If a group of characters is going to be doing a lot of traveling during the course of an adventure or campaign, they are probably going to want to use a vehicle. There are many advantages of using vehicles in terms of the amount of supplies needed and the amount of time it takes to travel over just hoofing it (in some cases, as when a character group must go visit another planet, a vehicle is required just to make the journey feasible). When using vehicles for travel, there are three crucial questions that must be answered: how far
can the vehicle travel in a given period of time, how far
does the vehicle travel in that same period of time, and
how much fuel does the vehicle use in that same period of time. This section focuses on the third question.
NOTE: for the sake of brevity, starships will be considered space vehicles in the remainder of this discussion, except where noted.
A Quick Word about Fuel
Vehicles require fuel. There's no real way around this fact; even the most primitive of machines require fuel in order to go (in this case, the "fuel" is usually provided by a living being). Vehicles in SFRPG are no exception to this fundamental rule. Without fuel, a vehicle is going nowhere in a real hurry. When using a vehicle, a fundamental question that arises is whether or not it will have sufficient fuel to make it to its destination, considering any tasks its crew has to perform along the way. Because the rate of fuel consumption is dependent upon Navigation factors such as terrain and weather, and because fuel consumption is a topic that is common to both vehicles and starships, this discussion is included here instead of somewhere in the previous two chapters.
In the Starflight Universe, most Starfaring Age vehicles (including starships) are dependent upon one of two key minerals for fuel:
Endurium and
Shyneum. Endurium fuel is used by the vast majority of starfaring races throughout the galaxy. In the Alpha Sector, all races use Endurium as fuel up to 4620, when it becomes illegal to transport or sell Endurium, or to use it as a fuel source. After 4620, only the Gazurtoid continue to use Endurium as fuel in the Alpha Sector. Shyneum becomes the new fuel substance of choice in the Alpha Sector after 4640. In the Delta Sector, the only species to use Endurium is the G'Nunk; all other species use Shyneum. (
NOTE: For Alpha Sector campaigns in the interregnum between 4620 and 4640, GMs are welcome to come up with whatever solution they'd like for a fuel mineral; one source uses a fuel called "Synthenium", which is twice as expensive as Endurium but about half as efficient. Just know that Endurium is banned after 4620 and Shyneum doesn't come into common use until after 4640). In practical terms, there is no real difference between Endurium and Shyneum; both substances in sufficient quantities are capable of providing enough energy to power a starship's superphotonic engines. It stands to reason that even a small quantity of either substance can provide enough fuel for smaller vehicles. Non-starfaring Age vehicles may utilize other fuel sources. Metal Age vehicles in particular may rely heavily on wind power, while Industrial Age vehicles may use fossil fuels, solar, wind, or nuclear fuel sources. These are of course just a few possible fuel sources; GMs are free to come up with their own sources of fuel for use in their campaigns.
Keeping track of the amount of fuel a vehicle has left was an important aspect of the original games. Running out of fuel was a Bad Thing with a number of nasty effects (the player might be forced to march back to their ship, make an expensive distress call, or plummet out of orbit). In SFRPG, keeping track of fuel consumption is no less important. There are two methods that a GM may employ during the course of a campaign in order to keep track of how much fuel they have remaining. The first of these methods is
real count. Real count was the method employed in the original games to keep track of the amount of fuel on the player's starship. Simply put, real count is the actual amount of the fuel mineral currently contained by the vehicle, in cubic meters. Fuel in this method is usually consumed in units of tenths of a cubic meter. The second method is
simple count. As one might expect, simple count removes the mucking around with decimals that comes up with real count, at the cost of realism. Simple count varies between vehicles and starships. For starships, when any fuel is consumed during the course of an action, a whole cubic meter is consumed all at once. Usually the ship will be able to perform several actions at one time based on this method. When using simple count, each cubic meter of fuel on the ship is referred to as a
fuel point. Starship combat is calibrated to use simple count (
for more details on starship combat, see Chapter 9.4). For vehicles, simple count is also known as
percentage count, which was the method employed in the original games to keep track of the amount of fuel remaining during exploration with the ITV. In percentage count, a vehicle's current fuel level is expressed as a percentage of its normal fuel capacity. Fuel in this method is consumed in terms of a whole percentage. The GM may employ any combination of methods they wish to use at their own discretion.
