Rhode Island class (Vanguard)

==Overview==

Though not the largest class of starship built by Starfleet, the Dauntless-class was designed to be the core vessel leading large formations in combat missions. It was also designed to outmatch such vessels as the destroyed Romulan Warbird Scimitar. It combined the features of a mobile command center, a Battleship and a Fleet Carrier. It had more interior space than a, was more powerful than a  , was as fast in warp and as electronically smart as an  , and was as agile and heavily armoured as a. The Dauntless-class superstructure was based on the catamaran design and space frame of the, but enlarged to more than twice the size. Service aboard an Dauntless-class starship was considered an extremely prestigious assignment and they attracted some of Starfleet's finest officers. The Dauntless-class has an unsupported, self-serviceable range equal to the exploration vessels that is required to operate effectively behind enemy lines.

==Onboard Tactical Systems==

Ships of this class incorporate the latest in Starfleet weaponry and defensive technology.

===Offensive Capabilities===

The ship’s battleship features include 16 torpedo launchers, 8 forward, 6 aft and 2 on the dorsal weapons-sensors superstructure. Only the two main forward torpedo launchers can fire quantum torpedoes.

The ship is also armed with 12 Type-XII forward triple-mounted pulse phaser cannons, 16 Type-XII rotary triple-mounted pulse phaser cannon turrets that are located along the length of the saucer section of the ship, at 8 dorsal and 8 ventral, and 18 Type-XII phaser arrays at key locations all throughout the ship’s hull, at 10 dorsal and 8 ventral,

==Defensive systems==

The shield system of the Dauntless-class is equal to that of the larger Fleet Carrier-Battleship hybrid and is therefore among the most powerful found on any Starfleet ship. It is outfitted with regenerative, multiphasic, and metaphasic shield systems, and secondary shields. The design was modified just prior to installation in order to have regenerative features and to increase effectiveness against both high energy tractor beams and phased anti-muon (polaron) particles, measures clearly aimed at the Borg and Dominion respectively.

Under normal operation, the shield modulation frequencies are controlled by the ship's computer system, which continually evaluates incoming weapons fire and automatically re-modulates the shields to provide the most effective possible defense. It is thought that this system can also prevent beam-through by Borg transporter technology.

The Dauntless-class boasts of a hull that is made of overlapping and regenerative ablative hull armor that allows it to take many direct hits from enemy fire even with minimal shields. In addition, the class has been equipped with two separate armor generators that can deploy a thick layer made of ablative armor plating along the contours of the entire ship when activated. This can be done through the numerous armor plating emitters that are installed at different points on the ship's hulls. This coating covers the ship's phaser mounts, but torpedo launchers are not affected by it.

This triple redundancy feature of shields and armor on the Dauntless-class allows it to effectively counter Borg and Dominion firepower. However, due to the huge energy needed to deploy both the shields and the generated armor coating at the same time, the Dauntless can only use these simultaneously for a maximum of thirty (30) minutes. As a result, the shields and the generated armor coating are used alternately when the ship is in battle.

==Carrier Features==

This class of ship’s fighter carrier features include two full fly-thru flight decks running the length of the ship’s 500 meter-long primary hull, covering three decks each, with bay doors at fore and aft. These allowed large numbers of launch and landing operations to be handled simultaneously.

===Tactical Fighter Wing===

Combined, the flight decks could accommodate three wings or 108 tactical fighters, excluding the personal fighters of the 3 wing commanders and 1 group captain. Flight Deck 1 was the primary port for entrance and egress for two of the three fighter wings. Flight Deck 2 on Deck 17 was the primary port for entrance and egress for the third fighter wing, the auxiliary crafts, and two Valiant class Tactical Corvettes. On the port and starboard sides of both flight decks are facilities for the construction, repair and maintenance of fighters and auxiliary craft.

===Auxiliary Craft Complement===

The Dauntless also features a complement of 24 auxiliary crafts of varying types: 4 Runabouts, 4 Delta Flyer III class Runabouts, 8 Type-11 shuttlecrafts, and 8 Type-9 shuttlecrafts, with support facilities for all.

