“Queen of Swords” Modified Dwarven Iron Ship (T.W. / U.W.W.):

While a number of Dwarven Iron Ships have recently been retired with newer ships replacing them in United Worlds Warlock service, the Queen of Swords has long been in independent hands. Where the name came from has been lost in time although it has been suggested that the original name was the Iron Queen.

Over the years, the Dwarven Iron Ship known as the “Queen of Swords” has passed through the hands of various captains, the names of many having been lost. May also went under various pseudonyms. Only the names of the last few captains are known for sure. Commanding the ship for several decades before his death, the last captain was a former Consortium Fleet Officer named Carlton Howe. The present captain is a techno-wizard named Lenorae Darkstone. Previously she had been the second in command and the captain’s lover.

The most distinctive feature of the “Queen of Swords” is the design of the tarot deck card of the same name on either side of the superstructure. Some of the crew, especially relatively new crew, confused the ship and the present captain. They call the captain “The Queen of Swords” as well. It is also joked by some of the old hands that the captain and the ship practically are the same anyway.

The ship has actually been far more active than most Dwarven Iron Ships and has often fought against the Splugorth forces although not exclusively. As a result of these battles, the ship has been damaged on numerous occasions and has required frequent repairs. Even so, the Queen of Swords is considered to be in excellent condition and is better maintained than many Dwarven Iron Ships in independent service. Over the years, the ship has also been modified extensively.

Some of the previous modifications have included replacing the relatively primitive fusion reactor with a more compact but higher output modern civilian design. The replacement reactor both required far less manning and less maintenance. As one might expect, the electronic suite has also been upgraded numerous times to keep up with modern systems.

One of the more recent upgrades has been in the hands of Captain Howe. While was in command, the original particle beam mounts were removed and replaced by more powerful variable focus particle beams. These particle beams come from the Consortium Assault Shuttle. In addition, he had four GR-1000 heavy point defense gravity rail guns mounted to augment the variable focus particle beams.

Since Captain Darkstone has taken command, the ship has been upgraded to an even greater extent. These include the addition of four of capital missile launchers stripped from scrapped Wolfen Hunter class destroyers as well as replacing the Bottle Demon launchers with medium range missile batteries, also stripped from Hunter class destroyers. Software allows the capital missile batteries to fire larger volleys than might otherwise be possible from the launchers. The medium range missiles were also far more effective in the point defense role than the mini-missiles fired from the Bottle Demon launchers. As one might expect, Bottle Demon missiles were not usually available.

In addition to the weaponry upgrades, much of the original enchanted armor plates have been stripped when Captain Darkstone took command and have been replaced by modern composite and alloy materials. In addition to the materials being stronger than those they replace, the materials are actually lighter weight. Many of the original plates had been damaged but those that were intact were sold to operators of Dwarven Iron Ships in order to pay for much of the upgrades.

Captain Darkstone has recently been working often with Captain Talon, captain of the Thunderstroke, also a Dwarven Iron Ship which has been extensively been upgraded. There has been discussion of upgrading the Queen of Swords in a similar manner to the Thunderstroke, especially the addition of a lightning field generator. Other modification would likely include the replacement of the flame cannons and anti-ship lasers with longer ranged particle beams. Because they could not be fired through the lightning field, the GR-1000 rail guns would likely be replaced by telekinetic machine guns. There is talk about renaming her the “Queen of Storms” if they do.

As with many independent warships, a vast number of different fighters have flown from the hangers over the years. With a cost of seventy million credits for an unmodified fighter, the old Shadow Bolt is simply too expensive a fighter to fly from the decks. Captain Darkstone instead decided to embark the I.C.E. Hyena fighter where all three squadrons of light fighters can be embarked for the cost of a single squadron of Shadow Bolt fighters and have far greater combat performance. In addition, the cruiser embarks a single squadron of Bushido Industries Katana medium fighters. While the bulk of the fighters are not equipped with faster than light boosters, four of the boosters are carried aboard. Each of the fighters has various techno-wizard augmentations including invisibility and impervious to energy.

Warlock marine power armors are hard to get in any large numbers. They also tend to be extremely expensive on the black market, often equal to the cost of a light fighter. Instead it was decided to embark half the normal compliment of armors in Silverhawk combat exoskeleton and half in “knock off” designs. In addition, the ship has managed to capture a number of Kittani K-Universal power armors. Forty of the sixty normal troops have been issued these armors. The power armors have all been augmented in a similar manner to the fighters. The remaining troops are mostly practitioners of magic of various types and are outfitted with upgraded Mystic Power Armors.

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: UW-C15 (Upgrade).

Class: Space Cruiser (techno-wizard).

Crew: 240, including a magic team of 20 techno-wizards (levels 2-6).

Troop Capacity: 60 Marines (Typically 30 stay on board for ship defense) - 40 fitted with “K-Universal” armors, 60 fighter pilots, 20 space power armor pilots, and can carry up to 10 passengers in addition to crew and troops.

