Naruni Industries S-2 "Arbiter" class Medium Drop Shuttle:

While the Arbiter class medium drop shuttle is rarely what people think of when they think of Naruni Industries, it is one of their most commonly sold shuttle designs. It is far smaller in size than their Goliath class heavy drop shuttle and is more comparable in size to the Consortium Assault Shuttle. While Naruni Industries sometimes uses the Arbiter themselves, they more often use the Goliath class and most Arbiters are sold to customers. The design is only one of dozens of shuttles operated within the Three Galaxies including many civilian shuttles which have been pressed into military services. It is for that reason that the design is often overlooked. Still, several mercenary companies have bought large numbers of these shuttles. In some cases, Arbiter shuttles will be used as the first wave and later waves will be of lighter shuttle models or even of civilian shuttles.

Unlike the much larger Goliath, the Arbiter class drop shuttle does not carry a faster than light drives and is fairly short ranged. It is mainly designed to be dropped by a larger capital ship and quickly make a dash for its target, discharging its troops and equipment as soon as it reaches its destination. The Arbiter is fairly blocky in design. While less efficient for atmospheric operations, the design is set up for rapid loading and offloading of troops and vehicles. Its atmospheric speed is identical to the consortium design although the Arbiter is slower in space. The design is built around the same requirements as the Consortium Assault Shuttle and can fit in the same landing bays with only minor modifications to the landing bays. The troop compartment is of a similar size although the deck is strengthen so that the shuttle can carry up to three Juggernaut heavy tanks on a single run. The bay is also slightly wider to be able to carry three at a single time although it is extremely cramped when loaded in such a manner. It is more common for the shuttle to carry two along with support supplies and additional troops. One advantage of the Arbiter is that it only requires a crew of five compared to seven for the Consortium Assault Shuttle.

Even though the Arbiter is not as tough as the huge Goliath, the Arbiter has a reputation for being able to take abuse. In addition, the shuttle is fitted with heavy starfighter variable shields. The shields are a slightly modified version of the shields carried on the Starsplitter bomber, which is also built by Naruni. Weaponry on the Arbiter is similar to that of the Goliath and the systems are identical to those carried on several fighter designs. Of course the Arbiter is might lighter armed than its larger Naruni counterpart. The shuttle has a pair of forward firing 2 cm laser cannons, a pair of point defense mounts with combine plasma cartridge guns with mini-missile launchers, and a pair of medium range missile launchers. While not the tough nut to crack as the Goliath, the defenses of the lighter shuttle can be quite deadly to attacking fighters. The forward firing lasers are often used to clear the landing area of enemies. The medium range missiles are mainly for defense against attacking fighters and missiles but can be extremely effective in that role as well. On of the point defense turrets is mounted on the top of the shuttle while the other is mounted at the bottom. High density projectiles can be substituted for plasma cartridge rounds when dealing with targets which are impervious to energy weapons.

This starship design uses modified starship speed and weapon range rules. See Revised Starship Rules for Phase World / Three Galaxies for more details.

(Note: The power system is fusion not anti-matter because the author’s opinion is that anti-matter is to dangerous to be used in vehicles that may be used in an atmosphere. If a starship powered by anti-matter was to detonate in an atmosphere it would cause huge planetary damage. At GM option, this can also be applied to all starfighters and shuttles or this shuttle can be changed to anti-matter.)

Model: N.I. S-2
Vehicle Type: Medium Assault Shuttle (Space)
Crew: Five (Pilot, Copilot, Communication/Sensor Operator, and two Gunners).

