Sci-fi Starship Types
Posted: Tue Jan 30, 2018 5:35 pm
I've been thinking about ship types for moderate-hardness sci-fi, and this is what I came up with. Reposted from Spacebattles.
https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads ... es.608908/
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This is basically an interstellar sci-fi fleet, but I am also wondering what would the equivalents be in modern navy (say, USN), and would some of the types even be necessary for, say, World War III scenario? Also, how does this setup compare to other sci-fi fleets? It generally seems to me that fleet support is underrepresented in sci-fi – which may make sense in Star Trek, which is basically "Horatio Hornblower In Space", but what about other examples such as Warhammer 40.000?
WARSHIPS
Battleship
Battleships are large capital ships, 800 and more meters in length. Main role of battleships is destruction of enemy heavy fleet units and fixed installations such as shipyards. They are armed with a spinal cannon some 90% of the ship's length as well as point defense guns. Extensive weaponry and heavy armour do not leave much space for propulsion units, which compared with their large size leaves them somewhat sluggish.
Vanguard class fast battleships have top speed of 31,5 light years per hour, and cruise speed of 15 light years per hour. As M51 galaxy is 60.000 light years in diameter, HMS Vanguard needs 4.000 hours or 167 days (5,6 months) to go from one side of the galaxy to another (Earth units). Older battleship classes are slower, with old Revenge class having top speed of 23 ly/h and cruise speed of 10 ly/h, and all other warships being somewhere in between.
Fleet Carrier
Fleet carriers are 800 and more meters in length. Unlike battleships, their main weapon are starfighters armed with any of the following: guns (interceptors), guns and anti-fighter missiles (pursuit), anti-ship disruptor torpedoes (torpedo bombers) or various types of ground attack missiles and bombs (attack). Specialist aircraft designed for reconnaissance, electronic warfare and early warning and control are also carried.
Light Carrier
Light carriers are 400 to 800 meters in length. They fulfill the same role as fleet carriers, but being smaller and cheaper they are deployed with smaller task forces and to less important missions. When deployed with main fleet, they typically operate with cruiser sqadrons in reconnaisance role.
Escort Carrier
Escort carriers are 400 to 800 meters in length. Main difference from light carriers is their commercial-class FTL drive, making them too slow for fleet actions. Instead, they are used to escort supply and troop convoys.
Heavy Cruiser
Heavy cruisers are 700 to 800 meters in length. Their main role is destruction of enemy ships of cruiser class and below. They also serve on long-range missions, patrol for enemy warships and raid and defend commerce. For this reason, heavy cruisers are often equipped with in-built hyperspace inhibitors, and have relatively heavy armour for the ships of their size.
Light Cruiser
Light Cruisers are 600 to 700 meters in length. Their main role is long-range cruise and patrol, acting as convoy escort and commerce raiders. They also serve as destroyer command ships, scouts and fleet support vessels.
Destroyer
Destroyers are 400 to 600 meters in length. Their main role is escorting larger ships and defending them against attacks by enemy small vessels – generally frigate sized and below, but also against enemy destroyers.
Escort Destroyer
Escort Destroyers are 400 to 600 meters in length, but with subrated FTL drive and limited endurance. They also sacrifice speed and maneuverability for increased anti-fighter armaments.
Heavy Frigate
Heavy Frigates are 200 to 400 meters in length. They work in "wolf packs", hunting enemy logistics and support ships, typically through deploying hyperspace inhibitors and destroying ships thus caught. In battle line, heavy frigate wolf packs hunt down ships whose shields had been taken down, and can also help take down enemy shields through usage of disruptor torpedoes.
Light Frigate
Light Frigates are 100 to 200 meters in length. They act as scouts and provide anti-fighter screens for capital ships. For this reason they have extensive anti-fighter armaments. They have high FTL cruise speeds as well as high sublight acceleration and maneuverability.
Corvette
Corvettes are 50 to 100 meters in length. Their main role is peactime patrol, particularly intra-system and star cluster patrol. They also carry out pirate suppression missions. During the war, they support larger fleet formations, escort convoys and patrol for enemy ships.