Vehicles:

All vehicles, with the exception of the Mystic Power Armors, have various techno-wizard modifications with all power armors having “Impervious to Energy,” “Invincible Armor,” and “Invisibility - Superior.” all fighters having “Impervious to Energy” and “Invisibility - Superior.”

Power Armors & Robots:

	10	Consortium SH-CCW100 Silverhawk Combat Exoskeletons.
	40	Kittani K-Universal Light Power Armors.
	10	Ross Aerospace GE-200-RA “Golden Eagle” Combat Exoskeletons.
	10	United World Modified Warlock Mystic Power Armors (Various)

Fighter Compliment:

	12	Consortium / Bushido BIF-67 Katana Fighter Ship ( Four with FTL boosters.)
	36	Ross Aerospace MSX-128-ICE “I.C.E. Hyena” Light Starfighters.

M.D.C. by Location:

	Rift Projector Cannon (One, in front):	1,750.
	Flame Cannons (2, one on each side):	900 each.
	Medium Laser Cannon Turrets (4):	800 each.
	Variable Focus Particle Beam Mounts (8):	150 each.
	GR-1000 Gravity Rail Gun Mounts (4):	400 each.
	Cruise Missile Launchers (4, front):	1,000 each.
	Medium Range Missile Batteries (4):	450 each.
	[1] Main Bridge:	12,500.
	[1] Auxiliary Bridge:	12,500.
	[2] Main Body:	37,500.
	Hangar Bay:	2,500.
	[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 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] 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 melee rounds) of spell casting to restore the force field. Magic, fire, lightning, and cold all inflict one-half damage.

Speed:

Driving on the Ground: Not Possible.

Water Surface: 40 knots (74.1 km/46 mph).

Underwater: 30 knots (55.6 km/34.5 mph).

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.)

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: 80 feet (24.4 meters) main body; 160 feet (48.8 meters) from the bottom of the main body to the top of the bridge.

Width: 86 feet (26.2 meters).

Length: 800 feet (244 meters).

Weight / Mass: 125,000 tons (113,400 metric tons).

Power System: Conventional Advanced Fusion 20 year life span. Also uses a magical rift to elemental dimension of air to generate additional electricity (Indefinite duration).

The cruiser also has a P.P.E. generator that produces 6,000 P.P.E. per hour / 25 P.P.E. per melee round (Activating the Rifts Jump drive costs 4,000 P.P.E.) and can hold up to 20,000 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’s crew.

Cargo: Cargo holds can hold up to 2,000 tons (1,814.4 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: The Dwarven Iron Cruiser would costs 22 billion credits to construct. The ship is no longer in production or for sale. Upgrade costs around 2.5 billion credits. Cost does not include embarked craft.

Weapon Systems:

One (1) Rifts Projector Cannon: In the nose of the ship is large opening which is the main barrel of the cannon. The cannon creates a huge rift in front of the cannon that has a variable effect. This weapon can become a danger to the ship if it fails. The cannon has a 0.5% cumulative chance of failure (i.e., becomes 1% after two shots, 2% after four, and so on). This cannon has penalties to strike small targets. For more information on the Rifts Projector Cannon, refer to page 155 of Dimension Book 2: Phase World (Except ranges are 1,000 times range in book in space.)

Maximum Effective Range: 50,000 miles (80,000 km) in space and 50 miles (80 km) in an atmosphere.

Mega-Damage: Roll on table in Dimension Book 2: Phase World page 156.

Rate of Fire: Can fire once per minute (4 melee rounds/ 60 seconds).

Payload: Requires 1,000 P.P.E. each time fired.
Two (2) 16 Inch Flame Cannons: Mounted along the sides of the ship, these weapons are generally considered the main battery 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 and have the standard penalties for capital scale weaponry to strike small targets such as fighters and other such small targets. 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: Needs 1000 P.P.E. per day to function.
Four (4) 5 inch Laser Cannons: These weapons are in their own turrets on the top, sides, and bottom of the ship. Each mount can rotate 180 degrees and have a 80 degree arc of fire up and a 45 degree arc of fire down. These are a modern weapon system that are powered by the ship’s fusion reactor. The cannons are not quite as powerful as the cannons on most Consortium warship classes but have a higher rate of fire. Thee weapons have the standard penalties for capital scale weaponry to strike small targets such as fighters and other such small targets.

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.

Rate of Fire: Equal to the combined hand to hand attacks of the gunner (usually 4 or 5).

