Punic-class supercarrier

### Sensor Systems

**Fleet command-and-control suite*** Bastion V naval combat information center (Original Design)
* Achilles I naval combat information center (UNSC First Retrofit)
* Achilles II naval combat information center (UNSC Wartime Retrofit)

**RADAR & Scanner**

* X-ELF Mark III radar system (Original Design & UNSC First Retrofit)
* X-ELF Mark IV radar system (UNSC Wartime Retrofit)

### Targeting Systems

* Mk 25 long-range fire director (Original Design)
* Mk 26 long-range fire director (UNSC First Retrofit)
* Mk 27 long-range fire director (UNSC Wartime Retrofit)

### Navigation Systems

* Mk 05 computer system (Original Design)
* Mk 17 computer system (UNSC First Retrofit & UNSC Wartime Retrofit)

### IEWS Systems

* Typhoon IV IEWS (Original Design)
* Typhoon V IEWS (UNSC First Retrofit)
* Typhoon VI IEWS (UNSC Wartime Retrofit)

### Armament

**Original Design*** 2 Mark II, Heavy Coil - 9B25D8 MAC
* 26 Mark 10 Breakwater naval coilgun batteries
* 65 Mark 60 Sentry naval coilgun batteries
* 10 M2140 Furion nuclear missiles
* 800 M44 Ares missiles
* 168 M580 Torrent point-defence guns
* 675 M803 Helix point-defence guns

**UNSC First Retrofit**

* 2 Mark VI, Super Coil - CR-01B MAC
* 10 Mark 15 Breakwater naval coilgun batteries
* 25 Mark 42 Sarissa naval coilgun batteries
* 22 Mark 33 Spitfire naval coilgun batteries
* 50 Mark 66 Sentry naval coilgun batteries
* 12 M2950 Harpoon nuclear missiles
* 355 M42 Archer missile pods
* 106 M910 Station point-defence guns
* 185 M965 Fortress point-defence guns
* 160 M870 Rampart point-defence guns
* 340 M850 Rampart point-defence guns

**UNSC Wartime Retrofit**

* 2 Mark VI, Super Coil - CR-01D MAC
* 10 Mark 25 Breakwater naval coilgun batteries
* 53 Mark 42 Sarissa naval coilgun batteries
* 80 Mark 66 Sentry naval coilgun batteries
* 18 M2475 Shiva nuclear missiles
* 442 M58 Archer missile pods
* 85 M96 Howler missile pods
* 136 M910 Station point-defence guns
* 185 M965 Fortress point-defence guns
* 288 M870 Rampart point-defence guns
* 202 M850 Rampart point-defence guns
* 170 M810 Helix point-defence guns

### Complement

**Original Design*** 25 Squadrons of 10 F/A-110 Axe
* 25 Squadrons of 10 F/S-130 Karambit
* 5 Squadrons of 8 D82-EST Darters
* 5 Squadrons of 8 SKT-13 Shuttlecraft
* 6 Cat-8 sub-vessel deployment bays
* 3 Cat-7 sub-vessel deployment bays

**UNSC Specifications**

* 22 Squadrons of 12 C712 Longswords
* 8 Squadrons of 6 C709 Longswords
* 12 Squadrons of 8 F-99 Wombats
* 5 Squadrons of 3 GA-TL2 Greatswords
* 4 Squadrons of 3 AC-220 Vultures
* 4 Squadrons of 8 B-65 Shortswords
* 4 Squadron of 12 D77-TC Pelicans
* 6 Squadrons of 8 D82-EST Darters
* 4 Squadrons of 6 D96-TCE Albatrosses
* 4 Squadrons of 3 D20 Herons
* 6 Cat-8 sub-vessel deployment bays
* 3 Cat-7 sub-vessel deployment bays

### Crew

**Original Design*** 9,000 Total Crew
* 6,760 Sailors
* 2,240 Flight Crew

**UNSC Specifications**

* 9,849 Total Crew
* 6,180 Sailors
* 3,669 Flight Crew

### Minimum Crew

* 5,514 Sailors (Original Design)
* 4,078 Sailors (UNSC Design)

