It's still more advanced than the engines we use now. If we can improve them enough for the Novaverse, we can improve Ion Engines too. It's a game, so don't take it so seriously. There's freaking faster than light engines! Supposedly that's impossible!

Also, considering the fact that you can get from Earth to Mars in, say, three seconds, I don't think the acceleration in reference to real-world distances is taken into account much even in the actual game.

Also, if these engines are so inferior, why does NASA keep testing them?

This post has been edited by Cosmic_Nusiance : 01 November 2007 - 04:25 PM

NASA researches ion engines because we have not yet developed the technology to build the Thorium Nuclear Furnaces and impulse drives which seem to be the propulsion system of choice in the Nova-verse. Expect for the Raven, which uses Etheric Induction Engines (best dësc ever: "These devices simply suck the fabric of space-time in the front, and squirt it out the back.").

A thorium nuclear furnace is not a propulsion system, and we can still advance today's technology in the future. People still distill alcohol, even if the process was first discovered a thousand years ago. See my post above. It's just a game, and the "sub-light" engines actually get you from Earth to Mars in three seconds.

Oh forget it <_<
ass

What did I ever do to you? You don't see me criticizing everything that you do in your plugs. Geez.

@cosmic_nusiance, on Nov 1 2007, 11:44 AM, said in Nebula: D.O.A.:

I'm submitting a version with a proper ReadMe to the addons directory.

Here it is for those who have already downloaded it:

ReadMe.rtf

Wait, where do I download this plugin?

Right now, at the link provided in a previous post.

Bugs...

-I can't purchase the new Bio weapons on my Patrol Boat. There's no indication that I have to have something specific to sue them.

-The Scoutship Ion Drive is available to my Patrol Boat.

-You can get missions to New Sparta on New Sparta and on the neighboring research base. As a result, it's a money-making method more efficient than any trade route I've tried (I haven't tried that one equipment run in Polaris space).

-One of the "Ferry Troops to x" mission always goes to a spob in the Arcturus system, even though it states you're supposed to take them to New Sparta or somewhere else.

-May not be one, but it seems to be. You can get the BBS Blockade missions before the storyline ones. I mention this because one of the "success" descs mentions a character Michelle, who you haven't been introduced to yet if I remember correctly.

Oh, the Ion Drive, Nova IS ahead of you. See LPAD's desc, first sentence...

LPAD said:

LPAD was a propulsion research lab in the days before ion drives were perfected for sublight travel.

This indiciates that ships in Nova use ion drives or better. I noticed this when I was hunting Manticores and whoever else was foolish enough to attack me in the system.

I'm going to write up a review for Nebula as I did ARPIA2. Shouldn't take too long, assuming nothing else I need to do comes up.

GARG! BUGS! I thought I fixed at least two of those...

Just thought of an alternate for ion drives. The Gravity Drive. Somehow manipulates the fabric of space-time to open up a gravity well just in front of your ship, constantly pulling it forward. Good acceleration and top speed but no fancy drive trail and bad turning. Perhaps makes Grav. missiles track you easier. I am so going to add it. Somehow. Expect plug in.

Here's an idea that's from my RP on the Warbird: a Magnetic Acceleration Drive.

Basically what it does is it uses, as the name might suggest, incredibly powerful magnets to propel itself through space by sucking in space dust, or something similar.

I know it's not the best solution, but I'm just giving you my input, here.

That review is going to have to wait. My computer demonstrated about a hour ago that it doesn't like me typing anything of length by crashing itself and becoming unresponsive to everything for a long time. I'll probably email myself what I've written and finish it on another computer tomorrow.

Now ladies, we all know that the fancy "Ion Engines" may not be scientifically correct in being an improvement over whatever the Federation had previously. However, and I say However , I'm a strong advocate of the slogan, "It's Just a Game!!!!!1" It doesn't have to be factually correct, and it doesn't have to prophesy the future of spaceflight accurately. It just has to be fun.

applauds as zapp steps off of soap box

Personally, I didn't care until I spotted the LPAD desc. However, it never specifies whether they're still in use or not, so Cosmic could always just slap on something like a "MK2" at the end and be just fine.

@joshtigerheart, on Nov 2 2007, 08:03 AM, said in Nebula: D.O.A.:

However, it never specifies whether they're still in use or not, so Cosmic could always just slap on something like a "MK2" at the end and be just fine.

Cosmic, you have your answer.

Just throw that Mk. II onto the end, and that should silence most opposition.

Actually, given the full desc for LPAD...

Quote

LPAD was a propulsion research lab in the days before ion drives were perfected for sublight travel. According to rumor, researchers on this station actually came up with a remarkable new design for sublight travel that would reduce fuel requirements to a twentieth of the current value. However, Pyrogenesis swiftly executed a hostile takeover of Tidbinbilla Inc and quietly terminated the project, for fear of having their revenues for raw gas mining slashed. LPAD still has backup power, but anything of any great worth has long since been removed by Pyrogenesis Corp.

...why not use that to inspire a misn or two to scrounge for left-over data or prototypes, and make availability for the Ion Drive Mk. II (or whatever) dependent on completing that misn?

Of course, you may have already done something like that, for all I know....

Read the last sentence of that desc, Trowel, and you'll see why that mission wouldn't exactly work...

@zapp, on Nov 2 2007, 02:43 PM, said in Nebula: D.O.A.:

Read the last sentence of that desc, Trowel, and you'll see why that mission wouldn't exactly work...

Why would the player's character immediately have perfect knowledge upon landing somewhere for the first time? I suggest taking the desc as a reflection of "common knowledge" , which can sometimes be inaccurate. Pyrogenesis may have thought and/or said that they removed everything of value, and yet secretly or inadvertently left behind something from which others might be able to learn....

Why not have some crazy scinetist who appears to be whacked-out come up and sk the player to go to pyrogenis for research? When you get there, you find out that there is some truth in this madman's speech.