Wiki update discussion thread

[HRogge]

RE: U.C.A.V. vs Fighter - In my opinion, if it can be manned (hence cockpit) it's a fighter. Otherwise it's a U.C.A.V. There already exists a version of the Predator drone (bigger than your proposed size limit IIRC) armed with a laser designator and Hellfire missiles, and has nowhere for a person to ride.

That might make sense..

so "UCAV" (or sometimes just "Drones") and "Fighter" are two forms of a similar or the same concept, just that the fighter has always a cockpit and the UCAV never has one. Both would be in a similar size range, just that the addition of 1/2-person cockpits often makes the fighter a bit larger than the comparable equipped UCAV.

(some AIs might still protest and call their hulls 'AI fighters' or something like this )

RE: Battlecruiser - How about I replace it with Marauder? As a leftover from the Boskon War where Boskonian forces tried to gludge together a Battleship analogue? So something between Cruiser and Battleship, not of the quality of either but packing closer to Battleship levels of weaponry? That is of course the Collective (or Mod) doesn't nix the whole thing here.

Why do you need a different type just because its Boskonian?

If we ever need something between a Battleship and a Cruiser, call it Battlecruiser... if the Trekkies built it, its a Trekkie Battlecruiser... if the Boskons did it, its a Boskone Battlecruiser... I don't think anyone got to this size until the Boskonian war was over (it they did, maybe "Marauder" could be a nickname for the Battlecruisers the Boskonians built).

RE: Marines - This is another leftover from the Boskonian War. For the most part the Fen were trying to capture the enemy (for various reasons). As such, having a force to do so without draining the crew seems logical. They could also double as Search&Rescue, security, and extra bodies in damage control. Hell, they might be pilots not on rotation for what ever reason.
Point is, I at least see that having a 'ground' force directly available for the space navy is preferable to not having one. The Fen have to cover a lot of bases with their craft.

I personally would think about this as an addition to the "carrier" concept.

Most large enough ships carry crafts/fighters/drones in some numbers in Fenspace I think, just because parking with a large ship is a headache.

E.g. the Normandy for example would be a "Stealth Destroyer" in your taxonomy, despite carrying 5 crafts (4 drones and a shuttle).