### Passengers

2 Marine Divisions (Approx. 40,000 Soldiers)1 Marine Divisional Air Combat Elements (3,132 Flight Crew)

* 96 D77-TC Pelican Dropships
* 48 D77-TCI Pelican Gunships
* 180 AV-14 Hornets
* 48 AV-22 Sparrowhawks
* 64 D82-EST Darters
* 20 EV-44 Nightingales
* 72 UH-144 Falcons
* 32 F-99 Wombats
* 24 D96-TCE Albatrosses
* 16 D80H-LRT Condors

2 ODST Regiments (Approx. 4,000 Soldiers)-5,000 SOEIV drop pods

## Additional Information

### Era(s)

* Insurrection
* Human-Covenant War

### Role(s)

* Fleet Command-and-Control
* Strike Craft Deployment
* Troop Deployment & Campaign Support
* Ship-to-Ship Combat

The ***Punic*-class supercarrier**, famed as Humanity's stalwart shield during the peak of the Human-Covenant War, is a class of twelve massive warships that served within the navies of both the Colonial Military Authority and the United Nations Space Command. Designed as a 'Space Control Vehicle', the *Punic*-class was meant to serve as an oasis in the void of space for large formations of warships, ground troops, and even civilians if the situation ever warranted it.

Unfortunately, the behemoths mostly led unexciting lives during their service with the CMA Navy. They performed admirably during major campaigns of the Insurrection, but mostly remained close to home, serving as the flagship of the larger defence fleets. Ultimately however they would regain their purpose and become the pride of Humanity with the outbreak of the Human-Covenant War; retrofitted with the finest technology the UNSC could offer to serve as one of the only vessels in the fleet that could go toe-to-toe with Covenant capital ships. These titanic warships served throughout the conflict, battling against extinction during most of the major battles of the war, from leading the charge at the miraculous Defence of Stahlwelt to their final stand at the Battle of Earth.

## Class History

### Designing A Flagship

#### A Home Away From Home

As the 2470's began, and the *Domus Diaspora* was beginning to slow down, both the CMA and the UNSC found themselves in the odd situation where their colony ships had worked far faster than their navies were expecting. This was a time of great strife back on Earth, as the UEG balanced the needs of their quickly overpopulating home system and the demands of their beloved Inner Colonies, with the now growing needs of the nearly 250 worlds and hundreds of other outposts spreading throughout the ever-expanding Outer Colonies.

The issues weren't helped by the UEG's choice to grant the UNSC the right of protection of the Inner Colonies in 2467, and the granting of over 60% the CAA's funding to them to manage the job. The UNSC quickly got to developing and deploying a series of new designs, quickly adopting the newly developed magnetic-accelerator cannon for general use. The CMA was left out to dry, with designs mostly dating back to the 2440's or even older, and their troops spread across the hundreds of worlds and often supported only by a destroyer or two or perhaps a small handful of frigates.

These concerns became one of the driving influences on the CAA's choice to command the CMA to begin work on developing their next generation of warships to keep the Outer Colonies safe. This would ultimately result in a series of extremely successful designs throughout the late 2400's and early 2500's, but none of the designs would compare to the unbridled ambition of what would become known as the Space Control Vehicle; a massive flagship style vessel designed to offer advanced command ca-pabilities, mobile foundries for the maintenance of fleets and armies, and the full capabilities of any standard colony ship.

#### The Struggle for Relevance

Ever since the UNSC's seizure of protection duties for the Inner Colonies, the CAA's funding had been drastically slashed despite their growing expansion throughout Humanity's Outer Colonies. As dozens of new worlds and other inhabited objects joined the territory every few years, they fought viciously in the UEG to recover some of their funding, and their efforts were not entirely in vain. Despite the success however, the UNSC quickly grew more and more powerful, with their tactics proving successful in stomping out both domestic resistance and piracy throughout the Inner Colonies, and the UEG being ever more drawn towards the increasing profits of the jewels closer to home.

