Warships & Aircraft of the Telkevan Union

The following is an exhaustive list of the starships and aircraft currently utilized by the Armed Forces of the Telkevan Union. For the rest of the arsenal, view Telkevan Military Arsenal. For details on how these vehicles are employed on the battlefield, see Telkevan Battle Doctrine.

Starships
Telkevan vessels are notable for their complete lack of an external bridge or windows. The bridge is located inside of the ship, generally within the vessel's most armored component, and is fed information through a sensor network and numerous artificial intelligence constructs which assist the captain and their crew. Ships also lack any light fixtures due to the Telkevan's nocturnal nature.

Starship Weapons
Starship weaponry is divided into five distinct categories, each intended to fulfill a particular role:


 * Spinal Gun - Spinal cannons are among the most powerful weapons in the modern naval arsenal and can be found on nearly all modern starships. Common spinal guns include railcannons, plasma beam cannons, and reverse-engineered Diab Pyre cannons. Spinal guns are predominantly used in medium-to-long range engagements and are a necessity for shock tactics.


 * Cannon - Cannons are guns fixed into the ship, often near the bow and on the broadsides. Typical cannons include ballistic cannons, plasma bolt cannons, railcannons, particle cannons, and Pyre cannons. Front-facing cannons, like spinal guns, are best suited for medium-to-long range engagements, whereas broadside cannons are employed in short-range. Due to the navy's growing reliance on ranged warfare, broadside cannons have been reduced in number in favor of other weapon systems.


 * Gun Turret - Gun turrets are rotating gun batteries containing anywhere from two to four guns. Typical turrets include ballistic turrets, railcannons, plasma repeaters, plasma beam turrets, pyre bolt turrets, and particle turrets. Because of their diversity, gun turrets can be used in either short or long range engagements depending on their model.


 * Launcher - Launchers are equipped with guided missiles; though some nations make a distinction between missiles and torpedoes, the Telkevon consider both to be missiles. All missiles are comprised of multiple independently-guided warheads to increase the chance of a successful hit and can load a wide variety of munitions, including marganite, antimatter, and nuclear weapons. Launchers used en masse can be used for shock strikes.


 * Point-Defense Gun (PDGs) - Point-defense guns are small, short-ranged rotating guns placed across a vessel to protect it from a variety of threats, namely missiles, strikecraft, and boarding craft. PDGs consist of lasers, autocannons, flak guns, plasma repeaters, and missile launchers.

All vessels are equipped with both offensive and defensive electronic warfare implements including scramblers and targeting jammers. EMP MIRVs are employed and detonated within enemy formations to temporarily disrupt shielding and wireless transmissions. Gravity well generators are also considered EW weapons as they can disrupt a vessel's ability to produce accurate coordinates for FTL travel.

Starship Defenses
All vessels possess one or more layers of directional energy shielding, with the number of layers increasing as the ship grows in size. This allows the outermost layers of shielding a chance to recharge before the inner layers can be breached. Advances in shielding technology during the interim era led to the development of wireless shield boosters which can further strengthen nearby shields, though to mount the device requires a large portion of a vessel's available power; thus, the shield boosters are often relegated to capitol ships. Starships also possess numerous layers of armor. A standard configuration has the topmost layers of armor designed to withstand thermal energy while the lower layers absorb kinetic impacts. If the hull is breached, the affected compartments are automatically sealed to prevent decompression and drones are deployed to contain the damage.

As well as the personnel required to maintain a warship, each vessel contains a dedicated Marine detachment to protect the vessel during hostile boarding attempts. Depending on the ship, the detachment may also engage in boarding operations. Robots also staff the ship and act as both extra security and maintenance workers.

Faster-Than-Light [FTL] Engine
Combat vessels are equipped with energy-efficient subspace FTL drives capable of making numerous jumps in short succession, though too many jumps can strain the engines to the point of breaking if they are not given time to properly cool and recharge. Ships designed explicitly for moving materiel through supply lines instead use faster but less maneuverable jump drives. Efforts are currently underway to produce a working void drive, but have yet to progress past the prototype stages.

