The next ship in the line, according to Star Trek Online. Love it or hate it, it's here. The Memory Alpha Wiki lists it as "apocrypha", but as there won't be any new Trek series/movie set in 2390 for many years (if ever), this is what we got for now.
In my eyes it's an Intrepidized Sovereign, with streaks of Nova-class sprinkled here and there, especially the belly bump. The deflector region has obviously borrowed from the early Ambassador concept ship. My jury's still out on it, but I like the regal style of the nacelles, and the squarish nacelle cowlings are reminiscent of the Ambassador as well.
Back when I started watching ST:VOY, I thought "it would look even better with nacelles on struts", so this is kind of a 15 year old "What if" design to me.
I always thought the Sovereign had problems with the side view, its engineering section and saucer met like a wet rolled-up newspaper, and this design has a slightly more confident side view. Few Trek ships look stellar from behind or head on, but you simply have to pull off the profile.
I never liked the "escape pod fever" that hit the Trek design community after First Contact, those scores of ugly yellow triangles looked like ship ACNE to me, screaming "Hull compromise, shoot here!", and the evacuation scene in FC looked a bit disgusting, like a swarm of maggots slithering out of a carcass. This design has more sensible squarish and muted pods, and the numbers don't run away. I think it's better.
Official size figures hasn't come out yet AFAIK, but I assume it's not shorter than the Sovereign, so 750-800 meters, I suppose.
Posted by Fabrux (Member # 71) on :
The blurb on the website says that its the largest Enterprise yet.
I don't like this whole "twin neck" design. Looking from the side it looks like the secondary hull is a complete, separate unit that is just strapped on rather than being part of the ship.
Posted by Reverend (Member # 335) on :
Yeah, I'm not digging them either. I wouldn't mind it so much but for the life of me I can't see any benefit from that configuration. That plus there's just too many different homages going on. Looks like a bit of an over designed mess to be brutally honest.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
Indeed, but that problem's been systemic for a long time with Trek, I think. Either you make a Starfleet design derivative of older starships (like the Prometheus, although the angular saucer was novel) or you make a totally new shape from scratch, like the Steamrunner. I'm not a big fan of the Steamrunner.
Posted by WizArtist II (Member # 1425) on :
The new one looks like they took an Intrepid and squashed Grissom & Sovereign DNA on it. I personally would like to see new shapes put into use. Afterall, the basic planform of the Constitution class was pretty much a human development and I'm sure that other species would have design aesthetics they would want to THEIR liking.
Posted by Johnny (Member # 878) on :
The Odyssey class (I'm not gonna start calling it the "F" or something) does look pretty good from above, but I don't know what they were thinking with the secondary hull. It looks like someone who's broken their jaw and has a load of bandages tied around their head. Really weird, really ugly, and as Reverend says, you can't fathom any in-universe advantage it could have.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
Aye, and if my grandma had wheels she'd be a cyborg.
Posted by Krenim (Member # 22) on :
Looking at this, I want to say that this is a bad idea executed well (as opposed to the usual good idea executed poorly).
I don't like the dual necks either, and quite frankly, I don't think it's possible to design a ship using them that I'd love.
But... this is about as good a design as I think we're going to get if you must go with this idea. It does feel very Federation-ish. As Wiz pointed out, you can definitely see the "parentage" of the Oberth, Intrepid, and Sovereign. And it does look good from certain angles.
But yeah... dual necks... *sigh*
Posted by Mars Needs Women (Member # 1505) on :
From the front, back, and side, it looks like a snake. Maybe it can unhinge its hull and swallow a Borg sphere whole.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
I have to say, I didn't even notice the neck design until it was pointed out to me, I think it's slightly fresh in its execution. Looks better than the hamstrung USS Titan imo.
I can't get a good view of the nose launcher, but it looks like it has two red photon launchers on the sides, and a grille inbetween. Wonder if the grille is a launcher of some sort too.
Posted by The Mighty Monkey of Mim (Member # 646) on :
Somehow it just really doesn't say "Enterprise" to me...even with the resemblances to the Sovereign.
Posted by Mars Needs Women (Member # 1505) on :
Isn't there a small craft that detaches from the rear of the ship, near the shuttlebay. I seem to recall that when the design was first announced as the winner.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
I'd like to see that.
