Morning from Roy, WA. Alex,

> On 08/21/2020 3:10 AM Alex Goodwin <xxxxxx@multitel.com.au> wrote:
>
>
>On 21/8/20 8:46 am, Thomas RUX wrote:
>> Hi Alex,
>>
>>> On 08/19/2020 8:11 AM Alex Goodwin <xxxxxx@multitel.com.au> wrote:
>> Snip
 >> Tom,
>>>
>>> Are you talking about before, or after, The Goofy Holler?
>>>
>>> Beforehand, it was Drake's cheapness - it worked out cheaper (to tune of
>>> 10k per parsec of fuel), and left less paperwork for Lannie Plod to
>>> follow up in pursuit of sneaky buggers.  Drake had the fuel for 2x J-2
>>> aboard, and damned if he wouldn't use it.
>>>
>>> After the Holler, the only choice El Capitane, Badass Badass-Moustache,
> >> et al HAD was wilderness refuelling (and they were very happy for their
>>> organic fuel refiners) - IIRC, Drake was the first sophont to set foot
>>> on four separate worlds.  They rapidly evolved a marked preference for
>>> ocean refuelling (power failure had far less interesting consequences),
>>> but that was contingent on detecting terrestrial planets to refuel _from_.
>>>
>>> After all, they were trying to get home, not survey each system. If
>>> Badass-Moustache had rumbled a gas or ice giant and no terrestrial
>>> worlds, then so be it, they're skimming (Rosa's Pilot (spacecraft) skill
>>> of 1, 2 or 3 (depending on when they were), her DEX mod of -1, and a -1
>>> DM to Pilot checks from ship quirk made this less than routine).
> >> <snip>
> >>
> >> Alex
>> I believe that I am thinking about the four landing after Goofy Holler.
>>
>> When Das Boote drops out of Jump Space in a system that is not in the ship's databanks, Badass-Moustache or some other member of the crew begins to examine and record the information being gathered by the sensors filling in the UPP. In CT LBB 3 1981 the information gathered is any Starports, Naval Bases, Scout Bases, Gas Giants, and planetary information consisting of size, atmosphere, hydrographics, population, government, law level, and TL. The gathering, examining, and recording the data is in my book doing a survey
>>
>> Until someone lands on a world and records their landing site there is no starport and no provision made for any ship landings which in CT LBB 3 1977 and 1981 would be marked as Type X. After Das Boote lands and Badass-Moustache would update the data file with the landing coordinates upgrading the Starport code to E. CT LBB 6 Scouts 1983 is when the description for Starport Type X went from no starport and no provision made for any ship landings to no starport and generally a red travel zone.
>>
>> What code is used to initially indicate that there are no starports in the system?
>>
>> What code is used if Das Boote does not land for fuel, repairs, and or maintenance on any planet in the system?

snip

>
> Actually, if you'll check the session writeups, Badass-Moustache
> preferred to case the joint from interstellar range, to point of
> verifying the existence of a fuel source.
>
> They often didn't get as far as identifying a mainworld - the fuel
> source was the big one.  Under MGT2 rules, with how they did it,
> rumbling a gas or ice giant took (IIRC) succeeding by 2 on their sensors
> roll to case the joint, while rumbling a terrestrial planet with surface
> water took succeeding by 4 or more (both on 2d6) against a difficulty of
> 8.  As the base roll already took 2d6 days (and you couldn't stack the
> effect of multiple rolls), Badass-Moustache wasn't willing to trade more
> time for difficulty reduction.
>
> If there's genuinely sod-all data either way, ? would seem to be the
> appropriate code.  Especially where the Boatload O' Lunatics only
> detected a gas or ice giant, jumped to it, refuelled, then set up to
> scan the next system along.

Regardless of the distance that Badass-Moustache conducted the scan of a system the act of gathering, examining, and adding the information to the navigational data base is doing a survey.

Unfortunately, I checked out MgT CRB 2e World and Universe Creation a while back which resulted in my not being able to follow the overview of how the scan was conducted. I did go back and start to review the chapter and I ran into a problem with gas giants. On PDF p. 225 is this portion of text:

"Gas giants are relatively common. As indicated on the system contents table, roll 10+ for a gas giant not to be present in the system. If one is present, mark the system hex in accordance with the world format."

I'm not able figure out what page "the system contents table" is on.

MgT CRB 2e p. 225 has the same list of ports as CT LBB 3 does and I would use the port code of X at the interstellar range. Once Das Boote dropped into the system the scanners would still be collecting data and IIRC Badass-Moustache still reviewed the data. If the data did not indicate the presence of a landing beacon or the crew did not land on any planets the starport code would be X. If the merry band landed and marked the coordinates or left a beacon then the code would be E.

Tom Rux