Vehicles of the Distant Fringe

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A listing of some of the more common vehicles found within the Distant Fringe region.

Details / Specifications

Each vehicle has a basic description. This serves to give a general impression of its construction and performance. Details such as the internal layout are representative only – alternative layouts are very common.

  • The vehicles's dimensions are given and are used to provide a very general outline of its mass in starship displacement tons ("dTons"): this can also be used to determine how much internal space a vehicle uses if it is carried within a starship. Different versions of the same general type of vehicle will have different physical characteristics.
  • Performance details are generic: different models of of the same vehicle will have different characteristics. Different manufacturers will also compete with one another to produce the model with the "best" performance figures, often trading off aspects of the handling to gain advantages in performance or vice versa.
  • Internal cargo storage can differ greatly between different models of the same vehicle. Manufacturers often emphasise the larger cargo capacity of their particular model as a selling point.

Power and Fuel

Each vehicle has a power plant and carries a supply of fuel. Steam vehicles utilise high pressure boilers which heat water to generate steam, which in turn drives their machinery. Most vehicles use internal combustion power plants using hydrocarbon fuel (typically gasoline or ethanol). More advanced vehicles may use electrical batteries or fuel cells.

Cost

The listed cost for a vehicle represents the retail price from new: in some cases mass production of a vehicle and corporate marketing strategies create an artificially low price. Previously owned vehicles are likely to be significantly cheaper but are also likely to have minor faults, reliability issues, or perform less efficiently than a brand new model.

Pre-Gravitic Vehicles

Self-propelled vehicles manufactured between TL 3 and TL 8.

Generic Civilian Vehicles

Everyday personal transportation vehicles of the type owned by ordinary people.

Wheeled Light Vehicles

Wheeled Ground Cars

Wheeled Light Cargo Vehicles

Generic Commercial Vehicles

Wheeled vehicles make up a very large proportion of readily available commercial transport assets.

Wheeled Transport Vehicles

Wheeled Service Vehicles

Generic Rail Vehicles

Many worlds within the Distant Fringe use railroad networks as an intrinsic part of their domestic infrastructure. Railroads are descended from designs pioneered on old Terra and share many characteristics with their ancient ancestors.

The gauge (the distance between the inner faces of the two rails) for railroad networks within the Distant Fringe is generally 1.5m and most examples of railroad locomotives and rolling stock are built to match that standard. Some worlds, of course, use their own unique systems. For the most part, locomotives and rolling stock that are transported between worlds are able to utilise local rail networks without needing significant adjustment to the vehicle's suspension.

Steam-Powered Locomotives

Hybrid-Electric Locomotives

Rolling Stock

Generic Maglev Vehicles

Many worlds within the Distant Fringe use maglev networks as an intrinsic part of their domestic infrastructure. Maglev is a transport system in which trains glide above a guideway (most typically a square section box beam made of cast concrete), supported by magnetic repulsion and propelled by linear motors. The beam contains a magnetized coil which repels large magnets located in the train's undercarriage, allowing it to levitate a few centimeters above the guideway.

Once the train is levitated, power is supplied to the coils within the beam to create a system of magnetic fields. The fields interact with the linear motors built into the maglev vehicle (typically within trucks mounted at either end of the vehicle) and move it along the guideway.

The gauge (the width of the guideway beam) for maglev networks within the Distant Fringe is generally 2m and most examples of maglev vehicles are built to match that standard. Some worlds, of course, use their own unique systems. For the most part, maglev vehicles that are transported between worlds are able to utilise local guideway networks without needing significant adjustment to their suspension systems.

End Units

Rolling Stock

Grav Vehicles

No information yet available.

History / Background

See also Ships of the Distant Fringe.

References & Contributors / Sources

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