Most of the mechanics are way off as I was just off the cuffing them. Barsoomcore is working on that now. In fact he is rewriting all of it to be better. I will touch on some style points though, and answer some questions about what I was thinking.
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"- The description of the solar array says that "Most artificial light, or magic light, is not bright enough to constitute full power from an array." Does this include the daylight spell?"
I was being intentionaly vague here because to be spicific won't cover all options. A light spell or flash light won't help you, but if your DM thinks spell X is powerful enough, then it should work. I think the current rules (sage advice or something) on that spell says it can't kill vampires, etc, but oh well. Anyway, yah if I was DMing I'd let Daylight work based off how it is described, but I don't think its a useful think to write out all spells that could work.
"- While I like the fact that you can fold up a solar array, I find it hard to imagine how you'd fold up an psychic array, since it's made of crystals." I pictured it in my mind as a punch of think long crystals mounted in a mechanical set of arms like the arms in one fo those tiny umbrellas. when extended, they point outward in a massive tangle of finger like apendages (no sails or wide areas) with the crystals glowing. When folded up, the mechanical (think brushed metal or maybe brass/copper rounded metal gears and cables) system folds it up into a small area tucked into the hull, possibly under armor plates etc. Its a great thing for artwork concepts.
"- I don't like the assumption that the person providing power is the same as the pilot. I've designed a "mindlink" component (which I'll post later) that gives a pilot a handling bonus by allowing him to control the vessel with his thoughts. You could build one into a power jammer at extra expense, but you could also have a pilot's wheel instead of, or in addition to, the jammer." Cool idea. I was trying to stick to spelljammer to much, but I could see a magic (or psionic, or high tech) mental interface system (command system) and have it work with any of the jammer type devices.
"- It isn't clear from the description if an arcane jammer requires already-prepared spells, or if it can use up empty spell slots. In the former case, a sorcerer wouldn't be able to use one at all. In the latter case, they'd be able to fuel one for much longer than a wizard of equal level." It requries spell slots. All casters have spell slots. Wizards memorize into them, sorcerers expend them... anyway, yes a sorcerer would have more spots, but they are of lower level... anyway that's the nature of wizards and sorcerers. I'd imagine in a spell jammer setting low level sorcerers would be favored highers on ships.
"- I don't think it makes sense for the Use Magic/Psionic Device skill on a jammer. Those skills allow you to "trick" a magic item by pretending to be someone you're not, but if you use them to power a jammer, where is the power coming from?" Read the Use Magic device skill. You know some PC will want to use it to power a ship. We could make a rule about it one way or the other. I went with allowing it, but your right it doesn't work on many levels.
"- Some non-technological examples of generators would be nice. For example, magic item furnaces or crystal capacitors." Good flavor idea. we should list a few like that.
"- Should tech level affect the efficiency of generators/reactors?" cool idea. in a low tech area your generator barely puts out any power... cool.
"- Given how quickly a reserve power system can be filled up or depleted, it should have a larger capacity to really be worthwhile." The system is directly stollen from the Alternity game system. I was the king of designing interesting ships in that system, and my best ones all had reserve power systems designed to let you fire all your weapons at once, increase jump ranges, etc by tweaking the power output limits of the game. basicaly your limiting factors in many ways is power. if you up the power containtment to much you end up with way to much power on hand.
"- Should tech level affect the capacity of reserve power systems?" I'd say no off hand. Your power is there, and your limited in how you get it and how you use it, but I don't see having it as a problem.
"- How can an engine increase glide manueverability and speed? If a vehicle's gliding, then it doesn't have its engines on." You and your dang logic !
"- Should tech level affect engine efficiency?"
Style wise it makes sense, but engine's provide points that are then compared to a table for your speed. If you start chaning those points in game (not when building the ship) that means recalculating far to often to keep game play running fast.
"- Can sky ore be built into a metal hull or armor plating without taking up component slots?" No, that would wreck the balence in the system. Also I'd argue that you just can't add lift anywhere because it would rip the ship apart, a large amount of lift added hapazardly would be dangerous to stability and structure. Thus it has to have space. Also, sky ore is a concept taken in some ways from anohter EN world hosted sit. I think in that world the ore has to be heated to work (IE: furnaces) where as in another setting it might need a slight eletrical charge, etc. This component covers all that extra "space" and equipment.
