Imperial Capital Ship Basics

Welcome to Imperial Capital Ship Basics. This tutorial will give you a brief introduction to the vessels on which you may serve during your career in the Vast Empire's Navy. In the majority of cases, the capital ships listed below will be crewed and operated by you and by allies who are accompanying you on a mission. However, given the current state of the galaxy, they could very well be used by enemies too.

For more information, check out the State of the Galaxy thread.

Common Models of Capital Ships in the VEN

modified Executor-class Star Dreadnought

Star Dreadnoughts are immensely powerful, but not invulnerable, and as such great care is taken with their deployment. These ships are almost always on patrol, ready to respond wherever they are needed, for even the appearance of such a vessel is often enough to force the opposing force to surrender. They are almost always flagships for fleet commanders. There is only one vessel of this type in service with the Vast Empire's Navy: the mSSD Atrus.

Imperial-class Star Destroyer

The iconic capital ship of the Empire of old, there are two classes of ISD: I and II. As a smaller post-Endor Imperial faction, the Vast Empire has a limited supply of heavy ships, including Imperial Star Destroyers. One of the few such ships in service with the VEN is the Halcyon Warrior.

Imperial II-class Frigate

Imperial frigates are lighter capital ships than destroyers, designed primarily as starfighter-carriers. One such VE ship is the Chrome Fox.

CR90 Corellian Corvette

The Corellian-built CR90 corvette is a fast, light capital ship, sometimes called the "blockade-runner." Typically, they serve as lone pickets, or couriers, or they may form larger "hunter-killer packs" in larger engagements, overwhelming more powerful enemy vessels through force of numbers. One such ship in the VEN is the Defiance.

DP20 Frigate

So-called "Corellian gunships" are smaller than their corvette cousins, but are even faster, and are very well-armed for their size. They are almost always deployed into the thick of any fleet engagement. The VEN has many such vessels, including the Pugnacious.

Warden-class Light Cruiser

Light Cruisers are some of the smallest, lightest capital ships in service with the VEN. They are primarily concerned with keeping the peace in the VE's home systems, upholding customs law, and serving as cost-effective escorts for merchant shipping. The Warden-class Light Cruiser Duty would be an example of this kind of vessel.

for more information...

Part of writing in a pre-existing setting is doing your research. Consult the following sources for more information.

• Wookieepedia
• The Star Wars Technical Commentaries
• The VE Wiki

There are many many more resources available, from published Star Wars novels to other websites... explore!

Officer Basics

Obviously, there's more to being an officer than knowing what kind of vessel you're serving on. While writing about your experiences in the VE, you may need to draw upon other material in order to help you portray a more interesting account of events. Some things to consider are:

• The Bridge - As a junior bridge officer, this is where most of the "action" will take place in your posts. Get to know the vessel you're on: vessels designed at Kuat - like ISDs - have very different bridge layouts than vessels designed at Corellia - like CR90s. And please remember we're writing in the Star Wars Galaxy, not in some other science fiction settings, meaning there is no central "captain's chair". Some bridge stations which are always present aboard an Imperial warship:
  • Command - This is the area where the command staff stands, and directs the actions of the crew. In exceedingly rare circumstances, very high-ranking officers may choose to have command chairs installed, but that is the prerogative of rank (see the note in bold above).
  • Helm/Astrogation - The Helm section of a capital ship includes a place for pilots (who fly the ship in realspace) and for astrogators (who plot hyperspace jumps)
  • Sensors - Light-boards and multiple displays track targets, allies, planets, and everything else that a ship can "see" with its many kinds of sensors.
  • The Viewport - It's not all about equipment however, why not take in the view once in a while?
  • Communications - Larger ships like Star Destroyers have anterooms set aside from the bustle of the bridge, reserved for holo-communications gear and security screening checkpoints. Smaller vessels may just have a single console.
  • Weapons/Shields - Whether it's coordinating missile volleys, or simply adjusting power consumption rates to a ship's turbolaser batteries, dealing with armaments is essential on a warship, as is monitoring the strength of defensive shielding systems.

• Other Areas of the Ship - capital ships have very large crews - you will be interacting with several PCs aboard ship, and hundreds (if not thousands) of NPCs. Most of the time, you'll see them off the command deck.
  • Your bunk - When you start, you'll bunk with several other crewmembers in a single small room. What is that experience like, for your character?
  • The Mess Hall/refresher - Everyone eats, relieves themselves, and cleans up, and your ship has the requisite facilities.
  • Other battlestations - You'll be serving on the bridge, but many MANY other people are serving elsewhere aboard your vessel. Think of the coordination required to effectively fire a turbolaser battery: gunnery crews at the actual weapons fire the shots, but command decisions are made on the bridge, while sensors techs compile range and strength estimates for the enemy, and engineering staff provide power to the various sections of the ship.
  • Recreation facilities - Again, remember which universe we're writing in: there are no holodecks in Star Wars. Gyms and holo-film theatres can be found on larger vessels, though, and dejarik and other board games are popular. Even the smallest ship has room for a Sabacc deck (Pazaak, on the other hand, is an ancient, largely forgotten game... mind your details).
  • Home - For most characters, their ship isn't their home - it's their live-in workplace. Where does your character live, when he/she is not on a deployment?

That's it for the first tutorial. Don't worry, you don't need to memorize all of the information laid out here - this is simply meant to provide you with an overview of life as a Navy officer. It also helps to have things to talk about in your post. Please return to the main orientation page and proceed onto Part II.