The Babylon Project, Babylon Project, Babylon5, Babylon 5, TBP, Role Playing Game, RPG, Rules Translation, Costs, Fares, LinguAide, Hyperspace, Jump Gates, Beacons,

TBP Rules Supplement - Page 3

These rules are an unofficial supplement to The Babylon Project. A Role Playing Game by Chameleon Eclectic. This setting for this game is based on the Babylon 5 television show by Warner Bros. Please feel free to mail me with any comments, corrections, or changes.
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This page is for rules concerned with Interstellar Commerce and other non-harmful activities.

On other Pages: Grenades and Rapid Fire Weapons
Explosives, Poisons, Drugs, and the Skills associated with them
Telepath Rules, some notes on Technomages
and, Links to Other Rules Sites

Communication

Interstellar communication is handled by government providers over the gate to gate tachyon links that are used for commercial navigation. Due to limited bandwidth most messages are sent in an encrypted text format. Audio packets are also fairly common manner of sending short messages. However, real-time audio and even visual links are possible though exceedingly expensive.

Costs
Text (packet - E-mail): 5 EACr/gate for 50 lines, 5 EACr/gate for each additional 100 lines.
Text (real-time - chat room): 1 EACr/gate for 2 lines (minimum of 25 credits)
Audio (packet): 20 EACr/gate for each 30 seconds
Audio (real-time): 40-60 EACr/gate for each 30 seconds
Video (packet): 1000 EACr/gate for each 30 seconds
Video (real-time): 4000-6000 EACr/gate for each 30 seconds

Beacons and Jump Gates

Many people have asked the question, "WHY are there only a limited number of tacyhon links allowed at each gate?" Three main reasons:
1) Interference: Tacyhon beam generators are located in realspace, and must 'punch through' into hyperspace. While this doesn't require a physical opening like a jump gate, it does create signnificant interferce with other tachyon generators in the area. Balancing this interfernce is one of the keys to gate and beacon design. Note: it is actually this combined interference pattern that creates the 'local omnidirectional signal that ships use for holding patterns in hyperspace. This holding zone is necessary, to keep incoming traffic from ramming outgoing traffic.
2) Obstacles: Hyperspace is not entirely empty. There are dangerous currents, eddies, and other space effects that are exceedingly dangerous to passing ships. If the path is not usable, then there is no point in building it.
3) Distance: Current regulations in most of known space require that civilianships stay within 48 hours of a jumpgate, so that they have a reasonable chance of reaching a gate before the other engine fails. This is similar to the US Federal Avaiation Administration's (FAA) requirements for ETOPS (Extended Twin engine OPeration over water {?I think?}) which sets maximum over water time based on primarily on plane type. Given this type of regulation only faster multiple engine military craft use longer routes, so they are not normally set up unless there are significant savings. For example the Centauri Prime - Coutari route saves 3 full jumps.

"DO ships have to leave jumpspace as they go from beacon to beacon? Normally the answer is no. If a ship is passing between two jump links that share the SAME beacon then they do not have to go into normal space, they can re-orient in the zone create by the 'local omni-directional beacon'. However if they are in a multigate system and wish to change beacons they must conduct that transition in realspace (which takes about 12 hours). For example, A ship heading from Markab to Epsilon would have to exit hyperspace at the Altair Left Gate and the transit in normal space to the Altair Right Gate where they could then re-enter hyperspace for their trip to Epsilon. If the same ship were heading from Markab to Sirius it could re-orient in the local hyperspace zone for the Altair Left Gate, and proceed directly Sirius without entering normal space.

Shipping

Commercial shipping is he backbone of any economy, and the presence of the highly efficient jumpgate system makes it relatively affordable. Shipping a standardized container massing up to 10 tons(metric) will cost Cr 2,000/gate. However, this does not include boost or landing costs for going through gravity wells. Boosting a container up from a 1G planet will cost about Cr 10,000. Landing the standard container at 1G costs about Cr 2,000. Taxes, docking fees, and other licensing requirement will general consume about an additional 10% of the base cost.

Example: To ship a standard container from Earth to the Babylon Station would cost Cr 10,000 to boost and Cr 8,000 to ship for a total cost of Cr 18,000. The 10% for fees brings this total to Cr 19,800. Or about one credit per kilogram.

