A royal find

[Cat]

February 15th, 743 A.G.S.
Captain's Room, RES-Intrepide
Ariege Nebula, Roussillon

Maximilian sat at his desk, going through the plentiful reports. Although he could be doing it from the comfort of Bordeaux, now that the capital settlement was well on its way, the colonel still found his destroyer a better place to be at. With the crwe loyal to a fault, and away from all the meetings and micro-management of every issue on Bordeaux. There he was, going through the list of messages he had received, when he noticed one from Montluc Advanced Engineering.

The colonel remembered them: a corporation that sought to build its own pseudo-utopia in one of the Gallic systems and secede from the Minarchy of Provence. Apparently, the hastily-founded Parisian Assembly (the collective organ representing the many new Gallic states) saw this as a dangerous precedent and decided to nip it in the bud. Baron Fabian Montluc was forced out of his home yet again (he had previously come to Languedoc from the now-Council-controlled Orleannais), and the Gallic Hebrides was the only logical destination.

On the one hand, the colonel was disappointed with losing a powerful ally with access to the resources of Gallia. On the other hand, the Enclave benefitted greatly from having Montluc specialists assist with ground and space infrastructure in Enclave systems. However, there was another thing that kept the colonel thinking about Montluc: a derelict Libertonian dreadnought that the Baron's men had found in the end of last year.

Montluc had originally wanted to move the derelict to their facility in Languedoc, but the Enclave was cautious. That's why a compromise was reached: the ship would remain in Enclave space, the Enclave would skim the cream off any technolohy aboard, and the hull would then be handed over to Montluc for refitting in Languedoc. That seemed like a fair trade off at the time. However, the involvement of the Parisian Assembly put a stick in the wheels of that plan.

The dreadnought reached Issoudun, and work was underway to strip it off anything important for the Enclave. But the eviction of Montluc Advanced Engineering from Languedoc also meant that their fabrication facility, Kerguelen, was lost to the Confederation. Its systems were shut down, equipment evacuated, and for all intents and purposes it was an empty hull of its former self. Although that saved the derelict from falling into the hands of the Confederation, it also meant that an obsolete Libertonian dreadnought would soon be dead weight on Issoudun. That is something that the Colonel would have to discuss with the Baron eventually.

However, for the time being, technicians from Enclave and MAE were working at Issoudun together on the ship, and the Baron needed to know about the progress and the Enclave's findings. That's why Maximilian had spent a better part of the evening going through the reports and crossing out the parts that he deemed classified. In the end, he had a couple of documents at his disposal:

Coste Report, January 25, 743 A.G.S.

According to preliminary estimates, this ship is more than 30 years old. Many of the ship's systems are broken beyond repair, but some can be restored. With enough work put into it, it might fly once again. For a ship left in the asteroid field for so long ago, the hull is surprisingly well-preserved.

The hull is made of 2-meter thick light-weight aluminum, coated with with 1-meter thick layer of titanium carbide fiber. This allows the ship to remain quite light, while being resistant enough to most weapons. The significant drawback of the coating is that it could be broken down easily in nitric acid. This should be considered when developing weapons to counter such vessels.

Electronics and software are an outdated version of the Libertonian tech we encountered during the war. That, and due to prolonged exposure to radiation in outer space without maintenance, the electronics is beyond repair. It will take quite some time and effort to replace it with Gallic electronics, but it seems feasible.

The life support system, on the other hand, can be restored. This must become our first priority, if we are to restore everything else. The search for the black box proved futile. Apparently, the crew had taken it with them, knowing that the ship would remain in place for a long time. Or it could have been destroyed.

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Tactical analysis is not my primary field, but the derelict apparently could be classified as a light battleship. With good maneuverability and small size, it can evade enemy fire and return it from a great distance. Further tactical analysis is best left to the officers who encountered this ship in battle.

Lemaire Report, January 29, 743 A.G.S.

I. Shape

The profile of the derelict is similar to that of every Liberty Dreadnought we encountered: sharp, small, well-suited for evading fire. That is, assuming the crew know what they're doing. Our Valors and Obstinates usually handled those ships with ease, unless faced with a Captain competent enough. In that case, we had to take a punch.

Liberty Dreadnought is always referred to as "Overlord" by Liberty Captains, so we can assume it's the class name of this "iconic" vessel. Its slim profile makes the Dreadnought very flexible and agile. ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋

The Dreadnought is mostly an frontline battleship: its turrets cover the top, sides, bow and aft well enough. The most unprotected side is the bottom, especially the engine section. That's what bombers can exploit, unless the battleship makes a turn before bombers go for a strafing run.

II. Weaponry

▋ ▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋ ▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ Admittedly, the profile is small and can be compered to Corsair Murmillo class. But as we observed in the war, the Overlord can mount up to three heavy weapons, rather than two on the Murmillo. However, the Murmillo ▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ can equip only six ▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ mid-range primary turrets, whereas the Overlord can mount up to four only and everyone of them can shoot backwards and forward.

Let's also not forget about the light turrets designed against fighters, bombers and gunboats. In earlier stages of the war, the Overlord had about six light turrets. But by the time Liberty forces arrived in New London, we encountered Overlord refits with up to nine light turrets. That didn't change the ship's performance against our forces drastically, but it's worth mentioning.

III. Tactical performance

The Overlord class was always seen with an large escort of assault battlecruisers, siege cruisers, and gunboats. This fleet composition is deadly, especially with the right coordination. ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋

If we ever put the derelict to use, I recommend heavy guard of Obstinates accompanied by a squadrons of gunboats, bombers and fighters. ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋

IV. Warship in Question

This warship is thirty years old, and probably was lost in a jump gate or jump drive incident that didn't receive wide exposure. The vessel is mostly outdated ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋

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V. Final Verdict

▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ We mostly encountered the newer Overlords, and compared to them, the ship in our possession would be heavily outdated and outgunned. ▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋▋▋▋ ▋▋▋ ▋

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Having checked the attached reports one more time to make sure he had removed everything sensitive, the Colonel hit the "Send" button. Soon the baron would receive the reports, without the parts that Maximilian had crossed out. The colonel leaned backwards in his seat and took a sip of coffee from his mug. Hopefully, Montluc personnel would manage to find a solution that would prevent the Overlord from overstaying its welcome at Issoudun.