Lance-class Gunship
Name/Type: Lance-class Gunship
Designers: Killian Holmes and Sol Nyhammer
Manufacturer: Commonwealth Technologies and Industries
Purpose: Large-scale rail gun with fighter refueling ports
Length: 400 meters
Crew: 370 crewmen – 20 gunners - 15 pilots
Speed: 20 MGLT
Hyperdrive: 1x
Shield Rating: 3205 SBD
Hull Rating: 1550 RU
Weapons: 1 Electromagnectic Force Projectile Launcher, 16 point defense laser canon batteries
Fighter Compliment: One squadron held on external racks
Other Components: Defender System, Automated Interior Turrets
Description: The Lance-class Gunship is designed to be a support ship to travel with fleet for the sole purpose of knocking out the bridges of enemy vessels with their large rail guns. In so doing they can effectively cripple enemy vessels. The large majority of the ship, mainly the entire middle of the chassis, is the bore and launcher of the rail gun which launches projectiles at high speeds towards the enemy ships. It travels along with major fleets as it is mostly unable to defend itself, making up for that fact with strong shields and strong armoring.
R&D Explanations:
Electromagnetic Force Projectile Launcher: This is, essentially, a more technical name for a rail gun. A rail gun is a form of gun that converts electrical energy rather than the more conventional chemical energy from an explosive propellant into projectile kinetic energy. In so doing, it launches a five meter long, two meter diameter slug capable of lancing through space towards an enemy target. It carries 30 slugs and everytime the weapon is fired the ship shakes quite a bit. This is compensated for by the crew strapping in when the weapon is in use. (written with the help of wikipedia)
Projectiles: Thirty slugs of varying strength are packed into the ship, some for different purposes than others.
*Regular Slugs - The standard solid metal slug also happens to be the heaviest of all of them. It's typical use is for firing directly into an enemies bridge and through it to cause maximum damage by forcing vacuum into the ship from an entry and exit point.
*Hollow-points - These are the slugs designed to cause maximum damage to an enemy ship regardless of location of hit. Hollow points explode outwards upon impact, causing more widespread damage than simply a hold from one side of the ship to another.
*Explosive Slugs - For causing extreme amounts of damage to an enemy vessel or a target on the ground of a planet. This slug is loaded with high power explosives with a detonator on the edge of the slud near the tip but closer to where it tappers into its thickest point. When the detonator contacts something solid a large explosion is triggered.
*Proximity slugs - When it comes down to it, those pesky fighter squadrons swarming towards your fleet are a real nuisance. A proximity slug is an effective way to take out multiple squadrons with a single highly explosive shell set to explode near enemy vessels. Reaks havoc on enemy fighters and can turn the tables in the battle.
Defender System: The defender system is designed as a defense for information carried within the date that is held inside of the ships main computers. In the event of boarding by an enemy force, the information systems can be purged through the use of a high active virus which moves as fast as possible through the system, corrupting data and then destroying it upon the second pass. The reason the virus works this way is so that it can at least corrupt the data before someone starts fighting against it. Then is destroys what’s left before being stopped. This virus is unleashed by a retinal scan from either the Captain of the vessel, the Admiral of the fleet it is assigned to, or the communications officer.
Automated Interior Turrets: Without having the benefit of troops onboard the vessel to repel enemy invaders, something had to be designed to defend from invasion by enemy naval troops. Automated Interior Turrets, designed to be turned on individually at local command stations, are mounted on the ceiling and only extend down upon being activated. The tiny turrets house a single heavy blaster capable of piercing most armor. The stations placed all around the ship can be activated with the simple push of a button, but once activated they can only be shut off by a code that is input from the bridge of the ship.
Shields: The ships poor speed and maneuverability prompted designers to equip the Lance with heavy shields.The shield generator is powered by a small, yet high yield reactor. This allows the Lance heavier shielding than most ships of its size.
Engines: The Lance has a trio of pylon mounted ion engines. Though powerful, the incredible mass of the ship's main gun give the Lance a slow speed. Maneuverability has also suffered. Small ion maneuverability jets were included around the tip of the main gun. These, working in tandem with the ship's main engines allow the main gun to be aimed quickly and easily.
Fighter Compliment: The fighters rest upon the ship on an exterior rack similar to older modeled ships. The ship is designed to carry extra fuel for the vessels as the fighters are its only real source of protection other than the fleet the ship travels with. The rack serves for refueling only, it doesn't house the fighters.