Sloop
Sloop is a specialized convoy-escort vessel, with a subrated hyperdrive which makes them unsuitable for fleet deployment. They are typically 75 to 150 meters in length.
Fast Attack Craft
Fast Attack Craft is a corvette which trades FTL drive and deep-space endurance for firepower, protection and sublight agility. As a result, they are only useful as planetary defense ships, used to bolster numbers when insufficient number of hyperdrives are available.
Monitor
Monitors are small ships with disproportionately big guns. Tradeoff for this are limited sublight performance, very limited endurance and nonexistent FTL capacity. Larger monitors may have downgraded FTL drives, too weak for fleet deployments but enough to allow for intra-system FTL operations.
FIGHTER AIRCRAFT
Pursuit
Pursuit fighters are small, agile fighters meant for close-in defense of starships and installations against enemy fighter attack. They typically only have guns and close-in missiles.
Interceptor
Interceptor fighters are intended for long-range missile combat. Resulting fighters are large, with massive missile loads and extensive sensory systems. Due to usage of ECM, shields and point defences, however, they cannot be relied on to destroy enemy fighter craft on their own.
Bomber
Bombers are two-man craft carrying disruptor torpedoes to take down enemy ships' shields.
SUPPORT SHIPS
Logistics depot ship
Logistics depot ship is the centerpiece of Numenorean logistics system. Over two kilometers long, it combines functions of a transport, mothership, maintenance and production center, and drop-off point. Onboard forge is capable of producing all kinetic munition required by either naval or ground forces, as well as some types of high explosive munitions. It is also capable of producing certain spare parts, as well as melting broken or unusable equipment in order to produce new parts.
Factory ship
Factory ship is a heavily modified logistics depot ship capable of mining asteroids, moons and planets for raw resources, processing these raw resources and producing necessary tools. It is equipped with a forge capable of producing wide variety of munitions and spare parts, and even hull armour plates for on-campaign repairs.
General cargo vessel
These ships are multipurpose cargo vessels. Military-specification GCVs come in length of 225 to 1.800 meters, with beam of 40 to 325 meters, and height of 20 to 120 meters. Specified sizes are 225x40x20, 450x80x40, 900x160x80, 1350x200x100 and 1800x320x160 meters. Typical cargo loads for sizes are 30.000, 240.000, 1.920.000, 6.480.000 and 15.360.000 tons.
Bulk carrier
Bulk carrier has same size classes and capacities as GCV, but is specialized for transporting unpacked bulk cargo, such as grains and ore.
Heavy lift ships
These ships are designed to transport other ships that are incapable of FTL travel due to damage or lack of onboard FTL drive. As a result they have internal cargo bay similar to Space Shuttle. Lengths for such ships are 1.224 meters, 1.375 meters and 2.240 meters. They can also perform basic repairs.
Orbital transport
Orbital transport is intended to transport cargo and personnel from orbiting ships to ground. Small orbital transports have length of 80 meters and can carry 1.200 passengers or 960.000 kg of cargo. Medium orbital transports have length of 120 meters, and can carry 2.500 passengers or 2.000.000 kg of cargo. Large orbital transports are 300 meters long, with capacity of 30.000 passengers or 24.000.000 kg of cargo.
Landing ship
Landing ship carries and is capable of launching landing craft. While other supply ships such as logistics depot ships have onboard landing craft, these craft are necessarily limited in size and number, and thus ability to quickly deploy large number of troops and materials. Their design also limits the ability to rapidly launch large number of landing craft due to number and design of docking bays. Landing ships have no such limitation, and can thus quickly transport large number of personnel as well as large quantity of supplies to surface.
Shelter class landing ship is 883 meters long and capable of carrying and launching landing craft of various sizes. Normal complement is 64 landing craft and a single motor rifle battalion (24 Main Battle Tanks, 6 Light Recon Vehicles, 36 Armoured Personnel Carriers, plus associated support units).
