Chimeisho
191px | |
Chimeisho Class JumpShip | |
---|---|
Production information | |
Manufacturer | Kurita Combine Munitions Corporation |
Use | Mercantile, Military |
Tech Base | Star League |
Cost | ??? |
Introduced | 3056 |
Technical specifications | |
Mass | 245,000 tons |
Length | 645 meters |
Sail Diameter | |
Fuel | |
Burn Rate | |
Top Thrust | 0.1 Gs |
Sail Integrity | |
KF Drive Integrity | |
LF Battery | Yes |
Armament | 4 ER Large Lasers, 4 Large Pulse Lasers |
Armor | ??? |
DropShip Capacity | 2 |
Crew | 30 crew |
Grav Decks | 1 (95m diameter) |
Escape Pods/Life Boats | 5 Life Boats |
Heat Sinks | 122 |
Structural Integrity | |
BV (1.0) | ??? |
Contents
Description
After the War of 3039, the Kurita Combine Munitions Corporation made use of state grants to repair and reactivate the Izumi JumpShip yards at Altair that had been derelicted since the First Succession War. Here, production started on an all-new JumpShip class, the Chimeisho.
The design of the new Chimeisho class is reminiscent of the Star League-era Tramp class, production of which had incidentially been resumed in the Free Worlds League at around the same time: Both are civilian ships with negligible armour yet equipped with a modest array of space weaponry. Accordingly, they suffer from the same drawback, a mediocre DropShip capacity for their size and maintenance cost especially when compared to unarmed ships of similar size (namely the Star Lord class).
However, the Chimeisho is notable for mounting a Lithium-Fusion Battery, a system normally only found on ComStar's secrecy-shrouded Magellan class outside the Clans, and WarShips. This rare, unusual and expensive system allows the Chimeisho to store the energy for a second jump without the neccessity to recharge between jumps.
By 3057, only two Chimeishos had been built. The DCMS purchased both and also all others scheduled to be built through 3062. They desperately needed ships with Lithium-fusion batteries to supply Wolcott, their staging point and forward operations base behind Clan lines since 3050. Since Clan Smoke Jaguar was blockading both Jump Points, the DCMS used such ships to jump to a Pirate point within the system, deploy its DropShips, dock outbound DropShips and jump back (usually to Luthien) after mere hours, before enemy patrols could find and engage the ship at the Pirate point. One ship used in this fashion in 3057 to transport the Black Thorns was the DCMS Ellyohippus, implied to be one of the two Chimeishos existing at the time.
Armament
Four ER Large Lasers and Large Pulse Lasers each give the Chimeisho the overall firepower of a medium AeroSpace Fighter or a small DropShip, spread over several distinct firing arcs. Together with the thin armour this is barely enough to fend off a fighter attack.
Cargo
The Chimeisho can carry 726 tons of cargo. In addition, it has four Small Craft bays which typically hold a pair of ST-46 shuttles and a pair of light fighters.
Variants
As a new class and with only one vessel produced annually, no variants of the Chimeisho are known.
References
- Technical Readout 3057 - pp 102-103
- D.R.T. (novel) - pp 66-69 (implied; JS Ellyohippus has a LF-Battery and capacity for 2 DropShips)