Potemkin
Sarna News
| |
| Potemkin | |
| Production information | |
| Manufacturer | Riga Interstellar Shipyards |
| Introduced | 2611[1][2] |
| Production Year | 2611[3] |
| Use | Troop Cruiser |
| Tech Base | Inner Sphere |
| Cost | 22,646,353,000 C-Bills |
| Technical specifications | |
| Mass | 1,510,000 tons |
| Length | 1,508m |
| Sail Diameter | 1,345m |
| Fuel | 25,000 tons |
| Burn Rate | 39.52 |
| Safe Thrust | 1 g |
| Top Thrust | 1.5 g |
| Sail Integrity | 6 |
| KF Drive Integrity | 29 |
| LF Battery | No |
| Armament |
|
| Armor | Ferro-Carbide |
| DropShip Capacity | 25 |
| Crew | 445 |
| Grav Decks | One (95m) |
| Escape Pods/Life Boats | 50/50 |
| Heat Sinks | 3,325 (Double) |
| Structural Integrity | 80 |
| BV (1.0) | 96,567[4][1] |
| BV (2.0) | ??? |
Contents
Description[edit]
The Potemkin-class troop cruiser, also called the "Corncob Cruiser" thanks to its DropShip hardpoint arrangement, was introduced in the early 2600s as a solution to the poorly protected transports of the day. The designers wanted a way to move a division of troops.[2] Weighing in at one and a half million tons, the Potemkin is larger than many battleships, not only in mass, but in sheer volume, with a length well over a kilometer. This massive size was built for one purpose: transport. Arranged in five rings around the Potemkin are twenty-five DropShip docking collars, the most of any vessel ever deployed. Thick armor and weaponry fit for a heavy cruiser enable the Potemkin to protect her DropShips with impunity and has helped the design survive the ravages of war and time.[4]
Despite its impressive performance as a mass transport, the Potemkin does have its flaws. The use of a Potemkin, while certainly imposing, runs the risk of it becoming the primary target of opposing forces bent on stranding its attached DropShips. In addition, carrying so many DropShips requires a staggering amount of fuel, further requiring the use of tankers which themselves need protection. Finally, the facilities aboard the ship are geared mostly towards the ship's own crew, the most blatant example being the single 95 meter gravity deck. Extended stays can get uncomfortable for the DropShip crews, left to either mill about on their own vessels or go exploring the Potemkin's lengthy corridors.[4]
Production of the Potemkin ceased in 2781 when improvements in escort tactics and craft made it difficult to justify deployment of the large ship. A total of 106 Potemkins were built, roughly 30 of which survived the Amaris coup to depart with General Aleksandr Kerensky on the Exodus.[4] At least one, the LCS Nightwind, remained in the Inner Sphere and served in the First Succession War.[5]
Armament[edit]
Tasked with protecting up to twenty five DropShips, the Potemkin is easily capable of fending off all but the largest of enemy craft thanks to its banks of Naval Lasers and Heavy NPPCs. The fore and aft are protected by Barracuda Capital Missiles, a highly accurate and lethal deterrent for those that would attempt flanking or trailing maneuvers. Because at least some of the Potemkin's attached DropShips are usually dedicated assault craft she does not carry aerospace fighters, nor conventional weapons to protect against the same. Ten small craft bays can hold fighters in a pinch, but are better used for the small transports they are meant to service.[4]
Cargo[edit]
386,362.5 tons
- Bay 1: 5 Small Craft
- Bay 2: 5 Small Craft
- Bay 3: Cargo
Variants[edit]
As with much of the Star League Defense Force fleet that accompanied the Exodus, the Potemkins that left with General Kerensky still serve in the Clan fleets. The Clans have performed their routine upgrades on the class, the most drastic change being the inclusion of a Lithium-Fusion Battery in exchange for a portion of the cargo space.
After the Jihad, many Potemkin-class ships were modified into mobile habitats known as ArcShips[6] and CargoShips[citation needed] by Clan Sea Fox.
See Also[edit]
Gallery[edit]
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Notes[edit]
- This starship probably was named after the pre-dreadnought battleship Potemkin of World War I.
- The Star League sourcebook states on page 24 that the last Potemkin, the Riga, was decommissioned in 2781 and that the ship had to be recommissioned in 2784 for use in Operation Exodus.
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 AeroTech 2 Record Sheets, p. 310
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 BattleSpace, p. 58
- ↑ MUL online date for the Potemkin
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Technical Readout: 3057 Revised, pp.158-159, "Potemkin Profile"
- ↑ First Succession War (sourcebook), p. 47
- ↑ Hunters of the Deep, p. 169, "ovKhan Petr Kalasa describing the changes of the Poseidon"