quote:Originally posted by Cpt. Kyle Amasov: We should make Baracus as "official" as Shelly, IMO.
LOL! Which is not at all! Same thing with Medusa-class.
quote:Originally posted by The359: It's "Shelley". And I believe everyone has started calling the Shelley "Curry" class.
That's probably because that's what the Star Trek RPG supplement Ship Recognition Manual Volume One: The Ships of Starfleet from Last Unicorn Games calls it. And at least that's an officially licensed work...
-FtK
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Amasov Prime
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posted
But I still like to call them Shelley, Medusa and Baracus.
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"I'm not sure I like the Baracus-class idea. It sounds OK until you consider that Starfleet would've named a prototype ship USS Baracus. I don't buy it."
Well, these are the same people who named a prototype ship "USS Akira". Not that I'm defending the name "Baracus" at all...
Registered: Mar 1999
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posted
Regarding UF: Still don't know. We've been holding out for a long time, but as it stands it's looking less likely with each passing month. Mojo continues to investigate options.
Regarding the bridge: No one really thought about it being one size or the other when it was being made. Keeping the Excelsior bridge kinda made more sense, though. I was sorta thinking about the battle damage repairs when thinking about the bridge.
Hmm.. I was reading some stuff about Q-Ships recently. During the World Wars, some civilian vessels were converted into gunships with guns and torpedoes behind concealed ports and such. They were meant to surprise U-boats and shipping hunters that were apparently devoid of escort.
Anyway, perhaps the USS Centaur's appearance was due to something in this vein? It's unusal for a starship at wartime in a contested zone to be alone; and while the Centaur was at least an even match for one Jem'Hadar attack ship, Reynolds obviously thought the opposite for three of them, as they are typically deployed. Why would a single starship be operating in a warzone against odds such as the Dominion presented? Perhaps she was also on some special op, and the ship was outfitted accordingly?
posted
I thought the Centaur was just on patrol and happened to find the single fighter. The captain probably assumed that if 3 fighters show up, there may be even more on the way.
-------------------- "Lotta people go through life doing things badly. Racing's important to men who do it well. When you're racing, it's life. Anything that happens before or after is just waiting."
-Steve McQueen as Michael Delaney, LeMans
Registered: Mar 1999
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posted
Remember, three of those attack ships nailed the Oddessy and I'm sure the Centaur does not have a galaxy's firepower. Looked a whole lot faster and more manuverable than the Defiant though....
In the (non canon I know) Dominion War books, the Centaur was sneaking behind enemy lines to drop off starfleet special ops guys on select worlds where they would act as listening posts. A one way trip for those officers, I'd imagine. The books also deal with the "Where the hell was the Enterprise?" question and gives a glimpse into Ro's time with the Maquis as they are getting rubbed out.....
-------------------- Justice inclines her scales so that wisdom comes at the price of suffering. -Aeschylus, Agamemnon
Registered: Aug 2002
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posted
A collection of random comments, not directly related to the pics:
- I doubt the basic design of this ship was in any way influenced by the war, since the low registry suggests something that was launched before even the Cardassian conflict (a ship with NCC in the 57000 range was operational when the Cardies got nasty, if we believe the Encyclopedia on the Rutledge).
- I also don't see this ship as very exceptional. All the traditional elements are there, save for a readily identifiable shuttlebay (unless the bow thing is one). A Nebula is a far weirder piece of work.
- A z-axis movement won't jeopardize a Nebula, unless it's a z-axis *acceleration*... Yeah, that design is *scary*.
- If three Jemmie bugs really presented a problem for a full-sized Starfleet ship several years after the Odyssey incident, Earth would no longer exist and the Bajorans would be learning to speak Jem'Hadar. Reynolds' retreat must be due either to his ship being weaker than usual (due to size or previous damage) or to tactical concerns we aren't aware of. Perhaps he did realize even more fighters would be on their way. Or perhaps he received a coded message from Starfleet to back the hell off and stop jeopardizing Sisko's mission?
