Starfire Heavy Frigate (HFG)

Meta Notes

Hello! This is my first ever combat ship design that I created for my current game which has lasted well over 100 years. By no means is anything I do here optimal or sane, but I hope you have a good read regardless.

Try not to have a heart attack while looking at the maintenance stats as I have that mechanic disabled for this game :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes:

Design History

Competition

With the founding of the Terran Confederacy’s Department of Astro-Warfare, the time had come for a spaceship that would be the spearhead of the Confederacy’s military expansion into the void. The Confederate Navy needed a ship they designated a Heavy Frigate: a ship that would be the smallest multi-role combat vessel. The design needed to meet the following qualifications:

  • Smaller than 25000 Tons
  • Capable of flying further than 28 billion km without refuel
  • Be independant enough to operate comfortably alone or in small fleets

Like many topics of debate among Terran officials, the details of such a vessel were viciously debated with many proposed designs being discussed, modified, thrown out, and tested. Out of all of these designs, one name kept turning heads and impressing committees: Starfire.

The original Starfire design promised to deliver an independent, small, and capable combat platform. The power of the Starfire came from its engines. Big, expensive, but extremely capable. The Starfire could fly very fast and very far, allowing the frigate to control which engagements it takes and chase down slower foes with ease.

Setbacks

In the months leading up to the Starfire’s adoption by the Confederate Navy, the debate coalesced and intensified around the specs of the Starfire. The designation of ā€œFrigateā€ carried loaded assumptions. It was argued fervently that frigates had no place being as independent of bases as the Starfire was, being able to cross over 32 billion kilometers of void before requiring resupply. The vessels would need to carry a large amount of fuel, and the projections on the Terran economy (researched, examined, and presented courtesy of the Oniksteed Foundation) would require highly aggressive, coordinated and continuous extraction of Sorium to provide fuel for the dozens of Starfires planned for production.

Ultimately, the strain to the economy was deemed too dangerous. The original engine was downsized as a sort of ā€œhalf-wayā€ deal between the interested parties, although in practice this exacerbated the already high fuel upkeep for the class while reducing its range and speed. Additionally, the ship would carry missile launchers to improve its versatility at the cost of making each Starfire’s logistical footprint that much worse. Thus, the first Starfire design was supplanted by the newly designated Starfire II.

Over the following centuries, the Starfire design would be iterated upon - and not always for the better. Attempts to cut costs, save on ship size, and attempts by certain actors to flaunt their influence on the military meant the Starfire design would be continually modified beyond its original specification, significantly reducing its capabilities at certain iterations. The (recent) advent of more streamlined, centralized, and efficient design channels incorporating the latest in AI Construct technology has mitigated this effect considerably.

Design Specs

Starfire II

Starfire II class Heavy Frigate 13,779 tons 341 Crew 2,259.5 BP TCS 276 TH 585 EM 690
4245 km/s Armour 4-51 Shields 23-418 HTK 96 Sensors 9/6/0/0 DCR 21-15 PPV 67.6
Maint Life 0.44 Years MSP 602 AFR 1519% IFR 21.1% 1YR 1,359 5YR 20,392 Max Repair 219.4 MSP
Troop Capacity 100 tons Magazine 210 / 0
Commander Control Rating 1 BRG
Intended Deployment Time: 24 months Morale Check Required

Oniksteed Foundation Military Ion Drive EP292.50 (4) Power 1170.0 Fuel Use 71.81% Signature 146.25 Exp 13%
Fuel Capacity 2,000,000 Litres Range 36.4 billion km (99 days at full power)
Oniksteed Foundation Gamma S23 / R418 Shields (1) Recharge 418 seconds (0.1 per second)

Single Oniksteed Foundation 25.0cm C2 Soft X-ray Laser Turret (4x1) Range 35,200km TS 10000 km/s Power 16-2 ROF 40
Onk. Found. R150/C2 High Power Microwave (1) Range 35,200km TS 10,000 km/s Power 6-2 ROF 15
Oniksteed Foundation Enhanced Direct Fire Control R35-TS2200 (70%) (1) Range 35,200 km TS 2,200 km/s ECCM-1
Oniksteed Foundation Magnetic Mirror Fusion Reactor R5 (3) Total Power Output 16.1 Exp 5%

