At the end there is a listing of regular forces too in addition to the boarding specialists. From the same game as:
hxxp: aurora2. pentarch. org/index. php?topic=12818. 0
I'm not a spambot let me post links plz. Regardless of this minor inconvenience;
Battlefleet Sol proposed formation: CC Vexillus, CA Vindico m3, CVS Aphobia m2, CVE Praetor, 2x CL Carnifex, 1 RS Auxilia*
*May be replaced with another Carnifex vs other beam fleets or Praetor vs missile fleets.
First of all, I have three main questions:
1) Is it worth to research CIC and add a CIC to all 15,000 ton warship designs? Combat Information Centre is already partly researched(just a bit) from salvage operations of wrecked alien warships. I'm unsure about the real usefulness of it. Is it worthwhile or is the bonus of a Tactical Officer too little given how much tonnage it needs?
2) Considering the following FAC has BFCs that are only 2% more accurate compared to 3 escort fighters that also fit in one hangar bay, is it better to build a shipyard for it or to have the fighters which don't need shipyards because the difference between 86 and 88% for final defensive fire is not worth building another naval shipyard just for a 1000 ton piece of glass with no armor whatsoever? Here are the two designs for comparison, intended as a more flexible alternative to fielding gauss PD turrets with the disadvantage of worse tracking speed (15k instead 20k) and a slight loss in BFC range reducing accuracy a bit.
3) Similar question to the one on the usefulness of CIC, what about Primary Flight Control and the Commander - Air Group bonuses? Are they worth sacrificing something to open room for PFC in the carrier designs considering they are mostly fitted with PD fighters and boarding shuttles?
Astarte class Escort (P) 1,000 tons 55 Crew 368.2 BP TCS 20 TH 302 EM 0
15085 km/s Armour 1-8 Shields 0-0 HTK 6 Sensors 0/0/0/0 DCR 0 PPV 9
Maint Life 2.35 Years MSP 158 AFR 80% IFR 1.1% 1YR 39 5YR 586 Max Repair 150.8 MSP
Commander Control Rating 1
Intended Deployment Time: 0.3 days Morale Check Required
Itaipu Trinuclear MagPlasma 301 (1) Power 301.6 Fuel Use 532.92% Signature 301.6 Explosion 29%
Fuel Capacity 11,000 Litres Range 0.37 billion km (6 hours at full power)
ALLE T10 Railgun (3x4) Range 50,000km TS: 15,085 km/s Power 3-3 RM 50,000 km ROF 5
Marques Eletro CTU 84Mm-15k (3) Max Range: 84,000 km TS: 15,000 km/s 88 76 64 52 40 29 17 5 0 0
Alfaro Aeromarine Stellarator R9 (1) Total Power Output 9.3 Exp 7%
Camara Sistemas Nanosensor m1 (1) GPS 3 Range 2.7m km MCR 244k km Resolution 1
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a d for auto-assignment purposes
Polibolos class Fighter 333 tons 18 Crew 118.1 BP TCS 7 TH 101 EM 0
15143 km/s Armour 1-4 Shields 0-0 HTK 2 Sensors 0/0/0/0 DCR 0 PPV 3
Maint Life 0 Years MSP 0 AFR 66% IFR 0.9% 1YR 18 5YR 266 Max Repair 50.4 MSP
Commander Control Rating 1
Intended Deployment Time: 0.3 days Morale Check Required
Itaipu Trinuclear MagPlasma-100 (1) Power 100.8 Fuel Use 1020.50% Signature 100.8 Explosion 30%
Fuel Capacity 5,000 Litres Range 0.26 billion km (4 hours at full power)
ALLE T10 Railgun (1x4) Range 50,000km TS: 15,143 km/s Power 3-3 RM 50,000 km ROF 5
Marques Eletro CTU 72Mm-15k (1) Max Range: 72,000 km TS: 15,000 km/s 86 72 58 44 31 17 3 0 0 0
Alfaro Aeromarine Stellarator R3 (1) Total Power Output 3 Exp 7%
This design is classed as a Fighter for production, combat and planetary interaction
This design is classed as a e for auto-assignment purposes
I'm partial to the fighters simply because they don't need shipyards. Besides, with 1 armor and no shields in both designs, it definitively seems better this way. Now onto the rest, including the mothership for these two possible alternatives.
Measly 3kt frigates defended the rights of the Imperium over a barren system, little more than a fuel depot, in a conflict caused by arrogant xenos claiming every system around Sol who then decided to reply to an ultimatum to get out of Epsilon Leonis Minoris with war. It was a great cleansing, over 500,000 tons of alien wreckage, at first they had nothing but Gauss cannons with range beneath 20,000 km and lots of irresponsibly placed unarmed vessels near Sol to be purged.
This has dragged longer than it should due to the lack of many key developments and shipyards to launch a planetary invasion against them, and with time they brought the first serious threat in the form of heavy particle beam armed vessels that could put down, with some luck, any of the frigates with a single hit. That was the sign the days of the little ones great glories during the beginning of the war were ending. Nonetheless, only 3 frigates were lost over many years of war and over 7000 xenos are imprisoned in Sol from how many losses they suffered, a mercy they don't deserve yet, for pragmatic reasons, are given for now. So many precious wrecks to be salvaged that will deliver more duranium than many mining operations.
Magneto-Plasma was taken from the aliens through ELINT by a vessel with reduced thermal signature engines hiding in an asteroid very, very close to its star, thus their minor propulsion technological advantage will soon be gone, and in preparation for the new classes of warships, enough Space Marines were trained that making up poorly-constructed pseudo-Latin names (and a Portuguese one as exception) for all their squadrons is getting harder: 100 ton each, perhaps a bit too big for a squad, specifically that because it is the tonnage the smallest type of troop transport can load. Here their composition and their names:
Space Marine Squad - R9
Transport Size: 100 tons
Build Cost: 10 BP
14x Space Marine - Plasma Bolter (PWL)
4x Space Marine - Plasma MG (CAP)
2x Space Marine - Fireteam Leader (PW)
Note: Guns TL is relatively high, giving 21 Damage and AP PWs and 10 Damage and AP PWL. Heavy Power Armor provides 24 armor for each of them.