- It seems pretty standard wartime practice to operate fast, aggressive but defensively impotent "hunter" ships against similar enemy vessels. The Centaur could have been Starfleet's analogy to the British torpedo boats that clashed against their German counterparts in the Channel, or against Italian forces in the Med. Such a mission profile would call for a no-frills ship that could justifiably lack a shuttlebay and be smaller than a Miranda.
- Also, such vessels would make for nice reconaissance assets. The greeblies on the Centaur could be sigint gear. Instead of loitering in a barely safe region, like the cold war spyships normally did, these ships would enter a decidedly unsafe region and grab whatever info they can. The Feds were at an intelligence disadvantage anyway, what with those badass Dominion sensors that could spot cloaked ships sectors away. Aggressive sigint would be a necessity, the ship's range compensating for the sensors' lack of range.
quote:If three Jemmie bugs really presented a problem for a full-sized Starfleet ship several years after the Odyssey incident, Earth would no longer exist and the Bajorans would be learning to speak Jem'Hadar. Reynolds' retreat must be due either to his ship being weaker than usual (due to size or previous damage) or to tactical concerns we aren't aware of. Perhaps he did realize even more fighters would be on their way. Or perhaps he received a coded message from Starfleet to back the hell off and stop jeopardizing Sisko's mission?
Could it be that either Starfleet has developed some sort of new shield to defend against the poloron beam? Not only that, you are dealing with small ships agianst a big ship. The Enterprise herself could not defend agianst even three ships like a B'rel (which should be the same size but they are not). There are alot of incidents concerning the E-D having trouble with two or even one ship that should be far weaker than herself.
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Cartman
just made by the Presbyterian Church
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posted
Though the general incompetence of a certain member of her command staff factored heavily in most of those incidents.
I didn't get the impression the Centaur was a full-sized juggernaut. She may have been a match for one J'H attack ship, but four? Not exactly favorable odds for an underpowered, 80-year old starship.
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted
More like 30-40 years IMO. Despite her size, I got the impression that the Centaur was not a battlewagon in terms of shields or armament. Timo's assertion that she was damaged in weapons or something would make a certain amount of sense... However, the general fact remains that with the exception of the Defiant (and Valiant), I don't think we've seen any real single-ship actions against Dominion forces. It's tough to judge. I believe that Reynolds took off because he though his ship was outnumbered and outgunned by 3-4 enemy Atack Ships.
However, if the Centaur had one thing going for her, it was her speeed - she was able to outrun Attack Ships despite her age and damage inflicted. THAT could be the reason she was out alone, as she'd be able to escape any particular attack assuming she wasn't ambushed.
Finally, assuming that Reynolds a) survived to be mentioned in "Sacrifice of Angels", and b) that the Centaur survived with him, that ship would probably have to be more than a dinky no-frills ship. Reynolds was in a position of some authority in the fleet, and odds are you don't command other ships from a grunt ships yourself. Of course, I'm discounting the notion that Sisko was commanding the whole fleet in "Sacrifice" from the Defiant.
posted
And discounting the possibility of favoritism from Sisko's part. Perhaps he simply gave the juiciest jobs in the Fleet to his old buddies? Or was the most concerned about them, enough to mention them in dialogue while higher-ups in bigger ships went without mention.
posted
Mabye the reason for Reynolds' retreat is less complicated: He was not supposed to breach enemy lines. Often commanders on smaller vessels are not privy to the "big picture" and have to obey orders that seem to make no sense. Dax and Bashir certainly complain to Sisko about the Federation's tactics (or lack thereof). Reynolds may have been in unauthorized prusuit of a small Dominion attack ship (Sisko's), and realized that his overzealousness was not only violating orders, but risking his ship and crew.
-------------------- Justice inclines her scales so that wisdom comes at the price of suffering. -Aeschylus, Agamemnon
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