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Description
Author’s Note
The following is a fairly major correction to Commonwealth of Saumur's national information simply because I noticed an artistic scaling discrepancy as well as some errors in the fluff text in regards to the standing Nexus timeline for the Lost Galaxy RP. The following information can largely be considered an overwrite of the old, and can also in instances where RP has not revealed the information be considered out of character until events bring it to light. For note two capitol scale vessels were excluded from this list; the Talus class Frigate and, Qamata Surveillance vessel.

Tactical Overview

CT-53 Atakora Class Fleet Carrier
Deploy Date: 92 AE

The Atakora class was originally designed in 68 AE and its designer’s life was shrouded in personal tragedy and obscurity. The design itself was adopted by the Commonwealth Navy in 82 AE. The Atakora is a unique type of flight deck carrier because it bears the ability to jettison its flight decks in the event of damage that could destroy the entire vessel. Exceptional engineering went into making the carrier and condensing the vessels primary craft handling facilities in the forward 40% of the vessel. The special consideration or such a system included a separate power supply, life support system and even a ‘slave’ computer that on its own would be deemed a secondary system but while the flight decks are attached operates as a part of the main computer contained in the rear 605 of the vessel along with all the primary critical operations equipment. As a whole, the Atakora carries the most fighter craft, small craft and dropships into battle of any Commonwealth warship and if one were to spot a group of these vessels inbound with a number of Sabarei class cruisers and the new-models of Sakalera-Tara class armored cruisers there would be one of two possible conclusions to the intentions of the commonwealth; invasion, or the beginning of a massive military relief operation.


CT-9C Maasai Class Carrier
Deploy Date: 87 AE

The Maasai class was originally named the Opathe class and is the oldest serving vessel in the fleet with the Shakalera-Tara class cruiser being second oldest and the Zeugma class multi-mission destroyer being third oldest. The arrival of the Atakora class effectively ended the career of the Maasai since the older fleet carrier could not transport as many units as efficiently for as long as the Atakora. A number of Maasai class carriers were stripped down and stricken from the navy register while a limited few were overhauled to act as both an intermediary carrier and as a fighter and craft maintenance vessel with added manufacturing facilities. The new Maasai which is visually similar enough to the old eliminates some of the more dangerous features that plagued the old designs such as externally stored fuel transfer systems and thin armor over critical internal spaces. A new thrust vectoring system grants the carrier better turning speed and the addition of the new type cooling towers ensures that even under maximum speed evasive maneuvers the vessel runs no hotter than any other Commonwealth carrier.

CT-32F Unathi Class Flight Deck Carrier
Deploy Date: 84 AE

The Unathi class carrier has gone through a number of developmental changes since its introduction as part of the Carondelet series of cruisers when it was considered a hybrid cruiser. The new Unathi class adds additional communications and sensor equipment, added anti-torpedo defenses as well as additional thrust vectoring system. The thrust vectoring systems were part of a “3:3:3” Force Projection Asset program that came to national importance as the Atakora Class went through trials and proved to be able to out-turn both the Maasai and Unathi classes. The Commonwealth Department of Naval Review made it a policy that all commonwealth carriers regardless of size were required to be retrofitted with enough thrust vectoring systems to match the Atakora which was the fastest at the time. The resulting retrofitted vectoring systems made the Unathi worthy of a new numerical designation, but not a renaming as the vessel visibly had changed little.

CT-42C Ericsson Class Dreadnought
Deploy Date: Prototypes in 88 AE, Formally launched in 90 AE

The Ericsson is one of those vessels that seems archaic in its passing but is the product of the observation of a tactical oversight by Commonwealth Naval Command. The Ericsson class along with the New Zeugma class and the new Towhee class form the third of the “3:3:3” groups and are considered the Asset Denial Group. Overall the Ericsson is deemed a dreadnought due to its displacement and intended role as a carrier of heavy firepower that does not comprise of a fighter complement. In general the Ericsson is able to hit targets in its optimal range with fair accuracy but, with the addition of the Towhee class Frigate acting as a forward spotter, and the Zeugma class destroyer acting as a signal relay and screening element for the fleet the Ericsson becomes very accurate and gains an added range of fire boost that allows it to potentially strike targets outside of the normal range of the fleets guns. Additionally the Ericsson carries a special group of mainly defense oriented fighters and small craft as well as special squadrons of designated light fighters which act as spotters for the vessel.

