RWI Tigris

The **RWI *Tigris*** was a Defender-class Frigate built and used by Red Wood Industries (RWI) during the Green Drone War. It was one of the first fully-outfitted Defender-class Mark 2 variants seen during the war, and it was later retrofitted with two external docking ports, one on each side of the central hull, which could carry two V-203 Interceptors on each side into battle. It also became the first in the Mk.3 variant of the Defenders following the war, receiving updates to weaponry, internal facilities, and more.

## History

### Green Drone War

#### Deployment

The RWI *Tigris* was constructed around the end of the Green Drone War of 2733. Grand Admiral Adam Williams gave command of the *Tigris* to Captain Jack Roberts, whose starship, the RWI *Eclipse*, was under maintenance and repairs following the captain's team's mission to steal a GDA Destroyer. Captain Roberts and his crew assisted the RWI shipyard crews in finishing and slightly modifying the *Tigris* at a space station near Cyrus Station above Icarus, the capital planet of RWI. They also loaded the *Tigris*'s hangar bay to the brim with six V-203 Interceptors and two Eitri-class Support Ships for repair duty. Soon, the *Tigris* was cleared for launch and Roberts' crew jumped the frigate to the Amre System.

#### Battle of the GDA Shipyards

The *Tigris* moved into a small asteroid cluster in the orbit of Demus, an icy planet in the Amre System, to scout a derelict RWI outpost and use it as a staging post for the coming fleet reinforcements. Suddenly, a GDA Destroyer and a squadron of GDA Falcon-class Fighters ambushed the *Tigris* and its fighter squadron, and the *Tigris* sustained heavy damage when the Destroyer's Atlas Superlaser nearly severed the bow before the RWI forces destroyed the GDA's. Soon, more enemy forces arrived to chase them off, but the *Tigris* crew held their ground as forces arrived from RWI and their ally, Crazy North Logistics (CNL). The *Tigris* joined in the main attack against the GDA Shipyards and the defending GDA fleet, sustaining minor damage throughout the battle and suffering a weapons malfunction at some point, but the RWI forces were successful in capturing the shipyard. However, the RWI flagship *Apollo*, received a distress call from Icarus that the GDA were invading, and the *Tigris* and *Apollo* jumped back to Icarus at once.

#### Battle of Icarus

The *Tigris* and her crew arrived at Icarus with the rest of the reinforcements only to find the orbiting stations in ruins. GDA Destroyers, including the Commander's Dreadnought, were waiting for them. Though the *Tigris* experienced another weapons malfunction, the skeleton crew (as most had been transferred to the *Apollo* or were piloting V-203s) were able to help the reinforcements secure the orbit. The *Tigris* remained in orbit for the rest of the battle; Captain Roberts and his crew were sent to aid in the ground battle unfolding at Icarus' capital city. Since it was unmanned, the *Tigris* was not able to assist in preventing the GDA Command Dreadnought from escaping Icarus with the Artifact, the symbol of the GDA's power.

#### Invasion of P3-X2

Seventy-two hours before the Invasion of P3-X2 was launched, the *Tigris* underwent repairs and further modification at Icarus' shipyards, notably the addition of four armor braces (two on each side), that could each carry an additional V-203 Fighter on the exterior hull, making the frigate's fighter carrying capacity no longer restricted to the rear hangar. The *Tigris* was also placed under the command of Captain Jonathan Hunter, an experienced officer and former captain of the RWI *Valiant*.

When the attack was commenced on P3-X2, Hunter and the *Tigris* provided Captain Roberts' team, now back aboard the RWI *Eclipse*, with fighter support. They fought alongside the RWI/CNL (Crazy North Logistics) joint fleet until the orbiting GDA blockade was broken, then proceeded down into the lower atmosphere of the planet to deliver ground troops and supplies. The *Tigris* was used as a temporary HQ for additional landing forces before setting out again to lock down the GDA's main base. Hunter himself led a company of marines inside the base in attempt to secure the Artifact, but had to retreat once the GDA's leader, the Controller, triggered the base's self-destruct countdown. Hunter and the troops fled back to the *Tigris* and rejoined the fleet in orbit to try and prevent the Controller from escaping aboard his Super-Dreadnought with the Artifact and the Commander, but were unsuccessful. The *Tigris* accompanied the remaining starships to a nearby CNL-controlled moon, where the crew made hasty repairs.

#### Battle of the Black Hole

The *Tigris* then followed the joint fleet, now reinforced by some RCSP (Royal Coalition of Spatial Protection) ships, back to Icarus, where Hunter and the other senior officers were briefed on their next attack plan to stop the Controller from unleashing the Artifact's power. The *Tigris* was reported to have participated in the Battle of the Black Hole under Hunter's command, but does not actually appear on-screen. However, the ship did survive the battle.

### Operation: Chrysaor

Several months after the war ended, the *Tigris* was modified even further with upgraded weaponry and a partially-refitted interior. These modifications also would serve as standard-issue upgrades for all Defender-class Mk.3s in the future. Grand Admiral Williams also gave Jack Roberts, now an Admiral, and his new crew command of the *Tigris* once again for a special black-ops operation to discover the whereabouts and status of a black-ops ship, the RWI *Pegasus*, that went missing during the Green Drone War. Roberts and the *Tigris* crew were dispatched to the Agaris System to meet with the United Colonies of Agaris (UCA), who claimed to have intel on the *Pegasus*. During the mission, the *Tigris* utilized its new secret weapon - a new version of the Atlas Superlaser hidden in the bow, revealed by sliding armor panels. The *Tigris* used this and other modifications to fight off numerous hostile warships from various factions, but despite its modifications, it took a heavy amount of damage but still survived the mission and was taken back to Icarus for repairs. It's unclear if the Atlas Superlaser became standard-issue on all Defender Mk.3s, or if it was exclusive to the *Tigris*.

### Joint Expedition Task Force Mission

The *Tigris*, along with two other Defender MK.3s, the *Tenacity* and the *Tyrant*, accompanied the RWI *Zheng-He* and the RWI *Olympus* to the Chrome System to reinforce the Joint Expedition Task Force (JETF) personnel in their fight against the Remnant on Chrome II, after the expedition flagship, the RWI *Prometheus*, crashed on the surface. Admiral Kieron Hask of the *Zheng-He* ordered the Defenders to stand by for deployment to the lower atmosphere of Chrome II when he learned that the CNL portion of the JETF had gone rogue and began fighting RWI forces, who had no communication to the *Zheng-He*.

## Behind-The-Scenes

The *Tigris*' fighter-carrying modifications were originally seen in 'Space Engineers: Planet Wars,' a series set in the Redwood Universe. The RWI *Serenity* was the first Defender-class to appear with these modifications, and is indirectly mentioned in the episode in which the *Tigris* is modified with said upgrades.