Akula-class Corvette

> ***"Fear the sharp fangs of the Manticore!"***
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> **- Akula class Corvettes-**
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One of the most common and ancient types of battle spacecraft used by the Commonwealth  both in war and during peace-keeping operations. The Akula-Class Corvette is the most recognizable ship of Task force Manticore, forming its backbone since the birth of the Commonwealth's fleet to dozens of decades beyond their introduction on Task Force Manticore as a combat unit. By the dawn of the 2350s, the Akula Corvettes are still in service all across the Commonwealth, but their weaponry and technology far outweigh the power of the vessels firstly introduced into the human navy. Having encountered foes in every military campaign the Commonwealth took part of, these vessels are not only the most battle hardened and recognisable throughout the entire East, but they are also the ones which have been incorporated for the longest time in Manticore and earlier than many other navies in the void..

Due to its small size, Akula-class corvettes often suffer the largest amount of loses during battle, a well-placed shot from a larger vessel can easily cripple one of these ships. Nevertheless, the ship is easily-produced by the Commonwealth's shipyards and its design is constantly improved by the nation's scientists and engineers so it can continue to be the terror of enemy vessels across the galaxy. The Akulas have been deeply involved since the very start of the nation’s military history. The first of Manticore’s flagships, **CSV Spitfire**, was a setting stage of several decisions and steps that shaped the way the navy would take in the path towards forming a consistent, tactical and professional force in space. Commonwealth admirals and key figures such as Shu Lin and Satayesh Ibrahim formed their first bonds with naval combat fighting inside these small warships, and although much of their focus moved on to attend larger, more powerful vessels, the importance of these Corvettes never went unnoticed across hundreds of years, proving, much to the demise of other nearby powers, that the engineers that designed such class were in the right path from the very beginning of the space era.

## **Ship Characteristics**

While some Akula corvettes are modified for different roles in the Commonwealth's fleet, said warships are still found to be agile, maneuverable and slim enough to stand out from other Manticore ships. For the most part, all ships of this class share these same **dimensions**:

* **Length:** 83 meters.

* **Height:** 14 meters.

* **Width:** 13 meters.

Apart from this, the ship is protected by a **Nestor-Mk.II shield generator** against enemy fire. Should the barrage be to much for the shields to handle, the crew is still protected by a 60cm durasteel armor. This armor is thick enough to blunt attacks from the batteries of small cruisers or secondary or tertiary weaponry of heavier, more powerful enemy battlecruisers or battleships.

### **Crew**

* **35 Deckers and Shipwrights.** Captains are often junior navy officers eager to gain experience before being transferred to larger ships. Still, there is a number of more experienced captains who still serve in the Akulas, prefering the speed and agility of their ships to the heavy weaponry and slow movement of larger craft.

* **25** U**tility Droids**, focused mostly on maintenance.

* **5 Manticore Marines**, highly trained, used mostly on boarding operations against pirate craft.

### **Propulsion**

* **1x Mk3 'Korolev' plasma engine.**

* **3x Mishin-Class auxiliary engines.**

* **60x directional thrusters.** These allow the Akula to dodge most incoming fire or get into a position to fire its weaponry on a ship's exposed flank.

* **1x P-L Wormhole Manipulator** (2202 Variant).

* **1x 2-Core Kitamura Cold Fusion Reactor.** The living heart of the whole craft, it keeps the Akula operational at all times with plenty of energy to spare for emergency situations.

### **Additional support systems and equipment**

Life in an Akula is quite close to the experience on living in one of Earth's old submarines, where space is limited and most of it is occupied by the ship's system's and weaponry.

* 1 Artificial gravity generator

* 2\*5 meters medical bay

* 20 bunks

* 2\*3 captain's cabin

* Gravitic comm array

* 8\*23m storage

* 40 AL-58 laser rifles

48 months worth of food and other maintenance supplies

### **Weaponry**

Due to the many types of this specific class of corvette, the Akula can be equipped with many different kinds of weaponry. It is also worth remembering that, as this ship has evolved throughout over a hundred years since its initial design, the same would occur to its weaponry, shielding technology, etc. Here are listed the first ever mounted weapons designed for Akulas in their initial years of launch.

**Regular:** The most versatile kind of Akula, it can deploy a mixture of long and short range weaponry to counter all manner of enemy ships, from small, quick riders, to slow, heavily-armored battleships. Nevertheless, the main function of this type of corvette is escorting larger, capital ship and skirmishing with other crafts of their size, a battle Akulas more often than not win against their foes.

* **1x 22cm Shiva-type-2 Plasma Accelerator.**

* **1x 42cm Sachsen-type Antimatter Missile Launcher.**

* **1x 36cm Shenyang-type Railgun.**

**Akula-T:** Due to the increasing numbers of capital ships in the galaxy's battlefields, the Commonwealth has made a new class of corvette. Made to quickly close in, release its torpedo and get out before the enemy battleship can answer, it is the bane of large spacecraft, to slow to dodge its swift attacks.

* **1x 56cm Lyra-type-2 Torpedo.** The ship's main weapon, while it can also be fired at long ranges, it is mostly effective when the Akula-T gets close and personal. Then, the enemy craft has little time to dodge.

* **1x 42cm Twin Velite PD laser.**