CT-30 Sabarei Class Cruiser
Deploy Date: Protypes in 83 AE, formally launched in 85 AE.

The Sabarei class cruiser was the second vessel in the Commonwealth arsenal to explicitly include internal docks for dropships in its design. Prototypes were present at Operation Black Dog (83-84 AE) but the vessel was not formally launched until early 85 AE. The original design called for six docks carried along the port and starboard sides and the modern version has eight. Overall one could call the Sabarei either an assault cruiser or a heavy cruiser depending on if it is transporting raiders or troop ships for a planetary landing. Overall the Sabarei is consider a much larger Shakalera-Tara with the exception that its armament leans more towards the anti-capitol side and less point defense is involved. The Sabarei is a member of the ‘3:3:3’ planetary objective warfare group and as such has full coordination capabilities. The original model Sabarei was the first vessel to have feature full regenerative hull plating which set the standard for all vessels in the modern commonwealth navy with exception to the smallest two classes of vessel. The distinction of being the first vessel to have any amount of regenerative hull plating however is still an accolade of the Sabarei’s direct predecessor the Shakalera-Tara Class.

CT-28T Sakalera-Tara Class Armored Cruiser (Constellation Class Variant)
Deploy Date: originally 40 AE, rebuilt in 60AE, refitted in 79-80 AE.

If the old saying that ‘everything that is old is new again eventually’ can be taken literally then no vessel in the Commonwealth arsenal represents the saying better than the Shakalera-Tara class. The new Constellation variant is part of the ‘3:3:3’ Planetary Objective Warfare group and is the smallest commonwealth vessel to feature internal dropship docks. The focus of the new variant is on its strong point defense capabilities and fleet coordination. As such, the vessels of this class are equipped with the latest in Commonwealth technologies and on the offense the main armament is nothing to dismiss as the vessels of the type always had a respectable bite and a reasonably thick armor belt. The existence of the constellation variant would not have been possible had it not been for the voyages of the CSS Tyrol under the command of Commodore Duvalier between the years of 80 and late 82 AE. The commodore took a detachment into a string of battles across the territorial space of the Coalition of shattered stars against the Serian League and attained a string of victories that many would have considered impossible back home. The actions opened the door for the construction and deployment of the Shakalera-Tara’s successor and forced the early retirement of the Shakalera-Tara itself. Not content to allow the ship to go quietly the newly promoted Staff-Admiral Duvalier managed to rescue three more vessels of the type in addition to the CSS Tyrol from the wrecker’s yard at Kincross Industrial. The four ships were overhauled and participated in Operation Black Dog (83-84 AE), a major raid against Serian League naval assets that was successful and proved the Shakalera-Tara type was still viable but in need of a overhaul. The new Shakalera-Tara was renamed the Constellation class, and has been given a new designation.

CT-X51 Zeugma Class
Deploy Date: 87 AE

The new Zeugma class came as a result of the strategic lessons learned from losses along the glittering high way between the years of 83 and 84 AE. It was known that the original Zeugma class vessel as a capable craft and its modular design allowed for great variability but, the original model was not inherently design for a long drawn out state of war. The frailties of the multi-mission model became apparent but the merits of the design could not be ignored also. Initially it was thought that an entirely new vessel would be needed but the cost in materials, crew training and provisioning were prohibitive. The solution was to take the already successful original zeugma, and toughen up the entire vessel for war. The resulting vessel looks a lot like the original but is 50 meters longer, and has an entirely different engine array. The biggest change between the new and old Zeugma is the fact that the primary armament is mounted in retractable turrets which is only possible because the hull was lengthened by 50 meters. The original Zeugma had fixed-forward firing torpedo systems which caused the obvious targeting limitations. The new vessel is less modular but tougher and better suited for war.


CT-10V Zeugma Class Multi-Mission Destroyer
Deploy Date: 42 AE originally, refitted in 62 AE. 72 AE, 82 AE.

