Teh SupremEz0r
12-08-2007, 06:47
“Your Supremeness, Dr. Valistov is here to speak with you.”
Teh Supremez0r’s President-for-Life grinned at his secretary and waved a hand airily.
“Excellent! Show him in at once.”
The man who strode into the Presidential Office a few seconds later was tall and lean, and dressed in a pristine white lab coat. He had dark brown hair that was just beginning to go gray, and cold blue eyes behind his thick-lensed glasses.
“Good afternoon, Doctor. Have you got the plans I asked for?”
“Zat I do, ant I sink you vill be-”
“Drop the corny accent, Carlos. You aren’t fooling anyone here.”
Carlos Valistov chuckled. He was one of President Taylor’s oldest and closest friends, and the two knew each other very well.
“If you insist. Seriously, I think you’ll be quite happy with what I’ve got sketched out for you, though. Here, let me show you.”
Taylor cleared the papers from a section of his desk, allowing Valistov to set up a pocket computer and holo-projector, and the two men began examining the new design.
“At over 50 kilometers in length, it will be bigger than all but a handful of the warships in the known universe, and none of those in our records can come close to the maneuverability I’ll be able to give it. It’ll match the defenses of most fortified planets, especially if the new armor I’ve been working on turns out as I expect. These sections of its sides will be jointed like so, allowing it to open its docking bays and additional torpedo tubes, focus more of its firepower in one direction, or, of course, both. With the shell closed, it will be well protected and armed on all sides, and cannot be attacked safely from any direction. This should lessen the danger if it is surrounded by a group of smaller, faster ships.
“Against large ships, its primary weapons will be these Mizrak cannons – 146, in all. These heavy Sweepers will add a considerable chunk of firepower, and they’ll be quick enough to use on smaller, swifter targets. Now, observe the secondary guns, of both varieties….”
Valistov zoomed in on one portion of the image until the smaller turrets were recognizable.
“They’ll lack the power to take out anything tougher than a warship of roughly two kilometers, with our current technology, except in large numbers. They should prove adequate for smaller vessels, though, and enough of them will be available to present a threat even to larger ships if no smaller targets are in range. The third tier, these lighter weapons, is intended primarily for ships under 100 meters in length, although again they can concentrate fire on a small number of larger targets. Finally, we have the point defenses, to counter fighters, missiles, and the like. The Mizraks are similar to the heaviest models our soldiers use; with suitable turrets, they should be able to strike most targets from over a tenth of a light second away. Against a large missile swarm, the Sweeper cannons will open fire at considerably greater range than that, but they should be capable of precision fire at around 10,000 km. And at roughly two kilometers, the Torrent Guns will join in – you know what that’ll do.
“Now, some defenses are especially effective against direct energy weapons, so I have a backup system planned. The design includes four different projectile weapons. The first fires ten gram spheres of the densest metal we can produce; I’m hoping we’ll have made some advances in that regard by the time we start installing them. The small size and spherical shape of the ammunition will make it easy to load – and that’s likely to be the limiting factor on their rate of fire. This next type launches spikes, half a meter long and four centimeters in diameter. It’s designed to fire clips of four, and will load in a few seconds. These big ones are an improved version of the ancient cannons used be pre-space naval battleships, built with modern technology. They‘ll fire projectiles 70 cm. long and 30 cm. in diameter. They’ll be slow to load, and also the slowest moving of the lot, but the sheer moment of each shot could be quite valuable, especially against some types of shielding. And then we’ve got the point defenses; it wouldn’t do to forget defensive equipment in the backup system. They’re pretty simple: the highest rate of fire I can manage, with fragmented shots, totaling about three grams each. I’m hoping to get something put together that’ll fire them at nine tenths light speed or better. Now, none of these will even be used unless the ship runs into something that handles direct energy weapons exceptionally well, but I thought it best to build them in, just in case they’re needed.
“Oh, and I almost forgot to mention the real big guns. The design includes a full-length mass driver here, and these two Mizrak guns – the biggest we can build into it. It’s highly unlikely we’ll ever fight anything big enough to target with them, but the relative increase in the cost is also very small, and they could also be useful in siege situations.
