Talk:Referral-Tree-Lightcraft-Hierarchy

Notes on Ship Terminology

Origins of Vessel Naming Nomenclature
Traditionally, both the historical sailing vessels and modern naval vessels from which the names of Traveller spacecraft are taken increased in size along the progression outlined below.

• Note that for the names deriving from the age of sail, a proper "Ship" (or "Full-Rigged-Ship") always had at least 3 square-rigged masts and was thus larger and capable of longer voyages away from shore.
• Note also that prior to 1974, USN Naval parlance differed from the navies of other nations, leading to both modern observers' confusion and a historical political confusion at the time concerning a perceived "Cruiser Gap" in the USN which appeared to portray the Americans as falling behind in their naval procurement, when the only real discrepancy was in naming and terminology usage, not tonnage, capability and functionality. The USN reclassed all of its vessels in 1975 in order to bring their terminology more into line with that of other nations and eliminate the perceived "gap" in numbers of operational vessels per given mission class.

Historical Sequence of Increasing Vessel Tonnage (combined)

» Gunboat

»» Sloop (Single-mast)

»» Sloop-of-War:

» (Brig-Sloop) (2-mast)

» (Ship-Sloop) (3-mast)

»» Corvette (3-mast)

»» Escort /(Patrol) Frigate (3-mast)) / (Destroyer Escort)

»» Destroyer:

» (Escort Destroyer)

» (Fleet Destroyer)

»» [< Destroyer Leader <> Heavy Gun Frigate >]

»» Cruiser

»» (Heavy) Gun Cruiser

Interpretation of Terminology: Age of Sail

The Sloop

The "Sloop" was an oddity in that it referred to two different types of vessels over time that were contemporaneous.

• The later civilian "Sloop" was a small, fast Single-masted vessel usually rigged Fore-and-Aft.
• The earlier "Sloop-of-War" was originally a square-rigged two or three masted vessel that straddled the line between a proper "Post-Ship" and an "Unrated Ship", meriting either a proper "Post-Captain" in the first instance, or a "Lieutenant" posted to the position acting as both the ship's "Master" and "Commander" in the second instance, respectively.

»» The Two-Masted Sloop-of-War was known as a "Brig-Sloop" (see below) and was generally rated as an "Unrated" vessel. (Commanded by a Lieutenant as "Master-and-Commander" or a "Captain-Lieutenant").

»» The Three-Masted Sloop-of-War was known as a "Ship-Sloop" (see below) and was generally rated as a "6th-Rate" vessel. (Commanded by a Post-Captain as "Corvette-Captain").

The Corvette

The "Corvette" was a French term for an analogous light war and coastal patrol vessel equivalent to or slightly larger than a Ship-Sloop (see above). It was a "Full-Rigged Ship" and generally rated as a "6th-Rate" vessel.

The Frigate

The "Frigate" was a fast medium war cruiser that could operate variously either detached from a fleet on independent operations or in support of the line-of-battle. It was the "workhorse" of any navy and was a "Full-Rigged Ship" and generally rated as a "4th - 6th-Rate" vessel. (Commanded by a Post-Captain as "Frigate-Captain").
It is the analogue and ancestor of the later "Cruiser".

The Ship-of-the-Line-of-Battle

The "Ship-of-the-Line" was a square-rigged, 3-masted heavy war vessel meant to stand in the line-of-battle in fleet operations and was a "Full-Rigged Ship" generally rated as a "1st to 4th-Rate" vessel. (Commanded by a Senior Post-Captain as "Captain-at-Sea").
The term "Battleship" is derived from a worn-down simplified version of its full title.

Categorization by Mast & Rigging

In terms of Traveller, when using an age-of-sail term for a later vessel or spacecraft, the number of masts a sailing vessel had can be used as a general guide in determining the size category and tactical or strategic operability and readiness of a future craft bearing its title as a class-type name.

Historical Name Classifications by Mast & Rigging:

"Single-masted vessels", due to size, draft, and hold-capacity, tend to be unable to venture far from local coastal and shore regions.

Examples:

• Sloop, Cutter, Boat, Launch, Gig, Runabout, Skiff, etc.

"Single-masted vessel" names translate well to system vessels, especially Small Craft due to their small size and limited in-system range.

