Bravo Fleet
Difference between pages "Aquarius Class" and "USS Pioneer"

Difference between pages "Aquarius Class" and "USS Pioneer"

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{{icons|bfc}}{{Specification
{{Starship
| image = [[File:Aquarius1.jpg]]
| name = Pioneer
| displayName = '''''Aquarius'' Class'''
| prefix = USS
| name = Aquarius
| image = [[File:Flicker_of_hope_by_jetfreak_7_damsbdw.png]]
| affiliation = [[United Federation of Planets]]
| registry = NCC-74657
| operator = [[Starfleet]]
| class = Intrepid
| type = light explorer
| affiliation = Starfleet, United Federation of Planets
| status = Active
| status = Active
| role = Patrol Vessel
| commission = 2372
| type = Escort
| decommission =  
| precedingClass =  
| destroyed =
| succeedingClass =  
| unit =  
| dateEntered = 2385
| taskforce = Task Force 47
| productionEnd =  
| taskgroup = Task Group 63
| retired =  
| squadron =  
| expectedDuration = 100 Years
| mothership =  
| expectedRefit = 5 Years
| homeport =  
| timeResupply = 1 Month
| role = Light Explorer
| crewComplement = 52
| co = [[bfms char:74021|Captain Kosev Thiren]]
| emergencyCap = 72
| xo = [[bfms char:74025|Commander Savar]]
| civilians =
| dedication =[[File:Intrepid_Patch.png]]
| populationCap =
| flightCrew =
| passengers =  
| length = 90 meters
| width = *75 meters (nacelles extended)
*60 meters (nacelles retracted)
| diameter =
| height = 20 meters
| decks = 4
| propulsionSystem = Class 6 M/AM Warp Drive
| cruiseSpeed = Warp 6
| maxSpeed = Warp 8
| emergencySpeed = Warp 8.75 (12 hours)
| energyWeapons = *6x Type-X phaser arrays
*2x Type-X pulse phaser cannons
| torpLaunchers = *2 Forward
*3 Aft
| torpPayload = *60 Photon Torpedoes
*180 Quantum Torpedoes
| shields = Multi-Layered Shielding System
| dockingfacilities =
| shuttleBays = 1
| shuttles = 1
| runabouts =
| fighters =
| aux =
| msd =
| playable = yes
}}
}}
The '''''Aquarius''-class escort''' is a small, versatile vessel designed to bring escort-type tactical capabilities into the field with greater scientific facilities and enhanced range compared to the [[Defiant Class|''Defiant''-class escort]]. First envisioned following the Dominion War, the Aquarius did not enter production until the 2380s. Notably, the class was integrated into the design of the Odyssey-class heavy explorer, which includes a dedicated docking facility for an Aquarius. Since the 2380s, these ships have proven to be an excellent complement to the Defiant, as their enhanced range and larger size allow them to complete exploratory and humanitarian missions while retaining significant armaments.  
{{quote|Curiosity is the essence of our existence.|Gene Cernan}}


==Science and Exploration==
'''USS ''Pioneer'' (NCC-74657)''' is an [[Intrepid Class|''Intrepid''-class]] light explorer of [[Fourth Fleet|Fourth Fleet's]] [[Task Force 47]]. One of the first ''Intrepid''-class ships built, ''the Pioneer'' served with distinction during the Dominion War, triumphing in several engagements during the course of the war. Following the Dominion surrender in 2375, the ''Pioneer'' was reassigned to do what it was designed to do: exploration. After being saved from mothballs in 2400 and undergoing a year long retrofit, the ''Pioneer'', now under the command of [[bfms_char:74021|Captain Kosev Thiren]], resumes its mission to seek out new life and new civilizations, and to boldly go where no one has gone before.
Though not meant for independent exploratory missions, ''Aquarius''-class starships do have onboard science labs and well-tuned sensor suites that allow them to conduct scientific missions near to their home port or mothership. With larger cargo holds than the ''Defiant'', they can also carry mission-specific equipment for surveys. Generally, these ships are better at sample and data collection than they are at independent analysis, as they rely on larger labs back home.  


