Sic transit gloria mundi
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
Intent: Sub a submarine.
Image Source: Here.
Canon Link: N/A
Permissions: ARGH tech available for Firemane per this thread. Permission for subs made by Laira Darkhold's writer here and here.
Primary Source: N/A
PRODUCTION INFORMATION
Manufacturer: Firemane Industries.
Affiliation: Firemane Industries.
Market Status: Closed-Market
Model: FM-S1a
Modularity: Limited.
Production: Semi-Unique
Material: Durasteel, Duraplast, Quadanium, Turadium, Stygium, Agrinium, Reflec, misc. components and electronics.
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Classification: Submersible
Role: Submarine.
Size: Very Large
Weight: Very Heavy
Armaments: Very High
- 1x Rotary Blaster Cannon or equivalent. Mounted on the cupola for emergencies.
- 4 torpedo tubes (Mk3 Deathstrike missiles)
- 4 general purpose Mk2 Deathstrike missiles launchers
- 4 heavy warhead launchers (Mk3 Deathstrike missiles)
- 2 strategic bombardment launchers (Baradium warheads)
- Cap Drains and De-Ionizer Module
- Jamming Suite
- Ionization Buffer
- Ablative Armour
- AE-CML1 Dampening Chaff
- ECM Suite
- Deflector Shield. Only active when and if it surfaces.
- Warhead Countermeasures
Speed Rating: Average
Propulsion: Propeller driven.
Minimum Crew: 80
Optimal Crew: 125
Passenger Capacity: 5
Cargo Capacity: Average
SPECIAL FEATURES
- Stygium cloaking device
- Life support systems
- HoloNet Transceiver
- Ion Surge Shielding
- AE-CML1 Dampening Chaff
- Target Identification Network
- Hydrostatic Field
- Com-Scan
- Full-spectrum Distortion Projector
- DERP
- Sensor Jammer
- Socketguard.
- Solid Fuel Converter
- Battle Analysis Computer
- ARGH 3D Printer
- Communicator Monitor
- Ion Scramblers
- Programmable Paint
- Baffler
- Stage 2 Enlightenment Quantum Communicators.
- Life Form Scanner
- Long-Range Sensors
- Aural Sensor
- Sonar mapper, Subsonic Scanner, comprehensive 360-degree sensor array and scanning system. Sailors can simultaneously track multiple objects above and below the surface.
- Quiet engines.
- Heavy firepower. Can prey on targets on the surface and watercraft alike. Using Baradium missiles, it can engage even small capital ships in low orbit. Boom, boom.
- Heavily armoured and shielded, it is a difficult nut to crack.
- It has quiet engines, a cloaking device and other forms of stealth technology such as Reflec anti-sensor coating and sensor bafflers to further augment its ability to evade detection and blow things up.
- Needs to briefly decloak in order to fire, thereby potentially creating a window of opportunity for an enemy. The Stygium cloak is power-hungry and thus cannot be active all the time.
- While its speed is decent, its manoeuvrability is below average.
- The Scylla benefits from heavy armour and powerful ordnance. But the latter can also become a weakness since said ordnance is combustible. So many very explosive munitions can become a problem if the enemy scores a lucky shot or there is continuous heavy eenemy fire. One misplaced explosion can cause the munitions to become compromised, and the submarine will turn into a big firecracker.
The Scylla Class Submarine is inspired by various past galactic models as well as more primitive technology used by the Xioquo. Though primitive by galactic standards, the Xioquo were very advanced for their homeworld, especially when one considered the fact that they and their kin had been isolated from the rest of the galaxy for millennia. By the time outsiders arrived on their world, the Xioquo had started to utilise ironclads, steam-powered tanks, and gunpowder on a significant scale. Moreover, they had designed primitive submarines. When Firemane and allied Qadiri and Eldorai troops stormed the Underealm and toppled the slavocratic Dark Council, not all submarine crews accepted the surrender.
One such submarine was called the Scylla. Disregarding the order to stand down, it continued to prey on commerce and military watercraft, launching a piracy campaign. Using illusionists on board, they were able to cloak it without the use of modern technology. Firemane dismissed it as first, but made it a priority to eliminate it after starting to lose ships. Eventually the Scylla's campaign was ended, not the least because attrition and lack of supplies caused the slave-soldiers aboard the vessel to mutiny.
