Starship Types

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Starship Types (Military) Synopsis

A Starship Type is a description of the mission statement of a Starship. This should not be confused with Starship Classes, which is a particular design. Each design is usually assigned to a particular type of starship, and each type will usually have many different classes.

A starship type is usually identified by a starship type code, a one to three letter code attached to the starship class or description.

See Ship type codes for more information.

Starship Types (Military) History

Sometimes a starship will move from one type to another. Often former battleships became cruisers, and cruisers became destroyers, when the maximum ship size increases with the tech level of the computer. For example a CH Heavy Cruiser is a front-line warship, however as they age, and technology advances, a class may be no longer fit for the front-line, and moved to a more secondary role such as DE Escort Destroyer. Sometimes the same design with different armaments will be of a different type (e.g. CS Strike Cruiser vs CC Cruiser). Its also common to downgrade the starship mission for political reasons, so a cruiser could become a destroyer, if arms regulations restrict heavy warships in a demilitarized zone.

The mission statement tell the purpose of a ship, but not its size or performance. e.g a CP Patrol Cruiser is often smaller than a DE Escort Destroyer, even if the first has the mission to cruise behind enemy lines, while the second has the mission to escort the main battle group and to destroy fighters and other small vessels. The Starship Type is therefore confusing and the performance characteristics for civilian and military vessels is better explained by the Imperial Ship Profile code.

Starship Types (Military) Broad Ship Types

The Imperial Navy acknowledges six broad ship types in its service:

  1. Battleships
  2. Cruisers
  3. Carriers
  4. Escorts
  5. Small Craft (Fighters)
  6. Support ships

Each type has its own function within the overall mission of the navy.

Note: Ships with the Strike prefix usually have higher jump drives than others types.

1. Battleships

The power of the Imperial Navy is concentrated in its battleships. The definition of a battleship is a ship which, due to its armament and protection, is capable of standing in the line of battle. When a battleship meets any lesser type of ship, its victory is almost guaranteed. When battleships on two sides meet, victory goes to the better armed, better armored, and better directed ship.

2. Carriers

Carriers are designed to carry large numbers of small combat craft, which in turn attack the enemy’s combatants or world surfaces. A subset of carriers, termed tenders, are designed to either carry larger combat vessels or which fill the role of transport, supply vessel, and repair shop with little innate combat ability.

3. Cruisers

Cruisers are more lightly armored and less heavily armed than battleships. To unarmed, unarmored ships, this difference is negligible, since a cruiser can easily attack and destroy any noncombatant ships. Cruisers are assigned to support battleships and carry combat to areas where a battleship is not considered necessary.

4. Escorts

Escorts are vessels intended to protect and assist larger vessels. They are capable of independent action, but are often assigned to support battleships, carriers, and cruisers. They also fill a variety of other roles including security, scouting, exploration, deterring aggression, pirate hunting, rescue, and force projection.

4a. Destroyers

4b. Escorts

4c. Frigates

5. Smallcraft

Smallcraft is a class that represent all of the smaller, support craft used by a navy. These include combatant (Fighters, assault landers, etc.) and noncombatants (Liaison shuttles, couriers, sensor carriers, military scouts, etc.). This ship classification sometimes overlaps with 6. Support Ships & Others.

5a. Fighters

Fighters are small craft which usually have no jump capability. Their role is in-system offense and defense. Although many have the capability for in atmosphere operation, their primary area of operation is in space.

5b. Assault Transport

Assault transports are usually smaller vessels which specialize in delivering troops to hostile locations. They are normally armored and may provide direct support for troops in ground operations. They also have roles associated with delivering supplies to combat zones, and as medivac and battlefield medical support.

5c. Noncombatant Smallcraft

Smallcraft is a class that represent all of the smaller, support craft used by a navy in noncombatant roles.

  • Couriers
  • Gigs
  • Scout Ships
  • Sensor platforms
  • Shuttles

6. Support Ships & Others

Support ships play important roles in maintaining naval ships and ports. These roles include replenishment, transportation, repair, port services, and research. Scout ships assigned to the Imperial Navy also fall into this category. Although most scout ships belong to the IISS, a small number are assigned to the navy and fulfill a variety of scouting missions and also serve as couriers. Scout ships may also be reassigned to naval duty in the time of conflict or when deemed necessary.

Starship Types (Civilian) Broad Ship Types

Civilian vessels fall into four broad categories:

  • 1. Mercantile Vessels (Merchant) [Interstellar Craft]: The first category are mercantile vessels constructed primarily for commerce and focused on interstellar transportation of goods and passengers. This class includes mercenary vessels who perform combatant commerce. Almost all mercantile vessels (merchants) have jump capability.
  • 2. Non-commercial Vessels [Interstellar Craft]: This category is performed by vessels whose primary purpose is non-commercial, usually for a local government service or in the service of an empire (i.e. They do not generate revenue from operation). These include civilian law enforcement (paramilitary), customs vessels, survey vessels, and non-military support vessels. Most, but not all, non-commercial vessels have jump capability. Corsairs (pirates) are an exception to the rule since they are clearly commercial in nature, but are not legal or sanctioned, in most cases. Sanctioned corsairs are usually called privateers.
* 3. Commercial Vessels [System Spacecraft]: Commerce vessels, and primarily non-interstellar in nature, and perform commerce, a business. They get paid to work. This class of vessels are often used for specialized businesses including commercial transport vessels, mining vessels, construction vessels, and prospectors. Most commercial vessels do not have jump capabilities.
  • 4. Auxiliary Vessels [System Spacecraft]: Auxiliaries are smallcraft that perform utility functions. This group of vessels is primarily used for transporting goods and passengers from space to planetary surfaces. They are also heavily utilized for surface to surface transport. They do not have jump capabilities except for the rare exception of larger auxiliaries.

1. Mercantile (Merchant) Vessels

2. Non-Commercial Vessels

3. Commercial Vessels

4. Auxiliary Vessels

This list of sources was used by the Traveller Wiki Editorial Team and individual contributors to compose this article. Copyrighted material is used under license from Mongoose Publishing or by permission of the author. The page history lists all of the contributions.
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