As an example of a typical scientific task for this class, an ''Aquarius'' may be tasked with collecting biological samples from one planet while the mothership explores another planet in the same system. Because she is capable of landing on planetary bodies of almost any size, she is also capable of serving as a field headquarters for away teams operating on the surface, especially when conditions are hostile to transporters. She is also an ideal support vessel for a small scientific outpost, as she can carry out general utility duties and carry out microgravity experiments that must be conducted out of a star system without needing to task a larger vessel.
<!-- Please don't delete this section. It is being used for history tracking purposes.-->
==Design and Layout==
''Main Article'': [[Intrepid Class|''Intrepid''-class light explorer]]


===Diplomacy===
During the ''Pioneer''<nowiki/>'s year long retrofit to update its systems to 25th century standards and technology, it was made very clear by Captain Thiren to the work crews at Avalon Fleet Yards that the overall design and feel of the starship remain very much unchanged from the original Intrepid design language. When walking through the ''Pioneer'', you find yourself on a familiar design, albeit with updated internals and technology to bring the starship into the 25th century. Interfaces and consoles have been updated and in most cases upgraded to the newest LCARS standards, but the overall design of the vessel was left intact per the Captain's instructions.
An ''Aquarius''-class starship would be a poor choice for any diplomatic duty. Like the ''Defiant'', the ''Aquarius'' is a utilitarian vessel with few luxuries. Should a large diplomatic party need to be transported from a planetary body to the mothership, they could be accommodated in the mess hall for a short time. Still, most ambassadorial delegations would likely chafe at the close quarters and complete lack of even a single frill.  


===Engineering===
==Support Craft==
The Aquarius class was designed using components from several other classes, notably the ''Defiant'' and ''Nova'', emphasizing ease of maintenance and miniaturization. The power-use problems associated with the ''Defiant'' class have been solved by installing software limits on the ship's raw power output. The warp engine coils are borrowed from the ''Nova'', which are mounted similar variable-geometry pylons that pull them in against the hull for docking and for landing and which can optimize the position of the nacelles for warp travel. The ship’s bridge is identical to that of the standard ''Defiant''-class configuration.
====[[Personnel_Shuttles#Type_12_Shuttle|Type-12 Shuttles]]====


The ship’s hull is comprised of two flattened cylinders, which combine to give it roughly a shovel-shaped profile. The narrower two-deck upper section consists of the bridge, officers’ quarters, the science lab, the cargo hold, the brig, the aft torpedo launchers and magazine, and deuterium tankage, while the more expansive third deck contains the crew quarters, main engineering, and the forward weapons, and the narrow fourth deck is a strip between the nacelles (when retracted) that includes the computer core, antimatter storage pods, and a tiny shuttle bay, which is capable of supporting a single shuttle; deck four has the highest deck height of the ship, as it extends down into the sub-structure of the hull. The upper three decks are accessible by a lift and stairwell, while the fourth deck is accessible only by stairwells.
====[[Personnel_Shuttles#Type-11_Shuttle|Type-11 Shuttles]]====


There are several umbilical connection ports across the ship to interface with the ''Odyssey''’s docking cradle: two primary power, fuel, and consumables hardpoints as well as torpedo loading ports forward on Deck 2, two torpedo loading ports port and starboard, aft on Deck 1, and two magnetic docking latch receptacles forward on deck three. Crew access is provided by extendable docking tunnels port and starboard, forward on Deck 3, and the cargo bay doors port and starboard, aft on Deck 1 allow access to cargo receiving bays on the ''Odyssey''. When landed, the crew can enter and exit the starship through a ramp extended from the shuttle bay.
====[[Runabouts#Delta-class_runabout|''Delta''-class Runabout]]====