Ship Roles
All warships are divided into five distinct tactical roles:


 * Assault: Assault ships are general-purpose vessels designed to combat a variety of potential threats.


 * Barrage: Barrage vessels wield missile launchers as their primary armament and provide long-range fire support. They can also be employed in shock strikes, though they are the only modern ship category to wholly forego the use of a spinal gun. Due to their limited ammunition reserves, barrage vessels are incapable of independent operations.


 * Escort: Escort vessels emphasize turrets, cannons, and PDGs to protect larger warships. Though their number have declined in recent years, a few dedicated escorts remain in service. They are not capable of independent operations. Modern escort ships have begun to utilize launchers and spinal guns in greater numbers.


 * Hunter: Hunters are stealth ships designed to operate behind enemy lines. Operating in small squadrons, hunters gather intelligence and perform hit-and-run attacks to disrupt an enemy's logistics and weaken their defensive capabilities prior to an invasion. Hunter squadrons are expected to operate with little to no outside support for weeks or even months at a time. As the Great War has intensified, hunter ships have been deployed as alternate shock vessels in greater numbers, often being kept within a fleet's reserves until an opportune moment.


 * Shock: Shock ships are effectively assault vessels which are designed to perform shock strikes. They possess state-of-the-art subspace engines, improved frontal armoring, and powerful spinal guns. When not performing shock strikes, shock vessels provide long-range fire support and will often target either vital or already damaged targets.

Corvettes
Corvettes are not considered true warships, but instead operate as superheavy strikecraft. Operating either with strikecraft or in independent squadrons, corvettes are primarily tasked with eliminating strikcraft, frigates, and destroyers.

Frigates
Frigates are the smallest true naval vessels. Most modern frigates are designed to support larger warships, though a few have been developed for independent operations.

Destroyers
Destroyers comprise the bulk of the navy's front line warships. They are filled to the brim with weapons for engaging as well as cannons for providing orbital artillery to ground forces.

Cruisers
Cruisers are the mainstay capitol ship. They often lead squadrons of destroyers in battle and are equipped with hangar bays.

Carriers
Carriers are divided into three categories depending on their cargo: troop carriers, strikecraft carriers, and all-round carriers, which carry both ground and air units, albeit not as many as their specialized variants. Though they typically avoid fighting on the front line, instead deploying wings of bombers and fighters from within their formation, they are equipped with a modest number of weapons and possess durable armor and shielding.

Battleships
Battleships are heavily armed and armored capitol ships that often serve as flagships and as linebreakers. Like cruisers, they can be armed with hangar bays, though some vessels eschew hangars as they can be a structural vulnerability.

Dreadnought
Dreadnoughts represent the zenith of Telkevan naval power, boasting unrivaled durability and firepower among their contemporaries. Dreadnoughts are few and far between due to the resources required to build and maintain them and are thus only assigned to prominent fleets.

Star Bases
Star Bases are an unorthodox classification comprised of space stations that have been built for combat. They are mobile weapons platforms that play an array of roles, such as logistics, carrying stikrcraft and corvettes, repairing capital ships, and providing fire support during an engagement. Star bases can vary considerably in size, with the largest exceeding most dreadnoughts, though they seldom take on the role of flagship.

Strikecraft
Strikecraft are split into two categories: fighters and bombers. Both are capable of operating in both space and in atmosphere and are equipped with afterburners to provide a temporary boost in speed.

Fighters
Fighters are divided into two categories: strike fighters, which perform offensive operations; and interceptors, which serve a defensive role. Strike fighters emphasize armor and firepower and perform duties such as attaining air superiority and providing support to ground forces. Interceptors exchange armor for speed and agility and protect larger vessels from hostile strikecraft, torpedoes, and boarding craft. Both strike fighters and interceptors are equipped with afterburners for a temporary speed boost.

Bombers
In the context of naval combat, bombers are primarily used for attacking frigates and capital sub-systems. Bombers operate in squadrons that are escorted by fighter wings. Several bomber types exist, with the largest having multiple turrets for self-defense.