Sector Gamma (Extra Information)

Written by Dan Carlson

Jovali Royal Stellar Navy: Vessel Specifications and Background

Although the Jovali have been a spacefaring race for nearly four hundred years (the first orbital habitats in orbit of Jovalis were established nearly two centuries ago), they only discovered warp travel approximately 70 years ago, and have generally made only limited expeditions outside the system since then. The Jovali have established diplomatic relations with several local planets in neighboring sectors, and also have assigned a permanent ambassador to the Federation. However, in general the Jovali tend to keep to themselves. (The inhabitants of the orbital habitats of Jovalis, on the other hand, have eagerly established firm political and economic ties with many other interstellar powers.)

Because of their relatively infrequent contact with other planets and their lack of interstellar trade, Joval originally had little need for a spacefaring military force. Early exploratory missions to locations of interest including the Purple Nebula were conducted under the auspices of scientific agencies, and commercial and private travel between Joval and Jovalis was unrestricted by the government.

Unfortunately, contact with hostile powers forced the Jovali to develop measures to ensure their safety and sovereignty. As trade between the Jovalis colonies and the homeworld grew, small groups of raiders from outside the system began to move into the sector looking for easy prey. Also, the Cardassian Union established a colony on Bifour IV in 2328 and began to conduct an aggressive expansion program in the neighboring sectors. Finally, contact with the Federation established through USS Rigorous in 2329 brought much wider attention to this small, out of the way sector.

The multitude of far more advanced interstellar powers, both hostile and friendly, induced the Jovali to build a series of dedicated warships to patrol their system, defend against raiders, and provide a first line of defense against potential invaders. The first ships were little more than converted freighters with an expanded weapons outfit consisting of high-power lasers and a handful of missiles containing fusion-based warheads. Over the next five decades, the Jovali attempted to bridge the vast technological gap by purchasing technology from other powers (mainly nonaligned governments including the Ferengi Alliance) and devoting more resources towards their own local research and development programs. However, despite nearly 50 years of industrious work and great cost, the Jovali fleet remains far behind the modern starships fielded by the Federation and the Cardassians.

Srewot-class Patrol Frigate

Dimensions:

Length: 614 meters

Width: 156 meters

Height: 192 meters

Mass: 5,100,000 metric tons (estimate)

Crew Complement: 1,430

Propulsion:

Sublight Accelleration: 4,200 km/s²

Normal Cruise: Warp 3.3

Maximum Cruise: Warp 4.7

Maximum Rated: Warp 5.2

Armament:

2 beam disruptor emitters (Type-VIII phaser equivalent)

8 pulse plasma cannons

2 missile/torpedo launchers

Unknown number of photon torpedoes and fusion missiles

Defenses:

12.5 cm polarized duranium hull armor

6.3x10⁴ kW deflector shields

The Srewot-class patrol frigate is currently the mainstay of the Jovali defense forces. Previous classes of warships deployed in the system had been reasonably successful in protecting the Joval-Jovalis trade route along with the Jovalis orbital habitats. However, raider activity began to increase in the 2350’s, and many of the newly-arrived pirate ships were equipped with more advanced weaponry, stronger shields, and faster warp drive. Therefore, several attacks on outposts in the outer system and near Jovalis were successfully conducted thanks to the raiders’ superior technology. The most embarrassing incident took place in 2354, when a small group of 8 unidentified raider craft attacked Orbital Habitat Ohtwa in the Deyal Group orbiting Jovalis. The Jovali patrol ship Prahs was crippled in the engagement, and all 8 raiders escaped when pursuing cruisers were unable to maintain a speed greater than Warp 4.

In response to this incident, Ypaha Hrrays, Monarch of Joval, ordered the construction of a new class of warship that would be capable of sustained high-speed travel and armed with sufficient firepower to engage starships up to a Class 4 rating. Hrrays opened negotiations with the Ferengi Alliance and purchased disruptor technology approximately equivalent to the Federation Type-VIII phaser. The result was the Srewot-class patrol frigate, a lumbering, ungainly cruiser an order of magnitude more massive than other frigate-type starships — but the massive size allowed a series of powerful fusion reactors capable of providing sufficient energy for the advanced disruptors and the Warp 5-capable drive system.

Despite the technological gap, though, the class proved relatively successful in curtailing raider activity within the Joval System. The new warships were able to successfully intercept 16 separate raider attacks in the first 14 months of service, and registered 59 kills during the same period. Since then, the Srewot-class ships have served adequately within the Joval System and in the immediate region. However, along with the presence of more advanced civilizations in neighboring systems, the speed limitations still prevent Joval from projecting its political power far outside of the home system.

