Kopiona-class Heavy Assault Frigate

Took some pretty direct inspiration from one of Scare's ships. Can't remember the name. It's midnight right now and I can't sleep so I decided to jump on the internet. Trying to find stuff to do.

Picture:

Frigate:

Got the name from Tetra. The thing pokin' out the saucer is a rail cannon (big rail gun, really) since I can't just stick with conventional Trek weapon systems. I have to admit I kind of enjoyed the simplicity of making an ST ship, but for now I'm gonna focus on this new assault shuttle/transport I'm working on since I have mini models for all of my new starships and eventually I'll get access to AutoCAD at home...

[And here's where I take over. -Tetra]

  Designed as a “display of peaceful cooperation” by a joint-team of PCG and MSI engineers, the Kopiona boasts elements from both factions. It was decided that the PCG team would create the exterior and drive systems, whereas the MSI would take over the weaponry and internal structure. This resulted in a vessel that combined both faction’s advantages into a lean, powerful assault frigate, capable of easily taking the fight to larger vessels.
However, while the ship proved effective- brutally so, at time- the combination of PCG and MSI technology hardly synergized flawlessly. The class proved notorious for being difficult on maintenance and logistical supplies, and made for less-than-impressive structural integrity. The sublight engines were also underpowered compared to other vessels, and the experimental nature of the warp engines hardly helped matter either. This was partially rectified with an experimental thrust-vectoring design, which gave it comparably high maneuverability. The ship’s shielding system was also augmented to make up for the relatively brittle superstructure, allowing them to take larger amounts of punishment than ships of similar size.
Because many of the MSI’s team came from it’s Marine Corps, the vessel also boasts a substantial Marine detachment and a large set of assault shuttles, with the idea being that nearby enemy vessels would be blasted by the vessel’s closer-ranged weaponry and then boarded; the ships’ weapons would then be slaved to the Kopiona’s firing computers, essentially turning the target into an additional fire support platform. When test results showed that only small raiders were likely to get close enough for this strategy to be effective, the vessels was also equipped with advanced navigational computers, allowing it to close the range with a tactical warp jump and assault much larger vessels such as cruisers (which, when combined with the primary cannon, explains the vessels’ Grelfucan nickname: “Little Cruiser Killer”). The Grelfucan design influence also resulted in the Kopiona coming equipped with numerous atmospheric thrusters, allowing it to conduct in-atmo operations; squadron commanders often exploited this advantage to hide their ships in the cover of a planet’s atmosphere, either to ambush or take refuge from other, often larger vessels. Larger force commanders also used this feature to great effect by using the ship as invasion support craft, using it’s primary cannon as a fire support cannon for ground troops.
Internally, the ship is very stoic. Originally it had no R&R facilities at all, since the design concept then made the vessel out to be a short-ranged defense frigate; it was only when the ship was changed to it’s current fire support role that the PCG team was able to impress upon the MSI’s internal designers to add some recreational facilities. Other than these, the inside’s appearance is more akin to that of old diesel submarines than modern interstellar warships. However, despite the cramped quarters, the ship actually run by a skeleton crew; many of the ships systems are run on automated systems to cut down on the already-frequent compatibility issues caused by the MSI-PCG hybridization. Much of the rest of the ship’s volume in monopolized by the warp core, ammo storage, and Marine barracks.
All said, however, the ship’s most prominent feature is easily it’s main cannon: a roughly 68-meter-long Grelfucan-designed coilgun capable of firing slugs at a maximum rate of 6 shells per minute. Unfortunately, the cooling system proved unreliable, so captains generally restrict themselves to 2 RPM to prevent overheating. That being said, the weapon is quite deadly; it can easily cripple or annihilate ships of similar size in 2-3 hits, and even much larger capital ships will take notable damage (especially on their hull) when several Kopionas are firing in tandem. As a direct result, they are often high priority targets for hostile strike craft, and thus usually guarded by anti-aircraft vessels. The ships themselves pack several anti-fighter weapons in the form of PCG PD-adjusted phasers, with the brunt of ship-to-ship combat lying with it’s railguns and phaser arrays.
The combination of long and shorter-range weapons makes the Kopiona a rather versatile craft; however, it’s relative lack of ship-to-ship phasers and guided torpedo weaponry in combination with it’s low overall speed makes it vulnerable to smaller raiding corvette ships and the like. Between this and the aforementioned likelihood of targeting by strike craft means that the ship is generally countered with smaller ships, which it obviously has a much more difficult time dealing with. Therefore, in battle, commanders will often send them against larger targets such as heavy cruisers, with support from ships better suited to engaging smaller vessels (often in the form of escort destroyers or corvettes).
On a larger scale, Kopionas are generally employed in larger fleets, as smaller  outposts and such simply lack the logistical capacity to maintain them, usually  in squadrons of six or seven, plus several escorts (as stated above). The combination of PCG and MSI makes them relatively expensive and difficult to produce for their size, making them even less popular overall, but none can deny neither the sheer effectiveness of the main cannon nor the utility of it’s vessel-assault role nor it’s use in close planetary invasion support.

