Solomani Confederation (Military)

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Twin Impulse Engine Fighter

V. Unless stated otherwise in this chapter, all rules that apply to ships also apply to space stations – in effect they are treated as large and (mostly) immobile spacecraft

W. Unless they're mobilized.

X. Any configuration except streamlined (space stations do not enter atmospheres!).

Y. Unless they do, in which case, you can still have the hull configured as streamlined.

Z. Detachable bridge configured as space station.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Twin Impulse Engine Fighter

1. For modularization, breakaway hull option.

2. Issue with that would be bridge control of the total tonnage.

3. Or, podularization.

4. Separate spacecraft pods would be constructed as space stations.

5. Since they're not expected to independently motivate themselves, that fulfils the no combat manoeuvring stipulation.

6. And, since they're considered integral parts of the spacecraft, the manoevre drives inertial compensation field covers them, as well.

7. Integrate them as either hamster cages or the double hull, you still have internal gravity, if their respective hulls are non gravitated.

8. For the double hull, I was thinking a revolver cylinder.

9. Which would allow attachment of sixish pods, without having to completely take over the outer hull.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Twin Impulse Engine Fighter

A. Is podularization possible for the Twin Impulse Engine Fighter?

B. Probably not, since you probably need five tonnes minimum for the pod, since it's external.

C. Module is a bit tougher to get a handle on.

D. Besides the inability to affix major spacecraft systems in them.

E. And upto seventy five percent of a hull can be modularized.

F. It would appear that you could make a module fairly small, to the point of virtualization, considering computers, fixed mounts, and firmpointed torpedo grapples.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Twin Impulse Engine Fighter

G. The smallest spacecraft transporter that could handle most inhabited worlds would need factor/three acceleration.

H. Which means technological level ten.

I. In theory, you could get the Huey gunship variant, since we'll assume most activities take place in orbit or in the atmosphere.

J. After cockpit, engines, and fuel tank, module could be the remaining payload volume.

K. Which easily militarize, or demilitarize, the spacecraft.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Twin Impulse Engine Fighter

L. Weapons of up to 250 kilograms may be mounted on spacecraft using 0.25 tons per weapon.

M. Three torpedoes take up a tonne of space.

N. That would be a third of a tonne per torpedo.

O. That should allow the installation of upto quarter tonne groundscale weapons in podularized torpedoes.

P. In other words, you could attach groundscale weapon pods in torpedo grapples.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Twin Impulse Engine Fighter

Q. Torpedo grapples would have interfaces for targetting and fire control.

R. You could do this wirelessly, but would you want to take the risk?

S. A weaponized torpedo pod would act as a fixed mount for the groundscale weapon systems.

T. Either way, these weapons draw no Power from the spacecraft since it is assumed their energy requirements are tiny in comparison to other systems, and they consume neither hardpoints nor firmpoints.

U. The grapple itself does not affect streamlining but a ship with torpedoes in place can only be considered at best partially streamlined.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Twin Impulse Engine Fighter

V. You could probably stuff in sensor equipment, possibly targetting laser, in a torpedo hull.

W. Maybe drones of that particular volume.

X. Basically firmpointed grapples being so far the only way to have external ordnance.

Y. Exceptionally, Type/One docking clamps, though that adds a tonne.

Z. And it's not a given that you can directly control any weapon system that would be installed in the docked hull, from the primary hull.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Engineering and the Victory Jump Drive

1. Clean sheet design for the Victory class battlecruiser.

2. With the withdrawal of almost all Imperium Navy starwarships, the Confederation Navy had to design and manufacture new capital ships.

3. Having settled for one design to be mass produced, they needed to motivate it.

4. Strategic motivation was to be with three thirty one and a half hundred tonne jump drive modules.

5. Confederation Navy jump drives tend to somewhat inefficient in energy consumption, in exchange for cheaper construction costs.

6. The Victory jump drives are a quarter cheaper than default, but require three tenths more power.

7. That would be thirty five hundred, forty three and three quarters megastarbux, and sixteen thousand, three hundred, and fifty four power points.

8. For one hundred twenty five and four fifths kilotonne parsecs.

9. At technological level twelve and three parsec range.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Engineering and the Victory Jump Drive

A. A Victory class battlecruiser would have three modules installed.

B. The follow up technological level thirteen Zeus class battlecruiser would utilize the proven Victory jump drive modules, installing four.

C. The technological level thirteen Midway class fighter carrier has five installed.

D. The technological level thirteen Zhukov class assault carrier, we're going to allocate three, which would make them to same size as the Victory class battlecruisers.

E. To take advantage of economies of scale, would have built any number of large fleet support vessels at one and a quarter hundred kilotonne.

F. To the point of nine modules at 377'400 parsec tonnes.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Engineering and the Victory Jump Drive

G. It turns out, that the Victory jump drive was great for tractoring.

H. This was one reason no technological level thirteen variant was ever developed.

I. They proved rather popular on the commercial market.

J. The downside being, such as it was, the number of modules installed tended to dictate the optimized volume of freighters.

