File: Project Roanoke

[Erremnart]

File: Project ROANOKE

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Ship name: Roanoke
Affiliation:

• Liberty Free Republic
• Liberty Insurgency (formerly)
• Hellfire Legion (formerly)

Date of launch: 21-07-825
Hull Number: LBC-28
Class: Interdictor (official), Prowler (planned evolution)
Commissioned:

• 24-03-829 : Now (Liberty Free Republic)
  
• 08-01-826 : 23-03-829 (Liberty Insurgency, Hellfire Legion)

Starship Motto: "From fires we return."

Ship Overview: Captain Belle's flagship the LFRS Roanoke, formerly the INS Roanoke. Made as a prototype for the Hellfire Legion during its early years of expansion, the INS Roanoke represented the pinnacle of Legionnaire technology. It has had a long service history, participating in large and small battles alike.

Recent changes in both the Legion and Navy leaderships have forced the rebels to retrofit a handful of their ships for reconnaissance tasks, the Roanoke being one of few capital ships used for this effort.

Late 828 brought with it the invasion of Kansas by the Navy and thus the Roanoke returned to her old role once more. Serving in the first line of defense, the battlecruiser was badly damaged and had to be sent back for repairs.

Her latest captain, Virginia Belle, has taken the opportunity presented by the invasion to organize a takeover and subsequent defection to the Xenos in Ontario.

An uncertain future lays ahead, as the aging battlecruiser was badly-damaged in the battle and now lays in the drydocks of Fort Ramsey, awaiting much-needed repairs and refitting.

Starship Details
Heavy weaponry: 1x Mortar battery, 2x 'Breaker' battery, 2x Hellfire primary cannons, 2x Pulse cannons
Point defense: 6x Hellfire point defense cannons, 2x Flak projectors
Special equipment: Cloaking device, Long-range sensors

Complement: 514 crew (332 starship crew, 133 marines, 49 flight-deck personnel)
Passengers: 112 long-term, 336 short-term
Hangar capacity: 12 snubcraft, 2 freighters/shuttles

Senior officers
> Commanding Officer: Captain Virginia Belle
> Executive Officer, 1st: Commander Fiona Hayes
> Executive Officer, 2nd: Commander William Holmes
> Chief of Ops: Lt. Commander Nash Malcom
> Chief Engineer: Lt. Commander Roger Narvik

Internal Communications: 26-03-829

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Internal Message: New Directive

> New Directive
Source: Captain Virginia Belle
To: All senior officers

Because the LFR ranks do not have a robust enough infrastructure to maintain capital ships, you are tasked with developing possible modifications to the ship to reduce our ship's fuel and spare parts consumption without compromising the vessel's combat capability. If a choice between fuel and spare parts must be made, your primary task will be to mitigate the rate of wear and tear and extend the life of the systems being maintained.

Since we also cannot expect LFR to support capital ships, you are tasked with developing the modifications needed to increase the speed and maneuverability of the Roanoke so that firepower and shield strength are not reduced. The armoring of non-critical systems may be sacrificed for this purpose. We must be able to defeat our enemies in the field of firepower or escape them. The existing armor is suitable for fleet vs fleet combat, which will no longer be possible from now on - mobility and firepower will be our main defenses.

Internal Message: Initial Ship Status And Proposed Strategy

Internal Message: Shield Systems

> Shield Systems
Source: Lt. Commander Roger Narvik, Chief Engineer.
To: Captain Virginia Belle

Shield capacity reduced by 33%: of twenty-one distributed shield emitters, four were removed for repairs of more important vessels during Liberty Insurgency service and three burned out beyond repair. Distributor model: Mark 21 DSAS-BC.
Short-term recommendation: Remove burned-out units for negligible weight and volume savings.
Long-term recommendation: Obtain undamaged Mark 21 DSAS-BCs or replace the entire system with the more modern and compact Mark 27 DSAS-BC. Due to parameter changes, the entire power distribution system for the shield generators will need to be redesigned - estimated weight savings for the same nominal efficiency: 1.6%.

Internal Message: Armor Plating

> Armor Plating
Source: Commander William Holmes, 2nd XO.
To: Captain Virginia Belle

Armor plating repairably damaged on 11% of the hull, internal citadel undamaged.
Short-term recommendation: Repair or replace damaged panels.
Long term recommendation: Replace outer plating with lighter armor to lighten the battlecruiser. Recommended to retain the original heavy armor around the reactor, propulsion and control functions to maintain mobility after a heavy hit. Weight savings of up to 17%, however non-critical parts of the ship will be more vulnerable to heavier firepower.

