[META] [RFC] Militarization around the 2022 period

[HRogge]

A resolution is presented and passed at BubbleCon regarding the development of new armed-ship designs: While any faction is permitted to design a new ship, the actual building of such a ship is permitted only in two cases: to replace a previously-destroyed armed ship, or to sell to Great Justice or the Space Patrol. Such construction is to take place at an authorized shipyard - Utopia Planitia, Kuat Drive Yards, Bristol, BAT, and a few other shipyards (no more than a half-dozen, and none at L5) make the list.

The "only at an authorized Shipyard" would make this an absolute "when hell freeze over" thing for CI.

Tonnage can also be turned against you. Yes, you're allowed 3,000 tonnes of military hardware. Are you going to use it all on a few big ships, or have a lot of fighters or drones? What about self-guided missiles? Is troop hardware also included in that limitation?
The rules-laywers and actual laywers will have a field day arguing all this out.

Hmm... Jenga is fully mobile (including FTL)... and CI prefers to build small drones

I too like the 'prototype is part of the design phase' idea. However, in practical terms that means two prototypes, one for usage test, one for stress test. Unless you use one to get an idea of its limits, then stress test it to destrunction and build a new one.

On the other side, people might begin to build "lots of project variants, each with two prototypes"...

better count working prototypes as a full ship... if you wreck it during a stress test, you can build another one.