Spoiler:

 Interestingly, Jace specified that the ship’s length was 320-330 meters long, hence why I chose a middle length of 325; however, when I attempted to find the stud:meter ratio so I could find the other lengths, I discovered that it came out very close to my usual 1:9.5 ratio! Well, OK, it actually rounded to 9.6- but that was with some rounding on length too (the ship’s primary cannon extends about half a brick forward, which I counted as a full brick). Therefore, I ended up using my usual 1:9.5 scale anyway.
  Anyway, my personal role in the ship was minimal- all I really did was provide “creative consultation” (basically, I made a few minor suggestions when he showed it to me ). I was supposed to be the one uploading it, but I ended procrastinating and getting busy and whatever… you know how it is, I’m sure. It was actually probably a good thing Jace went ahead and uploaded it; it really provided new impetus for me to go write this whole thing up.
  I must admit to taking some creative liberties in terms of role and such, though Jace gave the OK, so I suppose I’m fine. It was interesting, coming up with all this from scratch about a ship I haven’t even built, and I’m fairly happy with how it all turned out.

Stats:
-Classification: PCDA (Siege cruiser)
-Role: Light artillery ship, fire support ship, boarding assault vessel, planetary fire support ship
-Armaments: 8 railguns, 4 phaser arrays, 6 phaser banks, 1 MAC, 4 torpedo tuubes (2 fore, 2 aft)
-Shielding: 18 primary emitters, 27 secondary emitters
-Armor: .9 inches ablative; 1.2 near bridge
-Dimensions:
   -Length: 325 meters
   -Beam: 139 meters
   -Height: 64 meters
-Impulse: impulse rating 5; acceleration rating 4, maneuver rating 8;
-Warp: 2x Vadas warp nacelles; MCW: 8.7; MEW: 9.2
-Sensors: Standard scanner range; advanced targeting C&C systems
-Crew: 27 officers; 214 crew; 156 Marines; 26 pilots
-Strike Craft: 5 utility shuttles, 12 assault shuttles (interestingly, the ship has 4 shuttle bays, three of which are for assault shuttles)


LXF on Brickshelf

I like it. Great balance of style and weapons. I love the railgun in the front; it turns the design from a traditional Trek look to something a bit more unique, and it works great. Good job!

Okay... now that is REALLY cool! It manages to look Starfleet, and yet clearly be a slap in the face to Starfleet's whole "peace through peace" philosophy. 

This is VERY well done, and I LOVE IT! I will comment more when we get LXF/specs.  


GREAT job!

