Star Wars: From the Clone Wars to Starfaring Heroes

Chapter 48 - The New Ship
Thors agreed, letting out a low hum from deep in his throat. “That makes sense. We can’t install super-heavy turrets; the ship’s structure can’t withstand it. But you don’t need that kind of firepower to deal with small groups of harassment either. The existing communication suite also needs to be adjusted, with upgraded antenna arrays, and the addition of more powerful signal processors and encryption modules… We can handle all of that.”

He paused, his tentacles curling, and asked the crucial question: "Do you have the funds for this additional modification and upgrade? Or... the General's special grant authorization code?"

"Do you dare ask General Tann for it?" Raine retorted, a mischievous smile playing on his lips.

He figured General Tann wouldn't care too much about the extra few million credits on the bill... but if she really did care and pressed for details about how the money was used, then the future Raine would have to deal with that troublesome situation.

Carpe Diem.

Thors laughed. “Yes, yes, so… does this Pantora man need a newer type of ‘Lukerehook-class’ capital ship in his order? Our shipyard can just accommodate its skeleton.”

“‘Providence-class’,” Raine immediately corrected, his tone flat, “not the kind of dreadnought, but a smaller one, but with enough firepower to suppress cruisers.”

What he needs is cost-effectiveness and quantity.

The Quaronian quickly glanced at the inventory data panel on his wrist. “You’re in luck, sir. We have two older destroyers and a light carrier. If you have the funds, Quaron Fleet Design Corporation (QFD) is conducting sea trials of our three newest carrier-destroyer variants in this system.”

He pulled up the image: a starship with sleek lines and an unusually bulky midsection.

Ryan looked at the image, his brow furrowing slightly.

He wasn't sure if he liked this approach of integrating multiple functions.

In his experience, when someone tries to have the best of both worlds, it often leads to over-design, reduced reliability, and compromised performance in both areas.

“These aircraft carriers and destroyers,” Ryan leaned back, tapping his fingers on the handrail of the transport vehicle, “are they reliable? How have they performed in actual combat?”

“I understand what you mean. Believe me, there are good reasons why they are more expensive.” A shrewd glint flashed in Tors’s eyes. “The hangar capacity is larger than that of a standard destroyer, but the number of turrets has not been sacrificed. In fact, two heavy turbolaser cannons have been added. Let me tell you a secret…”

He lowered his voice, despite the only sound of machinery around him, “All we did was modify the internal structure design, install a new automated control system, and remove unnecessary hardware, which freed up a lot of space.”

“So you just optimized the internal system layout and replaced manpower with automation, and you gained more hangar space.” Ryan looked at the hangar deck perspective view displayed on the data panel.

“That’s right,” Tors grinned under his tentacles, with the enthusiasm of a salesman. “The section from midships to the rear? It’s almost entirely a hangar now. Let me tell you, if you buy these ships, I can give you a very favorable package deal, including the initial maintenance agreement.”

Correct.

For them, this is business.

These new carrier-destroyer variants are new products, and they need successful precedents to open up the market.

They want to use it as a mobile billboard.

Let's give them face then.

“Alright,” Ryan said after a few seconds of consideration, and finally agreed, “I want these three, but the sea trial reports and final acceptance must be perfect.”

“Great, great…” Thors’ voice was full of satisfaction at the deal being made, his fingers flying across the data panel.

As they passed the bow of a half-built "Disobedient" class frigate, Rein did not listen to Thors's subsequent explanation of the payment terms.

The massive hull frame of the "Disobedient-class" frigate stood in the center of the dock, like the ribs of a metal behemoth. A huge mechanical arm hanging from the towering ceiling emitted a low hydraulic sound as it slowly hoisted a bridge command dome module, covered with thick armor plates and shaped like a giant helmet, onto the warship's central spine frame.

The welding robot is attached to the skeleton, spewing out dense blue sparks.

The scene is grand and intricate.

"How is it possible to install the core of a robot onto a warship?" Renn asked, his gaze following the slowly descending dome.

Thors looked up from the data panel, glanced sideways at Renn, and curled his tentacles slightly, as if assessing Renn's intention in asking the question.

"The superstructure of the 'Disobedient-class' robot, especially the dome, was specifically designed to house the robot's tactical core. This is not as simple as installing navigation software; it requires customized interfaces, dedicated energy channels, and enhanced cooling systems."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "So if you're wondering if you can install it directly onto a frigate, the answer is no. If you want a robot-controlled warship, then just buy a 'Disobedient-class'!"

“Their reputation isn’t very good,” Ryan commented, recalling some battle reports. “I heard they performed well in simulated battles, but in real combat, especially when faced with unexpected situations, they often didn’t perform well.”

“Because the commander has been using the wrong methods,” the Quaron complained, his tentacles twitching excitedly. “You can’t expect a central tactical computer to react and make intuitive decisions like a biological commander. You have to write detailed operational programs for it in advance and set the action parameters.”

That's why they are useful in simulated warfare and pre-planned fleet coordination exercises.

For formation flying, precision line-of-battle shelling, and any complex maneuver requiring high synchronization of multiple warships, there is no ship more suitable than them.

But you can't just send them charging into battle like assault ships, because that would be forcing the robot cores to program themselves during combat.

Ryan looked at the ship again and noticed that its bow armor was significantly thicker than its stern armor, obviously to withstand the firepower of the formation when leading the way.

High degree of coordination?

Renn wondered how they would perform in the pre-set battle formation.

or……

"And at the strategic level?" Ryan pressed further, a new idea forming in his mind: "It requires extremely high-precision hyperspace jumps and complex hit-and-run tactics, actions that demand a high degree of coordination in interstellar navigation."

“Study the relevant star map data and enemy patrol patterns, and then write the corresponding precise jump coordinates and withdrawal schedule code,” Tors shrugged, his shell-like shoulder guards bobbing with each movement. “As long as the actions strictly follow the preset program and do not exceed their operational parameter database and computing power, they will perform perfectly. All high-level tactical robots operate this way.”

Is that right?

Renn's fingers tapped unconsciously on the edge of the data panel as he pondered the feature of "perfectly executing preset programs".

"Give me four 'Disobedient-class' warships..."

"Raine suddenly said."

Thors abruptly turned to look at Renn, his deep-set eyes widening in surprise, his tentacles instantly stiffening.

"—And also," Ryan continued, his tone leaving no room for argument, "I'd like to try something new with your best team of software engineers."

(End of this chapter)