Can I say, though, that every time I rewatch the Odyssey-picture up there, when looking at these posts, it's growing on me. Now when I see it, I think "Voyager's pretty mom". The first Trek design I've seen in years that has some measure of female grace. When Sovereign came, it looked "epic", this looks "slick".
Posted by WizArtist II (Member # 1425) on :
It's like the Sovereign is Kirstie Alley from TWOK and the Odyssey is Kirstie Alley TODAY replete with twin necks and all.
Posted by Guardian 2000 (Member # 743) on :
quote:Originally posted by Krenim: Looking at this, I want to say that this is a bad idea executed well
I find myself in complete agreement with your assessment.
Put simply, this is not an attractive design, even though the renders and whatnot look pretty good for what it is. The dual-neck thing is just gimmicky and she's got an enormous butt.
Of course, I'm still of the view that the Enterprise-E is not a proper evolution of TNG-era starship design, so what do I know?
Posted by Dukhat (Member # 341) on :
Here's a little history about this ship. It was the "winner" of a Design the Next Enterprise contest given by Cryptic, the creators of Star Trek Online (there's a reason "winner" is quoted...I'll get to that soon).
CBS stated that the winning design was to be considered "canon," even though video games are not canon and the appearance of this ship in any future Trek series or movies is most likely never going to happen.
IMHO, the entire contest was ineptly run. First, the website they set up for you to upload your artwork was filled with spam (i.e. people posting somebody else's artwork and claiming it was their own; idiots who couldn't follow directions and posted ships that already existed like the Enterprise-E and the Aventine from Pocket Books; or wiseass people who posted silly pics like Picard's head with nacelles attached to it). Second, the website was poorly made so that you couldn't see any more than a few of the contestant's ships at a time.
But the worst thing they did was to enact a "popular vote" system so that people could vote for their favorite design. It gave the appearance that we everyday schmucks would actually be the ones to choose the next Enterprise in a democratic way. Sounds cool, right? Wrong. Turned out that the popular vote didn't mean shit, and the choice was always up to four or five guys who worked for Cryptic.
So what happened? Well, first of all the ship with the most popular votes, which was this one, didn't even get chosen for a runner-up (I happened to like that design, if not actually for the Enterprise-F), while this sketch ultimately won.
And as you can see, all Cryptic really wanted was a simple sketch as a starting point for their OWN ship design. So the "Design the Next Enterprise" contest was really a load of crap. The winner did get a free laptop, but the final design of the ship looks nothing like what he actually envisioned, which was this and this. And to add insult to injury, everybody pinged on this guy for winning the contest with his simple sketch while others worked really hard on their artwork, and the guy eventually washed his hands of the whole thing. I don't blame him one bit.
BTW, more pics of the Enterprise-F can be found here. My opinion: it looks like an Intrepid and a Sovereign mated. There's very little originality to the design at all, except for the dual necks which I think looks stupid anyway. I remember when this contest was originally announced (I couldn't submit as design because I live in a state that was prohibited from the contest), I thought that most people's designs were going to look like the Sovereign, and that people needed to have more originality. Well, that didn't happen apparently.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
Sounds like they had a tough time with that contest. I didn't see any contributions of the old Nova though. I miss Hajek, Gerlach and that third guy with the long dutch name.
I think that last design sketch was pretty close to what the Odyssey-class became, but if they'd released it like that people would think the game universe had regressed to 2355. The drab battleship grey and naked hull surfaces remind me of Galaxy class concept art.
I really like the tail on the Odyssey-class, it was very thoughtfully designed, the cut-off angular lines remind me of flanges on greek statues. I always thought the short, rounded nub on the Sovereign looked impotent, blunt and too organic.
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
"Now when I see it, I think 'Voyager's pretty mom'."
Ah, I was wondering what it was pregnant with...
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
Not exactly a daring departure is it? "In a plastic baggie, combine two parts Intrepid with one part Soverign, shake well and bake at 350 for 20 minutes..." Posted by The Mighty Monkey of Mim (Member # 646) on :
In the sketches, the neck looks like it's been influenced not only by the Oberth but also by the Vulcan Surak, which is neat, and the lines are a little more reminiscent of past incarnations, which is always a good thing when it comes to designing an Enterprise. The biggest mistake that was made in changing the design was the pointy saucer. That goes a long way toward making it look less Enterprise-ish. And I really don't care for these increasingly elongated and serpentine lines on later ship designs. It looks like some kind of space whale or snake or some other weird animal. The great thing about the original Enterprise is the contrast between her curves and her straight lines and hard angles. As so many have pointed out, there's no need for a spacecraft to look aerodynamic.
