Murdonian Transport
The Murdonian Transport is a cargo-carrying Droid in classic Galactic Empire and ge-next. It is not a roaming hunter: an encounter or attack causes it to slow, defend itself, or evade, rather than deliberately seek players to fight.
Classic GE
The stock Trans-Gal #2 has Mark-2 shields, Mark-5 phasers, warp 8, a 25,000-distance-unit scanner, and a 200-point kill value. It may start with a broad assortment of cargo, including goods that it cannot launch as weapons. Its behavior is distinct from the smaller Scow: when a player approaches, it requests an impulse speed, raises shields at impulse, and may hail the player.
After being attacked, it can answer with phasers at impulse or hyper-phasers when both ships are at warp. At impulse, its classic routine fires straight along its current heading rather than aiming at the attacker; see Classic bug: Droid phasers fire straight ahead. The shot can still hit a ship in that narrow forward arc. It may also change heading and speed unpredictably. If a missile is attached while it is at warp, it requests a drop to impulse. Jamming makes it request maximum warp and hold course. It does not launch the torpedoes or missiles that may be present in its cargo, and it has no explicit hull-damage threshold that triggers a dedicated retreat. See Classic NPC ship classes.
ge-next
The stock Trans-Gal #3 can carry substantially more cargo, with maximum Mark-4 shields and Mark-10 phasers, warp 8, and a 50,000-distance-unit scanner. Its starting inventory may include goods, gold, and weapons as cargo, but the class has no projectile launchers. It commonly cruises until a player comes near, then slows to impulse and hails; when alone, it resumes its route.
When an attacker is assigned, the Transport steers roughly away from the attacker and can fire an aimed standard or hyper-phaser if the target is visible and close enough. At more than 50 hull damage it switches from a modest impulse escape to a faster cruise. It does not fire torpedoes or missiles. It can call for help, and its response is affected by jamming, visibility, and damage to its systems. Its defensive fire is more deliberately aimed than in classic but is still secondary to escaping with its cargo. See ge-next NPC ship classes and faction rules.
Hails
Classic's Transport sends occasional warnings about its cargo, clearance, and Murdonian law. When attacked, it may object to the aggression or transmit a plea for assistance; these classic pleas are message text, not ge-next's rescue mechanism. ge-next adds distinct approach beacons, hostile-standing warnings, and attack reactions. They emphasize Murdonian Imperial authority, the civilian passengers, and the Transport's right to defend itself. A ge-next distress broadcast is separate from its ordinary hails.
See also
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