Landing craft
Landing craft is a small type of vessel designed to quickly transport troops and supplies from ship to planet. As a result they have no FTL drive and are equipped with a bow ramp for quick embarkation. Small infantry landing craft can carry only a single platoon. Larger infantry landing craft can carry a company of infantry, and specialized vehicle landing craft are also used. Typically only the last type is embarked on landing ships, and used to carry infantry, vehicles and supplies alike. Some landing craft are modified with guns, bombs and missiles to provide fire support before and during landing, as well as point defense against enemy artillery, missiles and aircraft.
Headquarters ship
Headquarters ship is landing ship converted for use as landing force headquarters. It is responsible for coordination between Army/Marine ground troops, Army/Marine Air Force, Navy and Naval Air.
Accomodation ship
Accomodation or barracks ship are used as barracks for either ground troops or naval personnel. Most often they are used to receive personnel whose ships had been destroyed or rendered uninhabitable by battle or other damage. However, they are also used as habitation for construction battalions. Some smaller accomodation ships are designed to land on planets and function as groundside barracks for troops.
Liquid carrier
Liquid carrier ships (water and fuel carriers) or tankers are of various sizes. Like cargo ships, military-specification tankers come in lengths of 225 to 1.800 meters, with beams of 20 to 325 meters, and height of 40 to 120 meters. Smaller ships can land on planets.
Distilling ships
Distilling ships are ships which are specialized for distilling drinking water. While all starships recycle water during normal operations, distilling ships can use planetside salt water and ice found on planets and in comets to provide fresh water, should such measures prove necessary. Distillers are of same size range as liquid carriers, and smaller types can land on planets and provide distilling point for a ground force.
Hospital ship
Hospital ships are designed to provide treatment facilities for soldiers and sailors in war zones. Smaller hospital ships are capable of landing on planets to provide field hospital for ground forces. Hospital ships are fully equipped hospitals capable of treating wide variety of injuries and ailments, and are also designed to provide logistical support to frontline medical teams and field hospitals.
Aircraft maintenance carrier
These ships are aircraft carriers which have been specifically designed for aircraft and starfighter maintenance tasks. While capable of operating aircraft from flight deck, they can also carry out full range of aircraft maintenance and repair work. Pioneer class aircraft maintenance carrier is 1.055 meters long with 122 meter beam.
Aircraft store ship
Aircraft store ship holds spare parts and munitions for space and aerial small craft, primarily fighters.
General stores issue ship
Ships of this type are used for distributing general stores – such as canned goods – through non-combat (rear) areas. They typically remain in operations area and replenish provisions from general cargo ships sent from the Empire.
Combat stores ship
Combat store ships store supplies for naval purposes, providing them to combat ships that are spending extended periods in operations. They carry frozen, chilled and dry provisions, fuel, repair parts, fresh food, clothing etc., but do not carry ammunition.
Minelayer
Minelayers are used to lay down mines. These mines can be contact mines or proximity mines, but due to large distances involved in 3D environment of space, most mines are armed with sensors and either missiles or torpedoes, allowing them to actively attack any ship whose signature is in their databases.
Mine countermeasure ships
Minesweepers have various devices aimed at disabling or prematurely detonating mines. These include UAVs that replicate ship signatures. Most mine sweepers are also mine hunters, using missiles or kinetic weapons to actively destroy mines once detected.
Salvage ship
Salvage ships are equipped to salvage whatever working equipment has remained onboard wrecked starships. Larger ships, often modified heavy lift ships, are capable of salvaging entire starships, thus doubling as FTL tugs. Smaller ships are designed for salvaging sensitive equipment and data, and destroying ships that cannot be salvaged in a reasonable time frame. They are also equipped for repair, firefighting and medical aid services.
Replenishment ship
Replenishment ships are generalist fleet logistics ships, combining missions of a tanker and store supply ship. Unlike logistics depot ship, they have no onboard manufacturing or repair capability. They are capable of in-space replenishment. Fuel tanks typically carry starship fuel for fusion reactors.
