AAM Shanxi Cruiser Mk. I [Vanilla - No Mods]

Shanxi Guided Missile Cruiser

Specifications Manufacturer: Ariel Aerospace Manufacturing Mass: 7,473,645 Powerplant: 630 MW (42 small reactors); 192 MW reserve power (16 batteries) Gyroscopes: 30 Time to max velocity: 20.4 sec Acceleration: 4.9 m/sec^2 Maximum jump distance: 668 km Armament: 1 30,000 kg main battery, 6 Goryo Mk. II launch tubes, 12 fixed rocket launchers, 14 missile turrets, 10 gatling turrets, 54 CIWS turrets Cargo Capacity: 53 small cargo containers Refinery Facilities: No Assembler Facilities: Yes (2) Medical Facilities: Yes (1) Artificial Gravity: Yes Small Craft Complement: NA Length: 215 meters Width: 72.5 meters Height: 22.5 meters (27.5 w/antennae)

"Let your rapidity be that of the wind, your compactness that of the forest. In raiding and plundering be like fire, in immovability like a mountain. Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt." -Sun Tzu, The Art of War

"It's about time." -Admiral Yvette Zhou

Perched at the edges of the solar system, the Uranian Confederation's population and resources are far too small to hope for success in any potential war of attrition. This, combined with a more relevant need to combat local piracy, has resulted in ships that tend towards the fast and maneuverable -- and occasionally heavily armed -- but which are rarely particularly robust. Exceptions to this rule, such as the Gladius, are rare. Within the triad of mobility, firepower, and protection, Ariel Aerospace Manufacturing's ships lean heavily towards the first two while neglecting the last.

The Shanxi is an attempt by AAM to balance that triad.

Following an extensive analysis of its ship classification system, the Confederation determined that its former range of cruiser-sized vessels were far more massive than required. Those vessels would be reclassified as dreadnoughts, while frigate-sized ships would be reclassed as cruisers. Additionally, any new cruisers would incorporate more recent developments in military doctrine, and would be employed appropriately. Thus, while technically a "cruiser" like the Gladius, the Shanxi is more accurately a successor to vessels such as the older Caspian. However, it is thoroughly unlike either.

The differences are readily visible. To begin with, the Shanxi does not feature the overwhelming main gun of the Caspian or Gladius; it can only fire a single round at a time, and that round is smaller than those fired by either ship. However, it is still capable of penetrating over three layers of reinforced armor, more than the majority of ships carry; any vessel boasting more armor is unlikely to be able to intercept the Shanxi. On the Shanxi, the main gun is intended principally to give the ship the ability to punch through heavy armor at close range, and open up enemy ships to allow rockets to damage the interior.

The bulk of the cruiser's long-range firepower comes in the form of six dorsal launch cells for Goryo Mk. II anti-ship missiles (though the launchers are also capable of accomodating ECM missiles or other designs as well). As with the Donau corvette, the missiles may either be guided individually by radio communications for precision attacks, or by quantum entanglement for greater range (though AAM has serious concerns about its supply of entangled pairs, and does not encourage reliance upon them). The use of guided ordnance makes the Shanxi far more deadly at longer ranges than either the Caspian or Gladius were; each shot may cause less damage, but each shot is vastly more likely to strike.

The cruiser also mounts four rocket launchers in the bow; in an unusual move for AAM, it also possesses four broadside launchers on each lateral face as well. AAM noticed that forward-mounted weapons tended to be damaged beyond the point of usefulness relatively early in engagements, and added the broadside mounts in an attempt to offset this.

Firepower is rounded out with forteen missile turrets to engage enemy vessels at close range -- although it is still considered preferable to destroy targets beyond their range -- and ten gatling turrets to ward off enemy strike craft. Eighteen clusters of three point defense turrets each provide excellent protection against missiles, as well as boosting its defenses against fighters.

In addition to being heavily-armed, the Shanxi is also capable of enduring a considerable amount of damage. The external surface is predominately light armor, but this overlays mutliple "bones" of heavy armor running the length of the ship, which connect with each other at a series of "ribs". These, combined with distributed power and attitude control systems give the ship deceptive durability; it is entirely possible for one flank of the ship to appear to be shot nearly to pieces, while still remaining fully capable of deploying its main weaponry.

While care was given to granting the Shanxi respectable survivability, the element of mobility was not neglected. Under ordinary conditions, the cruiser can reach its maximum speed in a mere twenty seconds -- and if the hydrogen-based emergency thrusters are activated, this can be cut down to sixteen. It is a testament to its speed that while the cruiser is not designed to land on any celestial body, it is nevertheless fully capable of achieving unaided escape velocity with its aft thrusters from lunar bodies. Care has been taken during the design process to give the cruiser better maneuverability than most large U-Con ships; its reverse thrusters give it impressive braking ability, and the maneuvering thrusters allow it to move laterally comparatively rapidly.