My Very First Fleet, Part 3: Command ships; The Athens and the Fafnir

[xenoscepter (OP)]

Command Ships:
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Fafnir-Class Command / Bombardment Frigate (CBFG):
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Fafnir class Bombardment Frigate    25,000 tons     522 Crew     2606.75 BP      TCS 500  TH 250  EM 0
500 km/s     Armour 4-76     Shields 0-0     Sensors 50/50/0/0     Damage Control Rating 20     PPV 72
Maint Life 11.69 Years     MSP 11303    AFR 250%    IFR 3.5%    1YR 152    5YR 2284    Max Repair 150 MSP
Intended Deployment Time: 108 months    Spare Berths 2   
Flag Bridge    Magazine 1158   

StarTech Systems Model A (2)    Power 125    Fuel Use 8.84%    Signature 125    Exp 5%
Fuel Capacity 2,180,000 Litres    Range 177.6 billion km   (4110 days at full power)

Triton Project "Atlas" Class Missile Launcher (3)    Missile Size 24    Rate of Fire 720
Telos 10-5-1 100 Res FCS (3)     Range 15.0m km    Resolution 100
Teloshot 10-5-1 200 Res FCS (3)     Range 21.2m km    Resolution 200
Armaggedon XSM (48)  Speed: 6,200 km/s   End: 70.7m    Range: 26.3m km   WH: 13    Size: 24    TH: 24/14/7

Stellar Electronics Ltd. 15MR100 Beholder (1)     GPS 3000     Range 15.0m km    Resolution 100
InteliTech Farsight GS200-02 (1)     GPS 4000     Range 14.1m km    Resolution 200
Thermal Sensor TH10-50 'Regalia' (1)     Sensitivity 50     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  50m km
Stellar Electronics Ltd. 10EM5 Regalia (1)     Sensitivity 50     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  50m km

Missile to hit chances are vs targets moving at 3000 km/s, 5000 km/s and 10,000 km/s

This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes


--- Ship Characteristics:

 - The successor to the Titan "Atlas", the Fafnir-Class Command / Bombardment Frigate is meant to be my first Command Ship and is intended to be gradually phased out by the Athens-Class when tech and industrial capacity permit.

--- Ship Doctrine:

 - Whether operating in the command role, the bombardment role, or in the fire support role; the Fafnir should be kept as far away from the fries of battle as possible,lest the leaders of the Navy grow round and her warriors become weak with the bed sores of burden. For they are salty, overtly greasy and none too pleasant; an unhealthy torment to all those who would dare trifle with them... so beware, BEWARE THE FRIES OF BATTLE!!! I just ran with that typo, but anyway, as a command ship, the Faffy should be well behind the "front lines", faffin' about with the Admiral, Commodore or whoever it is that is commanding from her. in the bombardment or fire support role, she should try to remain in weapons range. However, when the Athens-Class finally arrives on the scene, the Fafnir-Class will become part of it's vanguard forces; ensuring the safety of the high-ranking officer within while serving double or even triple duty as fire support and backup command should the big wig go belly up in his or her big ship.

--- Description of Role:

 - Big Missiles, a big Flag Bridge, big (if not necessarily deep) magazines, the Fafnir is a big ship with exaggerated proportions. It's big ol' missile launchers which comprise basically the entirety of the prow fed by them meaty mags and her big ol' pair of twenty five hundred ton StarTech Systems Model A drives make the roomy bridges astride this monstrosity look puny by compare. (Although not from the inside...) This disposition behooves the Fafnir, for as it is the heir to the ancient and (lore-wise) famous Titan "Atlas" (an extremely similar looking ship) it naturally fulfills the role of chunking great big ol' nookyular missiles at things from a real far ways away. Because that's what the Faffy is at heart, a Bombardment ship, meant to bombard planets and ships from afar with salvos of huge, highly-destructive missiles. It was only natural that this imposing vessel would become a Command ship as well, where it's long range firepower serves it well and where it's missiles are most likely to find a home in the freaky alien living rooms of humanity's strangest foes. That's the Fafnir, and trust you me when this thing comes up to bat... I ain't faffin' around. (I'M NOT SORRY!)

