Unearthly Stations

Created Wednesday 22 December 2021

A range of technologies that all help humans maintain long-term planetary deployments even in inhospitable environments.

Heat vents

Shielding used around many stations (and even trnasports, etc.) that directs the ambient heat impinding on them into a stream up and away from the object. Just getting hot makes them stream a hot jet upward, venting it off (yeah, while also pulling it in from the environment . . . gotta figure that one out), creating a great source of kinetic energy (the vents work passively, induced by the impinging heat itself), and a very hallmark "flare" high up through and even out of the atmosphere.
That upward flare means they're easy to see from far away, but hard to attack with anything onworld, because, well, they're used for inhospitable worlds. Thus most of their armor is intended to protect them from heavenly fire. Sure, anti-ship rounds will devastate most planetary defenses, but heat vents for important hard opints are paired with pretty good armor to let them stand up to enough to make heavenly forces have to be pretty strong to take them out.
Anyway, being surrounded by a constant gale of super-hot gas that will throw you high into the sky also makes for tricky entrances and exits. This usually means the entrances are farther from the station and connected by a long tunnel (or tube if need be, especially for less permant sites). Still, it's one of hte challenges and Achille's heels of the points. But, again, it's not so much the heat vented sites are great---just that they're better than most alternatives.

Gas giant stations have vents facing up and down, and can use these vents to control their vertical position. (And ove horzontally, too)

But, these stations can't be entered or exited while theyre venting except through long and fragile tunnels (or from escape pods shot out & up the vents), so usually gas giant stations must first ascend high enough not to been to vent to be entered or exited.

B&B

Have materials that radiate off the heat, often strongly enough to also counteract intense pressures. This would also suplimate the atmosphere in ways I don't understand---and may mean that their suits have different effects in different situations.
But if nothing lese, it make froces covered in this material really bright---and also dangerous to get close to.

But if the material is breached (e.g., a unit wearing one of these suits is successfully shoy), then there'd be a dark spot in this blinding aura right before it would all implode in the pressure and flare out in the heat.

Good

Yeah, their suits simply absorb the heat and pressure (just as they absorb gamma-gun blasts) and store that energy as one of their sources of power for their other really cool gear. The Good are so good they suck.