HAFN Soyakaze class Mine Sweeper:

When the HAFN adopted the new Soyakaze class corvette, they also asked Kuan-Yin Shipyards about the possibility of developing other variants of the corvette. There are definite advantages to using a single hull for multiple designs. Using a single hull for several different variants speeds development, reduces development costs, and also reduces logistic due to a large part compatability.

The first of these variants would be a escort corvette, which would serve as a highly mobile defensive vessel for defending other ships. The second, largely based on the first variant, was a Mine Sweeper to replace the ancient Cobra class minesweeper. The old minesweeper is in need of replacement with heavy wear and often parts needing to be specially forged. While much smaller than the ship it replaces, the mine sweeper version of the Soyakaze is supposed to defeat all three kinds of mine platforms in the Three Galaxies, and have a good chance at survival.

There are three basic classes of mines usually found in the Three Galaxies. These are missile platforms, energy weapon platforms, and simple mines. The first two are very self explanatory and the third type have small drives and act as comparatively short range missiles while mounting heavy warheads themselves. Completely non mobile explosive mines are virtually useless in most cases. Protecting these more standard mine types, decoy and jamming type mines often are operated. In many cases, different mines are operated together to make mine fields harder to destroy.

Mine fields often are programmed to attempt to destroy a minesweeper at long range by overwhelming the vessel's point defense weaponry. For this reason, point defense and comparatively short range but very power sensor systems are the most important systems for a minesweeper. All the heavy energy weaponry on Soyakaze minesweeper the is stripped from the ship and long range sensors are reduce to the point that the ship has long range sensor capacity only equal to civilian sensor system levels. The 10 cm particle beam is replaced by a sensor array that includes radar, neutrino sensors, gravitic sensors, and tachyon based sensors. The system has a range of only about 3 million kilometers but gives better reading in a narrow cone than the sensors mounted in a battleship normally have.

The long range battery is identical to the battery carried in the escort version of the Soyakaze and the mine sweeper carries three hundred and sixty long range missiles. While this is only have the missile payload of the Cobra class which it replaces, the new mine sweeper masses only a bit over ten percent of the ship it replaces. It also can fire a fifty percent greater volley of long range missiles.

Secondary point defense arrays are identical to those on the attack and escort versions, three heavy point defense rail guns, three tachyon scatter beam mounts, and six mini-missile batteries. It was late in the development that medium range missile batteries were considered instead of the mini-missile launchers and the idea was dropped because it would have added additional delays.

A slightly more powerful shield generator was developed for the mine sweeper version of the Soyakaze. It requires more power than the original shields and both the main battery of the escort and attack versions and the more powerful shields could not be powered simultaneously. As well, the shield generator is slightly larger and the standard Soyakaze is too cramped to fit the more powerful generator. The shields are just as powerful as those carried on the old Cobra class. Otherwise, the hulls are basically identical in how much damage the designs can take.

The drive systems of the mine sweeper are identical to those in the escort version and the minesweeper is over twice as fast as far as faster than light speed as the minesweeper it is replacing. Normal space acceleration is slightly less than the attack version of the Soyakaze due to the slightly increase mass of the vessel although even here it is fifty percent greater than the old Cobra class minesweeper.

An advantage rarely discussed but still quite important is that the Soyakaze class minesweeper requires less than ten percent of the crew of the old Cobra class. This greatly reduces operating expenses compared to the old minesweeper design. It is kind of ironic though that crew quarters in the Soyakaze class are more cramped than the design it replaces.

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: CSY MK XXIC
Vehicle Type: Mine Sweeper
Crew: 23 (4 officers)

M.D.C. By Location:

	Central Sensor Suite (Front, built into hull):	800
	GR-1000 Gravity Point Defense Rail Gun turrets (4):	400 each
	Tachyon Scatter Beam Turret (3):	400 each
	Long Range Missile Batteries (2):	600 each
	Mini-Missile Launchers (6):	120 each
	[1] Bridge:	1,100
	[2] Main Body:	4,200
	[3] Variable Force Field:	1,200 a side (7,200 Total)

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 the bridge is destroyed, 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 corvette 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] Shields positions can be varied and all could be combined in one shield. Shields regenerate at the rate of 5% (360 M.D.C.) per melee round

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 1.1 percent of light per melee.
Atmospheric Propulsion: Maximum speed is Mach 4 (2,965.8 mph / 4,773.0 kph), can enter an atmosphere because flight system is using contra grav.
Stardrive: Uses a Gravitonic Drive system that allows the ship to reach a maximum of 6.0 light years per hour.
Maximum Range: Effectively Unlimited by either drive system. Carries about nine months worth of supplies on board.