The greatest threat to Joval’s security came in the early 2370’s with contact with the Dominion. When the war broke out between the Dominion and their Cardassian allies and the Federation in late 2373, Joval found itself close to the front lines of the fiercest interstellar conflict in known history. Fortunately, the remoteness of Sector Gamma from the major planes of contention in the Bajor and Kalandra Sectors (which are approximately 40 light-years away) ensured that the Dominion paid little attention to this small, underdeveloped area of space. However, the distance also meant that Starfleet could provide few resources to defend its interests in the region, especially considering the staggering losses which were suffered on the major fronts.

In the first six months of the war, the Dominion and the Cardassians made a limited effort to conquer Sector Gamma. A small fleet of Jem’Hadar and Cardassian warships engaged in several skirmishes with Federation starships before launching a concerted assault on the Joval System in April 2374. Although Monarch Hrrays had carefully maintained Joval’s neutrality by refusing both an alliance with the Federation and a non-aggression pact with the Dominion, Joval’s forces joined with the Starfleet task force lead by Captain Nall to halt the Jem’Hadar advance. In the Battle of Joval-Ad, Starfleet and Jovali starships managed to turn back the Dominion invasion fleet — but at the cost of five of the seven Srewot-class frigates then in service and three of the eight Starfleet vessels in the task force.

It was extremely fortunate for all concerned that the Battle of Bajor was fought just three weeks later, which resulted in the Dominion’s first major defeat of the war. The Dominion then pulled its remaining forces back to reinforce the regions closer to Cardassia Prime, and any advances in Sector Gamma were effectively abandoned. Furthermore, no further offensives were initiated in the area, and Joval remained uninvolved for the remainder of the war.

Although the Battle of Joval-Ad was a strategic victory, it came only as a result of assistance from Starfleet and was otherwise a tactical disaster — nearly 70% of Joval’s home fleet was destroyed and nearly 20,000 Jovali soldiers lost their lives. It was clear that Jovali technology remained vastly inferior to that of the other major powers in the quadrant. Nevertheless, the Srewot-class remained a tried and true design, and in order to fill the void which resulted from the destruction of the fleet at Joval-Ad, new vessels were constructed as replacements.

At this time, the future of the class remains uncertain. Although the Srewot is a sturdy vessel, the inferiority of its equipment limits its capabilities. There are currently plans to upgrade the spaceframe with more advanced technologies that have been purchased from traders and other governments, as well as a locally-designed matter/antimatter reactor and Federation-based technology that has percolated through the Jovalis-Joval trade route. However, the viability of these 24th century technologies on a 22nd century-equivalent design has yet to be determined.

Anaitsirhc-class Heavy Cruiser

Dimensions:

Length: 1,189 meters

Width: 77 meters

Height: 336 meters

Mass: 9,500,000 metric tons (estimate)

Crew Complement: 3,800

Propulsion:

Sublight Accelleration: 2,750 km/s²

Normal Cruise: Warp 4.1

Maximum Cruise: Warp 5.3

Maximum Rated: Warp 5.8

Armament:

8 beam disruptor emitters (Type-XII phaser equivalent)

24 pulse plasma cannons

4 missile/torpedo launchers

Unknown number of photon torpedoes and fusion missiles

Defenses:

15.0 cm polarized duranium hull armor

2.1x10⁶ kW deflector shields

As the threats to Joval’s security mounted in the early 2370’s, it became increasingly clear that the Srewot-class frigates were not sufficiently advanced to adequately defend the Joval System. Although the majority of the battles were fought several dozen light-years away, the effects of those battles — including the Borg invasions, the Klingon-Cardassian War, and the Dominion annexation of Cardassia — were far-reaching and it took little imagination for the Jovali to consider the possibility of those battles spilling into their territory.

Therefore, in 2372 the Jovali High Command submitted a petition to Monarch Ypaha Hrrays to provide funding for the development of a powerful and more advanced class of warship for the defense of Joval. Although he expressed concerns about the possibility of a military buildup jeopardizing Joval’s neutrality, funding was approved for the development of the new ship.

