 | Escort Carrier. | | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The SORJOURNER-Class is one of the Spacy's newer classes of vessels; Desginated an Escport Carreir, they are but almost in name only, being immense ships standing at the ready to… Supply fighters. They do not have landing bays; What few are brought on board in flyable condition do so at an extremely slow bell, landing strictly in fighter mode and on grav pods, or vernier thrusters only. Many are marched onboard, like Destroids. Most (90% when fully loaded) are brought on board boxed for future deployment.
As the REF spread further and further abroad, the need for replacement fighters became especially problematic for the Spacy; Ships rarely were so badly damaged that they could not continue on, and when this did occur they were stripped of whatever could be salvaged and then set ablaze to deny any potential use to the enemy. In any case, no Spacy force has been so depleted of ships it simply could not continue on. Fighters, on the other hand, tend to take a lot more disproportional damage by tonnage; During the Atorian War, the Spacy was forced on a few occasions to delay continued campaigning due to fighter losses (particularly Alpha Veritech losses) as the Atorian fleets would try to pit a full warship against a fighter, with some efficacy in this regard. As the war raged on this issue was largely rectified by pressing available ships (mostly Tiresian heavy cruisers and rebuilt T'sentraedi ships) into service as "jeep carriers" near but not at the front lines, with combat ships staying in newly acquired systems while the support fleets rotated forward as the next fleet pressed home the larger campaign. By leapfrogging the battle fleets they were able to go into combat with largely intact air wings, while the jeep carriers remained in the second echelon areas to support the war effort (much like the other support vessels), the REF was able to eventually overcome the fanaticism of the Atorian Empire without resorting to Reflex weaponry (an option that was heavily discussed, especially in the first few months of the second offensive). While the program proved to be successful in the end, the REF was unsatisfied with the overall results, and newly formed United Worlds Alliance even less so. Development of a new fleet-level ship dedicated to fast resupply of Mecha, with special emphasis on Veritechs, became a high priority. From the discussions with engineers, fleet commanders, fighter pilots, and in some cases ship's crews, the SOJOURNER-Class Escort Carriers were developed. Most fighters on a SOJOUNER-Class begin life as a "boxed" fighter; Dissembled and crated for transport. Around 10% are flight ready, but not armed and minimally fueled, ready for transfer ("shuttled") to a Fleet Carrier for arming and full fueling before combat deployment; However, the fighters on a SOJOURNER can be fully fueled and armed if necessary. As the fleet of ready to fly fighters is deployed, boxed fighters are uncrated, assembled (typically wings must be attached, transport brackets removed, and electrical fittings connected), and readied for their first flight. In the early stages, this process is completed on the second level forward, but as the inventory is exhausted it moves aft and below with the Mecha. There is a pernicious myth that SOJOURNERS only carry fighters; In point of fact they can carry anything, though their inventory of tanks and power armor is usually very small. Another pernicious myth about the ships is they are not armed; The fact is that while they don't carry much in the way of offensive firepower, their defensive firepower is heavier than their combat ship counterparts, and while they are not committed directly to battle they could easily take on even and REF warship against anything short of Reflex weaponry; Even rail launchers don't worry a SOJOURNER Captain too much. The fact of the matter is a half dozen SOJOURNERS could probably have sufficiently dented the Atran or Rakatan Galaxies by themselves had they been given the chance that those empires would have reconsidered their positions and requested a truce to discuss peace terms. While this scenario will never be tested in real war footing, it has proven out in over 100 wargames and several hundred computer simulations that nothing short of the Beorge empire could realistically take on a fleet of only a dozen SOJOURNER carrier- and the REF currently has a fleet of over 500. The crew of a SOJOURNER-Class is disproportionally small compared to their combat counterparts, and the civilian contractor component is disproportionately heavier and permanent; Despite being the amongst largest warships (and these are warships) in the REF fleet, their militry