Maelion Liates
Terminatrix
Hive Class
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
- Intent: To create a mobile, well protected and highly versatile factory ship for Archangel. This ship is well protected and can be either outfitted as a carrier or as a mobile factory ship. It is not intended for direct combat, but can defend itself well enough from escorts and attack craft.
- Image Source: Here. Art by Stefano Tsai.
- Canon Link: N/A
- Restricted Missions: N/A
- Primary Source: N/A
- Manufacturer: Archangel Research & Design.
- Model: 00011011
- Affiliation: Archangel Research & Design plus select customers.
- Production: Limited
- Material:
Standard ship components. - Heavy durasteel and quadranium reinforcement.
- Agrinium around the bridge and other critical points to provide protection against EMP.
[SIZE=11pt]TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS[/SIZE]
- Classification: Factory ship/carrier.
- Length: 1,200m across
- Width: Each segment side length 600m
- Height: 270m
- Armament: Low,
Some turbolasers and ion cannons. - Few fast mount turbolasers.
[*]Defenses: Very High
[*]Heavy redundant shields.
[*]Heavy armour plating.
[*]Many quad lasers.
[*]Many point defence lasers.
[*]Few flak cannons.
[*]Massive on board garrison.
[*]Ray shield traps.
[*]Decompression traps.
[*]Hangar: High: 6 squadrons (Carrier configuration) or as low as 0 if configured as a factory. Each segment can house 1 squadron or a factory area.
[*]Maneuverability Rating:, Low,
[*]Speed Rating: Low,
[*]Hyperdrive Class: 1
[SIZE=11pt]STANDARD FEATURES[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Hexagonal ship split into 6 ‘segments’. Each one can manufacture ships or maintain a squadron of attack craft.[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Entirely droid crewed. Atmosphere kept at low levels as vacuum is inefficient for transmitting sound and maintaining flames.[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Each segment can hold up to 10,000 standard droids after production, 1,000 advanced droids or 100 vehicles.[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Each segment can moor a ship of 400m or less. Alternatively up to 8 50m or smaller ships may dock (transports, gunships, etc).[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]In addition to produced/stored droids in the segment a permanent force of 5,000 droids of varying sorts perform security and repel boarders.[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Well-guarded organic storage facility to allow processing.[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Engines can rotate to face any direction, thus allowing the ship to (slowly) adjust course without physically turning the whole ship. It takes 5 minutes per ‘segment’ to rotate. Alternatively the engines can be shut down and rotated faster, but obviously means the ship is a sitting duck until they are powered up again.[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Molecular furnaces[/SIZE][SIZE=11pt] to assist fabrication.[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Unity Processing Matrix[/SIZE][SIZE=11pt] which assists coordination especially of defence guns, ship course and production. It essentially acts as a powerful droid brain controlling the ship.[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=11pt]Has several [/SIZE][SIZE=11pt]Processing Machines[/SIZE][SIZE=11pt] for the creation of advanced HRDs.[/SIZE]
- Defensive. With layers of shields and armour, the ship is well protected from harm. It can take heavy fire even from other destroyers for some time before cracking.
- Boarders. Due to the numerous traps and massive garrison along with produced droids, the ship is almost impossible to board.
- Design. The hexagonal design of the ship allows it to change direction, and also means the ship has no true front or back.
- Versatile. With each of the six segments being able to support an attack craft squadron or a factory production/storage, the ship can be either a good carrier or an army producer.
- Flak. The unique shape of the ship allows the massed defence guns to cover a very large amount of space and concentrate fire on any enemy.
- Bridge. The bridge is carefully concealed inside the central hub. Windows and portholes are not required for droids. This protects the bridge from enemy fire.
- Underarmed. Not designed for the front lines, this ship has very poor capital weapons, mainly only useful against escorts.
- Inflexible. Naturally the segments cannot be converted from factory to hanger during a battle. Thus, one must know exactly what proportion of attack craft to use before battle.
- Slow. The ship is not especially fast, even for a Destroyer. It will struggle to outrun enemies.
- Heavy. Though the ship can turn itself to go any direction it takes time for the engines to rotate. This is not a quick solution!
- Engines. The engines, and especially their rotating mounts, are incredibly important. If damaged or destroyed the ship will be helpless.
- Ion. Even more than regular ships, massive ion attacks are a problem for the droid ship.
[SIZE=11pt]As Archangel grew in power and strength they found it necessary to ‘go mobile’ in their efforts to spread the Age of Steel to new ‘converts’.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]The Hive Class is the largest ship yet constructed by Archangel, and is of a typically unique design. The ship is built on a hexagonal pattern, with each of the six ‘segments’ making this up being able to support an attack craft squadron or a manufactory plant. This allows the ship to be versatile, but also allows them to store considerable legions of troops for an invasion.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]The most unique feature of this design is that the engines are mounted on the bottom and can rotate in any direction for the purposes of turning. This action is slow due to the size of the engines and of course the need to turn gradually to prevent wild deviations.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]Overall the Hive is well protected with shields, plating and internal defences. Even a destroyer will find it a tough nut to crack, though of course concentrated firepower will eventually penetrate. The Hive is low on capital guns to reply though, mainly focusing on ones which can deal with corvettes and frigates, and even then only with support from other ships. Against attack craft though it fairs rather better, with many quad and point defence emplacements.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]The Hive can dock with multiple ships of many sizes up to 400m. This is useful for docking with mining ships for raw materials, transports for droids or machines and other ships for repairs.[/SIZE]