The places where fuel may be replenished depends upon the groundwork laid out for an adventure (or campaign) by the GM. The GM may decide to make it possible to fuel up at a home base, as was the case in Starflight One. They may decide to make it so that it’s only available at alien trading posts, as in Starflight Two. Still others may decide to do something completely different. In any event, it is important that the characters have some place that they can go to repair, refuel and refit their vehicles during the course of an adventure or campaign.
In addition to their regular fuel "tank", most vehicles in Starflight have a very small fuel reserve to draw upon in the event of an emergency situation. This reserve is generally no larger than 5% of the vehicle's normal fuel capacity. While that may not seem like a lot (and usually it isn't), it may give a vehicle just enough reach to make it to a home base or refueling depot, or at least get the vehicle to a safe stop on terra firma. Switching to the reserve is automatic in the event the main tank runs dry.
In the event a vehicle's fuel (both its main tank and reserve) does run out during the course of an adventure, what happens to the vehicle (and the characters inside it) depends largely upon the vehicle (its chassis) and where exactly it is. Most land vehicles will generally start slowing down and come to an eventual stop. Skimmers are an exception; when they run out of fuel their repulsor cuts out, meaning that they immediate drop to the ground, which as likely as not causes a collision and skid (
this counts as an Sideswipe against the Skimmer with an automatic success; see Chapter 9.3 for details). Sea vehicles will start to drift based on any currents the vehicle was experiencing at the time it ran out of fuel. Any submerged submarine will lose ballast control and begin Taking on Water (
see Chapter 9.3). Air vehicles will begin to stall (
see Chapter 9.3), as will any space vehicle located in atmosphere. A space vehicle in the process of re-entry will lose control over the process (
see Chapter 8.3). A space vehicle in planetary orbit will begin an uncontrolled re-entry as soon as its orbit decays (
any occupants will likely run out of life support well before the vehicle actually begins re-entry; see Chapter 12.4.2). Finally, a space vehicle in interplanetary or interstellar space will drift. In the case of interstellar space, the vehicle will drop out of hyperspace and drift. Given the vastness of space, it's unlikely that anyone friendly would chance upon the ship to give the crew some fuel. In scenarios where a space vehicle runs out of fuel, sending a distress call and putting the crew in stasis may be the only viable survival option.
Fuel Efficiency in Normal Situations
A vehicle's
fuel efficiency is a ratio which measures the amount of fuel that is expended by the vehicle over a given distance of travel. In SFRPG, there are three key factors that affect a vehicle's fuel efficiency: the vehicle's base fuel efficiency (which is determined by the engine's Class and may be augmented with certain artifacts), the difficulty of the terrain through which a vehicle is passing relative to other possible terrain types (known, perhaps unsurprisingly, as
terrain difficulty), and the severity of the
weather.
The distance that is considered when determining a vehicle's fuel efficiency (which is called the
navigational unit distance) is solely dependent upon the vehicle's chassis (
see Chapters 6.2.1 and 7.2.1). More specifically, it's dependent upon which of the four general terrain categories the vehicle is designed to operate in: land, sea, air, or space. The navigational unit distance for a vehicle is exactly five times the vehicle's combat range increment (
see Chapter 9.3). For land vehicles, this distance is five kilometers. Sea vehicles use a navigational unit distance of 50 kilometers, while for air vehicles it's 100 kilometers. For space vehicles and starships, the unit distance varies a great deal. In orbital and interlunar space, the increment is 5000 kilometers. In interplanetary space, the increment is one "orbital lane" (
see Chapter 8.3). Fuel efficiency in hyperspace follows its own set of rules as outlined below.
Because of the diversity of vehicles that exist in SFRPG, terrain effects on fuel efficiency are determined using a set of difficulties rather than specific terrain types. This is because a terrain that might be a given difficulty for one type of vehicle might be drastically different for another type of vehicle to negotiate.