In their fight to retain their relevance in the shifting political landscape, the CAA ramped up the progress of the CMA's various projects, chief among them the Space Control Vehicle. The basic design was approved in 2475, with CMA deciding to select Actium Machinery Limited, a shipbuilder local to the Outer Colonies, to finalise the design and produce the ships. The project was kept as quiet as possible, with the CAA granting the company funding for a new, top secret construction yard in orbit of Stahlwelt to build the ships, and granting the CMA full authority to take whatever action they deemed necessary to keep the project under wraps.

#### A Helping Hand

Despite their hopes to keep it within the Outer Colonies, AML quickly discovered they were simply too inexperienced with such large-scale projects to do alone, and after significant debate, the CMA brought a request for joint development directly to the head of SinoViet Heavy Machinery, with plenty of additional funds to keep the project as top secret as possible. SinoViet accepted and provided a team of their best engineers and designers to AML, stationing them permanently at Alpha Drydock Facility, the designation for their new Stahlwelt facility. With SinoViet's expertise and AML's blank check on resources and funding, the project quickly got underway.

The new team immediately set about making some significant changes. First they set about improving the more physical side of things, upping the armour by 50 to 100 centimetres and nearly doubling the weapon systems. Arguably more importantly was the digital; newer models of their combat support computers and scanners, improved targeting systems, and highly advanced IEWS software that would eventually become and extremely annoying thorn in the side of ONI agents.

### PROJECT: THUNDERBOLT & OPERATION: HIGH EYE

#### Project Approval & Initial Construction

The design was finalised in 2479, with the CAA quick to approve funding for the first pair of vessels in 2480; despite the quick approval, worries over the security of Alpha as well as the network security of the CMA's home systems lead to a series of internal investigations and inquiries. The designs were locked behind multiple layers of secrecy, with only the highest-ranking CMA officers and CAA officials knowing the true scale; alongside these measures were new allowances to CMA Intelligence's ability to conduct counter-intelligence operations on both UNSC & ONI as well as their own citizenry.

All these measures were hidden behind the master designation Project: THUNDERBOLT, and eventually they were satisfied with all the new parameters that they finally allowed the first two hulls, SCV-101 and SCV-102, to be laid down at Alpha and construction got underway in earnest. While expectations were high for the project overall, only this first batch would ever be even close to those initial desires, as once word got out, their rivals did everything they could to sabotage and ruin the CMA's attempt at designing the ultimate flagship.

Security at the plant was kept to the tightest of scrutiny, and years down the line ONI would discover that more than a handful of project members vanished without a trace, never to be seen again. Undeniably this secrecy did its part however, as even as the first pair approached 50% completion both the UNSC and ONI were none the wiser. During this period, ONI agents patrolling the Outer Colonies were aggressed and removed from the territory at an increased rate, which while suspicious in itself, was done as an effort to both hide the project and hopefully distract the UNSC for as long as possible while the first pair were completed.

#### Second Approval & ONI Discovery

As the years of development continued on without any obvious signs that the UNSC was aware of the project, the CAA and CMA grew more confident in this new project of theirs. As 2483 came around, a new batch was approved, with four hulls being budgeted, the first pair to be laid down in 2484 and the second in 2486. Alpha was expanded to hold a third hull, and a new secret drydock, Omega, was constructed around the remote mining colony of Aether. As construction of the second half of this new batch got underway, the original pair were ready for initial trials, and the newly christened CMA *Punic* and CMA *Normandy* made their first unassisted movements and began to make their tests throughout the remote regions of the Outer Colonies.

Despite their location and efforts, the moment the ships were no longer locked behind docking bays the CMA knew it would only be a matter of time before the jig was up. Hindsight would prove them right, as barely three weeks after their initial launch ONI had enough rumours to get approval from HIGHCOM for deep and aggressive infiltration known as Operation: HIGH EYE. Months of being run around by CMA Intelligence finally came to an end when an ONI agent who had worked their way up the ladder of CMA Intelligence finally got their hands on the files of Project: THUNDERBOLT. Finally, UNSC knew what they were up against, and they were completed shocked from the discovery, two vessels nearly commissioned, two well on the way, and two more in early production, each one of a scale massively outclassing anything the UNSC had ever even considered, dwarfing even their largest colony ships.

