Explorer Star Cruiser

## History

At the time of its release, the Explorer Star Cruiser had the longest warp and impulse ranges of any ship on the civilian market. While it lost its top spot for warp range with the introduction of the Explorer Mk2 in 3998, it still remained extremely popular. It was designed for extreme range and the highest speed possible with its capital-sized hull. The Explorer Star Cruiser was popular in service with passenger ferrying companies and cargo carriers, such as Xian Starlines, Starconnect, and Diaoxian Interstellar. It passed design safety tests, and was cleared for release in 3955. It sold 7,800 units in its first 50 years on the civilian market, the highest sales of any of the Explorer variants and the highest sales number for any capital ship on the civilian market up till that point. This landmark achievement led to Ceres Space's being awarded a prime spot as a manufacturer with other factions, mainly the UHW and the Bandorian Protectorate; in addition to 200 units purchased by the LABS navy, the UHW navy purchased 200 units of the ship and the Protectorate Navy purchased 400 units, as scout frigates. The Star Cruiser remained a classic design of cruising ships (ships designed for high efficiency while maintaining a set speed over long distances) for centuries afterward.

## Overview

The Star Cruiser is considered by many to be the best deal in the Explorer lineup; with upgrades, this ship is one of the most deadly capital ships available to civilians due to its speed, handling, and excellent offensive, defensive, and stealth capabilities. The Star Cruiser was designed for long range; it had the longest normal range and the second longest warp range of any civilian ship available at the time of its release and general use. Its advanced warp drive delivers excellent performance and is the main reason for the ship's cost. Its haphazard turret layout takes away from its offensive capabilities, but its large number of torpedoes and excellent forward battery make up for this.

### Weapons Emplacements

8 heavy capital MPs fwd, 6 heavy capital MPs oblique fwd, 4 heavy capital MPs aft, 2 heavy capital MPs lateral, 2 heavy capital MPs oblique aft, 40 missile-only heavy pylons, 14 heavy turret MPs

Stock DPS Rating: 128,000

 Afterburner 2
 Afterburner 3

Date of Release: 3955

## Equipment Defaults

ISFTL Drive

Interstellar Warp Drive

Brock Industries Antimatter Fuel Tank

Shields

STL Drive System

Antimatter Reactor

Advanced Combat Scanner

Comm Relay

Threat Assessor

Bounty Informer

Stealth Package

ECM 3

Repair System 3

Fuel Scoops

Plasma Collector/Recycler

Heat Shielding

Atmospheric Drive

TBA Escape Pod Collector

ADVSNA HUD option

TBA UCP Collector

Anomaly Detector/Analyser

Anti-Collision Auto-Braking System

Tactical Combat AI Computer

Advanced Route Planner

Probe Launch Bay (capacity is 600 PLBUs)

8x Consolation-class Escape Pod

### Equipped Weapons

14x Brock Industries Heavy Capital Disruptor twin turrets

32x Brock Industries Heavy Capital Disruptor (8 fwd, 6 oblique fwd port, 6 oblique fwd stbd, 4 aft, 2 port, 2 stbd, 2 oblique aft port, 2 oblique aft stbd)

40x Brock Industries Antimatter Torpedo Mk3