Wolfstone Class Assault Ship (U.W.W.):


With all of the new vessels being developed for the U.W.W. Navy, it was decided that the development of a new Assault Ship would be contracted out to be developed by outside the fleet establishment. Lack of any kind of assault transport was a serious concern with only a handful of Arcadia class carriers having been converted to the role of Assault Ship. As a result, often troops would have to be carried on civilian vessels of various type which were contracted for those purposes.


Most in the military expected a design based on the Arkenfire class carrier. Surprising, a yard which previously had produced only civilian designs came up with the winning design over a host of other designs. The design was not based on the Arkenfire hull but instead based on a civilian merchant design. The use of a civilian design made for a much less expensive construction yet still could fill the role required. Some weaknesses include a lighter hull and there is no secondary bridge. There is extensive command and control facilities for the troop compliment however.


There was much scepticism about the first vessel of the class before it was laid down but the vessel was completed on time and under budget even with some last minute delays in construction. At the last minute, it was decided that the ship would need to carry the same weaponry as a cruiser not including the cruise missile launchers. Originally, the vessel design was armed only for self defense although the defense battery is actually heavier than the Arkenfire. While much argued against by the original developers due to additional cost, this increase in the vessel's weaponry was added by the military due to the added requirement that the ship could operate on its own. While six bottle demon launchers are mounted, normally conventional mini-missiles are carried. Often the ships may be expected to deal with "Brushfire" incidents on its own or may have to hold the line until more vessels can reach the scene. One the first few vessels has been completed and it is expected that only a small quantity were ever be constructed.


Compared to the Consortium main assault ship design, the Wolfstone is comparatively small. Many new assault ship designs are smaller than previous designs. This allows more of them to be build and to be able to cover more trouble spots at the same time. It is not designed to be able to make planetary landings under hostile conditions. Generally, the ship is only expected to land to recover personnel and equipment. It is expected that troops are dropped by drop shuttle, which a total of five is carried (one usually a special operations variant), and the ship also carries eight techno-wizard teleport arrays instead of the standard four for a vessel of its size. This is equal to the teleport arrays carried on a battle cruiser.


The ship is designed around the ability to carry Marine Raiders as well as normal marines including augmentation packs. The previous class was not equipped for Raider augmentation packs. A comparatively small number of Force Recon troops are also usually embarked onboard. Up to three dozen Greataxe hover tanks can be embarked for support and assault roles. Most assault ships carry a reasonably large fighter compliment although usually less than a true carrier. The Wolfstone carries a normal compliment of two squadrons of Shadowbolt fighters and a squadron of Katana fighters. While not nromally carried, the Katana fighters can be fitted with FTL Contra-Grav dive boosters. When they become available, there is consideration being given to replacing one squadron of Shadowbolt fighters with eighteen Komet II fighters. Original designs included a small compliment of Black Widow heavy fighters but this was removed to make room for additional weaponry.


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


Model Type: UWW-FAS-99
Class: Fast Assault Ship.
Crew: 320, including a magic team of 16 techno-wizards (levels 2-6).
Troop Capacity: 200 Marines (Typically 50 stay on board for ship defense), 60 fighter pilots, 600 Warlock Combat Armor pilots, 144 tank crew, and can carry up to 60 passengers in addition.


Vehicles:
Power Armors & Robots:

240W-1 Warlock Combat Armors
120WF-1 Flying Warlock Combat Armors
180W-1 Warlock Combat Armors (With Raider Augmentation)
30WF-1R Force Recon Warlock Combat Armors
Fighter Compliment:
24WF-F15 Shadow Bolt Strike Ship
12BIF-67 Katana fighter ship
Assault Shuttles:
4S-22 “Standard” Iron Spear Assault Shuttles
1MS-22 "Special Operations" Iron Spear Assault Shuttles
Tanks & Other Vehicles:
36WIFV-99 Greataxe IFV Tanks


M.D.C. by Location:

Flame Cannons (2, one on each side)1,000 each
Mini-Death Cloud Cannons (2):200 each
Medium Laser Cannon Turrets (3):1,000 each
Medium Laser Cannon Barrels (6):500 each
Bottled Demon Missile Batteries (6):600 each
Sub Particle Acceleration Cannons (8):100 each
Twin Telekinetic Machine Gun Turrets (8):140 each
[1] Main Bridge:10,000
[2] Main Body:35,000
Hangar Section (Lower 1/2 of the Ship):20,000 each
[3] Magical “Armor of Ithan” Force Field:10,000


Notes:
[1] In reality this is how much damage needs to be done for a weapon to hit the bridge through the ship’s armor. This ship does not have an auxiliary bridge. Even if both bridges are taken out, the ship can still be piloted from engineering but ship is -3 to dodge and all weapon systems will be at local control. Weapon hits near the bridge that do not penetrate the ships integrity can injure crew members on or near the bridge.
[2] Depleting the M.D.C. of the main body will put the ship out of commission. All internal systems will shut down, including life support and internal gravity. The ship itself will be an unsalvageable floating wreck.
[3] This is not a variable force field, but a magical shield that must be completely depleted. Once the shield has been knocked down, it will cost 1,000 P.P.E. and require one minute ( 4 melees) of spellcasting to restore the force field.