### Service & Rivalry

#### Production Delays & Initial Commissioning

Now that everyone knew the score, both the UNSC and the CMA quickly moved to get the ball rolling in the ever-escalating arms race for power within the UEG. Production on the existing vessels was ramped up heavily, however their efforts were negated and in fact made to delay the actual process due to significant ONI sabotage. Despite hopes that the first four vessels could be ready for commissioning within the 2490, with production speeding up with experience, the presumption faltered quickly with delays in the second batch pushing their commissioning back to 2493, though the first pair just barely managed to make their schedule.

*Punic* and *Normandy* finished their trials in early 2490, and after brief stints in the docks to make some adjustments, they were ready to enter service. After a grand ceremony and celebration for the 180th anniversary of the CAA, the two vessels were officially revealed to great public acclaim and celebration. The two vessels and their crew remained over New Tyrol operating tours and show formations for two weeks before finally setting out on their first missions, which for the first year would be little more than patrols. These vessels were the first of their size category, and as such the operation and principles had to be tested and adjusted to keep them in order, and the CMA was not willing to make any risks for their new flagships.

The *Punics* proved to be a well needed morale boost for the CMA Navy and the people of the Outer Colonies at large, the sheer scale of the production bringing a significant amount of prestige to the entire CAA. Their deployment at the heads of the ever modernising CMA fleet brought a serious question as to whether the UNSC was retaining its position as the most capable force for Humanity's protection, and this doubt brought with it a new wave of support from the UEG in the form of additional funding and project approvals, granting them some much needed relief from their ever-shrinking budget. Doubling down on their success, this increased budget went largely to the CMA Navy, who continued to increase their fleet in a multitude of ways, including a new batch of three Punics, all to be produced at Alpha starting in 2492.

#### **UNSC Response**

The UNSC was not quietly allowing themselves to be completely eclipsed however, as the moment they discovered the true scale of Operation: THUNDERBOLT in 2489, the UNSC and ONI set about trying to counter the CMA's grasp for power. ONI busied itself with infiltrating and sabotaging the progress of the CMA's own program, while the UNSC proper immediately poured funding into a new design. Barely six months after the discovery, just as the first two *Punics* were reentering the dockyards for adjustments, ONI Section III presented the design for the *Ajax*-class heavy battleship, a pure ship-to-ship combatant armed with the two of the most powerful MACs developed to date.

Unwilling to allow the CMA to profit from their secrecy, and profiting from ONI's particularly effective methods, the UNSC approved the design almost instantly. After a few kinks were ironed out, the approval for a first block of four ships was approved in 2490 with the construction starting before the year was out. SinoViet was selected to build the ships, and they were not going to allow anything to get in the way of what could be their largest contract yet. As such they poured everything into producing these new combatants, outpacing even the most generous projections by the UNSC and delivering the lead ship of the *Ajax*-class in early 2494 with its three sisters following throughout the year. While they weren't able to beat out the second pair of *Punics*, who were commissioned in 2493, the efficiency of being able to design and deploy four massive warships shocked the CMA Navy, and using the increasing tensions managed to garner approval for another batch of three, with hopes that production would begin in 2494, though delays would mean the hulls weren't laid down until 2495.

### The Insurrection

#### A New Threat, A New Purpose

As the UNSC *Ajax* was being commissioned and the CMA were preparing to launch their third pair of *Punics*, the Insurrection was just about to begin as the UNSC *Callisto* accidentally killed citizens of the Outer Colonies during a routine inspection and was soon after boarded and captured by a group of rebels. The *Callisto* Incident that followed in March only inflamed tensions, and within a year, tens of thousands of rebels flocked to a variety of causes throughout the Outer Colonies, and the CMA prepared to finally enact their original purpose in force for the first time since their founding.

