(FD3.0) TYPES OF DRONE RACKS
There are several types of drone racks in service; all are listed below. All drone racks are type-A unless specified otherwise in the ship descriptions. Most type-A drone racks were replaced with improved types in Y175. Players cannot change the drone racks on their ships except as provided in (S7.0). Drone rack types A, B, C, D, and F were in service in Y65. Type-E drone racks entered service in Y160.Type-G drone racks entered service in Y165. Except as noted, no drone rack can fire two drones within 1/4 turn of each other, even if on different turns.
(FD3.1) TYPE-A
The standard "A-rack" or "type-A drone rack" has a capacity of four spaces of drones and can fire one per turn. Unless stated otherwise in the ship descriptions, all drone racks are of this type. Virtuallyall type-A drone racks were replaced with types B or C in Y175.
(FD3.2) TYPE-B
The larger "B" drone rack has a capacity of six spaces of drones and can fire one per turn. The Klingons favored this type of rack for its' increased ammunition supply.
(FD3.3) TYPE-C
The "C" drone rack is designed for "rapid fire." Two drones may be launched from this rack during a single turn. These cannot be launched within 12 impulses of each other (even on consecutive turns). It holds four spaces of drones. The Kzintis favored this type of rack because it could put more drones in flight more quickly.
(FD3.4) TYPE-D
The type-D drone rack is used by battle stations, base stations, and the Kzinti tug and battle pod. It is a single launcher with three separate magazines. The launcher, in effect, moves from magazine to magazine and draws drones from whichever magazine it is adjacent to.
(FD3.41) MAGAZINE SELECTION: The launcher can draw one drone from one magazine on each turn. The magazine used is selected when the drone is launched. The launcher cannot fire two drones within one-quarter turn even if from different magazines. Each of the three magazines holds four spaces of drones. The drones can be of any type, but cannot be anti-drones. Type-D racks cannot hold type-VI drones; see (FD2.51) for the reason why.
(FD3.42) DAMAGE: Each "drone" damage point scored on a ship/basewith a type-D drone rack destroys one magazine (the last one from which the launcher withdrew a drone), but not the launcher itself.(The launcher is destroyed with the last magazine.) The battle station SSDs in Module R1 have their magazine record tracks arranged to facilitate this procedure. The repair cost in Annex #9 repairs the launcher and/or one magazine.
(FD3.43)HANDLING: Any magazine can be taken out of service during a turn for reloading (or unloading) under (FD2.42) without affecting the launcher, so long as the launcher does not draw a drone from that magazine during the turn it is reloaded. While type-D (and type-H) drone racks do not have formal reloads, if reload drones became available (transferred from another ship, purchased as extras, stored in cargo boxes, etc.) they could be loaded into an unused magazine in this manner.
(FD3.44)RELOADS: There are no reloads for type-D drone racks; the reload drones are loaded in the spare magazines. The unit pays the drone upgrade surcharges for one magazine per launcher; the other two magazines per launcher are considered to have proportional free reloads.
(FD3.45) WEAPON STATUS: At the various Weapon Status levels, a unit with this type of drone rack may be presumed to have unloaded enough drones for use in the allowed number of scatter-packs.
(FD3.46) PLASMA RACKS: The plasma-racks on Romulan, Gorn, and ISC battle stations use the same system with three magazines, each holding four type-D plasma torpedoes. A given launcher cannot have drones in one magazine and type-D plasma torpedoes in another. An Orion base can have both types of racks so long as there is an even number of plasma racks, with each "pair" covering the entire 360 arc.
(FD3.5) TYPE-E
The "E" drone rack holds eight dogfight drones. It can carry no other types. Type-E drone racks (and type-VI drones) were originally designed for anti-drone defense, but later proved useful against fighters. Many fast patrol ships carried this version which proved useful in hunting fighters. This rack can fire up to four drones per turn, but cannot fire two drones within 1/4 turn (8 impulses) of each other, even on consecutive turns.
(FD3.6) TYPE-F
The "F" drone rack (known as the "jump rack") was a Klingon invention used to add drones to ships not originally designed for them. The drone racks seen on the B10, C9, C8, D7, D6, F5, and E4 are actually type-F racks replacing shuttles. Type-F racks are functionally identical to type-A racks, except as follows:
They fire out of the shuttle hatch (D17.4) Level E.
They can explode in a chain reaction (D12.3).
They can only fire one drone from each pair of racks (FD4.3).
A drone launched from an F-rack counts against the shuttle launch rate (J1.5).
Other races did not use type-F racks, and Klingon ships with the B-refit have their type-F drone racks replaced with standard type-A racks (often with type-B after the Y175 refits). The only type-F racks in the game are on unrefitted Klingon ships of the types listed above. All of these "differences" cease to exist after the type-F racks are replaced with type-A.
