Battleship
From Traveller Wiki - Science-Fiction Adventure in the Far future
Jump-capable starship intended to stand in the line of battle in space combat. Two opposite view in naval architecture have dominated the design of the major battleships of space navies. The battleship concept involves large, well armed and well-armored starships of massive tonnage and capable of meeting almost any adversary. In a battle against a superior force, however, the battleship can flee using its own jump drives. The opposite concept (of the Battle Rider carried into combat by a Battle Tender) does not allow for the possibility of superior force; no matter how good a rider is, if it meets a superior adversary, it is placed in a position of winning or dying. Retreat is nearly impossible without losses.
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.
The battleships of the Imperium are designed to overcome any opponent in battle. As technology advances, these designs also advance, both to take advantage of any possible technological benefits, and to experiment with new strategies and construction techniques.
The technological basis for Imperial battleships is the BB- 11. From it was developed the BB-12 and then the BB-13.
The light battleship line (BL-13, BL-14, and BL-15) was based on the BB-12, but showed great innovation in producing a smaller tonnage vessel. The BS-15 and BM-15 are also members of this line.
At TLI 3, it was decided to produce a superbattleship, the BI-13, which was later developed into the BI-14. The BI-I5 was an independent design.
The heavy battleship line (BH-14 and BH-15) is a hybrid of the lessons learned and techniques developed in both the BI-13 and the BB-13.
The battle rider system was developed in an attempt to produce the benefits of the BB-13 in greater numbers. The BT/R-14 system was the result. The BT/R-15 system is an evolution of the BT/R-14.
Finally, the BZ-I5 takes the battle rider system one step further and places a battle rider on a battleship for combat support deployment. This design is a hybrid of the BT/R-I 5 system and the BL-15.
[edit] Examples
| This article was copied or excerpted from the following copyrighted sources and used under license from Far Future Enterprises and by permission of the author. |
| – Supplement 8 Library Data (A-M) |
| – Fighting Ships of the Shattered Imperium |