Mud is a good example. Most land vehicles might have a tough time negotiating muddy terrain (Difficult, for the sake of argument), but a Skimmer would be able to fly right over it (Extremely Easy), as would most air and space vehicles. Sea vehicles wouldn't be able to negotiate mud at all (Impossible). That's three different difficulty classes all for a single terrain type. The possible terrain difficulties correspond to the categories of difficulty classes listed in
Chapter 1.1, as they also have an effect on the piloting roll the vehicle's pilot must make in order to negotiate the terrain (
this will be discussed in Chapters 8.2, 8.3, and 8.4).
The following table describes the various terrain difficulties and provides a list of terrains which might fit most cases of a particular category of vehicle. This table is meant as a general guide only; GMs are welcome to use whatever terrain difficulty they feel is most appropriate to the situation at hand.
Terrain Difficulty Category Descriptions and Examples| Category Title | Description | Examples |
|---|
| Extremely Easy | Vehicle should have no difficulty negotiating the terrain. | Paved road (land); calm seas with gentle winds (sea); thin air density and gravity below 0.5 gees (air); interstellar space (space). |
|---|
| Very Easy | Vehicle should have minimal difficulty negotiating the terrain. | Bare, flat rock or plains (land); light chop and gentle winds (sea); gravity between 0.5 and 0.8 gees and thin to moderate air density (air); interplanetary space (space). |
|---|
| Easy | Vehicle may have some minor problems negotiating the terrain. | Forested terrain (land); moderate chop and fresh winds (sea); gravity between 0.8 and 1.2 gees with moderate air density (air); high orbit or interlunar space (space). |
|---|
| Moderate | Vehicle may have some minor problems negotiating the terrain even with an experienced pilot. | Sandy terrain (land); heavy chop and gale force winds (sea); gravity between 1.2 and two gees with moderate to thick atmo (air); very low planetary orbit (space). |
|---|
| Difficult | Vehicle can expect problems negotiating the terrain. | Snowy or Icy terrain (land); tropical storm conditions (sea); thick to very thick atmo with gravity between two and four gees (air); asteroid field (space). |
|---|
| Very Difficult | Vehicle can expect problems negotiating the terrain even with an experienced pilot. | Muddy terrain (land); hurricane conditions (sea); very thick atmosphere with gravity between four and six gees (air); tightly packed asteroid field (space). |
|---|
| Extremely Difficult | Vehicle can expect major problems negotiating the terrain even with an experienced pilot. | Liquid terrain (land); severe hurricane conditions or shoals (sea); very thick atmosphere with gravity above six gees (air); vicinity of a neutron star (space). |
|---|
| Impossible | N |
|---|
egotiating the terrain would take a miracle.Lava flow (land); beyond severe hurricane conditions (sea); no atmosphere (air); inside the event horizon of a black hole (space). |
Weather also plays a crucial role in determining a vehicle's fuel efficiency. Adverse weather conditions often force a vehicle's engines to work harder in order to achieve the same level of performance the vehicle sees under calmer conditions. Weather can affect a vehicle's fuel efficiency regardless of which of the four general terrain categories the vehicle is designed to operate in. Even space vehicles operating in space can be affected by different kinds of "space weather" (solar and magnetic storms, etc.), if the GM decides to incorporate such phenomena into their campaign. For purposes of this discussion, only planet-based weather phenomena will be discussed.
There are four categories of weather as far as determining its effects on fuel efficiency: Calm, Light, Heavy and Severe.
Calm weather generally means little to no adverse weather conditions (
land vehicle examples include clear skies, overcast skies with no precipitation, mist, haze or fog).
Light weather refers to weather that has a comparatively minor impact on fuel efficiency (
for sea and air vehicles, overcast skies, mist, haze or fog; land vehicles include light to moderate rain or snow).
Heavy weather refers to weather that has a significant impact on fuel efficiency, though the weather is not generally severe enough to cause damage (
this includes heavy rain or snow, or any kind of precipitation for sea and air vehicles). Finally,
Severe weather is any kind of weather that is capable of causing damage to a vehicle and has a major negative impact on the vehicle's fuel efficiency, regardless of whether or not any damage occurs (
this includes any kind of storm. Earthquakes, while technically not a weather phenomenon, are considered storms for purposes of determining fuel efficiency; see Chapter 8.2 for details on both storms and earthquakes).
