Build:Escape Pods

5.16 Escape Pods

Cost: 1 SU for 20 4-person pods, additional 1 SU to add 1-4 people per pod

(Average quantity (not SU cost) of [Size + 1] x 20 for Size 4 and above)

In the event that a ship is about to be destroyed or must be abandoned, the crew and passengers make their way to the escape pods. Located along both sides of the hull of the saucer section and other appropriate areas, escape pods are ejected from the ship upon user command, or automatically, once the ship’s computer detects imminent destruction with no potential passengers. They are considered Size 1 (with 20 SUs) and have a resistance of 4 (with no shields).

A standard pod comes equipped with the following: life support for a total of 86-person days (divided by the number of passengers), an impulse engine sufficient to propel the pod at .1c (or equivalent, depending upon era) for up to 24 hours (allowing the pod to land on and take off from planetary surfaces), survival gear, acceleration couches, an inertial dampening field (when appropriate) and a (usually subspace) radio beacon. They are atmosphere-capable. Also, many pods have docking ports, allowing them to join together to form large ‘clusters.’ (Clusters separate before entering an atmosphere.) Twenty percent of the pods have the special docking ports necessary to form clusters.

A starship of Size 4 or larger normally carries a number of pods equal to its (Size + 1) x 20, though Starfleet mandates that there be enough pods for all crew and passengers, if appropriate to the ship’s mission (smaller vessels may have to make due with less pods, or none at all).

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