You know, I'm honestly pretty okay with either of the [4] options winning. No strong opinions, either one would be extremely useful for different use cases and I don't actually see either one as inherently better.
One last argument for Bioscience: The Advanced Scanners are good to have, but they improve an ability the ship already has. It has normal sensors, and it'll have shuttles and Astrometrics too. But Bioscience adds new capabilities to the ship. It'll let the ship examine new lifeforms, do surveys of alien ecosystems, diagnose and treat super-deadly space diseases, act as emergency response to medical emergencies, etc. It'll also let our teleporters be used without fear that a crewmember might get infected by something the ship won't be able to deal with.
There's only so much you can learn about new life from orbit. You have to send an away party and get your boots on the ground.
And then your crew gets sick from some local spore pollen, or the local life-form lays parasitic eggs in a redshirt, and you need a cutting-edge medical facility instead of a teeny sawbones sickbay.
That depends on if you have Advanced Scanners (TM)
With Advanced Scanners (TM) you can explore the wonders of the planet, no, the galaxy! From the comfort of your own command chair.
With Advanced Scanners (TM) experience a true HD resolution experience, whether you are scanning through the crust of a world, the depths of an anomaly, or even simply scanning the locals entertainment frequencies!
One last argument for Bioscience: The Advanced Scanners are good to have, but they improve an ability the ship already has. It has normal sensors, and it'll have shuttles and Astrometrics too. But Bioscience adds new capabilities to the ship. It'll let the ship examine new lifeforms, do surveys of alien ecosystems, diagnose and treat super-deadly space diseases, act as emergency response to medical emergencies, etc. It'll also let our teleporters be used without fear that a crewmember might get infected by something the ship won't be able to deal with.
There's only so much you can learn about new life from orbit. You have to send an away party and get your boots on the ground.
I swapped over cuz I figured teleporters and the biolab have pretty damn good synergy for dangerous, dangerous samples. A BL4 lab that could teleport the samples around would be a godsend.
That depends on if you have Advanced Scanners (TM)
With Advanced Scanners (TM) you can explore the wonders of the planet, no, the galaxy! From the comfort of your own command chair.
With Advanced Scanners (TM) experience a true HD resolution experience, whether you are scanning through the crust of a world, the depths of an anomaly, or even simply scanning the locals entertainment frequencies!
The NX transporter generation were for inanimate objects. That they could be used on people in a crisis (but very much not recommended) was a side feature. You got things like people shot mid-transport rematerialising with internal injuries that doesn't happen with later transporter tech.
Maybe instead of only making one copy of the person the transporter kills we could just make a dozen and murder the defective eleven the old fashioned way?
In the end there isn't enough space to fit everything you want, but you nonetheless manage to add some extra capability to the Brahe as well as the investigative systems it needs to carry out its missions. Astrometrics will be useful for analysing stellar phenomenon and general cartography, while the science labs will be able to handle general examination and investigation. The biological-rated transporter will allow the crew to deploy from the ship without the use of shuttles and the remote retrieval of samples from promising targets, while the biosciences lab will allow in-depth analysis of alien biomes, flora, fauna, and microbiology. In the worst case scenario it is also equipped with an isolation and decontamination chamber, which will hopefully be a source of security rather than actually being utilised. But the crew will nonetheless be equipped.
With that done, the Brahe is now officially fitted out. Some of the nuts and fasteners still need tweaking and tightening, but the core elements of the ship and its functions are all present and accounted for. With the ship now spaceworthy the systems can be properly tested. Of particular interest will be the new Warp 7 engine and tactical systems.
As the Brahe engages warp it quickly becomes clear that the warp field is not responding optimally, and the ship is underperforming compared to expectations. The problem is traced to the coils themselves, with the polyceramics unable to effectively overcome the intervening mass. The problem is unlikely to be solved without a generational improvement in material sciences. The result is disappointing as the ship tops out at a maximum of Warp 6.9, just short of the Warp 7 barrier. But that's still pretty damn fast, you must say, so maybe it isn't quite so disappointing after all. Only two weeks to Proxima Centauri at standard cruise is a substantial jump in capability.
The current generation of warp coils can only maintain a +0.1 warp factor increase to cruise and maximum velocities when in a parallel configuration.
With the primary systems test complete, the Brahe undergoes a short tactical assessment at Ceres. The new phasers perform adequately, the deep scarlet beams a darker colour than what you would associate with a phase cannon. With their primary assembly safely contained within the hull rather than the entire apparatus deploying during combat they are also less vulnerable to incidental damage. All told there are congratulations to be made for performing as promised to the design teams, who are now hard at work improving the fundamentals of the weapon.
The Type-1 phasers perform to specification, dealing 60% more damage than the pulsed phase cannons with only a 50% increase in cost.
The final point of business is a name, one that will hopefully hold it in good stead as it expands the boundaries of scientific knowledge.
[ ] UES Brahe. Named after astronomers and astrophysicists.
[ ] UES Newton. Named after philosophers of the natural sciences.
[ ] UES Curiosity. Named after robotic probes.
[ ] Other