“Now, defenses. For anything that gets past the guns, its primary defense will be energy shielding. My plan is to let each generator cover an area of about one square kilometer, with five overlapping layers at any given point. This aspect of the design may be modified if there are any significant advances in our shielding technology, but I wouldn’t expect any drastic alterations. If the shielding falls, the armor should provide considerable protection against most weapons. Finally, the sheer volume of the ship, and multiple redundancies in its equipment, will allow it to sustain quite a bit of damage and remain operational.
“There will be five primary computers, any one of them capable of controlling the craft alone, with a duplicated memory backup for each. Secondary and tertiary computers will allow local control in the event of a communications failure, or similar problem. There are three electronic warfare centers planned, and 20 primary sensor arrays, along with the sensors built each cannon turret. The design includes 18 communication centers. The energy supply system is distributed, with no core capable of causing catastrophic damage. Power is supplied by ten mass annihilators, with smaller backup generators available for local systems. Propulsion is rather complex; for the moment, suffice it to say that as long as there’s enough of the ship left for it to have any reason to move, it will be able to do so in one way or another.
“Hardly an exhaustive or detailed description, I know, but that’ll do for a basic overview. What do you think, so far?”
Taylor met his friend’s eyes with a wide grin.
“I’ll want to go over some aspects of the design with you at length, but it looks magnificent! You and your team have truly outdone yourselves, this time. How are we going to build this thing, though?”
“That’ll be the hard part, yes. It’s going to take a dedicated construction yard, a small fleet gathering materials, and a great deal of time. Without the medical technology we’ve gained in the past two or three generations, I doubt anyone alive today would see it finished – certainly none of us who are old enough to be involved in the planning. It will take decades, perhaps many of them, but with the infrastructure we’ve got in space today, and the money you’ve been saving for this project, we can do it.”
“Well, we can afford to take a long view in planning. You start planning the construction schedule, and I’ll see to it that you get the resources you need. Let’s get to work!”
~~~~~~~
Weeks later, the construction was beginning.
OOC:
Comments are welcome; war fleets just happening to stumble across the construction site are not. Keep in mind that all of Valistov's comments, including those comparing his design to currently existing ships, are purely IC, and based on his IC knowledge. I'm not declaring this vessel to be bigger, faster, or more powerful than yours, so don't bother protesting that it isn't.
Teh Supremez0r’s President-for-Life grinned at his secretary and waved a hand airily.
“Excellent! Show him in at once.”
The man who strode into the Presidential Office a few seconds later was tall and lean, and dressed in a pristine white lab coat. He had dark brown hair that was just beginning to go gray, and cold blue eyes behind his thick-lensed glasses.
“Good afternoon, Doctor. Have you got the plans I asked for?”
“Zat I do, ant I sink you vill be-”
“Drop the corny accent, Carlos. You aren’t fooling anyone here.”
Carlos Valistov chuckled. He was one of President Taylor’s oldest and closest friends, and the two knew each other very well.
“If you insist. Seriously, I think you’ll be quite happy with what I’ve got sketched out for you, though. Here, let me show you.”
Taylor cleared the papers from a section of his desk, allowing Valistov to set up a pocket computer and holo-projector, and the two men began examining the new design.
“At over 50 kilometers in length, it will be bigger than all but a handful of the warships in the known universe, and none of those in our records can come close to the maneuverability I’ll be able to give it. It’ll match the defenses of most fortified planets, especially if the new armor I’ve been working on turns out as I expect. These sections of its sides will be jointed like so, allowing it to open its docking bays and additional torpedo tubes, focus more of its firepower in one direction, or, of course, both. With the shell closed, it will be well protected and armed on all sides, and cannot be attacked safely from any direction. This should lessen the danger if it is surrounded by a group of smaller, faster ships.
“Against large ships, its primary weapons will be these Mizrak cannons – 146, in all. These heavy Sweepers will add a considerable chunk of firepower, and they’ll be quick enough to use on smaller, swifter targets. Now, observe the secondary guns, of both varieties….”
Valistov zoomed in on one portion of the image until the smaller turrets were recognizable.