Off-Topic: Squad Names show I Corvii Romulus - Romulus Ravens.
II Variagii Boreales - Nordic Varangians, no relation to ultra-dank Dawn of War memes.
III Duraniae Triarii - Duranium Triarii.
IV Astrae Lupii - Space Wolves.
V Ultrasolarii - Ultrasolar, sort of like Ultramarines.
VI Voradorii Mundus - World Eaters.
VII Alpharii - *REDACTED* Alpha Legion *REDACTED*
VIII Angelii ab Mortis - Angels of Death.
IX Nigrae Angelii - Dark Angels.
X Miles Invictus - Invincible Soldiers.
XI Rhomaioi - Eastern Roman Empire inspired Chapter.
XII Manus Imperator - Emperor's Hands.
XIII Arditii - Always fitting in any Not-Imperium.
XIV Nis Fortis Maximae - Nis' Strongest.
XV Cobras Fumantes - Smoking Snakes. Serpentis something, dunno how to write it in Latin.
XVI Impavidus Valor - Everlasting(?) Courage.
XVII Ferrus Manii - Iron Hands.
Strongly favoring close range combat this force, named Battlefleet Sol, uses a combination of plasma carronades, small caliber railguns and gauss turrets, from which only the former and the latter will see additional R&D in the foreseeable future. Railguns are just way too effective for <=500 ton designs and keeping research no further than 10cm railguns is relatively inexpensive in RP points, while railgun base range improvements are much less expensive to research than Gauss.
The core and perhaps most important element is the Vexillus Class Command Cruiser, the flagship of Battlefleet Sol, featuring a flag bridge, of course. While very lacking in direct firepower for its tonnage, with only one 30cm plasma light cannon, one 10cm railgun and a single Gauss PD turret, it is meant to primarily support the others as a command, sensor array and combat jump ship which should improve the combat effectiveness of all six vessels that will squadron jump together under its command. In addition to such capabilities it also has 20 space marines as its "preemptive anti-boarding" defense, which is not only defensive, for the Vexillus can send her few but mighty space marines against hostile ships, or more likely to reinforce already ongoing boarding operations given that, propaganda aside, 20 space marines probably won't suffice to capture any sizable vessel on their own.
The first prototype still used Ion propulsion and was somewhat more limited, for the leap didn't lead into increased operational speed simply because the beam fire controls speed rating is as important to research for a beam weapons-centered fleet to have for faster speeds and so far there was no perceived necessity of reaching faster velocities than the ~6800 km/s of these new ships, all of the observed alien ship classes are slower than that, their fastest going around ~5800 km/s. Thus it was chosen to make more efficient, smaller and redundant engines to achieve similar speeds to Ion-era designs that were more speed-focused for their tech level. This design is still "unlocked" and not set in stone, whether a CIC should be added to it or not at the expense of weapons or some other capability remains under consideration.
While some criticize how its armor is as thick as the armor of the now sort of venerable 3000 ton frigates, it has formidable shields which unlike armor can regenerate in field instead of requiring extensive repairs. As long as a force that has nothing but shield-bypassing mesons isn't found, they will be far more tough compared to the frigates regardless of such "puny" armor for their tonnage, specially against shock damage from the particle beams the aliens have chosen as their primary offensive weapon.
Vexillus class Command Cruiser 15,000 tons 422 Crew 3,079.3 BP TCS 300 TH 2,042 EM 6,870
6805 km/s JR 7-50 Armour 8-54 Shields 229-536 HTK 76 Sensors 1/121/0/0 DCR 9 PPV 20.4
Maint Life 2.12 Years MSP 1,159 AFR 200% IFR 2.8% 1YR 344 5YR 5,157 Max Repair 357 MSP
Hangar Deck Capacity 150 tons Troop Capacity 100 tons Boarding Capable Cryogenic Berths 200
Lord-Captain Control Rating 4 BRG AUX ENG FLG
Intended Deployment Time: 9 months Flight Crew Berths 3 Morale Check Required
Evento Horizonte S15000-7 m1 Max Ship Size 15000 tons Distance 50k km Squadron Size 7
Itaipu Trinuclear MagPlasma-510 (4) Power 2041.6 Fuel Use 51.21% Signature 510.4 Explosion 14%
Fuel Capacity 1,025,000 Litres Range 24 billion km (40 days at full power)
Gellar Manufactorum Theta Scutum 229 (1) Recharge Time 536 seconds (0.4 per second)
TriOptimum PAX-30 Light Plasma Cannon (1) Range 240,000km TS: 6,805 km/s Power 24-6 RM 10,000 km ROF 20
ALLE T10 Railgun (1x4) Range 50,000km TS: 6,805 km/s Power 3-3 RM 50,000 km ROF 5
Taurus CEMB-5 Turret (1x5) Range 50,000km TS: 20000 km/s Power 0-0 RM 50,000 km ROF 5
Marques Eletro CT 240Mm-6750 (1) Max Range: 240,000 km TS: 6,750 km/s 96 92 88 83 79 75 71 67 62 58
Marques Eletro CTU 240Mm-20k (1) Max Range: 240,000 km TS: 20,000 km/s 96 92 88 83 79 75 71 67 62 58
Alfaro Aeromarine Stellarator R6 (1) Total Power Output 6 Exp 7%
Alfaro Aeromarine Stellarator R3 (1) Total Power Output 3 Exp 7%
Camara Sistemas Sensor AM 42 (1) GPS 42 Range 12.1m km MCR 1.1m km Resolution 1
Camara Sistemas Sensor EM-121 (1) Sensitivity 121 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 87m km
Carneiro ST Nano m1 (1) Sensitivity 1.1 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 8.3m km
Strike Group
1x Iris Recon Fighter Speed: 16800 km/s Size: 2
2x Augur Recon Satellite Speed: 1 km/s Size: 0.37
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a c for auto-assignment purposes
Its tiny hangar capabilities are used to extend sensor range through two means. First within the same system, with its single recon fighter with a passive thermal sensor.
