How many cubic meters for each 'ton' of cargo space?

[JohnLydiaParker]

Cut-off part of title - (drawing deckplans)
Currently I'm drawing up a bunch of deckplans for smaller ships, and that leads directly to the question of how many cubic meters to allocate for each ton of cargo capacity. Pretty much a self-explanatory question, but one I rather suspect there's not much agreement.

[CRMcNeill]

The rule of thumb is 1m^3 for every 2 metric tons of cargo. This assumes you’re hauling solid cargo, as 1m^3 of water is 1 metric ton.
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"No set of rules can cover every situation. It's expected that you will make up new rules to suit the needs of your game." - The Star Wars Roleplaying Game, 2R&E, pg. 69, WEG, 1996.

The CRMcNeill Stat/Rule Index

[pakman]

TLDR: I use 10 tons per 5' square on a grid.

That is based on averages on shipping and the types of storage one typical mixed use smaller transports (i.e. not huge vessels with large standardized cargo design).

Longer Version:
Like many status, the cargo limits on ships in most games are - a bit high.
Unless hauling stuff that is very dense and/or packed very very tight - cargo takes up a lot of space.

Also- you are correct about one thing - among gamers, there is not much agreement.... however - in shipping - there is.

A moderate weight for one pallet of cargo is about 1000lbs.
A heavy weight would be 2000lbs. But many can be more - A LOT MORE - shipping canned vegetables is more heavy than shipping cereal boxes or furniture (while heavy - furniture is large....). Scrap metal or fusion generators....a lot more.

So this can vary by cargo type /industry (I, like some others on the pit, have worked in logistics and transportation for years - shipping milk, meat and canned goods - that stuff is heavy. Shipping potato chips, toilet paper or apparel - lighter. But star wars is not "shipping simulator" so numbers that are averages - are close enough).

For more interesting reading;
https://woodrebirth.com/what-is-the-average-weight-of-a-pallet-of-freight/#Common_Weight_Ranges_of_Palletized_Freight

Going back to your question - I feel a cubic meter capacity is not as useful - well - because unless you are filling a bulk tank with water, gravel or grain - you never get to use most of an odd shaped cargo hold - especially the kind you see in game with ships that are designed to look cool over be efficient in design.

You could go into a ton of analysis on different cargo types, how they are packed - etc. But honestly - for our game of space wizards where most tramp freighters are carrying boxes or bulky things - I just use 10 tons per square on a map. (5' or 1.5m square).
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[JohnLydiaParker]

I'm convinced most light freighters are undersized (long story), and my current plan for a Baudo (currently sized at 38 meters; most plans greatly overestimate the amount of space forward) I can only summon up 22-28 square meters of floor space, perhaps a fifth or more of it at less then full deck height, and divided into two holds, a bit oddly shaped. (The 'reduced height' runs along the side, extends outward 1.5 m and perhaps 1.5 m high)

(Only 4 1.5 m square "pallets" total, plus two in the reduced height area. Plus 2 more meter square sized pallets in the full height and 4 in the reduced height, and cargo can be traded for up to 4 fully assembled speeder bikes due to exterior doors. Being able to load a small landspeeder or tiny airspeeder on either or both sides instead is within minor customization, and trading off some living space. (This is for a standard" yacht config with 35 tons of cargo; a typical smuggler/freighter conversion can easily add up about an additional 20 1.5m "pallets," or around 130+? cubic meters more by replacing some of the passenger quarters with a common area and turning the two "luxury blisters" to cargo.) (Single deck "flatter" end of the interpretation of its shape.)

Still, it's a yacht, so that might not be too much of a problem. Sound good enough?


Giving the YT-2400 the same upscale the Falcon received, I was able to fit 53 1.5m "pallets", perhaps 120-140 square meters of floor space, and around 300-350 cubic meters, depending on the how high the decks are and where. Would that make it too much of an upscale?
(10 tons per pallet sounds pretty dense...)

[CRMcNeill]

Check the www button at the bottom of my post. It links to my Google Drive, where I have a pretty extensive collection of deckplans, including one for the Baudo.
_________________
"No set of rules can cover every situation. It's expected that you will make up new rules to suit the needs of your game." - The Star Wars Roleplaying Game, 2R&E, pg. 69, WEG, 1996.

The CRMcNeill Stat/Rule Index

[ThrorII]

Tramp Freighters states a stock light freighter can hold 100 tons and has 40 m3 of cargo space.

That yields 2.5 tons per m3.
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[CRMcNeill]