Grand Admiral, First Order Central Command
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
Intent: To make a fancy fighter for FractalSponge's latest creation.
Image Source: Ansel Hsiao
Canon Link: N/A
Permissions: N/A
Primary Source: [AMBAC]
PRODUCTION INFORMATION
Manufacturer: First Order Naval Engineering
Affiliation: The First Order
Model: ISF-47B 'Whirlwind' Heavy Starfighter
Production: Limited
Material: Quadanium Alusteel Alloy Fuselage Construction, Glassteel and Transparisteel where appropriate.
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Classification: Heavy Fighter
Length: 10.2m
Width: 8.1m
Height: 6.8m
Power Core/Reactor Plant: 3 x Ion Reactors w/ Pre-Charged Deuterium Power Cells
Crew: 1 Pilot, 1 Gunner
Armament: Very High
- 2 x SJFS L-s9.7 Laser Cannons
- 4 x Fire-Linked H-s9.5 Heavy Laser Cannons
Defenses: Average
- Standard Hull Construction
- Carbon-Nanofilament Armor Plating
- Secondary AR-03 Damage Reduction Component
- Combat-Rated Ray Shielding
- Combat-Rated Particle Shielding
- Combat-Rated Ionic Shielding Package
- Combat-Rated Countermeasure Package (Chaff/Flares/Passive Countermeasures/ECM/ECCM)
Squadron Count: Low - 8
Maneuverability Rating: Very High
Speed Rating: Low
Hyperdrive: Yes
Hyperdrive Class: 2.0
STANDARD FEATURES
- Standard Torplex Flight Computer
- Standard Astrogation Computer
- T-Sk2b Targeting Computer
- TAT and BAC Combat System Package
- Ion-flux Cooling System
- Subspace Communications Package with Military Encryption
ADVANCED SYSTEMS
- IFC-DCN (Integrated Fleet Command Data Exchange Network)
STRENGTHS
- Dogfighter Par Extrodinaire: The mass-balance shifting system, extra thrusters, and vernier propulsion drives give the TIE Whirlwind incredible manuverability for its size, and the ability to turn on a dime at incredibly quick speeds. Combine that with four very powerful, independently maneuvering cannons and you have a fighter that can almost always keep a gun on target.
- Coordinated Attack: The presence of the IFC-DCN and appropriate auxiliary equipment gives the Firebolt access to potentially enormous amounts of real-time tactical information. In practice, this is very limited so to not overwhelm the two people flying, but still allows for Firebolts to share fire control quality data with their squadron and accompanying capital ships and major combatants.
- Carbon-Nanofiliament Armor Plating: Dense, lightweight, and tough. The standard variety of First Order armor plating is made up of weaving durasteel plates with ultra-hard carbon. It's fairly thin on this model though.
WEAKNESSES
- Sluggish: For a TIE, at any rate.
- Difficult to Fly: The Whirldwind is a challenging craft to pilot at its full effectiveness, and if used like a standard heavy fighter it is slow and not terribly tough, make it an easy kill for interceptors.
DESCRIPTION
The ISF-47B 'Whirlwind' is by far the most ambitious and unusual design to come out of the First Order's TIE Starfighter overhaul. On the surface it appears as an imposing heavy fighter, with four large laser cannons to complement the standard TIE fighter guns mounted on either side of the cockpit pod. But heavy firepower aside, it does not appear particularly remarkable, being neither remarkably tough and somewhat sluggish. But the Whirlwind is not designed as a typical Heavy Fighter, rather it is designed to engage and obliterate other strike craft at close range in dogfights, which it accomplishes by having remarkably good maneuverability for a slow and powerfully armed craft.
The incredible maneuverability comes as a result of three systems. The unusual turret setup is the first part, allowing the four heavy laser cannons a much larger than normal field of fire, something the onboard computer is particulary designed to account for. Second is extra maneuver or venier thrusters mounted on the fighter, not to mention an extra powerplant just to support them. Finally the craft uses an unusual Mass-Balancing system that takes advantage of Third Law of Motion to pivot and shift the craft around its forward thrust. The end result is a heavy starfighter that maneuvers like a tiny droid interceptor, but instead of being lightly armed with blasters it has four overcharged heavy lasers. Of note, all four main guns are capable of independent targeting and swiveling, though each pair is limited to some degree (and by the solar panel wings).
In action this is particular impressive, as a skilled pilot is theoretically capable of engaging five targets (one per heavy laser cannon, and a forward track) at the same time. It can also be used for strafing runs, allowing the Whirlwind to keep a steady course or maneuver down the line of main thrust while keeping all four cannons on target and blasting away as it passes. The multiple degrees of movement freedom also allows the fighter to excel as an escort craft, as it is extremely able to engage multiple incoming missiles and warheads.
All of this comes at a cost of course, and the Whirlwind is expensive to produce and hard enough to master that it sees only limited deployment across the growing First Order Navy. It also doesn't support any ordnance, there being neither any space for it, nor does the versatility normally granted by an 'over-the-shoulder' weapon like a missile matter quite as much on such an unusual design. Lastly the Whirlwind is equipped with a essentially standard set of ECM/ECCM and Passive Countermeasures, as well as the essential IFC-DCN common to all First Order spacecraft.
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