ORS-class heavy cruiser

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The Varric-pattern heavy cruiser is a venerable line of heavy used by the and later their . Revered for their awesome power and accumulated glory, they are extremely versatile for a ship of their size, leading to them becoming prestigious vessels to serve aboard. Renowned for being augmented with a weapons-core, they are further supported by advanced stealth systems, although unfortunately this had instilled issues with power management in combat situations.
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Table of Contents
#Operational History
##Origins
#Variants
##Duram-pattern
##Reverence-pattern
#Ships of the Line
#Gallery
== Operational History ==
=== Origins ===
The origins for one of the Covenant's oldest and most respected capital ships lies during the , which began in . Although the Covenant attempted to unify themselves by provoking a war of aggression with the fledging Jehetma, they were forced to fight a war on two fronts when one of their most elderly fleets, the -dominated Fleet of Enduring Prosperity, declared they would cede themselves from the Covenant and 'liberate' their worlds. Despite their use of outdated warships, the experienced Supreme Commander Garsc 'Refumee was able to utilise shockingly-effective hit-and-run attacks on Covenant supply lines, forcing fleets to pull themselves back as they were weakened from dozens of small setbacks. While the blamed this on the Fleet Masters of their military, with executions being frequently conducted to encourage their armies, an attack on itself forced them to take 'Refumee's forces far more seriously.
The Covenant founded the shipwright guild in , and immediately put them to work into developing a viable counter to 'Refumee's forces. Despite being given the largest shipyard ever built at the time and protected by a of the Hierarch's most loyal troops, the upcoming behemoth would prove to be a challenge to build. The unfamiliarity of the design team would them create enemies with each other until they were forced to work together, not helped by the fact that the High Council demanded that they use the most cutting-edge technologies available. Indeed, these issues forced them to accept that a giant battleship was impossible to accomplish under such conditions, and instead began working on a series of smaller ones.
Within a three-year period and after countless redesigns, the Song of Victory would unveil their first new warship - the , a smaller but nevertheless powerful ship that was built with a micro-singularity disturbance field which hard-countered 'Refumee's preferred hit-and-run tactics. However, these alone weren't enough to ensure the Covenant's superiority, especially since the Jehetma ships were often much larger than their Covenant equivalents. As a result, to help speed up development even further on the all-too-necessary battleship, they took the base of the RCS as a starting point and reworked it into their needs. Once the design was finalised and approved, construction on a prototype began in 271 BCE.
Unfortunately, the project would face outside attention. The sudden appearance of a new Covenant cruiser, one which 'Refumee's spies had never suspected much less predicted was built, had cost him dearly in his engagements against the Covenant, especially since they could go toe-to-toe with all but his largest ships. He knew he needed an edge and began retasking his spies with determining where the new cruisers were designed so he could interrogate and if possible recruit the shipwrights to his cause. It would take years for him to get any successful leads, until finally an ally in the High Council traded information on the shipyard's whereabouts for a position of power in his faction. Saboteurs were initially deployed to try and destroy the ship in dock, however, the heavy guard and carefully-chosen nature of the station's defenders made this difficult and plots were easily thwarted. When a direct assault proved to require the resources of an entire fleet, 'Refumee chose to bid his time until it the ship was ready for launch.
=== Human-Covenant War ===
== Variants ==
=== Duram-pattern ===
An anomaly among its class, the Duram-pattern is a specialised line of cruisers built to combine lethal burst power with advanced technology. Fielded on a rare basis by the , they often act as vanguards to total invasions.
=== Reverence-pattern ===
A specialised upgrade of the Varric-pattern heavy cruiser, the Reverence-pattern grand cruiser is a heavy command ship which is fielded solely by the Swords of Sanghelios.
== Ships of the Line ==
Name 	Pattern	Commissioned 	Destroyed 	Notes
 	Varric 	Unknown 	 	Formerly commanded by , scrapped by the .
Emancipator 	Varric 	Unknown 	Unknown 	Commanded by Lora 'Deris, participated in the Imperial War.
 	Varric 	Unknown 	2558 	Formerly the Gathering of Praise, participated in the , survived the . Later destroyed over in .
Heaven's Battle Song 	Varric 	Unknown 	Unknown 	Commanded by Sev 'Ikavowattinrzo, diplomat craft of Xytan's Loyalists following his death. Eventually boarded and captured by Ronno T'Soramai.
Howl of Graceful Mercy 	Varric 	Unknown 	Unknown 	Attached to the Fleet of Righteous Vindication.
 	Varric 	Unknown 	 	Captained by shipmaster , destroyed during the .
 	Varric 	Unknown 	Unknown 	Formerly commanded by , participated the , discovered the . Later returned to the .
Minor Thunder 	Varric 	June 19, 2070	February 3, 2555	Commanded by Vot 'Gazum, destroyed over Siyclite.
Pilgrim's Solace 	Varric 	Unknown 	2537 	Flagship of the Ministry of Tranquility's Flotilla of Supplication.
Pitiless Promise 	Duram 	Unknown 	Unknown 	A vessel attached to the Fleet of Salvation, joining the Quillick along with the fleet during the faction's creation.
Questioner 	Varric 	Unknown 	August 31, 2558 	Commanded by Felo 'Ranak, participated in the Imperial War. Destroyed during the Battle of Frendhal.
Seeker of the Blessed Path	Varric 	Unknown 	Unknown 	Flagship of the Fleet of Rampant Zeal, participated in the Siege of Chi Rho.
 	Varric 	Unknown 	2558 	Destroyed over Carrow.
Bulwark of the Devout 	Varric 	Unknown 	Unknown 	Served as the base of operations for Ranger Fyze 'Mogamee and his unit in service of the Ministry of Infidels.
== Gallery ==
Category:Covenant ships
Category:Cruiser classes