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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Wyvern" data-source="post: 1560557" data-attributes="member: 2374">The idea I had regarding power (which I think is how it was done before, though I haven't checked) is that certain components require a certain fixed number of "power points" to operate.  The total power consumption of all components in use at one time must be equal to or less than the total number of power points available.A generator would convert fuel points to power points (the higher the tech level, the better the conversion ratio), thus increasing the amount of power available but reducing the effective range of the vessel.  A generator's opposite number would be a component that converts power points either into fuel points.  You could vary the amount of fuel or power converted on a per-trip basis, but you couldn't turn these components on or off in the middle of a trip in order to boost your range or power output.  I know that's not realistic, but I think it's the only way to avoid headache-inducing calculations in the middle of combat.  On the other hand, you could have a component that converted power directly to movement points (a "booster engine"), which could be used at will to increase your speed provided you had sufficient unused power reserves.Changing the subject, I thought of an amendment yesterday to my proposal regarding the formula for calculating speed.  Rather than the number of movement points being directly proportional to the tech level, I think it would be more realistic if they were proportional to the square of the tech level.  My reasoning is that a TL 9 fusion drive should be a lot more than 10 times faster than a TL 0 muscle-powered "engine".Wyvern</blockquote>

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