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Description

Ported to OBJ from the fan created model made for the Starfleet Command (SFC) series of video games. Based on the original Remora class design created by Forest Brown and Dana Knutson for FASA Corporation's various Franchise licensed Trek gaming products back in the day. Preview picture posed in XNALara XPS. NO MODEL DOWNLOAD.

Remora was one of the most anticipated all-new starship classes built for the Federation Starfleet during the first decade of the TMP era. She was intended to replaced the aged but venerated (and uprated) Larson as Starfleet's new destroyer leader class; however, that was not meant to be. Starfleet made the same mistake with Remora that it did with Durret in creating a vessel that had too much hull to push for its single warp engine -- and never mind that the extra hull was better shaped for high speed and better maneuverability at warp. It was still too much hull, and to quote my own Federation Fleet Review (FFR) with regard to the conclusion reached from the class ship's builder's trials, "The end result was a bulky, underpowered 'pan handle' that barely qualified as a destroyer and definitely failed as a destroyer leader." The entire production block of 24 hulls was put on construction hold while a long laundry list of changes were made to the design. Remora never fully overcame her excessive mass issues even with the changes, but compromise values were eventually reached and class production resumed. All the same Remora's official classification was changed to escort given her slower than expected top speed and resulting repurposing within Starfleet's grand scheme. Mention should also be made of the Charger sub-class, constituting the last eight Remoras launched, with lots of mass saved via an altered design and use of lighter alloys but with part of that made back up by the addition of two phototorp systems, one each firing fore and aft, which finally gave the class a decent heavy weapons capability (Remora as built had none). All of the older Remoras eventually got a Charger style heavy weapons upgrade over time, although as already noted it added to their excess mass issues. The excess mass issue was never solved satisfactorily and Starfleet eventually bypassed the matter altogether late in the TMP era with Barracuda, the third and final iteration or sub-class, which was first intended as a light assault ship to support Marine operations before being re-relegated for Starfleet use. It was essentially Charger with a second warp engine added so that it had two in a paired mount where one had been before, and finally providing the design with the extra power it so sorely needed. Barracuda came very late in the TMP era and to many was what Remora should have been all along, but construction was abruptly cut off due to the signing of the Khitomer Accords, with only a few examples in service and the rest scrapped in their slips per one of its provisos. Starfleet eventually had to content itself with refitting as many of its older Remoras and Chargers as it could afford to the more robust Barracuda design. Not surprisingly, only a few got the Barracuda upgrade, and when the entire Remora family was retired well into the post-TMP era there were more than a few that had never received it (and never would). None of the original Barracudas or upgraded Remoras or Chargers survived the scrapper's torch, but a few non-upgraded ones were bought by Federation local systems for their own defense fleets and some of these would survive long enough (and change hands several times in the process) to see the TNG/DS9/VOY era (*).

(*) - These surviving non-upgraded Remoras could have always been upgraded to the more robust two warp engined Barracuda design, provided one could find and buy the necessary second warp engine and have it properly installed. Starfleet boneyards would be a natural source even in that era given what we know (TNG "The Best of Both Worlds," "Unification"). However, finding the late TMP era custom Barracuda dual warp engine pylons, plasma feed conduits, and other internal pylon supporting systems and such, or even building functional analogs from scratch, much less retooling the ship's warp core to handle the feeds for the second warp engine, would have been the real problems. You're looking at least six months to a year in dock for a proper conversion, depending on available resources (including qualified workers). For the local systems, it was far easier to use them "as is" and live with their known excess mass issues.

Remora is semi-canon, as it comes from the old FASA gaming continuity. Both Charger and Barracuda are fanon, sadly, but I know that won't stop some of you from using them anyway in your own stuff. XD

Live long and prosper.

TRIVIA - The entire "engineering" back half of Remora and both of its subclasses can be detached and slid out of the forward primary-hull-and-wings section, just as with an emergency saucer separation on a regular Class I starships. This was a deliberate design feature that made upgrading somewhat easier (only having to work on half the ship at a time), as well being available for emergency purposes.

ASIDE - If you in your thread of the Trek multiverse want to avoid the extra added mass of the added single fore/single aft phototorps of the Charger version or upgrade, do what many fans have done with their Feddies and add two forward-firing phototorps by cutting a notch in the forward part of the primary hull (Akyazi family style) and installing them there. You've actually saved some mass by doing it that way, although you're losing or having to relocate elsewhere what would normally be in that spot in a standard Remora. You might also consider two single mounts in the forward "tips" of each of Remora's side "wings." You won't save as much mass that way, but you're not adding that much either assuming you "lose" whatever's in there.