By now many players are saying "Wait, I only want to ship a package not a container". The standard rule of thumb to use here is that interstellar shipping costs are about a one tenth of the cost of handling the package. Thus sending a one kilogram package to B5 would cost the proverbial man on the street 10 Credits. Express mail or special handling requirement can drive this cost even higher.

Other players are probably also saying "You're not going to put ME in a container" and they are right. While containers are sealed against vacuum, there is no fresh air supply in there. Passenger costs are quite high, because passengers require living space, air, and food along the way. Basic Accommodations will cost about 300Cr/gate, with luxury accommodation costing even more. Boost costs from a 1G world will cost about 250Cr, while landing costs will be about 130Cr. Again add 10% surcharge for taxes and other fees. Example: To get a person from Earth to B5 would cost Cr 250 to boost and Cr 1200 to 'ship'. Yielding 1450 + 10%(145) for a total cost of 1,595 Cr (one-way).

LinguaAide

Due to the untimely demise of our competitor, XenoTrans, we are now proud to announce that:
LinguaAide is now the official translation system for all major Earth Alliance Corporations.

All LinguaAide Systems come in a basic PDA shell, and are able to translate English and one other major race's language [Centauri, Narn, Minbari]. And each system may be upgraded with ANY number of additional language chips. In addition each LinguaAide system will also be equipped with a FREE Markab translation chip while supplies last.

Processing Types

LinguaAide Systems come in two basic processing types:
Real-Time Systems: Are for your basic day to day use in having conversations in person or over any type of video or audio link.
Background Systems: Are optimized for bulk translation of large numbers of incoming documents. Your database management will be greatly simplified by using only one language.

Translation Levels

LinguaAide systems come at various levels of quality and complexity for your convenience.

Casual: Casual use systems are designed to cover anything you need to have conversations with your friends, or get around in strange towns. Guaranteed to produce inoffensive translations at all times regardless of how you may be cursing in your native tongue.

Special cues on the Narn chip will prevent you from accidentally committing terminal heresy by translating the book of G'Quon or other religious texts. This safety mechanism has been officially approved by the Third Circle of the Kha'Ri. If you trade in your potentially dangerous XenoTrans product we will be happy to knock 10% of the purchase price of any LinguaAide system.

Business: Business use systems are designed to allow you to pick up on those subtleties you need for your high level negotiations. Subtle verbal clues are brought to your attention. And when used with a camera or VidLink interpretation of non-verbal cues (i.e. facial expressions) is also available. Idiom is automatically translated to the nearest comparable phrase.

Technical: Technical systems contain the full business systems, plus additional large databases of terms and conversions to avoid confusion across measurement systems.

Legal: Our most complete and powerful translation system, designed to handle conversions of contracts and other legal documents. Ambiguities are flagged so that they may be removed. It would of course be completely unethical to deliberately leave ambiguous language that worked in your favor in a contract. However, some lawyers have been known to try this. Be safe, LinguaAide will prevent you from being tricked this way.

The Legal package is also designed to be directly compatible with our Judicial 'Expert System' package JudicAide.

LinguAide Price List (in EACr)
Processing Type Additional Lang.
Real Time Background Major League
Casual 500 250 200 350
Business 1000 500 300 600
Technical 1250 750 500 800
Legal 2000 1200 1000 1500
All prices are FOB Earth. Prices may be slightly higher in outlying systems. Special Guarantees for accuracy are given with the purchase of Technical and Legal systems. See your local LinguaAide retailer for details.

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Millennium's End and Psychosis are trademarks of Chameleon Eclectic Entertainment, Inc. Fields of Honor and The Last Crusade are trademarks of Pinnacle Entertainment Group. The Millennium's End and Psychosis logos and associated graphics are copyright 1993-1997 Chameleon Eclectic Entertainment, Inc., and are used here with permission. The Fields of Honor and The Last Crusade logos and associated graphics are copyright 1993-1996 Pinnacle Entertainment Group, and are used here with permission. The Babylon Project is produced by WireFrame Productions, Inc. under license from Warner Bros., and is co-published by Chameleon Eclectic Entertainment, Inc. BABYLON 5 names, characters, and all related indicia are trademarks of Warner Bros.