Destroyer depot ship
Destroyer depot ship is designed to provide logistical and maintenance support to a flotilla of destroyers or other small warships (frigates, sloops, corvettes, fast attack craft). They are focused on repair work, such as hull, machinery and electronics repairs, as well as repairs and maintenance of weapons systems. Most such ships also have onboard hospital, better equipped than small ship's medical suite. They also carry a supply of torpedoes for frigates.
Repair ship
Repair ships are specialized for repairs and maintenance of warships. They consequently offer greater range of maintenance and repair services than depot ships do, but are incapable of doing anything else.
Repair unit
Repair units are carried by repair ships, factory ships and depot ships. Basic units are capable of carrying out basic repairs to starship structure. More advanced (and larger) units are also capable of carrying out advanced repairs as well as collecting raw ore and resources to be transferred for processing to factory ships. These advanced units are thus also called resource collectors.
Mobile space dock
Mobile space docks are large, slow FTL-capable facilities specialized for extensive starship maintenance and repairs. They also provide support in areas where there are no static ports. Smaller space docks consist of only one section, while larger docks are typically comprised of several sections which connect upon arriving to destination. While single-piece large space docks do exist, they are extremely slow, limiting their fleet support capability in some situations.
Hydroponics ship
Hydrophonics ship ("botanical cruiser") grows plants so as to provide steady supply of fresh fruit and vegetables on long-term fleet deployments. They are also used during civilian colonization missions. A specialized variant, aquaponics ship, is also used. In aquaponics system, excretements from fish are used to produce the nitrates used for plant growth. This helps keep the water clean for fish, as well as solving the issue of plant nutrition. Another specialized variant exists for growing algae.
Sensory picket ship
Sensory picket ship or a scout vessel is a ship designed to provide specialized sensory support to the fleet. Such ships carry extensive sensory suite, superior to that found even on capital ships in both range and diversity of the sensors employed. As such, they are invaluable not only in protecting the fleet from a surprise attack, but also in gathering valuable intelligence.
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Thoughts?
https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads ... es.608908/
--------------
This is basically an interstellar sci-fi fleet, but I am also wondering what would the equivalents be in modern navy (say, USN), and would some of the types even be necessary for, say, World War III scenario? Also, how does this setup compare to other sci-fi fleets? It generally seems to me that fleet support is underrepresented in sci-fi – which may make sense in Star Trek, which is basically "Horatio Hornblower In Space", but what about other examples such as Warhammer 40.000?
WARSHIPS
Battleship
Battleships are large capital ships, 800 and more meters in length. Main role of battleships is destruction of enemy heavy fleet units and fixed installations such as shipyards. They are armed with a spinal cannon some 90% of the ship's length as well as point defense guns. Extensive weaponry and heavy armour do not leave much space for propulsion units, which compared with their large size leaves them somewhat sluggish.
Vanguard class fast battleships have top speed of 31,5 light years per hour, and cruise speed of 15 light years per hour. As M51 galaxy is 60.000 light years in diameter, HMS Vanguard needs 4.000 hours or 167 days (5,6 months) to go from one side of the galaxy to another (Earth units). Older battleship classes are slower, with old Revenge class having top speed of 23 ly/h and cruise speed of 10 ly/h, and all other warships being somewhere in between.
Fleet Carrier
Fleet carriers are 800 and more meters in length. Unlike battleships, their main weapon are starfighters armed with any of the following: guns (interceptors), guns and anti-fighter missiles (pursuit), anti-ship disruptor torpedoes (torpedo bombers) or various types of ground attack missiles and bombs (attack). Specialist aircraft designed for reconnaissance, electronic warfare and early warning and control are also carried.
Light Carrier
Light carriers are 400 to 800 meters in length. They fulfill the same role as fleet carriers, but being smaller and cheaper they are deployed with smaller task forces and to less important missions. When deployed with main fleet, they typically operate with cruiser sqadrons in reconnaisance role.
