The Kaiser -- Campaign Ready U-Boat

This sub, inspired by a WWII German U-boat, is the pride and joy of the local boater's club. Or, at least it was until it got impounded after a night of drunken sailing. The sub was eventually stolen from the impound lot and has been under the command of many a captain since. Some modifications have been made to make the sub more suitable for the hostile Europan seas. It's a straightforward sub and is balanced to provide a moderate challenge and grow with the crew throughout the campaign. Questions, comments, or criticisms? Let me know in the comments!

Features:

• Full deconstructor and fabricator suite (including medical fabricator and research table)
• Ballast Flora Mode
• Alert and notification system for fires, floods, high pressure, reactor meltdown, battery status, airlock status, and more
• Stocked and easy-access armory with toggleable security door
• Automatic battery backup system
• 2 Watertight compartments/flood rooms to protect from total flooding (one in the observation window and one in the nose to protect from crashes)
• Good ol' fashioned torpedoes with proximity sensor to indicate when to fire. Are they useful? Not really. Are they cool? I think so.
• Good luck Duck in the ballast. Don't lose it!

Characteristics:

• Dimensions: 47x11 m
• Cargo Capacity: 36 crates (16+ actual, the rest is pre-filled cabinets and other containers.)
• Crew Size: 3-8
• Crew Experience: Beginner to Intermediate
• Horizontal speed: +/- 32 km/h
• Ascent/Descent speed: 18 km/h and 13 km/h, respectively.
• Armament: 2 coilguns, 1 railgun, 2 turret hard points, 2 forward-facing torpedo tubes, electric discharge coils, and a depth charge tube

Gameplay:

The sub works great in the campaign so far and was designed to offer a balanced challenge. Handling, maintenance, and armament are beginner friendly, but the blind spots and placement of most guns on top of the submarine ensures that coordination is needed to maneuver the sub into optimal firing positions. The blind spots and other design choices encourage players to perform external repairs, but no critical systems require EVA to fix. Cargo and space are adequate for small to medium crews, and the sub has every essential you'd need for missions. The sub has a minimal starting armament and is instead to designed to grow with the crew and become more capable and deadly as the campaign difficulty increases.

FAQ:

Q: Why won't the lights turn on/why did the lights turn off? A: The lights turn off when running on backup battery power. When the reactor is running or when docked to a station, lights can be toggled using the button in the Nav Monitor.

Q: What's this weird double door in the armory? A: The Armory has a toggleable security door that only the captain and security officer can open. It won't shut on its own, so if you're playing with a trusted crew, you can leave it open so everyone can access the weapon racks. Just remember to close the door behind you if you're crew isn't so trustworthy and be wary of crowbars! Weapons can also be locked away in secure cabinets for added security.

Q: How to use ballast flora mode?? A: In each ballast tank is a lever which activates ballast flora mode. When flipped, the lever will drain all water in the ballast tank and then turn off the pumps. A blinky red light will also turn on to make it really clear that there's an emergency.

Q: How use torpedoes?!?!? A: In the Armory (and in the command room) are buttons to arm the torpedoes. A flashing status light will indicate if the torpedoes are armed or not. There are also status lights to indicate if a torpedo is ready to fire (i.e. the super capacitor is recharged). When armed, the torpedoes will automatically fire at any monster detected in front of the sub. Note: Be VERY careful with explosive shells as the proximity sensor is relatively short range.

Q: What do with prisoners? A: Sorry, there's no brig and prisoners currently spawn in the Cabins/Lounge. They used to spawn in the rear ballast, and I still recommend you put them there for missions. Flip the Ballast Flora Mode lever in the rear ballast to drain the ballast so they won't drown.

Thanks for checking out my sub! If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please let me know! You can check out my previous SUBmission here:

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2317127726

Interested in making remote drones? Check out this item assembly that has all the major components pre-wired and ready to go:

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2650651715