Statistical Data:
Length: 312 feet (93.6 meters)
Height: 215 feet (64.6 meters)
Width: 72 feet (21.6 meters)
Weight: 5,000 tons (4,536 metric tons)
Power System: Anti-matter with a 50 year life span. The ship normally only goes 10 years between refueling and refitting.
Cargo: Small cargo hold that allows for carrying up to 40 tons (36.3 metric tons) of cargo in addition to standard compliment of supplies and ammunition. 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: Ships cost 520 million credits to manufacture. Earlier versions are for sale, although the MK XXIC is not.

WEAPON SYSTEMS:

Four (4) GR-1000 Large Gravity Point Defense Rail Gun Turrets: Each rail gun is in a turret that can rotate 360 and has a 180 arc of fire. Rail gun projectiles are fired from mounts at a significant fraction of the speed of light. The weapon system cannot be used to engage targets while traveling at faster than light velocities. Gravity rail gun uses a 30 mm projectile.
Maximum Effective Range: 16 miles (26 km) through atmosphere and 1,600 miles (2,575 km) in space.
Mega-Damage: Rail gun inflicts 4D6x10 M.D.C. for a 40 round burst.
Rate of Fire: Equal to the combined hand to hand attacks of the gunner (usually 4 or 5).
Payload: 10,000 Rounds (250 Bursts) each cannon.
Three (3) Point Defense Tachyon Scatter Beams: The main purpose of this system is as an anti-missile point defense. They do this by firing a wide blast that affects all targets in a cone that can destroy whole volleys of missiles before the strike the ship (Roll once against a volley and unless the missiles roll to dodge greater than strike roll, they are all destroyed.) The stream lasts for significant fraction of a second and missiles tend to run into the stream (Gives +4 bonus vs fast moving targets such as missiles.) This system has an interesting property that the system can actually be used at FTL speeds because Tachyons travel faster than the speed of light. Each Tachyon Scatter Beam is in a turret that can rotate 360 and has a 180 arc of fire, with one turret on top of the corvette, and one on each lower side.
Maximum Effective Range: 99.4 miles (160 km) with a width of 12.4 miles (20 km), range and width is one sixteenth in an atmosphere.
Mega Damage: 2D4x10 M.D.C. each.
Rate of Fire: Maximum of four (4) times per melee each.
Payload: Effectively Unlimited.
Two (2) Long Range Missile Batteries: The ships main anti mine systems, these are usually loaded with the heaviest warheads available. Missile has a top speed of Mach 20 in an atmosphere and in space has an acceleration of 8% of light per turn (faster than any starship.) Whether weapons can be shot down is calculated from the speed of target, launcher, and missile. When drive goes dead, missile will continue to travel in a straight line unless set to self destruct but has very low odds of hitting star ships (Great for hitting bases and planets because target does not move and missile when dead is at -25% to be detected.) Long range missiles do not have penalties to hit small targets, unlike cruise missiles, and are all considered smart missiles. Batteries can launch on multiple targets each at the same time.
Maximum Effective Range: Long Range Missile range is 3,400 miles (5,470 km) in an atmosphere and 1,800,000 miles (2,897,000 km/9.7 light seconds) in space.
Mega-Damage & Properties: See revised Phase World / Three Galaxies missile tables for details (Fusion warheads inflict 2D4x100 M.D.C. each.)
Rate of Fire: Can fire missiles one at a time or in volleys of two (2), eight (8), sixteen (16), or thirty-two (32) missiles per launcher, per melee attack.
Payload: 360 total, 180 long range missiles per launcher.
Six (6) Mini-Missile Launchers: These are missile turrets used for point defense against enemy fighters and missiles. 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.) Batteries can launch on multiple targets each at the same time.
Maximum Effective Range: Mini Missile range is 2 miles (3.2 km) in an atmosphere and 100 miles (161 km) in space.
Mega-Damage: 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 four (4) or eight (8) mini-missiles.
Payload: 128 per launcher for a total of 768 mini-missiles. Cargo hold has an additional 768 mini-missiles. Reloading launchers from cargo hold takes 1D6 minutes.

Sensor System of Note:

High Powered Mine Hunting Sensor System: This system replaces the ship’s 10 cm particle beam on the attack and escort versions. This system includes radar, neutrino sensors, gravitic sensors, and tachyon based sensors. This is an active sensor system with a range of 1,864,000 miles (3,000,000 km / 10 light seconds) and covers a 20 degree radius cone. As stated, the system is an active system and is easily detected but gives a bonus or +20% to read sensory rolls to detect targets and a +5 on weapon systems when aiming at targets with the cone. Targets that are invisible but the invisibility is not specific to gravity sensors will also be detected. The other ship’s sensors are at civilian level except the ship’s close range fire control sensors.

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Image drawn and copyrighted by Roman Kochnev (r_kochnev@hotmail.com)

More Roman Kochnev artwork at The Science Fiction Art and Design Portfolio of Roman Kochnev

Writeup by Mischa (E-Mail Mischa)

Revision by Kitsune (E-Mail Kitsune).

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