Scimitar class

The Scimitar-class was a type of Romulan warbird developed in the late 24th century. The prototype vessel of the class was destroyed in 2379.

History
The Scimitar-class was the culmination of a Romulan development program to create a powerful new class to utilise against the Dominion. The design included a revolutionary thalaron radiation core, developed by the Tal Shiar, making it a deadly adversary.

Only one vessel of the class was completed as the necessity for such a super-weapon disappeared following the end of the Dominion War. That vessel, the Scimitar, was under the control of Shinzon of Remus, and he used it to destroy the remaining unfinished Scimitar-class vessels to ensure that no one could oppose him.

The Scimitar herself was later destroyed when Lieutenant Commander Data of the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-E) fired a phaser into the vessel's thalaron core to prevent the weapon from being used to kill his shipmates.

Alternate Universes
In the Cryptic universe, by the 2400s Scimitar-class vessels were in use as a dreadnought by both the Romulan Star Empire and some groups of Reman rebels, the latter including the Reman Resistance under Obisek. In 2409 the Romulan Republic also developed two variant classes, designated the Falchion and Tulwar-subclasses.

A year later, the Romulan Republic launched a new line of Scimitar-derived ships, with a distinctly Romulan appearance.

Technical Information
Scimitar-class warbirds are huge, but even for their size, they have an unusually high amount of weaponry: 52 disruptor banks and 27 photon torpedo tubes. In addition, the class features at least one huge shuttle bay which can hold in excess of 40 Scorpion-class fighters. The class is also fitted with an advanced cloaking device which is undetectable by any previously known means and can also be operated whilst maintaining full shields and firing weapons. Although they are classified as warbirds, that is a gross understatement. They can take a beating from enemy fleets and keep on firing. A particularly skilled commander can destroy armadas with this vessel.

However by the most notable feature of the Scimitar class are the thalaron cores. Scimitar-class vessels are able to create a thalaron discharge which could wipe out all organic tissue on a target ranging from a starship to a planet. To fire the weapon, the ship must splay its wings into a firing position; this takes several minutes, during which time the thalaron radiation is built up from the core.

Cloaking technology
The Scimitar 's cloaking technology was, in the words of Geordi La Forge, "perfect." It emitted no tachyons and left no residual anti-protons, the two ways that a cloaked ship could be tracked and located. Thus, when cloaked, the Scimitar was virtually impossible to find. Only a chance hit by an opposing ship's weapons or by targeting where the Scimitar 's shots came from could reveal its location, temporarily disrupting the cloak. The Scimitar could even deploy its weapons and deflector shields and travel at high warp speeds while cloaked, actions which, with less-advanced cloaking technology, necessitated de-cloaking or reduced the effectiveness of cloaking. Its maximum warp factor when cloaked was more than that of Starfleet's Sovereign-class starship.

Weaponry and military equipment
Having been designed for war, the Scimitar had 52 disruptor banks and 27 photon torpedo bays; it was thus ready for nearly any battle, carrying roughly five times the armament of any other single ship. The powerful thalaron radiation weapon with which it was also equipped was capable of stripping the life off a planet in a matter of seconds, though it took seven minutes to prepare. The Scimitar also held a large complement of Scorpion-class attack fighters.

Shielding technology
The Scimitar had primary and secondary shields. This allowed for twice the protection, giving it a backup shield. Even against the USS Enterprise-E and two Romulan Valdore-type warbirds, the Scimitar still had the obvious advantage.

Variants (Alternate Universes)
In the Cryptic universe, multiple variants (or subclasses) of the Scimitar-class were developed by the Romulan Republican Force.

Falchion-class
The Falchion subclass had a more steadfast focus in order to be more versatile than the original Scimitar-class or the Tulwar variant. A set of secondary shields also provided greater defense for the Falchion-class. The Falchion variant appeared very similar to the Scimitar-class, but it had a more distinctive deflector array on the top of the nose, and large green bussard collectors on the warp nacelles.

Tulwar-class
The Tulwar subclass had a higher emphasis on science, but retained much of its offensive potency. This was partially due to the Singularity Distributor Unit, which allowed the warbird to maintain full shields when entering cloak. The most distinctive feature on the Tulwar variant was that the pylons, wing tips, and warp nacelle covers all had open gaps within them, giving the starship a more lightweight appearance.

Bridge
The bridge of the Scimitar was radically different in design from any other vessel, though it did share the same basic layout as most Romulan starships.

In the center of the room was located the chair of the vessel's commanding officer. Behind his chair, both to the left and right, were consoles that required the operator to stand up. Directly in front of the captain's chair were two more stations. The command chair itself contained a built-in replicator, for the commanding officer's needs.

Directly behind the captain's chair was a flight of stairs that led to a higher level. Here, two more consoles were located, and access was provided to the thalaron weapon room through a pair of doors.

Shuttlebay
The shuttlebay of the Scimitar was a large area over two decks. It featured several Scorpion class attack fighters. The shuttlebay was completely destroyed when the saucer section of the Enterprise-E was crashed into the Scimitar.

Ships Commissioned

 * (Flagship of Empress Sela of the Romulan Star Empire)
 * (protoype)
 * (Tulwar-class variant and flagship of the Romulan Republic)
 * (Flagship of Empress Sela of the Romulan Star Empire)
 * (protoype)
 * (Tulwar-class variant and flagship of the Romulan Republic)
 * (protoype)
 * (Tulwar-class variant and flagship of the Romulan Republic)
 * (Tulwar-class variant and flagship of the Romulan Republic)
 * (Tulwar-class variant and flagship of the Romulan Republic)