E.A.S. GLADIUM

The Gladium is an heavy assault ship (In fact, a derivation of the Centurion class Dreadnought) developed by the E.F.N.I. with the economical support of the Earth Force Navy and of the E.F. M.O.D. It is officially classified as "Frontal Assault Vector".

The hull is a direct derivation of the Centurion frame, but the design is sleeker,the ship is smaller, and the overall concept is far more specialized than the big dreadnoughts. The main engines are the same eight Gravitic Enhanced Plasma Engines of the former battleship, with a different, more compact installation, and the provisions for the "Waverider II" gravitic drive are retained. The power installed, matched with a ship lighter than the Centurions, allows high linear acceleration and acceptable maneuverability. The main energy grid includes eight main reactors, four high power auxiliary reactors for the weapon feeding, and an enormous capacitor bank that allows to fire a burst of 88 discharges of the main spinal laser in 15 seconds.
A new installation is the "encased" crew module: the whole command deck, that is well deep inside the hull, is an heavily armored capsule, that holds the whole crew of the ship in combat situations, and, in emergency conditions, can be ejected: the module holds life support facilities, an autonomous propulsion and navigation system, a booster that allows high "one shot" acceleration and a pre-charged small vortex generator, that allows the capsule to quickly open a jump point. The exit from the hyperspace can be done only through jump points opened by other units, or through jump-gates.

The Weapon system is singular: the turret installed weapon system is similar but less articulated than the one of the Centurions, eight M381 Gravitic Fusion Pulse Cannons and four twin railgun turrets, and a large number of pulse/particle A.A. emplacements, but instead of the G.O.D. cannons, the hull holds the biggest spinal pulse laser known, with an energy capacitor bank that allows to fire a quick burst of high rate of fire high energy discharges. The spinal laser can then cotinue the fire, but with a slower rate. The weapon itself is more than a kilometer long, and it is able to pierce through "about a mile of solid steel", as declared by the builder: the destructive power is lesser than the last models of G.O.D. cannons, but the incredible penetration seems unmatched even by the Quantum Discharge Cannon of the Victory class cruisers (Whose power is higher, of course), and, as known, it's well enough to pierce the hull of a ship of "First Ones" level of protection. It's important to not forget that, as known, the only races seeming able to shield themselves from the visible light ray of a laser are the Walkers of Sigma957 and the Triad, and both of them with the others First Ones left this Galaxy.

The armor protection, particularly in the frontal arc, is very heavy, and the interceptor/energy web grid is the most effective ever installed on an Earth Alliance ship. Technologies for the sensors, the Fire Control Systems and the armour have been provided by the Technical division of the E.F.N.I.

The ship is well able to cover the dreadnought/battleship role, but the whole design it's aimed to a particular purpose: a fast linear attack to a single target, against which can be fired a devastating burst of the most piercing weapon ever developed. The ship is conceived to flank and support Warlocks and Centurions in situations of high menace. The care placed in the crew protection and escape installations seems to indicate that an high speed ramming of the target is something that cannot be deductively excluded.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Class: Gladium
Type: Assault (Frontal Assault Vector)
Lenght: 2450 meters (2250 w/o antennas)
Mass: 170 millions metric tons.
Acceleration: 5,07 g, emergency overboost of 7+ g for 90 seconds.
Crew: 512
Troops: None
Fighters: 48 Mitchell-Hyundane SA-26A Thunderbolt Starfury or 48 Mitchell-Hyundane SA-32 Firebolt Starfury.

Power/Propulsion:
8*Westinghouse "Event Horizon-II" Gravitic Enhanced Fusion Reactors.
4*Westinghouse GRCK-3000 Gravitic Enhanced Fusion Reactors.
1*General Electric "SHIVA 1" Capacitor Bank
8*Lockheed-General Electric I-110LGE900 gravitic enhanced plasma engines.
2*Lockheed-Mitchell M185 Jump engines.
-Provisions for -
1*Lockheed-Mitchell GWR-2 "Waverider-II" Gravitic Drive.

Weapons:
1*A.M.S. QSL - T1000 Q-spoiling Hard-Ray Heavy Laser.
8*Westhinghouse-O.T.O. Melara M381 Heavy Gravitic Fusion Pulse cannons
4*O.T.O.Melara 127/762 Heavy railgun turrets.
54*Walther-Raytheon WRX1028 Light Pulse Cannon Turrets.
60*Sandia"Shillelagh" Missiles,15*launching tubes with automatic loading.

Defense:
18 to 35 meter armored hull,Carbonat VIII (Multi-layer composite armour), anti-neutron ablative armour, Double layer Nanotechnological armour. Frontal plate of 45 meters of thickness multi-layer/Nanotechnological armor.
56*Interceptor Mk.IV Defense Grid Energy Projectors.

E.A.S. GLADIUM FRONTAL ASSAULT VECTOR