Iris class Recon Fighter 100 tons 4 Crew 30.6 BP TCS 2 TH 34 EM 0
16800 km/s Armour 1-1 Shields 0-0 HTK 2 Sensors 11/0/0/0 DCR 0 PPV 0
Maint Life 0 Years MSP 0 AFR 19% IFR 0.3% 1YR 1 5YR 22 Max Repair 16.8 MSP
Commander Control Rating 1
Intended Deployment Time: 1 days Morale Check Required
Itaipu Trinuclear MagPlasma-33 (1) Power 33.6 Fuel Use 1767.56% Signature 33.6 Explosion 30%
Fuel Capacity 5,000 Litres Range 0.51 billion km (8 hours at full power)
Carneiro ST Básico m1 (1) Sensitivity 11 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 26.2m km
This design is classed as a Fighter for production, combat and planetary interaction
This design is classed as a a for auto-assignment purposes
And finally by jumping a tiny probe through any jump point, no enemy will ever have the element of surprise in their favor and very important informed decisions such as refusing to initiate a jump point assault when massively outnumbered and outgunned on the other side can be made. Furthermore unarmed ships may panic, unbelievably scared because a 19 tons probe showed up, and stupidly jump and go in blind, ripe for boarding (Note to self: don't jump probes on unknown jump points loaded inside unarmed survey carriers. )
Augur class Recon Satellite 19 tons 0 Crew 4.7 BP TCS 0 TH 0 EM 0
1 km/s No Armour Shields 0-0 HTK 0 Sensors 1/1/0/0 DCR 0 PPV 0
MSP 0 AFR 3% IFR 0.1% Max Repair 2.1 MSP
Commander Control Rating 1
Intended Deployment Time: 3 months
Camara Sistemas Nanosensor m1 (1) GPS 3 Range 2.7m km MCR 244k km Resolution 1
Camara Sistemas Nanosensor EM m1 (1) Sensitivity 1.1 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 8.3m km
Carneiro ST Nano m1 (1) Sensitivity 1.1 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 8.3m km
This design is classed as a Commercial Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a Space Station for construction purposes
This design is classed as a Space Station for auto-assignment purposes
The brawler among the 7, the Vindico m3 Heavy Cruiser also was an Ion design. Its transition to Magneto-Plasma drastically expanded its firepower from tonnage savings, while other choices centered on questioning the utility of multiple Gauss cannons in a single turret also helped. Currently one shipyard is tooled for the m2 version, of which one was already constructed, which was different from the original as the first practical boarding systems were researched when it was proposed, and the original, predating boarding combat advances, had no space marines inside it. Retooling for the m3 version so the older one can be refitted is underway.
3 Heavy Plasma Macro Cannons are its highlight: despite very slow firing, requiring one minute and twenty seconds to recharge their capacitors, each salvo deals enormous damage at point-blank (<=10,000km), likely enough to cause severe shock damage even to the biggest capital ships. 4 10cm railguns and a single Gauss turret will help with putting shields down and finishing the job in addition to some anti-missile PD capability. While boarding operations are not its focus, like the Vexillus it also has a complement of 20 space marines as "preemptive defense". CIC is being considered too but adding one will involve a trade-off.
Vindico m3 class Heavy Cruiser 15,000 tons 426 Crew 3,035.6 BP TCS 300 TH 2,042 EM 6,870
6805 km/s Armour 8-54 Shields 229-536 HTK 93 Sensors 16/16/0/0 DCR 8 PPV 77.4
Maint Life 2.28 Years MSP 1,177 AFR 209% IFR 2.9% 1YR 305 5YR 4,582 Max Repair 357 MSP
Troop Capacity 100 tons Boarding Capable
Lord-Captain Control Rating 3 BRG AUX ENG
Intended Deployment Time: 9 months Morale Check Required
Itaipu Trinuclear MagPlasma-510 (4) Power 2041.6 Fuel Use 51.21% Signature 510.4 Explosion 14%
Fuel Capacity 1,025,000 Litres Range 24 billion km (40 days at full power)
Gellar Manufactorum Theta Scutum 229 (1) Recharge Time 536 seconds (0.4 per second)
TriOptimum PAX-60 Heavy Macro Cannon (3) Range 480,000km TS: 6,805 km/s Power 96-6 RM 10,000 km ROF 80
Taurus CEMB-5 Turret (1x5) Range 50,000km TS: 20000 km/s Power 0-0 RM 50,000 km ROF 5
ALLE T10 Railgun (4x4) Range 50,000km TS: 6,805 km/s Power 3-3 RM 50,000 km ROF 5
Marques Eletro CT 480Mm-6750 (1) Max Range: 480,000 km TS: 6,750 km/s 98 96 94 92 90 88 85 83 81 79
Marques Eletro CTU 240Mm-20k (1) Max Range: 240,000 km TS: 20,000 km/s 96 92 88 83 79 75 71 67 62 58
Marques Eletro CT 240Mm-6750 (1) Max Range: 240,000 km TS: 6,750 km/s 96 92 88 83 79 75 71 67 62 58
Alfaro Aeromarine Stellarator R30 (1) Total Power Output 30.4 Exp 7%
Camara Sistemas Microsensor m1 (1) GPS 11 Range 6.1m km MCR 545.7k km Resolution 1
Camara Sistemas Sensor EM-16 (1) Sensitivity 16.5 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 32.1m km
Carneiro ST 1.5x m1 (1) Sensitivity 16.5 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 32.1m km