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

==Command and Senior Staff==

Owing to their being task force flagships, Dauntless-class starships have Commanding Officers that have the rank of Rear Admiral, while Executive Officers have the rank of Commodore, and Second Officers, and Fighter Group Command Officers have the rank of Captain.

==Flag Facilities / Command Center ==

Another special feature of the Dauntless-class is the full flag facilities with which it was equipped. Dauntless-class starships serve as the flagships of the fleets of Starfleet. A primary flag facility onboard is the Flag Bridge, which is found at the middle portion of the Main Bridge.

Primary operational control of the task force, the ship and the fighter wings of the ship was provided by the Command Center, located at the top of the primary hull. The Command Center is ovoid in shape from aft to forward and is divided into three parts: the Navigation Bridge, the Flight Control Bridge, and the Flag Bridge.

===Navigation Bridge===

The Navigation Bridge is primarily where the ship can be commanded. It directly supervised all primary mission operations and coordinated all departmental activities. It is located at the front most portion of the Command Center

* At the Navigation Bridge’s aft section was a large bank of control consoles that were programmable for a multitude of functions and data readout screens. Center of that area was the master systems display. All relevant ship information (such as damage, power distribution, etc.) could be displayed on this cutaway image of the vessel. Above this whole section is the forward handrail of the Flag Bridge, separating the latter from the Navigation Bridge.

* The central area of the navigation bridge provided seating and information displays for the ship’s Commanding Officer and two command level officers. The command chair was slightly raised from the rest of the bridge officers to the height of the surrounding level. At the end of the armrests of the command chair were control panels with miniaturized status displays which could be used to override the basic operation of the starship. The two officer seats were also equipped with retractable and fully programmable consoles for a variety of uses.

* Directly aft of this area, integrated in the handrail encircling the aft section of the central command area are the three consoles of the tactical and security station.

* Directly fore of the central command area was the conn officer, who faced the main viewer. To the port side of the Conn Officer, also facing the main view screen, was the operation officer's console, which was identical in size and design to the helm station.

* At the very front of the bridge chamber was a large view screen. When the screen was not active, a standard bulkhead was present. On the floor between the view screen and the helm control station was a holo communicator.

* Aft and to the port-side of the command area was an elevated platform on which the three consoles of the engineering station were located. This had a smaller cutaway diagram of the vessel, which show all engineering-relevant data and showed warp fields and engine output.

* Aft and to the starboard of the command area was another elevated platform on which the three consoles of the science station were located.

* To the aft of both science and engineering stations were two identical command consoles that could be operated to perform more bridge duties. Aft of these are the passageways that lead to the Flag Bridge and the Flight Control Bridge beyond.

===Flag Bridge===

The Flag Bridge is the nerve center of the task force led by the Dauntless-class. It is where coordination between task force elements and planning for task force movements are done, whether in squadron formation, in mission group formation or in strike group formation. It is located in the middle of the Command Center, raised 1.5 meters from the Navigation Bridge and Flight Control Bridge.

* At the aft wall of the flag bridge was the master systems display of the whole Task Force.

* The central area of the flag bridge provided space for the fleet operations table, a large rectangular console which can display above it a three-dimensional image of any region in space where ships of the task force are located. It also serves as a holo-communicator.

* Directly fore of the fleet operations table is the seat of the ship’s flag officer. The flag chair can rotate to the Navigation Bridge and the flag officer can command the ship from there.

* Directly aft of the fleet operations table is the seat of the fleet operations officer who is responsible for monitoring and working the fleet operations table.

* To the portside of the central area are two fleet control consoles, one intelligence console, and one mission ops console. Fleet control consoles convey the admiral’s orders to the ships of the task force and receive messages intended for the admiral.

* To the starboard of the central are another two fleet control consoles, one long-range sensor console, and one mission ops console.

