Paris-class heavy frigate (EXverse)

The Paris-class heavy frigate is one of the six frigate classes currently in service with the UNSC Navy. One of the two frigates introduced before the Great War, the Paris-class is optimized for atmospheric fire support and escort rather than transport, due to a very small hangar bay but a vast arsenal of weapons.
Introduced long after the disastrous Operation: TREBUCHET, the Paris nonetheless was criticized in part due to high costs, compared to the contemporary , but as soon as the Human-Covenant War began it proved to be a valuable asset in UNSC fleets; however, being undergunned against same class opponent, in 2532 another flight was built, using improvements already designed for the , increasing its effectiveness against Covenant frigates but only in large numbers. Despite this, streamlined production techinques led Sinoviet to build hundreds of Paris frigates in fifteen years, before the loss of Camber forced to change approach and led to the third flight.
After the war, despite the introduction of the , Naval Command ordered the fourth flight, recognizing the importance of these frigates in a fleet, especially in the troublesome post-conflict years - other than the fact that Stridents were built with other purposes in mind. So Sinoviet developed the new version together with the new Stalwart flight, implementing many improvements and some Covevant and Forerunner reverse-engineered technologies such as shield-reinforced armor and high-definition sensors, making both classes most effective as ever.
== History ==
=== Concept ===
Concepts of a heavy frigate started in the mid-25th century, when naval theorists assumed that as long as human empire continued to expand it would be a matter of time before some colonies would start to rise up; because of this, these theorists design a frigate capable of engaging multiple light warships and, in the same time, to hold his own against equal opponent. However, due to budget constraint, projects for a heavy frigate would never started until at least the end of the century, also because naval battles were still hypothetical and, thus, needs for such warship were considered pointless.
=== The introduction of Paris-class ===
After the capturing of the Bellerophon and the outbreak of the Insurrection, Naval Command issued a RFI that would lead to introduce a heavy frigate in the Navy: since it was the first time the Navy needed a heavy frigate, not many basis were put. In a few month Sinoviet Heavy Machinery and TanSec AB propose two different models: TanSec decided to show a project based off on the Charon-class, but this class would have been larger than the Charon, more heavily armed and protected, but it would have retained the same hangar bay as the Charon. Sinoviet, instead, proposed a new airframe - which would partially inspired the later Stalwart - that would have been more agile, fast, less large and with a much smaller hangar bay.
In the 2501 Naval Command awarded Sinoviet four hundred ships. The first was named Paris, so the class would named Paris. The reasons behind the choice of Sinoviet's project are partially uncleared. While TanSec's project was far more ambitious than Sinoviet and lesser costly - recycling hull meant not building from scratch, diminishing costs - many officers disliked the fact that many TanSec managers sympathized with rebels, and many supposed that the latter, at the end, would have prevailed.
Anyway, the Sinoviet's model proved worthy during Operation: TREBUCHET, where this frigate outmached any single rebel frigate, composed mainly of antiquate models or light Charon-class ships. However, the cost of such ships, exceeding so much other frigates, reduced the initial demand to three hundred frigates instead of four hundred; the general perception inside Naval Command and HIGHCOM was that these numbers were adequate to the UNSC's needs, and so they diverted saving money to other projects. The upcoming war against Covenant shuffled the cards.
=== Human-Covenant War ===
== Overview ==
=== Hull ===
The Paris-class has been the longest UNSC frigate until the arrival of the in 2552. With a length of roughly 535 metres and a tonnage exceeded one million ton, Paris ships have a distinct hull made up of two section, of which the second one contains the propulsion system and the hangar bay; the first one, instead, contain the bridge and the MAC gun, while the final part is divided into two parts, one top e one bottom.
The armor is particularly thick if compared to other frigates: Flight I has one metre of Titanium A1, whereas Fligth II has eighty centimetres of Titanium-A2; this diversity happens because A2 variant is stronger and it has a higher melting point, which allows a better resistance to plasma weapons, so there is no need to have a thicker armor.
After the war, Sinoviet implemented the latest A3 armor with the same thickness as previous model; in addition to this, it successfully integrated a variation of the electromagnetic armor: the shield-reinforced armor, which is made up of a series of small energy shield generators; they activating themselves when the outer Titanium armor is damaged: in that case, sensors within the armor trigger the nearest shield generator, creating an intense, transient energy shield effect localized solely on the point of impact. The combination of these factors grants much more protection against directed-energy fire, increasing class' survival capabilities.
=== Propulsion ===
Paris-class has the Orphios Energy Systems Saturn-4 as fusion drives. This model has two primary engines and six secondary and it allow Paris ships to move and turn very fast. This model was substantially advanced at the time, since it could be divert energy from engine to systems - particularly weapon systems - and from systems to engine with ease and it could be lowering fuel consumption during routine operations.
The third flight has Titan-1 as its fusion drive. Built by Orphios too, it included some Covenant technologies and a new astronavigation system, which combined allows the frigate to move faster than before; besides, the engine a the new cooling system derived from the refitted UNSC Pillar of Autumn, although on a smaller scale. 