The engineering crew is generally an officer and five maintenance technicians, as it is never away from port or from its mothership long enough to need a full engineering team, especially given the use of automation and hardened components.
====[[Starship-Integrated_Auxiliary_Craft#Aeroshuttle|Aeroshuttle]]====


=== Tactical===
==History==
As her classification suggests, the ''Aquarius''-class is meant to escort her mothership in combat situations, providing nimble fire support and scouting capabilities that the massive ''Odyssey''-class lacks. Independently, she is often used to escort civilian vessels or patrol areas of space. A compromise between the armament philosophies of the ''Defiant'' and ''Rhode Island''-classes, the ship is equipped with two forward-firing pulse phaser cannons, as well as eight short phaser strips, four ventral and four dorsal, as well as two forward and two aft photon torpedo launchers. This provides comprehensive coverage, but the ''Aquarius'' is most effective when getting behind a target to use its phaser cannons.
The ''Intrepid''-class USS ''Pioneer'', coming back from another tour of exploration in deep space, was set to transfer to the reserves or [https://memory-gamma.fandom.com/wiki/Mothball?so=search 'Mothballs'] due to the lack of consistent upgrades and interest in the now aging platform. When the ''Pioneer'' arrived at [[Avalon Fleet Yards]], it caught the eye of Captain Kosev Thiren who, at the time, was currently without a starship and awaiting reassignment. Reading up on the ship's history and discovering that the vessel served with distinction during the Dominion War, winning every engagement it participated in, Kosev petitioned then head of Task Force 47, Fleet Captain Alexandra T'Rin Sudari-Kravchik, to have the USS ''Pioneer'' assigned as his new command. With his request being granted, the vessel spent the next year at Avalon Fleet Yards receiving a major retrofit before being placed back into active service in February of 2401.


These weapons systems have lower overall power output than either of the two classes they were borrowed from, though more significant than any runabout, making the ''Aquarius'' adept at taking down lightly-armed and shielded raiders. However, she is still easily outmatched by larger warship designs. When engaging larger starships with her mothership, a common tactic is to allow the ''Odyssey''-class to weather down their opponent’s shields to allow the ''Aquarius'' to employ torpedoes at close range.
When the ''Pioneer'' arrived at [[Farpoint Station]] to pick up the rest of their crew, Captain Thiren received a priority communication from Fourth Fleet Command about [[The Lost Fleet]] invading the [[Deneb Sector|Deneb]] sector. Holding a briefing with his senior staff, Thiren revealed a new [[Lost Fleet Priority Tasks|priority mission]] that the ''Pioneer'' had been assigned: infiltrate behind enemy lines and destroy a secret Ketracel-white facility. With the Federation News Network refusing to call attention to the invasion, instead citing that the attacks were nothing more than a [[Breen Confederacy|Breen]] border skirmish, the Fourth Fleet stood alone against the [[Dominion]], and they needed every edge they could get to turn the tide. So, the ''Pioneer'' was dispatched to destroy the facility.  


The hull is covered with a thinner layer of the same ablative armor found aboard the ''Defiant''-class, which allows it to shrug off glancing blows, an essential quality, given that its shields are not particularly strong. What the ship does have is speed and maneuverability, which are its greatest defensive assets.
Utilizing technology and intelligence gathered by another [https://memory-gamma.fandom.com/wiki/USS_Voyager famous ''Intrepid''-class starship], the ''Pioneer'' was able to avoid detection during the entire trip to Saxue. Once there, they entered the nebula, located the facility, and launched a daring plan to destroy the lab to give the Fourth Fleet the edge they needed to win this fight. With the facility destroyed, the ''Pioneer'' retreated at maximum warp to Farpoint Station, where they arrived just in time to take part in the final offensive launched by Dominion forces. Together with the Fourth Fleet, the crew of the ''Pioneer'' were successful in repelling the attack and protecting the Deneb sector.  