===Flight Control Bridge===

The Flight Control Bridge is where the ship’s complement of fighters and auxiliary crafts are directed. It directly coordinates the movement of the ship’s fighters and support crafts in mission. It is located aft of the Command Center and is of the same level as the Navigation Bridge. The Flight Control Bridge is supported by at least two Flight Deck Control Centers located at the flight decks.

* At the aft wall of the Flight Control Bridge was the flight deck and hangar bay systems displays. On either side are control consoles for hangar bay operations.

* The central area of the Flight Control Bridge provide seating and a console for the ship’s Fighter Group Command Officer, the flight ops command chair.

* Directly fore of the central area were the four mission control consoles facing the flight ops viewer, at two to portside and two to starboard.

* Aft and to the portside are two of four flight deck control consoles.

* Aft and to the starboard are the other two flight deck control consoles.

* At the front of the flight control bridge and behind the master systems display of the Flag Bridge was a holographic wall screen which could display fighter and support craft locations and movements in a stellar region in three dimension.

The three bridges of the Command Center are connected to each other by passageways on the port and starboard side to allow for easy access between the three parts of the Center. On the port-side of the Command Center are three ready rooms: one for the flag officer, one for the ship's Executive Officer and one for the Fighter Group Command Officer. On the starboard side of the Command Center is the briefing lounge which features a long table and seating for the senior staff of the three bridges.

==Propulsion Systems==

The propulsion system onboard ships of this class are state-of-the-art. The class boasts of the best navigational sensors, and among the highest rated top speed of any Starfleet vessel.

===Impulse Drive===

The impulse drive system of the Dauntless-class is the most sophisticated model in production. Its oversized impulse engines are equipped with impulse thrusters that provide superb sub-light maneuvering speed, especially considering her size. With this design, along with the new retro-thrusters, and uprated structural integrity fields give the ship maneuverability equal to the size of a vessel.

===Warp Drive===

The Dauntless’s matter-antimatter reaction assembly warp core is among the most powerful in Starfleet. The warp core spanned 18 decks just behind the center line of the primary hull. Its warp drive featured a quadri-cyclic input manifold and was designed to operate for up to 5 years before refueling. The ship's warp engines are based on a new concept in warp drive design, one which eliminates subspace distortion effects inherent to standard warp drives. The reaction chamber was equipped with a compositor, which allowed recrystallization of dilithium. The deuterium tanks were above the core, while antimatter storage pods surrounded the base of the core.

A secondary class 9 warp core is located aft of the primary warp core and spans 7 decks and brought online when the primary warp core is offline. This allows the ship to travel at a cruising speed of warp 6 while the primary warp core is offline.

With a normal cruise speed of Warp 8.5, a maximum cruise speed of Warp 9.85 and a top speed of Warp 9.985 sustainable for up to twelve (12) hours, Dauntless-class starships are among of the fastest vessels in Starfleet. Equipped with the enhanced warp drive of the Khronnians, the Dauntless can now easily attain and indefinitely sustain a maximum cruise speed of warp 9.985.

===Quantum Slipstream Drive===

The Dauntless-class is one of a few ship classes that was built large enough to be equipped with a Quantum Slipstream Drive in addition to its primary warp drive and secondary warp drive. However, it could only operate for a short period at a time before shutting down for safety reasons, though in those precious seconds, the starship could cross an entire sector of space. After a two week recharging and re-calibration period, they could be activated again for another "sprint". This very high speed capability is intended to allow the Suzerain-class and its task force complement to deploy as rapidly as possible to potential trouble spots in distant locations in a much shorter period of time.

==Computer System==

The Dauntless-class starship is equipped with some of the most advanced computer systems of the time. The ship carries four independent computer cores. These multiple cores provided redundancy in case one of the cores was damaged or destroyed. The main computer processor was capable of simultaneous access to 47 million data channels, of transluminal processing at 575 trillion calculations per nanosecond, and having operational temperature margins from 10° to 1790° Kelvin. The bio-neural circuitry sped up the computer's data functions and improved overall performance.