The Zeugma class was among the earliest capitol warships of the Commonwealth fleet and has visually remained virtually unchanged since its introduction. The vessel still sports its classic multi-mission pods on four spars arrayed around the stern of the vessel a drive ring and a centralized sub-light drive cluster along with four thrust vectoring ports. The original Zeugma retains its role as the modular workhorse of the fleet because its entire purpose is to fill any role in the fleet that either a larger vessel would be impractical for or an equivalent scale or smaller vessel simply lacks the manpower and internal space allotments to perform adequately. A cadre of these vessels are commonly seen performing scientific, medical relief, and political (port calls) duties. A large number of these vessels were sent to the Coalition in a stripped down state to aid in their war with the Serian League and have performed well in foreign hands. As a whole one could effectively state that the original Zeugma was and still is the true workhorse of the fleet, as its crews perform tasks that may not catch the headlines or get the citations and medals but are absolutely essential to the Commonwealth’s interests.

CT-15F Towhee Mark III Class Frigate
Deploy Date: Originally 48 AE, rebuild 68 AE, Second rebuild 88 AE.

The Towhee class has served the commonwealth for several decades with a respectable record and is generally well liked by its crews. During its term of service the Towhee has had three major redesigns, each of which was very extensive to the point of entirely changing the vessels outward appearance and internal layout. Always intended as a very forward-designed vessel with an optimized geometric layout the Towhee class has always been one of the strangest looking vessels in the fleet short of anything designed by the Malik. The original design was conceived as a anti-capitol ship frigate whereas the redesign kept that aspect but added the ability to launch and recover fighters and small craft to make the vessel easier to operate on patrols. The most recent changes to the design involve moving the engines into the port and starboard hull sponsons while the aft of the vessel was reduced to accommodate the internal spaces needed to host and maintain fighters and small craft for the “3:3:3” Area Denial Group.


CT-63 Meroe Mark II Class Torpedo Sloop (Corvette)
Deploy Date: Originally 61 AE, upgraded in 85 AE.

The Meroe class Torpedo sloop has been in service to the Commonwealth of Saumur since 61 AE. Upgrades and retrofits to the basic design have kept the small corvette in service throughout several minor conflicts and border incursions against a number of foes. Inevitably it is the most well-known commonwealth warship and the one that is in every battle big or small. The Meroe recently was overhauled with new technology, but is also one of the few vessels not equipped with regenerative hull plating. Instead the Meroe has a proportionately thicker hide of TIND alloy armor that includes inter-plating spaces filled with dampening materials to reduce the effects of hits and torpedoes against the vessel’s hull. This spaced armor is a critical feature because the Meroe has always been a torpedo-sloop and as such its job is to attack larger vessels which puts the Meroe class at higher risk for loss. The Meroe type sloops are best known for their flashy paint schemes as Commonwealth naval command has given Meroe crews a bit more liberty than the rest of the navy assignments simply because of the higher than average risk of normal operations aboard a Meroe Class.

Tactical Capabilities

After the fall of the Lavetier Dynasty, the commonwealth navy remained virtually unchanged in tactics for almost twenty-eight years. In reality the strategies used by the navy to fight enemy combatants during the Lavetier reign were similar to those used afterwards. When it came to looking impressive in front of similar scale navies and fending off random insurgent groups and pirates the strategies were reasonable especially during a time of what could be called peace as there were no formal declarations of war. The first encounters with the Serian League however bad they were by the numbers brought about a landmark change in the thinking of the Commonwealth navy. The initial response to the technologically superior Serian league was at first to redeploy the best available at the time to the fronts most likely to see Serian aggression. This strategy worked at first but then the losses along the glittering highway a critical trade route between the Commonwealth and the Coalition became too regular and far too many to be written off. The Commonwealth retained the tactic but with a proviso to try to avoid pitched stand up battles in large groups and instead to make small unit battles where the Serians could not bring their greater firepower to bear as easily. The revised tactic was more or less a delaying action while the strategists and architects of the navy studied and proposed how to rebuild the fleet to meet the threat. It was known at the time that realistically the only way to achieve parity with the enemy was on average to make any new vessel 25% larger by displacement to offset the amount of damage the Serian vessels were able to receive and deliver. But larger vessels was to inarticulate a concept to be effective so additional solutions while the losses mounted.

