INTERCEPTOR

Keywords: INTERCEPTOR, INTERC

Category: Space

=== USER MANUAL === Usage: interceptor Description: Build one interceptor fighter in the ship's hanger bay. Each build takes 20 seconds (1 second for staff). Interceptors accumulate up to the ship's bay capacity; once built, they stay parked until a gunner launches them with deploy. interceptor is step 2 of the three-step fighter workflow: install the hangar module, build the fighters, then launch them. Three-Step Fighter Workflow: 1. Install bay ..... Install an Interceptor Hangar module on your ship (Mk I / II / III) to add bay slots. 2. Build fighters .. interceptor (this command) manufactures one fighter per invocation, up to bay capacity. 3. Launch ........... deploy sends every built fighter into the fight. deploy recall brings them back. Capacity: The bay limit is whatever the installed Interceptor Hangar module(s) provide: Mk I ............... +2 fighter slots Mk II .............. +4 fighter slots Mk III ............. +8 fighter slots Multiple modules stack. shipstat shows your current fighter count and bay capacity. Requirements: Gunner seat ........ Must be in the gunner's chair / turret. Carrier hull ....... Ship model must currently be a CARRIER. (Note: this check is older than the modular Interceptor Hangar system and overrides the module's bay grant -- see Notes.) Bay installed ...... ship_eff_intbay must be > 0. "This ship has no interceptor bay." Under capacity ..... Cannot exceed the bay cap: "You have made the maximum number of interceptors!" Launched ........... Must be in realspace, not docked. Not hyperspace ..... Cannot build in hyperspace. Manual control ..... Autopilot must be disengaged. Echo: You begin making an interceptor. (you) (20 second timer elapses) Interceptor built. (you) Other gunners in the same turret who are also mid-build finish simultaneously to keep the bay in sync. Interruption: Interceptor build aborted. Damage, leaving the turret, or any timer-breaking interrupt cancels the in-progress build. No materials are refunded because none were consumed -- just time. Notes: - Current code hard-gates this command on ship->model == CARRIER, which predates the Interceptor Hangar module system. Non-carrier ships with a hangar module installed still fail with "This ship doesn't have any interceptors!" Fix pending. - Built interceptors persist across flights until launched or the ship is destroyed. - deploy is the only way to put built interceptors into combat -- building them doesn't auto-launch. - Losing a fighter in combat permanently reduces the fighter count. Rebuild via more interceptor runs. Related Helpfiles: DEPLOY, BAYDOORS, TARGET, SCANSHIP, SHIPSTAT, AUTOCOMBAT === END MANUAL ===