===Redundant Bio-neural / Isolinear Circuitry===

The ship’s size allow it to be fitted with both bio-neural gel pack and isolinear computer interfaces and circuitry. The bio-neural circuitry enables high-speed information transfers and the newest sensor equipment with efficiency levels that exceed that of the Galaxy-class by 100%. The isolinear circuitry provides for redundancy, allowing the ship’s computer systems to continue operating in the event that the bio-neural circuitry are affected by viruses and infectious agents encountered in deep space.

===Communications Systems===

Its advanced communications array allows the embarked flag officer to relay battle-critical information instantaneously.

===Emergency Holographic Complement===

This class is equipped with holo-emitters on every deck to allow emergency holographic programs a higher level of access and free movement around the ship. The ship’s computer systems can simultaneously bring online 3 Emergency Command Holograms (ECH), 4 Emergency Security and Tactical Holograms (ESTH), 6 Emergency Engineering Holograms (EEH), 3 Emergency Medical Hologram s (EMH), and 3 Emergency Science Hologram s (ESH).

==Science Features==

Also designed to go for extensive periods on deep space exploratory duties, the Dauntless-class is equipped with cutting-edge scientific equipment.

It also serves as a testbed for experimental science technology not yet available in most other classes. State of the art computers give it unprecedented storage capacity, access speed, and rigorous conditioning. Combined with a wide array of sensors on the dorsal superstructure and covering a large amount of the exposed surface, makes the Dauntless-class a premier ship of the line for Starfleet’s scientific endeavors.

===Astrometrics & Stellar Cartography===

The Suzerain also boasts of a large Astrometrics and Stellar Cartography Department, which is not only dedicated to the science and practice of charting space, but could also be used for long-range communications purposes or even, as a workplace for easy access to sensor information. It features a holotank which allows a person to gain a 360° panoramic view of an area using holographic technology. There were a series of control panels to manipulate the screen. The area below the screen and in front of the control panels could be used as a stage during presentations. Astrometrics also include 8 additional workstations on the side walls.

===Science Labs===

There are 20 science labs on the Dauntless-class. 12 are non-specific labs are easily modified for various scientific endeavors including Bio/Chem, and Physics tests and/or experiments. 8 are specific labs on Planetary Development, Geologic Studies, Languages/Archaeology, XT (extra-terrestrial) analysis, Eugenics, Biologics Laboratories, Atmospheric Physics experiments, and High-Energy Physics. There are also five smaller labs which can be configured for astrophysics/astrometrics and stellar cartography studies. Science Department crews rotate often among these laboratories. The Chief Science Officer's office is attached to this bank of labs.

==Medical Facilities==

Dauntless-class starships have 3 sickbays. Main Sickbay is the primary care facility. It is located on deck 36 and is equipped with 8 standard and 2 advanced biobeds, a surgical suite, the physical rehabilitation bay, the morgue and a small lab used for routine analysis of patients. The Fighter Operations Sickbay is an equally sized facility located on deck 21 and provides medical care primarily for the ship’s fighter crew complement. The Command Sickbay is a smaller facility slightly larger than an Intrepid-class sickbay, with 5 standard and two advanced biobeds located on Deck 3. It was also home to the Chief Medical Officer's office, and four medlabs of varying sizes. Command Sickbay itself was considered to be general purpose, and was often the location of regular crew physicals, appointments, and various medical emergencies – it could effectively handle majority of situations that a crew would face. Also pursuant to new Medical Protocols, all Primary Medical Facilities are equipped with holo-emitters for the usage of the Emergency Medical Hologram System.

==Crew Facilities==

The Dauntless-class features standard crew quarters and recreation facilities.

