Shining Gust

The Shining Gust is a unique spaceship designed to travel both between star systems and between dimensions as the flagship of the Stellar Wind mercenary organization. 
Shining Gust 	
Shining Gust
Production Information	Production Information
Manufacturer 	Technicians aboard the Space Colony ARK
Product Line 	Not listed
Model 	Not listed
Class 	Spaceships - Bulk Cruiser
Technical Information 	Technical Information
Length 	350m
Armament 	
*Turbolasers x10
*Lasers x20
*Torpedo launch tubes x5
*Laser Anti-Missile Systems x35
Compliment 	
*24 active starfighters, with spares stored aboard
*4 shuttles
Armor 	Eggman Empire standard plating
Shielding 	Implied to be able to absorb a full broadside from a ship armed the same, uncomfirmed
Crew 	
*250 active crew
*100 gunners
*50 fighter pilots & associated staff
Usage 	Usage
Role(s) 	
*Flying base
*Combat flagship
*Supply depot
Affiliation 	Stellar Wind mercenary group
Other Information 	Other Information
Appearances 	pending
Original Creator 	Flashfire212
==Design History== 
The basis of the Shining Gust was an old Egg Carrier from Eggman's fleet, which had been transported to the Space Colony ARK by G.U.N. for storage until they could decide how to process the portions of Eggman's fleet they had captured. The massive vessel had sat there for years when a mercenary organization began to negotiate to purchase the ship and convert it to their goal as a flagship for their aims of an interstellar and inter-dimensional force for hire.
While it took many months, the conversion for the Shining Gust was eventually achieved; and the vessel flew for the first time in its new guise as it served as the first ship for the new Stellar Wind organization, and was painted to suit in a rather unusual mixture of a black base coat and fanciful colorful patterns blowing across the vessel like the solar wind. 
While it has been active for more than fifteen years, there is still a lot of life left in the old starship, with the current captain Manhunter the Foxret treating the mighty vessel with respect in its role as a carrier and supply depot as its role as a frontline carrier. 
==Armament and Other Features==
The primary aspect to have changed from the original Egg Carrier schematics is the fact that the vessel is no longer designed with the outright goal of world domination. Instead, with firepower primarily clustered in the broadsides of the three hundred and fifty meter long warship, the ship has been modified to support an organic crew. This has resulted in the loss of some of the speed and an alteration on the firepower; as well as the addition of two rather large hanger bays and large storage sections. This has been topped off with energy shields powered by the potent Chaos Shard reactor retained by the crews. 
The primary firepower aboard the Shining Gust comes from a set of ten powerful turbolaser cannons, split with three on each broadside and a pair of turrets atop the vessel containing the other four. This gives it a maximum of six cannons to bring to bear on any targets in their primary firing arcs to the sides of the vessel. With each one of these cannons capable of blasting giant red bolts the size of the average fighter; they are backed up with twenty large lasers spread over the ship. These blue laser bolts are more conventional, with two mounted in the aft, four up the stern, and the remaining fourteen split between the two sides. In the nose; there is a full set of five torpedo launchers, with a nose-based missile bay filled to the brim with a variety of missiles; and to round off the ship's primary arsenal, there are thirty five automated anti-missile laser systems capable of burning through and disintegrating missiles and theoretically starfighters. 
The most unusual aspect of the ship is the jump drive. While G.U.N; Hammerforge Industries and many other factions advocate using two separate drive systems for space and dimension-hopping; the Shining Gust instead incorporates an unusual dual drive system to save space. This is somewhat problematic at times, with the vessel occasionally frying its drive after a jump in space or through dimensions and leaving it stranded. However, this is simply viewed as one of the risks that the founders took in order to set up this space-based organization.
Category:Starships
Category:Cruisers
Category:Interdimensional Transports
Category:Space Warships
Category:Mercenary Vehicles