Space ranges and distances

[ambrose82]

Anybody have information on what the speeds and ranges for space combat represent? I'm working on a conversion project and I can't find any D6 explanation for the space based distances representing weapon ranges and ship speeds.

The second edition book describes Space speed as: "how fast the ship travels in sublight space. This speed is used in ship to ship combat in outer space in units." (P116) Huwha??? used in units? that's very helpful.

The rev & Expanded is even worse, giving only some "rough benchmarks"

Anybody have a supplement or minatures game that gives a conversion or rough estimate of what units we're talking about for space movement and space combat ranges?

Thanks a ton!

[Trusty]

We use a Hex map for space combat. I print up pictures of the ships and make them really small and cut them out as to fit into the hex and make due with that. One hex = one unit of space. Works for me anyway.
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[Volar the Healer]

Space Units are MEANT to be vague. The writers wanted to write a game, not an exercise in Newtonian physics. If you MUST use a number, try 1 Space Unit = 10 km.
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[ambrose82]

[Volar the Healer]

I know of nothing official.
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[Endwyn]

Since your trying to convert I suggest you pick at least three ships and comparing their WEG space rating to the WotC speed value. I would pick an x-wing, tie fighter, and the M Falcon at least. I would recomend you also chart the values for the b-wing, a-wing, and y-wing. If you can find other common stock ships to compare, go for it. The 6 I listed should be more than enough.

Next, see if the values translate easily, if so then the WotC value divided by the WEG space rating should be a constant speed. If they vary widely and none of them seem to match closely when the two values are compared; then you can try to see if there is a constant speed + variable speed based on the speed rating. I will include the math formula and example just incase you are not familiar with what I'm doing below. You need to pick the lowest and highest value of the possible. For example, if this is the following speeds: (I know nothing of the WotC speeds without looking it up.)

X-Wing: 500m/s 8
Tie: 800m/s 10
B-Wing: 350m/s 6

X-wing: 500(m/s)/8= 62.5m/s per space move of 1
Tie: 800(m/s)/10= 80m/s per space move of 1
B-wing: 350(m/s)/6= 58 & 1/3 m/s per move of 1

So, Tie = high, B-wing =low. Now you would do the following:

(Tie-B)/(Tie-B)
(800-350)/(10-6)= 112.5

Useing the slope formula, y=mX+b; y=WotC value, m=value above, X= WEG space value, b=solved for variable.

800=112.5(10)+b (X-wing)
B=-325

Now you check to see how accurate you were: (X-wing)
y=112.5(8) - 325
y=575

(B-wing)
y=112.5(6) - 325
y=350

What happens is the two end points are calculated perfectly, if there is a strait line that is the slope of the conversion; this method will find it for you. If the line is not strait, like the above example where you can cime close, but not exact, then you have an estimate.

Lots of math in there, but it can help you find what you're looking for.
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[ambrose82]

thats super. I'll try it on the morrow and report back.

[Grimace]

Just for giggles, I'll throw in my two cents. Mind you, what everyone else has provided is just as good and whatever works best for you is what you should definitely go for.

I have spent a little bit of time (not a ton, just a little) trying to figure out how fast those ships move, and doing some rough comparisons to what "seems right" and what actually is. Myself, and another that visits here, have come to the conclusion that a unit is 1,000 km. Therefore a ship with a movement rating of 8 would move 8,000 km a round, or roughly 1600 km/s.

Using this, an X-wing travelling 8 could travel from the Earth to the moon in 240 rounds, or 4 minutes.

It's hardly official, by any means, but it might help.

Oh, and I believe that WEG purposefully chose to never give an exact number or size for a Space unit. They wanted it left semi-abstract so you could make it whatever best fitted your game.

[ambrose82]

They definitely kept it vague on purpose. 2nd ed. has absolutely no hint about how big a space unit is. R&E provides a vague list of thumbnail rules. I think one was it should take a ship about 1/2 hour to get from a planet to its moon (or out to the hyper limit, can't remember which). I don't have it here in front of me.

WOTC (spits on the ground) have designated a space unit in their version (spits on the ground again) to be 500km per side (they use a grid system). So a fighter (ETA-2) has a move of 8 and can travel 4,000km per movement. So, as they are now the official determiners of Star Wars vehicle stats (spits again), I was trying to stay as true to the official as possible. Other sites (like rebellion) have guidelines, but I was trying for something more concrete. Maybe, than, the thing to do is to take R&E's guidelines, standardize them and then use the new standard as a conversion.... hmmmmm...

[worfbacca]

My take comes from the benchmark and the statment in the corebook for 2nd R&E. "Starships cover thousands of kilometers per second."

1 SU = 10,000 km

If you take this into account then the benchmark speeds for the Yellow star with less than a dozen planets (I used our solar system at 12000000000 kM) to measure this comes out about right for ships like Y-Wings - Tie's It takes a day or two to cross it. so 24-48 hrs. 44 hrs crossing it is .25c So the Y-wing is about .22 C or something and the Tie is like .30 C

Just my two bits.
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[Argamoth]

Or you can always make your own method and vary it for situations. Space is HUGE, and I use a different scale & method when dealing in deep space, more like a submarine movie or Star Trek.