Finally, vehicles may be designed to carry more personnel than they would ordinarily by setting up the vehicle such that multiple people share a single berth space. This practice, known as "hot-racking" allows a vehicle to carry more personnel at the cost of some of the vehicle's performance (
for more on hot-racking, see Chapter 6.2). High efficiency engines will see no appreciable effect from hot-racking, but lower efficiency engines do suffer. If a hot-racked vehicle's base fuel efficiency is 50% or less, lower the engine efficiency by 5% (minimum 5%).
The following chart lists the possible fuel efficiencies for any given hour of travel assuming percentage count. The units listed in the chart are in percent fuel loss per unit distance traveled. To read the table, find the vehicle's base fuel efficiency along the top and find the cell that intersects the current terrain difficulty. Four listings are given inside each cell, each one giving a final fuel efficiency based on the current weather type (Calm weather is listed on top, then Light, Heavy, and finally Severe).
For example, a land vehicle with a Class Four engine is traveling in sand when a thunderstorm kicks up. A Class Four engine has a fuel efficiency of twenty percent, and sandy terrain is considered Moderate terrain using the example table listed above. Looking in the cell where these two factors intersect, the fuel efficiencies are 1%/1 for anything from calm to heavy weather. A thunderstorm is considered Severe weather, however, so the bottom listing of 2%/1 will be used. For that hour, the vehicle will use 2% of its fuel per unit distance it travels (five kilometers in this case, since it's a land vehicle). Hopefully it's not going more than 250 kilometers this hour...
Percentage Fuel Consumption based on Engine Efficiency, Terrain and Weather| | Engine Efficiency |
|---|
| Terrain | 5 | 10 | 15 | 20 | 25 | 30 | 35 | 40 | 45 | 50 | 60 | 70 | 80 | 90 | 100 |
|---|
Extremely
Easy | 2%/1
3%/1
3%/1
5%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
2%/1
2%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
2%/1 | 1%/2
1%/1
1%/1
1%/1 | 1%/2
1%/2
1%/2
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/2
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/3
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/3
1%/2 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/3
1%/2 | 1%/5
1%/3
1%/3
1%/2 | 1%/5
1%/5
1%/3
1%/3 | 1%/5
1%/5
1%/5
1%/3 | 1%/10
1%/5
1%/5
1%/3 | 1%/10
1%/10
1%/5
1%/3 | 1%/10
1%/10
1%/5
1%/5 |
|---|
Very
Easy | 3%/1
3%/1
4%/1
5%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
2%/1
3%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
2%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
1%/1 | 1%/2
1%/2
1%/1
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/2
1%/2
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/2
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/3
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/3
1%/2 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/3
1%/2 | 1%/5
1%/5
1%/3
1%/3 | 1%/5
1%/5
1%/3
1%/3 | 1%/5
1%/5
1%/5
1%/3 | 1%/10
1%/5
1%/5
1%/3 | 1%/10
1%/10
1%/5
1%/3 |
|---|
| Easy | 3%/1
3%/1
4%/1
6%/1 | 2%/1
2%/1
2%/1
3%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
2%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
2%/1 | 1%/2
1%/1
1%/1
1%/1 | 1%/2
1%/2
1%/1
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/2
1%/2
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/2
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/2
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/3
1%/2 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/3
1%/2 | 1%/5
1%/5
1%/3
1%/3 | 1%/5
1%/5
1%/3
1%/3 | 1%/5
1%/5
1%/5
1%/3 | 1%/5
1%/5
1%/5
1%/3 |
|---|
| Moderate | 4%/1
4%/1
5%/1
8%/1 | 2%/1
2%/1
3%/1
4%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
2%/1
3%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
2%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
2%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
1%/1 | 1%/2
1%/2
1%/1
1%/1 | 1%/2
1%/2
1%/1
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/2
1%/2
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/2
