B10V Talh'vor (Mother of Death) Class

The Talh'vor (Mother of Death) Class Battlecarrier was the result of two strategic situations that arose in the Organian Conflict. The first was the introduction of modern Fightercraft by the Hydran Royal Navy, leading to an arms race to produce an equivalent (and a counter). The second was the production of Sword of Kahless Class hulls exceeding the rate at which Heavy Photon Torpedo Tubes (and their ordnance) and Assault Phasers could be manufactured. She is a hybrid design, marrying some of the firepower of a Capital Ship with the Fighter-carrying capacity of a Carrier. Unfortunately this wasn't a particularly successful marriage, with neither the firepower that a Capital Ship of her size would normally carry, nor the carrying capacity of a similarly sized Fleet Carrier.

## Development

In 2282, the Tholians unleashed a new class of ship on several Klingon outposts on the Klingon-Tholian border. This large ship was more than a match for the Klingon forces that could be fielded against it at the time. After a period of three months of the enemy’s unbridled rampaging throughout the border area, a massed attack on the ship finally succeeded in destroying it.

The battle was extraordinarily costly in terms of ships and lives and forced Klingon High Command to rethink its battle strategies. The most apparent change to be made was the acquisitions of a large and powerful vessel not only to provide a devastating punch, but also to coordinate the disparate forces
involved in larger battles. Tactics were developed whereby the large ship would salvo an enemy vessel from long range to get the enemy’s attention. When the enemy turned to engage the large ship, the smaller vessels would charge in to attack the enemy’s engines. Once the enemy was immobile, the large ship would then move in for the kill.

Shortly thereafter, the Jevghom Design Bureau submitted the designs for a refit of their existing Puw'Leth Class, which fit this new tactical doctrine perfectly. Because of the speed and perfection of the Jevghom submission, there were many accusations of collusion or complicity with the Tholians in the border attacks. Many were killed in the subsequent honour duels, and none of the accusations were proven. In response to this hullabaloo, the engineers and designers at Jevghom renamed their design for the Puw'Leth Refit to pumwl’ (Accuser).

The new Battleship proved to be a great success, despite the loss of the pumwl’ in an ion storm a few months after entering service. However, strategic planners in the Klingon Defence Force began to run war simulations that indicated that and even larger, even more powerful flagship would be beneficial, especially in a war against the Federation.

At the same time, a political crisis was brewing in the Empire. Several factions within the High Council had been quarrelling over various lucrative and prestigious naval contracts, including that of the new Accuser Class. To complicate matters even further, questions of honour were also being debated as one side would complain bitterly that if the other faction obtained the honour associated with one of these contracts it would upset the status quo in the Klingon political power structure. The bickering soon escalated into something tantamount to a blood feud that threatened to divide the council into two rival factions. This would have crippled the empire by preventing any side from obtaining the necessary majority for major council decisions.

In a savvy political manoeuvre, Chancellor Lorak ordered the design of a new ship, one that would be a symbol for all the Empire. (Only Lorak realised the fact that it could be used as a tool for inducing political stability as well.) Of course, this requirement matched perfectly with the need for a new "Super-Battleship" for the KDF.

The master ship builder Hogh Batlh completed the original designs for the new vessel in 2284. The design boasted formidable firepower, both in her Primary and Secondary Batteries, using the same Heavy Photon Tubes as the pumwl'. In an effort to give the ship a weapon to crack any defensive shields, her hull was designed around an Assault Phaser, the basic design having been developed from the design of the Federation 'Kaminari' Type II Phaser Cannon (having been stolen by agents of the Imperial Intelligence Service‏‎ in the 2250s.)

An unfortunate side effect of the immense size of the new vessel was that engineers were unable to fit a working Cloaking Device. Despite their alliance, the Romulans were unwilling to provide technical information on their latest designs and the science behind their newest generation of Cloaking Device.

