Alternative forces (i.e., non-canon aliens ships)

Well, I have gone berserk on the FB1 design stuff - I compared it to
FT/2nd and while it means less Needle Beams for the Nekton Small Boys I
think I like the design process better.  It allows me more ability to
reflect the key non-canon Alien races in my gaming.  I just wish i had
the ships done to try them out.

I know this will bore some but I am going to bounce a few fleet design
patterns off the list for feedback:

The Whistlers - Avians who gave up flight for Intelligence.

The Nektons - Think man-sized Amphibs (+/-, mostly minus) with an
attitude of 'Grendel' in the SF book 'Hereot' (I think I spelled that
somewhat correctly) and a paranoia from their first contact via the
enslaving Ralnai (Ralnai philosophy (as much as they have one) is "Kaw
Kokk" - power over others)!  More slaves (owned/killed) means more
status.  The Nektons tossed the Ralnai off their home planet then
expanded against them (aided indirectly by the Second StarWar (the
Ralnai
versus everybody (well except the Dreenoi but they make the Klackons
look
like dieters of other species...)
 
The Klackons - *Big* Crabs with a taste for anybody who looks
vulnerable.
 Capable of interaction and trade just prefer to /take/ things where
possible.

Mertuns - the enigmatic low gravity octopod race very like H.G.Wells
'Martians'.

Others to follow - Ralnai, Rauwoofs, Blarads, etc.

Humans will look very similar to canon - not that much difference in the
lives of Homo Sapiens.

"The Birds"  - the Whistlers - Background right out of Ratner's Space
Marines (do you want that from the old rules set?) - very much into
'strike' attacks.  Based on the book I have out of the Tech Library
describing the various forms of hunting by raptors and other predatory
birds.	In, strike, out.  Fast initial actions not much on staying and
slugging it out.

*Very* big on fighters - almost every cruiser (plus) has a 'nestship'
version.  Those ships not 'nesting' use a lot of SMR/SML backed up by
PT's.  Some beams, almost always class 2 or class 1.  Small ships have
fragile/weak hulls ('throwaway') and medium ships use weak/standard. 
Nothing stronger then Standard.  Period.  Next to no use of Armor.  High
mobility values.  Below HC mean is 6 (some 8), Above uses Drive 4, some
6.  Typical masses: CT = 10, FF = 20, DD = 30, LC = 50, Hc = 80, [No
BC],
BB = 140, DN/BDN = 160, no [SDN], CVL = 150, CVH = 180.  "Mother Nest"
ship (CVVH) = 200 on a weak hull.  EC = 70 (only with CVVH).

The Nektons - *Very* Big on Needle Beams, only less os on PT's. 
Moderate
amount of screens used on cruisers and larger ships.  Average Hulls,
some
armor.	Average to High mobility.  Drive 6 if less then HC, Drive 4
above, Largest ships use Drive 2.  EC uses Drive 3 - basically
'herds/drives' escorted vehicles.  Largest ships have 6-8 PDS (based on
recent war with Whistlers) but DD and less generally have no PDS -
Nektons consider fighters as 'trash fish' and only recently made the
concession of putting ADFC and multiple PDS's on their largest ships.

Typical masses:
SC = 8, CT = 10, FF = 20, DD = 30, DHAA = 40, LC = 50, EC = 60, HC = 80,

BC = 100, BB = 120, BDN = 140 (2 versions - one with strong hull), SDN =
160 (2 versions - both with Super Hull and a third version with a strong
hull at 200).

The Mertuns - Use lots of multiple smaller beams instead of fewer big
beams (love those arrays of class -1's) strong hulls, and liberal use of
screens.  Lightest ships have drive 6/8 but drive 4 from DD thru BB,
with
Drive 2 beyond that common. Absolutely *love* PDS's.  Have a /thing/
about 5 arc Class-3/Class-4 - big guns need lots of ability to target
stuff.	Cruisers and capital ships use 1 to 2 screens.

Typical Masses:  CT = 16, FF = 24, DD = 32, DH = 40, LC = 48, EC = 64
(that's right), HC = 80, BC = 96, BB = 98, 3 versions of the BDN (NO
fighters!) [one super hull with light armor, one strong hull with more
armor, and one average hull with in-between armor and SDN = 180 (NO
fighters!!) Rumors that they are building a version of carriers but with
the enigmatic Mertuns it's sure to be /different/ then human ones...

Klackons - call themselves "The People of the Seven" - whatever that
means.	Makes Mertuns almost scrutable.  Land forces are based on seven
-
7 soldiers in a squad, 7 squads in a platoon, 7 platoons in a company,
etc.   Ships often come with Two Large Beam Guns (for the class) and
multiple smaller support beam guns.  (the capitals indicate an attempt
to
reflect the Klackons use one set of words for main battery weapons and
another completely different set of words for 'other' batteries - even
of
the same type (Beam, PT, etc.)	Klackons like Beams,  *big* beams, even
to the point of only having two over-sized for the class beams and no
other offensive weapons in some cases.	Go Figure, it's a (klackon
phrase) 'claw thing' (assuming that's translated correctly.  Klackon
language appears to be extremely fluid, some would say ambiguous on
purpose.  Klackons have average to good mobility, use strong hulls
almost
exclusively, and as much armor as they can squeeze on once the main guns
and other vital systems are in the design (for the BDN and SDN.)
Tactics call for a rush to close and then sitting at as close as
possible
range and seeing who cuts and runs first.  Klackon casualties are freely
eaten by surviving klackons ["You *waste* the protein by burying the
bodies?!?!?!" would be a Klackon response to Human burial/cremation
practices]

Typical masses are :  CT = 14, FF = 21, DD = 35, LC = 49, HC = 84, BC =
91, BB = 140 (3 versions - A - 2 x Class-4, 5 arcs, B - 2 x Class-4 3
Arcs overlapping in the fore arc, 2 x Class - 3, 3 arc centered on the
fore arc, C - 2 x Class-3, % arcs, 6 x Class-2 6 arcs), BDN = 168, SDN =
210 (3 versions - no armor/3 x Class-4, 5 arcs - 2 x class-4 5
arcs/armor
16, and 3 Class-4, 3 arc and armor 12).  CV's are reported to exist but
no one has seen them outside of Klackon Home (or what is believed to be
their home) Space - reports from emergency comm pods (thinks the buoys
in
Red Storm Rising that the gives away the retreating American Subs...)
from the only known human strike in Klackon Home Space had blurred
sensor
reports of impossibly large ships that may have been CV equivalents. 
Apparently these are valued too much to be used outside of 'home' space.

There are intelligence reports of smaller (relatively) what may be CV's
having been seen recently just inside Klackon home space from non-human
sources.  Apparently in at least one case there appeared to be either
large missiles or fighters launched - no observations of recovery
procedures has been reported.

Specific designs will be posted later.

Feedback on this and the individual designs is desired,  The purpose of
the designs is to reflect the fighting styles of the race not to max/min
or munchkinize the ships.  Certain less efficient design traits may be
included to reflect the 'thinking' of the alien race.

Gracias, Glenn/Triphibious (American Mongrel)
You don't have to be French to be a 'frog', or even human!
Nektons - Real Marines! (Die, Ralnai, Die!)
Starguard, Dirtside 2,	Ratner's Space Marines, Stellar Conflicts
and Uprisings, and Full Thrust/2nd.  Resistance is everything!

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