As a patrol cutter, this class is more useful for customs enforcement and star lane patrol missions than border defense. However, some starbases deploy them as leaders for squadrons of runabouts, which allows for firepower multiplication.
With the battle over, the ''Pioneer'' set course for Avalon Fleet Yards for crew rotation and repairs in preparation for the Frontier Day festivities. Unfortunately, repairs took longer than what was originally planned, and therefore the ''Pioneer'' couldn't make the trip to Earth for the Frontier Day celebrations, and instead stayed in dock. After the [[Borg Collective|Borg]] signal was activated, the ''Pioneer'' crew made an ultimately futile attempt to retake the ship, but was unsuccessful. During the battle, phaser fire from the Borg controlled crew hit and ruptured several plasma conduits on the Engineering deck. Also due to additional sabotaging from the chief engineer and chief operations officer, the ''Pioneer'' sustained considerable damage during the takeover.  


===Mission Configurable Space===
With the ship liberated, they remained at Avalon to continue the repairs until ''Pioneer'' could be made space-worthy again.  
The cargo hold on Deck 1 has been equipped with EPS taps and direct links to the main computer core, which allows it to be reconfigured to serve other purposes for a particular mission. For example, it could be equipped with extra computer banks and stellar cartography viewing systems for celestial observation missions. On humanitarian missions, additional sickbay beds could be deployed here as well. For larger-scale tasks, it could also be used as a space to coordinate the actions of her mothership’s shuttles and runabouts. With the use of the cargo doors, this can even be used to install external sensor modules or other such equipment. Any reconfiguration of this space would be faster than building something from scratch but would be much slower than hot-swapping a module from a runabout.


===Shipboard Life===
===Notable Crew===
While some ''Aquarius''-class starships, especially those not assigned directly to a starbase or ''Odyssey''-class explorer, have a permanent crew, their crews are much more likely to be drawn from their home command based on the particular mission profile. For instance, a science officer might be selected to command one during a survey mission, while the mothership’s first or second officer usually takes command during combat missions. During typical situations, while docked with an ''Odyssey'', a skeleton crew remains aboard to allow for quick deployment, with a designated commanding officer for each shift.
====Commanding Officers====
 
*[https://bravofleet.com/command/73580/ 2400 - Present] : [[bfms char:74021|Captain Kosev Thiren]]
Given the very temporary nature of assignments to this ship, crew members tend to identify more as being a part of their home command than the ''Aquarius'', though as crew members cycle through assignments on the support ship, some will inevitably develop an attachment to the romance of serving on a scrappy little vessel. While crew members aboard the ''Aquarius'' might never interact while among the large crew of a starbase or ''Odyssey''-class ship, the much smaller environment of the ''Aquarius'' lends itself to either making new friendships or letting minor annoyances foment rivalries.
 
These rotating crew assignments help offset the fact that the Aquarius-class has even more spartan accommodations than the ''Defiant''-class, as it’s meant to be an even lower endurance platform. While there are four single-occupancy cabins (usually for the captain, first officer, engineering officer, and medical officer), other officers are in cramped double-berth cabins, and enlisted personnel share one four-person cabin and four bunk rooms with ten to twelve bunks each. The standard crew complement is 40, but the ship can operate for limited periods with just a bridge crew, or with hot-bunking can accommodate up to 72 in terms of life support and escape pod capacity.
 
The only dedicated recreational space is the mess hall. Each cabin and bunk room have a table and chairs and a replicator, but the crew tends to congregate together for meals, cards, drinks, and games. When not full of cargo and equipment, the cargo hold and shuttle bay can be secondary recreational spaces, especially for athletic activities.
 
The ''Aquarius'' class has an oversized sickbay for its size, with four standard biobeds and a combination exam-surgical bed. This increases the ship’s utility for search-and-rescue operations, which are common assignments for vessels of this class assigned as patrol cutters. It also obviates the need to return to the home command for minor to moderate medical problems. The ship is equipped with an EMH and typically embarks a medical officer and an enlisted medic. The transporter room aboard the Aquarius class is similar in design to those found aboard the ''Nova''-class, with a standard seven-place platform.
 