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/3
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/3
1%/2 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/3
1%/2 | 1%/5
1%/5
1%/3
1%/3 | 1%/5
1%/5
1%/3
1%/3 |
|---|
| Difficult | 6%/1
6%/1
8%/1
11%/1 | 3%/1
3%/1
4%/1
6%/1 | 2%/1
2%/1
3%/1
4%/1 | 1%/1
2%/1
2%/1
3%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
2%/1
2%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
2%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
2%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
1%/1 | 1%/2
1%/1
1%/1
1%/1 | 1%/2
1%/2
1%/1
1%/1 | 1%/2
1%/2
1%/2
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/2
1%/2
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/2
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/3
1%/2 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/3
1%/2 |
|---|
Very
Difficult | 8%/1
9%/1
11%/1
16%/1 | 4%/1
4%/1
5%/1
8%/1 | 3%/1
3%/1
4%/1
5%/1 | 2%/1
2%/1
3%/1
4%/1 | 2%/1
2%/1
2%/1
3%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
2%/1
3%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
2%/1
2%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
2%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
2%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
2%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
1%/1 | 1%/2
1%/2
1%/1
1%/1 | 1%/2
1%/2
1%/1
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/2
1%/2
1%/1 | 1%/3
1%/3
1%/2
1%/1 |
|---|
Extremely
Difficult | 13%/1
15%/1
18%/1
27%/1 | 7%/1
7%/1
9%/1
13%/1 | 4%/1
5%/1
6%/1
9%/1 | 3%/1
4%/1
4%/1
7%/1 | 3%/1
3%/1
4%/1
5%/1 | 2%/1
2%/1
3%/1
4%/1 | 2%/1
2%/1
3%/1
4%/1 | 2%/1
2%/1
2%/1
3%/1 | 1%/1
2%/1
2%/1
3%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
2%/1
3%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
2%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
2%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
2%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
1%/1 | 1%/1
1%/1
1%/1
1%/1 |
|---|
| Impossible | 4 |
|---|
0%/1
44%/1
53%/1
80%/120%/1
22%/1
27%/1
40%/1 | 13%/1
15%/1
18%/1
27%/1 | 10%/1
11%/1
13%/1
20%/1 | 8%/1
9%/1
11%/1
16%/1 | 7%/1
7%/1
9%/1
13%/1 | 6%/1
6%/1
8%/1
11%/1 | 5%/1
6%/1
7%/1
10%/1 | 4%/1
5%/1
6%/1
9%/1 | 4%/1
4%/1
5%/1
8%/1 | 3%/1
4%/1
4%/1
7%/1 | 3%/1
3%/1
4%/1
6%/1 | 3%/1
3%/1
3%/1
5%/1 | 2%/1
2%/1
3%/1
4%/1 | 2%/1
2%/1
3%/1
4%/1 |
This table may still be used if real count is being utilized. To do this, simply convert the percentage to a decimal amount, and multiply that result by ten.
In the example above the chart, the vehicle's fuel efficiency was determined to be 2%/1. If real count is being used, the conversion process yields a final result of 0.2/1 (2% = .02, .02 * 10 = .2). In this case, the vehicle's fuel efficiency would be .2 cubic meters of fuel every five kilometers. That does reduce to .04 cubic meters per kilometer, though whether or not a GM will perform the reduction is entirely up to them.Fuel Efficiency in Hyperspace
Traveling through hyperspace (reserved for starships or space vehicles equipped with a Superphotonic Engine) uses a unique table for fuel efficiency, though the actual changes between determining fuel efficiency in hyperspace travel and normal situations is fairly minimal. Of the factors that affect fuel efficiency in normal situations, only the starship's engine has an effect; the terrain difficulty for interstellar space is (usually) extremely easy to negotiate and the weather is (usually) calm. It takes more energy to move a vehicle through hyperspace than it does to move in normal space, and a substantially larger unit distance is also involved in general, which is why a unique table is needed.
For all vehicles traveling at faster-than-light speeds, the navigational unit distance is one hyperspace coordinate. This is true regardless of the vehicle's chassis; a hyperspace-capable shuttle and an armored battlecruiser both use one hyperspace coordinate as their navigational unit distance. There are multiple methods of determining the exact distance a vehicle will travel between points in hyperspace; these methods are discussed in
Chapter 8.4.