Escort Carrier
Escort carriers are 400 to 800 meters in length. Main difference from light carriers is their commercial-class FTL drive, making them too slow for fleet actions. Instead, they are used to escort supply and troop convoys.
Heavy Cruiser
Heavy cruisers are 700 to 800 meters in length. Their main role is destruction of enemy ships of cruiser class and below. They also serve on long-range missions, patrol for enemy warships and raid and defend commerce. For this reason, heavy cruisers are often equipped with in-built hyperspace inhibitors, and have relatively heavy armour for the ships of their size.
Light Cruiser
Light Cruisers are 600 to 700 meters in length. Their main role is long-range cruise and patrol, acting as convoy escort and commerce raiders. They also serve as destroyer command ships, scouts and fleet support vessels.
Destroyer
Destroyers are 400 to 600 meters in length. Their main role is escorting larger ships and defending them against attacks by enemy small vessels – generally frigate sized and below, but also against enemy destroyers.
Escort Destroyer
Escort Destroyers are 400 to 600 meters in length, but with subrated FTL drive and limited endurance. They also sacrifice speed and maneuverability for increased anti-fighter armaments.
Heavy Frigate
Heavy Frigates are 200 to 400 meters in length. They work in "wolf packs", hunting enemy logistics and support ships, typically through deploying hyperspace inhibitors and destroying ships thus caught. In battle line, heavy frigate wolf packs hunt down ships whose shields had been taken down, and can also help take down enemy shields through usage of disruptor torpedoes.
Light Frigate
Light Frigates are 100 to 200 meters in length. They act as scouts and provide anti-fighter screens for capital ships. For this reason they have extensive anti-fighter armaments. They have high FTL cruise speeds as well as high sublight acceleration and maneuverability.
Corvette
Corvettes are 50 to 100 meters in length. Their main role is peactime patrol, particularly intra-system and star cluster patrol. They also carry out pirate suppression missions. During the war, they support larger fleet formations, escort convoys and patrol for enemy ships.
Sloop
Sloop is a specialized convoy-escort vessel, with a subrated hyperdrive which makes them unsuitable for fleet deployment. They are typically 75 to 150 meters in length.
Fast Attack Craft
Fast Attack Craft is a corvette which trades FTL drive and deep-space endurance for firepower, protection and sublight agility. As a result, they are only useful as planetary defense ships, used to bolster numbers when insufficient number of hyperdrives are available.
Monitor
Monitors are small ships with disproportionately big guns. Tradeoff for this are limited sublight performance, very limited endurance and nonexistent FTL capacity. Larger monitors may have downgraded FTL drives, too weak for fleet deployments but enough to allow for intra-system FTL operations.
FIGHTER AIRCRAFT
Pursuit
Pursuit fighters are small, agile fighters meant for close-in defense of starships and installations against enemy fighter attack. They typically only have guns and close-in missiles.
Interceptor
Interceptor fighters are intended for long-range missile combat. Resulting fighters are large, with massive missile loads and extensive sensory systems. Due to usage of ECM, shields and point defences, however, they cannot be relied on to destroy enemy fighter craft on their own.
Bomber
Bombers are two-man craft carrying disruptor torpedoes to take down enemy ships' shields.
SUPPORT SHIPS
Logistics depot ship
Logistics depot ship is the centerpiece of Numenorean logistics system. Over two kilometers long, it combines functions of a transport, mothership, maintenance and production center, and drop-off point. Onboard forge is capable of producing all kinetic munition required by either naval or ground forces, as well as some types of high explosive munitions. It is also capable of producing certain spare parts, as well as melting broken or unusable equipment in order to produce new parts.
Factory ship
Factory ship is a heavily modified logistics depot ship capable of mining asteroids, moons and planets for raw resources, processing these raw resources and producing necessary tools. It is equipped with a forge capable of producing wide variety of munitions and spare parts, and even hull armour plates for on-campaign repairs.
