MGT Only: Jiang class modular Frigate

[Xerxeskingofking]

Yhea, I got bored, started reading my trav stuff again, and got building ships and writing fluff. heres the result.

the ships stats:

Jiāng class Escort, TL 11


2000 ton hull, standard. (200MCr)
Modular space: 950 tons. (cost: 47% of base hull cost. 94Mcr)
armour: cystaliron, 8 pts (200tons, 117.6MCr)


M drive: U (4g, 37tons, 76MCr)
J drive: N (J2, 70tons 130 MCr)
P plant: U (P4, 58 tons, 152MCr)

fuel consumption: 38 tons/ 2 weeks)
fuel 438 tons (1 jump/2 and 2 weeks)


Bridge: 60 tons, 100 MCr
Computer: model 3/fib 0.3Mcr

software:
jump control/2 0.2 Mcr
fire control/3 6Mcr
Evade/2 2Mcr

Sensors: advanced (3 tons, 0.2 MCr)
Fuel scoops: 0 tons, 1MCr
Fuel processors 11 tons, 0.55Mcr. (440 tons of fuel in 2 days)


Weaponry:

4 triple Beam Laser-11 turrets (accurate) (4 tons, 23 MCr )
4 triple Sandcasters. (4 tons 11 Mcr)
1 Particle Barbette-11 (accurate, High Yield) (5 tons, 16 Mcr)

ammo for Sandcasters: 240 rounds (12 tons, 20 rounds per caster)


extras:

37 tons cargo
Ships boat in full hanger. (39 tons, 7.8Mcr for hanger 16 MCr for ships boat)
2 armories (4 tons, 1Mcr)

crew:

Command: 3 (3 staterooms)
flight and navigation: 4 (2 staterooms)
Engineering: 5 (2.5 staterooms)
Gunnery: 9 (4,5 staterooms)
Ships Troops: 8 (4 staterooms)
Smallcraft crew: 2 (1 stateroom)
Total crew: 17 staterooms (68 tons 8.5Mcr)

Total Cost: 962.95 Mcr

more to follow.

 

[Xerxeskingofking]

Modules for the Jiang class.

I've not made many yet, but I will, and I also invite any interested forum members to make their own, which I will happily add to this post.

basic limits

Spoiler:

Form the rules in MgT High Guard, reiterated here for reference

No more than 950 tons.
No M drives, J drives or Power Plants.
No additional armour or structural reinforcement.
As, the P plant is P4, no more than 50% of the guns may be Particle or Meson based.
11 Hardpoints available.
No more than 8 Bay weapons (1 per 1,000 ton per P plant rating).
One armoury per 50 crew, and One armoury per 10 Marines
One Briefing Room per 20 smallcraft crew.

My basic plan was that the typical layout would be the 150 ton "gun deck", a 400 ton fuel tank, plus 400 tons of other stuff. this would give it 2 x J2 and 4 weeks fuel, plus room for some interesting "mission" modules. However, do not feel bound by my plan. feel free to make your modules as big as 950 tons, or down to just 1, if you want.

Modules

Spoiler:

Ferry tank: 400 ton fuel tank (enough for 1 x Jump 2)


Cargo hold: 400 ton cargo hold.


Gun deck: 150tons 157,25 MCr)
9 Particle Barbette-11 (accurate, High Yield) (each 5 tons,16 Mcr). total 45 tons, 144 Mcr
2 Railgun Barbette-11 (Accurate,) (each 5 tons, 5 Mcr) total 10 tons, 10 Mcr
6 staterooms. (24 tons, 3 Mcr)
38 tons fuel (2 weeks P plant)
5 tons UNREP equipment (can transfer 100tons/hour) 0.25Mcr
28 tons cargo.

 

[Xerxeskingofking]

Fluff for the Jiang class. Spoilered for length.

Background

Spoiler:

The Jiang (or River ) clas was one or the more common medium escorts used by the Terran Confederation. Described by noted solomani historian Charles Kagmura as “the most successful political boondoggle of the Terran Confederation”, the decision to order the class owed as much to the sometimes volatile poltics of the early terran confederation as to the operational requirements of the fledgling Terran Navy. It was not the fastest ship of its size, or the most resilient, best armed. However, once in service, the sheer versatility of the design proved to be a great asset to the terrans, who kept the design in serial production for nearly the whole of Interstellar Wars era.

Background

At the end of the First Interstellar War, the newly formed Terran Confederation Navy was faced with two conflicting goals: to maintain a strong battlefleet in order to deter the Vlani Imperium from attempting another “punitive expedition against the terrans, while at the same time trying to rationalise and standardise the heterogeneous mix of ships it had inherited from its founding nations, each built to different and often incompatible standards. to name but one example, the navy was operating no less than 7 different 30 ton shuttle designs, each with different docking equipment, hatch designs and cargo bay layouts..