SFTE model is CODEN IV series OKB Karman 7D, capable of reaching 2.86 lightyears per day. The third batch features CODEN V series Starwerx FTL-417, which allows the ship to reaching 489 lightyears per day. Other than speed, the CODEN V implemented some Covenant technologies based on Borers, capable of making slipspace jumps even if underpowered and with much more accuracy. The new Mark 22 astrogation system contributes also to this accuracy and it can also indicate where the ship would exiting from the hyperspace.
=== Crew and complement ===
Paris ships required a quite little crew to be operating: 320 sailors are the standard crew, but a single Paris ship can operate at a minimum crew of 78 sailors, with a help from an IA obviously. These numbers where reduced in the third flight, since new automated systems were implemented: as such, only 286 sailors are required, and at least 70 are needed in case of emergencies. Crew quarters, while small, are very comfortable and they are single pod.
Paris ships can also house 80 Marines and sixty ODSTs, to be deployed in boarding action or in support of planetary warfare.
The hangar bay is the very small; nonetheless it can house 12 Pelican dropships and 6 C712 Longswords or, alternatively, 8 F-41 Broadsword starfighters.
=== Other systems ===
Flight I had the Mk 39 long-range fire director, a cheap but effective targeting system which was standard during early-mid Insurrection; it was replaced by the Mk 45 in 2517, which featured a number of improvements, such as a more accurate array and little maintainance. Mk 51 version is a further upgrade, since it features some Covenant technologies, and it is fitted onto the third flight.
Regarding the astrogation system, AI is the primary astronavigation system, which is integrated by a slower computer: Flight I had the Mk 17 computer system, while the second flight had the upgraded Mk 26 version. Flight III, instead, has the Mk 22 advanced astrogation system, which features a Covenant network capable of indicate where a ship would exiting from the slipspace precisely. This, combined with the new SFTE CODEN V, makes hyperspace travels much more accurate and safer.
In Flight III Sinoviet also implemented the Mark 1 high-definition sensors, which expand the quantity of data obtainable by a Paris ship; it also allows a higher resolution when scanning an object.
Other system implemented in Flight III are the Mark VII decoy system and the Mark II protector system. First one are an improved counter-missile system, which became useful after the war as many old human ships, both belonged to CMA and UNSC, fell into rebel hands, other than many UNSC weapon systems; second ones were an effective counter-plasma torpedoes countermeasure developed by 2550 but refined only during the final months of the war; first introduced aboard and later , they became standard in the Post-War Years.
=== Armament ===
Due to being a heavy frigate, Paris-class sports more powerful armament than a standard UNSC frigate.
Flight I's primary armament was 1 Mark II, Light Coil - 88A3C7 MAC; capable of firing a 600-tons or a 300-tons slug at thirty kilometers per second, it needed at least one minute to be fully charged. This gun needed more than two shots to destroy a single , as shown by UNSC Commonwealth above Chi Ceti IV where it used 600-tons shells. MAC gun was supplemented by 26 M58 Archer missile pods, each one having thirty missiles; general-purpose ordnances, they can be swapped out with other warhead options, in order to accomplish a wide range of tasks. Other than Archers, twelve M66 Sentry autocannons were fitted against short-range targets; ninety millimetres dual coilgun batteries, they are good against large dropships and aircrafts, but they have some issues against warships of any size. Finally, 12 M800 Rampart point defense guns made up anti-air and anti-missiles armaments.
In Flight II weapon systems were updated. A new spinal coilgun, the Mark II, Light Coil - 15B1C3 MAC, were fitted; it had the same amount of coils than the previous one, but thanks to a new engine it could be charged in forty-five seconds. Shield-piercing rounds were also fitted, granting much more effectiveness against smaller vessels such as the CRS-class and . While Archers and Sentries remained the same, M870 Rampart point defense guns were implemented: while their numbers didn't change, they were upgraded to the latest model, the M870 which became standard during the Human-Covenant War; they features a new targeting matrix, a quad-barreled design and better reliability.
Flight III features more improvements. Starting from the MAC, its version is the Mark II, Light Coil - 69D4A5 MAC, which can fires all rounds available but at fifty kilometers, thus increasing kinetic energy and, consequently, improving performance against energy shielding. 600-tons and 300-tons are again standard, but using recycling systems the MAC gun can fire every forty seconds.
30 M58 Archer missile pods, each one containing thirty missiles, are fitted, boosting missile complement up to 900 ordnances. 12 M71 Sentry autocannons further implement the MAC gun: they fires ninety millimeters rounds at five kilometers per second, and differently from M66's model they have more accuracy and they are lighter, saving weight. Lastly, 12 M910 Rampart point defense guns, which are quad-mount fifty millimeters coilguns which have higher muzzle velocity than previous model and a different design, which makes them harder to hit.
== Ships of the line ==
Name 	Hull Classification Symbol	Commissioned	Destroyed	Notes 	 	
Flight I	Flight I 	Flight I 	Flight I 	Flight I 	Flight I	Flight I
 	FFG-288 	2515 	Unknown 	Lead ship of the class.