Larmon-Bosma Advanced Defence Systems Size 18 Missile Launcher (1) Missile Size: 18 ROF 65
Oniksteed Foundation Enhanced Missile Fire Control FC144-R140 (7000 T) (1) Range 144.5m km RES 140 ECCM-1 EH-50
Oniksteed Foundation Enhanced Anti-Missile Fire Control FC22-R1 (50%) (1) Range 22.1m km RES 1 ECCM-1 EH-50
Marker ASM MK I (18) Speed 5,230 km/s Range 766.5m km WH 3 Size 7.19 TH: 523 / 1,046 / 2,092
Marker HVY ASM MK I (8) Speed 4,588 km/s Range 996.5m km WH 4.8 Size 9.94 TH: 459 / 918 / 1,835

Oniksteed Foundation Anti-Large Active Search Sensor AS10-R10 (70%) (1) GPS 3000 Range 28.6m km RES 200 ECCM-1 EH-30
Oniksteed Foundation Anti-Missile Active Search Sensor AS10-R10 (70%) (1) GPS 150 Range 10.5m km RES 10 ECCM-1 EH-30
Oniksteed Foundation Anti-Small Active Search Sensor AS10-R10 (70%) (1) GPS 1500 Range 22.7m km RES 100 ECCM-1 EH-30
Oniksteed Foundation EM Sensor EM1.3-6.5 (70%) (1) Sensitivity 6.5 Detect 1000: 20.2m km
Oniksteed Foundation Thermal Sensor TH1.5-9.0 (70%) (1) Sensitivity 9 Detect 1000: 23.7m km

Electronic Warfare Jammers: Sensor 3 Fire Control 2

Missile to hit values are target speeds in km/s for 100% / 50% / 25% chance to hit

This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a Warship for auto-assignment purposes

Starfire III

Starfire III class Heavy Frigate 9,992 tons 281 Crew 3,096.9 BP TCS 200 TH 492 EM 690
10249 km/s Armour 5-41 Shields 23-418 HTK 53 Sensors 9/6/0/0 DCR 21-21 PPV 19.84
Maint Life 0.19 Years MSP 693 AFR 799% IFR 11.1% 1YR 3,697 5YR 55,449 Max Repair 1,024 MSP
Commander Control Rating 1 BRG
Intended Deployment Time: 24 months CDE 50% Morale Check Required

Oniksteed Foundation Military Heavy Magneto-plasma Drive 2000Kt EP1024.00 (2) Power 2048 Fuel Use 64.76% Signature 245.76 Exp 16%
Fuel Capacity 1,000,000 Litres Range 27.8 billion km (31 days at full power)
Oniksteed Foundation Gamma S23 / R418 Shields (1) Recharge 418 seconds (0.1 per second)

Single TameThing Inc. 12cm C2 Soft X-ray Laser Turret (4x1) Range 240,000km TS 12000 km/s Power 4-2 ROF 10
Onk. Found. CIWS-160 (1x4) Range 1000 km TS 16,000 km/s ROF 5
Oniksteed Foundation Heavy Long-Range Direct Fire Control R256-TS8000 (50%) (2) Range 256,000 km TS 8,000 km/s ECCM-1
Oniksteed Foundation Magnetic Mirror Fusion Reactor R5 (2) Total Power Output 10.8 Exp 5%

Oniksteed Foundation Anti-Large Active Search Sensor AS10-R10 (70%) (1) GPS 3000 Range 28.6m km RES 200 ECCM-1 EH-30
Oniksteed Foundation Anti-Missile Active Search Sensor AS10-R10 (70%) (1) GPS 150 Range 10.5m km RES 10 ECCM-1 EH-30
Oniksteed Foundation Anti-Small Active Search Sensor AS10-R10 (70%) (1) GPS 1500 Range 22.7m km RES 100 ECCM-1 EH-30
Oniksteed Foundation EM Sensor EM1.3-6.5 (70%) (1) Sensitivity 6.5 Detect 1000: 20.2m km
Oniksteed Foundation Thermal Sensor TH1.5-9.0 (70%) (1) Sensitivity 9 Detect 1000: 23.7m km

Electronic Warfare Jammers: Sensor 3 Fire Control 2 Missile 2

This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a Warship for auto-assignment purposes

Starfire IV

Starfire IV class Heavy Frigate 16,242 tons 555 Crew 16,242.8 BP TCS 325 TH 492 EM 690
6304 km/s Armour 5-57 Shields 23-418 HTK 104 Sensors 9/6/0/0 DCR 21-12 PPV 84.8
Maint Life 0.07 Years MSP 1,125 AFR 2110% IFR 29.3% 1YR 15,153 5YR 227,292 Max Repair 3,840 MSP
Commander Control Rating 1 BRG
Intended Deployment Time: 24 months CDE 50% Morale Check Required

