Commonwealth (WarShip class)

Commonwealth
Production information
Manufacturer	Ioto Galactic Enterprises
Introduced	2375 (Block I) 2765 (Block II)
Production Year	2375
Use	Light Cruiser
Tech Base	Inner Sphere
Technical specifications
Mass	700,000
Length	694m
Sail Diameter	1,003m
Fuel	5,000 tons
Burn Rate	39.52
Safe Thrust	1.5 g
Top Thrust	2.5 g
Sail Integrity	5
KF Drive Integrity	15
LF Battery	None
Armament	Block I 24x NL55s 32x NL35s 8x NAC/35s 4x Killer Whale Launchers 12x White Shark Launchers 48x Machine Guns Block II 24x NL55s 32x NL35s 4x NAC/35 8x NAC/35s 4x Killer Whale Launchers 18x Barracuda Launchers 36x Anti-Missile Systems
Armor	700 tons of Improved Ferro-Aluminum armor
DropShip Capacity	6
Crew	50 - officers 140 - enlisted/non-rated 100 – gunners 120 - marines 110 - bay personnel (Block I) 56 - bay personnel (Block II)
Grav Decks	2 x 145m diameter
Escape Pods/Life Boats	30/35
Heat Sinks	3,200
Structural Integrity	50
BV (2.0)	98,421 (Block I) 102,832 (Block II)

Description

The Commonwealth was the first WarShip to be produced domestically by the Lyran Commonwealth, although the production wasn't perhaps as home-grown as the term "domestic" might imply. The Lyran Commonwealth attracted the attention of Di Tron Heavy Industries shortly after initiating the first forays into design and construction in 2371; DiTron was already a successful WarShip manufacturer, with the Dart-class light cruiser in production and the Aegis-class heavy cruiser due to enter production in 2372. DiTron Industries had the know-how and experience, and businessmen in the Lyran Commonwealth had a firm grasp of financial chicanery. Avoiding the legalities of the restrictions the Terran Hegemony imposed on the sale of restricted technologies by DiTron, two months of financial artifice by the Lyrans led to the founding of a new company, Ioto Galactic Enterprises. Three years later the first Commonwealth-class light cruisers emerged from the Port Sydney Naval Yards.

More compact in design than the Dart but also slightly heavier, the Commonwealth incorporated a number of technologies that were more advanced than those of the other non-Terran states; the most noticeable of these technologies were larger engines and more sophisticated armor. In common with the Dart the Commonwealth also incorporated six DropShip docking collars.

The Commonwealth was a long-lived class and a solid design, although most of the class had been destroyed or otherwise taken out of service by the end of the Reunification War or shortly after. Many of the ships were scrapped so that the valuable germanium used in each ship could be used elsewhere, but this didn't mark the end of the class; when the various Great Houses began expanding their WarShip fleets rapidly in the closing years of the Star League the Commonwealth revisited the design and began work on a new production run. The first three of the new Block II Commonwealths were in service in 2765, although these were actually refurbished Block I vessels; production of freshly-built Block IIs began that same year. These new vessels differed most from the original Block I production run was in their armament, although the Block II also altered eighteen of the small craft bays found in the Block I to transport aerospace fighters.

In the early Succession Wars Commonwealths were most commonly deployed as escorts for the indomitable Tharkad-class battlecruisers but the end of the class came with the destruction of the heavy aerospace industries within the Commonwealth and the destructive naval battles between the various Successor States.

Weapons and Capacities

Both blocks of Commonwealths sported a solid array of capital weaponry consisting primarily of banks of Naval Lasers, with banks of four NL55s mounted in the nose and aft and another eight in each broadside. Mounted in each of the fore and aft quarters was a bank of eight of the light NL35s. A substantial short-range boost to the Commonwealth's firepower was the presence of pairs of Naval Autocannon – specifically a pair of NAC/35s – mounted in each broadside and the left and right aft quarters.

Where the two Blocks differed substantially was in their remaining weapon payload. The Block I mounted a pair of White Shark launchers and a hundred missiles in every location other than the nose and aft, with a quartet of Killer Whale Launchers and forty missiles mounted in the nose. The Block I also mounted eight Machine Guns in every location other than the left and right aft quarters, with each bay of Machine Guns drawing on four tons of ammunition. In contrast, the Block II retained the four Killer Whale Launchers in the nose but replaced the paired White Shark Launchers in the other bays with a trio of Barracuda Launchers. The Machine Guns were also removed and replaced with six Anti-Missile Systems in each location.

In addition to its point-defense systems, both versions of ship boasted 700 tons of Improved Ferro-Aluminum Armor appllied to all sides equally. The Commonwealth's armor protection was on par with early Terran Hegemony vessels of its weight class, while its engines provided it modest speed over the larger ships of its time.

Cargo

Block I

• Bay 1: 22 Small Craft - 5 Doors
• Bay 2: 89,058 tons of Cargo - 2 Doors

Block II

• Bay 1: 18 AeroSpace Fighters/4 Small Craft - 5 Doors
• Bay 2: 89,208 tons of Cargo - 2 Doors

Named Vessels

Lyran Commonwealth

• LCS Caledonia
• LCS Donegal
• LCS Furillo
• LCS Gallery
• LCS Odessa
• LCS Porrima
• LCS York

See Also

• List of named Commonwealth-class WarShips.

Notes

The Commonwealth original appeared in Strategic Operation Rule Book as part of Inner Sphere's "firsts" aerospace based technologically developed per faction.

The Record Sheets for both the primary and variant of the Commonwealth-Class Light Cruisers are solely found in Field Report 2765 LCAF.

As of this writing, the Master Unit List entry for the Commonwealth does not include the ship's battle value nor any information on Block II variant listed in this article.

Bibliography

• Field Report 2765: LCAF
• Strategic Operations