General cargo vessel
These ships are multipurpose cargo vessels. Military-specification GCVs come in length of 225 to 1.800 meters, with beam of 40 to 325 meters, and height of 20 to 120 meters. Specified sizes are 225x40x20, 450x80x40, 900x160x80, 1350x200x100 and 1800x320x160 meters. Typical cargo loads for sizes are 30.000, 240.000, 1.920.000, 6.480.000 and 15.360.000 tons.
Bulk carrier
Bulk carrier has same size classes and capacities as GCV, but is specialized for transporting unpacked bulk cargo, such as grains and ore.
Heavy lift ships
These ships are designed to transport other ships that are incapable of FTL travel due to damage or lack of onboard FTL drive. As a result they have internal cargo bay similar to Space Shuttle. Lengths for such ships are 1.224 meters, 1.375 meters and 2.240 meters. They can also perform basic repairs.
Orbital transport
Orbital transport is intended to transport cargo and personnel from orbiting ships to ground. Small orbital transports have length of 80 meters and can carry 1.200 passengers or 960.000 kg of cargo. Medium orbital transports have length of 120 meters, and can carry 2.500 passengers or 2.000.000 kg of cargo. Large orbital transports are 300 meters long, with capacity of 30.000 passengers or 24.000.000 kg of cargo.
Landing ship
Landing ship carries and is capable of launching landing craft. While other supply ships such as logistics depot ships have onboard landing craft, these craft are necessarily limited in size and number, and thus ability to quickly deploy large number of troops and materials. Their design also limits the ability to rapidly launch large number of landing craft due to number and design of docking bays. Landing ships have no such limitation, and can thus quickly transport large number of personnel as well as large quantity of supplies to surface.
Shelter class landing ship is 883 meters long and capable of carrying and launching landing craft of various sizes. Normal complement is 64 landing craft and a single motor rifle battalion (24 Main Battle Tanks, 6 Light Recon Vehicles, 36 Armoured Personnel Carriers, plus associated support units).
Landing craft
Landing craft is a small type of vessel designed to quickly transport troops and supplies from ship to planet. As a result they have no FTL drive and are equipped with a bow ramp for quick embarkation. Small infantry landing craft can carry only a single platoon. Larger infantry landing craft can carry a company of infantry, and specialized vehicle landing craft are also used. Typically only the last type is embarked on landing ships, and used to carry infantry, vehicles and supplies alike. Some landing craft are modified with guns, bombs and missiles to provide fire support before and during landing, as well as point defense against enemy artillery, missiles and aircraft.
Headquarters ship
Headquarters ship is landing ship converted for use as landing force headquarters. It is responsible for coordination between Army/Marine ground troops, Army/Marine Air Force, Navy and Naval Air.
Accomodation ship
Accomodation or barracks ship are used as barracks for either ground troops or naval personnel. Most often they are used to receive personnel whose ships had been destroyed or rendered uninhabitable by battle or other damage. However, they are also used as habitation for construction battalions. Some smaller accomodation ships are designed to land on planets and function as groundside barracks for troops.
Liquid carrier
Liquid carrier ships (water and fuel carriers) or tankers are of various sizes. Like cargo ships, military-specification tankers come in lengths of 225 to 1.800 meters, with beams of 20 to 325 meters, and height of 40 to 120 meters. Smaller ships can land on planets.
Distilling ships
Distilling ships are ships which are specialized for distilling drinking water. While all starships recycle water during normal operations, distilling ships can use planetside salt water and ice found on planets and in comets to provide fresh water, should such measures prove necessary. Distillers are of same size range as liquid carriers, and smaller types can land on planets and provide distilling point for a ground force.
Hospital ship
Hospital ships are designed to provide treatment facilities for soldiers and sailors in war zones. Smaller hospital ships are capable of landing on planets to provide field hospital for ground forces. Hospital ships are fully equipped hospitals capable of treating wide variety of injuries and ailments, and are also designed to provide logistical support to frontline medical teams and field hospitals.
