As promised, here's the bones of the vehicle writeup: (should I convert this to wiki markup, or what? Not sure here...)
Name: SC Leonard Skinnard (aka "Lenny", and yes, that's a deliberate misspelling)
Registry Number: ID-10-T (also, the license plate number)
Base Hull: 2002 Ford Focus (base model)
Drive Type: Speed (Traction? see Quirks)
Drive Rating: 0.1c depending on 'terrain' (~140mph max on Earth, for example)
Owner of Record: TBA
Flag of Record: ???
Home Port: ???
Purpose: Personal transport, taxi and/or (very) light cargo
Launched: 6 February 200?
Crew: see Owner of Record
Supplementary Crew: Lenny himself (an artificial non-intelligence)
Status: Active
History: ???
Known Vehicle Quirks:
All-Terrain Tires: the strangest thing about Lenny's conversion is the way the drive system appears to work. It behaves like a normal car,
requiring that the driver shift between gears (Lenny is a stick-shift), operate the pedals, and so on. It cannot and does not fly in the normal sense, there
are no visible 'thruster plumes', or for that matter, thrusters of any sort. Instead, the wheels just... grab on to *something* and provide traction.
If it's a road surface, great. If not, the level of traction seems to correspond with the current depth in a gravity well. At Earthside sea-level, it
feels like asphalt; out in interplanetary space (Lenny has never been interstellar), it feels like water over concrete -- slippery, but driveable. One problem
with this method of travel is that a Ford Focus is not a lifting body, so some other method is needed to get the wheels off the ground. Generally it means
finding a convenient drop-off to drive over, or a straight stretch of surface with an incline at the end and a high rate of speed. It should be noted that
aerobatics are not recommended; all maneuvers should be done with the local gravitational source below the wheels, else classic physics take over and the ride
come to a sudden end. (Meta-note: this could make for some interesting maneuvers when it comes time to dock with a place that has gravity, or approach a
planet)
Known Crew Quirks:
Durrr: as the Ford Focus didn't come equipped with any sort of decent onboard computer system, it was not expected that Lenny (the
car) would have any sort of AI capability. However, the owner wired an old laptop in for music and useful software, not expecting anything else out of it.
The laptop was an old Toshiba Pentium 100, with 24 whopping megabytes of RAM and a truly impressive 4gb hard drive. Lenny (the AI) is very, VERY dumb. He
never speaks, unless you count the occassional engine rev or tail-light blinking, and if he can be said to have a true personality, it is one that most closely
resembles a golden retriever or labrador: loyal, helpful, inclined to fetch things and eat whatever is left lying around, and above all, none-too-bright. He
doesn't mediate telecom, plot courses, or pretty much anything else an AI usually does. But his personality comes through and if nothing else he provides
companionship of a sort. (It should be noted that the pre-'wave laptop had "Dogz" as the default screensaver)
Snuggle pup: Lenny sometimes seems to forget that he's a vehicle and will attempt to 'play' with someone he likes. So far there have
been no injuries, but several close calls. His owner in particular nearly suffered a crushed pelvis before managing to convince Lenny not to sit in his lap.
("Down! Stay! Good car -- I mean, good boy! Stay!")
Trivia: Cats don't seem to like Lenny, and the feeling may well be mutual if the engine revs are anything to go by. Whether this
extends to catgirls as well remains to be tested.
--sofaspud
--"Listening to your kid is the audio equivalent of a Salvador Dali painting, Spud." --OpMegs
Name: SC Leonard Skinnard (aka "Lenny", and yes, that's a deliberate misspelling)
Registry Number: ID-10-T (also, the license plate number)
Base Hull: 2002 Ford Focus (base model)
Drive Type: Speed (Traction? see Quirks)
Drive Rating: 0.1c depending on 'terrain' (~140mph max on Earth, for example)
Owner of Record: TBA
Flag of Record: ???
Home Port: ???
Purpose: Personal transport, taxi and/or (very) light cargo
Launched: 6 February 200?
Crew: see Owner of Record
Supplementary Crew: Lenny himself (an artificial non-intelligence)
Status: Active
History: ???
Known Vehicle Quirks:
All-Terrain Tires: the strangest thing about Lenny's conversion is the way the drive system appears to work. It behaves like a normal car,
requiring that the driver shift between gears (Lenny is a stick-shift), operate the pedals, and so on. It cannot and does not fly in the normal sense, there
are no visible 'thruster plumes', or for that matter, thrusters of any sort. Instead, the wheels just... grab on to *something* and provide traction.
If it's a road surface, great. If not, the level of traction seems to correspond with the current depth in a gravity well. At Earthside sea-level, it
feels like asphalt; out in interplanetary space (Lenny has never been interstellar), it feels like water over concrete -- slippery, but driveable. One problem
with this method of travel is that a Ford Focus is not a lifting body, so some other method is needed to get the wheels off the ground. Generally it means
finding a convenient drop-off to drive over, or a straight stretch of surface with an incline at the end and a high rate of speed. It should be noted that
aerobatics are not recommended; all maneuvers should be done with the local gravitational source below the wheels, else classic physics take over and the ride
come to a sudden end. (Meta-note: this could make for some interesting maneuvers when it comes time to dock with a place that has gravity, or approach a
planet)
Known Crew Quirks:
Durrr: as the Ford Focus didn't come equipped with any sort of decent onboard computer system, it was not expected that Lenny (the
car) would have any sort of AI capability. However, the owner wired an old laptop in for music and useful software, not expecting anything else out of it.
The laptop was an old Toshiba Pentium 100, with 24 whopping megabytes of RAM and a truly impressive 4gb hard drive. Lenny (the AI) is very, VERY dumb. He
never speaks, unless you count the occassional engine rev or tail-light blinking, and if he can be said to have a true personality, it is one that most closely
resembles a golden retriever or labrador: loyal, helpful, inclined to fetch things and eat whatever is left lying around, and above all, none-too-bright. He
doesn't mediate telecom, plot courses, or pretty much anything else an AI usually does. But his personality comes through and if nothing else he provides
companionship of a sort. (It should be noted that the pre-'wave laptop had "Dogz" as the default screensaver)
Snuggle pup: Lenny sometimes seems to forget that he's a vehicle and will attempt to 'play' with someone he likes. So far there have
been no injuries, but several close calls. His owner in particular nearly suffered a crushed pelvis before managing to convince Lenny not to sit in his lap.
("Down! Stay! Good car -- I mean, good boy! Stay!")
Trivia: Cats don't seem to like Lenny, and the feeling may well be mutual if the engine revs are anything to go by. Whether this
extends to catgirls as well remains to be tested.
--sofaspud
--"Listening to your kid is the audio equivalent of a Salvador Dali painting, Spud." --OpMegs