However, the designers of the ship quickly ran into difficulty. Although Joval had recently purchased more advanced weapons and defense systems, these new technologies were extremely power-intensive and could not be supported on a fusion power plant of the size and type installed in previous classes of Joval starships. Joval had also not developed a matter/antimatter reactor small enough to be mounted on a starship of similar displacement to the Srewot-class frigate. Indeed, the prototype reactor that was built on Joval’s primary moon of Ladev displaced approximately 280,000 metric tons. Therefore, the minimum total displacement necessary for a starship to carry a similar reactor was close to 2,000,000 metric tons — and that measurement did not include the massive equipment including shield generators, disruptor emitters, and plasma cannons.

Faced with the extreme urgency of the growing threats to Joval, the designers were forced to compromise the design by expanding its projected dimensions to the extreme, in order to allow the full-sized M/AM reactor and offensive weaponry. The result was a hulking, unwieldy battlecruiser with offensive capabilities approximately equivalent to a Sovereign-class starship, but was seriously underpowered and poorly shielded, and required thousands of crewmen to operate.

Construction on the first warship of the Anaitsirhc-class began in mid-2373, shortly after the Dominion annexed the Cardassian Union. Work proceeded at a feverish pace, but assembly was only 75% complete when the Dominion fleet invaded the Joval System in April 2374. Nevertheless, the Anaitsirhc was activated and rushed to join the desperate defense of Joval, despite missing nearly half of its weapons systems and large portions of its hull armor. The Anaitsirhc unequivocably proved its worth in the ensuing Battle of Joval-Ad, accounting for the destruction of six Jem’Hadar attack fighters before coordinated fire from several Jem’Hadar and Cardassian cruisers punctured its defenses and struck the reactor section with multiple direct hits. Without all of its safety and defense systems installed, the Anaitsirhc was quickly destroyed in a warp core breach.

Despite the destruction of the prototype, the Jovali commanders were impressed with the Anaitsirhc’s performance in the battle and decided to proceed with the assembly of three more vessels. Two of these are currently in service, with the launch of the third delayed pending the resolution of debates regarding the necessity of its deployment in this era of newfound peace following the defeat of the Dominion and the Cardassians.

Although the Anaitsirhc-class cruiser is an unmaneuverable, underpowered, and overgunned vessel with a diverse patchwork of alien technologies, the sheer firepower which it possesses ensures that it can stand toe-to-toe with many of the surrounding powers’ starships currently deployed for at least short-term engagements. In the mean time, Jovali scientists are hard at work at developing more compact versions of the technology currently in use for the creation of a smaller, more balanced craft. However, the design of this craft is believed to still be in the early stages, and the Anaitsirhc-class will remain the cornerstone of Jovali defenses for at least the next decade.

Starfleet Task Force 384, Sector Gamma: Vessel Specifications

Akira-class Heavy Cruiser

Length: 465 meters
Beam: 317 meters
Draft: 87 meters
Decks: 19
Mass: 3,055,000 metric tons
Crew Complement: 535
Evacuation Limit: 4,500
First Commissioned: 2355
Armaments: 3 Type-X phaser arrays; 5 torpedo launchers, 300 photon torpedoes
Defenses: Deflector shields
Cruising Speed: Warp 6
Maximum Cruise: Warp 9.3
Maximum Rated: Warp 9.8 for 12 hours

Andromeda-class Light Explorer

Designed by the ASDB

Length: 349 meters
Beam: 167 meters
Draft: 66 meters
Decks: 17
Mass: 650,000 metric tons
Crew Complement: 289
Evacuation Limit: 2,100
First Commissioned: 2365
Armaments: 9 Type-VIII phaser arrays; 2 torpedo launchers, 75 photon torpedoes
Defenses: Deflector shields
Cruising Speed: Warp 6
Maximum Cruise: Warp 9.1
Maximum Rated: Warp 9.6 for 8 hours

Sequoia-class Light Cruiser

Designed by the ASDB

Length: 358 meters
Beam: 177 meters
Draft: 41 meters
Decks: 11
Mass: 720,000 metric tons
Crew Complement: 136
Evacuation Limit: 960
First Commissioned: 2366
Armaments: 6 Type-VIII phaser arrays; 2 torpedo launchers, 50 photon torpedoes
Defenses: Deflector shields
Cruising Speed Warp 6.4
Maximum Cruise Warp 8.2
Maximum Rated: Warp 9.6 for 14 hours

Saber-class Destroyer

Length: 181 meters
Beam: 187 meters
Draft: 47 meters
Decks: 8
Mass: 250,000 metric tons
Crew Complement: 102
Evacuation Limit: 530
First Commissioned: 2357
Armaments: 1 Type-IX phaser emitter; 3 Type-VIII phaser arrays; 2 torpedo launchers, 50 photon torpedoes
Defenses: Deflector shields
Cruising Speed: Warp 6
Maximum Cruise: Warp 9.1
Maximum Rated: Warp 9.7 for 12 hours

