War Bird Class

Perhaps the most well-known Romulan vessel to the citizens of the Federation, the War Bird is a development of the legendary Cricket Class "Bird of Prey", most infamously used during the Neutral Zone Incident of 2266, where a single Cricket Class, using the newly invented Plasma Torpedo, destroyed four Federation border outposts. As of, 2292 the design is one of the oldest still in regular service with the Romulan Star Navy. She remains competitive as a stealthy Destroyer with a devastating first strike for her size.

## Development

The Romulan Star Empire entered a period of self imposed isolation after her defeat at the Battle of Cheron during the Earth-Romulan War. When they finally came out of this isolation in 2266 in an incursion into the Neutral Zone, a whole new series of Romulan vessel was encountered. Unlike the dome shaped vessels encountered during the Earth-Romulan War, these new vessels embodied the Romulan bird motif. Known to outsiders simply as the Bird of Prey, the Cricket Class was the first of what would later be known as the Early Series. Several larger ships of the type were produced but quickly became obsolete, seeing limited service in the 4-Day War of 2266.

The story of the War Bird Class begins far earlier. In 2225, the RSN introduced the Capsize Class Cruiser. Larger than the later Cricket, the Capsize was itself the development of earlier, post-war Romulan Cruisers. (Starfleet Intelligence did not learn of these post-war Romulan designs until the 2290s). Whilst otherwise merely an evolutionary step, the Capsize introduced a brand new technology that has come to characterise the Romulan Star Empire; The Cloaking Device. These early systems are more accurately described as cloaking systems of sensor countermeasures built into the structure of the ship. These systems comprised such technologies as subspace field masking, sensor-absorbent hull panels, reflective projection, and sensor-profile source compensation. The earliest cloaks required so much energy that the warp drive, energetic shielding, sensors, and the Cohesive Fused Deuterium Irradiation Cannon‏‎ could not be used when the cloak was engaged. Such energy demands naturally limited the tactical situations in which the cloak could be used. However, the system was well suited for extremely close range ambush attacks with CFDI Cannons or fusion-tipped missiles.

During this period, the Star Empire was engaged in a series of border skirmishes with the Klingon Empire. A lighter, faster warship was needed to keep pace with the latest D6A Kl'ar (Leader) Class Cruisers employed by the KDF. Although the border dispute had been solved by the time the Cricket Class entered service in 2240, the design was never the less eagerly received by the Romulan Star Navy, as the type also proved able to evade the large, slow Gorn warships encountered to the galactic north during one of the seemingly endless and bitterly contested border wars with the Gorn Confederacy.

In 2248, the 3rd Gorn-Romulan War came to a successful end for the Star Empire, with several new resource rich worlds secured and Gorn aspirations for reconquest of their lost worlds crushed (for the time being). Praetor Emerlex, in a bold political move, decided that the Star Empire should turn her eyes to her long hated western border with the Federation. To bolster the forces of the RSN, an exchange programme was initiated between the Star Empire and her new Klingon allies. Several squadrons of once vaunted D6A Kl'ar (Leader) Class Cruisers were transferred to the Star Navy in return for the secrets of Cloaking Technology. (This exchange of technology lasted until the late 2270s, with several other classes being handed over to the Romulan Star Empire.). However, more conservative elements in the Romulan Senate managed to convince the Praetor to postpone his planned attack on the Federation, citing espionage reports indicating new starships designs entering service with Starfleet. The standard Romulan weapons compliment of Cohesive Fused Deuterium Irradiation Cannon‏‎s and fusion-tipped missiles were simply not enough. A new and devastating weapon would be required to overwhelm these new adversaries.

In 2264, this weapon arrived. Derived from early (and disastrous) experiments into alternative power sources, the Plasma Torpedo proved in testing to be a weapon of awesome destructive power. Unfortunately, it also had extremely high power requirements. A single Cricket Class was modified to carry the weapon, albeit at the expense of almost all other weapons on board (only carrying old-style Atomic Warheads as part of a ship self-destruct system). Larger Capsize Class Cruisers were also mooted to be refit with the weapon, carrying a limited complement of fusion-tipped missiles as a back-up, but before the Plasma Torpedo could be rolled out fleet wide ready for an invasion of the Federation, a combat test was required.

In 2266, the modified Cricket Class RSE Tellvs, under the captaincy of Commander Keras, left Romulan space and proceeded under cloak to violate the Romulan-Federation Neutral Zone. Without warning, the Tellvs destroyed two Federation border posts before Starfleet was alerted, and succeeded in destroying two more before being intercepted by the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) under the command of Captain James T. Kirk. In the cat and mouse battle that followed, the Tellvs was lost with all hands, although she did cause significant damage to the Enterprise before succumbing.

