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| starship_classes_and_examples [2011/07/18 23:47] – [Modern Spacecraft Classification] - Added AKV entry for historical purposes hagalaz | starship_classes_and_examples [2011/08/16 09:22] (current) – [Modern Spacecraft Classification] hagalaz |
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| * Battlecruisers originally came into existence as a loophole to bypass treaties restricting armaments and ship tonnage. Carrying battleship-sized armament but lighter armor, they were generally considered capable of sinking any ship fast enough to catch them, and fast enough to outrun any ship capable of sinking them. Battlecruisers were deployed to protect larger, slower ships from smaller, faster warships; to pursue retreating ships and damage them sufficiently to slow them down for the slower ships in the fleet; and for commerce raiding and defending merchant shipping from enemy raiders. | * Battlecruisers originally came into existence as a loophole to bypass treaties restricting armaments and ship tonnage. Carrying battleship-sized armament but lighter armor, they were generally considered capable of sinking any ship fast enough to catch them, and fast enough to outrun any ship capable of sinking them. Battlecruisers were deployed to protect larger, slower ships from smaller, faster warships; to pursue retreating ships and damage them sufficiently to slow them down for the slower ships in the fleet; and for commerce raiding and defending merchant shipping from enemy raiders. |
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| * Dreadnoughts were the first heavily-armed and -armored warships. Sporting steam turbines and an "all-big-gun" armament, they were useful for killing other large ships. Dreadnoughts were the first class of ship appearing with an armored 'citadel' containing the magazines and propulsion components and protecting them from attacks from the sides and above. Like most ships of the era, dreadnoughts because obsolete when the battleship, with its larger main guns, arrived on-scene. (HMS //Agincourt//, a ship built at the very end of the Age of Dreadnoughts, carried FOURTEEN twelve-inch main guns in seven armored turrets, but was considered outgunned -and would have been outmaneuvered - by more modern battleships, such as USS //Iowa// with her nine sixteen-inch guns, and IJS //Yamato//, with her nine eighteen-inch guns) | * Dreadnoughts were the first heavily-armed and -armored warships. Sporting steam turbines and an "all-big-gun" armament, they were useful for killing other large ships. Dreadnoughts were the first class of ship appearing with an armored 'citadel' containing the critical systems and protecting them from attacks from the sides and above. Like most ships of the era, dreadnoughts because obsolete when the battleship, with its larger main guns, arrived on-scene. (HMS //Agincourt//, a ship built at the very end of the Age of Dreadnoughts, carried FOURTEEN twelve-inch main guns in seven armored turrets, but was considered outgunned -and would have been outmaneuvered - by more modern battleships, such as USS //Iowa// with her nine sixteen-inch guns, and IJS //Yamato//, with her nine eighteen-inch guns) |
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| * Battleships evolved from dreadnoughts, with better armor and more powerful guns. Considered the peak of surface gun combat technology, they proved to be vulnerable to bombs, torpedoes, and mines, and actually saw relatively little action, being relegated in the end to fire support for amphibious operations. | * Battleships evolved from dreadnoughts, with better armor and more powerful guns. Considered the peak of surface gun combat technology, they ultimately proved to be vulnerable to bombs, torpedoes, and mines, and actually saw relatively little action, being relegated in the end to fire support for amphibious operations. |
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| * Aircraft carriers were perhaps the last large surface combatant to appear. All carriers can point back to the //USS Langley//, a cargohauler converted into a floating airfield, as their point of origin. Built to support flight operations for aircraft designed to attack other ships, they were relatively weak on their own, and relied on escort ships and their aircraft for protection. | * Aircraft carriers were perhaps the last large surface combatant to appear. All carriers can point back to the //USS Langley//, a cargohauler converted into a floating airfield, as their point of origin. Built to support flight operations for aircraft designed to attack other ships, they were relatively weak on their own, and relied on escort ships and their aircraft for protection. |
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| Battles like Midway proved that a very large, very expensive warship could be sunk by relatively cheap bombs and torpedoes dropped from relatively cheap airplanes. As a result, the emphasis began to shift away from naval gunfire and heavy armor to faster, more maneuverable ships, and the aircraft carrier emerged as the sole remaining 'capital ship'. Later, the invention of the anti-ship guided missile hammered the last nail into the coffin of the 'Surface Gun Duel' school of tactics. | Battles like Midway proved that a very large, very expensive warship could be sunk by relatively cheap bombs and torpedoes dropped from large groups of relatively cheap airplanes. As a result, the emphasis began to shift away from naval gunfire and heavy armor to faster, more maneuverable ships, and the aircraft carrier emerged as the sole remaining 'capital ship'. Later, the invention of the guided missile hammered the last nail into the coffin of the 'Surface Gun Duel' school of tactics. |
