Playing with Sketchbook Pro: A Class E Starport at Night.

So, I am off line with an HD crash of some sort and stuck on the old mobile device (and when I use the adjective "old" I am not kidding, man is my TL behind the times, but then wealthy I am not).

Still, there are some benefits to having to work with your secondary tech and find out you can do some cool stuff. In this case while I was working on the Banner of the Imperium (seen below) I spent a bit of time doing layer transformations.

The Banner of the Permatic Imperium.

So, while I kept hitting the "Text" and "Transform" drop down choices, I didn't really think about or even notice the one labeled "Time Lapse". Then, it slowly came to me that it let me do animations. Yeah, I know, but mostly I haven't seen to much from the app on neat-o tricks or even much past "here's how to chose brushes" and that is lean too. This means that a lot of what you see here is me learning to mess with and exploit the app. 

To test this time lapse function I for some reason decided to do a Class E Starport. As you may or not know (some folks are intimidated by the sheer mass of data within the Imperial Standards, but be not daunted and you'll find neat stuff) a Class E Starport is about as basic as you can get and still be rated as a Starport. It has no repair abilities, no fuel refined or otherwise and no bases to beg help from if the dreaded Corsair of District 262, the Loin Rampant comes looking for your goods and CrImps. It does have a Beacon though, isn't that nice, so at least you know where you are...or where the port is.

Pretty much exactly what has always been described as, a flat spot of permacrete and a beacon. Lights are a bonus and may represent the presence of an Imperial representative or Peer looking to improve their holding. Look for Customs warehouses and unrefined fuel to show up in the next Term or so, also a new thing at that port, berthing fees. >:)

To begin I threw together the background and slapped a slab on top of that and placed the four Beacon Pylons, which for some obscure and arcane reason are commonly referred to by spacers of all varieties as "barber poles". No one really knows why other than "ancient Terran descended traditions". The posts are externally lit in a flashing spiral red and white alternating pattern, they stand 3 meters tall and are 30 cm or so in diameter.  The interior contains positioning software ISPA telemetry repeaters and loggers, commo gear with surface, orbital and deep space capabilities, a local meteorological instruments and transceivers connected to the local network if any, an avionics package for remote vessel operations, sensor package capable of orbital range (this range can be extended if connected to other sensor grids), and each pylon is powered by a Fusion+ unit rated for 10 standard years. These pylons and the landing pad are ruggedized and can withstand exposure to hostile environments without failure for 2 standard years from initial emplacement.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDVl4eKzHSo&sns=em

This is also the very first YouTube video I have made or uploaded. Oh look, email from YouTube massaging my ego. Like I need that. I just got my name officially on the cover of Greg P. Lee's T5 Cirque Campaign book! Yes, it is official I got my name on the cover of a gaming book. That this book like the first is a Traveller book is just icing on some extremely long awaited and very, very delicious cake! 

And I know I said I would do a serious currency post and some day I will, but till then one last pretty picture and that is the latest version of the Imperial Mint's E-Currency Card, this time in the CrImp 50 denomination. Enjoy and I will catch you on the flipside.

Laterness,

Craig.