Falconer Class
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Introduction

During the 4140s there were calls among the Barons and their commanders for domestically-produced warships. The Rigel Industrial Alliance initiated a decade-long study into the viability of warship production on a scale to rival those of established markets. In 4157 the RIA revealed their findings to the Baronial Court. The following year saw the approval and funding of new orbital shipyards and the re-tooling of existing factories by Queen Carimba III. One of the products of this lengthy process was the Falconer class destroyer.

The Falconer was designed with firepower and speed in mind. Like most warships of the Star Armada it features numerous weapon systems of various range brackets, capable of striking any target either in support of a larger fleet or operating in small groups known as wolfpacks. These six to ten craft squadrons are intended as a rapid response force.

A total of 578 Falconer class destroyers have been produced. Presently, the ASR recognizes 344 vessels.

The class has experienced three major overhauls: the first in 4311, the second in 4398, and the third in 4445. Roughly half of the Falconer class fleet was decommissioned in 4460 during the STAR Modernization Project. A number of these craft serve on in police roles though the majority were stripped and their hulls turned over to the STAR Academy as targets for gunnery training. A good number of these are being steadily requisitioned by the Star Armada, however, to be scrapped and the materials of their plating and structures turned to the production of new craft. Since then several dozen more Falconers have been produced.

The lead ships of the class are the STAR Falconer, STAR Blacksmith, STAR Royal Galley, STAR Mindtraveller, STAR Mountain Man, STAR Wings of Serenity, STAR Spirit of the Hawk, STAR Northwind, STAR Entering Eternity, and STAR Tower of the Queen presented in chronological order of commissioning. All but the Falconer, Royal Galley, and the Tower of the Queen were decommissioned in 4460 (though the names themselves have been re-used since). The Star Kingdom has gone to great lengths to maintain the Royal Galley and Tower of the Queen as both are rated as transports of the Barons of Rigel and the King and Queen.

The new STAR Mindtraveller II, fresh from trials, went missing in 4492 under unclear circumstances. It is not assumed destroyed because it's quantum 8-bit relay computer is still sending data to the State Resources Arsenal's Quantum Relay Complex in orbit over Rigel Prime. It does not appear to be receiving data. The incident and events of the craft's disappearance are called the Mindtraveller Files and are available for public access on the extranet at large.

Design

Armour

Like the majority of Star Armada warships, the Falconer class is layered in cocerachrome corunide, a metamaterial engineered in the early 4100s. This ablative, sturdy compound gives Rigellian warships their distinctive shining blue color schemes. However, true to Rigellian doctrine, the armor is fairly light compared to the destroyers of other star nations and the primary defense of the Falconer is it's active defenses. Heavy reliance on CIWS is regarded as both the type's strength and weakness. The class' plating may be as thin as 10cm in some, less critical areas, but is as thick as 42cm where protection is needed most.

View ports, such as those found on the observation deck, are composed of corundum, better known in this application as transparent alumina for it's clarity and durability. Corundum is the scientific name for the minerals frequently called ruby or sapphire. Exceptionally rare, natural corundum is generally preferred as a decorative gemstone, making it economically nonviable as a material in spacecraft applications. Thus, most of the 25cm to 50cm thick windows are composed of synthetic corundum.

Armament

Power & Propulsion

Construction

Type History

Type 189 (4189)

Type 311 (4311)

Type 445 (4445)

Type 487 (4460)

Factfile

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Designation: Falconer class
Class: Destroyer
Role: Anti-shipping/Fleet Escort
Manufacturer: Rigel Industrial Alliance
Number Produced: 578
First Produced: 4189
Crew:

  • 32 officers
  • 240 enlisted
  • 10 flight crew

Hangar:

Powerplants:

  • 1 100 gigawatt ICE superfusor (main)
  • 2 25 gigawatt ICE superfusors (reserve)

Propulsion:

Weapons: Primary weapons diagram here.

  • 1 double-barrel 50cm, 5 gigawatt blaster cannon turret
  • 1 triple-barrel 50cm, 5 gigawatt blaster cannon turret
  • 2 quadruple-barrel 50cm, 5 gigawatt blaster cannon turret
  • 3 double-barrel 200mm autocannon turret w/ variable ammunition (explosive or flak)

Missiles:

  • 2 concealed light (50cm) missile bays w/ variable warheads (high explosive or thermonuclear)
  • 14 light torpedo tubes (100 cm; variable warhead: plasma, antimatter, singularity, or thermonuclear)
  • 16 anti-shipping mines (thermonuclear: 100 to 1,000 megaton yield; contact, proximity, or time delayed fuse)

CIWS:

  • 4 quadruple-barrel 50mm autocannon turrets w/ 50mm rocket pods and 100 megawatt chemical laser
  • 4 quadruple-barrel 50mm autocannon point-defense turrets w/ variable ammunition (armor piercing or explosive)
  • 12 quintuple-barrel 20mm rotary autocannon point-defense turrets w/ variable ammunition (explosive or flak)
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Electronics:

Plating:

Shielding:

  • Oscillating electromagnetic field (source: superfusor)

Dimensions:

  • 30 meters wide
  • 140 metres long
  • 50 metres tall

Mass: 320,000 tons
Operators:

References

Credits

Ship images copyright © 2010 Astro Empires.