The Scylla Class is inspired by it. The power of aircraft and orbital bombardment make submarines a potent tool. They can be designed to hit watercraft and fire long range missiles at targets on the surface. The Scylla has been designed with this in mind. It possesses very limited close ranged weapons, being armed with a single rotary blaster on the cupola for emergencies. Its main armaments are missiles and torpedoes. The most powerful form of ordnance it can fire are baradium warheads. These are very powerful and can allow the submarine to target even small capital ships in low orbit. The Scylla features a cloaking device, quiet engines and other devices that can allow it to pass unnoticed before it launches a strike. It is equipped with a comprehensive sensor suite and sonar systems. Thus it can listen for and seek out targets for its manifold armaments.
The Scylla's crew is fairly large, but Firemane is wary of an undue degree of automation. Crises such as the Clockwork Rebellion have made ceding too much control to a droid brain appear unwise, since apparently even the Netherworld is not safe from megalomaniacal supercomputers. Firemane tends to recruit Xioquo as crews. The Xio hail from a subterranean realm. Thus they are used to confined quarters and do not like sunlight anyway since their skin can blister if exposed, so operating on a cramped underwater craft for an extended period of time is not strange for them. It also means the lack of natural light does not bother them.
The boat in question is a lot more advanced than the ones they were used to serving on, but they have adapted well. After all, they are said to have 'minds of metal'. Indeed, certain Firemane officials are unnerved by how quickly the 'primitives' learn. Silly humans. There is, of course, no Xio plan to take over.Naturally one can also find members of aquatic species such as Nautolans, Mon Calamari etc. As well as run-of-the-mill humans since they would probably feel discriminated against otherwise. Humans are sensitive like that. More 'polished' sailors who serve on above-water ships in the surface fleet tend to stereotype Scylla crewers as unwashed troglodytes whose boats are dirty and noisy. This can lead to altercations. Until someone who belongs to the space fleet comes along and all members of the water fleet unite against their sworn enemy.
It goes without saying that life aboard a Scylla is no luxury cruise. The quarters and hallways are cramped, and the crew require significant technical expertise. That aside, they must also pass intense tests, psych evals and so on to make sure they are mentally fit and can cope with stress. Not to mention the feeling of isolation that comes with serving a tour on a submarine. Life is quite regimented and defined by a strict schedule - sleeping, keeping watch, free time. Crewers sarcastically call their bunks coffins. Only the captain gets their own cabin, which also serves as their office. It is located near the submarine's control room, which is the command centre. The rest of the senior command staff have to share. The plebs get dormitories.
That said, a Scylla does have some amenities to make sure crew members stay focused. Each vessel comes equipped with a small gym, enabling people to blow off steam and stay fit. Moreover, the mess hall is a multipurpose communal area, allowing people to play games, watch holovids, listen to music and so on. A standard tour is supposed to last ninety days, but they can go on for a lot longer, so an outlet is needed. The cramped, relatively isolated life beneath the waves produces a somewhat more informal culture. Naturally there is still a hierarchy, but it is less rigid than on a surface ship or, heaven forbid, a spaceship. Everyone in the waterfleet hates the starfleet. All sailors have to rely on each other, which produces a certain esprit de corps and a common ethos. There are different mess halls, but the pay structure is quite flat.
In spite of the confined conditions, the kitchen is comparatively large. Fresh food obviously does not last particularly long, which is why a lost of the food is made up of non-perishables. However, the Scylla has an efficient recycling system. Due to the size of the submarine, it comes equipped with a sophisticated 3D Printer that can take virtually any physical object, such as liquids and old refuse, break it down to its basic molecules and then rearrange into another physical object, such as water, oxygen, weapons, foodstuffs or components. It cannot replicate complex systems, but it is good at keeping the crew supplied with stuff they need. The Scylla's fuel efficiency is very high.
The submarine is quite big and thus lacking in agility. Even more than in space or even air quick turning underwater is hard. The speed is decent though. If the Scylla is detected, it is going to have trouble running away quickly, so it might as well be tough. The submarine has a regular deflector shield, but it is only active when the submarine surfaces. The problem with shields underwater is that the pressure of the water might well overload them instantly. Hence why stealth is better, combined with heavy plating. Being a proper long range sub with advanced reactors, food synthesisers and more it is unlikely to surface unless really needed.
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