During the war, with the threat of the Vlani appearing at any moment, the terrans had been willing to accept the operational difficulties this myriad of designs imposed to maximise the number of hulls it had to offset of the advanced technology of the Vlani , Now that the threat of imminent annihilation had receded, The navy high command wanted to restructure their forces along a most rational and sustainable basis.


At the same time, the Terrans had been granted a massive technological windfall in the forms of several vlani warship hulks, remnants of the 2nd battle of Barnard's Star, where the terrans had fought the Vlani to a standstill. Two of the most notable areas where vlani technology was “borrowed” were in the fields of fusion reactor design and jump technology. the latter was of particular importance, as the vlani were the only polity with Jump 2 technology, and guarded the secret of it jealously, seeing it as a cornerstone of their domination. The acquisition of J2 by the terrans has often been held as “the beginning of the end” for the Ziru Sirka.


However, Integrating the technology with the existing fleet was an immense challenge. many ships simply could not be converted economically, and many more would need extensive refits, which involving cutting out the majority of the engineering section and installing new equipment.


In this situation, the naval high command (the Confederate Combined Command, or the CCC) was forced to make hard choices about what classes would be part of the new, post-war fleet. The three major factors were operational need, existing capability, and suitability for conversion to J2. Several designs that were impossible to convert were kept on, many in secondary roles, notably in the Outback, as the star cluster to Trailing and Rimward of Terra was known. J1 was considered adequate for this area, and ships like the Admiral class cruisers served well here for decades. Several other classes were refitted with J2, mainly American designs, as pre war American doctrine required warships to be able to reach other systems without tanker support, so the American fleet was built with enough fuel for 2 jumps, which greatly simplified the refit process.

The New Fleet and the Shanghai Revolt

Spoiler:

However, even with these measures, a significant amount of the existing fleet was deemed unsuitable for future use and scheduled to be decommissioned as soon as new, better replacements could be designed and built. The frigate and destroyer fleets were particularly hard hit, as the small ships has less tonnage to play with and could not be converted without near total refits that would cost more than starting again from scratch. The CCC decided it needed new capital units to fight off a vlani invasion more than it needed escorts to protect against Vlani commerce raiders. this belief was in part informed by the low number and poor quality of the vlani light warships seen in the war*(1). The “New Fleet”, as the program was called, was heavily slanted towards cruisers and battleships, with only a small number of J2 escorts envisioned.


While this battlefleet focus had significant support, several member states had doubts about it, and wanted to increase spending on light units. the Chinese, in particular, were very concerned about the lack of light units in the fleet plans the CCC was drawing up, and the small number of auxiliary units (mobile repair ships, hospital vessels, orbital bombardment craft, etc) . Feelings were further exacerbated by the fact that the CCC planned to keep almost none of the Chinese built ships it had inherited, despite the generally good performance of these ships in the War. rumours abounded about a conspiracy by the Americans and Europeans to “shut out” the rest of the terrans form the highest echelons of power*(2). Quietly, China sounded out other member states and gathered allies opposed to the New Fleet.


things came to a head at a budget conference in Shanghai. China used its influence to form a voting bloc that proceeded to veto any budgeting plans. In a series of high level meetings, the Chinese repeatedly laid out their terms for co-operation: an increase presence on the ruling Secretariat, and a greater emphasis on light naval assets. As their chief delegate put it, “why should we pay for a navy that has no interest in protecting our trade, but is only interested in big battleships for its admirals to play with?”. Initially the Confederate government stood firm, worried about setting a dangerous precedent if it gave in, but a after weeks of stalemate, the lack of funding for the Confederate government precipitated a crisis, and forced the Confederate government to concede defeat.


*(1)The majority of the light warships in the vlani fleet during the early Interstellar war were actually constructed and operated by vlani subject races, and were designed more for chasing off pirates than fighting a war. Most subject peoples had only limited access to advanced vlani technology, and their ship's performance was strictly limited by the treaties that authorised their existence. These patrol ships, many built with thin tungsten steel armour and primitive weaponry, were totally outclassed by terran ships in the war, and dozens were lost. After the 1st interstellar war, the vlani started building escorts that were up to the fleet standard, though the cheap subject race ships continued to be used in secondary roles, with heavy losses any time they faced terrans.



*(2) While no evidence that such a conspiracy existed has ever been found, the mere fact the theory was so popular is proof that the racial and national tensions of the pre-war Terrans had been solved by the war, but merely “swept under the rug” until the threat of annihilation had passed. While technically united in a single world government, Many terrans continued to think along national lines for decades, and a major undercurrent in the politics of the era was the very real possibility that the Confederation would disintegrate back into its member nations,

Design inception

Spoiler:

while the CCC agreed to fund more escorts as part of the New Fleet, they were still firmly committed to expanding their battle line, and were loathe to spend more than strictly necessary on what they saw as mere political point scoring. They were particularly against spending on auxiliary ships, believing they needed every combat hull they could get to keep the Vlani form attacking. the Chinese therefore looked for a way to maximise the utility of their new ships, and designed them accordingly. the result was the Jiang class.


