Here in the US there's a series on cable TV called "Selling Yachts".
Guess what it's about?
Anyway, it's on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXYMmZ5KjJI
Might give some ideas about design, features, and so on. They're not
quite up to the 100 servants mentioned by the OP, but it's a start.
Also I have no idea whether the show is real, fake, scripted, or fantasy.
Thank you for that. Fascinating. Just getting into it now.
As far as I've watched, and with my extremely limited experience, it seems real to me.
My probably over-active mind came up with a couple of extra points:
1) Security. Anyone rich enough to afford something like this is going
to be worrying about their security. Especially if they are some sort of
politically powerful Noble (as seems common enough in the TU). One might
take this aspect of things into account when designing such a ship.
Well, yes and no. With my Hampshire-class, I added a ventral and dorsal turret (although it could technically have had much more) as to have nothing seemed silly and inviting trouble as you suggest. on the other hand the Count was based in Core sector where piracy probably isn't a huge problem and *had* he made a trip to the Spinward Marches, say, might have upgraded that.
2) What's the point? AFAICT there are three reasons to be on such a craft:
2A) Habitation
If you're going to live on a luxury spaceship (or, RL, water) vessel, then what's
the point? It would be a lot cheaper to buy a house somewhere and live there,
plus you don't have to worry about sinking / hull puncture / piracy / system
failure / whatever. Also it's much easier to resupply if you're on a planet.
(You could consider that a physical presence on a planet might be *less*
secure than being on a spaceship, so you could run with that idea.)
well you could easily argue the same for present day Earth, and yet the millionaires still bother. As the show says near the start, these are the "manor houses of Europe" now.
It's not so much that you want it as your main dwelling, but if you're going to be 'away' (travelling, based away from home, entertaining in foreign parts - all even more relevant in the Traveller universe with travel times so lengthy - you're going to want the comforts of home with you.
2B) Getaway
I can see this, for a week or so at a time. But unless you have guests along,
you're probably going to get bored. Again, much easier to find a house someplace.
Unless you happen to like 360 degree views of ocean. You might. But in a spaceship,
you don't even have that. And at the tech levels of the TU, you could easily set
up your bedroom with full-spherical star views, if that's what you're into.
But that's the point of having a yacht. When you get bored, you move on. I assumed the Hampshire could land on a planet (hence a lido deck on top where you could take in the sun - although you might want to check your spectral classification and distance first). But I think you're also underestimating the beauty of, say, being in orbit around an attractive (non-rockball) world (q.v. any footage taken from the ISS etc) or 'anchored' off nebulas etc. And there's nothing quite like *really* being there rather than just seeing something recorded/piped in. Plus of course, what an opportunity to 'moor' off a fabled spacestation with THE casino to gamble in; or zero-g spa; or...
2C) Go places
Again, I can see this. Orbiting Jupiter or Saturn, never-ending views. You still
Exactly...
have the same problems with security / hull puncture / piracy / system failure /
resupply / whatever. Of course you can put a Jump drive onto the hypothetical yacht,
and go see the sights of some other system. But you still have the same problem with
failures etc, and of resupply.
All these problems also exist on the ground. (cf groundside mansions being attacked in The Traveller Adventure). Some might be *easier* to deal with in space. (OK, maybe hull puncture wouldn't be a problem - unless of course you're on a world where your fief is in an unbreathable atmosphere.
And boredom.
Nope, nope, nope. While I'm not saying the megarich don't get bored, they'll have their interests (external or internal to the ship), they'll have their drives and goals, they'll have problems that need dealing with, they'll have life to contend with. having spent some time at sea I can see where you might think certain passages might be boring, but we made our fun, entertained ourselves, trained, worked (and the rich may well be working too... how else do they get their multimillions?! [1]). Two years and I can honestly say there was never a dull moment. Jumpspace does present its own problems in this regard but I'm pretty sure that given how established it is, this will be 'old hat'. If not, there's always drugs... ;-)
Counter-points welcome, and I hope this sparks some ideas.
Good thoughts, but you probably fail to take into my account my lifetime dream to own an RV and be able to 'get away' or take it down to the beach (a mile from home) and sit and write with glorious views. [2]
[1] Although I will admit that my adventure was centred around a dilettante (not a job in sight) second son borrowing father's yacht for a while - hence the adventure...
[2] I know *exactly* where this dream comes from: for two years I lived in the USA as a 7-9 year old while my Dad was on a naval exchange. Three times we went on what I think Americans would call a 'road trip'. i.e. a serious holiday. From Virginia Beach a two week trip up to Niagara Falls and Canada, a two week trip down to Florida and the Everglades and Disney, and a four week trip out west to the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone - via a lot of points in between. Didn't quite make the west coast as my parents worked out we'd have been another week and might have killed each other - four kids under 8! We did this in Ford (Cortina?) Estate towing a trailer that folded out into a tent affair above it. My parents sleeping on one folded out 'wing', my siblings on the other, myself down in the 'well'. And a fair bit of faff to set up at the end of a long day of travelling. Meanwhile great Winnebagos would roll up next to us with the coffee already on...
Unfortunately, my wife has NO hankering after anything similar. Argues it's much more sensible to spend money on a really nice apartment for a week or two than have a lot of money sitting around on the drive for much of the year unused. She has a point. Her other argument is that in such a confined space we'd kill each other... she may have another point (it would be me that wouldn't make it out alive). Plus, here in the UK, there's nowhere really far enough away to make it worthwhile and she's not keen on driving on the Continent. (Not to mention that's just become a lot harder).
