Necromancer-class DropShip (Battlefield Salvage Ship)

== Description ==
More an extensive refit of the venerable Confederation-class than an entirely new ship, the Necromancer is the product of a close collaboration between the engineers of Kong Interstellar and the famous Battle Magic mercenary command. In the aftermath of the Truce of Tukayyid and the stabilization of the Clan Front, the Inner Sphere's hunger for Clan technology caused a general shift in priority towards battlefield salvage for both State and independent commands. While the Successor States could draw on a ready supply of their own logistics vessels for this purpose, Kong Interstellar's business development teams saw a market opportunity for a dedicated support vessel for independent battlefield asset recovery operations, and brought in the acknowledged independent experts in that field to help them design it. The result is a relatively affordable, rugged vessel that, though a niche design, has already proven popular enough with wealthier mercenary commands that KI has reportedly been conducting feasibility studies to expand their initially limited production capacity.
== Armament ==
Kong Interstellar's team built the Necromancer-class to utilize an identical heat management and armor configuration to their recent upgrade to the Confederation. In line with the new class's intended role, the weapons loadout was altered to shift the balance more toward defense than offense with the removal of two of the ER Large Lasers in favor of additional point-defense capability. Finally, the drive core was upgraded to a Light Fusion model that provides increased weight capacity in the cargo holds, while not sacrificing the speed or agility of the Confederation.
== Cargo ==
The lion's share of the differences between the Necromancer and its ancestor lie in its cargo hold. The Necromancer maintains a level of the original Confederation's modularity, allowing for purchasers to customize the vessel to fit the needs and equipment of their operations, but the rest of the vessel is specifically designed to support its intended role. In all configurations, cargo capacity is split across three bays:
* Bay One is equipped with three external doors, and can accommodate any combination of up to three Mech and/or heavy vehicle cubicles, increasing or decreasing the cargo lift capacity depending on configuration. 
* Bay Two provides dedicated cargo space for salvaged material, with a capacity of between 350 and 500 tons, depending on the configuration of Bay One. The bay has three external doors to allow for rapid loading and unloading, as well as a fairly sophisticated series of lifts and transit systems specifically designed around moving and securing large and irregularly-shaped objects. This feature has been a primary selling point, as it allows salvage and recovery crews to withdraw from their AO more quickly and safely as it eliminates much of the time-consuming packaging and securing of salvaged materiel prior to liftoff required by typical cargo carriers.
* Bay Three provides space for quartering and deploying two mechanized salvage platoons and cubicle space for four light vehicles up to 50 tons, with two external doors.
== Named Vessels ==
* BMS Necromancer (Battle Magic)
* DDS Bonechewer (Dust Devils)
*RHIS Forager (Red Hare Irregulars)
== Notes ==
The Confederation is referred to in English canon as the Confederate as a very obvious counterpart to the Union, but as the author prefers not to glorify anything to do with the historical Confederacy, the Dust Devils AU uses the German translation instead.
Category:AeroSpace
Category:DropShipsCustom
Category:Dust Devils AU