The Shackleton-class was designed in response to the need for a scout ship that could spend as much time in the field as the Byrd class, but was stronger and more likely to survive encounters with unforeseen circumstances. Unlike the previous Anders and Byrd classes, the Shackleton class was not a redesign of a private yacht (thought unlike the Anders and Byrd classes it is actually amphibious and therefore essentially an actual naval yacht), and is instead a new design, built from the ground up.
Being built from the ground up allowed the Shackleton-class to be built with more crew comforts in mind, as is required for a long-duration mission associated with deep-range scouting. Almost every crewmember has their own quarters (only the Junior Technician and Railgun Crewman share a room) – including the wirehead, and each crew quarters also has its own private lavatory – something more commonly associated with civilian craft, not military vessels.
The crew complement of the Shackleton-class consists of 5 Command staff (Commander, Operations, Mission Specialist, Engineer, Wirehead), 7 Technical staff (Medical Officer, Pilot, Junior and Senior Technician, Weapons Technician, Missile Systems Officer, Gatling Systems Officer), with room for up to 12 additional passengers or crew in its 4 staterooms and 2 dual-bunk staterooms.
Equipped with two separate hangar bays, ships of this class are well-equipped to carry enough vehicles for whatever environments they may run across while scouting. The upper hangar bays, located on Decks 1 and Deck 2, are dedicated for storing spacecraft and aircraft and only opens on the dorsal surface of the ship, while the lower hangar bay on Deck 4 has openings on the ventral, port, and starboard sides, and is used for storing a wide variety of craft. The Shackleton-class has a dedicated Single-Stage-To-Orbit Auxiliary Craft berthed on Deck 4, just fore of the lower hangar bay in a dedicated hangar.
Due to its low crew capacity and multi-deck nature, there are ladders that lead from deck to deck throughout the ship, and there are two lifts – one in the forward portion of the ship that services Decks 1 through 4, and one in the aft section that services all 5 decks. In addition, the bridge crew (Commander, Pilot, Copilot, Mission Specialist) all have dedicated chairlifts and ladders that lead from their quarters on Deck 1 to their stations on Deck 0.
- SDS00: T.A.S.S. Ernest Shackleton (NVY-601) – Assigned to exploration in the Epsilon Eridani vector
- SDS01: T.A.S.S. Thaddeus von Bellingshausen (NVY-603) – Assigned to exploration in the 61 Cygni vector
- SDS02: T.A.S.S. Roald Amundsen (NVY-604) – Assigned to exploration in the Tau Ceti vector
- SDS03: T.A.S.S. Edmund Hillary (NVY-605) -Assigned to exploration in the Gilese 674 vector
- SDS04: T.A.S.S. Douglas Mawson (NVY-606) -Assigned to exploration in the Gilese 876 vector
- SDS05: T.A.S.S. Jonathan J O’Neill (NVY-607) -Assigned to exploration in the Gilese 832 vector
- SDS06: T.A.S.S. Samantha Carter (NVY-608) -Assigned to exploration in the LP 994-020 vector
- SDS07: T.A.S.S. Nobu Shirase (NVY-609) – Assigned to exploration in the Sirius vector after problems arose with the ATS19 T.A.S.S. Valentina Tereshkova (NVY-197)
CL 7
Colossal space transport
Initiative +X
Senses
Perception +X
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Defenses
Reflex 16 = 10 + 2 (Dex) + 14 (Armor Or Heroic Level) – 10 (Size)
flat-footed 14 = 10 + 14 (Armor Or Heroic Level) – 10 (Size)
Fortitude 26 = 10 + 16 (STR)
+14 armor
HP 120/120
DR 15
SR 45/45
Damage Threshold 76 (Fort Defense + Size Mod [50])
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Speed
Fly 12 squares (max velocity 830 km/h) [Stover Drive, Inertial Fields]
Fly 3 squares (starship scale) [Stover Drive]
Swim 6 squares (max velocity 83 km/h) [Amphibious Pumpjets]
Fighting Space
16x40x10 or 1 square (starship scale)
Cover
Total (crew)
Grapple +X = X (BaseATK) + 16 (STR) + 20 (Size)
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Abilities
Strength 42
Dexterity 14
Constitution –
Intelligence 14
Skills
Initiative +X
Mechanics +X
Mechanics [Automated Repair Systems] +13 (can only make checks to jury-rig the ship, automatically does so after moves down the condition track. damage that bypasses SR while system is activated has a 25% chance of destroying the active robots)