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| Missiles because the weapon of choice, capable of killing a ship while still over the horizon. Even today, the guided missile continues to be the long-range weapon of choice for the Space Defense Force and other fleets, with guns reserved for short ranges. | Missiles because the weapon of choice, capable of killing a ship while still over the horizon or knocking aircraft from the sky before they could close the distance to deploy their own weapons. Even today, the guided missile continues to be the long-range weapon of choice for the Space Defense Force and other fleets, with guns reserved for short range encounters and point-defense. |
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| ====== Modern Spacecraft Classification ====== | ====== Modern Spacecraft Classification ====== |
| //"There are three kinds of spacecraft: SDVs, AKVs, and targets." - Rukai Chun-Lin, Captain, Space Defense Force// | //"There are three kinds of spacecraft: SDVs, AKVs, and targets." - Phillipe Lacroix, Captain, Force Aerospatiale, 2063.// |
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| These days, spacecraft are usually classified according to their intended purpose in space. For example, while traditionalists may use terms such as 'frigate', 'destroyer', or 'cruiser' to describe a combatant vehicle's size, they all fall under the general classification 'space dominance vehicle'. | These days, spacecraft are usually classified according to their intended purpose in space. For example, while traditionalists may use terms such as 'frigate', 'destroyer', or 'cruiser' to describe a combatant vehicle's size, they all fall under the general classification 'space dominance vehicle'. |
| Some common examples are: | Some common examples are: |
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| * Transatmospheric Vehicle (TAV) - A generic catch-all term for an aerodynamic, single-stage-to-orbit vehicle. They are classified as short- or long-range, with long-range TAVs being technically capable of interstellar travel. Militaries will generally use 'assault shuttle' or 'aerospace fighter' to describe short-range TAVs, and 'gunship pinnace' or 'missile pinnace' to describe long-range TAVs. Civilians will generally use short-range TAVs as cargo shuttles or passenger shuttles, and refer to them as such. | * Transatmospheric Vehicle (TAV) - A generic catch-all term for a small, aerodynamic, single-stage-to-orbit vehicle. They are classified as short- or long-range; long-range TAVs are technically capable of interstellar travel, and are essentially short-range TAVs with a 'bolt-on' space-only engines/sensors/support package that is detached before reentry and attached before departing for deep space . Militaries will generally use 'assault shuttle' or 'aerospace fighter' to describe short-range TAVs, and 'corvette' to describe long-range TAVs. Civilians will generally use short-range TAVs as cargo shuttles or passenger shuttles, and refer to them as such. |
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| | //(Note: Think of TAVs as updated versions of the real-world [[https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Reaction_Engines_Skylon|Skylon spaceplane]] proposed by Reaction Engines Limited. They are essentially winged, flying fuel/oxidizer tanks with a small percentage of internal volume dedicated to payload, be it cargo, living quarters, etc... - Hagalaz)// |
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| * Deep Space Operations Vehicle (DSOV) - These are the ships that function for extended periods of time away from home, primarily as a research vessel. They carry a lot of fuel, and are normally equipped with enhanced sensors and plenty of cargo space for mission equipment. The DSOV will also have some way of generating artificial gravity inside a rotating habitat module, and are only capable of operation in space. DSOVs will usually carry a complement of short-range TAVs and work pods. | * Deep Space Operations Vehicle (DSOV) - These are the ships that function for extended periods of time away from home, primarily as a research vessel. They carry a lot of fuel, and are normally equipped with enhanced sensors and plenty of cargo space for mission equipment. The DSOV will also have some way of generating artificial gravity inside a rotating habitat module, and are only capable of operation in space. DSOVs will usually carry a complement of short-range TAVs and work pods. |
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| * Executive Space Vehicle (ESV) - A fast transport equipped with passenger cabins but little cargo space. Governments often use these as consular ships. They are almost always transatmospheric. | * Executive Space Vehicle (ESV) - A fast transport equipped with passenger cabins but little cargo space. Governments often use these as consular ships. They are almost always transatmospheric (see TAV blurb re: add-on equipment). |
