Black Claw class Troop Transport (Trans-Galactic Empire):

The Trans-Galactic Empire tends to like to operate far more in the multi-role designs than the Consortium does. Examples include that Smasher class cruiser carrying virtually the fighter compliment of a light carrier and the Doombringer class dreadnought carrying the fighter compliment of a fleet carrier. In the same respect, the Trans-Galactic Empire does not operate separate assault carriers and troop transports. Instead, the Black Claw is expected to fill both roles. As such, it carries a sizeable fighter compliment as well as support for troops and equipment. These ships also carry a heavy energy battery for both ship to ship combat and bombardment roles. Of course these ships may be expected to suppress insurrections as well as seizing targets of opportunity. Because of concerns of rebellion, these ships are often extremely busy. Some of these ships are operated by the main naval forces while others are operated by the Empire's security forces.

Some troop transport designs in the Three Galaxies are based on civilian design but the Trans-Galactic Empire appears to be built on military standards. As such, the Black Claw is a bit tougher than many other troop transport designs. The ship mounts variable defensive shields identical to those mounted on the Smasher class cruiser to withstand greater damage as it is expected that these ships may be required to engage in ship to ship combat. Power is provided by an anti-matter reactor and the ship has both a powerful faster than light drive system and in-system drive system. Top speed in faster than light travel is four light years per hour. Sensor systems are also based on military standards and are pulled from the Smasher class cruiser. Extensive command and control facilities for troops are onboard the ship.

Weaponry carried is virtually identical to those carried on the Smasher as well. Main battery is a single 30 cm heavy laser cannon and is backed up by four 12 cm medium laser cannons. These are mostly used for anti-ship roles. The 30 cm cannons are most effective when used to bombard through an atmosphere due to their greater effective range. The ships also mount a pair of cruise missile batteries although payload is reduced to thirty per launcher from the fifty per launcher carried on the Smasher. Point defense batteries are also different than the Smasher with eight mounts which combine a point defense laser with a mini-missile battery and eight mounts which combine a gravity rail gun mount with a mini-missile battery.

These troop transports carry thirty-six Flying Fang fighters or fighter-bombers. This allows the ships to operate as virtually light carriers and are useful for supporting planetary assaults. If more fighters are needed, usually they are escorted by a Smasher class cruiser. There are thoughts about substituting forty-eight Sharktooth Light Starfighters when they become available in larger numbers. These ships also carry four "Rain of Death" assault shuttles along with embarked troops and equipment. Usually compliment is four doomsday machines, forty Imperator Assault Robots, thirty-two Dark Slayer hover tanks, and a large number of power armors. Two thousand troops in total can be carried or about sixteen hundred in power armors. This is normally split between Warlord I and Warlord II power armors. All equipment can be disembarked in less than four assault runs assuming that none of the shuttles are destroyers or damaged to the point where they cannot continue operating. Extensive support equipment and supplies are also carried.

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: TIV-BCTTI
Vehicle Type: Troop Transport / Assault Ship
Crew: 220
Troops: 50 Fighter Pilots, 24 Shuttle Crew, 56 Doomsday Machine Crew, 160 Imperator Assault Robot Crew, 160 Dark Slaver Tank Crew, and 2,000 Troops (1600 in power armor).

Vehicle, Robots, and Power Armors:
Power Armors:

	1000	IPA-WI-K Warlord Mark I Combat Suit
	60	IPA-WI-H Warlord Mark II Combat Suit

Robot Vehicles:

IAR-500 Imperator Assault Robots

Tanks & Other Vehicles:

	32	IAF-95 MBT Dark Slayer Main Battle Tank
	4	KT-1 Doomsday Machine

Fighter Compliment:

FF-100 Standard Flying Fangs or FFB-120 Flying Fang Bombers (Carries 4 Cruise missiles)

Assault Shuttles:

TIV-TTI "Rain of Death" Transports

M.D.C. By Location:

	30 cm Heavy Laser Cannon Lance (Top):	1,200 each
	12 cm Secondary Heavy Laser Cannons (4):	800 each
	Cruise Missile Batteries (2, Front):	1,000 each
	Point Defense Lasers / Missile Batteries (8):	350 each
	GR Rail Cannons / Missile Batteries (8):	400 each
	Outer Hull (40 ft/ 12.2 m Area):	150
	Inner Hull (40 ft/ 12.2 m Area):	100
	[1] Bridge:	10,000
	[1] Secondary Bridge:	10,000
	Hanger Bay:	15,000
	[2] Main Body:	60,000
	[3] Variable Force Field:	3,000 a side (18,000 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 also has 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 cruiser 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% (900 M.D.C.)

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 maximum due to civilian shields. Star Ship can accelerate/decelerate at the rate of 0.8 percent of light per melee. Ship has had the merchant radiation and particle shields replaced with military ones.
Atmospheric Propulsion: Maximum speed is 250 mph (402 kph), can enter an atmosphere and can leave but is not designed for atmospheric flight
Stardrive: Uses a Gravitonic Drive system that allows the ship to reach a maximum of 4 light years per hour.
Maximum Range: Effectively Unlimited by either drive system. Carries about two years worth of supplies on board for the ship’s crew.