Payload: Effectively Unlimited.
Four (4) GR-1000 Heavy Point Defense Rail Guns: Gravity rail guns are in mounts that can rotate 360 and has a 180 arc of fire. The GR-1000 Rail Guns both are more powerful and have more range than the conventional rail guns and are the same rail guns which is carried in the C.A.F. Scorpion Starfighter. Considered extremely effective even compared to other gravity rail guns. Even so, the mounts are not really for use against capital ships but can devastate a fighter quickly. They are also extremely effective against targets which are imperious to energy. When used in space, projectiles are fired from rail gun at a significant fraction of the speed of light. When used in an atmosphere, projectile velocities are slower to prevent them from burning up but still are at hypersonic speeds. The gravity rail guns 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.
Eight (8) Variable Focus Particle Beam Mounts: These particle beams are copied from those carried on the Consortium Assault Shuttle and will fire a very powerful narrow beam and can fire a scatter effect that is less powerful but is capable of striking multiple targets. The weapon system is quite useful against missiles although the cone is not as wide as Tachyon cannon sprays are (Gives +2 bonus vs fast moving targets such as missiles.) Weapons are mounted in turrets that can rotate 360 and have a 180 arc of fire. Each mount can be operated by a gunner or a gunner program (+2 to strike, 3 Attacks per melee).

Maximum Effective Range: 300 miles (480 km) in space and 3 miles (4.8 km) in an atmosphere.

Mega Damage: Single Target: 4D6x10 per blast. Wide Beam: 5D6 to all targets within a 5,000 foot (1,524 meter) diameter area. When fired as a wide beam, the cannon cannot be used on targets closer than 5,000 feet (1,524 meters) away.

Rate of Fire: Equal to the combined hand to hand attacks of the gunner (usually 4 or 5).

Payload: Effectively Unlimited.
Four (4) Cruise Missile Launchers: From scrapped Hunter class destroyers and mounted to either side of the Rifts Projector Cannon. Missiles have a top speed of Mach 25 in an atmosphere and have an acceleration of 10% of light per turn (far faster than any starship) in space. Whether missiles can be shot down is calculated from the speed of target, launching starship, and missiles. When drive goes dead, missiles will continue to travel in a straight line unless set to self destruct or receives a destruct code, but have very low odds of hitting star ships (Great for hitting bases and planets because target does not move and missiles, when unpowered, are at -25% to be detected.) Cruise missiles have penalties to hit small targets but almost always smart missiles. While missiles are only launched at the rate of one at a time, the ship’s computer has special software that allows all the missiles to hit a target at the same time for the purpose of making the point defense of a target more easily overwhelmed. This is done by slowing down the initial acceleration of missiles and by setting some for delayed activation although the target must be at least 30 seconds away (2 melee rounds) with regard to flight time. Missiles are then considered to only have an acceleration of 5% of light for the first turn. Batteries can launch on multiple targets each at the same time although rarely are.

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 and Fusion multi-warheads inflict 3D6x100 M.D.C. each.)

Rate of Fire: One cruise missiles per melee attack (special software allows 4 to 8 missiles to be launched as one volley depending on gunners hand to hand attacks) per launcher. This allows total volleys of 16 to 32 cruise missiles to be launched in one melee round.

Payload: 40 cruise missiles each for 160 total.
Four (4) Medium Range Missile Batteries: From scrapped Hunter class destroyers and are mounted on the sides. Weapon system is used for hitting enemy robots, fighters, and missiles (both cruise and long range missiles.) Missiles have a top speed of Mach 15 in an atmosphere and have an acceleration of 6% of light per turn in space. Weapon system can be used to engage multiple targets simultaneously.

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 (Multi-warhead heavy warheads inflict 5D6x10 M.D.C. each - See revised Phase World / Three Galaxies missile tables for details.)

Rate of Fire: Can fire medium range missiles one at a time or in volleys of two (2), four (4), or eight (8) medium range missiles per battery.

Payload: 160 per launcher for a total of 640 medium range missiles.
Techno-Wizard Modifications: The “Queen of Swords” has the following Techno-Wizard Modifications built into the ship. These require P.P.E. or I.S.P. from the ships crew or P.P.E. battery.

Special Features:

[ Altara TM, Brodkil TM, Bushido Industries TM, CAF TM, Catyr TM, CCW TM, Consortium of Civilized Worlds TM, Coyles TM, Free Worlds Council TM, Gene Splicers TM, K-Hex TM, Kankoran TM, Kittani TM, Kreeghor TM, Kydian TM, Machine People TM, M.D.C. TM, Mega-Damage TM, Metzla TM, M’Kri Hardware TM, Monro TM, Mutants in Orbit TM, Naruni Enterprises TM, Noro TM, Paradise Federation TM, Phase World TM, Psylite TM, Rifter TM, SAMAS TM, S.D.C. TM, Seljuks TM, Splugorth TM, Sunaj TM, Trans-Galactic Empire TM, Tri-Galactic Military Service TM, United Worlds Warlock TM, U.W.W. TM, Wolfen TM, and Zembahk TM are trademarks owned by Kevin Siembieda and Palladium Books Inc. ]

[ Beyond the Supernatural®, Heroes Unlimited®, Nightbane®, Ninjas & Superspies®, Palladium Fantasy®, and Rifts® are registered trademarks owned by Kevin Siembieda and Palladium Books Inc. ]

Writeup by Kitsune (E-Mail Kitsune).

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