(FD3.7) TYPE-G
(FD3.70) The "G" rack can carry four spaces of drones, and it is equipped with targeting system for anti-drones (E5.0). Each anti-drone takes 1/2 space. The G-rack can carry the 1/2 space type-VI dogfight drones or any other type of drone. Federation ships (which needed anti-drones on the Klingon front but not on the Romulan front) used this type of drone rack extensively. Other races seldom used it. The unique nature of type-G drone racks requires that their loading must always be planned (FD2.421). They do not automatically reload ADDs when empty as ADD racks do (E5.74).
(FD3.71) MODES: The rack can carry a mixture of types and can operate in either of two modes (drone or anti-drone) on a given turn. If fired in the anti-drone mode, it cannot fire normal drones that turn, but can fire one anti-drone per impulse. In the drone mode, it can fire one drone per turn. The decision as to which mode to use is made the first time (each turn) it is fired. The mandatory 1/4 turn delay between subsequent launches from a single rack (FD3.0) includes the last firing on one turn and the first firing on the next. ADD fire counts as a drone launch event for this purpose. Note that the 8-impulse delay applies if the rack is switching from ADDs to normal drones. If it fired as an ADD launcher on Impulse #32 of one turn, it could continue to fire as an ADD launcher on Impulse #1 of the following turn with no delay. If it launched a drone on Impulse #32 of one turn, it could not launch a drone or fire as an ADD until Impulse #8 of the following turn. If it fired as an ADD on Impulse #32 of one turn, and the player wanted to launch a drone from the rack during the following turn, he would have to wait until Impulse #8 to do so.
(FD3.72) RELOADS: Type-G drone racks have two sets of reloads, one of which is entirely anti-drones and the other of which is identical to whatever is loaded in the rack itself. When the type-G was given a third set of reloads in Y175, that set was identical to the loading of the rack.
Typically, a Federation ship on the Romulan border would have drones (with perhaps two anti-drones) in the rack and first reload and eight ADDs in the second reload. A Federation ship on the Klingon front might have 2, 4, or even 6 anti-drones on the rack (and in the first reload) with 8 anti-drones in the second. These are examples; the Federation player may select the actual load (and first reload) at his own discretion.
NOTE: This data is correct; that on the various Federation SSDs in early printings is unclear.
(FD3.
TYPE-H STARBASE DRONE RACK
This type of drone rack was installed only on starbases. It consists of a launcher and a series of five compartmented magazines. The launcher, in effect, moves from magazine to magazine and draws drones from whichever magazine it is adjacent to.
(FD3.81) MAGAZINE SELECTION The launcher can draw one drone from one magazine on each turn. The magazine used is selected when the drone is launched. The launcher cannot fire two drones within one-quarter turn even if from different magazines. Each of the five magazines holds four spaces of drones. In four of the magazines for each launcher, the drones can be of any type, but cannot be anti-drones. The fifth magazine holds eight type-VI drones; if this magazine is selected, it can fire as a type-E drone rack (FD3.5).
(FD3.82) DAMAGE: Each "drone" damage point scored on a starbase destroys one magazine (the last one from which the launcher withdrew a drone), but not the launcher itself. (The launcher is destroyed with the last magazine.) The starbase SSDs in Module R1 have their magazine record tracks arranged to facilitate this procedure. The repair cost in Annex #9 repairs the launcher and/or one magazine. A repaired magazine will of course be empty.
(FD3.83) HANDLlNG: Any magazine can be taken out of service during a turn for reloading (or unloading) under (FD2.42) without affecting the launcher, so long as the launcher does not draw a drone from that magazine during the turn it is reloaded.
(FD3.84) RELOADS: There are no reloads for type-H drone racks; the reload drones are loaded in the spare magazines. The starbase pays the drone upgrade surcharges for two magazines per launcher; the other two standard magazines per launcher are considered to have proportional free reloads. The fifth (type-VI) magazine is never charged for speed upgrades. Starbases are treated as CVAs for purposes of allowed racial drone percentages (but do not include their type-VI drones or anti-drones in those calculations).
(FD3.85) WEAPON STATUS: At the various Weapon Status levels, a starbase may be presumed to have unloaded enough drones for use in the allowed number of scatter-packs.
(FD3.86) ANTI-DRONES: The anti-drones on starbases and BATS use an identical five-magazine system; see (E5.53). Each anti-drone launcher has five six-round magazines and can draw from one magazine at a time. It takes 4 impulses to switch from one ADD magazine to another, but these ADD-30s are otherwise treated as type-H drone racks. Base Stations do not use this type of ADD.
(FD3.87) PLASMA RACKS: The plasma racks (FP10.0) on some Romulan, Gorn, and ISC starbases, battle stations, and base stations use the same system with five magazines, each holding four type-D plasma torpedoes.
(FD3.9) TYPE-P
There is no type-P drone rack, but the plasma rack (FP10.0) is often abbreviated P-rack and this entry is provided for the reference of players who mistake it for a type of drone rack. See also (FD3.87).
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The preceeding concludes drone rack education hour. Thank you for your participation.
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