Merchant

Merchant JS TRO3057r.png
Merchant
Production information
Manufacturer Dover Shipyards[1]

Ioto Galactic Enterprises[2]


Rashpur-Owens Incorporated[2]


Stellar Trek[2]

Use Trade
Tech Base Inner Sphere
Cost 384,711,675 C-Bills
Introduced 2503
Technical specifications
Mass 120,000 tons
Length 320 meters
Sail Diameter 950 meters
Fuel 85 tons (425)
Burn Rate 19.75
Top Thrust 0.1 Gs
Sail Integrity 3
KF Drive Integrity 3
LF Battery None
Armament None
Armor 30 tons
DropShip Capacity 2
Crew 21[3]
  • 4 Officers
  • 17 Enlisted

(Crew Types)[4]

  • 2 Pilots
  • 2 Engineers
  • 4 Secondary Engineers
  • 2 Small Craft pilots[5]

Bay Personnel: 10[3]

Grav Decks 1 x 40 meters diameter
Escape Pods/Life Boats 4/0
Heat Sinks 99 (single)
Structural Integrity 1
BV (1.0) 496[3][6]
BV (2.0) ???


Description[edit]

One of the anchors of interstellar freight shipping, the Merchant class of JumpShips is seen at almost any commercial jump point. The craft is flexible and many are used as military craft. Due to modifications over the last 550 years since it was introduced, the crew size has shrunk from 40 to 21. While the initial impression was that the vessel would give more space to the crew, most of the recovered space became cargo storage.[3]

Although the ship is a commonplace design, there seems to be an overall lack of spare parts for the engine power converter.[3][7]

Armament[edit]

The Merchant rarely, if ever, has armaments installed. Equipment described as "anti-meteor systems" could be considered weapons, but due to their inefficiency, they are unable to damage any other vessel.[3]

Cargo[edit]

667 tons

In contrast to other legacy JumpShip designs that often do not accurately reflect the cargo capacity listed in their text fluff, the figures above can be viewed as being reasonably accurate depending on how much tonnage is relegated to other items such as fuel, food and water, and spare parts.

The class maintains two small craft bays, often a shuttlecraft and a "light fighter."[3]

Variants[edit]

There are at least two mentions of Merchant-class vessels featuring three docking hardpoints instead of only two: The Caliban, and one unnamed Merchant that Wolf's Dragoons had rented to carry three Mules from Robinson to Crossing in 3029.[8] This seems to suggest that a refit, if not a proper variant, exists that increases the Merchant's DropShip carrying capacity from two to three.

It has been noted that because many Merchant-class vessels are privately owned, interior accommodations and equipment vary from ship to ship. A common variation includes a 20-100 ton cargo module to be used as extra lounge space, crew quarters, recreation room, stateroom, or any other pressurized use, with a 100-ton module housing 15 additional passengers detailed.[3] The grav deck is also able to be used for crew habitation with modifications.[7]

Named Vessels[edit]

See also: Individual Merchant-class JumpShips

Notes[edit]

  • In German products, the unit's proper name was translated to Händler.

Gallery[edit]

References[edit]

  1. Objectives: Draconis Combine, p. 19, "Manufacturer Profile"
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 DropShips and JumpShips: ComStar Intelligence Summary, p. 15
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 Technical Readout: 3057 Revised, p. 94, "Merchant JumpShip Profile"
  4. BattleSpace rulebook, p. 63
  5. DropShips and JumpShips: ComStar Intelligence Summary, p. 19
  6. AeroTech 2 Record Sheets, p. 267
  7. 7.0 7.1 DropShips and JumpShips: ComStar Intelligence Summary, p. 18
  8. NAIS The Fourth Succession War Military Atlas Volume 2, p. 34

Bibliography[edit]