Internal Message: Propulsion System

> Propulsion System
Source: Lt. Commander Roger Narvik, Chief Engineer.
To: Captain Virginia Belle

The main reactor and engine are intact after the coup, but show significant signs of wear and tear. To reduce wear and improved fuel efficiency, I recommend experimentally setting the response to 'cooler mode'. To do this, we will need new pulse regulators for the engine that will draw more power from the reactor to maintain the same thrust levels. The reactor will need new fusion valves to control the slower and cooler reaction.
Short-term recommendation: Replace the pulse regulators and interface with the reactor according to the new schematic, new reactor fusion valves to control the slower reaction, and reconfigure the ship's powergrid for reduced power consumption.
Long term recommendation: Install new capacitor and battery array as soon as there is sufficient internal volume to cover sudden spikes in ship power consumption.

Internal Message: Weapon Systems

> Weapon Systems
Source: Commander William Holmes, 2nd XO.
To: Captain Virginia Belle

Main mortar battery disabled and non-functional after the transition to Liberty Free Republic, Spot 1 and Spot 2 main directors are backup models only and have reduced accuracy at longer ranges. Sky 1, Sky 2, Sky 3 and Sky 4 directors are obsolete Mark 14. Legionnaire weapon systems are not fully compatible with the ship's internal layout.
Short-term recommendation: Replace the destroyed automatic rechargeable main battery system, modify existing directors for improved accuracy.
Long-term recommendation: Rearm to fully compatible weapon systems to save internal volume, replace directors with newer models. Estimated weight savings: 1.4% and improved ship ergonomics.

Internal Message: Sensor Systems

> Sensor Systems
Source: Commander Fiona Hayes, 1st XO.
To: Captain Virginia Belle

The main sensor system is a secondary sensor system from a decommissioned Arbiter-class heavy battleship. The system is robust and powerful, but also uneconomical and bulky.
Short-term recommendation: Disconnect and dismantle ECCM systems to simplify and reduce power consumption.
Long-term recommendation: Replace the sensor system with a more compact system truly designed for smaller ships such as battlecruisers at the cost of reduced system robustness and gross power consumption. Weight savings: negligible, but power savings could be up to 8%.

Internal Message: Cloaking Device

> Cloaking Device
Source: Lt. Commander Nash Malcom, Chief of Ops.
To: Captain Virginia Belle

The current experimental cloaking system installed from the Hellfire Legion days is already showing significant signs of wear. The schematic of the system is incomplete and no one on the ship understands it properly. The ship's EM emission suppression has dropped from 97.6% to 83.8% and continues to degrade after each use of the cloaking system.
Short term recommendation: Limit the use of the cloaking array as much as possible to avoid unnecessary degradation of the equipment.
Long-term recommendation: Repair and stabilize or completely replace the cloaking equipment.

Internal Message: Crew Status

> Crew Status
Source: Commander William Holmes, 2nd XO.
To: Captain Virginia Belle

Nominal crew totals 514 men and women - 31 officers and 87 enlisted men and 396 crew members. Of this number, 133 Marines are organized by fire teams of 5, 8 teams per combat unit, complement of three combat units, for a total of 120 combat personnel and 13 command and organizational personnel. When the 49 aviation personnel are subtracted, 332 crew members are directly responsible for the vessel's operation.
However, the transition under the Liberty Free Republic was not easy and the ship lost 18.8% (97) of its crew and another 27.82% (143) chose to stay with their evacuated families and support the Liberty Free Republic as civilians on the planet Erie. Crew numbers dropped 46.62% after the takeover, to 274 crew members.
Short-term recommendation: hire new crew members from among Liberty Free Republic volunteers - promote existing crew members to higher positions and give the newcomers the easier tasks.
Long-term recommendation: train new crew members to be full-fledged crew members with the necessary professional qualifications. Estimated training time 3 months.

Entries Summary:

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• 26-03-829: Ship shutdown sequence initiated and moored at Fort Ramsey. Initial damage, systems and crew status assesment. New strategy devised.
  
• 29-03-829: Reactor's shutdown completed, wear and tear damage assessment and 2 crewmen lost due to suicide. Decision to contact the Order has been made.
  
• 31-03-829: New crew recruitment started, some issues with the locals reported.
  
• 03-04-829: Ship decontaminated, still waiting for Order's response. Bristol as a new alternative has been found for less complex works.
  
• 06-04-829: 13 crewmen, 7 marines and 2 medics recruited, ongoing personal conflicts with locals and discipline issues with the newcomers.