Dauntless class (Vanguard)

Yamato class Heavy Battleship
Designed to outgun and overpower any other cruiser by at least 100%, as well as most starbases, and even some planetary defense systems, the Yamato class battleship is the latest "final word" in ship combat and is among the biggest starships ever fielded by Starfleet. It carries the maximum amount of weaponry which can be packed into a purely military vessel, even if this is to the detriment of research or other non-combat capabilities. The ship has minimal crew accommodations, a small sickbay, and no provision for families. Entire fleets and indeed entire civilizations could fall before the guns of the Yamato class. Luckily, there are only four ships of this class operating in Starfleet, and just the threat that Starfleet has designed one is sometimes enough to prevent aggression. The ship is expensive to build and operate, and so is seldom seen outside of war zones. Indeed, it is seldom suited for anything but combat, and may be mothballed during peace times. While fairly effective flying solo, the Yamato class is devastating when operating as the center of a battle fleet. During quieter times, it is often left powered down in the vicinity of its assigned starbase or in orbit around uninhabited planets in strategic star systems. Like all new purely military vessels of Starfleet, the ship’s warp nacelles have been brought inboard to a minimum safe distance for field EM, and all EPS weapon-power conduits have been truncated to provide a nearly zero lag time between activation signal and beam launch.

Weapon Systems
The ship’s weaponry systems consist of the most advanced phaser and torpedo systems available. She features twelve (12) brand new torpedo turrets as her primary weapon, as well as the Type-XIV phaser arrays (known as Sovereign-Type) and two Type-XV (commonly known as Defiant-Type) pulse phaser cannons. The ship boasts of thirty (30) torpedo bays among her three sections, as well as the type X+ phaser cannon prototype. Six (6) of the torpedo bays are mounted in the large dorsal rollbar pod, and another six (6) are on the large underside rollber pod, at three (3) forward and three (3) back. The remaining ten (10) face directly out at five each to port and starboard, a unique feature in a Starfleet vessel. The micro-torpedoes arranged in a 'phalanx' array along the port and starboard sides of the ship allow an astoundingly high rate of fire that can cripple any enemy starship. With the 'broadside' arrangement of the 'phalanx' the Yamato can defend itself against strike fighters defending the fixed facilities while maintaining its focus on destroying its primary target. Octo rapid-fire quantum torpedoes and enhanced pulse phasers enables the Invincible sufficient firepower to destroy large fixed targets in one pass. The vessel is also equipped with a new variant of the Type-XIV phaser array, which equips the Federation's most powerful starbases and deep space facilities. The Type XIV has a raw beam power output some 60% more powerful than the Type-X arrays installed on the standard Galaxy class. In addition, the Type XIV has a shorter recharge time and can fire a longer sustained burst, giving each bank a combat effectiveness 79.4% greater than a Type-X array.

All told, the Yamato class has an overall 94.6% increase in phaser capability over the Sovereign class. She incorporates every weapons system known to Starfleet, supports triple computer cores and a twin type-D trelinium/dilithium hybrid reactor. All protected internal systems that require access to the vessel exterior are equipped with articulated or jettisonable hull plates, so that most of the familiar structures are hidden from view, including shuttlebay doors, docking ports, lifeboats, impulse vents, and consumables resupply connectors.

Warp and Impulse Capabilities
In addition, redundant warp and impulse nacelles were designed so the Yamato can sustain heavy damage, and still maneuver. With a maximum cruise speed of Warp 9.85 and a top speed of Warp 9.94 sustainable for up to twelve hours, Yamato-Class starships are currently some of the fastest vessels in Starfleet. Also, the ship is equipped with a Quantum Slipstream Drive. The ship is allowed to use the Quantum Slipstream Drive to travel at superfast speeds only once every two weeks. These very high speed capabilities are intended to allow the ship to deploy as rapidly as possible to potential trouble spots. Additionally, the Yamato class impulse drive system is the most sophisticated model in production. The new retro-thrusters enable the Yamato to maneuver as well as any starship one quarter its size. And finally, the Yamato has an unsupported, self-serviceable range equal to the Galaxy class exploration vessels that is required to operate effectively behind enemy defensive perimeter.

Auxiliary Crafts
Yamato class Heavy Battleships are outfitted with a full-fly through hangar on deck 14 from which 90 Rogue class tactical starfighters could be launched. Mounted on the aft dorsal portion of the ship, three Defiant-class armored escorts rest in recessed hatchways. These ships are deployed to serve as “companion” ships whenever the Yamato goes on solitary special missions. Each ship has an assigned detail from the Yamato’s main crew.

Combined with the torpedo and micro-torpedo launchers and phaser array’s standard on the Yamato-class, these give the battleship unequalled sublight combat capabilities and could stand toe-to-toe against any form of attack.

There are two Yamato class Heavy Battleships assigned to the Vanguard Fleet, the USS Paladin and the USS Dauntless, designated as the flagships of the fourth and fifth task force formations, resepctively. A Yamato class Heavy Battleship is commanded by a one-star Rear Admiral.