Build:Regenerative Force Fields
9.17 Regenerative Force Fields
Cost: Varies
Available: 2374
Starfleet’s latest advance in the field of defense technology is the regenerative force field, also known as regenerative shielding. Its name derives from the fact that it has the ability to “repair” itself when damaged. A regenerative force field siphons off some of the incoming energy of an attack into a field storage chamber, then uses that energy to recharge and strengthen itself, making it very difficult to ever completely collapse it.
When a regenerative force field loses any Protection to an attack (or other cause), beginning in the next round each shield can “regenerate” points of the lost Protection until its Protection is once again at full strength (it cannot regenerate additional Protection beyond its full normal Protection). The number of points it regenerates each round depends upon the type of shield regenerator purchased (see accompanying table), but cannot exceed the number of points of Protection lost to previous attacks. For example, if a Class 4 shield regenerator suffers 30 points of damage from an attack, it can only regenerate 30 points, not 50. However, if previous attacks during that combat had caused it 278 points of damage, it could keep regenerating at the rate of 50 Protection per round until it was back at full strength, even if the prior round’s attack only did 30 points of damage. Regeneration, and the associated Power cost, occurs per shield, not for all shields at once.
Regeneration ceases to occur if the shield collapses; however, all regenerative force fields automatically have Recharge rates of only 20 seconds (so there’s no need to buy a separate recharge system). Shield generators, grids, and subspace field distortion amplifiers are bought as normal. Normal shield rules otherwise apply. A regenerative force field can only regenerate up to its full normal Protection.
To buy regenerative shielding for a ship, you must buy it for each of the ship’s four main shield generators (you cannot build a ship which has, say, one regenerative shield and three normal shields). The backup shield generators automatically tie into the regeneration system; players do not have to purchase separate regenerators for them.
At present, regenerative force fields are found on only the most advanced vessels, such as the USS Prometheus. Due to technical and economic reasons, it will likely take some time before substantial numbers of Starfleet vessels are equipped with them.
Table
| Regenerator | SU | Protection per Round |
|---|---|---|
| Class 1 | 3 x Size | 20 points |
| Class 2 | 4 x Size | 30 points |
| Class 3 | 5 x Size | 40 points |
| Class 4 | 6 x Size | 50 points |