The two events that altered the course of military thinking in the commonwealth were the battle of three points, where the Serians were defeated by attrition, and Operation Black Dog where the Serians were defeated by a new combined arms approach that integrated numerous units into a coherent war fleet that struck where the Serians did not expect with a similar rate of mobility that the Serians themselves had previously used against convoy traffic on the glittering highway. The action while costly as only thirteen of the original fifty ships returned proved that even with the technology gap the Serians could be defeated on their home turf. The navy developed the “3:3:3” policy which ended the old navy tradition of giving its ship commands absolute dominion over their vessels in similar fashion to the days of the age of sail. Instead the “3:3:3” doctrine called for a combined arms approach which was based on the battle formation of the 18th fleet when it engaged during Operation Black Dog. Vessels would be more standardized and assembled to give the greatest possible benefit to their comrades, while vessels with shared mission traits were often grouped or operated in useful proximity to toughen the battle line against enemy attempts to divide and conquer. The “3:3:3” concept itself also required a rebuild of several nearly-completed vessels and a revision of common engineering practices in star ship design also. At least one retired design was returned to service (Shakalera-Tara) and one old design was overhauled to meet the new standard. Obviously there is some expected resistance to the change in military policy by some hard-liners who assert that the victories were flukes rather than major tactical innovations. It is expected that certain naval commands who insist on being traditional will resist any attempt to enforce the new policies but even they are beholden to the court of public opinion and if these commands keep being defeated then eventually they will be proceed to change or the commands forcefully retired by either executive order or by last rites in combat.



Deployment (92 AE)

It is clear that every vessel listed in this document is considered deployed and given the wartime status of the commonwealth all vessels will inevitably see combat. The events of Operation Black Dog have emboldened the Commonwealth Navy’s reluctant elements and solidified political support against an enemy thought to be limitless and unrelenting. The commonwealth as of this writing is rushing to replace losses but the fleet to watch isn’t any of the fleets that get the most spotlight for trails and patrols but rather the 18th fleet headquartered at Kincross Industrial yards, as innovation and victory seems to come from the 18th.

Description
Author’s Note
The following is a fairly major correction to Commonwealth of Saumur's national information simply because I noticed an artistic scaling discrepancy as well as some errors in the fluff text in regards to the standing Nexus timeline for the Lost Galaxy RP. The following information can largely be considered an overwrite of the old, and can also in instances where RP has not revealed the information be considered out of character until events bring it to light. For note two capitol scale vessels were excluded from this list; the Talus class Frigate and, Qamata Surveillance vessel.

Tactical Overview

CT-53 Atakora Class Fleet Carrier
Deploy Date: 92 AE

The Atakora class was originally designed in 68 AE and its designer’s life was shrouded in personal tragedy and obscurity. The design itself was adopted by the Commonwealth Navy in 82 AE. The Atakora is a unique type of flight deck carrier because it bears the ability to jettison its flight decks in the event of damage that could destroy the entire vessel. Exceptional engineering went into making the carrier and condensing the vessels primary craft handling facilities in the forward 40% of the vessel. The special consideration or such a system included a separate power supply, life support system and even a ‘slave’ computer that on its own would be deemed a secondary system but while the flight decks are attached operates as a part of the main computer contained in the rear 605 of the vessel along with all the primary critical operations equipment. As a whole, the Atakora carries the most fighter craft, small craft and dropships into battle of any Commonwealth warship and if one were to spot a group of these vessels inbound with a number of Sabarei class cruisers and the new-models of Sakalera-Tara class armored cruisers there would be one of two possible conclusions to the intentions of the commonwealth; invasion, or the beginning of a massive military relief operation.


CT-9C Maasai Class Carrier
Deploy Date: 87 AE

The Maasai class was originally named the Opathe class and is the oldest serving vessel in the fleet with the Shakalera-Tara class cruiser being second oldest and the Zeugma class multi-mission destroyer being third oldest. The arrival of the Atakora class effectively ended the career of the Maasai since the older fleet carrier could not transport as many units as efficiently for as long as the Atakora. A number of Maasai class carriers were stripped down and stricken from the navy register while a limited few were overhauled to act as both an intermediary carrier and as a fighter and craft maintenance vessel with added manufacturing facilities. The new Maasai which is visually similar enough to the old eliminates some of the more dangerous features that plagued the old designs such as externally stored fuel transfer systems and thin armor over critical internal spaces. A new thrust vectoring system grants the carrier better turning speed and the addition of the new type cooling towers ensures that even under maximum speed evasive maneuvers the vessel runs no hotter than any other Commonwealth carrier.