The space control vehicle was originally meant to be half-warship half-civilian oasis in the void of space, but as the Insurrectionist control over worlds spread, and the CMA quickly found itself in both guerilla conflicts and pitched battles, the ships found themselves loaded to bear with more CMA ground forces and strike craft, and with the failure to contain the conflict obvious, the ships were officially re-designated as supercarriers and any pretense of civilian use was dropped in favour of fully loaded combat warships.

In the run up to the third pair's commissioning in 2500, the four already in service led over a dozen successful but often painful operations against the largest Insurrectionist forces. This combat experience proved invaluable to future Punic crews, and some major issues that went unnoticed were able to be found and fixed. Perhaps most notably was a major flaw in the secondary batteries caused by a single line of overlooked code that made the ship's coilguns refuse to target any active ship, as the vessels' background signature caused the weapons AI to assume they were friendly ships.

### Operation: Catapult & The Saratoga Incident

#### Heightened Arms Race

The arms race was now in full swing, however while the CMA Navy was successful in designing and deploying a handful of successful designs like the Hillsborough-class and the Lancer-class, the continued production of the Punics continued to face a multitude of setbacks, some from sabotage but plenty of them caused simply by their ever-lessening influence and economy in the face of the UEG's growing preference for the UNSC. With a pair coming off the line in 2500 and a set of three well on their way to be deployed in only a few years later, the CMA Navy found itself in command of a strong fleet of some of the most advanced designs. Despite their victories however, more and more funding went to the UNSC, as they had proven far more successful in the growing Insurrection; by now the UNSC had deployed its third batch of *Ajaxs*, numbering twelve of the mighty warships, and the CMA Navy was intent on not being outdone. After much debate, they gained approval for another batch of three in early 2500 with the hulls to be placed down over the course of the year.

#### A Growing Threat

Ultimately the path to conflict would come unexpectedly during an unrelated operation, as Project: ORION agents found a list of names during the execution of Operation: Veritas in 2499. This list would turn out to be a record of undercover Successionist Union operatives who held high-level officer positions within the CMA. Following on the lead, it was discovered that these agents had for years been providing actionable intelligence and armaments to anti-UEG groups across the Outer Colonies. These actions were determined to have planned a not insignificant role in the loss of Eridanus II to the Successionist Union in 2494 as well as numerous previous attempts at coups and take-overs.

Naval HIGHCOM was suddenly facing a significantly amount of worry over the status of the CMA fleet, and in particular its six, soon to be eight active *Punic*-class ships. With high-ranking officials having provable loyalties to anti-UEG groups, and countless numbers of crewman no doubt finding their loyalties or sympathies laying with such groups, it was becoming a real risk that vessels may very well start being loss to active defections. Navy hardliners would try to leverage public outcry over the 2501 scandal to try and call for the immediate seizure of the *Punics* alongside any escorts, but both HIGHCOM and ONI feared such an action would risk, at best their crews and ships, and at worst the entire CAA & CMA defecting to the Insurrection.

#### Operation: Catapult

All fears would come to the forefront in mid 2502 after an ONI operative dubbed Codename: FARSEER would uncover Insurrectionist chatter that was detailing attempts to infiltrate or turn the crews of an unidentified *Punic*-class vessel, which ONI determined was likely to be the incomplete CMA *Saratoga* or CMA *Guadalcanal*, both of which they determined were set to move onto trials within the next few months. Armed with this critical intelligence and a credible belief that crews would be formed and deployed less than two months from then, the UNSC immediately approved OPERATION: Catapult. Ten of twelve deployable *Ajaxs* were prepared to conduct the operation, with the main battlegroup to be made up of eight battleships led by the UNSC *Supremacy*, with four moving to seize the Omega plant and the three ships docked there. The second group of four would deploy in two pairs in flanking positions to watch for enemy response while the final two, the UNSC *Arizona* and UNSC *Warspite*, left in a tactical reserve to respond to operational needs.