SCG Frank Tallman
03 Jan 2022Green Delta 11
3 January 3308
0830 Galactic Standard Time
Preae Thaa NO-I d9-50 5
It is day 4 since departing the bubble of humanity. So far things are going well for my new to me Imperial Clipper, the SCG Frank Tallman. For me the Frank is a departure from my normal exploration model. In the past I have used an Anaconda with long legs. Sixty plus light year jump range was the normal. I could take just about anything with me. SRV and fighter hangers, extra AFMU, repair limpets, extra fuel tank, and an A rated fuel scoop. That's the pros.
Here is the biggest con. Lack of maneuverability. When neutron jumping, if I have to roll and pitch to line myself up with the neutron jet, it takes time. When I get to a planet, I launch a fighter to get down low and look for bio and geo. I do this because the big ship is hard to maneuver in close proximity to the ground. Also the inertia of the big craft is an issue as well. That is where the fighter comes in to play.
Then I need a large area to ground the ship. As far as aesthetics is concerned, it looks good from above but it is very boxy looking when viewed from below. I decided that If I was going into the film business then I needed something that looks pretty.
So, an Imperial ship would fit the bill. They do look good. I bought this one. It was very used and the interior was gutted. Since I was not going to be flying high flaluten Imperials around, I could outfit is with the latest holo cameras and make accommodation to carry around film crews.
For that I gave up 12 light years of jump range.
But....... I got a surprise. I feel like I am getting to where I want to be faster. Neutron jumping goes quick as it takes no time to line up with the jet. The pitch and roll rate is amazing compared to the Anaconda. I believe that I have shorter FSD cool down rates, but I have yet to actually time my cool downs. I got an A rated fuel scoop and an extra 16 tons of fuel capacity. I make more jumps and scoop faster with very little heat. I very rarely see greater that 67% during scooping.
Once I get down to a planets surface, I can explore at 400 plus kph in normal thrust and 530 kph in boost. Then, I can get down low and scout out interesting things and land this medium ship in a much smaller space than I am normally used to.
I still carry a large AFMU and a repair limpet controller. I don't usually like to be this far from civilization with out an extra AFMU. If it should fail I could limp to the nearest megaship. I only lose the ability to neutron jump.
So, the bottom line is that I have a cool looking ship that is fun to fly.