Perception +X
Pilot +X
Use Computer +X
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Crew 12 (Pilot [PIL], Operations [OPS], Commander [COM], Mission Specialist [MSP], Systems Operator (Wirehead) [WIR], Engineer [ENG], Missile Systems Officer [MSO], Gatling Systems Officer [GSO], Medical Officer [CMO], Weapons Technician [WPT], Senior Technician [SRT], Junior Technician [JRT])
AI: 1 Class III[S] Exploration, 1 Class III[D] Maintenance, 1 Class IV[S] Tactical Advice, 1 Class VI[S] Pulse Laser Control
Passengers: 8-12 (technically, staterooms can hold 2 people each)
4 Staterooms
2 Dual-Bunk Staterooms
Cargo: 10 tons
Consumables: 1 year
Carried Craft (0/10 General Hangar Points Used, 0/4 Ground Craft Hangar Points Used, plus SSTO Craft berthed on Deck 4):
Carried Drones:
3 spare sets of robots for Automated Repair Systems [cargo storage]
0/5 small drones [drone bay 1]
0/10 tiny drones [drone bay 2]
Payload:
100 Railgun Rounds
24 Medium Missiles
1000 MicroMissiles
FTL Systems:
Higgs Class 2 [Primary]
Higgs Class 8 [Backup]
Navicomputer
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Medium Railgun (Copilot)
attack +X, damage 9d10x2
Dual Gatling Turret Array (Gunner 1)
attack +X (+X Autofire), damage 4d10x2
MicroMissile Array (Gunner 2)
attack +X (+X Autofire), damage 4d10x2 (guided missile weapon)
Light Missile Tube (Gunner 2)
attack +X, damage (guided missile weapon)
Pulse Laser Array (AI Controlled)
attack +X (+X Autofire (hits 2 squares, shuts off the array for 3 rounds)), 3d10x2 damage, can fire twice with a standard action
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Hardpoint Options (4 Slots. 1 slot for any mine/bomb/missile. Mines/Bombs/Missile that are for Colossal or larger vessels require 2 slots)
NO HARDPOINTS
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Amphibious Seals – Having a specially-designed hull, the Shackleton-class is designed for use in aquatic environments as well as space. It can handle high exterior pressure and seals ensure that no venting allows water into engines, heat sinks, or weapon ports. However, movement is slow.
Automated Repair Systems – When the ship moves -1 or more steps down the condition track, the repair systems automatically activate – requiring no action on the part of the crew. Automated repair systems take no action other than making a Mechanics check to jury-rig a starship, moving it +1 step on the condition track. The automated repair system is considered to have a Mechanics check modifier of +13. If a starship takes any damage that gets past its SR (if any) in a round while the repair system is activated, there’s a 25% chance that the repair system’s robots are destroyed.
Backup Battery – A backup battery allows a vehicle to operate, at least its basic functions, for up to 1 hour after the normal power generation method fails. Additionally, if a vehicle is pushed to the bottom of the condition track by ion damage, the engineer can make a DC 25 Mechanics check to reverse the ionization using the backup battery, moving the ship +1 step up the condition track. However, doing so permanently drains the backup battery, which must then be replaced.
Cotterdam – A cotterdam is a very basic form of airlock that can be used to connect two Colossal or larger starships. The cotterdam is little more than a flexible tube that extends between two starship hatches, allowing complete movement between the vessels with no need for extravehicular equipment. A cotterdam creates a tunnel 3 squares long and 1 square wide, and maneuvering two adjacent ships into position to use the cotterdam requires a DC 15 Pilot check from the pilot of each vessel. Failing this check by 10 or more results in a collision between the ships.
Drone Bay (x2) – Holds drones. Each bay holds 5 small drones or 10 tiny drones.
Sensor Enhancement Package – A sensor enhancement package gives a system operator a +5 bonus on Perception and Use Computer checks made to operate the ship’s sensors.
Workshop – Mechanics checks and Use Computer checks made to repair, modify, or construct objects in the workshop (or the starship in which the workshop is located) gain a +2 equipment bonus.
UNUSED EP 1