Athens-Class Command Ship:
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Athens class Command Ship    100,000 tons     1218 Crew     8880.01 BP      TCS 2000  TH 1500  EM 0
750 km/s     Armour 12-191     Shields 0-0     Sensors 100/100/0/0     Damage Control Rating 67     PPV 150.4
Maint Life 11.74 Years     MSP 32164    AFR 1403%    IFR 19.5%    1YR 430    5YR 6447    Max Repair 150 MSP
Intended Deployment Time: 108 months    Flight Crew Berths 41   
Flag Bridge    Hangar Deck Capacity 2000 tons     Magazine 1659   

StarTech Systems Model A (12)    Power 125    Fuel Use 8.84%    Signature 125    Exp 5%
Fuel Capacity 12,960,000 Litres    Range 263.9 billion km   (4072 days at full power)

Triton Project "Zeus" 15cm Laser Cannon (1)    Range 60,000km     TS: 1250 km/s     Power 6-0.25     RM 1    ROF 120        6 3 2 1 1 1 0 0 0 0
Quad MiliTech 2cm Snub-Nose Gauss Cannon Turret (8x4)    Range 10,000km     TS: 10000 km/s     Power 0-0     RM 1    ROF 5        1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Federal-Colonial M50 "Minuteman" CIWS (4x2)    Range 1000 km     TS: 5000 km/s     ROF 5       Base 50% To Hit
MiliTech-RSI "Ravisher" 10cm Railgun (6x4)    Range 10,000km     TS: 1250 km/s     Power 3-1     RM 1    ROF 15        1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
MiliTech-RSI "Bomblast" 15cm Plasma Carronade (4)    Range 60,000km     TS: 1250 km/s     Power 6-1     RM 1    ROF 30        6 3 2 1 1 1 0 0 0 0
InteliTech Vangaurd FCS (1)    Max Range: 60,000 km   TS: 5000 km/s     83 67 50 33 17 0 0 0 0 0
SecuriTech Bulldog FCS (1)    Max Range: 80,000 km   TS: 1250 km/s     88 75 62 50 38 25 12 0 0 0
Westinghouse TP-20K/2.5kms "Fast-Trax" FCS (1)    Max Range: 40,000 km   TS: 2500 km/s     75 50 25 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Class-5 Military Reactor (1)     Total Power Output 10    Armour 0    Exp 5%
Class-1 Military Reactor (1)     Total Power Output 1    Armour 0    Exp 5%

Triton Project "Atlas" Class Missile Launcher (1)    Missile Size 24    Rate of Fire 720
Pilum Missile System (3)    Missile Size 3    Rate of Fire 90
Teloshot 10-5-1 100 Res FCS (1)     Range 15.0m km    Resolution 100
Teloshot 10-5-1 200 Res FCS (1)     Range 21.2m km    Resolution 200
Ingram Arms Archimedes FCS (1)     Range 3.8m km    Resolution 1
Armaggedon XSM (47)  Speed: 6,200 km/s   End: 70.7m    Range: 26.3m km   WH: 13    Size: 24    TH: 24/14/7
Javelin ASM (121)  Speed: 4,400 km/s   End: 59.3m    Range: 15.6m km   WH: 3    Size: 3    TH: 16/9/4
Pilum JSM (180)  Speed: 2,500 km/s   End: 548.3m    Range: 82.2m km   WH: 1    Size: 1    TH: 10/6/3