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| * Passenger Space Vehicle (PSV) - A transport equipped with lots of passenger cabins, and spin gravity (if designed to operate solely in space). They can carry up to five short-range TAVs for transferring passengers to and from the ship. | * Passenger Space Vehicle (PSV) - A transport equipped with lots of passenger cabins, and spin gravity (if designed to operate solely in space). They can carry up to five short-range TAVs for transferring passengers to and from the ship. |
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| * Scout Vessel (SV) - the DSOV's smaller sibling. This is a transatmospheric ship capable of interstellar travel, but generally lacks the extra fuel/cargo capacity of the DSOV. | * Scout Vessel (SV) - the DSOV's smaller sibling. This is a transatmospheric ship capable of interstellar travel, but generally lacks the extra fuel/cargo capacity of the DSOV. Militarized versions of this ship are sometimes also referred to as 'corvettes'. Again, see TAV entry re: add-on equipment for space operations. |
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| * Space Dominance Vehicle (SDV) - A heavily armed and armored space-only vehicle. They can carry up to five short-range TAVs and/or work pods, and a squad of marines. Traditionalists will refer to these as 'frigates', 'destroyers', 'cruisers', or 'battlecruisers', depending on their relative size at the time of commissioning. | * Space Dominance Vehicle (SDV) - A heavily armed and armored space-only vehicle. They can carry up to five short-range TAVs and/or work pods, and a squad of marines. Traditionalists will refer to these as 'frigates', 'destroyers', 'cruisers', or 'battlecruisers', depending on their relative size at the time of commissioning. |
| * Work Pod - A cheap one-person spacecraft with maniupulator arms and simple engines. They function only in vacuum. | * Work Pod - A cheap one-person spacecraft with maniupulator arms and simple engines. They function only in vacuum. |
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| * Autonomous Kill Vehicle (AKV) - a short-ranged space-only vehicle, usually deployed by an SDV or other warship, and controlled by an on-board pseudo-intelligent computer. AKVs carried weapons such as railguns and missiles with nuclear bomb-pumped X-ray laser warheads, and were designed to serve as a force multiplier in ship-to-ship combat during the Apocalypse War, engaging warships with on-board weapons and even ramming them as a last resort. Rumors persist of rogue or orphaned AKVs still prowling Sol System's asteroid belt, but the last known encounter(s) occurred in early 2205, when an orphaned AKV attacked both the independent vessel //Talon II// and the Coalition warship //Angelus//, ultimately self-terminating when it rammed //Angelus//, forcing it to undertake an extended shipyard repair period at New Philadelphia. | * Autonomous Kill Vehicle (AKV) - a short-ranged space-only vehicle, usually deployed by an SDV or other warship, and controlled by an on-board pseudo-intelligent computer. AKVs carried weapons such as railguns and missiles with nuclear bomb-pumped X-ray laser warheads, and were designed to serve as a force multiplier in ship-to-ship combat during the Apocalypse War, engaging warships with on-board weapons and even ramming them as a last resort. Rumors persist of rogue or orphaned AKVs still prowling Sol System's asteroid belt, but the last known encounter(s) occurred in early 2205, when an orphaned AKV destroyed the independent vessel //Talon II// and subsequently self-terminated by ramming the Coalition warship //Angelus//. //Angelus//, responding to //Talon II//'s distress call, was critically damaged in the attack and required lengthy repairs at New Philadelphia's shipyard before returning to Thinora System. Autonomous kill vehicles are prohibited by treaty in all of Known Space, and any reported sightings will pique the interests of both the Space Defense Force and any local military agencies, all who would see the vehicle destroyed rather than become a technological asset to a competitor. |
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| | //(Note: AKVs are included in this wiki entry for historical purposes. Players wishing to find/interact with an AKV should contact RP Staff for assistance. - Hagalaz)// |
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| | And, of course, everyone's favorite: |
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| | * Starfighter - a single- or double-occupant, space-only vehicle, equipped with armor, ECM, and a varying payload of anti-ship weapons. Missions include long-range patrol, convoy escort, fleet screening, and long-range strike. Starfighters are highly maneuverable, but that maneuverability comes at a price: stress fractures, bruising, internal organ damage, and temporary blindness due to detached retinas are common side effects of those who survive violent combat maneuvers. |
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| | //"You are here because you think you have what it takes to be a fighter pilot. You are almost certainly wrong. Ninety percent of you aren't even worth the price of shipping to Gaspra, and we will find you out. For those who are left, you have years of hard training in microgravity. It will permanently warp you. Starfighter pilots have an average life expectancy forty years short of the norm, and much of this is due to the health problems. If you are skilful and adapt, then maybe you can hope for an honourable death in battle, rather than end up an arthritic wreck." - Admiral Antoine Lagalliard, introductory talk, Space Defense Force Academy, class of 2130// |
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