crews are nearly the smallest at 1,500 (smaller than a VEROCHA-Class Frigate, with the permanent civilian contractor force of twice that (still placing them well under the size of most REF ships, especially considering their sheer mass). Later redesigns on the ships made them capable of serving as forward repair ships via ventral armatures and portable air containment spheres. This usage is limited to damage control repairs whenever possible, so as to allow the ships to keep pace with the fleet. Government: The UGC alone; Specifically, the REF Spacy. Ship Type: Escort Carreir (boxed and ready to fly). Manufacturer: Various Automated Factory Satellites. Crew: 4,500 total. Ship's Crew: 1,000. Mecha Pilots: 300. Other: Around 3,000 other personnel (mostly specialty technicians for fighter assembly) are typically onboard as well, though these can be rotated between ships as needed. MDC By Location: | ||||||
| Laser Turrets (30) Missile Turrets (30) Shuttle Bay Door (10 around hull) Airlocks/Access Hatches (many) Outer Hull (per 12 meter area) | 150 each 100 each 3,000 100 each 100 | Interior bulkhead (per 66 foot area) * Forward third ** Main Thrusters (2, Rear) Secondary Thrusters (1, rear) | 20 50,000 7,500 each 4000 | |||
| Notes: * Depleting the MDC of the forward section means that the forward third of the ship has been destroyed. This includes the main cannon and the command center. Nothing on the ship, including life support, engines, and weapons will work, leaving the ship a floating wreck. ** Depleting the MDC of the main engines will force the ship to rely on its secondary engines. Depleting the MDC of the main engines AND secondary engines will leave the ship adrift in space. If in an atmosphere, the ship will crash (destruction of the main engines will render the antigravity system useless due to loss of power). Speed and Statistical Data: | ||||||
| Speed (Sublight): 0.001 speed of light. Speed (Conventional Drives): Can maintain 0.23g for 5 hours 6 minutes; Capable of 1.1g for 38 minutes; and the emergency thrusters can propel a T'sentraedi vessel at 2.1g for 10.8 minutes. Space Fold: Range Unlimited. Planet bound: Can land if necessary but not designed to maneuver in an atmosphere. Maximum speed limited to Mach 1. Maximum Range: Unlimited (Protoculture generator has an estimated 30 year life span). Length: 45,000 feet 4.5 inches. Clearance: 5,309 feet 6 inches. | Beam: 6,150 feet at the widest part. Displacement: 25,300,000 tons. Fold System: Shik-Telnekulla fold system cluster. Sublight Drive: Geteulmaqulla-Zollia gravity control system. Gravity Control System: Geteulmaqulla-Zollia gravity control system. Auxiliary Engine: Workl-Quatafilla macro nozzle cluster. Cost And Availability About 10millioncredit; Fairly rare, though. Though it has become more popular with the UGC due to it's cost, it was never really popular with the malcontent crowd outside the T'sentraedi. | |||||
| Weapons Systems: | ||||||
| 1. Three Hundred Retractable Laser Turrets: Scattered across the ship. The cannons are normally concealed within the ship's hull, but rise up when needed to attack the enemy. Each turret can rotate 360 degree with a 180 degree arc of fire. MD: 1D4 times 100 MD each. Range: 320,000km (half in an atmosphere). Rate Of Fire: Each turret can fire twice per melee. Payload: Effectively unlimited. 2. One Hundred Missile Turrets Scattered across the ship. The turrets are normally concealed within the ship's hull, but rise up when needed to attack the enemy. Each turret can rotate 360 degree with a 180 degree arc of fire. Missile Types: Any type of Medium or Long Range Missile can be used. MD and Range: Varies. Rate Of Fire: Each turret can fire one missile once per melee. Payload: Effectively unlimited (hundreds of missiles). | 3. Mecha: The main reason the SOJOUNER-Class has come into being is their Mecha capabilities, especially since the Mecha bays did not have to be converted. | |||||
| 1,000,000 Veritechs; Of these, around 10,000 will be flight ready upon departure for a campaign. 20,000 Guardians; Of these, around 10% will be flight ready upon departure for a campaign. 500 Zulu-1 "Tid Bitz" Destoids; Of these, around 10% will be flight ready upon departure for a campaign. 30 Sholagar Fighter; Of these, around 10% will be flight ready upon departure for a campaign. | "Other"; Exact numbers and types (including what is operationally ready) at departure for campaign will vary based on the overarching mission. These may include non-standard Mecha, fighters, etc., especially if a degree of diplomacy is intended (ie, bringing new allied systems REF related hardware, such as F-18's and Spacer II fighters, RDF era Destoids, etc.) | |||||
| Features: | ||||||
|
| |||||
| ||||||
