"hot-loading" The Kearny-Fuchida Drive

[rimp]

Like the title says, I recently finished the novel Warrior: En Garde where the heroes had to "hot-load" their jump drive to jump out of a system before the enemy was able to intercept them. I was wondering for a campaign of conquering multiple systems if this could be done once or twice a game and if there are any tables about the possibilities of succeeding and the damage cause by a failure.

[theothersarah]

Strategic Operations has rules for the use and recharge of jump drives starting on page 86. There's a limit to how fast you can recharge a drive without risking damaging it. If you use the ship's reactor, a recharge station, or a lithium-fusion battery to charge it faster than that, you have to roll to see what damage (if any) this causes.

[Moonsword]

Or the sail.  With a sufficiently bright star, the sail can actually damage the drive, too, if you don't step the input down.

[Gryphon]

Can you decide to NOT step the input down, but instead split it between a jump drives capacitors and a LFB set up? Maybe partial charge the batteries over a few bright stars while charging the drove at the same time. Save on some fuel expenses, and maybe a little bit of time?

Is this even worth doing?

[theothersarah]

Can you decide to NOT step the input down, but instead split it between a jump drives capacitors and a LFB set up? Maybe partial charge the batteries over a few bright stars while charging the drove at the same time. Save on some fuel expenses, and maybe a little bit of time?

Is this even worth doing?

The rules in StratOps seem to say that the sail can only charge one thing at a time.

[BritMech]

The rules in StratOps seem to say that the sail can only charge one thing at a time.

Edit: Bah. Tricksy wording further on.

Turns out that you can charge two things at the same time, but only by using two separate sources. So you use the Sail to charge one, and something else (engine, external feed) to charge the other.

A unit with an LF battery in addition to its K-F core may use its jump sail to charge one device, and its power plant (or a direct cable connection to a recharge station) the other.

[VhenRa]

Technically a Recharge Station can charge both. One via beamed power into the sail and the 2nd via cable connection.

[cray]

Can you decide to NOT step the input down, but instead split it between a jump drives capacitors and a LFB set up?

Nope. One power source goes to one power storage system. The (convoluted) wording BritMech cited is meant to say just that for purposes of simplifying the game (or game writing, anyway). Splitting one overloaded power source just opens too many caveats and clauses in all the other recharging rules.

Or the sail.  With a sufficiently bright star, the sail can actually damage the drive, too, if you don't step the input down.

+1. Even in DropShips & JumpShips, the quick-charge rules made no distinction between power sources. You could burn out a drive from quick charging it by sail just as easily as the fusion engine.

[Isanova]

I assume a recharge station can charge both at the same time using two cables as well.

[Jackmc]

I assume a recharge station can charge both at the same time using two cables as well.

that then opens up the question of if the js's designers anticpated the possibility and included more than one plug.  If not, it also raises the question about whether or not a second plug can be installed via a refit.

-Jackmc

[cray]

I assume a recharge station can charge both at the same time using two cables as well.

Yes, if it has more than one energy storage battery.