MiliTech Tacti-Scan Series 250 (1)     GPS 50     Range 500k km    Resolution 25
MiliTech-RSI Project M007 "Aegis" Sensor System (1)     GPS 40     Range 2.0m km    MCR 218k km    Resolution 1
Federal-Colonial Binary Low-Band (1)     GPS 150     Range 610k km    Resolution 150
Federal-Colonial Binary High-Band (1)     GPS 75     Range 430k km    Resolution 75
Stellar Electronics Ltd. 40MR10 Beholder (1)     GPS 8000     Range 40.0m km    Resolution 100
InteliTech Farsight GS200-02 (1)     GPS 4000     Range 14.1m km    Resolution 200
MiliTech Tacti-Scan Series 500 (1)     GPS 100     Range 700k km    Resolution 50
Thermal Sensor TH20-100 'Gorgon' (1)     Sensitivity 100     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  100m km
Stellar Electronics Ltd. 20EM100 Gorgon (1)     Sensitivity 100     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  100m km

Strike Group
8x Valkyrie Interceptor   Speed: 1000 km/s    Size: 5

Missile to hit chances are vs targets moving at 3000 km/s, 5000 km/s and 10,000 km/s

This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes

--- Ship Characteristics:

 - The Athens-Class is a bit... odd. A Command Ship made out of a Battleship that wanted to be a Cruiser, the Athens is all kinds of cock eyed. Twelve of the massive 2,500 ton StarTech Systems Model A drives that power most of the Imperial Navy's warships (and literally all of it's cruisers...) are the heart and soul of the Athens-Class, nestled in it's twelve-point armoured hull and well-fed by nearly thirteen-million litres of fuel. Along with the command staff, a hearty array of missiles, plasma caronnades, rail guns, quad Gauss Turrets and even a laser cannon are taxied along by this stupendous cluster of mass-movers. A single formation of the Imperial Navy's then finest Starfighters, the Valkyrie-Class[/left] Interceptor, grace the Hangar Deck of the Athens-Class, while a sterling array of potent (and heavy!) sensors give it great, big eyes with which to peer out into the void and pierce the secrets that are held there within.

 - However, 'tis not all sunshine and rainbows... the Athens is a quartermasters nightmare, with high maintenance requirements and a lot of things which can fail; the Athens suffers from a failure rate that is almost, if not more stupendous than it's 15,000 ton array of drives. Berths as well are at somewhat of premium aboard an Athens-Class, and with a nine-year deployment that's gonna grate some nerves. And whilst it's array of weapons is certainly non-trivial and most assuredly diverse, the firepower of each is somewhat... lacking for the tonnage. The Athens is rather modestly gunned for something which weighs as much four or five Cruisers or some eight or nine Destroyers! However, it's not a Battleship, and it isn't a Cruiser, no the Athens-Class is a Command Ship. A proper Command Ship, not a hybrid like the Fafnir (although you could balance a scale with four of those against just one Athens!). So neither overwhelming firepower, nor extreme speed, nor heavy armor, nor ease of maintenance are of concern to this ship. All that matters is that it serves well the commander whose job it is to carry and support. And with such a diverse set of tools spread betwixt the armaments, drives, hangars, missile launchers capable of firing anything and everything served by magazines chock full of the same... the Athens-Class serves that role, and serves it admirably.

--- Ship Doctrine:

 - The doctrine concerning the employment of an Athens-Class is surprisingly simple and straightforward, entirely unlike the complexity of it's design. Just focus on supporting the fleet in whatever way is best, remain fluid, and maintain the safest (read: farthest) range possible. If acting in a "lead from the center" role, as in a Commodore's ship, the doctrine is exactly the same as when acting in a "lead from the rear" role, with the exception being to stay with the Task Group and not focus on not getting separated instead of trying to stay back from the battle. However, there is one caveat to all this... the Athens-Class should never, EVER be used to lead from the front. It is neither fast enough, nor heavily armoured enough, nor heavily armed enough to function in this capacity. Save that for Battleships, Dreadnoughts or Juggernauts.

--- Description of Role:

 - The Athens-Class serves the fleet in the role of providing an acting Forward Command Center for the Imperial Navy's high-ranking Fleet Officers. It also serves as a tool-kit for the Fleet Officer aboard it, with which they can support the Fleet that is currently under their command. As such it carries a diverse spread of defensively and offensively orientated weapons systems, a modest Hangar Deck Capacity, and a comprehensive suite of both Passive and Active Sensors.

