SuperBall

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Spacecraft Registry
SuperBall
Spacecraft Characteristics
Base HullSpaceball gyroscope encased in a plastic shell
Drive TypeReactionless thrusters (kind of)
Drive RatingMax velocity 0.1c
OwnerJuhan
Flag of Record?
FactionUnaligned
Registry NumberI am not a number
Launched4 May, 2008
PurposePersonal transport / pirate radio transmitter
Primary CrewJuhan a.k.a. DJ John
Operational StatusActive
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(Created by Freddy Isnot)

Pirate radio station and all-around menace to navigation.

Known Vehicle Quirks

  • The drive is broken, it must bounce off another object before changing course. It makes use of the Slapstick Effect to not seriously damage itself or the object it is bouncing off of.
  • The SuperBall refuses to accept computer navigation.
  • The outer shell of the SuperBall is constantly spinning while the inside remains stationary.
  • Due to the nature of the SuperBall, it is more or less impervious to all projectile weapons. However, due to the nature of the SuperBall, it is also incapable of having any offensive capability of its own. There are no weapons, and if it tries to ram another ship, it will simply bounce off with, at most, a slight dent imparted.

Known Crew Quirks

  • Juhan uses Handwavium goo as a hair gel. It is not yet known what effect this has on his hair.
  • Despite his accuracy in calculating the spin and bounce of the SuperBall, Juhan sucks on the pool table.
  • In order to keep up his 24/7 live radio broadcast, Juhan is a polyphasic sleeper, catching 30 minute naps every four hours.

Trivia

  • As a tribute to the movie Explorers, Juhan searched for a junked carnival ride to use as a hull. He finally found a rental company selling off an old Spaceball gyroscope.
  • Juhan's inspiration for using the Handwavium was Flubber from The Absent-Minded Professor.
  • Changes of direction are performed by deliberately running into an object and adjusting the spin of the SuperBall to achieve the desired angle of deflection.
  • The SuperBall also sometimes seen hitching a ride on other spaceships by means of a grapple and rope.
  • The SuperBall’s internal environment is heated by the powerful radio array built into its superstructure.
  • All navigation is performed with a telescope, star chart, ruler, protractor, compass, pencil and paper, and a TI-89 calculator.
  • Juhan launched the SuperBall on his birthday.
  • The SuperBall has to be launched by dribbling it until it bounces high enough to escape gravity.
  • The most technologically advanced device on the SuperBall is a semi-sentient iPod that Juhan uses to play music and news broadcasts.
  • Fen Radio Live! is broadcast via radio signal to the nearest Interwave node where it is relayed to all of Fenspace.
  • Juhan first began Fen Radio Live! because of his early failures to plot a trajectory that would intercept a planet or space station. After his first “miss”, not sure if he would survive, he began broadcasting a long rambling monologue, only interrupting with music when his throat became too dry to continue. He continued this broadcast for five and a half hours before a ship, attracted by his signal, gave him a tow to an inhabited planet. After that, he began broadcasting regularly on his approaches to planets or stations to ensure that someone would notice him and, if he missed his target, tow him to safety. This eventually developed into the Fenspace-spanning radio show known as Fen Radio Live!
  • At last count, Juhan owes favors to nearly a fifth of all the spaceship captains in the solar system for tows. He usually tries to repay them either in drinks or free advertising.
  • One of the popular segments of Fen Radio Live! is Juhan’s tendency to wander into space battles where, in the relative safety of the SuperBall’s semi-invulnerable shell, he’ll provide a running commentary until knocked away.