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a c for auto-assignment purposes
Off-Topic: Previous Version - 1 currently built show Vindico m2 class Heavy Cruiser 15,000 tons 406 Crew 2,941. 9 BP TCS 300 TH 2,040 EM 6,870
6800 km/s Armour 8-54 Shields 229-536 HTK 84 Sensors 11/16/0/0 DCR 8 PPV 69. 68
Maint Life 1. 43 Years MSP 1,054 AFR 209% IFR 2. 9% 1YR 566 5YR 8,485 Max Repair 510 MSP
Troop Capacity 100 tons Boarding Capable
Lord-Captain Control Rating 3 BRG AUX ENG
Intended Deployment Time: 9 months Morale Check Required
Coelho PEB MION-1020 (2) Power 2040 Fuel Use 68. 80% Signature 1020 Explosion 17%
Fuel Capacity 1,200,000 Litres Range 20. 9 billion km (35 days at full power)
Gellar Manufactorum Theta Scutum 229 (1) Recharge Time 536 seconds (0. 4 per second)
TriOptimum PAX-60 Heavy Macro Cannon (2) Range 480,000km TS: 6,800 km/s Power 96-6 RM 10,000 km ROF 80
Quad Taurus CEMB-5 Turret (1x20) Range 50,000km TS: 20000 km/s Power 0-0 RM 50,000 km ROF 5
Marques Eletro CTU 480Mm-6750 (2) Max Range: 480,000 km TS: 6,750 km/s 98 96 94 92 90 88 85 83 81 79
Marques Eletro CTU 240Mm-20k (1) Max Range: 240,000 km TS: 20,000 km/s 96 92 88 83 79 75 71 67 62 58
Alfaro Aeromarine Stellarator R6 (2) Total Power Output 12 Exp 7%
Camara Sistemas Microsensor m1 (1) GPS 11 Range 6. 1m km MCR 545. 7k km Resolution 1
Camara Sistemas Sensor EM-16 (1) Sensitivity 16. 5 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 32. 1m km
Carneiro ST Básico m1 (1) Sensitivity 11 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 26. 2m km
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a c for auto-assignment purposes
The Aphobia m2 Strike Carrier is where the bulk of space marines boarding squadrons are, and it is a frightening thing to any ship crew unfortunate enough to be on a stranded vessel next to it. In addition to its own boarding capability, mostly intended against slow ships or ships with heavily damaged propulsion, its spacious hangar opens other possibilities. Normally occupied mostly not with fighters, but with assault shuttles where whether the space marines inside them or their crew are the most courageous is a hotly contested debate. Despite its somewhat larger hangar it still has a big 60cm heavy macro cannon so while most of its capabilities come from parasite craft, it is far from defenseless or harmless without them. Currently an older, Ion based Aphobia is already operational, which, upon retooling of existing shipyards shall be upgraded to this new model.
Another minor debate revolves on the argument it should be classified as a Strike Cruiser instead, too inane to be worth more than an one-liner mentioning it.
Aphobia m2 class Strike Carrier 15,000 tons 329 Crew 2,802.9 BP TCS 300 TH 2,042 EM 6,870
6805 km/s Armour 8-54 Shields 229-536 HTK 79 Sensors 16/1/0/0 DCR 8 PPV 27.4
Maint Life 2.11 Years MSP 1,036 AFR 206% IFR 2.9% 1YR 310 5YR 4,651 Max Repair 357 MSP
Hangar Deck Capacity 2,250 tons Troop Capacity 500 tons Boarding Capable
Lord-Captain Control Rating 3 BRG AUX ENG
Intended Deployment Time: 9 months Flight Crew Berths 45 Morale Check Required
Itaipu Trinuclear MagPlasma-510 (4) Power 2041.6 Fuel Use 51.21% Signature 510.4 Explosion 14%
Fuel Capacity 1,125,000 Litres Range 26.4 billion km (44 days at full power)
Gellar Manufactorum Theta Scutum 229 (1) Recharge Time 536 seconds (0.4 per second)
TriOptimum PAX-60 Heavy Macro Cannon (1) Range 480,000km TS: 6,805 km/s Power 96-6 RM 10,000 km ROF 80
Taurus CEMB-5 Turret (1x5) Range 50,000km TS: 20000 km/s Power 0-0 RM 50,000 km ROF 5
Marques Eletro CTU 480Mm-6750 (1) Max Range: 480,000 km TS: 6,750 km/s 98 96 94 92 90 88 85 83 81 79
Marques Eletro CTU 240Mm-20k (1) Max Range: 240,000 km TS: 20,000 km/s 96 92 88 83 79 75 71 67 62 58
Alfaro Aeromarine Stellarator R6 (1) Total Power Output 6 Exp 7%
Camara Sistemas Microsensor m1 (1) GPS 11 Range 6.1m km MCR 545.7k km Resolution 1
Carneiro ST 1.5x m1 (1) Sensitivity 16.5 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 32.1m km
Camara Sistemas Nanosensor EM m1 (1) Sensitivity 1.1 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 8.3m km
Strike Group
5x Memento Mori Assault Shuttle Speed: 23065 km/s Size: 4.99
2x Tempestas Heavy Fighter Speed: 11522 km/s Size: 10
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a b for auto-assignment purposes
Off-Topic: Previous Version - 1 currently built show Aphobia class Strike Cruiser 15,000 tons 364 Crew 2,798 BP TCS 300 TH 2,040 EM 6,870
6800 km/s Armour 8-54 Shields 229-536 HTK 78 Sensors 16/16/0/0 DCR 8 PPV 35. 32
Maint Life 1. 47 Years MSP 1,020 AFR 212% IFR 2. 9% 1YR 524 5YR 7,866 Max Repair 510 MSP
Hangar Deck Capacity 1,250 tons Troop Capacity 500 tons Boarding Capable
Lord-Captain Control Rating 3 BRG AUX ENG
