Speed of SW fighters

Illuminatus Primus · Post by **Illuminatus Primus** » 2004-05-24 01:22am

Ender wrote:It depends. Remember, some of the old stuff has WW2 fighter planes being faster then X-wings. So the old values shouldn't necessarily be taken as accurate. Plus remember that shields can be reconfigured for better aerodynamics as per AOTCICS. Even if you want to argue about wheter all TIEs have shields or just those 4 in ANH, there is still possibly the presence of some kind of navigational deflector screen (which would explain all instances we see, though I still think shields are there so nyah) whish is quite sensible when you consider the impact of a relativistic micrometeroite. They could be used to form a more aerodynaic shape in the atmosphere for the fighters.

I multiplied some of the WoTC max atmospheric speed stats by ten to get more ICS order of magnitude values; it keeps the relative ratios intended between the various craft, while making it unreasonable. That was just my guessestimate method though.

nightmare · Post by **nightmare** » 2004-05-24 03:11pm

My take on the subsonic WEG fighter numbers is that they are repulsordrive limits which have always seemed to be subsonic for some reason.

For example, the Millennium Falcon is listed with a maximum atmospheric speed of 1050 kph, and we know it can reach orbit in at the most a couple minutes from the movies (more like a few tens of seconds..). But this would then be by using the ion engines.

Ender · Post by **Ender** » 2004-05-24 05:39pm

Illuminatus Primus wrote:
Ender wrote:It depends. Remember, some of the old stuff has WW2 fighter planes being faster then X-wings. So the old values shouldn't necessarily be taken as accurate. Plus remember that shields can be reconfigured for better aerodynamics as per AOTCICS. Even if you want to argue about wheter all TIEs have shields or just those 4 in ANH, there is still possibly the presence of some kind of navigational deflector screen (which would explain all instances we see, though I still think shields are there so nyah) whish is quite sensible when you consider the impact of a relativistic micrometeroite. They could be used to form a more aerodynaic shape in the atmosphere for the fighters.
I multiplied some of the WoTC max atmospheric speed stats by ten to get more ICS order of magnitude values; it keeps the relative ratios intended between the various craft, while making it unreasonable. That was just my guessestimate method though.

Not necessarily a bad method, even given the fact that game mechanics are a poor source, there is still some effort into them so values can be derived. Note that Saxton on his TIEs page points out how to convert WEG to actual.

Gil Hamilton · Post by **Gil Hamilton** » 2004-05-24 05:53pm

I'm still a bit iffy about SW fighters moving so quickly through the atmosphere. I mean, how much damage would they do to their environment if they slammed through the air near sea level? Particularly if they did it over a city. It would do more than rattle windows. The shockwave would be incredible. Tank rounds have been known to knock people off their feet by their passage, because they create a vacuum directly behind them which pulls people down (and out of hiding spaces). An X-Wing traveling at Mach 10 would rip the living shit out of it's general environment with the same principle (actually, that is an interesting question involving podracers flying right by Jawas without so much as shaking them).

Ender · Post by **Ender** » 2004-05-24 06:10pm

Gil Hamilton wrote:I'm still a bit iffy about SW fighters moving so quickly through the atmosphere. I mean, how much damage would they do to their environment if they slammed through the air near sea level? Particularly if they did it over a city. It would do more than rattle windows. The shockwave would be incredible. Tank rounds have been known to knock people off their feet by their passage, because they create a vacuum directly behind them which pulls people down (and out of hiding spaces). An X-Wing traveling at Mach 10 would rip the living shit out of it's general environment with the same principle (actually, that is an interesting question involving podracers flying right by Jawas without so much as shaking them).

It got cut after 9/11, but the chase scene in Coruscant was suppossed to have a bus swerve and plow into a building, and the building survived by having a shield.

Further, Padme's apartment complex had a shield and that wasn't necessarily a special feature just because of the occupants.
Tatooine's Ghost talks about the Flacon doing just under burn speed (point where air friction would ignite things), but they avoided settlements and homesteads to avoid property damage.

Not sure if any of that helps.

Gil Hamilton · Post by **Gil Hamilton** » 2004-05-24 06:48pm

Shields may protect buildings on Coruscant, but they wouldn't protect people walking around outside of them or protect buildings on Tatooine, which I'm doubting are shielded.

Maybe I'm over thinking this. It's clear that 700 kph podracers don't cause atmospheric effects when they travel. There should be a pocket of vacuum directly behind the podracer. When Anakin shot by those Jawas in TPM, they merely turned and went "Utinni!", rather than getting caught in the podracers wake and potentially dragged a fair distance, or at the very least knocked down.

In that case, I'd propose a mechanism in podracers that automagically effects the aerodynamics of the craft so that it doesn't ruin the shit of anything that is unfortunate enough to be near by. I'd say that if Anakin can afford to stick one in the back of his podracer, starship builders can put them in the back of their aerospace craft. Just don't ask me how the hell they work.