"- Should efficiency of life support depend on tech level?" That might be pushing it. some systems are just stores of air etc... but recyclers that makes sense... but hydroponics (which cycles air and provides food etc) wouldn't.
"- What happens if life support fails? What are the "detrimental effects"?" I think the rules section describes what happens if you have no gravity, or are exposed to vacume. I think starvation and suffocation are in the
DMG. I know heat/cold rules are.
"- Should gravity generators be treated as a separate component?" I could see that as being a good idea.
"- Should gardens provide more food at higher tech levels? Shouldn't low-tech gardens be able to operate without power? (Think of a garden planted in the courtyard of a flying castle.)" I'd say gardens shouldn't be so affected by tech levels. BUT your right that a low tech one wouldn't need power. a low tech one on space ship might have a large windows and get light from the sun instead of artificial lighting like i was thinking about when I wrote it.
"- Why such large jumps between DCs (25, 35, 45, 60)? Couldn't a more gradual progression be used? Make a table if necessary. (Likewise for wormhole tunnerers.)" Directly stollen from DragonStar. There should be an exponential increase in difficulty. short jumps are easy, long ones are extreamly hard. Epic level Dragonstar pilots won't want to make cross universe jumps.
"- A space folding drive "can not be activated near any large bodies of gravity". How near is "near"?" as close as your DM wants it to be. Hard rules don't work well in a game.
"- Do planar matrices have charges?" Most systems use power, although the DragonStar game has charged drive systems, so that might work as an alternative.
"- Saying that gates are of unknown origin is a setting assumption that may not always be applicable. What if you're playing in the Babylon 5 setting, for example?" In Babylon 5, the first gates were built by the ancients, then reversed enginnered and rebuilt, but still the core of the idea was that know one still around knows exactly how they work. Your right though, its a setting assumption.
"- If a spacecraft doesn't have a cockpit, does that mean that the pilot is more exposed? Even if the hull is a solid shell of metal?" Motorcycle VS car. Your not nesisarily more exposed, but you have to control the vehicle from the engines/etc directly instead from a seperate location setup for easier controls.
"- Sonar should be opposed by Hide, not Move Silently... it doesn't matter how quiet you are, it matters how large your exposed surface is." I was going for a wider use of skills then just hide and spot etc. I always liked those Submarine movies where the hunter sub has some guy with headphones on, and the other sub has everyone onboard holding their breath and trying not to make any noise at all.
"- Does an empty cargo bay (fuel tank, hanger) still impose a lift penalty?" Like I mentioned above, if you alter the number of points a system provides on the fly, you then have to recalculate on the fly. that really slows the game down. I was trying to provide a set penalty to stop that.
"- Does a deflection array provide protection against force attacks (e.g. magic missile) and ethereal creatures?" Deflection provides a deflection bonus. that bonus does work againts ethereal creatures as per the
DMG... but it doesn't stop magic missiles. Those always hit.
"- The base vehicle size covered by a deflection array is 10 HD; for most of the other defense systems it's 20 HD. Is this difference deliberate or a typo?" I was thinking deflection is less powerful/advanced then sheild generation, so its smaller or soemthing. I was winging it afterall.
"- Why are there heavy catapults and cannon but no heavy ballistas?" The
DMG has heavy catapults but not ballistas.
"- How much ammo does a cannon/ballista/catapult carry?" none? How ever much you buy? 1 "shot" at any given time? Good question.
"- "Due to the exposure, spell casting from the open deck of a moving
vehicle does require a concentration check." What's the DC?" I think its 15, as listed in the PHB in the skill section under concentration (for spellcasting from the deck of a ship).
"- If grappling arms and melee claws can be magically animated, why would they consume power?" Because in that case, the ship itself is all powered by magic (a magic generator system of some kind)... so you need to know how much magic everything uses. Magic is a power type.
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