== History==
Even during the Dominion War, the minimal exploratory capabilities of the ''Defiant'' were seen as a major weakness even with its excellent suite of armament. Starfleet began a project to create a new class of escort that would solve this gap between tactical and scientific performance without increasing the ship's size significantly.
 
The ''Aquarius'' class was designed along with the ''Odyssey''-class explorer as an integrated escort, a feature that was added to the design following the successful introduction of the ''Prometheus'' class in the late 2370s. The ''Aquarius'' would both be able to provide combat support against small, fast targets, but also to land on planetary bodies when a runabout or shuttle wasn’t enough for a particular mission.
 
While integrated support craft such as captain’s yachts, aeroshuttles, and waveriders were not a new idea in Starfleet, this would be the first time that an entire starship would be carried aboard another. The ''Aquarius'' was launched at the same time as the ''Odyssey'', and her trials were uneventful. For several years, the only two members of this class produced were assigned to the ''Odyssey'' and ''Verity'', which were launched significantly earlier than planned to participate in the Romulan Evacuation.
 
With the other ''Odysseys'' several years away, Starfleet decided to continue producing ''Aquarius''-class ships to serve different purposes, as they had carved out a niche for themselves that was distinct from other small starships: they were far less maintenance-intensive than the ''Defiant'' and crew-intensive than the ''Diligent'' or ''Nova''. This made them suitable for the sorts of minor missions that had long been carried out by the ancient ''Oberth''-class starships still in service like courier runs, search and rescue, and specimen collection, which would be wasteful for a more capable ship to perform but too complex for a runabout to do. As such, units of this class began to be built and assigned to starbases as support ships.
 
By the early 2390s, the class has been given a generous production run and is becoming increasingly common in Starfleet service in lightly populated and low-threat areas.
 
==The ''Aquarius'' class in Play ==
 
*The ''Aquarius'' and ''Odyssey'' have the same relationship as the ''Defiant'' and Deep Space Nine do: this light escort is meant to defend the mothership and take small parts of the crew on away missions. It’s not as powerful as the Defiant, but it’s quick and maneuverable. It’s also more useful than the Defiant for exploratory missions because of its mission configurable bay.
*Accommodations on the ''Aquarius'' are comparable to the ''Defiant'', with bunk rooms for the bulk of the crew, a handful of double cabins, and just a few single cabins for the senior-most officers.
* As a starbase support ship, this class would be used for all sorts of utility purposes and station defense, especially on bases that are too small to justify a larger support ship or which don’t have a large complement of runabouts.
* As an independent vessel, this ship would still have a home base that it would come back to every month or travel between starbases. This would be a good platform for a specialized science team, a customs enforcement or search and rescue team, or even an elite engineering detachment.
*While docked to an ''Odyssey'', there are direct EPS and computer connections to the mothership. While the ''Aquarius'' certainly couldn’t power the larger ship completely, a clever ''Odyssey'' captain or chief engineer might find a use for that little extra boost of power from her warp core. Her aft torpedo launchers are also free to fire while docked, which could surprise an unsuspecting enemy.


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[[Category:Federation Starship Classes (2375–2385)]]

Revision as of 00:17, 4 August 2023

Flicker of hope by jetfreak 7 damsbdw.png
USS Pioneer
General Information
Registry NCC-74657
Class & Type Intrepid-class light explorer
Affiliation Starfleet, United Federation of Planets
Status Active
Commissioned 2372
Assignment
Task Force Task Force 47
Task Group Task Group 63
Role Light Explorer
Key Personnel
Commanding Officer Captain Kosev Thiren
Executive Officer Commander Savar
Intrepid Patch.png
Template:Starship
"Curiosity is the essence of our existence."
    —Gene Cernan


USS Pioneer (NCC-74657) is an Intrepid-class light explorer of Fourth Fleet's Task Force 47. One of the first Intrepid-class ships built, the Pioneer served with distinction during the Dominion War, triumphing in several engagements during the course of the war. Following the Dominion surrender in 2375, the Pioneer was reassigned to do what it was designed to do: exploration. After being saved from mothballs in 2400 and undergoing a year long retrofit, the Pioneer, now under the command of Captain Kosev Thiren, resumes its mission to seek out new life and new civilizations, and to boldly go where no one has gone before.