Speed:
Driving on the Ground: Not Possible.
Sublight: Has a special sublight engine that allows the ship to travel up to 60 percent of the speed of light. Star Ship can accelerate/decelerate at the rate of 0.8 percent of light per melee.
Atmospheric Propulsion: Maximum speed is 200 mph (321.9 kph), can enter an atmosphere and can leave but is not designed for atmospheric flight
Star Drive: Rift Jump Drive; maximum safe jump distance of 20 light years every four hours (Jump costs 4,000 P.P.E. per activation.)
Maximum Effective Range: Life support will keep crew alive for up to ten years, as long as the P.P.E. generators are kept in working order.


Statistical Data:
Height: 121.5 feet (37 meters)
Width: 131.2 feet (40 meters)
Length: 800.5 feet (244 meters)
Mass/Weight: 265,000 tons (235,860 metric tons) fully loaded
Power System: Combination Fusion & Techno-wizardry with 20 year life span. The Cruiser also has a P.P.E. generator that produces 4,000 P.P.E. per hour / 16.6 P.P.E. per melee round (Activating the Rifts Jump Drive costs 4,000 P.P.E.) and can hold up to 16,000 P.P.E. in storage. This P.P.E. can be used to power the Rifts Jump Drive or can be used to power spells cast by the Cruiser crew.
Cargo: Cargo holds can hold up to 25,000 tons (22,680 metriuc tons) of additional material. Each enlisted crew member has a small locker for personal items and uniforms. Ship’s officers have more space for personal items. Most of the ship’s spaces are taken up by extra ammunition, armor, troops, weapons, engine, and other equipment.
Market Cost: 3.2 billion credits plus troops and fighters. As the ship is intended for the Raiders first and Marine Strike Forces, it is not for sale outside of the Warlock Marine Corps.


Weapon Systems:

  1. 16 Inch Flame Cannons (2 Cannons Total): The heavy battery of cannons gives the ship a very powerful punch and are mounted on the sides of the ship. Each mount can rotate 60 degrees up or down and has a 30 degree arc of fire to the sides of the ship that the weapon is mounted on. Firing giant fireballs, these cannons have enormous range in space. With regards to fire control, these cannons are not designed to lock onto any targets smaller than frigates. While these cannons are able to be used to bombard planets as well as well, they have comparatively limited range in an atmosphere.
    Maximum Effective Range: 20,000 miles (32,200 km) in space and 20 miles (32.2 km) in an atmosphere.
    Mega Damage: 1D4x1000 M.D.C. each cannon
    Rate of Fire: Maximum of two (2) times per melee per cannon (A total of 4 blasts).
    Payload: Effectively Unlimited; Needs 1000 P.P.E. per day to function.
  2. Six (6) 5 inch Laser Cannons mounted in Double Turrets: Each turret can rotate 360 degrees and has a 60 degree arc of fire upwards and 15 degree arc of fire downwards. All the cannons in a turret can be fires as one or each barrel can be fired separately. These are modern weapon systems that are powered by the ship’s reactor. The cannons are not quite as powerful as the cannons on the CAF classes but have a higher rate of fire which makes up much of the difference. Weapons have standard penalties to hit fighters and small targets for large starship weaponry.
    Maximum Effective Range: 16,000 miles (25,000 km) in space and 16 miles (25 km) in an atmosphere.
    Mega Damage: 1D6x100 M.D.C. each or both cannons in a turret can be combined for a total of 2D6x100.
    Rate of Fire: Equal to the combined hand to hand attacks of the gunner (usually 4 or 5).
    Payload: Effectively Unlimited.
  3. Mini Death Cloud Cannons (2): Mounted one front and one rear, this weapon is similar to the mount on the Arcane patrol ship. The weapon release a massive amount of water that quickly freezes. While the ice is not a solid barrier, the particle density of the ice is great enough to eliminate missiles and inflict large amounts of damage to larger targets. Each weapon releases about 1/4 of the ice that the weapon mounted on the Arcane patrol ship does. The weapon can also be used to block heavy plasma weapons and can be used to hide a ship on sensors systems. The "wall" of ice has a virtually indefinite duration in space but does drift at the heading and speed of the ship launching the "wall" of ice. If used in an atmosphere, the weapon has only a momentary duration and reduced effects. The weapon system is useless underwater. The cloud of ice is -6 to dodge normally with the penalties for large ships used as well.
    Maximum Effective Range: can be accurately targeted up to 1,000 miles (1,600 km) with a diameter of 25,000 feet (15,200 meters) when used in space and 10 miles (16 km) with a diameter of 250 feet (152 meters) when used in an atmosphere.
    Mega-Damage: A ship or missile 1D6 x speed of target in percentage of light. For example, a ship traveling at 10% of the speed of light would have 1D6x10 inflicted on them. Larger ships will have greater damage inflicted on them. Destroyer sized ships (greater than 1,000 tons but less than 40,000 tons) have damage multiplied by 5, Light Cruiser sized ships (greater than 40,000 tons but less than 100,000 tons) have damage multiplied by 10, Heavy cruiser sized ships (Greater than 100,000 but less 1 million tons) have damage multiplied by 20, and the truly huge ships like heavy cargo ships and battleships (1 million tons and greater) have damage multiplied by 100. Most missiles are automatically destroyed by the cloud of ice. If used in an atmosphere, the weapon will automatically knock missiles off course and anyone flying through the cloud of water will need to make a piloting roll at -6. Optional: The speed of the ship launching the cloud may also be calculated but it is math intensive due to the fact that direction of travel and vectors will also effect the damage of the weapon.
    Rate of Fire: Twice per melee per mini-death cloud cannon.
    Payload: Each weapon may be activated 20 times per twenty four hour period. Further activations require 100 P.P.E. from either onboard magicians or drawing on the ship’s P.P.E. generator.
  4. Sub Particle Acceleration Cannons (8) in Single Mounts: Mounted on top of the ship along the sides of the ship’s hull in turrets. Cannons turrets can fire at up to a 90 degree angle up or down and can rotate up to 180 degrees side to side. The gun does not have penalties to strike small targets. Uses the spell of the same name from page 143 of Federation of Magic. The spells must be renewed every two months (costs 400 P.P.E. and 20,000 credits per Cannon) but during that period the weapon can fire unlimited blasts
    Maximum Effective Range: 200 miles (320 km) in space. 2 miles (3.2 km) in an atmosphere.
    Mega Damage: 1D6x10+10 per cannon.
    Rate of Fire: Equal to the combined hand to hand attacks of the gunner (usually 4 or 5).
    Payload: Unlimited, although the spells must be renewed every two months whether the cannons have been used or not.
  5. Twin Telekinetic Machine Gun Turrets (8): These cannons are identical to those mounted in the Shadow Bolt Starfighter but are in twin mounts. Mounted on the sides of the ship in turrets. Cannons turrets can fire at up to a 90 degree angle up or down and can rotate up to 180 degrees side to side. The gun does not have penalties to strike small targets. Because the cannons do damage by impact, they do full damage to targets that are using the spell impervious to energy. The spells must be renewed every two months (costs 400 P.P.E. and 20,000 credits per cannon) but during the period the weapon can fire unlimited blasts.
    Maximum Effective Range: 200 miles (320 km) in space and 2 miles (3.2 km) in an atmosphere.
    Mega Damage: 12D6 per burst for both cannons in a turret.
    Rate of Fire: Equal to the combined hand to hand attacks of the gunner (usually 4 or 5).
    Payload: Unlimited, although the spells must be renewed every two months whether the cannons have been used or not.
  6. Bottled Demon Missile Batteries (6): These missile launchers are another point defense system, though it is always manually controlled (nobody is interested in putting an AI in charge of bottled demons). On each side of the hull the vessel has three bottle demon missile batteries. The missiles are literally demons summoned and bottled into a missile and are an aggressive and intelligent guidance system. The evil demons will continue to chase its target until destroyed (50 M.D.C. to the missile.) Bottled demons are slightly larger than mini-missiles and require special launchers. Missile has a top speed of Mach 10 in an atmosphere and in space has an acceleration of 2% of light per turn (slightly faster than any starship except if it is exceeding it maximum safe acceleration). Missiles are super smart and have +4 to strike and +5 to dodge. Unlike normal missiles, the bottled demon does not explode and keeps striking at its target over and over. If the target is destroyed or vanishes, the missile disappears. Batteries can launch on multiple targets each. The launchers have been modified so they can fire standard mini-missiles. This is done mainly by fitting the mini-missiles with a special sleeve that allows them to be fired from the launcher. This allows the launchers to be used for point defense and targets not worth a bottled demon. Often the ship carries exclusively conventional warheads or a very limited number of bottled demon missiles. Batteries can launch on multiple targets each at the same time.
    Maximum Effective Range: Bottled Demon Missiles: Effectively Unlimited! Once fired, the demon controlled and powered missile will fly and pursue the designated target until its target or the missile is destroyed (or the target vanished from sight, jumps away, or gets away by another means) Conventional Mini-Missiles: Missile range is 2 miles (3.2 km) in an atmosphere and 100 miles (161 km) in space.
    Mega-Damage: Bottled Demon Missiles: 3D4x10 M.D. of magical energy every time the missile strikes (3% chance of releasing the demon every time it hits.) Conventional Mini-Missiles: Varies with mini-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 two (2), three (3), four (4), or eight (8) per battery.
    Payload: Bottled Demon Missiles: 32 per battery for a total of 192 bottled demon missiles. Conventional Mini-Missiles: 64 per battery for a total of 384 mini-missiles.



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By James Laursen (prowlstheknight@yahoo.com) and Kitsune (E-Mail Kitsune).


Copyright © 2008, James Laursen & Kitsune. All rights reserved.



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