What happens if your moving when you try to enter the drift.


Rules Questions

Scarab Sages

The rules say engines need to be shut down for 10 minutes before entering the drift. I can't find what happens if they aren't (do you fail to enter the drift, do you blow up, do you become an episode of voyager seeking to get home). Is there a rule on this written anywhere or is it up to GM discretion?

Sczarni

I mean GMs can make up whatever they want.

If you're looking for a rules answer, you already quoted it.

EDIT: I thought I remembered this question coming up recently, and sure enough, it was you who asked it last time, too.


Senko wrote:
The rules say engines need to be shut down for 10 minutes before entering the drift.

It’s 1 minute, not 10. I’ve checked the errata’d pdf as well as the printed copy, both say 1 minute.

Quote:
I can't find what happens if they aren't (do you fail to enter the drift, do you blow up, do you become an episode of voyager seeking to get home). Is there a rule on this written anywhere or is it up to GM discretion?

The book wording is “for a ship to activate its drift engines to either enter or exit the droft”. So the rule is there, the engines can’t be activated. No boom, no jump, nothing.

Scarab Sages

Nefreet wrote:

I mean GMs can make up whatever they want.

If you're looking for a rules answer, you already quoted it.

EDIT: I thought I remembered this question coming up recently, and sure enough, it was you who asked it last time, too.

Nope that was different. That question was Ship in real space, shifts to drift space, can it hit a ship that had already shifted from the same spot in real space. This is can a ship go to drift space while moving. Different aspects of the same mechanic.

Alangriffith wrote:
Senko wrote:
The rules say engines need to be shut down for 10 minutes before entering the drift.

It’s 1 minute, not 10. I’ve checked the errata’d pdf as well as the printed copy, both say 1 minute.

Quote:
I can't find what happens if they aren't (do you fail to enter the drift, do you blow up, do you become an episode of voyager seeking to get home). Is there a rule on this written anywhere or is it up to GM discretion?
The book wording is “for a ship to activate its drift engines to either enter or exit the droft”. So the rule is there, the engines can’t be activated. No boom, no jump, nothing.

Yes I don't know why I had 10 in my head but I was wrong. I see how you read it that way. I really need more sleep my current work schedule is messing with my abilty to focus badly. Anyway thank you so rule is drift engines don't work while moving I can work with this thanks.


Senko wrote:

Anyway thank you so rule is drift engines don't work while moving I can work with this thanks.

No, you can't use your drift engines if your normal engines are active. That doesn't mean that you can't be moving. The whole concept of "not moving" in space is a bit tricky anyway.

Scarab Sages

True techncially your falling usually hmmmm . . .


I would be inclined to allow it. However, if you are moving in any substantial way when transitioning into the Drift ( ie, equivalent to having the realspace engines firing )? Automatic critical failure in your Drift navigation check.

Technically this would mean anyone could just ignore the "must shut off engines" rule. Hence the need to make sure that the consequences of a total navigation failure are bad enough to discourage such in anything short of life-or-death circumstances.


If you're drifting with the thrusters cut off, yes you are moving, possibly very quickly. Momentum is a thing in the starfinder universe.

But, on a starship hex mat, you're just stationary for one minute. Any other ships that are maneuvering have matched your momentum and are maneuvering around you as your drift drive charges up.

I would imagine that if you fire your engines in that time period, the drift drive's navigation system fails and it resets the charge as a safety feature. If you bypass that safety feature, your ship enters the drift in several different locations and in several different pieces. The one minute time being the time the system maps out your real space location and momentum to corresponding places in the drift, and acceleration screws with that for whatever reason.


Garretmander wrote:

If you're drifting with the thrusters cut off, yes you are moving, possibly very quickly. Momentum is a thing in the starfinder universe.

Drifting, or being in an orbit around a planet or star,...

"Not moving" always depends on what you are using as reference.

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