USS Daradax
The USS Daradax is a Raven-class starship built-in 2391 following the updating of the older Aerie-class design. Designed to operate with a crew of up to twenty the ship is highly automated and can get by with as few as 5 crew members for long-term missions.
Design and Layout
Designed as a multi-role starship the USS Daradax is fitted with several scientific laboratories and multi-purpose rooms which can be retrofitted to fit the mission needs.
Deck 1 - Houses the ships Deuterium storage tanks, Intermix Monitoring room, Gravitron generators and aft sensory array along with other key ship systems that do not need continual access.
Deck 2 - This deck houses the quarters for the command staff (Captain, XO, etc) and guest quarters along with the general living spaces such as the mess hall and observation lounge. Additionally, the bridge, briefing room, transporter room, medical facilities, and access to the upper level of engineering are located here. The main airlock for the ship is situated just aft of the bridge.
Deck 3 - Houses space for the remaining crew (if assigned to the ship) in bunks of four. In addition to this access to the holodeck, shuttle bay, computer core and engineering facilities, including the impulse control rooms are all on this deck. The main labs for the ship can be found on this deck. Currently, these are set up to facilitate astrometrics, and planetary sciences along with several general lab facilities.
Deck 4 - The majority of this deck is taken up by the large cargo bay along with the antimatter tanks and injector. The ventral airlock is also located here which leads to the forward landing leg and escape hatch.
The design of the ship deviates slightly from other Ravens and Aeries in several key areas due to the ship's previous work as a rapid courier vessel for dignitaries within the Federation. The shuttle bay, usually found at the rear of Deck 2 was shifted to Deck 3 to allow for an observation deck to be installed for use by the crew and to give high-level passengers that it was carrying a room in which they could relax. In addition to this, the holodeck which was added takes up space within both decks 3 and 3 just behind the warp core and engineering.
Key Locations
Observation Lounge - Located at the stern of the vessel on Deck 2 this large room acts as the social heart of the ship. Easily able to accommodate a large portion of a full crew of 20 the space also doubles as the conference room for the ship if and when it's needed.
The room contains a large conference table with a built-in holographic display that faces a large display allowing for key information to be displayed directly in front of the crew as well as to enable direct video conferencing when needed. It is located to the left of the room when you enter and can site 10 people with ease. Beyond the table, near the stern of Daradax, there is the wall-to-wall viewport. On the left side of the viewport are a couple of large sofas at a 90° to each other, facing the viewport, between them is a medium-sized rectangular coffee table with a built-in holographic display allowing for images and games to be projected onto and above the table.
Accompanying these, at the right side of the viewport are two large reclining chairs each with a small side table beside them. This is rounded off by 2 small round coffee tables each with four comfortable chairs. To the right of the door is a small semi-circle alcove with a curved sofa in it and a table offering a bit more privacy. This table is located beside the wall-mounted replicator so the crew doesn't have to go to the mess hall continually and is near a small dartboard.
The room, like many smaller ships, is not overly-decorated. The carpet is a deep burgundy and the walls are grey. The tables all resemble stained oak but are synthetic and the chairs and sofas all have the same upholstery of a dark grey. The walls near the conference table have a series of shelves with scale replicas of the Daradax and other notable federation vessels and stations while the walls are adorned with several images of the ship. The notable items are several images of the crew and a bust of Xenophon. The first couple of images are of the crew from before the ship was mothballed, a new one for each new addition with a small plaque beside listed the crew and their time on the ship with one for the crew since 2400. The bust of Xenophon, Athenian historian and philosopher born 427 B.C.E., references the location of the River Daradax in Syria as it was only mentioned in his work.
Main Engineering - Main engineering spans Decks 1 to 3 of the USS Daradax and is very similar to that of all Raven-class vessels with little room for variation or change given the confines of the vessel. The size of engineering is due to the warp core which extends from deck 3 all the way up to deck 1 with the main open room for engineering covering the two middle Decks: 2 and 3. The crew are able to easily move between the three decks using the engineering access lift which goes from deck 3 all the way to deck 1.
Deck 1 houses the Intermix Monitoring room and provides access to the injector control terminal, the core, the matter injectors as well as the matter filter and Deuterium storage tanks. In addition to this, the ship's graviton generators and subspace amplifiers are located here.
Deck 2, the upper level of the main engineering, provides access to the engineer catwalk which looks down onto Deck 3. On this floor, there are various engineering consoles if space is needed. Additionally, the main bracers for the ware core are located on this floor as well as the upper levels of the coolant tanks.
Deck 3 is the main floor of engineering and where a crew member would find the main entrance. Here you will find the master systems display, the engineering office as well, and the warp core reaction chamber along with the lower levels of the core coolant tanks. Additionally, on this deck, you will find the port and starboard impulse access rooms and the nacelle control rooms through the main Jefferies tubes.
Ready Room/Briefing Room - Located on Deck 2 just behind the bridge the briefing room doubles as the captain's ready room, their home away from home. The room is not overly spacious given the relative size of a Raven-class vessel. There is a small unimposing corner desk located in the back left corner when you enter the room. The desk resembled the standard desk found in most star fleet vessels and was a light grey and the accompanying chair nestled behind the desk was a deep burgundy and a console with a 3D display was built into the right-hand corner of the desk. The rest of the room was furnished with a small table that folded into the wall just below a large display showing the star fleet logo on the right side to maximize space. Along the left wall is a series of four chairs that slide against the fall to form a small sofa below a series of shelves.
The walls were the standard grey of star fleet bulkheads along with the carpet on the floor. The shelves about the sofa are very sparse at the moment except for a scale model of the USS Daradax. The only other decorations in the Room are an artifice potted Risian Fern directly to the left of the door when someone enters and a picture of the USS Daradax with Starbase Bravo in the distance. The only other notable feature is the head located in the back right of the room behind a door.
History
Commissioned in 2391 the USS Daradax served as a survey ship for a couple of years as well as a rapid courier vessel for dignitaries within the Federation before being mothballed inexplicably until it was reactivated in 2400.
Missions
The USS Daradax has undertaken the following missions since its reactivation in 2400:
- Under the command of Lieutenant Commander Kirin Tarken - March 2400 - October 2400
- Mission 1 – Prepping for the (slightly) Unknown - Tasked with survey Sector Fero Psi the USS Daradax is currently being pulled out of mothballs within the drydocks at Starbase Bravo for crew handover and mission preparations. Sector Fero Psi is in need of exploration as only long-range sensors, probes, and a brief exploration by the USS Centaur had been conducted within the region. Her new commander, the half Orion, half Risian Lieutenant Kirin Tarken has just arrived to take command of the ship. She must use this time to familiarize herself with this class of ship and the limited crew who have been assigned to her.
- Mission 2 – Wings of Salvation (Sundered Wings Fleet Action) - The USS Daradax was sent as part of the Taskforce to help secure the planet and get self-sufficient again after it declared independence. Tasked with providing aid to the large capital ships the Daradax and her crew find themselves transporting large quantities of equipment and food supplies to the surface to repair the refineries and feed the population putting them directly into the line of fire. Pulled away from her duties on board the Daradax, Lt. Kirin Tarken is thrust back into the secretive workings of Starfleet Intelligence to uncover what sinister plans the Romulans have for this planet.
- Mission 3 - Pending Completion of Fleet Action - Following their deployment to the Kunhri System the USS Daradax is reassigned to Starbase 47 on the other side of the Federation. En route they are ordered to meet with the SS Heritage over Risa to pick up a passenger and transport them to DS9. This has given the crew the rare chance to have a couple of days of leave while they wait for the SS Heritage to arrive.