Great ship, Jace! LOL, I can clearly see the resemblance between this and my Sapient Class. But yours is much better, IMO...more detail, especially aft. The aft section is very well done with a nice aesthetic balance of SNOT and detail. The bow section, specifically the saucer, is less detailed and a little out of place, IMO, but it's still a great ship overall. Well done!

Ha, I can fully type up the stats tomorrow, if you want. My understanding was that I was supposed to upload it anyway, no no big deal.


...Might add a proper Tetra description while I'm at it.....

Scarecrow wrote:Great ship, Jace! LOL, I can clearly see the resemblance between this and my Sapient Class. But yours is much better, IMO...more detail, especially aft. The aft section is very well done with a nice aesthetic balance of SNOT and detail. The bow section, specifically the saucer, is less detailed and a little out of place, IMO, but it's still a great ship overall. Well done!

Thank you, Scare! I did say (I think) that I'd be using it as a basis for a Trek ship.
And, honestly, the saucer is little more than a platform for the rail cannon and to keep the overall design style. It's round and I don't do round.

Tetrahedron wrote:Ha, I can fully type up the stats tomorrow, if you want. My understanding was that I was supposed to upload it anyway, no no big deal.


...Might add a proper Tetra description while I'm at it.....

Yes, please, add a proper description and better stats, please. Just. None of this nonsense about "balance" or things being "OP" please?

And yeah I got bored and figured that you probably forgot or didn't have time. I did, and still do, so I posted it instead. I mean I am the guy that made it...

Haha, yeah, was a bit short on time. I'll just edit it into the description, when I type it up (hopefully later today).

...also, I thought I already gave this my balance seal of approval.


EDIT: BTW, is this a PCG or MSI ship? The way you phrased it before, it sounded like a gift, but you posted it here... or is it a dual-ownership thing?

Wow, ARC, I have to say this is very impressive.

As much as I tend to dislike Trek ships, you have it a nice, cool utilitarian look that makes it that much better. I especially like the warp nacelles, very cleanly made. Then the turrets are a nice touch too. (why does no one ever seem to bother with big turrets on their ST ships? They'd greatly benefit from some big, hulking deck guns to give them a sense of sheer firepower instead of "Pew! Pew! I shoot laserz from out of nowherez!!1!1!!!" )

And cool idea with the railgun. Since ST ships seem to have exceptional sublight speed and maneuverability, not to mention what seems to be very short sublight/FTL transition times, a high-power fixed weapon like that couldn't have a better style of ship to be mounted on.

Criticism... Well, still not in love with your usual dark blue color scheme, but that's not a very good complaint I guess. But seriously, maybe try Metallic Black a little more? Ehh. Anyway.

Tetrahedron wrote:Haha, yeah, was a bit short on time. I'll just edit it into the description, when I type it up (hopefully later today).

...also, I thought I already gave this my balance seal of approval.


EDIT: BTW, is this a PCG or MSI ship? The way you phrased it before, it sounded like a gift, but you posted it here... or is it a dual-ownership thing?

I'm thinking that it looks PCG/Fed, so they'd be the main ones to use it, but it was designed by the Grelfucans, making it a...display of peaceful cooperation. Yeah, that sounds suitably diplo-babble-y.

Lord Admiral Ariklego wrote:Wow, ARC, I have to say this is very impressive.

As much as I tend to dislike Trek ships, you have it a nice, cool utilitarian look that makes it that much better. I especially like the warp nacelles, very cleanly made. Then the turrets are a nice touch too. (why does no one ever seem to bother with big turrets on their ST ships? They'd greatly benefit from some big, hulking deck guns to give them a sense of sheer firepower instead of "Pew! Pew! I shoot laserz from out of nowherez!!1!1!!!" )

And cool idea with the railgun. Since ST ships seem to have exceptional sublight speed and maneuverability, not to mention what seems to be very short sublight/FTL transition times, a high-power fixed weapon like that couldn't have a better style of ship to be mounted on.