CT-32F Unathi Class Flight Deck Carrier
Deploy Date: 84 AE

The Unathi class carrier has gone through a number of developmental changes since its introduction as part of the Carondelet series of cruisers when it was considered a hybrid cruiser. The new Unathi class adds additional communications and sensor equipment, added anti-torpedo defenses as well as additional thrust vectoring system. The thrust vectoring systems were part of a “3:3:3” Force Projection Asset program that came to national importance as the Atakora Class went through trials and proved to be able to out-turn both the Maasai and Unathi classes. The Commonwealth Department of Naval Review made it a policy that all commonwealth carriers regardless of size were required to be retrofitted with enough thrust vectoring systems to match the Atakora which was the fastest at the time. The resulting retrofitted vectoring systems made the Unathi worthy of a new numerical designation, but not a renaming as the vessel visibly had changed little.

CT-42C Ericsson Class Dreadnought
Deploy Date: Prototypes in 88 AE, Formally launched in 90 AE

The Ericsson is one of those vessels that seems archaic in its passing but is the product of the observation of a tactical oversight by Commonwealth Naval Command. The Ericsson class along with the New Zeugma class and the new Towhee class form the third of the “3:3:3” groups and are considered the Asset Denial Group. Overall the Ericsson is deemed a dreadnought due to its displacement and intended role as a carrier of heavy firepower that does not comprise of a fighter complement. In general the Ericsson is able to hit targets in its optimal range with fair accuracy but, with the addition of the Towhee class Frigate acting as a forward spotter, and the Zeugma class destroyer acting as a signal relay and screening element for the fleet the Ericsson becomes very accurate and gains an added range of fire boost that allows it to potentially strike targets outside of the normal range of the fleets guns. Additionally the Ericsson carries a special group of mainly defense oriented fighters and small craft as well as special squadrons of designated light fighters which act as spotters for the vessel.

CT-30 Sabarei Class Cruiser
Deploy Date: Protypes in 83 AE, formally launched in 85 AE.

The Sabarei class cruiser was the second vessel in the Commonwealth arsenal to explicitly include internal docks for dropships in its design. Prototypes were present at Operation Black Dog (83-84 AE) but the vessel was not formally launched until early 85 AE. The original design called for six docks carried along the port and starboard sides and the modern version has eight. Overall one could call the Sabarei either an assault cruiser or a heavy cruiser depending on if it is transporting raiders or troop ships for a planetary landing. Overall the Sabarei is consider a much larger Shakalera-Tara with the exception that its armament leans more towards the anti-capitol side and less point defense is involved. The Sabarei is a member of the ‘3:3:3’ planetary objective warfare group and as such has full coordination capabilities. The original model Sabarei was the first vessel to have feature full regenerative hull plating which set the standard for all vessels in the modern commonwealth navy with exception to the smallest two classes of vessel. The distinction of being the first vessel to have any amount of regenerative hull plating however is still an accolade of the Sabarei’s direct predecessor the Shakalera-Tara Class.

CT-28T Sakalera-Tara Class Armored Cruiser (Constellation Class Variant)
Deploy Date: originally 40 AE, rebuilt in 60AE, refitted in 79-80 AE.