The first ship, the IKS qeyLIS bet'Leth (Sword of Kahless) was launched in 2288, delayed by the need for shipyard space for ship repairs during the Organian Conflict. Proving to be superior to most Starfleet vessels encountered, the Sword of Kahless was soon followed into service by her sister ship, the IKS wo’ HubwI (Defender of the Empire). Their success, along with the introduction of the War Eagle Class by the Romulan Star Empire, led to the pumwl' Class being redesignated as a Dreadnought. The age of the Super-Battleship had begun.

Anticipating both combat attrition and the need for Battleships in a renewed offensive into Federation space, production of Sword of Kahless Class hulls was ramped up. However, it soon became clear that the weaponry required for such spaceframes would take a considerable time to manufacture, and rather than cancel or scrap the spaceframes that were under construction, it was decided to halt production on them, temporarily mothball them, and commission them when weapon stocks had increased. This was ultimately not to be...

Several years earlier, in 2285, the resurgent Hydran Kingdoms debuted a powerful new form of a very old concept; Fightercraft. Employed by the Hydran Royal Navy to offset their manpower and ship construction issues, these nimble craft packed far more firepower onto their frame than previous generations of Shuttlecraft had. Long since abandoned by the powers of the Alpha and Beta Quadrants, their effectiveness in battle was noted by all, and an arms race began as each warring empire sort to deploy their own version, both to emulate Hydran successes and to counter the use of such craft by their rivals.

The Klingon Defence Force was initially sceptical of these new weapons. Whilst small, powerfully armed for their size and allowing a single Warrior to gain much honour (either through single acts or glorious death), KDF tacticians believed that such craft would defy the essential elements of the Warrior's Code. After all, death in battle was honourable, but Klingon Warriors were expected to work together for the glory of all, not selfishly put their desire for glory above others. There were also practical considerations, namely that the loss of large numbers of Warriors in such Fightercraft would lead to manpower shortages. Better that they be grouped together in warships and live, fight and die together than to be whittled away.

Eventually, a compromise was reached in the tactical use of such weapons, and given the fact that other empires were undoubtedly developing their own Fightercraft, the KDF could not afford to be without them. The Hegh'GogH (Iron Fist) Heavy Fighter‏‎ was the result of this compromise, being heavily armed and considerably armoured, compared to most Fighters. They were to be deployed in small wings and their pilots were to remain in tight formations, fighting as a unit. No individual glory hunting was to be tolerated. Their heavy weaponry was also designed to punch through the thick shields of Starfleet vessels, helping to offset the advantage Starfleet normally had in Capital Ship engagements.

Unfortunately for the KDF, there was a serious issue regarding how to deploy these short ranged vessels into combat. Obviously some kind of Carrier vessel was required, but the Organian Conflict was raging, and shipyard space was at a premium. Nor could existing Capital Ships be spared in order to be converted to dedicated Carriers. This shortage of a suitable Carrier delayed the entry of the Iron Fist‏‎ into combat by 18 months, although they were successfully deployed onboard border worlds for a time to give their crews flight experience and practice flying and fighting as a unit.

The solution to this problem came in 2288 with the spare Sword of Kahless Class hulls that were suddenly available. Hogh Batlh quickly drew up plans to build a new vessel on the partially completed frames of these Battleships, requiring the minimum amount of reworking and capable of being produced modularly by smaller shipyards and assembled in situ rather than needing the heavy equipment of a full Imperial Shipyard. She also required only a single Heavy Photon Torpedo Tube compared to the four deployed on the Sword of Kahless, and required far less powerful reactor systems due to the lack of a Assault Phaser.

The design was christened the Talh'vor, or Mother of Death, and tactically was to be deployed in the same manner as any other large Capital Ship. The Iron Fist‏‎ Fighters onboard were considered to be a replacement for her reduced weapons batteries, and were to be deployed in much the same way, fighting as an extension of the ships guns rather than roaming independently.