===Accommodations===

Because of its combat oriented features, crew berthing facilities on this ship class were comparable to that of an. Quarters in general were smaller than those of other large Federation vessels, such as the. With emphasis towards the tactical and fighter carrier systems being the priority in the vessel designers' minds, ensigns, non-commissioned officers and crewmen had to share their quarters with at least one other crewmate during normal times of operation. Each shared cabin for crewmen had four stacked bunks, one replicator port, a small living area, and a twin bathroom. Each shared cabin for ensigns and non-commissioned officers had two small bedrooms, one replicator port, a living area, and a twin bathroom. Officers of the rank lieutenant junior grade and lieutenant are given their own quarters, which included a living area with work station, a small bedroom and a bathroom. Senior officers’ quarters are larger than junior officers’ quarters and lined the edge of the saucer section and usually have windows. Meanwhile, the quarters of the flag officer, the executive officer and the fighter operations command officer are equivalent to the captain’s quarters onboard an starship.

===Mess Lounges===

There are 6 large mess halls and 4 smaller mess lounges onboard that are equipped with full bar and kitchen facilities manned by mess officers, with a private captain's dining room just behind the mess lounge located at the forward section of deck 2, all served by windows that offered a spectacular view of space outside. Eating accommodations are provided by a slew of tables and chairs. The larger mess halls can occupy 100 diners at a time, while the mess lounges can occupy 32 diners at a time. Each mess area has a very relaxed and congenial air about it. At the head of the hall were open slots that served as dispensers for the replicators. The mass-use replicators are able to produce other food and non-alcoholic beverages with an extensive recipe listing from over two hundred worlds for the crew to enjoy in this relaxed social setting. The most notable accessory to the lounge is a modest-sized bar area, offering a wide selection of synthetic and alcoholic. To conserve replicator rations, the mess halls’ menu was supplemented with food stocks of vegetables cooked by the mess officers from the airponics bay and hydroponics bay, along with food obtained from trading and scouting missions. In addition, the mess lounges can double as large meeting areas that could be used to conduct crew briefings and mission profiles. A tall screen panel located on one of the walls can be used as a visual aid to display graphics.

===Holodecks & Other Facilities===

8 standard holodeck facilities and 16 holosuites are scattered all over the ship. The facilities of 4 gyms on the Suzerain are not overly spacious, but are well outfitted. The facilities include variable weight machines, isometric machines, and calisthenic machines and a sparring ring configured for Anbo-Jytsu but easily modified and/or expanded for other practices. All equipment is equipped with the ability to variate gravity for those species that are physically biased toward higher or lower than standard gravity.

==Companion Ships==

Docked underneath the dorsal superstructure of the ship is one Tactical Frigate, the USS Lionheart, in a recessed hatchway, just underneath the ship’s sensor primary array. Sharing space with the third fighter wing and the auxiliary crafts on Flight Deck 2 are two Valiant class Tactical Corvettes, the USS Machete and the USS Dagger. Together with the Merian class Fast Frigate USS Resilient, these ships are deployed as permanent escort complement and companion ships of the Dauntless-class. Each of the four companion ships has an assigned detail from the ship’s main crew.

==Task Force Flagship Role==

Dauntless-class starships are designed to serve as flagships of the largest task force formations of Starfleet. As such, she is accompanied by fifty-four (54) combat oriented starships during task force formations. Dauntless-class starships are also among three ship class in Starfleet with a permanently attached escort complement of one (1) Heavy Cruiser, one (1)  Assault Cruiser, one (1)  Light Cruiser, two (2)  Medium Cruisers, two (2)  Tactical Frigates, and two (2)  Fast Frigates.

==Vanguard Command==

Only 9 vessels of the Dauntless-class have been built. All are often deployed as secondary platforms of the three major fleets of Starfleet to "hot spots" were Starfleet Command is expecting a fight.

There are three Dauntless-class Command Battleships assigned to the Vanguard Fleet, and are designated as flagships of the second, third and fourth task force formations, respectively.

The USS Dauntless, the prototype of her class, is the flagship of Task Force Dauntless of the Vanguard Fleet , while her sister ship, the USS Paladin , is the flagship of Task Force Paladin. Another sister ship, the USS Belligerent, is the flagship of Task Force Belligerent.