If the old saying that ‘everything that is old is new again eventually’ can be taken literally then no vessel in the Commonwealth arsenal represents the saying better than the Shakalera-Tara class. The new Constellation variant is part of the ‘3:3:3’ Planetary Objective Warfare group and is the smallest commonwealth vessel to feature internal dropship docks. The focus of the new variant is on its strong point defense capabilities and fleet coordination. As such, the vessels of this class are equipped with the latest in Commonwealth technologies and on the offense the main armament is nothing to dismiss as the vessels of the type always had a respectable bite and a reasonably thick armor belt. The existence of the constellation variant would not have been possible had it not been for the voyages of the CSS Tyrol under the command of Commodore Duvalier between the years of 80 and late 82 AE. The commodore took a detachment into a string of battles across the territorial space of the Coalition of shattered stars against the Serian League and attained a string of victories that many would have considered impossible back home. The actions opened the door for the construction and deployment of the Shakalera-Tara’s successor and forced the early retirement of the Shakalera-Tara itself. Not content to allow the ship to go quietly the newly promoted Staff-Admiral Duvalier managed to rescue three more vessels of the type in addition to the CSS Tyrol from the wrecker’s yard at Kincross Industrial. The four ships were overhauled and participated in Operation Black Dog (83-84 AE), a major raid against Serian League naval assets that was successful and proved the Shakalera-Tara type was still viable but in need of a overhaul. The new Shakalera-Tara was renamed the Constellation class, and has been given a new designation.

CT-X51 Zeugma Class
Deploy Date: 87 AE

The new Zeugma class came as a result of the strategic lessons learned from losses along the glittering high way between the years of 83 and 84 AE. It was known that the original Zeugma class vessel as a capable craft and its modular design allowed for great variability but, the original model was not inherently design for a long drawn out state of war. The frailties of the multi-mission model became apparent but the merits of the design could not be ignored also. Initially it was thought that an entirely new vessel would be needed but the cost in materials, crew training and provisioning were prohibitive. The solution was to take the already successful original zeugma, and toughen up the entire vessel for war. The resulting vessel looks a lot like the original but is 50 meters longer, and has an entirely different engine array. The biggest change between the new and old Zeugma is the fact that the primary armament is mounted in retractable turrets which is only possible because the hull was lengthened by 50 meters. The original Zeugma had fixed-forward firing torpedo systems which caused the obvious targeting limitations. The new vessel is less modular but tougher and better suited for war.


CT-10V Zeugma Class Multi-Mission Destroyer
Deploy Date: 42 AE originally, refitted in 62 AE. 72 AE, 82 AE.

The Zeugma class was among the earliest capitol warships of the Commonwealth fleet and has visually remained virtually unchanged since its introduction. The vessel still sports its classic multi-mission pods on four spars arrayed around the stern of the vessel a drive ring and a centralized sub-light drive cluster along with four thrust vectoring ports. The original Zeugma retains its role as the modular workhorse of the fleet because its entire purpose is to fill any role in the fleet that either a larger vessel would be impractical for or an equivalent scale or smaller vessel simply lacks the manpower and internal space allotments to perform adequately. A cadre of these vessels are commonly seen performing scientific, medical relief, and political (port calls) duties. A large number of these vessels were sent to the Coalition in a stripped down state to aid in their war with the Serian League and have performed well in foreign hands. As a whole one could effectively state that the original Zeugma was and still is the true workhorse of the fleet, as its crews perform tasks that may not catch the headlines or get the citations and medals but are absolutely essential to the Commonwealth’s interests.

CT-15F Towhee Mark III Class Frigate
Deploy Date: Originally 48 AE, rebuild 68 AE, Second rebuild 88 AE.

The Towhee class has served the commonwealth for several decades with a respectable record and is generally well liked by its crews. During its term of service the Towhee has had three major redesigns, each of which was very extensive to the point of entirely changing the vessels outward appearance and internal layout. Always intended as a very forward-designed vessel with an optimized geometric layout the Towhee class has always been one of the strangest looking vessels in the fleet short of anything designed by the Malik. The original design was conceived as a anti-capitol ship frigate whereas the redesign kept that aspect but added the ability to launch and recover fighters and small craft to make the vessel easier to operate on patrols. The most recent changes to the design involve moving the engines into the port and starboard hull sponsons while the aft of the vessel was reduced to accommodate the internal spaces needed to host and maintain fighters and small craft for the “3:3:3” Area Denial Group.


CT-63 Meroe Mark II Class Torpedo Sloop (Corvette)
Deploy Date: Originally 61 AE, upgraded in 85 AE.