Design and Layout

Main Article: Intrepid-class light explorer

During the Pioneer's year long retrofit to update its systems to 25th century standards and technology, it was made very clear by Captain Thiren to the work crews at Avalon Fleet Yards that the overall design and feel of the starship remain very much unchanged from the original Intrepid design language. When walking through the Pioneer, you find yourself on a familiar design, albeit with updated internals and technology to bring the starship into the 25th century. Interfaces and consoles have been updated and in most cases upgraded to the newest LCARS standards, but the overall design of the vessel was left intact per the Captain's instructions.

Support Craft

Type-12 Shuttles

Type-11 Shuttles

Delta-class Runabout

Aeroshuttle

History

The Intrepid-class USS Pioneer, coming back from another tour of exploration in deep space, was set to transfer to the reserves or 'Mothballs' due to the lack of consistent upgrades and interest in the now aging platform. When the Pioneer arrived at Avalon Fleet Yards, it caught the eye of Captain Kosev Thiren who, at the time, was currently without a starship and awaiting reassignment. Reading up on the ship's history and discovering that the vessel served with distinction during the Dominion War, winning every engagement it participated in, Kosev petitioned then head of Task Force 47, Fleet Captain Alexandra T'Rin Sudari-Kravchik, to have the USS Pioneer assigned as his new command. With his request being granted, the vessel spent the next year at Avalon Fleet Yards receiving a major retrofit before being placed back into active service in February of 2401.

When the Pioneer arrived at Farpoint Station to pick up the rest of their crew, Captain Thiren received a priority communication from Fourth Fleet Command about The Lost Fleet invading the Deneb sector. Holding a briefing with his senior staff, Thiren revealed a new priority mission that the Pioneer had been assigned: infiltrate behind enemy lines and destroy a secret Ketracel-white facility. With the Federation News Network refusing to call attention to the invasion, instead citing that the attacks were nothing more than a Breen border skirmish, the Fourth Fleet stood alone against the Dominion, and they needed every edge they could get to turn the tide. So, the Pioneer was dispatched to destroy the facility.

Utilizing technology and intelligence gathered by another famous Intrepid-class starship, the Pioneer was able to avoid detection during the entire trip to Saxue. Once there, they entered the nebula, located the facility, and launched a daring plan to destroy the lab to give the Fourth Fleet the edge they needed to win this fight. With the facility destroyed, the Pioneer retreated at maximum warp to Farpoint Station, where they arrived just in time to take part in the final offensive launched by Dominion forces. Together with the Fourth Fleet, the crew of the Pioneer were successful in repelling the attack and protecting the Deneb sector.

With the battle over, the Pioneer set course for Avalon Fleet Yards for crew rotation and repairs in preparation for the Frontier Day festivities. Unfortunately, repairs took longer than what was originally planned, and therefore the Pioneer couldn't make the trip to Earth for the Frontier Day celebrations, and instead stayed in dock. After the Borg signal was activated, the Pioneer crew made an ultimately futile attempt to retake the ship, but was unsuccessful. During the battle, phaser fire from the Borg controlled crew hit and ruptured several plasma conduits on the Engineering deck. Also due to additional sabotaging from the chief engineer and chief operations officer, the Pioneer sustained considerable damage during the takeover.

With the ship liberated, they remained at Avalon to continue the repairs until Pioneer could be made space-worthy again.

Notable Crew

Commanding Officers

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