Intended Deployment Time: 9 months Flight Crew Berths 25 Morale Check Required
Coelho PEB MION-1020 (2) Power 2040 Fuel Use 68. 80% Signature 1020 Explosion 17%
Fuel Capacity 1,290,000 Litres Range 22. 5 billion km (38 days at full power)
Gellar Manufactorum Theta Scutum 229 (1) Recharge Time 536 seconds (0. 4 per second)
TriOptimum PAX-60 Heavy Macro Cannon (1) Range 480,000km TS: 6,800 km/s Power 96-6 RM 10,000 km ROF 80
Twin Taurus CEMB-5 Turret (1x10) Range 50,000km TS: 20000 km/s Power 0-0 RM 50,000 km ROF 5
Marques Eletro CTU 480Mm-6750 (1) Max Range: 480,000 km TS: 6,750 km/s 98 96 94 92 90 88 85 83 81 79
Marques Eletro CTU 240Mm-20k (1) Max Range: 240,000 km TS: 20,000 km/s 96 92 88 83 79 75 71 67 62 58
Alfaro Aeromarine Stellarator R6 (1) Total Power Output 6 Exp 7%
Camara Sistemas Microsensor m1 (1) GPS 11 Range 6. 1m km MCR 545. 7k km Resolution 1
Camara Sistemas Sensor EM-16 (1) Sensitivity 16. 5 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 32. 1m km
Carneiro ST 1. 5x m1 (1) Sensitivity 16. 5 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 32. 1m km
Strike Group
5x Memento Mori Assault Shuttle Speed: 23065 km/s Size: 4. 99
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a c for auto-assignment purposes
23065 km/s should be enough to risk boarding even an intact vessel, but analysis indicates there would be heavy casualties and likely, even if the space marines managed to initiate boarding action, the assault shuttles, despite their amazing speed, would not get out of the hostile beam weapons range before being shot at, although there is a theorized window of opportunity for the current foes with their low range Gauss and slow firing particle beams where, once a bigger ship soaks the particle beams, the assault shuttles could in less than 20 seconds launch the boarding space marines, get out faster than their Gauss weaponry could get a lock on them, then go far away enough to be beyond, but such maneuver would be very, very risky.
Memento Mori class Assault Shuttle 250 tons 12 Crew 66.6 BP TCS 5 TH 115 EM 0
23065 km/s Armour 1-3 Shields 0-0 HTK 2 Sensors 0/0/0/0 DCR 0 PPV 0
Maint Life 0 Years MSP 0 AFR 49% IFR 0.7% 1YR 6 5YR 94 Max Repair 28.8 MSP
Troop Capacity 100 tons Boarding Capable
Commander Control Rating 1
Intended Deployment Time: 1 days Morale Check Required
Itaipu Trinuclear MagPlasma-57 (2) Power 115.2 Fuel Use 1350.0% Signature 57.6 Explosion 30%
Fuel Capacity 1,000 Litres Range 0.05 billion km (0 hours at full power)
This design is classed as a Fighter for production, combat and planetary interaction
This design is classed as a Troop Transport for auto-assignment purposes
Fittingly named after an ancient Roman tradition where the victor of a major military campaign would be starkly reminded no one lives forever, only those truly without fear are fit to crew it or get inside the boarding pods. Hypothetically they could also leisurely get close to a depleted missile-only ship once the fleet PD depletes its ordnance, should any xenos be stupid enough to build ships armed exclusively with missile launchers that will eventually run out of ammo and thus become sitting ducks for boarding.
Finally, replacing some questionable multi-barreled Gauss turret options, an extra, tentative foray in beam fighters with two mutually exclusive approaches. The All-shields approach which really goes out of the way to fit a powerful enough shield to make a difference in such a small vessel:
Tempestas class Heavy Fighter 500 tons 22 Crew 139.3 BP TCS 10 TH 115 EM 210
11522 km/s Armour 1-5 Shields 7-175 HTK 4 Sensors 0/0/0/0 DCR 0 PPV 3
Maint Life 0 Years MSP 0 AFR 99% IFR 1.4% 1YR 19 5YR 289 Max Repair 28.8 MSP
Commander Control Rating 1
Intended Deployment Time: 0.3 days Morale Check Required
Itaipu Trinuclear MagPlasma-57 (2) Power 115.2 Fuel Use 1350.0% Signature 57.6 Explosion 30%
Fuel Capacity 5,000 Litres Range 0.13 billion km (3 hours at full power)
Gellar Manufactorum Theta Scutum 7 (1) Recharge Time 175 seconds (0 per second)
ALLE T10 Railgun (1x4) Range 50,000km TS: 11,522 km/s Power 3-3 RM 50,000 km ROF 5
Marques Eletro CTU 72Mm-11500 (1) Max Range: 72,000 km TS: 11,500 km/s 86 72 58 44 31 17 3 0 0 0
Alfaro Aeromarine Stellarator R3 (1) Total Power Output 3 Exp 7%
This design is classed as a Fighter for production, combat and planetary interaction
This design is classed as a e for auto-assignment purposes
And a proposed alternative from those who claim cramming a 150 tons shield generator into a fighter sized spaceship is foolish and having similar tonnage in armor is a vastly superior option, while freeing room for engineering spaces of questionable utility for maintenance failures aren't expected to happen during the 5 hours at most it will operate before returning to the hangar, and for a bit more of fuel and thus range.