Oniksteed Foundation Military Heavy Magneto-plasma Drive 2000Kt EP1024.00 (2) Power 2048 Fuel Use 64.76% Signature 245.76 Exp 16%
Fuel Capacity 1,000,000 Litres Range 17.1 billion km (31 days at full power)
Oniksteed Foundation Gamma S23 / R418 Shields (1) Recharge 418 seconds (0.1 per second)

Particle Lance-64 (1) Range 600,000km TS 10,000 km/s Power 200-16 ROF 65
Single TameThing Inc. 12cm C2 Soft X-ray Laser Turret (5x1) Range 240,000km TS 12000 km/s Power 4-2 ROF 10
Unit G21 Particle Beam-4 (2) Range 600,000km TS 10,000 km/s Power 10-12 ROF 5
Oniksteed Foundation CIWS-250 (2x6) Range 1000 km TS 25,000 km/s ROF 5
Heavy PD Cannon R400-100 (5x3) Range 40,000km TS 10,000 km/s Power 0-0 ROF 5
M + E Heavy Direct Fire Control R600-TS25000 (20%) (2) Range 600,000 km TS 25,000 km/s ECCM-2
PD Fire Control R105-TS25000 (20%) (1) Range 105,000 km TS 25,000 km/s ECCM-2
Plasma-core Anti-matter Power Plant R370 (5) Total Power Output 1,852.1 Exp 5%

Oniksteed Foundation Anti-Large Active Search Sensor AS10-R10 (70%) (1) GPS 3000 Range 28.6m km RES 200 ECCM-1 EH-30
Oniksteed Foundation Anti-Small Active Search Sensor AS10-R10 (70%) (1) GPS 1500 Range 22.7m km RES 100 ECCM-1 EH-30
Dedicated Anti-Missile Search Sensor AS66-R100 (1) GPS 54 Range 17.6m km MCR 1.6m km RES 1 ECCM-2 EH-80
Oniksteed Foundation EM Sensor EM1.3-6.5 (70%) (1) Sensitivity 6.5 Detect 1000: 20.2m km
Oniksteed Foundation Thermal Sensor TH1.5-9.0 (70%) (1) Sensitivity 9 Detect 1000: 23.7m km

Electronic Warfare Jammers: Sensor 3 Fire Control 2 Missile 2

This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a Warship for auto-assignment purposes

Starfire V

Starfire V class Heavy Frigate 13,984 tons 388 Crew 7,486.4 BP TCS 280 TH 512 EM 1,740
11441 km/s Armour 5-51 Shields 58-395 HTK 79 Sensors 9/6/0/0 DCR 21-15 PPV 66.81
Maint Life 0.08 Years MSP 834 AFR 1564% IFR 21.7% 1YR 10,126 5YR 151,885 Max Repair 1,800 MSP
Commander Control Rating 1 BRG
Intended Deployment Time: 24 months CDE 50% Morale Check Required

Fish and Chips Military Heavy Solid Antimatter Drive EP1600.00 (2) Power 3200 Fuel Use 21.84% Signature 256.00 Exp 12%
Fuel Capacity 1,500,000 Litres Range 88.4 billion km (89 days at full power)
Oniksteed Foundation Delta S29 / R395 Shields (2) Recharge 395 seconds (0.1 per second)

Mars Works Energy Projector 45.0cm C8 Far X-Ray Laser (1) Range 600,000km TS 11,441 km/s Power 53-8 ROF 35
Single Balter Kinetics 20cm C5 Far X-Ray Laser Turret (4x1) Range 600,000km TS 10000 km/s Power 10-5 ROF 10
Oniksteed Foundation CIWS-250 (2x6) Range 1000 km TS 25,000 km/s ROF 5
Oniksteed Foundation 10cm Railgun V10/C1.0/S2 (1x2) Range 10,000km TS 11,441 km/s Power 1.5-1 ROF 10
Heavy PD Cannon MK II (3x5) Range 50,000km TS 24000 km/s Power 0-0 ROF 5
M + E Heavy Direct Fire Control R600-TS25000 (20%) (1) Range 600,000 km TS 25,000 km/s ECCM-2
PD Fire Control R105-TS25000 (20%) (1) Range 105,000 km TS 25,000 km/s ECCM-2
Tamething Defense Works Solid-core Anti-matter Power Plant R36 (1) Total Power Output 36.2 Exp 5%