A roughly cylindrical ship, the Jiang was 2,000 tons, much larger than most contemporary frigate classes (which tended to be around 800-1,200 tons). While equipped with J2 to keep up with the New Fleet, it had only 4G M-drives, compared to the 5 or 6G of most of the battleships. The standard weapons fit was also rather lacklustre, with a single particle barbette and a collection of point defence lasers and sandcasters, The major design feature, however, was a large modular section that consisted of almost the whole lower half of the planned ship. this modular bay allowed a variety of different payloads to be carried, and thus let the class replace several specialised ship types. However, the structural requirements for the modular bay limited the effectiveness of the ship's armour,

 

[Xerxeskingofking]

Background, pt 2.

Entry into service

Spoiler:

While the CCC were less than keen on this slow, under armed and lightly armoured frigate, they realise they could replace a large number of specialist auxiliary ships with this new multipurpose ship, and use the money thus saved to largely pay for the expanded number of escorts, and so agreed to bring it into service. The lead ship of the class, the Yangtze, was commissioned in 2127AD (--2395 Imperial), and she and her sister ships quickly proved popular with the fleet. default configurations was two 400 ton “ferry tanks” and a 150 ton “gun deck” carrying 9 particle barbettes and a railgun. but the class was often lose one or both the ferry tanks to carry a variety of specialist modules. with the cargo pods in place of the ferry tanks, the Jiang could act as a cargo hauler with enough firepower to discourage pirates. a common modification would install a fuel boom and pumping equipment into the gun deck module, and allow the Jiang to act as a mini-tanker. other specialist modules included a bombardment (mounting several orbital bombardment railguns to support a planetary assault), medical, a flag bridge for small squadrons, a mobile repair yard, a barracks bock and even a pocket carrier bay.


While the CCC was still lukewarm on the design, the fleet and squadron commanders had nothing but praise for the “Swiss army Ship” and were emphatic in their requests for more.

The 2nd Interstellar War

Spoiler:

The long expected 2nd Interstellar war finally began in 2129AD (-2393 Imperial), with a terran pre-emptive strike at the vlani punitive expedition gathering at Agidda. The set piece battle that followed was bloody and mostly indecisive, with both fleets pounded into near-scrap, but the Vlani, realising they had underestimated terran naval strength, conceded the system and fell back, leading the terrans to claim victory. From this point on, the war descended into a stalemate, with the terran fleet garrisoned in Agidda and Fenris, facing their Vlani counterparts, neither side strong enough to risk another fleet battle.


With the heavy units tied down in a standoff, a series of raids and counter raids developed and became the major focus of efforts, as each side attempted to destroy the shipping that supported their opponent's fleet. Suddenly, the frigates and destroyers the CCC and been so loathe to build were now both the only offensive arm and the best defensive tool the Navy had. The Jiang and her sister classes were elevated to the highest construction priority, with dozens being commissioned. Small “raiding teams” of a half dozen ships became the primary striking arm, initially built around a light cruiser and a few escorts. Sometimes several would band together into “strike groups” for high value targets,


As the months stretched into years, several commanders experimented with the flexibility of the Jiang, and created new raiding teams consisting of nothing but Jiangs. using twin ferry tanks and the tanker modification, one Jaing could refuel another Jiang, while still retaining enough fuel to jump itself. This let a raiding team of Jiangs reach 4 parsecs into vlani territory, while the tanker Jiangs could escape back to terran space to refuel, then return to pick up the returning raiders and refuel them agian to get them home. thus, the terrans were not just limited to raids on Nusku or Sirius, but could strike more than half a dozen systems without needing a secure refueling point. the raiding Jiangs were able to carry only one ferry tank, letting them carry some the range of specialist modules available, such as cargo holds, smallcraft bays, or marines for ground raids.

The Apishal Raid

Spoiler:

In one famous raid in 2132AD, Raiding Team 36, comprised of the Thames, Chesapeake, Rhine, Plata, Congo and St Lawrence, under the command of then-Commodore Daniel “Dan Dare” Danielssen, entered the Apishal system after having refuelled in the Nusku system, one the first times this tactic was used. their objective was a POW camp where Terrans were being held. the vlani did not initially react to their arrival, as they believed the terrans were a routine convoy that was expected. The raiding team, keeping its acceleration down and arranging itself in a convoy like formation, was able to keep up the ruse until they were almost in orbit, before the Vlani belatedly realised they were hostile.