Ordinance:
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Armaggedon XSM:
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Missile Size: 24 MSP  (1.2 HS)     Warhead: 13    Armour: 0     Manoeuvre Rating: 12
Speed: 6200 km/s    Engine Endurance: 71 minutes   Range: 26.3m km
Active Sensor Strength: 0.05   Sensitivity Modifier: 50%
Resolution: 150    Maximum Range vs 7500 ton object (or larger): 30,000 km
EM Sensor Strength: 0.025    Detect Sig Strength 1000:  25,000 km
Cost Per Missile: 6.065
Chance to Hit: 1k km/s 74.4%   3k km/s 24%   5k km/s 14.9%   10k km/s 7.4%
Materials Required:    3.25x Tritanium   0.045x Boronide   0.075x Uridium   2.695x Gallicite   Fuel x250


--- Description of Role:

 - The Armaggedon is an XSM, or Universal Missile for short. The acronym stands for "Surface-to-Surface, Ship-to-Ship, Ship-to-Surface, and Surface-to-Ship", which is a mouthful so it's just called the "Universal Missile" since it covers all the basic uses of missiles in the Imperialist Syndicate (AMMs, Probes, Mines and Cluster Missiles aren't considered basic by Imperialist Doctrine, only Anti-Ship and Planetary Bombardment missiles are considered 'basic'...). The successor to the "Atlas" Class ICBM, it makes use of the exact same launcher, albeit one mated with "White Stag" Magazines. It is one of the the only missiles employed by the Imperialist Syndicate to employ a sensors package, lending it some much needed accuracy. It is occasionally deployed as probe... though not often as it IS a missile used for planetary bombardment as well. Fun Fact: The XSM acronym was made by a company which was called A.C.R.O.N.Y.M that made really complicated acronyms. Their name was also an acronym, an acronym so  complex that even they forgot what it meant, or so they claimed. They were promptly barred from naming anything else in the Imperialist Syndicate following the Armaggedon XSM.

Javelin ASM:
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Missile Size: 3 MSP  (0.15 HS)     Warhead: 3    Armour: 0     Manoeuvre Rating: 11
Speed: 4400 km/s    Engine Endurance: 59 minutes   Range: 15.6m km
Cost Per Missile: 0.9476
Chance to Hit: 1k km/s 48.4%   3k km/s 11%   5k km/s 9.7%   10k km/s 4.8%
Materials Required:    0.75x Tritanium   0.1976x Gallicite   Fuel x250


--- Description of Role:

 - The Javelin is an ASM, developed from the StarTech Systems Model D Missile Engine, which was originally developed for the Pilum JSM, which was then the Sparrow X-1. The Javelin is an Anti-Ship Missile, designed to soften up enemy ships from afar before closing in for the kill. To this end, the Javelin mounts a warhead that is three times as powerful as the Pilum JSM, with a focus on speed over range and maneuverability. The Javelin also makes use of nine StarTech Model E Missile Engines, developed in response to the shift from the lone Sparrow X-1 to the Pilum Missile System.

Pilum JSM:
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Missile Size: 1 MSP  (0.05 HS)     Warhead: 1    Armour: 0     Manoeuvre Rating: 13
Speed: 2500 km/s    Engine Endurance: 9.1 hours   Range: 82.2m km
Cost Per Missile: 0.3412
Chance to Hit: 1k km/s 32.5%   3k km/s 0%   5k km/s 6.5%   10k km/s 3.2%
Materials Required:    0.25x Tritanium   0.0912x Gallicite   Fuel x250


--- Description of Role:

 - It put the "Pilum" in the Pilum Missile System, the Pilum is a Joint-Strike Missile. Designed to function as a lightweight, mass-salvo XSM as well as an Anti-Missile Missile, the Pilum gets it's  moniker from the Roman Spear of the same name. Designed to be fired from the same magazines out of the same launchers that the it's bigger brother the Javelin uses, it serves to lend a great deal of flexibility to the Task Groups of the Earth Empire. It is worth nothing that adapters exist to fire both the Pilum AND the Javelin from the same launchers as the Armaggedon XSM

[Father Tim]

I'm loving the "0 RP" fleet concept.  I'm sure your technical staff pointed out that the Pilum XSM, when used in an AMM role, has only a 6% chance to intercept a Javelin?