"Double-masted vessels" are larger and more seaworthy than smaller single-masted vessels, having a larger hold capacity for supplies, but they nevertheless still tended to be employed close to wide-ranging coastal waters (in a greater range capacity than single-masted vessels) due to fewer number of sails and a corresponding smaller sail area, limiting their range.

Examples:

• A vessel with 2 (or more) masts rigged for-and-aft on all masts was known as a "Schooner".
• A 2-masted vessel rigged square on the foremast but for-and-aft on the mainmast was known as a "Brigantine".
• A 2-masted vessel rigged square on both masts was known as a "Brig".

"Double-masted vessel" names translate well to larger system vessels or Big Craft.

"Triple-masted vessels" have increased carrying capacity and greater endurance due to their larger size, draft, and sail-area. "Full-Rigged Ships", or "Ships-proper", are the only vessels that properly earn the title "Ship".

Examples:

• A vessel with 3 (or more) masts rigged for-and-aft on all masts was known as a "Schooner".
• A 3-masted vessel rigged square on the foremast but for-and-aft on both the main and mizzenmast was known as a "Barquentine".
• A 3-masted vessel rigged square on both the fore and mainmast but for-and-aft on the mizzenmast was known as a "Barque".
• A 3-masted vessel rigged square on all masts was known as a "Full-Rigged Ship". Due to their increased sail area and their increased carrying capacity they have a greater endurance and can undertake full ocean voyages.

"Triple-masted vessel" names for "non-Full-Rigged Ships" translate well to in-System Big Craft/Large Craft of the largest size or to STL/NAFAL Interstellar Vessels.

"Triple-masted vessel" names for "Full-Rigged Ships" ("Ships-proper) translate well to FTL interstellar vessels as Large Craft or "Starships" due to their ability to undertake long (i.e. Interstellar/FTL) voyages. Jump-vessels are also the only vessels that are normally referred to as "ships".

• A "Clipper-ship" was a Full-Rigged Ship with a slender sharp-prowed hull designed to "cut" through the water; hence it could achieve very high speeds and was used by the commodity merchant market to deliver high-value cargo and time-sensitive transport and communication. The term has since evolved and come to be used for any type of craft that moves at a rapid sustained speed.

Interpretation of Terminology: USN / Commonwealth Navy

Between the end of the Second World War and the year 1974, the USN used a Naval Type-Class Terminology system that differed from other nations, leading to a confusion of terminology and vessels of different Type-Classes bearing names that often conflicted with the usage in other nations.

Naval Type-Class Terminology systems:

USN:

»» (Patrol-Frigate)

»» Destroyer-Escort / Ocean-Escort

»» Destroyer^†:

» (Escort Destroyer)

» (Fleet Destroyer)

»» Frigate^† (Destroyer-Leader)

»» (Heavy) Gun-Cruiser

»» (Battle Cruiser)

»» (Battleship)

British Commonwealth Nations (et al):

»» (Sloop-of-War)

»» Corvette

»» Frigate^†

»» Destroyer^†

»» (Light) Cruiser

»» (Heavy Cruiser)

»» (Battle Cruiser)

»» (Battleship)

• What the USN called variously either a "Destroyer-Escort" or an "Ocean-Escort", other navies called a "Frigate", with the USN introducing a "Patrol Frigate" late in the period comparable to other nation's "Corvettes".
• What the USN called a "Frigate" they had until recently called a "Destroyer-Leader" (having changed the name, but not the Hull-code), but the vessel was comparable in performance to other nations' "Cruisers", which were the equivalent of older international "Light Cruisers".
• What the USN called a "Gun-Cruiser" were simply the few leftover and upgraded "Heavy Cruisers" from the Second World War, still in service and much larger than other navies "Cruisers".

Therefore:

• A USN Patrol-Frigate = International Corvette
• A USN Escort (Destroyer Escort) = International Frigate
• A USN Destroyer = International Destroyer^† or Frigate^†
• A USN Frigate (Destroyer Leader) = International (Light) Cruiser
• A USN (Heavy) Gun-Cruiser = International (Heavy) Cruiser (No longer in use)

^† - To add to the confusion, some NATO-Country Navies choose to refer to their Destroyers as "Frigates".

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• --WHULorigan (talk) 13:38, 13 November 2025 (UTC)

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