“They’ll lack the power to take out anything tougher than a warship of roughly two kilometers, with our current technology, except in large numbers. They should prove adequate for smaller vessels, though, and enough of them will be available to present a threat even to larger ships if no smaller targets are in range. The third tier, these lighter weapons, is intended primarily for ships under 100 meters in length, although again they can concentrate fire on a small number of larger targets. Finally, we have the point defenses, to counter fighters, missiles, and the like. The Mizraks are similar to the heaviest models our soldiers use; with suitable turrets, they should be able to strike most targets from over a tenth of a light second away. Against a large missile swarm, the Sweeper cannons will open fire at considerably greater range than that, but they should be capable of precision fire at around 10,000 km. And at roughly two kilometers, the Torrent Guns will join in – you know what that’ll do.
“Now, some defenses are especially effective against direct energy weapons, so I have a backup system planned. The design includes four different projectile weapons. The first fires ten gram spheres of the densest metal we can produce; I’m hoping we’ll have made some advances in that regard by the time we start installing them. The small size and spherical shape of the ammunition will make it easy to load – and that’s likely to be the limiting factor on their rate of fire. This next type launches spikes, half a meter long and four centimeters in diameter. It’s designed to fire clips of four, and will load in a few seconds. These big ones are an improved version of the ancient cannons used be pre-space naval battleships, built with modern technology. They‘ll fire projectiles 70 cm. long and 30 cm. in diameter. They’ll be slow to load, and also the slowest moving of the lot, but the sheer moment of each shot could be quite valuable, especially against some types of shielding. And then we’ve got the point defenses; it wouldn’t do to forget defensive equipment in the backup system. They’re pretty simple: the highest rate of fire I can manage, with fragmented shots, totaling about three grams each. I’m hoping to get something put together that’ll fire them at nine tenths light speed or better. Now, none of these will even be used unless the ship runs into something that handles direct energy weapons exceptionally well, but I thought it best to build them in, just in case they’re needed.
“Oh, and I almost forgot to mention the real big guns. The design includes a full-length mass driver here, and these two Mizrak guns – the biggest we can build into it. It’s highly unlikely we’ll ever fight anything big enough to target with them, but the relative increase in the cost is also very small, and they could also be useful in siege situations.
“Now, defenses. For anything that gets past the guns, its primary defense will be energy shielding. My plan is to let each generator cover an area of about one square kilometer, with five overlapping layers at any given point. This aspect of the design may be modified if there are any significant advances in our shielding technology, but I wouldn’t expect any drastic alterations. If the shielding falls, the armor should provide considerable protection against most weapons. Finally, the sheer volume of the ship, and multiple redundancies in its equipment, will allow it to sustain quite a bit of damage and remain operational.
“There will be five primary computers, any one of them capable of controlling the craft alone, with a duplicated memory backup for each. Secondary and tertiary computers will allow local control in the event of a communications failure, or similar problem. There are three electronic warfare centers planned, and 20 primary sensor arrays, along with the sensors built each cannon turret. The design includes 18 communication centers. The energy supply system is distributed, with no core capable of causing catastrophic damage. Power is supplied by ten mass annihilators, with smaller backup generators available for local systems. Propulsion is rather complex; for the moment, suffice it to say that as long as there’s enough of the ship left for it to have any reason to move, it will be able to do so in one way or another.
“Hardly an exhaustive or detailed description, I know, but that’ll do for a basic overview. What do you think, so far?”
Taylor met his friend’s eyes with a wide grin.
“I’ll want to go over some aspects of the design with you at length, but it looks magnificent! You and your team have truly outdone yourselves, this time. How are we going to build this thing, though?”
“That’ll be the hard part, yes. It’s going to take a dedicated construction yard, a small fleet gathering materials, and a great deal of time. Without the medical technology we’ve gained in the past two or three generations, I doubt anyone alive today would see it finished – certainly none of us who are old enough to be involved in the planning. It will take decades, perhaps many of them, but with the infrastructure we’ve got in space today, and the money you’ve been saving for this project, we can do it.”
“Well, we can afford to take a long view in planning. You start planning the construction schedule, and I’ll see to it that you get the resources you need. Let’s get to work!”
~~~~~~~
Weeks later, the construction was beginning.
OOC:
Comments are welcome; war fleets just happening to stumble across the construction site are not. Keep in mind that all of Valistov's comments, including those comparing his design to currently existing ships, are purely IC, and based on his IC knowledge. I'm not declaring this vessel to be bigger, faster, or more powerful than yours, so don't bother protesting that it isn't.