Terran marines and close air support were dropped onto the facility, which was quickly secured from the stunned guards. Fire support from Chesapeake's ortillary railgun module broke up a counterattack on the camp, while Congo put several salvos into the main starport, which caught both squadrons of strikecraft stationed there as they attempted to scramble. The prisoners were recovered, and the raiding group boosted outsystem, before they jumped out to Nusku. In the Nuska system, they linked up with another raiding team (Team 62, the Mersey, Hudson, Nile, Paraná, Mekong and Siene, commanded by Commodore Alexei Komarov) and were about to begin refuelling when a vlani flotilla of 15 corvettes attacked. believing that the tankers were non combatants (as they were in vlani service) and they enjoyed significant advantage in numbers. The resulting battle was viciously one sided. the tankers frigates were all fully armed, and over half the attacking corvettes were destroyed ng the bigger terran ships, and the remainder were force to break off, most with heavy damage. One terran ship, the Seine was destroyed, and the Thames was so badly damaged it was evacuated and scuttled. the remaining ships jumped back to terran space, to a heros welcome


This raid, and others like it, forced the vlani to spread their fleet to cover their supply line, which robbed them of any chance of meaningful offensive action. The Vlani had never fought against a J2 enemy, and their doctrine was built around the concept that they had the strategic speed advantage over any opponent. Faced with a foe who could react as fast as they could, it simply failed, the and conservative vlani took a long time to adjust to the new operational environment. The war ground on until 2138AD, when the vlani, concerned with instability further to coreward, decided it was cheaper to buy off the terrans and offered them the status of official Ally, and formally ceded control over Agidda and the Outback.

Later Service

Spoiler:

The Jiang was in constant production for nearly the entire Interstellar Wars era. The deep raiding tactics it helped pioneer became a hallmark of terran doctrine, frustrating ,many a planned vlani offensive due to the drain for protecting their conveys so deep inside their own territory. The ability of the Jiang to act as an both an auxiliary and its own escort repeatedly proved to be of immense value, giving the terrans vital support on the front lines, while not trying up escorts that could be used elsewhere. When the terrans started to produce the first TL12 techology in the “long peace” between the 7th and 8th Interstellar wars, the modular Jiang was usually the testbed, and often the first class to receive the operational versions of technology like Nuclear Dampeners or Meson weaponry. The first terran jump 3 ships was the Cylde, which carried both its normal J2 drives and the experimental J3.

I think I might have gone a bit overboard.

meh.


As usual, the above is based upon, but not slavishly tied to, existing canon. I am not aware of anything I wrote that contradicts canon, but I haven't made a exhaustive check to make sure.

 

[Brandon C]

Is this MgT HG or MgT HG2?

This has given me an idea to convert excess cargo space to modular space on some warships (using cutter modules) but I want to see if the hardpoint reduction is in HG 1e or 2e.

A couple of module selections might be troop carriers and vehicle carriers.

 

[Xerxeskingofking]

Is this MgT HG or MgT HG2?

This has given me an idea to convert excess cargo space to modular space on some warships (using cutter modules) but I want to see if the hardpoint reduction is in HG 1e or 2e.

A couple of module selections might be troop carriers and vehicle carriers.

HG 1st ed, not the new MgT beta.

may I ask, what hardpoint reduction?

 

[Brandon C]

HG 1st ed, not the new MgT beta.

may I ask, what hardpoint reduction?

I misunderstood your "11 hardpoints available" under Module Limits. I thought this was what was available for the ship overall after the modular hull option, but it looks like this is just what is left of the 20 hardpoints you start with for a 2,000 ton hull.

 

[Xerxeskingofking]

yhea, what you just said. I used 9 on the base hull, so theirs 11 free still.

 

[Brandon C]

You could have a fighter carrier module, with a launch tube, a hanger for the fighters, staterooms for the pilots and techs, and a briefing room.

The troop carrier module I mentioned may or may not have provisions for ATVs or G/carriers.

 

[CliffBates]

What is the role of this frigate? Escort for the Crusiers and Larger ships of the Terran Fleet or a commerce raider? Why module format what benefit does it give?

 

[Xerxeskingofking]

is a frigate for independent actions, rather than a fleet escort. the modular build means it can cover several different bases, depending on what is installed.

It could protect commerce, raid commerce, transport cargo, act as a hospital ship, provide a guardship for a gas giant, provide orbital fire support to a ground force, act as a mini-tanker, or a any of the jobs that light vassals may be assigned to.

the idea was that it could cover for several different specialised ships, and thus save money.

 

[wbyrd]

What is the role of this frigate? Escort for the Crusiers and Larger ships of the Terran Fleet or a commerce raider? Why module format what benefit does it give?

A modular corvette, or frigate, destroyer, etc..would be a multi-role ship.It would probably not be used in fleet formations. More likely they'd be assigned to patrol, special operations, or fast response missions.