared completely from society – an’ most people have noticed a significant improvement in pretty much everythin’ since it passed away.
Caribbean Buccaneers – Military
No standin’ army as such, but each of the settlements keep trainin’ an’ armin’ a militia for defence. Should an outside threat arise, all will band together an’ defend ‘emselves zealously.
If you were to take the total population of Caribbean an’ then find out what percentage were in the various militias, then about 1-2% are in service of settlement militias at any one time. That number don’t take into account the various buccaneers who are armed an’ have some experience from preyin’ on armed merchants an’ explorers both in space an’ on the high seas, who can also serve as privateers if need be.
Military – Weapons
If ye don’t ‘ave somefin’ with which to kill yer opponent, they will almost cer’ainly kill you. So weapons be understandably widespread on Planet Caribbean.
“Smithfield” Mark 7 Plasma Musket
Weight: 5.7kg
Range: 900 metres (atmosphere)
Ammunition (type/amount): Plasma/20
Rate of Fire: N/A
A large, powerful weapon designed for penetrating even the thickest armour, the Smithfield musket fires large plasma blasts which inflict thermal, electrical and kinetic damage to all they are unleashed against.
The Smithfield is not a rapid-fire weapon. It requires at least one second after each shot to charge up its plasma bank sufficiently to fire again.
The Smithfield accepts a plasma cell cartridge, slotted under the barrel.
Larger, ship-mounted versions of the Mark 7 exist, designed for maximum hull penetration.
“Vickers” Type 1 Phase Disrupter Rifle
Weight: 3.9kg
Range: 750 metres (atmosphere)
Ammunition (type/amount): Nadions/300
Rate of Fire: 6 rounds per second
The Vickers is a reliable and trustworthy weapon used by buccaneers for the past few decades. Using slow nadions, the yellow energy bolts fired by the Vickers forcibly remove matter from this continuum.
Although an individual pulse is far less destructive than those fired by the Smithfield, the Vickers can re-fire quite quickly, and because it’s less destructive and has no blast radius, it can be used to more accurately hit specific targets. It is also safe to use onboard a space vessel, unlike the Smithfield which should only be deployed in heavily armoured vessels or on the ground. The Vickers can be set to lower power settings to inflict non-lethal damage on targets, allowing interrogation.
The same phase disrupter technology is applied on a ship scale as a standard energy weapon, though Vickers is not their name.
“Napoleon” Duelling Pistol
Weight: 600g
Range: 400 metres (atmosphere)
Ammunition (type/amount): Nadions/80
Rate of Fire: N/A
The Napoleon is similar to the Vickers, only it uses fast nadions to generate a more energy-efficient, but less destructive, energy pulse. The increase energy efficiency allows for 80 rounds to be fired, much more than it would if based on Vickers technology. It isn’t automatic though, meaning its refire rate is limited only by how fast the trigger finger is.
Ship-mounted versions exist, but not used as mainstay weapons.
“Debilitator” EMP Blaster
Weight: 3.5kg
Range: 500 metres (atmosphere)
Ammunition (type/amount): EMP/1000
Rate of Fire: N/A
The Debilitator is designed for disabling electrical components, such as stationary guns, ground-based vehicles, small planetary fighters, armoured ground vehicles or even hand-held weapons, if they can be hit. Even if targets are shielded against EMP, the weapon doubles as a shield drainer, causing far more damage to shields than normal weapons, but no damage at all to anything else.
Cutlass
Length: Anywhere from 70cm to 100cm
Powered: Fusion cell / N/A
The cutlass is the typical melee weapon of a buccaneer. Its heavy weight allows for powerful but slow swings, whilst its broad blade combined with this weight increases its defensive properties. The curved blade can deliver deadly slashing and brutal stabbing attacks.
Approximately half of the cutlasses in circulation are powered – a tiny energy field causes the blade to vibrate on an atomic level, invisible to the naked eye and not noticeable to the owner, but it causes more damage with a hit; energy cutlasses have been known to literally slice through conventional blades, even armour. Non-powered cutlasses are usually sufficient due to their sheer weight.
This ‘vibroblade’ is typically powered by a tiny fusion power cell, slotted into the hilt of the blade – such a cell is usually sufficient to power it indefinitely due to the low power drain, although replacements are available.