Tempestas - Ferrata class Heavy Fighter 500 tons 20 Crew 155.2 BP TCS 10 TH 115 EM 0
11529 km/s Armour 7-5 Shields 0-0 HTK 3 Sensors 0/0/0/0 DCR 0 PPV 3
Maint Life 4.27 Years MSP 34 AFR 20% IFR 0.3% 1YR 3 5YR 45 Max Repair 28.8 MSP
Commander Control Rating 1
Intended Deployment Time: 0.3 days Morale Check Required
Itaipu Trinuclear MagPlasma-57 (2) Power 115.2 Fuel Use 1350.0% Signature 57.6 Explosion 30%
Fuel Capacity 8,000 Litres Range 0.21 billion km (5 hours at full power)
ALLE T10 Railgun (1x4) Range 50,000km TS: 11,529 km/s Power 3-3 RM 50,000 km ROF 5
Marques Eletro CTU 72Mm-11500 (1) Max Range: 72,000 km TS: 11,500 km/s 86 72 58 44 31 17 3 0 0 0
Alfaro Aeromarine Stellarator R3 (1) Total Power Output 3 Exp 7%
This design is classed as a Fighter for production, combat and planetary interaction
This design is classed as a e for auto-assignment purposes
Which of these two heavy fighter designs will truly have better odds of survival is an interesting question. As a tangential note, both were originated from a planetary defense fighter prototype which was upgraded multiple times over its existence, with much more fuel so it can cover most inner star systems, that has a shield of very questionable usefulness in addition to a little armor.
Vallum class Heavy Fighter 500 tons 20 Crew 149. 6 BP TCS 10 TH 115 EM 0
11522 km/s Armour 5-5 Shields 0-0 HTK 3 Sensors 0/0/0/0 DCR 0 PPV 3
Maint Life 5. 02 Years MSP 43 AFR 20% IFR 0. 3% 1YR 3 5YR 43 Max Repair 28. 8 MSP
Commander Control Rating 1
Intended Deployment Time: 3 days Morale Check Required
Itaipu Trinuclear MagPlasma-57 (2) Power 115. 2 Fuel Use 1350. 0% Signature 57. 6 Explosion 30%
Fuel Capacity 45,000 Litres Range 1. 2 billion km (28 hours at full power)
ALLE T10 Railgun (1x4) Range 50,000km TS: 11,522 km/s Power 3-3 RM 50,000 km ROF 5
Marques Eletro CTU 72Mm-11500 (1) Max Range: 72,000 km TS: 11,500 km/s 86 72 58 44 31 17 3 0 0 0
Alfaro Aeromarine Stellarator R3 (1) Total Power Output 3 Exp 7%
Camara Sistemas Nanosensor m1 (1) GPS 3 Range 2. 7m km MCR 244k km Resolution 1
This design is classed as a Fighter for production, combat and planetary interaction
This design is classed as a e for auto-assignment purposes
The previous carrier is not the only one among the seven. Originally a 7,500 tons escort cruiser that never left the drawing board would fulfill the same role, but gains upon going bigger, in contrast to improvements in miniaturization, new concepts in beam fire controls with existing technologies and the observation of how mass inefficient turreted Gauss cannons are replaced the first draft with the current iteration, a 15,000 tons escort carrier with only a railgun as its own weapon, just because Imperial doctrine dictates no warship should be completely unarmed.
Praetor class Escort Carrier 15,000 tons 296 Crew 2,731.6 BP TCS 300 TH 2,042 EM 6,870
6805 km/s Armour 8-54 Shields 229-536 HTK 72 Sensors 0/0/0/0 DCR 10 PPV 3
Maint Life 2.32 Years MSP 1,143 AFR 180% IFR 2.5% 1YR 289 5YR 4,331 Max Repair 357 MSP
Hangar Deck Capacity 4,000 tons Troop Capacity 100 tons
Lord-Captain Control Rating 3 BRG AUX ENG
Intended Deployment Time: 9 months Flight Crew Berths 80 Morale Check Required
Itaipu Trinuclear MagPlasma-510 (4) Power 2041.6 Fuel Use 51.21% Signature 510.4 Explosion 14%
Fuel Capacity 1,071,000 Litres Range 25.1 billion km (42 days at full power)
Gellar Manufactorum Theta Scutum 229 (1) Recharge Time 536 seconds (0.4 per second)
ALLE T10 Railgun (1x4) Range 50,000km TS: 6,805 km/s Power 3-3 RM 50,000 km ROF 5
Marques Eletro CTU 480Mm-6750 (1) Max Range: 480,000 km TS: 6,750 km/s 98 96 94 92 90 88 85 83 81 79
Alfaro Aeromarine Stellarator R6 (1) Total Power Output 6 Exp 7%
Camara Sistemas Microsensor m1 (1) GPS 11 Range 6.1m km MCR 545.7k km Resolution 1
Strike Group
12x Polibolos Fighter Speed: 15143 km/s Size: 6.66
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a b for auto-assignment purposes
There is controversy in this concept. Some are skeptical on parasite craft based point defense being superior to Gauss turrets. The primary argument in favor of more traditional turreted PD solutions is that Gauss turrets have a 20,000 km/s tracking speed, so even if the total number of turrets would be smaller due to the need of individual fire controls for every one of them to equate the granularity of the Escort Carrier PD squadrons of fighters or FACs(in yet another point of divergence) and avoid overkill against a single salvo. It is argued that more guns don't equate better intercept chances because less PD with more tracking speed is always better. The Gauss PD alternative design would have only 6 turrets, each with separate fire controls. The carrier design has twice the volume of PD for the same mass, and it could be directed against 12 different missile salvos simultaneously. The final note is that the Polibolos is a "flying piece of glass", and thus deemed useless for anything other than PD outside of desperation, hiding them in the hangar would be wise if the escort carrier is in range of hostile beam weapons, where turrets could be used to slowly chip through hostile shields and armor in addition to PD. On that, it is said the escort carrier is only one out of 6 vessels in the planned jump squadron, and by having twice the volume of PD it reduces the necessity of more PD focused vessels, giving room for one more ship focused on the offense.
Naturally the Escort Carrier also includes a complement of 20 space marines, only this time it is exclusively defensive, for there was no room for boarding capabilities to be fitted into this design, which make the space marines protecting it both relieved and sad they won't join their battle brothers in glorious ship-to-ship boarding combat unless some xenos were to dare to invade the ship.