Criticism... Well, still not in love with your usual dark blue color scheme, but that's not a very good complaint I guess. But seriously, maybe try Metallic Black a little more? Ehh. Anyway.

I do thank you for the compliments, and that was kind of my logic: "Trek ships are really like big fighters, so why not add some big guns on it instead of a bunch of phasers?"

As for my color scheme, I can say the same about you and your green. Besides, I like the dark blue color. It goes well with any shade of grey/gray, white, and black. But, just for you, I'll look into that "metallic black" on my next project.

Which is, really, a slightly larger version of the Alby because I admittedly got impatient and also realized a need for a good attack/boarding shuttle. So I decided to combine the functions of those two and a heavy-lift cargo craft into a 40-meter-long bringer-of-death-and-those-who-wreak-havoc. It even has drop pods!

EDIT: Um, Arik? Where would I use that metallic black (which isn't in the actual LDD color palette, by the by), if I were to use it?

Aaaaaaand... new description's up! Note how now almost all of the post is my wall-o-text.

Yes, exactly.

Yeah, it's kind of a "to each man his own" thing.

As to Metallic Black, no, it's not in anyone's standard palette. The reason why is that...

[Warning: Brief History Lesson Incoming!]

...So, back when LDD 3 (or 4?) was in use, for the Design by Me gallery, they had a very limited brick selection, highly unlike what they have now. You'll notice LDD, when you bring it up, has three different "themes": the main "Digital Designer" theme (or previously Factory theme, and the DbM theme before that), the Mindstorms theme, and then LDD Extended.

If you've used the first theme, it's basically got a very specific selection of pieces (which is technically the same as in LDD Extended's piece selection), and with only certain usable colors for each piece. This is because the original brick palette for Design by Me had only what pieces the DbM group could ship out for the models people made.

Later on, however, when LEGO Universe was in the works (around the time the LU Beta came out), they made a new theme for LU Beta players (I think? Somebody verify this ), called "LDD Extended". This theme had a significantly larger piece selection, as well as an enormous selection of colors that could be applied to any piece.

Not long after, LDD Extended was replaced with the LEGO Universe theme, which was baaasically the same thing, except with several pieces and most of the colors taken away.

The LDD Extended theme was, in fact, still "in LDD", so to speak, but was hidden inside the code. That didn't stop a good many people around the internet from still finding out about it and re-enabling it, though.

Eventually, LDD Extended was officially re-released as a replacement for the Universe theme, and it increased the piece and color palettes over what Universe had, and since then they've continually expanded it over time.

Unfortunately, because of the Universe theme's drastically reduced color palette and the fact that the change also altered the code itself, enabling LDD Extended didn't increase the color palette. And while they've expanded the color palette, LDD still hasn't gotten all of its original color palette.


...Fortunately, some of the people who had the original LDD Extended theme for the LU Beta were smart enough to make an .lxf file that had all of the original colors on it, and as a result that's how we still have them available, through the redistribution of those files across the internet.


Well, that's the story behind it.


As to the Metallic Black color, it's basically a super-dark-blue shade that was part of the original LDD Extended color palette. It's the color I used on the Firewolf for its dark-blue paintjob.

Anyway, here's a link to the palette for you: www.brickshelf.com/gallery/Ariklego/Models/ldd_extended_color_palette.lxf

I sorta put the Metallic Black off to one side. I also included my other favorite of the colors, Lemon Metallic (the color I used on the Nexu), which is in my opinion the best military-esque "OD Green" shade.

Well, enjoy.

Arik:

Thanks for the history lesson, and I have that file already (not that I use it often ).

That still didn't tell me where you think I should use it. To replace the regular dark blue? Here's why I don't plan on doing that: the regular dark blue blends with all shades on the grey/gray scale. While the "Metallic Black" is really just a super-dark blue, it still looks like black, and therefore doesn't work with anything but dark grays or colors you'd find in military camouflage.

But, I will probably start using it for accents.