[MOC] Havigari-Class Star Cruiser

[VK-318]

The invention of force-shield technology signaled the end of the starfighter, as nuclear warheads were disarmed and conventional ones deflected by the fluctuating magnetic fields and radiation the shields produced. This technological revolution paved the way for the return of the giant battleships of the early years of interstellar travel.

Initially, the Torrian Starfleet made use of unique ships for niche functions, but the logistical burden quickly became insurmountable. Delivering a division of combat troops to a hostile planet and providing them with armor, artillery, and ortillery (orbital artillery) support took at least thirty various ships, not counting surveillance craft and the gravtanks, which, being designed to make planetfall as their own landing craft, are technically ships. The solution came in the form of the Torrian "Cruiser doctrine," which is focused on the concept of a "cruiser," an indefinitely self-sufficient capital ship capable of filling one of three key functions: transport, ortillery, or line combat. The Havigari-Class Star Cruiser represents the pinnacle of this design philosophy.

A hulking titan measuring around 5,500 feet from stem to stern, the Havigari, or Insurmountable, carries a full division of combat troops plus support vehicles and equipment in its belly, in addition to a full crew and a large contingent of scout craft. In addition, this behemoth is more than capable of going toe-to-toe with all but the strongest of battleships the enemies of the Torrian Federation can field against it: its armament includes eight massive plasma turrents and a spinal plasma cannon capable of stripping away the shields and melting the hull of most smaller ships. But while most navies have only a handful of battleships, the Torrian Federation, with its unorthodox politically-independent military, can field thousands of these spread throughout the vast extents of the Torrian Federation.

Like nearly all Torrian designs, the Havigari has three distinct sections: a rear segment that houses the reactors and the tachyon thrusters that give it warp capability; a center segment that contains the hangars and cargo bays for its equipment and vehicles, the bunks of the soldiers and crewmen, the vast farms that feed this roving military base, and the other support services that keep the ship intact and funtioning properly; and a forward segment that houses the bridge and scanning equipment, as well as the several crew and troop lounges and the cabins of the captain and senior naval and ground officers. Here too is the large and sumptuous cabin present on each of these ships, reserved specially for the Lord High Admiral in case he should grace the ship with a visit. Like all ships belonging to the Torrian Starfleet, and indeed like many other Torrian vessels, it is kept painted in a standard livery of black, dark bluish gray, and dark red that give it an imposing appearance. When one of these appears in the skies of a rebellious colony, it's underbody turrets raining fiery doom from the heavens and tanks, artillery, and APC's swarming from its belly, resistance is feeble and short-lived.

Notes on the build: I have images showing all details of the construction of this ship on my Brickshelf gallery:http://www.brickshel...ry.cgi?f=544656. I'm not entirely happy with the way that the triangular assembly in the rear tends to twist out of true, but I have no good solution at this point and will probably just put up with it and give the thrusters a twist every now and then to straighten them out. The black 1x1 cone represents the spinal cannon, and the 8 1x1 round plates on the surface of the ship represent the plasma turrets. The black 1x2 tile underneath represents the ship's hanger bay doors, which lead to the network of cargo bays and other facilities used to store support vehicles and equipment.

This particular model is to scale with the Lego 4492 Mini Star Destroyer. I intend to design other vessels in the Torrian Starfleet as a sort of theme, and may eventually provide models of infantry support vehicles like tanks and APC's, but with a SoNE episode closing in the next couple of weeks and a Star Wars UCS modding project underway, it may take a while. I am also pondering some ideas for photography sets of important locations on this ship, like the bridge, main engine spaces, sickbay, and so forth. If they work out, they will also be showing up in this forum.

Now, some pictures of the ship itself. Again, more at my Brickshelf gallery, link above.

Comments, questions, and constructive criticism welcome.

Edited June 13, 2014 by VK-318

[TenorPenny]

It's a nice design, well put together. The trans-parts in yellow would be nice, too.