While some question the wisdom of having smaller than 15,000 tons vessels in this formation, the space force planners wished for a 7,500 tons Light Cruiser to be included in Battlefleet Sol, with weaponry more focused on rate of fire than shock damage and more endurance than the old frigate designs. The result was the Carnifex. In damage potential per second nothing beats it within the existing designs. Some are considering a separate fleet of light cruisers only with a smaller 7,500 tons jump cruiser of their own, but with the amount of shipyards at disposal building both 7 15,000 tons and 7 7,500 tons warships would take too long. Ultimately the choice of not having all 7 warships at 15,000 tons is mostly justified by reducing maintenance hurdles, retooling and expansion delays, and by an inane insistence anything with more than 8,000 tons isn't a light cruiser and there must be light cruisers.
Carnifex class Light Cruiser 7,500 tons 191 Crew 1,579.7 BP TCS 150 TH 1,021 EM 2,910
6805 km/s Armour 8-34 Shields 97-404 HTK 42 Sensors 0/0/0/0 DCR 3 PPV 32.4
Maint Life 3.09 Years MSP 985 AFR 129% IFR 1.8% 1YR 155 5YR 2,330 Max Repair 255.2 MSP
Troop Capacity 100 tons Boarding Capable
Captain Control Rating 1 BRG
Intended Deployment Time: 9 months Morale Check Required
Itaipu Trinuclear MagPlasma-510 (2) Power 1020.8 Fuel Use 51.21% Signature 510.4 Explosion 14%
Fuel Capacity 512,000 Litres Range 24 billion km (40 days at full power)
Gellar Manufactorum Theta Scutum 97 (1) Recharge Time 404 seconds (0.2 per second)
TriOptimum PAX-15 Plasma Autocannon (6) Range 60,000km TS: 6,805 km/s Power 6-6 RM 10,000 km ROF 5
Taurus CEMB-5 Turret (1x5) Range 50,000km TS: 20000 km/s Power 0-0 RM 50,000 km ROF 5
Marques Eletro CT 240Mm-6750 (1) Max Range: 240,000 km TS: 6,750 km/s 96 92 88 83 79 75 71 67 62 58
Marques Eletro CTU 240Mm-20k (1) Max Range: 240,000 km TS: 20,000 km/s 96 92 88 83 79 75 71 67 62 58
Alfaro Aeromarine Stellarator R36 (1) Total Power Output 36.6 Exp 7%
Camara Sistemas Microsensor m1 (1) GPS 11 Range 6.1m km MCR 545.7k km Resolution 1
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a c for auto-assignment purposes
And of course a complement of boarding capable space marines for the butcher's work is inside it too.
And finally but no less important, while its usefulness is being contested by some, several experiences with limited planetary bombardment against STOs beyond their weapons ranges by the previous frigates have led to the conclusion a ship with lots of spare MSP and cargo shuttles that can follow the fleet wherever it goes no matter the danger to replenish them has its uses. Thus, the Auxilia increases the amount of time the entire fleet can keep firing before having to return to resupply and/or overhaul. As technically it is a warship, it has just a little bit of PD capability too. And to drive home how boarding-happy the new fleet paradigm is, this resupply ship can conduct boarding actions or more likely reinforce ongoing ones with its 20 space marines. Yup, the new fleet doctrine went as far as to give an armored maintenance resupply vessel space marines and boarding capability. Some jokingly suggested putting space marines with boarding capability in salvage ships, colony ships, everywhere, but there is such a thing as too over-the-top.
Auxilia class Replenishment Ship 7,500 tons 168 Crew 1,417.4 BP TCS 150 TH 1,021 EM 2,910
6805 km/s Armour 8-34 Shields 97-404 HTK 36 Sensors 0/0/0/0 DCR 8 PPV 8.4
Maint Life 16.02 Years MSP 9,095 AFR 56% IFR 0.8% 1YR 67 5YR 1,001 Max Repair 255.2 MSP
Troop Capacity 100 tons Boarding Capable Cargo Shuttle Multiplier 2
Captain Control Rating 1 BRG
Intended Deployment Time: 9 months Morale Check Required
Itaipu Trinuclear MagPlasma-510 (2) Power 1020.8 Fuel Use 51.21% Signature 510.4 Explosion 14%
Fuel Capacity 512,000 Litres Range 24 billion km (40 days at full power)
Gellar Manufactorum Theta Scutum 97 (1) Recharge Time 404 seconds (0.2 per second)
Taurus CEMB-5 Turret (1x5) Range 50,000km TS: 20000 km/s Power 0-0 RM 50,000 km ROF 5
Marques Eletro CTU 240Mm-20k (1) Max Range: 240,000 km TS: 20,000 km/s 96 92 88 83 79 75 71 67 62 58
Camara Sistemas Nanosensor m1 (1) GPS 3 Range 2.7m km MCR 244k km Resolution 1
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a c for auto-assignment purposes
Depending on mission profile of a given operation, the Auxilia might be swapped for one of the other designs instead, but for striking into the homeworld of the alien, it will be very important.
However, no matter the victories that may or not happen by this future fleet once its construction is completed(meanwhile the frigates will have to hold the line), while "free" TN minerals from wrecks are convenient eventually the aliens will have to be defeated permanently. For this purpose two dropships, including one truly massive, were designed:
Atlas class Dropship 275,000 tons 1,864 Crew 13,723.7 BP TCS 5,500 TH 17,600 EM 0
3200 km/s Armour 10-376 Shields 0-0 HTK 575 Sensors 0/0/0/0 DCR 1 PPV 0
MSP 231 Max Repair 200 MSP
Troop Capacity 120,000 tons Drop Capable Cargo Shuttle Multiplier 2
Commander Control Rating 1 BRG
Intended Deployment Time: 3 months
Itaipu Trinuclear MagPlasma-C800 (22) Power 17600 Fuel Use 1.68% Signature 800 Explosion 5%
Fuel Capacity 897,000 Litres Range 35 billion km (126 days at full power)
Taurus PDW-200 (3x10) Range 1000 km TS: 20,000 km/s ROF 5
This design is classed as a Commercial Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a Troop Transport for auto-assignment purposes
The Atlas can combat drop an entire Legion(equivalent to 20th Century army divisions) into a planet, like a
Duranium Rain, it has enough armor and CIWS to endure any final surprises the enemy might have managed to hide during the final stages of a planetary invasion. Shock and Awe.