## Operational History

The first ship, the IKS Talh'vor was launched in late 2288, only a few weeks after the IKS qeyLIS bet'Leth thanks to her modular construction methods. She saw limited combat during that conflict, with the renewed offensive into Federation space being cancelled after the return of the Organians and the arrival of the Interstellar Concordium into galactic politics. Three further converted spaceframes were finished as Talh'vors, with several more laid down from the start as Battlecarriers rather than Battleships.

The War of Pacification was the first true test of both the Talh'vor and her Iron Fist‏‎ Fighters. The Iron Fist‏‎ proved a good counter to ISC Star Cruisers and Dreadnoughts, when they appeared, and their manoeuvrability compared to conventional warships helped to negate the lethal ISC Echelon tactics. The Carrier herself was less capable, although she was always a compromised design and never intended to go toe-to-toe with another Capital Ship without the close support of her Fighter Complement. Compared to her (now allied) Federation counterpart, the Ark Royal Class, she carried less Fighters but was less vulnerable to attack. She soon became the most numerous large Carrier type seen during the war.

During the Ormong of 2291, the Talh'vor Class warships in service had been laid up or were on extended patrols of the Klingon-Federation Neutral Zone. Additionally, no side in the conflict had ever considered the tactical use of Iron Fist ‏‎Fighters against Klingon warships, and neither Chang, Gorkon or Melkor wished to deplete strategic KDF assets that deterred invasion by a hostile power.

After the Ormong, several further vessels were completed, bringing the number in service up to ten. During the General War of 2292, Melkor made full use of these assets in his attack on the Federation, although several were lost during the Gorn counter-offensive.

## Apocrypha

The loss of the Tal'Ihnor Gates System and the explosion of the moon Praxis left the Empire with a critical energy shortage. The ecological damage wrought to the homeworld of Qo'noS also put a halt to any plans for the further construction of larger Klingon warship designs, the Talh'vor being one such design. Several incomplete vessels were cancelled on the slipway.

The craze for Fightercraft had reached it's zenith during the early 2290s, and after the signing of the Khitomer Accords the deployment of Carriers was seen as wasteful. As the 23rd Century came to a close, the number of Talh'vors in service was reduced down to three, of the surviving nine from the General War. Whilst the new StoH'GogH (Steel Fist) Heavy Fighter (introduced in late 2292 ) helped to keep these remaining ships competitive, they were increasingly used as Shuttlecraft Carriers instead, with their Fighters instead redeployed on outposts and border worlds. Both the Talh'vor and the Fightercraft types she carried were withdrawn in 2330 after new weapon and targeting systems advances rendered them entirely obsolete.

## Specifications

* **Class:** Battlecarrier
* **Hull Type Designation:** KCVA
* **Length:** 686m
* **Crew:** 770
* **Warp Nacelles:** 4

* **Maximum Sublight Speed:** 2500 k/s (25 Mk/s)
* **Cruise** **Warp Factor Speed:** wf 7.0
* **Safe** **Maximum Warp Factor Speed:** wf 8.1
* **Hull Rating:** 800 HSF
* **Shield Rating:** 980 FSP

* **Sensor Rating:** 600 SRU

* **Armament and Equipment:**
	+ Primary
		- 6 × Disruptor Cannon
	+ Secondary
		- 1 × Heavy Photon Torpedo Tube
	+ Heavy
		- None
	+ Advanced
		- None
	+ Equipment
		- Tractor Beam Emitter
		- Probes
		- 9 × Hegh'GogH (Iron Fist) Heavy Fighter or 9 × StoH'GogH (Steel Fist) Heavy Fighter

## Ships in Service (2292)

IKS Talh'vor

IKS ho'talh

IKS JeH'vor

IKS MoQ'iqlH

IKS be'Gh'qO

IKS Ko'ToQ

IKS Vor'Qth

IKS NegH'TaQ

IKS HegH'VoH

IKS TaQ'Qo