Slicer Gunship - GC
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The Slicer is just another part of the redesigned Western Fleet, meant to fit into the fleet's combat formulae of alternative and unusual tactics and weaponry. The purpose of any good gunship is to harras enemy formation, chase enemy fighters, and otherwise frustrate an enemy's battleplan - and the western fleet is all about frustration!
In design, the Slicer is long, narrow, and angular. It's shape is like a straight rod - The front end is a bullet-head, and the back end is a rectangular block for the engines and thrust, but between the two is the long hexagonical rod split into segments, each segments plated outwardly. It's appearance could be described as unassuming, and indeed it's meant to be. What actually makes it deadly is the fact that this unassuming face hides a variety of weapons and technology that make it difficult for an enemy to estimate what it's about to face.
The angular plates on a Slicer all look the same to the casual observer, but in fact many slide back to reveal weapons hidden beneath, weapons that are detachable and interchangeable with other such weapons so as to allow a Slicer to be refitted at dry-dock for multiple purposes. Also, each of these emplacements can be rotated to a different 'face' of the hexagon, meaning that a weapon could come out of one plate, go back in, only later to surface at a different point.
The Slicer has weapons especially designed to take advantage of this 'spring-loaded' nature. The Firehose Turret has been newly designed, and has proven in tests to be a deadly weapon well suited to it's anti-fighter task. The turret is a largish single barrel that fires out thick clouds of dense laser-fire that expands rapidly, giving the appearance of a firehose - except where there would be water, there is instead high-strength las-fire. The weapon lacks range, but combined with the ability to pop out suddenly from a hidden panel the Slicer can mince up enemy fighters caught in a blast of fire. It's proven less effective against capitol ships, since to cause serious damage the turret must be levelled against a ship for a continuous burst, and that would require the gunship to stop moving, surely to be destroyed by capitol guns.
This weapon requires great training, however - in fact, simply managing the complicated system that moves the turret emplacements aroudn the ship is a job requiring a great deal of practice. The turrets do not discriminate targets, so gunners must learn to use their destructive power wisely lest friendlies be caught up.
The Slicer tends to mount other weapons, but just what they are depends on the mission and the captain - they can mount a turbolaser or a quad-gun or an ion cannon just as easily, making them difficult to predict in battle.
Along with the twisting weapon-mounts and the new anti-fighter weapons, the Slicer carries one more feature, which in fact gives it it's unusual name. The Slicer is meant to act independantly, to harras the enemy and irritaite their formations and tactics. As such, it carries a unique wave array mounted on the rear portion of the ship. The gunship's systems are already greatly tied up with managing the rotating weapons, and even though it has a low crew requirement and sparse living conditions (The Slicer is not meant to be inhabited for long) the demands on the system are such that the array can only be employed for short bursts at a time, a reccomended cool-down of one hour is employed but some testers have risked it 'running hot' for as soon as a half-hour after it's first use.
What this array does was originally born from - of all things - frustration of Coalition intellectuals at the authoritarian control the Empire enforces on it's people through the control of all media and technological clout strong enough to shut out any dissent. The wave system on the gunship is actually the crudest but first attempt at dealing with this issue, it sends out 'null waves' that scramble and silence every type of wave signal within range. Every known form of wireless communication short of sound and hearing is blotted out, along with radar, targeting devices, you name it. This can last for up to five minutes before an hour of cool-down is needed, but only occurs in a very limited area around the array. This is the crudest and first attempt at wave technology, but the uses are clearly visible.
When employed, it is true that all waves are blocked and thus even the Slicer and any friendlies nearby will not be able to get targeting data or communications. Were a ship reliant on wireless communications within itself, and it fell within the range of this device, even that would be imperiled. However, this helps for a host of other issues as fighters attacking the Slicer now suddenly lose near everything but eyesight in making their attack runs, and most automated weapon systems fail as well. The range is limited to point blank, but in tests it's proven to given the edge to Slicers, as their Firehoses don't need the precision of computer-assisted aiming.
Overall, the slicer promises a surprise for enemy forces, sowing confusion and scrambling signals. An expert unit could pass within a narrow margine of enemy warships and escape again as the enemy all the while tries to figure out what just happened. In the long run, however, the Slicer tends to wear out comparatively quickly - guns become harder to move around, the array overheats, and friendlies entangle too closely with foes to use the Firehose. In a blitzkreig assault, however, they are unparalled.