The following chart lists the possible fuel efficiencies for any given hour of travel assuming starship fuel counts. To read the table, find the vehicle's base fuel efficiency along the side and find the cell that intersects the desired fuel efficiency count column. There are two columns for real count, and one for simple count. The first column lists the real count distance (in hyperspace coordinates) a vehicle can expect to travel on a single cubic meter of fuel. The second column lists the real count amount of fuel a vehicle can expect to expend in order to travel a single hyperspace coordinate. Finally, the third column lists the maximum simple count distance (in hyperspace coordinates) a vehicle can travel on a single fuel unit. Note that in the case of simple count it is possible that a vehicle will reach its destination coordinate and still have movement available to it; the extra movement points are lost as soon as the vehicle leaves hyperspace. Hot-racking also applies to vehicles in hyperspace; if the vehicle's efficiency is 50% or less lower the base efficiency by 5%.
For example, a starship with a Class Five engine is travelling a distance of eighteen hyperspace coordinates. A Class Five engine has an efficiency of 25%. Since we know the distance travelled, we can calculate the amount of fuel used via the second column. In this case, the ship will expend 2.88 m3 of fuel (0.16 * 18 = 2.88. If, however, the GM was using simple count, we'd look up the distance the ship could travel on a single fuel unit in the third column. With 25% efficiency, the ship can move 5 hyperspace coordinates before expending a single fuel point. Since it's moving 18 hyperspace coordinates, we know it will expend four fuel units to get to its destination (18/5 = 3.6, rounds up to four). In this case, it could in theory move two additional hyperspace coordinates, but because it's reached its destination, those extra movement points are lost.Hyperspace Fuel Efficiencies| Engine Efficiency | Distance per m3
(Real Count) | Fuel used per coordinate
(Real Count) | Maximum Distance per fuel unit
(Simple Count) |
|---|
| 5% | 2.083 | 0.48 | 1 |
|---|
| 10% | 2.632 | 0.38 | 2 |
|---|
| 15% | 3.448 | 0.29 | 3 |
|---|
| 20% | 4.762 | 0.21 | 4 |
|---|
| 25% | 6.250 | 0.16 | 5 |
|---|
| 30% | 9.091 | 0.11 | 6 |
|---|
| 35% | 11.111 | 0.09 | 7 |
|---|
| 40% | 14.286 | 0.07 | 8 |
|---|
| 45% | 16.667 | 0.06 | 9 |
|---|
| 50% | 20.000 | 0.05 | 10 |
|---|
| 60% | 25.000 | 0.04 | 12 |
|---|
| 70% | 33.333 | 0.03 | 14 |
|---|
| 80% | 50.000 | 0.02 | 16 |
|---|
| 90% | 100.000 | 0.01 | 18 |
|---|
| 100% | 2 |
|---|
00.0000.005 | 20 |
In may be that a GM wants to include a situation where the basic assumptions about the terrain and weather (extremely easy terrain; calm weather) aren't true. In that case, the GM may simply use the numbers for a lower engine efficiency. A good rule of thumb is to go down one level for the first level increase in terrain difficulty, and down an additional level for each two levels after that (go down one level for very easy terrain, two levels for moderate terrain, three levels for very difficult terrain, and four levels for impossible terrain). The same can be applied for increasingly severe space weather (down one level for Calm, two levels for Severe). The 5% level is the lowest possible level; if the 5% level is already indicated and further decreases are also indicated, ignore them.
Finally, it may be that a GM wants to use percentage count as their means of keeping track of fuel consumption in hyperspace. Percentage count is not recommended for hyperspace, as the ship will use up its fuel a lot faster with percentage count and the math is more difficult; the possibility is only presented here for those groups who like to be challenged a great deal. To make the conversion, begin with the indicated value in the second column. Divide the result by five, convert the result to a percentage, and round any decimal remainder up. This will give a servicable percentage of fuel consumed per hyperspace coordinate travelled.
For example, if a percentage count were desired for the ship with the Class Five engine (25% efficiency), a ship would use up 4% of its fuel for every coordinate it travelled (0.16 / 5 = .032, .032 = 3.2%, rounds up to 4%). Assuming it had full tanks when it left its destination, it could travel 25 hyperspace coordinates before it ran out of gas.
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