Defiant-class Destroyer

Length: 122 meters
Beam: 91 meters
Draft: 21 meters
Decks: 4
Mass: 120,000 metric tons
Crew Complement: 47
Evacuation Limit: 150
First Commissioned: 2367
Armaments: 4 Type-X pulse phaser cannons; 2 Type-X phaser emitters; 4 torpedo launchers, 120 quantum torpedoes
Defenses: Deflector shields; 20 cm ablative hull armor
Cruising Speed: Warp 7
Maximum Cruise: Warp 9
Maximum Rated: Warp 9.5 for 12 hours

Constellation-class Medium Cruiser (Obsolete)

Length: 310 meters
Beam: 175 meters
Draft: 86 meters
Decks: 11
Mass: 650,000 metric tons
Crew Complement: 535
Evacuation Limit: 600
First Commissioned: 2283
Armaments: 9 Type-VII phaser banks; 5 torpedo launchers, 100 photon torpedoes
Defenses: Deflector shields
Cruising Speed: Warp 5
Maximum Cruise: Warp 6
Maximum Rated: Warp 6.8 for 12 hour

Miranda-class (Saratoga variant) Light Cruiser (Obsolete)

Length: 243 meters
Beam: 147 meters
Draft: 57 meters
Decks: 11
Mass: 720,000 metric tons
Crew Complement: 190 (standard)
Evacuation Limit: 400
First Commissioned: 2252 (2321, last refit)
Armaments: 6 Type-VII phaser emitters; 1 Type-VIII phaser emitter; 2 torpedo launchers, 40 photon torpedoes
Defenses: Deflector shields
Cruising Speed Warp 5.5
Maximum Cruise Warp 6.4
Maximum Rated: Warp 8.5 for 8 hours

Cardassian Forces, Bifour IV: Vessel Specifications**

The following specifications are those of the known standards for warships operated by the Cardassian Central Command during the Dominion War. The vessels operating in Sector Gamma may have received upgrades and other modifications.

Galor-class Assault Cruiser

Length: 355 meters
Beam: 185 meters
Draft: 57 meters
Decks: 15
Mass: 500,000 metric tons
Crew Complement: 600
Maximum Capacity: 2,000 troops
First Commissioned: 2343
Armaments: 1 System-4 heavy disruptor; 12 System-3 disruptors; 2 torpedo launchers, 200 photon torpedoes
Defenses: Deflector shields
Cruising Speed Warp 6
Maximum Cruise Warp 8.9
Maximum Rated: Warp 9.2 for 12 hours

Hideki-class Patrol Fighter

Length: 86 meters
Beam: 58 meters
Draft: 12 meters
Decks: 3
Mass: 110,000 metric tons
Crew Complement: 20
Maximum Capacity: None
First Commissioned: 2354
Armaments: 1 System-2 disruptor cannon; 4 System-1 disruptors; 2 torpedo launchers, 20 photon torpedoes
Defenses: Deflector shields
Cruising Speed Warp 5
Maximum Cruise Warp 7
Maximum Rated: Warp 7.5 for 14 hours

Lucrezea Planetary Militia: Vessel Specifications**

The following specifications are based on the standard outfit for class ships in active service with their original owners. Alterations to the list have been made based on preliminary observations of the vessels, but remain subject to change.

B’rel-class Bird-of-Prey (Klingon D12-type)

Length: 109 meters
Beam: 126 meters
Draft: 47 meters
Decks: 3
Mass: 46,300 metric tons
Crew Complement: 12-36
Maximum Capacity: 50
First Commissioned: 2283
Armaments: 2 disruptor cannons; 1 torpedo launcher, 15-30 photon torpedoes
Defenses: Deflector shields
Cruising Speed: Warp 5
Maximum Cruise: Warp 7
Maximum Rated: Warp 8.2 for 4 hours

Rraeini-class Destroyer (Yridian)

Length: 227 meters
Beam: 160 meters
Draft: 160 meters
Decks: 20
Mass: 34,750 metric tons
Crew Complement: 300 (estimate)
Maximum Capacity: UNKNOWN
First Encountered: 2365
Armaments: 4 disruptors; 2 torpedo launchers, unknown number of photon torpedoes
Defenses: Deflector shields
Cruising Speed: UNKNOWN
Maximum Cruise: UNKNOWN
Maximum Rated: UNKNOWN

Warp Speed Travel Times Table