Rapier
Length: Anywhere from 88cm to 120cm
Powered: Not usually, few fusion cell powered blades exist though
Elegant weapons, their lighter weight and longer, thinner blades allow for much more skilled, fast combat, however this requires some degree of training, and their defensive properties are mooted by the sheer power of a cutlass.
Rapier versus rapier fights tend to be long, drawn-out battles when fought with two skilled swordsmen. Frantic action can last for a long time.
Rapier versus cutlass fights are generally much shorter though. The rapier user either gets in a jab whilst the cutlass user is drawing back for a swing, or the cutlass user breaks through the rapier’s comparatively weak defence.
Few powered rapiers are in use. The fusion cell required to fit in the rapier must be smaller, due to the hilt, and also must be lighter as to not detract from the rapier’s inherent advantages. This makes the process expensive, and only skilled swordsmen or wealthy buccaneers bother.
Military – Ships
Stealth be important in a buccaneer’s line of work, so most Caribbean ships you’ll be encounterin’ will not necessarily be big ‘n butch, but more likely refined, fast and hard to detect. There be only one grand exception to this rule, of which we be proud.
“Red Horizon”
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/MattLever/Caribbean%20Buccaneers/red_horizon.jpg
[The Red Horizon, still active in the Mutara sector]
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/MattLever/Caribbean%20Buccaneers/black_sky.jpg
[The Black Sky, lost a week after launch. Fate unknown.]
Length: 6,728m
Class: Flag Galleon
Propulsion: Ion mass sublight drives, quantum slipstream FTL drive
Power: Fusion reactors + antimatter reaction chambers
Armaments: 50x Smithfield Plasma Cannons, 220x Vickers Phase Disrupter Turrets, 150x Fast-Nadion Pulse Blasters, 70x EMP Cannons, 8x DU Slug Turrets
Shielding: Complete Armour Coverage (700mm tenalium alloy/ceramic broadside armour, 550mm tenalium alloy/ceramic dorsal and ventral armour, 600mm tenalium alloy/ceramic forward armour, 650mm tenalium alloy/ceramic aft armour), mark 3 anti-radiation shielding, mark 2 particle shielding (20,000,000 terrajoules total combined capacity)
Stealth: Cloaking shield, stealth charging
Crew: 9,500 (can support 15,000)
Onboard Ships: 260 stealth fighters, 20 armed boarding craft
The Red Horizon is one of a pair of such ships specially commissioned in a joint operation by all the major settlements, the first such endeavour in recorded history. Her sister-ship, the Black Sky, was similarly well-equipped; however she was lost in deep space with no trace some ten years ago, mere weeks after she was launched, and no explanation has been provided for her disappearance. There was no debris, no engine signatures, no lifeboats and no signal devices. She literally vanished.
The Red Horizon, on the other hand, has had a highly successful career in her ten years of life. Her powerful shielding and incredibly powerful offensive capabilities make her a force to be reckoned with, and her substantial fighter compliment makes her a one-ship-fleet. Few ships are likely to survive a direct confrontation with the Red Horizon.
Her speed is equally impressive; being designed to outrun all known ships at the time in order to ‘acquire’ their cargo, the Red Horizon is fully capable of sublight speeds approaching 3/4 lightspeed, and her quantum slipstream drive allows incredibly fast FTL travel. Although large, her agility at both speeds is quite high.
However, this is largely moot. Due to her incredibly high value, she rarely engages ships one-on-one. Instead, she hangs back out of sensor range and uses her fighters as a weapon. The fighters jump to the target and cripple it. After this, two things can happen. If the vessel has a shielded cargo hold, then boarding craft will arrive and capture the cargo manually, then return to base. If the vessel has an unshielded cargo hold the Red Horizon will move in and use powerful teleportation devices to instantly secure the cargo. These teleportation devices cannot transport lifeforms, as it results in instant death and frequently severe mutilation, but they can easily move inanimate objects without damaging them in the slightest – especially important when ‘acquiring’ stores of gold.
Although the second ship of this class was lost so soon after being commissioned, there will never be another vessel of this class constructed. Apart from anything else, it is far too expensive and human resource intensive to build and maintain; smaller ships such as the Shark are far more suited for pirate activities and far more flexible. The Red Horizon would be highly useful in a homeworld defence scenario, however, and its extreme range capabilities often have it exploring beyond Caribbean territory.
