Editing Capital Ship

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[[Capital Ship]]s are a [[navy]]'s most important [[warship]]s. 
* They are generally the larger ships when compared to other warships in their respective fleet.
* They are generally considered 100,000 or more [[ton]]s in displacement.
* Many call them line or primary combatants.
* They stand in contrast to [[subcapital ship]]s.
* Technically, the term only refers to [[FCS]] vessels, but in common parlance, it also refers to [[BCS]] vessels. Some use the term "sub-capital ship" to refer to a [[BCS]] vessel that fulfills the role of a capital ship.
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=== Library Data Referral Tree ===
Please refer to the following [[AAB]] [[Library Data]] for more information: <br>
'''[[Starship]]:'''
{{:Referral-Tree-Starship-User-Types}}
{{:Referral-Tree-Advanced-Ship-Classifications}}
{{:Referral-Tree-Basic-Ship-Classifications}}
{{:Referral-Tree-Ships-by-Function}}
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== Description ([[Specifications]]) ==
The capital ships of a [[navy]] are its most important [[warship]]s; they are generally the larger [[ship]]s when compared to other [[warship]]s in their respective fleet. A capital ship is generally a leading or a primary ship in a naval fleet. Ships of the line (...or of battle) were the capital ships of the era of sail in [[Terran]] history. {{Unpublished cite|author= [[Maksim-Smelchak]] }} 

=== Imperial Navy Overview ===
In the [[Imperial Navy]], a capital ship is a vessel designed to project the Imperium's naval power into an area to achieve space dominance. Whether it is used in an offensive role or as an asset in a defense-in-depth, a capital ship will make enemy operations nearly impossible until all opposing [[vessel]]s in that role are neutralized or withdrawn. {{Unpublished cite|author= [[Mark McCabe]] }} 

Unlike the ''gunboat navies of old,'' a capital ship does not necessarily mean a [[vessel]] with direct-fire capabilities. These can include ships that carry other craft (...[[Subcraft Carrier]]s) or have a combination of the two primary modes of attack. The one thing you can rely on is a [[vessel]] of a large to massive size that can dole out damage while having some capability to absorb punishment themselves. {{Unpublished cite|author= [[Mark McCabe]] }} 

In the [[Imperial Navy]], capital ships are usually considered to be [[vessel]]s that are designated as [[Dreadnought]]s, [[Battleship]]s, [[Battlerider]]s, [[Battlecruiser]]s, and [[Fleet Carrier]]s. None of these ships are expected to operate singularly, and are almost always found with a host of fleet-type [[escort vessel]]s of various sizes and capabilities (....battle groups). With the exception of the [[Fleet Carrier]]s, all the other types of ships are expected to be at the forefront of any major engagement in a battle. This can be evidenced by the victories in [[1109]] in the Rhylanor and Porozlo systems. It was here that the Imperial capital ships squadrons engaged and decisively defeated the invading Zhodani capital ships, effectively bringing the [[Fifth Frontier War]] to its end. {{Unpublished cite|author= [[Mark McCabe]] }}

== History & Background ([[Dossier]]) ==
On Ancient Terra in 1892, Professor Alfred T. Mahan wrote that naval operations would be won mainly through “decisive battles and blockades.”  While [[cruiser]]s and support craft could engage in making, breaking and maintaining the blockades, the decisive actions themselves were to be accomplished by the capital ships of any nation. During the [[Terran]] Second World War, the mind-set of the “big-gun” [[warship]]s was shattered by the successes of the [[aircraft carrier]]. Due to shrinking resources on the 21st Century [[Terra]], capital ships became a rarity due to the maintenance cost these vessels required.

When the Terrans contacted the Vilani on 2098, it became apparent to the Terran Navy that the naval doctrines of the old ocean navies concerning force projection applied to the current issue of achieving space dominance.{{Page cite|name= Interstellar Wars |page= TBD |version=GURPS Traveller}} Through trail and error, mostly error, the warships in both navies underwent a transformation into the modern-day Imperial Navy. The first true modern decisive battle was seen in 2246 A.D. at the Battle of Muan Kwoyen (SOLO 2218) where a meson-wielding fleet of Terran warships engaged and decisively defeated an invading Imperial fleet, just the way Mahan drew up the battle in his theory.{{Page cite|name= Interstellar Wars |page= TBD |version=GURPS Traveller}} It should also be noted that the capital ships of that time weighed in at 30,000 dTons.{{Page cite|name= Interstellar Wars |page= TBD |version=GURPS Traveller}}

By the time of the Fifth Frontier War in 1107 (3rd Imperium), the Imperial Capital Ships (Dreadnaughts and Battleships) weigh in around 200,000 dTons and 1,000,000 dTons. The Fleet Carriers tend to weigh in less than this as well as the Battleriders. While the carriers need less armor as they are not expected to be in the front lines, the Battleriders need lass space and crew as their fuel requirements are reduced and there is no need for space to carry a FTL-type engine.

Capital ships are by no means exclusive to the Imperial Navy. As of [[1107]], every major [[polity]] has capital ships of some sort (especially the [[Two Thousand Worlds]], where crewed ships average larger anyway due to [[K'kree]] need for large interior volumes). Even a few [[pocket empire]]s field one or two [[Light Battleship]]s, which are all the force they need when their neighbors are entirely without capital ships and their territory is small enough to be adequately protected by just one or two [[starship]]s. There is at least one documented case of [[GSbAG]] selling such a ship to a [[pocket empire]], then advertising the empire's use of this ship to the empire's neighbors in an attempt to get them to buy [[Light Battleship]]s too.

== References & Contributors ([[Sources]]) ==
{{Wikipedia|Alfred_Thayer_Mahan}}
{{Wikipedia|Capital_ship}}
{{Wikipedia|Ship_of_the_line}}
{{Advanced}}
{{Sources
|S1= This article is an amalgamation of many different materials published since 1977.
|S2= EXTERNAL LINK: [http://freelancetraveller.com/features/shipyard/naming.html On the Naming of Ships] at [[Freelance Traveller]] by [[Ken Pick]]
|S3= [[Traveller Wiki Editorial Team]]
|S4= Author & Contributor: [[Mark McCabe]]
|S5= Author & Contributor: [[Adrian Tymes]]
}}


[[Category: Ship Organization]]
[[Category: Ship type definitions]]
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