Troops / Vehicles: Up to 661.4 tons (600 metric tons). This only lists two common troop loads, there are many other possible combinations.
Vehicle & Troops:

	10	Tanks or APCs (3 Juggernaut Heavy Hover Tanks with no troops)
	120	Troops in Body Armor (100 if in Power Armor)

Troops Only:

400

Troops in Body Armor (300 if in Power Armor)

M.D.C. By Location:

	2 cm Forward Lasers (2, Front):	250 each
	Combination Plasma Cartridge / Mini-Missile Turrets (2):	225 each
	Medium Missile Launchers (2, Main body):	250 each
	Reinforced Pilot’s Compartment:	200
	Rear Door Ramp:	300
	Landing Gear (3):	100 each
	[1] Main Body:	2,000
	[2] Variable Force Field:	400 per side (2,400 total)

Notes:
[1] Depleting the M.D.C. of the main body will put the shuttle out of commission. All internal systems will shut down, including life support and internal gravity. The ship itself will be an unsalvageable floating wreck if in space and will crash to the planet if within the atmosphere.
[2] Shields positions can be varied and all could be combined in one shield. Shields regenerate at the rate of 5% (120 M.D.C.) per melee.

Speed:
Driving on the Ground: Not Possible.
Sublight: Has a special sublight engine that allows the ship to travel up to 40 percent of the speed of light. Star Ship can accelerate/decelerate at the rate of 0.50 percent of light per melee
Atmospheric Propulsion: Maximum cruise speed is 400 mph (640 kph), can enter and leave an atmosphere because flight system is using contra grav.
Maximum Range: Effectively Unlimited by Drive system but only has supplies for crew members and troops for about one and a half months (Emergency rations).

Statistical Data:
Length: 250 feet (76.2 meters).
Height: 50 feet (15.2 meters).
Width: 70 feet (21.3 meters)
Weight: 1,267.7 tons (1,150 metric tons)
Power System: Advanced Fusion with 10 year life span.
Cargo: The Large troop compartment can carry 500 tons (600 metric tons) when not carrying vehicles or troops. The troop compartment cargo hold is 55 x 30 x 100 feet in dimensions (16.8 x 9.1 x 30.4 meters). The shuttle also has storage for equipment and weapons for troops.
Market Cost: 200 million credits

WEAPON SYSTEMS:

2 Cm Laser Cannons (2): These cannons are mounted on the nose of the shuttle and are mainly used for clearing landing zones although can be used against attacking fighters as well. Weapons are extremely effective when fired together although not as powerful as most heavy weapon systems on destroyers. Weapons are controlled by pilot or co-pilot.
Maximum Effective Range: 1,000 miles (1,609 km) in space and 10 miles (16 km) in an atmosphere.
Mega Damage: 4D6x10 M.D.C. per twin cannon blast. If one is destroyed, damage is reduced by 2D6x10 M.D.C. per cannon destroyed.
Rate of Fire: Equal to the combined hand to hand attacks of the pilot or gunner (usually 4 or 5).
Payload: Effectively Unlimited.
Combination Plasma Cartridge Auto-Cannons / Mini-Missile Launchers (2): Each mount has a pair of plasma cartridge cannons and a pair of mini-missile launchers. The ship carries a total of two mounts which one is mounted on the top of the shuttle while the other is mounted on the bottom. Weapons are mounted in turrets that can rotate 360 and have a 180 arc of fire.
Plasma Cartridge Auto-Cannons (2 each mount):
Mini-Missile Launchers (2 each mount):
Medium Range Missile Launchers (2): Mounted on the sides of the shuttle, these weapon system is used for hitting enemy robots and fighters. Weapon system is also very effective as an anti-cruise missile and as ground bombardment. Each pair of two launchers is controlled by a separate weapon operator although sensor officers can also take control. Missile has a top speed of Mach 15 in an atmosphere and in space has an acceleration of 6% of light per turn. Batteries can launch on multiple targets each at the same time.
Maximum Effective Range: Medium Range Missile range is 160 miles (257.5 km) in an atmosphere and 80,000 miles (128,750 km/0.43 light seconds) in space.
Mega-Damage: Varies with medium range missile type (See revised Phase World / Three Galaxies missile tables for details.)
Rate of Fire: Can fire missiles one at a time or in volleys of 2 or 4 per launcher (up to 16 missiles can be simultaneously by all launchers).
Payload: 20 per launcher for a total of 40 medium range missiles.

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Writeup by Kitsune (E-Mail Kitsune).

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