Statistical Data:
Length: 980 feet (298.7 meters)
Height: 400 feet (121.9 meters)
Width: 350 feet (106.7 meters)
Weight: 450,000 Tons (408,230 metric tons)
Power System: Anti-Matter with a 50 year life span. The ship normally only goes 10 years between refueling and refitting.
Cargo: Cargo holds are scattered about the ship that allows for carrying up to 50,000 tons (45,360 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 take up by extra ammunition, armor, troops, weapons, engine, and other equipment.
Market Cost: 2.5 billion credits (Does not include embarked troops, equipment, and fighters)

WEAPON SYSTEMS:

One (1) 30 cm Heavy Laser Cannon: Cannon is identical to the main cannon of the Smasher. The cannon mount is located on the top front of the starship and are used as anti-capital ship weapons and can take out frigates in one shot and can do large amounts of damage to bases or larger starships. The Laser cannons can be combined together or each one used separately. The weapon system cannot be used to engage targets while traveling at faster than light velocities.Weapon has standard penalties to hit fighters and small targets for a large weapon system. The barrels can be fired either forward and can be rotated 60 degrees horizontally or vertically.
Maximum Effective Range: 100,000 miles (161,000 km) in space. and 100 miles (161 km) in an atmosphere.
Mega Damage: 1D6x1000 M.D.C.
Rate of Fire: Maximum of once per melee.
Payload: Effectively Unlimited.
Four (4) 12 cm Laser Cannons: These weapons are the ships secondary energy weaponry. The weapon systems, like the primary laser cannons, are designed for anti-capital ship and anti-installation. They have the standard penalties for capital scale weaponry to strike small targets such as fighters and other such small targets. Each laser in mounted in a turret that has a 360 degree rotation and a 90 degree arc of fire. Up to two cannons may be combined as one volley or all weapons may be targeted individually. The weapon system cannot be used to engage targets while traveling at faster than light velocities.
Maximum Effective Range: 16,000 miles (25,750 km) in space and 16 miles (25 km) in an atmosphere.
Mega-Damage: 1D6x100 + 100 M.D. each (2D6x100 + 200 for two cannons)
Rate of Fire: Two per cannon per melee or two double blasts
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
Two (2) Cruise Missile Batteries: The ship carries batteries with ten cruise missile launchers each to launch cruise missile. Missile has a top speed of Mach 25 in an atmosphere and in space has an acceleration of 10% of light per turn (far faster than any starship) in space. 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 other starships (Great for hitting bases and planets because target does not move and missile when dead is at -25% to be detected.) Cruise missiles have penalties to hit small targets but are all considered smart missiles. Each battery can be used to launch against multiple targets but is rarely used that way.
Maximum Effective Range: Cruise Missile range is 8,000 miles (12,875 km) in an atmosphere and 4,000,000 miles (6,437,376 km/ 21.5 light seconds) in space.
Mega-Damage & Properties: See revised Phase World / Three Galaxies missile tables for details (Anti-Matter multi-warheads inflict 5D6x100 M.D.C. each.)
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 10 per launcher, per melee round, for a total of 40 missiles per melee. Launchers are reloaded on the same melee and can be fired again on the next.
Payload: 60 total, 30 cruise missiles per launcher.
Eight (8) Point Defense Lasers/Mini Missile Batteries: Weapons are mounted around the ship point defense. Each turret can rotate 360 and has a 180 arc of fire. Weapons are mounted around the ship for point defense. 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) in space. Missile launchers 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. Lasers have a range of 2 miles (3.2 km) in an atmosphere and 100 miles (161 km) in space.
Mega-Damage: Laser cannon inflicts 3D4x10 M.D. per blast. Mini-Missiles vary by mini-missile type (See revised Phase World / Three Galaxies missile tables for details.)
Rate of Fire: Equal to the combined hand to hand attacks of the gunner (usually 4 or 5). Mini-Missiles are fired one at a time or in volleys of two (2) or four (4) mini-missiles.
Payload: Laser has effectively unlimited payload. Has 32 mini-missiles at each launcher (has many more in storage holds).
Eight (8) 22 mm GR Rail Gun/Mini Missile Batteries: Each turret can rotate 360 and has a 180 arc of fire. Weapons are mounted around the ship for point defense. The rail guns fire projectiles at incredible velocities compared to rail guns on Rifts Earth and projectiles are fired from the rail guns at a significant fraction of the speed of light. 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) in space. Missile launchers 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. Gravity Rail guns have a range of 4 miles (6.4 km) in an atmosphere and 200 miles (362 km) in space.
Mega-Damage: GR-Cannon inflicts 3D6x10 M.D. for a 40 round burst. Mini-Missiles vary by mini-missile type (See revised Phase World / Three Galaxies missile tables for details.)
Rate of Fire: Equal to the combined hand to hand attacks of the gunner (usually 4 or 5). Mini-Missiles are fired one at a time or in volleys of two (2) or four (4) mini-missiles.
Payload: GR Cannon has 8000 rounds/ 200 Bursts each, has 32 mini-missiles at each launcher (256 total, can carry potentially several times more in storage holds.)

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Writeup by Kitsune (E-Mail Kitsune).

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