Well Drive

From PeltedWiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search

The FTL drive that makes Alliance ships go.

History

The development of the Well repeater and the Well drive made the Alliance's expansion, and its coherence as a political nation, possible, something understood by the early Pelted because research on possible faster-than-light technologies began during the century the Pelted spent in flight from Earth. Initial focus was on communication technologies, since "we're going to need a way to talk to one another once we land." 89 years into the Exodus, the first Well repeaters were finally successfully developed. It wasn't until 12 years later, after the settlement of Selnor, that the Well Drive was tested successfully.

The man responsible for the Well Drive (and who was the first to volunteer for that first test flight) was Roneld Don Cattus, a member of what would become the Asanii. Their target was Sector Gamma, where they'd identified a potential new planet for colonization. When the successful test flight deposited them there, Don Cattus claimed Asanao for his new race.

The early Well drive could only take ships to the Lip of the Well. Don Cattus stayed on Asanao to continue work on the technology, which is one of the only significant technologies to have its home research in Asanii hands. Once the Sector Gamma starbase was completed, the research center for Well technology moved there, to what is formally known as the Don Cattus Research Center, located in a sphere set aside specifically for it, and which later sprouted the Gamma Shipyard facility, dedicated to the manufacture of Fleet ships, as well as the largest Academe campus.

Timeline

  • 2460: Well repeaters developed
  • 2472 (1 BA): Well Drive developed

Technology

Parts

Supported by pylons (different numbers depending on ship class) and glow during operation.[1]

Has a bleed-off system, and overload of that system causes enough damage to cripple a ship.[2]

Located in engineering on Fleet ships: an "enormous central chamber with its pulsing Well capsule."[3]

Speed

Has five "speeds":

  • 1 (The Cusp of the Well)
  • 2 (The Lip of the Well)
  • 3 (The Lip of the Well); most civilian ships stop here.
  • 4 Civilian courier ships occasionally go this speed.
  • 5 (The Well's Deep) This speed is only typical of Fleet vessels pushing things.

For civilian ship, anything past Well 4 tends to diminishing returns when the increased cost of maintenance, repair and energy usage were factored against the time saved.[4] For vital military or political reasons, military vessels can safely drop deeper in the Well but even those hit the limits of technology, especially material strength and propulsion systems, before whatever may be at the theoretical "bottom" of the Well.[4] . Well factors beyond this limit are collectively known as the Abyss and cannot be withstood by modern materials and artificial Well shields.[5]

Trivia

Until I find a better place to put these.

  • It takes about a week to repair a well drive. [6]
  • Few ships capable of landing on a planet have Well drives, and those that do are expensive.[1]
  • The computer can and usually does superimpose images of stars moving when in Well for crew comfort, even though one doesn't actually pass stars in the Well.[7]
  • There's a way to "bounce" a slow-moving ship out of Well if you know its vector and engine harmonies, but it's a 'bit of a gamble.' [8] Fleet personnel call it a tripwire. This is more of a pirate technique than a Chatcaavan one.

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Sword of the Alliance, Chapter 14
  2. Who is Willing, Chapter 7
  3. Who is Willing, Chapter 3
  4. 4.0 4.1 Some Things Transcend, Chaper 1
  5. Author's Notes
  6. Earthrise, Part Two
  7. Sword of the Alliance, Chapter 13
  8. Only the Open, Chapter 3