Shark-class Sloop
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/MattLever/Caribbean%20Buccaneers/sloop.jpg
Length: 181 metres
Class: Sloop (Closest Common Comparison: Destroyer/Light Cruiser/Gunship)
Propulsion: Ion pulse sublight drives, quantum slipstream FTL drive
Power: Fusion reactors
Armaments: 1x Smithfield Plasma Cannons, 20x Vickers Phase Disrupter Turrets, 5x Fast-Nadion Pulse Blasters, 10x EMP Cannons
Shielding: Complete Armour Coverage (80mm tenalium alloy /ceramic broadside armour, 90mm tenalium alloy /ceramic dorsal and ventral armour, 100mm tenalium alloy l/ceramic forward armour, 100mm tenalium alloy /ceramic aft armour), mark 2 anti-radiation shielding, mark 2 particle shielding (700,000 terrajoules total combined capacity)
Stealth: Cloaking shield
Crew: 300
Onboard Ships: 2 stealth fighters, 1 armed boarding craft
The Shark is a far more common sight than the solitary Red Horizon. The above specification is only the ‘stock’ specification; each ship is slightly different as their crews have made alterations or upgrades to them over the years.
The Shark-class is not especially heavily armed, nor particularly heavily shielded or armoured. Instead, its strength lies in raw speed and manoeuvrability; indeed, it can outmanoeuvre all vessels except for those of the fighter class. At sublight speeds, the Shark is unmatched. As with the Red Horizon, the Shark-class is generally fitted with a cloaking shield. Unlike the Red Horizon, this cloaking shield can be used in conjunction with defensive shields, but not with weapons.
It is estimated that there are anywhere between 500 and 750 Shark-class sloops at present; 234 are known to be owned by various settlements, but private ownership has never been comprehensively determined. Running costs are low enough to be affordable to independent buccaneers, whilst initial construction costs can vary due to the personalised nature of the ships.
Piranha-class Stealth Fighter
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/MattLever/Caribbean%20Buccaneers/fighter.jpg
Length: 12 metres
Class: Fighter
Propulsion: Ion glide sublight drive, photon jump drive
Power: Fusion reactor
Armaments: 4x Vickers Phase Disrupter Guns, 1x EMP Cannon
Shielding: 55mm tenalium / ceramic armour, mark 1 anti-radiation shielding, mark 1 particle shielding (30,000 terrajoules total combined capacity)
Stealth: Cloaking shield
Crew: 3
Onboard Ships: N/A
The Piranha is a nimble fighter. Although the above specifications are stock, the actual configurations differ from fighter to fighter. The Piranha is a highly popular craft, both from a tactical point of view and purely as a method of personal transport similar to a car.
The fighter is equipped with a photon jump drive, as a quantum slipstream drive could not be installed on such a small vessel. This allows short-range interstellar jumps (between two close star systems, for example), but it cannot travel great distances without a carrier. The maximum jump distance the Piranha is rated at is 200 lightyears, this is taking into account food rations and air supply (fighters are also too small for oxygen converters).
Ramrod-class Boarding Craft
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/MattLever/Caribbean%20Buccaneers/boarding.jpg
Length: 40 metres
Class: APC
Propulsion: Ion glide sublight drive
Power: Fusion reactor
Armaments: 4x Vickers Phase Disrupter Guns, 2 Vickers Phase Disrupter Turrets
Shielding: 70mm tenalium / ceramic armour (800mm forward armour), mark 1 anti-radiation shielding, mark 1 particle shielding (50,000 terrajoules total combined capacity)
Stealth: Cloaking shield
Crew: 20 (+ 60 boarding personnel)
Onboard Ships: N/A
The Ramrod-class is so named because it literally rams into an enemy vessel. Its hardened ‘nose’ allows for maximum penetration with minimum damage, and it has sufficient speed to penetrate most unshielded hulls. Powerful inertial dampeners are specifically tuned for this exact sort of impact, whereas enemy ships will feel a substantially harder jolt, giving boarding personnel an advantage.
The Ramrod also has an airlock at the rear, capable of interfacing with most airlocks, to allow for conventional boarding procedures wherever possible.
Ramrods are typically used to secure a vessel’s cargo and then leave, although it has been known for ships to be captured and kept for future use. For the latter, the Ramrod will make every effort to find a place to dock, for the former it will simply ram the vessel if only for the tactical advantage the jolt gives their passengers.
The Ramrod lacks any form of FTL, with most of its limited internal space being used as seating for passengers. As such, it is usually deployed by capital ships.