Amon Amarth class Dropship 50,000 tons 356 Crew 2,822.5 BP TCS 1,000 TH 3,200 EM 0
3200 km/s Armour 8-120 Shields 0-0 HTK 107 Sensors 0/0/0/0 DCR 1 PPV 0
MSP 205 Max Repair 200 MSP
Troop Capacity 20,000 tons Drop Capable Cargo Shuttle Multiplier 2
Commander Control Rating 1 BRG
Intended Deployment Time: 3 months
Itaipu Trinuclear MagPlasma-C800 (4) Power 3200 Fuel Use 1.68% Signature 800 Explosion 5%
Fuel Capacity 107,000 Litres Range 23 billion km (83 days at full power)
Taurus PDW-200 (2x10) Range 1000 km TS: 20,000 km/s ROF 5
This design is classed as a Commercial Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a Troop Transport for auto-assignment purposes
Amon Amarth on the other hand is capable of bringing down an entire regiment to fight for honor, glory and death in fire.
The Ironclad Legion:
Commanding all of it is the Legion HQ, in a medium armored vehicle and with a backup one because at this scale, the extra stuff that tonnage could be used for instead won't change the tide of a battle.
ARM Legio I Ferrata (Rear Echelon) - HQ120 - FD10 - LG125 R6
Transport Size: 19,940 tons
Build Cost: 1,208.8 BP
2x Legion HQ (HQ + FFD)
42x Aquila m1 Motorized AA (MAA)
250x Logistics (LOG)
8x Space Support Director (FFD)
8x Granato m2 ADARTS (MBL + HAA)
ADARTS means Air Defense Artillery System, a crazier take on the real ADATS armored vehicle, for a little artillery support to subordinate formations. FD because it seems logical for such a thing to exist. I know it is mostly useless as of 1. 13. Regiments have their own supply trucks too. Their presence at the top level is more of a just in case bonus.
The overall structure is optimized to give career opportunities to most ground officer ranks without going too detailed. Space Marines are an exception, thus they are incredibly small formations compared to conventional forces. This formation commands 4 Regiments, each of them is exactly the same in this case, they are respectively the II, III, IV, V and VI Ironclad regiments:
There is a reason for the specific transport size of the Regimental HQ, from this level and beneath light vehicles are used for the HQs. Each also has some small artillery support capability.
ARM Regimentum II Ferrata (Rear Echelon) - HQ20 FD2 LG50 R7
Transport Size: 7,084 tons
Build Cost: 317.6 BP
2x Regimental HQ
5x Aquila m1 Motorized AA
2x Space Support Director
100x Logistics
2x Granato m2 ADARTS
At the base of the hierarchy, each Regimental HQ commands a Cohort, in this case and Armored one, and a Mechanized Support Battalion, and all of them combined have around 20,000 tons
Armored Cohort (Front Line Attack) - HQ10 R8
Transport Size: 10,000 tons
Build Cost: 505.6 BP
2x Cohort HQ
160x Eldorado APC (CAP)
84x Leves m2 Light Tank (MAV)
30x Rus m1 MBT (HAV + CAP)
Mechanized Support Battalion (Support) - HQ5 R9
Transport Size: 2,906 tons
Build Cost: 235.5 BP
2x Battalion HQ
24x Lupus m2 Mech Rocket Artillery (2x MBL)
With not even one INF among their ranks, but instead an all-vehicular force, including mechanized infantry(1 LAV + CAP can be perceived as 1 unarmed APC carrying 6 PW INF), Legions of the Ferrata type are meant to be conquerors, not defenders, and normally they won't waste time with defensive tactics. Future legions with a greater emphasis on holding ground may be established beyond an already existing Light Infantry Regiment that will remain on Earth as a defense force. All of these are one tech level behind the space marines in armaments, being older and due to their size, they take much longer to recruit compared to 20 space marines for a 100 tons boarding pod. It is believed this minor technological obsolescence will do little to impair their effectiveness. The largest ground force identified so far, in the Psi Indi system, has around 70,000 tons (visible). Some estimate at least two legions will be necessary to drive the first decisive blow on the reptoids in Psi Indi A1, even three.
And finally, here is the "cheap" PDF - a Light Infantry Cohort formation. Except they aren't as cheap as Imperial Guards armed with flashlights and protected by T-shirts but instead fully clad in heavy power armor. Besides this formation replacing the armored cohort, the rest of the regiment is identical to armored ones because I decided to not bother with static artillery. Might keep using PWL instead of PW, depending on the TL of armor used by hostile NPR ground units, but I still wonder if going all-armor for the attack and using INF only for planetary defense is OK after all. On another note I ignored heavy and super-heavy vehicles for now.
Should I mix some L-INF in the planetary invasion force too or use a smaller number of regular PW equipped infantry regiments with roughly the same proportion of CAP, etc or is it alright to not deploy infantry to an invasion force, only light and medium vehicles with an emphasis on CAP?
Light INF Cohort (Front Line Defense) - HQ10 R8
Transport Size: 9,964 tons
Build Cost: 410.6 BP
2x Cohort HQ
1200x Plasma Carabineer (PWL)
300x Plasma MG Team (CAP)
36x Plasma Flak Team (LAA)
120x BFG Team (LAV)