Driven to Excel
Variable Altitude Repulsorlift Gunship "Varangian"
- Intent: Create a gunship variant produced by Kuat Drive Yards
- Image Source: Source ~ Edits done by myself
- Canon Link: (Please link the canon link if applicable canon item.)
- Permissions: (Please link any Marketplace purchase approvals or other permissions to use other Writers' submissions as part of the submission)
- Primary Source: (Please link and cite the sources which you are modifying for your use in your submission.)
- Manufacturer: Kuat Drive Yards
- Affiliation: Open-Market
- Market Status: Open-Market
- Model: N/A
- Production: Minor
- Material:
- Composite Hull
- Aluminium Frame
- Classification:
- Gunship
- Troop Transport
- Patrol Craft
- Length: 18 meters
- Width: 16.5 meters (Wings extended)
- Height: 7.4 meters
- Armament: Very High
- Chin Mounted IX-9 Medium Laser Cannon (Pilot Control)
- Bow Mounted EM-1919 Repeating Laser Cannon (Ball gunner control)
- 2 Door Mounted Type 61 Universal Repeater
- 2 Light Repeater Mounting Points
- 2 Wing Mounted Mk 3e/W heavy laser cannons
- 1 Variable Missile Launcher
- Aft Mounted IX-9 medium laser cannon
- Defenses: High
- Composite Hull
- Reinforced durasteel armoured plating
- Door mounted blast shields
- Deflector Shield suite
- Ion Shielding
- Particle shielding
- Ray shielding
- Countermeasure suite
- Electronic Countermeasures Suite
- Missile Deactivation Transmitter
- Flare launcher
- Squadron Count: Low
- Maneuverability Rating: Low
- Speed Rating: Average
- Hyperdrive: None
- (Provide all of your submission's standard features, including non-combat items, here in a list -or- alternatively simply state 'all standard features'. This includes all features that are common for vessels of this class. Please link to all Factory Submissions used. Links: Starship Weapons, Approved Technology, Shields, Engines)
- HSHA Repulsorlift: Developed from the same repulsorlift system as the High-Altitude Entry Transport-221, the High Speed High Altitude Repulsorlift is an experimental repulsorlift unit developed for the VARG, allowing use in high orbit. Designed to increase the vessels fuel efficiency, the gunship has the ability to completely forgo the use of its rear-repulsors in atmosphere, instead being saved for space travel.
STRENGTHS
- Fuel Efficiency: The HSHA repulsorlift which can be used at any altitude in orbit allows the pilot to switch from the repulsors to the HSHA as it's primary method of propulsion. The repulsorlift is much more fuel efficient than the repulsors, increasing the ships range nearly twofold at the cost of greater speed.
- It's a GUNship: The Varangian is increadibly well armed, with multiple independent cannons it is able to provide CAS with ease while also being able to hold its own when attacked by enemy interceptors.
- Speed is key: Due to the reliance on the HSHA the VARG is on average slower than its contemporaries and while its speed to defence ratio is considered acceptable by Kuati engineers, the hypothetical numbers rarely translate to real capabilities on the battlefield.
- Military Exclusivity: With no hyperdrive and a somewhat complex repulsorlift system the VARG is only suited for military units with a supply chain able to back the gunship up. Needing a transport to travel greater interplanetary distances and trained and supplied mechanics it is ill advised for private individuals and small crews to operate one.
DESCRIPTION
VARG nicknamed the Varangian gunship, is a heavily armed and armoured troopship developed by Kuat Drive Yards. The Varangian is designed to roll up two aircraft rolls into one, a troop transport with the ability to provide close air support which allowing the gunship to drop off its complement of troops and remain on station to provide CAS. With a crew of two pilots and three gunners, the Varangian is capable of holding up to thirty soldiers or a reduced capacity of twenty when speeder bikes are loaded onto its rear bay doors. The design of the Varangian is derived from the ancient Republic LAAT design with improvements and changes to firepower, propulsion, shielding and layout to ensure it remains a competitive craft in an everchanging galaxy.
The Varangian was initially conceived by Kuat Drive Yards as a show of loyalty to the Galactic Alliance in the wake of the Kuat Crisis. Eager to prove that KDY remained one of the primary suppliers of Alliance ships, it competed with a number of other designs to serve as the alliance's new mainline troop transport during the Age of Reclamation, primarily marketing itself as a cheaper albeit slower option. Unfortunately for KDY the initial prototype models suffered due to the lack of speed and manoeuvrability generated by the HSHA repulsorlift unit. Worse yet, the development of the vehicle completely halted after a scandal emerged when it was revealed a number of the engineers designing the Varangian were former secessionists extremists who up until now had evaded capture and were attempting to blend back in to Kuati society. Rather than face a senate hearing over the fact KDY was supplying ships produced by known traitors it quietly withdrew the Varangian from the competition.
Years later the Varangian was reintroduced after young and bold engineer named Corso Ren-hi managed to overcome the Varangians speed problem, raising it's speed to defence ratio up to an acceptable standard. Heading a team, Ren-hi combed over the schematics and development cycle of the gunship, looking for and removing any hint of potential sabotage from the secessionist engineers. After a lengthy, thorough and expensive process the Varangian was approved for the market, years after the initial deadline.