The Meroe class Torpedo sloop has been in service to the Commonwealth of Saumur since 61 AE. Upgrades and retrofits to the basic design have kept the small corvette in service throughout several minor conflicts and border incursions against a number of foes. Inevitably it is the most well-known commonwealth warship and the one that is in every battle big or small. The Meroe recently was overhauled with new technology, but is also one of the few vessels not equipped with regenerative hull plating. Instead the Meroe has a proportionately thicker hide of TIND alloy armor that includes inter-plating spaces filled with dampening materials to reduce the effects of hits and torpedoes against the vessel’s hull. This spaced armor is a critical feature because the Meroe has always been a torpedo-sloop and as such its job is to attack larger vessels which puts the Meroe class at higher risk for loss. The Meroe type sloops are best known for their flashy paint schemes as Commonwealth naval command has given Meroe crews a bit more liberty than the rest of the navy assignments simply because of the higher than average risk of normal operations aboard a Meroe Class.

Tactical Capabilities

After the fall of the Lavetier Dynasty, the commonwealth navy remained virtually unchanged in tactics for almost twenty-eight years. In reality the strategies used by the navy to fight enemy combatants during the Lavetier reign were similar to those used afterwards. When it came to looking impressive in front of similar scale navies and fending off random insurgent groups and pirates the strategies were reasonable especially during a time of what could be called peace as there were no formal declarations of war. The first encounters with the Serian League however bad they were by the numbers brought about a landmark change in the thinking of the Commonwealth navy. The initial response to the technologically superior Serian league was at first to redeploy the best available at the time to the fronts most likely to see Serian aggression. This strategy worked at first but then the losses along the glittering highway a critical trade route between the Commonwealth and the Coalition became too regular and far too many to be written off. The Commonwealth retained the tactic but with a proviso to try to avoid pitched stand up battles in large groups and instead to make small unit battles where the Serians could not bring their greater firepower to bear as easily. The revised tactic was more or less a delaying action while the strategists and architects of the navy studied and proposed how to rebuild the fleet to meet the threat. It was known at the time that realistically the only way to achieve parity with the enemy was on average to make any new vessel 25% larger by displacement to offset the amount of damage the Serian vessels were able to receive and deliver. But larger vessels was to inarticulate a concept to be effective so additional solutions while the losses mounted.

The two events that altered the course of military thinking in the commonwealth were the battle of three points, where the Serians were defeated by attrition, and Operation Black Dog where the Serians were defeated by a new combined arms approach that integrated numerous units into a coherent war fleet that struck where the Serians did not expect with a similar rate of mobility that the Serians themselves had previously used against convoy traffic on the glittering highway. The action while costly as only thirteen of the original fifty ships returned proved that even with the technology gap the Serians could be defeated on their home turf. The navy developed the “3:3:3” policy which ended the old navy tradition of giving its ship commands absolute dominion over their vessels in similar fashion to the days of the age of sail. Instead the “3:3:3” doctrine called for a combined arms approach which was based on the battle formation of the 18th fleet when it engaged during Operation Black Dog. Vessels would be more standardized and assembled to give the greatest possible benefit to their comrades, while vessels with shared mission traits were often grouped or operated in useful proximity to toughen the battle line against enemy attempts to divide and conquer. The “3:3:3” concept itself also required a rebuild of several nearly-completed vessels and a revision of common engineering practices in star ship design also. At least one retired design was returned to service (Shakalera-Tara) and one old design was overhauled to meet the new standard. Obviously there is some expected resistance to the change in military policy by some hard-liners who assert that the victories were flukes rather than major tactical innovations. It is expected that certain naval commands who insist on being traditional will resist any attempt to enforce the new policies but even they are beholden to the court of public opinion and if these commands keep being defeated then eventually they will be proceed to change or the commands forcefully retired by either executive order or by last rites in combat.



Deployment (92 AE)

It is clear that every vessel listed in this document is considered deployed and given the wartime status of the commonwealth all vessels will inevitably see combat. The events of Operation Black Dog have emboldened the Commonwealth Navy’s reluctant elements and solidified political support against an enemy thought to be limitless and unrelenting. The commonwealth as of this writing is rushing to replace losses but the fleet to watch isn’t any of the fleets that get the most spotlight for trails and patrols but rather the 18th fleet headquartered at Kincross Industrial yards, as innovation and victory seems to come from the 18th.