In design, the Slicer is long, narrow, and angular. It's shape is like a straight rod - The front end is a bullet-head, and the back end is a rectangular block for the engines and thrust, but between the two is the long hexagonical rod split into segments, each segments plated outwardly. It's appearance could be described as unassuming, and indeed it's meant to be. What actually makes it deadly is the fact that this unassuming face hides a variety of weapons and technology that make it difficult for an enemy to estimate what it's about to face.
The angular plates on a Slicer all look the same to the casual observer, but in fact many slide back to reveal weapons hidden beneath, weapons that are detachable and interchangeable with other such weapons so as to allow a Slicer to be refitted at dry-dock for multiple purposes. Also, each of these emplacements can be rotated to a different 'face' of the hexagon, meaning that a weapon could come out of one plate, go back in, only later to surface at a different point.
The Slicer has weapons especially designed to take advantage of this 'spring-loaded' nature. The Firehose Turret has been newly designed, and has proven in tests to be a deadly weapon well suited to it's anti-fighter task. The turret is a largish single barrel that fires out thick clouds of dense laser-fire that expands rapidly, giving the appearance of a firehose - except where there would be water, there is instead high-strength las-fire. The weapon lacks range, but combined with the ability to pop out suddenly from a hidden panel the Slicer can mince up enemy fighters caught in a blast of fire. It's proven less effective against capitol ships, since to cause serious damage the turret must be levelled against a ship for a continuous burst, and that would require the gunship to stop moving, surely to be destroyed by capitol guns.
This weapon requires great training, however - in fact, simply managing the complicated system that moves the turret emplacements aroudn the ship is a job requiring a great deal of practice. The turrets do not discriminate targets, so gunners must learn to use their destructive power wisely lest friendlies be caught up.
The Slicer tends to mount other weapons, but just what they are depends on the mission and the captain - they can mount a turbolaser or a quad-gun or an ion cannon just as easily, making them difficult to predict in battle.
Along with the twisting weapon-mounts and the new anti-fighter weapons, the Slicer carries one more feature, which in fact gives it it's unusual name. The Slicer is meant to act independantly, to harras the enemy and irritaite their formations and tactics. As such, it carries a unique wave array mounted on the rear portion of the ship. The gunship's systems are already greatly tied up with managing the rotating weapons, and even though it has a low crew requirement and sparse living conditions (The Slicer is not meant to be inhabited for long) the demands on the system are such that the array can only be employed for short bursts at a time, a reccomended cool-down of one hour is employed but some testers have risked it 'running hot' for as soon as a half-hour after it's first use.
What this array does was originally born from - of all things - frustration of Coalition intellectuals at the authoritarian control the Empire enforces on it's people through the control of all media and technological clout strong enough to shut out any dissent. The wave system on the gunship is actually the crudest but first attempt at dealing with this issue, it sends out 'null waves' that scramble and silence every type of wave signal within range. Every known form of wireless communication short of sound and hearing is blotted out, along with radar, targeting devices, you name it. This can last for up to five minutes before an hour of cool-down is needed, but only occurs in a very limited area around the array. This is the crudest and first attempt at wave technology, but the uses are clearly visible.
When employed, it is true that all waves are blocked and thus even the Slicer and any friendlies nearby will not be able to get targeting data or communications. Were a ship reliant on wireless communications within itself, and it fell within the range of this device, even that would be imperiled. However, this helps for a host of other issues as fighters attacking the Slicer now suddenly lose near everything but eyesight in making their attack runs, and most automated weapon systems fail as well. The range is limited to point blank, but in tests it's proven to given the edge to Slicers, as their Firehoses don't need the precision of computer-assisted aiming.
Overall, the slicer promises a surprise for enemy forces, sowing confusion and scrambling signals. An expert unit could pass within a narrow margine of enemy warships and escape again as the enemy all the while tries to figure out what just happened. In the long run, however, the Slicer tends to wear out comparatively quickly - guns become harder to move around, the array overheats, and friendlies entangle too closely with foes to use the Firehose. In a blitzkreig assault, however, they are unparalled.