NationStates Jolt Archive

Headquarters of the Shipyards at Wuller and Farthing: Camden Bay, closed meeting of the board of Trustees
"Wait, you want us to design and construct a new class of Super Dreadnaught?"

"Why not, we have the facilities, they certainlya ren't doing anythign since the Ficv fiasco."

"It was exactly that, a fiasco, we can't risk another one on that scale, and this will be even bigger."

"A lot bigger, huge, I'm thinking an imperial Mile."
Several board memgers gasped.

"Thats gigantic, it would barely fit!"

"It will be amazing, the most powerful ship on the seas, and we will build them. Nations will flock to our doors wanting to buy them, every SD shipyard will try to imitate."

"How? We'd be imiating them, they build SDs and we do not, its a tough market to get into, most people that want them build their own or buy from established names int he market."

"You deny that we have equipment they don't? we've got the FMCV guns, those 25inchers we designed for the Freedom proposal will be perfect, nobody can touch that kind of weapon, nor Shadownet, or Black Light. I imagine that Dark Cloak will be a popular feature, SDs are nothing if not obvious and shutting down orbital assets is a good way to keep from being targetted."

"Okay, I'll bite, it sounds you've got it all worked out. Send out a memo to the depatment heads, get their take on it."

"Sounds good."

"All in favor?"

Slowly the Trustee's raised hands in assent, a few held back but there was enough to send out a memo

Confidential Memo
***********Confidential***********
To: All Heads of Dept.
From: BoT
RE: New Ship (Cerberus)

Before Reading, you must have signed NDA-22495 and have not been evaluated as S-214. If you do not meet any above requirement and proceed anyway, you may be liable to criminal prosecution

All Department heads are to formulate a proposal for a new class of ship (To be called Cerberus SDN) and to mass approx 2 million tons, to be approx 1.5 km in length and to be amred with a number of 25 in. gun turrets.

Have all propsals ready in one month for review at the next Staff Meeting.

This project is under black security, Loose Lips Sink Ships

closed meeting of the Heads of Dept. of the Shipyards at Wuller and Farthing
"This is insane you know, Mondoth won't buy it, they've got the FMCV to play with and event hen they don't like regular dreadnaughts, let alone super's, they had us build smaller carriers for them!"

"Then we won't sell it to Mondoth, export only."

"Okay, but how do we sell it?"

"Sell it? its a mile long battleship, one of the bigger out there if we build it, they'll be begging us to let them buy some, SDs are like spam, the keep getting built because they keep selling out, sure we can agree they're hoplessly impractical ships but they sell like viagra to the nations that can affod them, all we have to do is make bigger promises than the other guys."

"But can we deliver?"

"Certainly, you've seen the proposalls, we have everythign we need, heck, some of us I know are even looking forward to this, its a new challenge."

"Okay, so we tell the bosse sits a go?"

"Yea, we'll do it, we'll build their 'enlargement pill'."

"Guns? its a big platform and there are a lot of sizes to choose from, we ca go hog-wild ona mile long ship."

"I suggest sticking with the 25in. designs we already have. we can put a lot of them on it, but seriosuly. with ERGM what need do we have of bigger rounds. the only real advantage they have is range. really once you get over 3 thousand pounds of conventional munitions all you have is overkill."

"I agree, besides I can't confidently say that the auto-loaders will even work if we size the design up past thirty inches. 25 gives us a safety margin to work with."

"Okay, what about dealing with smaller threats? Even large cruisers aren't exactly the sort of targets 25in. guns were made for."

"We have plenty of native gun configurations. Slap soem 12s and 8s, maybe some 6s on there to take care of the small stuff."

"Sounds good to me. Now, defenses, this thing is huge, it wil probably have a supporting fleet but we need to make sure that even if we sell this thing to some nation that thinks the Cerberus will solve all their problems and sells the rest of their navy to afford one, that it will be able to hold its own against more generally supported fleets."

"Obviously we give it Barrier."

"Its huge, one Barrier array isn't enough, I say we put three on. Two for total coverage of the ship from 'dirrect attack' threats, and a third as stop gap."

"I like it, and it will play good, redundant defenses and what not. Keep it up."

"Okay, so now we need ot get it to speed, this is a huge ship and it needs to be able to keep up with a fleet, even conventional ships are getting like 25-30 knts, not even counting MHD designs, or exotic hulls. Ideally it should go even faster so it can catch up after accelerating, because face it, the Cerberus will be a b**h to get moving."

"I agree, I'm thinking the new MHD, what was it again-"
"206?"
"Yea, that one, two per hull?"

"Nah, its a wonder of modern ship moving tech but six of them won't move a mile long ship any faster than maybe 26 or seven knots."

"How about nine then, three per hull"

"We could get a pretty little bit of speed out of that, say 35 knots."

"I like it."