Description

Ported to OBJ from the fan created model made for the Starfleet Command (SFC) series of video games. Based on the original Remora class design created by Forest Brown and Dana Knutson for FASA Corporation's various Franchise licensed Trek gaming products back in the day. Preview picture posed in XNALara XPS. NO MODEL DOWNLOAD.

Remora was one of the most anticipated all-new starship classes built for the Federation Starfleet during the first decade of the TMP era. She was intended to replaced the aged but venerated (and uprated) Larson as Starfleet's new destroyer leader class; however, that was not meant to be. Starfleet made the same mistake with Remora that it did with Durret in creating a vessel that had too much hull to push for its single warp engine -- and never mind that the extra hull was better shaped for high speed and better maneuverability at warp. It was still too much hull, and to quote my own Federation Fleet Review (FFR) with regard to the conclusion reached from the class ship's builder's trials, "The end result was a bulky, underpowered 'pan handle' that barely qualified as a destroyer and definitely failed as a destroyer leader." The entire production block of 24 hulls was put on construction hold while a long laundry list of changes were made to the design. Remora never fully overcame her excessive mass issues even with the changes, but compromise values were eventually reached and class production resumed. All the same Remora's official classification was changed to escort given her slower than expected top speed and resulting repurposing within Starfleet's grand scheme. Mention should also be made of the Charger sub-class, constituting the last eight Remoras launched, with lots of mass saved via an altered design and use of lighter alloys but with part of that made back up by the addition of two phototorp systems, one each firing fore and aft, which finally gave the class a decent heavy weapons capability (Remora as built had none). All of the older Remoras eventually got a Charger style heavy weapons upgrade over time, although as already noted it added to their excess mass issues. The excess mass issue was never solved satisfactorily and Starfleet eventually bypassed the matter altogether late in the TMP era with Barracuda, the third and final iteration or sub-class, which was first intended as a light assault ship to support Marine operations before being re-relegated for Starfleet use. It was essentially Charger with a second warp engine added so that it had two in a paired mount where one had been before, and finally providing the design with the extra power it so sorely needed. Barracuda came very late in the TMP era and to many was what Remora should have been all along, but construction was abruptly cut off due to the signing of the Khitomer Accords, with only a few examples in service and the rest scrapped in their slips per one of its provisos. Starfleet eventually had to content itself with refitting as many of its older Remoras and Chargers as it could afford to the more robust Barracuda design. Not surprisingly, only a few got the Barracuda upgrade, and when the entire Remora family was retired well into the post-TMP era there were more than a few that had never received it (and never would). None of the original Barracudas or upgraded Remoras or Chargers survived the scrapper's torch, but a few non-upgraded ones were bought by Federation local systems for their own defense fleets and some of these would survive long enough (and change hands several times in the process) to see the TNG/DS9/VOY era (*).

(*) - These surviving non-upgraded Remoras could have always been upgraded to the more robust two warp engined Barracuda design, provided one could find and buy the necessary second warp engine and have it properly installed. Starfleet boneyards would be a natural source even in that era given what we know (TNG "The Best of Both Worlds," "Unification"). However, finding the late TMP era custom Barracuda dual warp engine pylons, plasma feed conduits, and other internal pylon supporting systems and such, or even building functional analogs from scratch, much less retooling the ship's warp core to handle the feeds for the second warp engine, would have been the real problems. You're looking at least six months to a year in dock for a proper conversion, depending on available resources (including qualified workers). For the local systems, it was far easier to use them "as is" and live with their known excess mass issues.

Remora is semi-canon, as it comes from the old FASA gaming continuity. Both Charger and Barracuda are fanon, sadly, but I know that won't stop some of you from using them anyway in your own stuff. XD

Live long and prosper.

TRIVIA - The entire "engineering" back half of Remora and both of its subclasses can be detached and slid out of the forward primary-hull-and-wings section, just as with an emergency saucer separation on a regular Class I starships. This was a deliberate design feature that made upgrading somewhat easier (only having to work on half the ship at a time), as well being available for emergency purposes.

ASIDE - If you in your thread of the Trek multiverse want to avoid the extra added mass of the added single fore/single aft phototorps of the Charger version or upgrade, do what many fans have done with their Feddies and add two forward-firing phototorps by cutting a notch in the forward part of the primary hull (Akyazi family style) and installing them there. You've actually saved some mass by doing it that way, although you're losing or having to relocate elsewhere what would normally be in that spot in a standard Remora. You might also consider two single mounts in the forward "tips" of each of Remora's side "wings." You won't save as much mass that way, but you're not adding that much either assuming you "lose" whatever's in there.