Duke Class

The first entirely new design to be approved since The Return, the Duke Class is a revolution in Hydran warship design. Mounting three nacelles, the Duke has sufficient power reserves to mount considerably heavier weapons, shields and armour than her lighter counterpart, the Baron Class, whilst maintaining the Baron's appreciable flank speed. She also mounts Electronic Warfare Equipment for supporting fleets of smaller vessels or assisting in targeting solutions for larger Capital Ships.

## Development

Much like long-lived Klingon "Wing and Boom" Heavy Cruisers beginning with the D3 LeTH (Sword) Class and continuing on through the latest refits of the D7C qItI'tinga' (Great Powerful Conqueror) Class and C7 Qo'noS (Kronos) Class, Hydran Heavy Cruiser design settled on basic planform in the 2170s and incrementally improved upon it ever since. Designed in the depths of the Great Exodus, the Baron Class was designed along the same principles as all previous Hydran Heavy Cruisers; to support the Royal Navy's Destroyer Flotillas with long-ranged Hellbore Cannon volleys.

Hydran Military Intelligence kept the Royal Navy informed as much as possible on the development of new warships in the Klingon Defence Force and the Imperial Lyran Navy, and at the time of her introduction, the Baron was more than a match for the latest refit of the standard Klingon Heavy Cruiser design then in service, the D6A Kl'ar (Leader) Class. However, as the years passed and new tactics introduced, refinements and improvements were suggested by various Shipyard Committees in order to keep the Baron up to date and competitive with the limited resources available to the Hydran Kingdoms at the time.

Whilst the Baron Class remained a competitive Heavy Cruiser throughout The Return and the Organian Conflict, even before the triumphant return of the Hydran Royal Navy to her homeworlds, there had been long term considerations as to her eventual replacement. Hydran Military Intelligence had been in contact with the Federation and their allies, the Gorn Confederacy, and it was with the aid of their scientific acumen that Hydran engineers were able to uprate the warp cores on existing Hydran warships and to design better native Hydran warships than those currently in service. Departing from usual practice, the new design for a Heavy Cruiser to replace the Baron Class possessed three warp nacelles, along with a significantly more powerful warp core than had previously been mounted in a design of that size in Hydran service. These power reserves and nacelles gave the new design the ability to mount heavier weaponry and Electronic Warfare Equipment whilst maintaining the same sublight speed as her predecessor and obtaining an impressive warp speed. Rather than a Fusion Beam Emitter, which was useful only for close in defence on a Cruiser design, the new design fitted a powerful Photon Cannon, adding a lethal punch to her twin Hellbore Cannons. An enhanced Primary Weapons array and enlarged Fighter complement rounded out the new weapons systems.

The only issues were now those of procurement. The Royal Navy desired the new design, but the Shipyard Committees and even the First Star Lord simply couldn't countenance the cost. Unwilling to let such a promising design go to waste, several resourceful Nobles in the Admiralty lobbied that the design could serve as a Command Cruiser, leading Heavy Cruiser bombardment groups in a command role and escorting the scarce and valuable Capital Ships, with a limited production run of course. Their ultimate aim was to get the new design into production, show her value and gradually convince the Shipyard Committees and the First Star Lord of her power and utility over the Baron Class, and ultimately replace her.

After much political wrangling, the new design was accepted into service in this role, and never known for their humility, the Nobles who championed her adoption and production christened her the Duke Class. She was the only entirely new Hydran warship design to enter service in a century or so.

## Operational History

Too late to see service in the Organian Conflict, the few battles of the War of Pacification in which the Hydran Royal Navy saw combat, the first few Duke Class Command Cruisers acquitted themselves well, their high speed and powerful long range weaponry both proving useful tools against the ISC Echelon formations.

She saw no action during the General War of 2292.

## Apocrypha

Due to reconstruction efforts after The Return, production of Duke Class Command Cruisers was a slow process, but she proved an invaluable deterrent to further Klingon and Lyran aggression. She finally replaced the Baron Class in service as a Heavy Cruiser in the 24th Century, with the last Baron Class warships being retired in 2310. The Duke didn't last much longer in service however, with Hydran independence itself coming to an end by 2323. Three Duke Class Cruisers, the HMS Celerity, HMS Tenacity and HMS Perseverance, were present at the Battle of the Last Alliance that year in the Targreth System, their exploits entering into legend among Hydran ex-pats thereafter.

## Specifications

* **Class:** Command Cruiser
* **Hull Type Designation:** HCC
* **Length:** 419m
* **Crew:** 445
* **Warp Nacelles:** 3

* **Maximum Sublight Speed:** 3700 k/s (37 Mk/s)
* **Cruise** **Warp Factor Speed:** wf 7.5
* **Safe** **Maximum Warp Factor Speed:** wf 9.0
* **Hull Rating:** 430 HSF
* **Shield Rating:** 660 FSP

* **Sensor Rating:** 800 SRU

* **Armament and Equipment:**
	+ Primary
		- 5 × Hydran Type Gatling Phaser Emitter
	+ Secondary
		- 1 × Photon Cannon
	+ Heavy
		- 2 × Hellbore Cannon
	+ Advanced
		- None
	+ Equipment
		- Tractor Beam Emitter
		- Probes
		- Electronic Warfare Equipment
		- 6 × Halberdier Fusion Beam Fighter

## Ships in Service (2292)

HMS Duke Arathis

HMS Duke Alberoth

HMS Duke Yorothan

HMS Baroness

HMS Duchess Caratheth

HMS Duchess Hymoleth

HMS Duke Hydroth

HMS Maratha

HMS Patroller

HMS Duke Terroth

HMS Barathea

HMS Ducal

HMS Duke Targotan

HMS Tenacity

HMS Perseverance

HMS Determination

HMS Resolution

HMS Celerity

HMS Dependable

HMS Lord Commander

HMS Lord Dominion

HMS Lord Zealous

HMS Lord Pacification

HMS Marshall

HMS Sheriff