Posted by Guardian 2000 (Member # 743) on :
quote:Originally posted by Dukhat: the ship with the most popular votes, which was this one
Intriguing. I'm not usually a fan of the high-riding nacelles, but that actually has a grace from that angle that's quite appealing.
However, the saucer is ass when seen from other angles. A basic saucer would've been better.
Posted by Fabrux (Member # 71) on :
quote:Originally posted by The Mighty Monkey of Mim: And I really don't care for these increasingly elongated and serpentine lines on later ship designs. It looks like some kind of space whale or snake or some other weird animal. The great thing about the original Enterprise is the contrast between her curves and her straight lines and hard angles. As so many have pointed out, there's no need for a spacecraft to look aerodynamic.
Actually, the current explanation in Trek lore is that slipstream-equipped ships actually need 'aerodynamics' to better travel through.
Posted by Mars Needs Women (Member # 1505) on :
So how does splitting the neck make it more 'aerodynamic' for slipstream? If anything, you want thicker, sturdier neck if your dealing with higher warp speeds. Don't want those MMO players to get their atoms smeared across the fabric of space.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
Mim:
quote:there's no need for a spacecraft to look aerodynamic.
I wouldn't say aerodynamic. If you look at most of the Federation ships (Constitution, Excelsior, Galaxy, Sovereign) the designs are hydrodynamic. The first nuclear sub (USS Nautilus) launched in 1958, and doubtlessly contributed at least a bit to the zeitgeist in which Star Trek was born. Come to think of it, the "Dauntless" is the ultimate extension in that train of thought so far.
Anyway, hydrodynamic is IMO more sexy than aero-, the structures demand more support and solidness. Designing giant spiky technoships like the USS Cygnus in "The Black Hole" is maybe more accurate for 2130, but it's not pretty.
I don't get why people think the Odyssey-Class has a big belly. It's much smaller in ratio to the saucer than the Intrepid's and Excelsior's ditto. Besides, a girl with a bit of a pouch is nice. Rather than a six-pack and veins on the eyelids, as with some girls I know, who go boxercising way too often.
I get that many don't like the Intrepid saucer-shape, but despite my liking for dagger shapes, if it hadn't been done, this had just been a Sovereign with dual necks and a tighter stern. I hope it has a captain's yacht.
Posted by Reverend (Member # 335) on :
quote:Originally posted by Guardian 2000:
quote:Originally posted by Dukhat: the ship with the most popular votes, which was this one
Intriguing. I'm not usually a fan of the high-riding nacelles, but that actually has a grace from that angle that's quite appealing.
However, the saucer is ass when seen from other angles. A basic saucer would've been better.
At least this design has some personality to it. Still, I agree, it's not quite *Enterprise* material. It'd make a great science/survey or medical ship though.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
Rev:
quote:At least this design has some personality to it. Still, I agree, it's not quite *Enterprise* material. It'd make a great science/survey or medical ship though.
Absolutely, just as soon as it's tended to its own medical condition.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
Apparently it's Mitosis Day, have a free post. Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
quote:Originally posted by Mars Needs Women: So how does splitting the neck make it more 'aerodynamic' for slipstream? If anything, you want thicker, sturdier neck if your dealing with higher warp speeds. Don't want those MMO players to get their atoms smeared across the fabric of space.
Yes we do...desperately.
Posted by Ritten (Member # 417) on :
The hollow center gives me the impression of the rings on Vulcan ships, ENT era. The only pluses I could see on that gap is material and weight savings at the cost of ships volume.
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 138) on :
Not so much a comment on the ship's design, but the CG work and detail is great.
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
quote:Originally posted by Ritten: The hollow center gives me the impression of the rings on Vulcan ships, ENT era. The only pluses I could see on that gap is material and weight savings at the cost of ships volume.
![[Roll Eyes]](rolleyes.gif)