(At least the chance of three Pilums intercepting one Javelin is double that of a single Javelin-on-Javelin shot.)

[xenoscepter (OP)]

Yes, my "technical staff" (read the forums here) eventually found that out. The Pilum II, Pilum III, and Pilum IV eventually sort that out and then some, but the Pilum AKA the Sparrow X-1 in all but name; is an early game missile designed to complement the Javelin by adding a small, easily massed, long-range "Throw Weight"-Based Missile to allow my smaller launcher ships the capacity to conduct bombardments and/or counter-battery/Anti-Missile fire without depleting their reserves of the more potent Javelins. And while three Pilums is a bit costlier than just one Javelin, it does have a little over times the range, allowing my smaller missile ships to conduct fire outside the range of even my Armaggedon XSM.

[Michael Sandy]

I am a bit disappointed by early AMMs.  In my opinion, AMMs don't become effective at all until the 8k missile tech, (5 warhead per MSP, 64 agility per MSP).  And +100% engine power boost tech, at a minimum.

However, AMMs aren't really NECESSARY until you need them to thin out massive volleys from box launchers.  Or extremely reduced sides launchers.  Interesting campaign story, I just captured a Precursor base that had 5000+ AMMs on it that are several tech tiers ahead of my own.   50% more missiles than fit my entire magazine space.  One of the results is that the bean counters don't want attrition fights that exhaust enemy missile stocks before attacking, they want to somehow capture more missile stocks!  So I RP the internal tension between pursuing different strategy and tactical options.

I really like railgun fighters for early PD.  They are just somewhat awkward to use in a fleet with mixed speeds.  Sometimes you just have to stop the fleet while under bombardment, to ensure that you can park your fighter task group in the same location as the fleet, to ensure their railguns are in range for point blank PD mode.  But I don't have a good RP to explain what is going on that makes sense to me.

[DIT_grue]

I really like railgun fighters for early PD.  They are just somewhat awkward to use in a fleet with mixed speeds.  Sometimes you just have to stop the fleet while under bombardment, to ensure that you can park your fighter task group in the same location as the fleet, to ensure their railguns are in range for point blank PD mode.  But I don't have a good RP to explain what is going on that makes sense to me.

something something cheap mass production blah blah require a super-stable firing platform to achieve hits? Maybe they need isolation from the noisy, hot, vibrating environment of their parent ships, too?

[Jorgen_CAB]

I am a bit disappointed by early AMMs.  In my opinion, AMMs don't become effective at all until the 8k missile tech, (5 warhead per MSP, 64 agility per MSP).  And +100% engine power boost tech, at a minimum.

However, AMMs aren't really NECESSARY until you need them to thin out massive volleys from box launchers.  Or extremely reduced sides launchers.  Interesting campaign story, I just captured a Precursor base that had 5000+ AMMs on it that are several tech tiers ahead of my own.   50% more missiles than fit my entire magazine space.  One of the results is that the bean counters don't want attrition fights that exhaust enemy missile stocks before attacking, they want to somehow capture more missile stocks!  So I RP the internal tension between pursuing different strategy and tactical options.

I really like railgun fighters for early PD.  They are just somewhat awkward to use in a fleet with mixed speeds.  Sometimes you just have to stop the fleet while under bombardment, to ensure that you can park your fighter task group in the same location as the fleet, to ensure their railguns are in range for point blank PD mode.  But I don't have a good RP to explain what is going on that makes sense to me.

This is because Agility is a direct force multiplier on AMM, there is as you say no point in using AMM before a certain level of technology and from a technical point of view beam weapons is the only viable defense early on.