As a result of the incident, the invasion of the Federation was cancelled, although the Plasma Torpedo was considered a triumph of Romulan engineering. It became the key weapon in Romulan battle tactics for the next 40 years. There were however still problems with it's power requirements, especially in light of the flaws in Romulan Cloaking Technology revealed by the incident. Both systems required enormous amounts of power, and both needed refinement and improvement in order to keep pace with Federation, Klingon and Gorn advancements.

These refinements took time however, and the Romulan Star Navy went to war during the 4-Day War using modified Cricket Class Destroyers and a handful of ageing Capsize Class Cruisers. Using M/AM technology based on the systems onboard the D6A Kl'ar (Leader) Class Cruisers they had been given in 2250, the RSN finally produced a working anti-matter powered warp drive in 2275. Earlier classes proved unsuitable for refitting, but the Cricket Class leant herself well to the new technology, and the extra power leant by M/AM power (as well as the space freed up by removing the majority of the Deuterium tanks) allowed engineers to fit a clutch of four Disruptor Cannons (also derived from Klingon technology) as well as further reducing the size of the hull, making the new War Bird Class faster and more nimble than the old design.

## Operational History

The War Bird first saw service in the 4th Gorn-Romulan War in 2282. Whilst designed to best Federation starships, the War Bird proved extremely capable against the Gorn vessels she encountered, which although faster than the previous generation of starships employed by the Gorn Royal Navy, were still unmanouverable. The War Bird also saw service in the subsequent 5th Gorn-Romulan War in 2284, but her true baptism of fire came in 2286 with the Romulan entry into the Organian Conflict in the "Day of the Eagle". Although bolstered by new designs, the War Bird still formed a critical part of RSN tactics during the war and proved devastating against the overwhelmed forces of Starfleet.

The power of her Plasma Torpedo (recategorised as the Type H or Heavy Plasma Torpedo after the introduction of lighter types) kept the War Bird in service far longer than other Romulan vessels of her age, fighting both the ISC and going to war with the Federation and the Gorn Confederacy again during the General War in 2292.

## Apocrypha

After her involvement in the Praxis Incident of 2293 was revealed, the Romulan Star Empire began to once again withdraw behind her borders, withdrawing from galactic affairs again all together in the aftermath of the Tomed Incident in 2311. Even before this time, Romulan tactics had begun to turn away from fleet engagements and back to single "lone wolf" warships, now of a gargantuan size dwarfing the Crickets and Capsize Classes of old. The venerable War Bird was withdrawn in the early 2300s, having finally been rendered obsolete.

## Specifications

* **Class:** Destroyer
* **Hull Type Designation:** RDD
* **Length:** 76m
* **Crew:** 75
* **Warp Nacelles:** 2

* **Maximum Sublight Speed:** 3750 k/s (37.5 Mk/s)
* **Cruise** **Warp Factor Speed:** wf 6.9
* **Safe** **Maximum Warp Factor Speed:** wf 8.8
* **Hull Rating:** 150 HSF
* **Shield Rating:** 272 FSP

* **Sensor Rating:** 1000 SRU

* **Armament and Equipment:**
	+ Primary
		- 4 × Disruptor Cannon
	+ Secondary
		- 1 × Type H Plasma Torpedo Tube
	+ Heavy
		- None
	+ Advanced
		- None
	+ Equipment
		- Tractor Beam Emitter
		- Romulan-Type Cloaking Device
		- Tal Shiar Transporter Pad
		- Probes

## Ships in Service (2292)

RSE Adrodivs

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RSE Avaerek

RSE Avenivs

RSE Bandis

RSE Celleivs

RSE Copidivs

RSE DeIerek

RSE Delassvs

RSE Deoras

RSE Depas

RSE Derelan

RSE Dethivm

RSE Daeyl

RSE Eqvitvs

RSE Flardivs

RSE Grocvs

RSE Imderia

RSE Infini

RSE Inydar

RSE Irixidon

RSE Kellaem

RSE Keratae

RSE Kesqvila

RSE Laemal

RSE Lirilivs

RSE Lossal

RSE Lvkan

RSE Marrvs

RSE Meretaem

RSE Metollis

RSE Iaecarrvs

RSE Pespedivs

RSE Qvarivs

RSE Rvmaal

RSE Seres

RSE Svrataeas

RSE Saelpelvm

RSE Seritae

RSE Sepavt

RSE Theron