Aircraft maintenance carrier
These ships are aircraft carriers which have been specifically designed for aircraft and starfighter maintenance tasks. While capable of operating aircraft from flight deck, they can also carry out full range of aircraft maintenance and repair work. Pioneer class aircraft maintenance carrier is 1.055 meters long with 122 meter beam.
Aircraft store ship
Aircraft store ship holds spare parts and munitions for space and aerial small craft, primarily fighters.
General stores issue ship
Ships of this type are used for distributing general stores – such as canned goods – through non-combat (rear) areas. They typically remain in operations area and replenish provisions from general cargo ships sent from the Empire.
Combat stores ship
Combat store ships store supplies for naval purposes, providing them to combat ships that are spending extended periods in operations. They carry frozen, chilled and dry provisions, fuel, repair parts, fresh food, clothing etc., but do not carry ammunition.
Minelayer
Minelayers are used to lay down mines. These mines can be contact mines or proximity mines, but due to large distances involved in 3D environment of space, most mines are armed with sensors and either missiles or torpedoes, allowing them to actively attack any ship whose signature is in their databases.
Mine countermeasure ships
Minesweepers have various devices aimed at disabling or prematurely detonating mines. These include UAVs that replicate ship signatures. Most mine sweepers are also mine hunters, using missiles or kinetic weapons to actively destroy mines once detected.
Salvage ship
Salvage ships are equipped to salvage whatever working equipment has remained onboard wrecked starships. Larger ships, often modified heavy lift ships, are capable of salvaging entire starships, thus doubling as FTL tugs. Smaller ships are designed for salvaging sensitive equipment and data, and destroying ships that cannot be salvaged in a reasonable time frame. They are also equipped for repair, firefighting and medical aid services.
Replenishment ship
Replenishment ships are generalist fleet logistics ships, combining missions of a tanker and store supply ship. Unlike logistics depot ship, they have no onboard manufacturing or repair capability. They are capable of in-space replenishment. Fuel tanks typically carry starship fuel for fusion reactors.
Destroyer depot ship
Destroyer depot ship is designed to provide logistical and maintenance support to a flotilla of destroyers or other small warships (frigates, sloops, corvettes, fast attack craft). They are focused on repair work, such as hull, machinery and electronics repairs, as well as repairs and maintenance of weapons systems. Most such ships also have onboard hospital, better equipped than small ship's medical suite. They also carry a supply of torpedoes for frigates.
Repair ship
Repair ships are specialized for repairs and maintenance of warships. They consequently offer greater range of maintenance and repair services than depot ships do, but are incapable of doing anything else.
Repair unit
Repair units are carried by repair ships, factory ships and depot ships. Basic units are capable of carrying out basic repairs to starship structure. More advanced (and larger) units are also capable of carrying out advanced repairs as well as collecting raw ore and resources to be transferred for processing to factory ships. These advanced units are thus also called resource collectors.
Mobile space dock
Mobile space docks are large, slow FTL-capable facilities specialized for extensive starship maintenance and repairs. They also provide support in areas where there are no static ports. Smaller space docks consist of only one section, while larger docks are typically comprised of several sections which connect upon arriving to destination. While single-piece large space docks do exist, they are extremely slow, limiting their fleet support capability in some situations.
Hydroponics ship
Hydrophonics ship ("botanical cruiser") grows plants so as to provide steady supply of fresh fruit and vegetables on long-term fleet deployments. They are also used during civilian colonization missions. A specialized variant, aquaponics ship, is also used. In aquaponics system, excretements from fish are used to produce the nitrates used for plant growth. This helps keep the water clean for fish, as well as solving the issue of plant nutrition. Another specialized variant exists for growing algae.
Sensory picket ship
Sensory picket ship or a scout vessel is a ship designed to provide specialized sensory support to the fleet. Such ships carry extensive sensory suite, superior to that found even on capital ships in both range and diversity of the sensors employed. As such, they are invaluable not only in protecting the fleet from a surprise attack, but also in gathering valuable intelligence.
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Thoughts?