K. The largest being Triassic class freighters, optimized for a volume of three and three quarters hundred kilotonnes with a range of three parsecs.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Engineering and the Victory Jump Drive

L. That left the issue of large combatants.

M. It was decided, that the eighth of a megatonne battlecruisers would be utilized in the heavy cruiser role, as well.

N. At least, while the Confederation Navy was in it's initial and technological level twelve stage.

O. As the Confederation industrial base was able to manufacture large numbers of technological level thirteen starwarships, this policy was changed.

P. Led by the more powerful of the Confederation member navies, a whole profusion of new cruiser designs were introduced.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Engineering and the Victory Jump Drive

Q. The optimum hull volume for a large combatant is fifty kilotonnes.

R. A Victory jump drive module by itself can motivate forty one and nine tenths kilotonnes.

S. A technological level thirteen Yamamoto class strike cruiser is fifty kilotonnes.

T. A technological level thirteen Minsk class heavy cruiser is sixty kilotonnes.

U. Primary difference appears to be the selection of spinal mount.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Engineering and the Victory Jump Drive

V. Two modules would be eighty three four fifths kilotonnes.

W. Once you hit eighty kilotonnes, anything larger should be hundred kilotonnes plus.

X. Add two three hundred fifteen tonne modules, and you can reach fifty kilotonnes

Y. Add four three hundred fifteen tonne modules, and you almost have fifty eight and half kilotonnes.

Z. Nine three hundred fifteen tonne modules would be thirty seven and one fifty kilotonnes.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Engineering and the Prometheus Jump Drive

1. With the breakthrough to technological level fourteen, plans were initiated to introduce a new range of modern starwarships by the Confederation Navy.

2. The most prominent was the design of a new capital ship.

3. It was proposed to maintain the agility of the mainstay battlecruisers, with the protection and range of an Imperium battleship.

4. Thus was born the fast dreadnought.

5. The current technological level twelve jump drive used for capitol starwarships was upgraded to technological level fourteen advanced variant.

6. Range and capacity were increased to four parsecs, and one hundred thirty nine and four fifths parsec tonnes.

7. Cost increased to 5'197.5 megatsarbux.

8. Eight modules were installed, which gave the capacity of two hundred seventy nine and three fifths kilotonnes.

9. The primary hull was kept at a quarter of a megatonne, the remainder being add ons and attachments, that were easily shed prior to battle.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Engineering and the Prometheus Jump Drive

A. The Normandy class heavy cruisers were designed to escort these new modern capitol ships.

B. Two Prometheus jump drive modules were allocated to each Normandy hull, to allow them to keep up with them.

C. That enabled designers to give them a capacity of sixty nine and nine tenths kilotonnes.

D. The Normandys could be detached for independent operations.

E. Though lack of numbers of Prometheus class fast dreadnoughts, forced naval commanders to keep them together, to maintain the flexibility and relative power of Prometheus centered battle groups.

F. The Confederation Navy had no other large combatant with four parsec range, production of these jump drives dedicated to bringing as many of these two types to the war front as possible.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Engineering and the Beijing Jump Drive

1. With access to technological level fourteen, Confederation Navy starwarships could now range five parsecs.

2. This would allow infiltration of naval assets deep within the rear areas of the Imperium, if not into it's hinterland.

3. The question would be, what would be the most optimum, if not effective, form these naval assets would take.

4. Anything larger than the three hundred fifteen tonne engineering module would require a somewhat substantial diversion of resources to develop it, and establish a separate production line.

5. It comes down, do you want that specific naval asset to be equipped with a spinal mount, or not?

6. [The original Beijing class deep strike cruiser was forty kilotonnes, my take was hundred kilotonnes, taking advantage of economies of scale.]

7. The meson gun was chosen, in order to permit strategic planetary bombardment.

8. The rapid deployment of forces also became recognized, as requiring fast deployment, with considerable naval firepower.

9. However, the Prometheus jump drives would require priority.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Engineering and the Beijing Jump Drive

A. Thirty one and a half centitonne jump drive modules are all conformal to each other.

B. Technological level fourteen.

C. Budgetted energy inefficiency 16'354 power points.

D. Thirty five hundred forty three and three quarters megastarbux.

E. Range five parsecs.

F. Four modules have a capacity of 100'640 tonnes.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Engineering and the Beijing Jump Drive

G. One module would be enough to motivate a twenty five kilotonne light cruiser over five parsecs.

H. Highly likely post bellum, utilized to infiltrate the Imperium.

I. Two modules would motivate a mediumish cruiser, at the deal fifty kilotonne displacement.

J. However, the point of a deep strike cruiser would be to avoid combat with near peers.

K. So, counter productive.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Engineering and the Beijing Jump Drive

L. I don't know if the Imperium Navy had large jump factor five starwarships.

M. Essentially, if there was a precedence for the Azhantis.

N. If the first Azhanti hull was laid down in 991, then if the concept of fleet intruder was novel, it might have surprised the Solomani Admiralty.

O. On the other hand, I doubt I ever saw that concept, for real life warships.

P. Or, it might have been a reaction to the Beijings.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Navy: Engineering and the Beijing Jump Drive

Q. There are some historical parallels.

R. The Beijings could be the Deutschland class.

S. The Deutschlands are technically armoured cruisers, with low end capitol guns.

T. They had a dual role as neutralizing Soviet influence in the Baltic, and cut France's communications with their overseas territories.

U. So again, since armoured cruisers could be used to make up the numbers in the line of battle, describable as pocket battleships.