Oniksteed Foundation Anti-Large Active Search Sensor AS10-R10 (70%) (1) GPS 3000 Range 28.6m km RES 200 ECCM-1 EH-30
Oniksteed Foundation Anti-Small Active Search Sensor AS10-R10 (70%) (1) GPS 1500 Range 22.7m km RES 100 ECCM-1 EH-30
Dedicated Anti-Missile Search Sensor AS66-R100 (1) GPS 54 Range 17.6m km MCR 1.6m km RES 1 ECCM-2 EH-80
Oniksteed Foundation EM Sensor EM1.3-6.5 (70%) (1) Sensitivity 6.5 Detect 1000: 20.2m km
Oniksteed Foundation Thermal Sensor TH1.5-9.0 (70%) (1) Sensitivity 9 Detect 1000: 23.7m km

Electronic Warfare Jammers: Sensor 4 Fire Control 4 Missile 5

This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a Warship for auto-assignment purposes

Starfire VI

Starfire VI class Heavy Frigate 15,675 tons 517 Crew 11,003.4 BP TCS 313 TH 8,930 EM 12,000
28485 km/s Armour 5-55 Shields 400-600 HTK 71 Sensors 9/6/0/0 DCR 23-14 PPV 56.88
Maint Life 0.87 Years MSP 9,316 AFR 655% IFR 9.1% 1YR 10,701 5YR 160,509 Max Repair 4,465 MSP
Commander Control Rating 1 BRG
Intended Deployment Time: 24 months CDE 68% Morale Check Required

Starfire VI Gas AM Drive EP8930.00 (1) Power 8930 Fuel Use 43.95% Signature 8930 Exp 23%
Fuel Capacity 2,000,000 Litres Range 52.3 billion km (21 days at full power)
New Republic Works Xi S400 / R600 Shields (1) Recharge 600 seconds (0.7 per second)

Marks Works Energy Projector MK III 45.0cm C10 Extreme X-ray Laser (1) Range 1,000,000km TS 28,485 km/s Power 53-10 ROF 30
Kasai-Mashita 35.0cm C8 Far X-Ray Laser (1) Range 1,000,000km TS 28,485 km/s Power 32-8 ROF 20
25.0cm C10 Far X-Ray Laser (2) Range 1,000,000km TS 28,485 km/s Power 16-10 ROF 10
Oniksteed Foundation CIWS-250 (1x6) Range 1000 km TS 25,000 km/s ROF 5
Heavy PD Cannon MK II (2x5) Range 50,000km TS 24000 km/s Power 0-0 ROF 5
Kumbar & Bora Direct Fire Control R1000-TS40000 (1) Range 1,000,000 km TS 40,000 km/s ECCM-5
Starfire VI Gas-core Anti-matter Power Plant R45 (1) Total Power Output 45.3 Exp 5%

Oniksteed Foundation Anti-Large Active Search Sensor AS10-R10 (70%) (1) GPS 3000 Range 28.6m km RES 200 ECCM-1 EH-30
Oniksteed Foundation Anti-Small Active Search Sensor AS10-R10 (70%) (1) GPS 1500 Range 22.7m km RES 100 ECCM-1 EH-30
Dedicated Anti-Missile Search Sensor AS66-R100 (1) GPS 54 Range 17.6m km MCR 1.6m km RES 1 ECCM-2 EH-80
Oniksteed Foundation EM Sensor EM1.3-6.5 (70%) (1) Sensitivity 6.5 Detect 1000: 20.2m km
Oniksteed Foundation Thermal Sensor TH1.5-9.0 (70%) (1) Sensitivity 9 Detect 1000: 23.7m km

Electronic Warfare Jammers: Sensor 6 Fire Control 6 Missile 6

This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a Warship for auto-assignment purposes

Starfire VII (Current, Modern Iteration)

Starfire VII class Heavy Frigate 17,394 tons 567 Crew 16,473.9 BP TCS 348 TH 11,040 EM 33,540
31736 km/s Armour 8-59 Shields 1118-1118 HTK 77 Sensors 0/0/0/0 DCR 23-13 PPV 77.38
Maint Life 0.56 Years MSP 9,775 AFR 807% IFR 11.2% 1YR 17,458 5YR 261,872 Max Repair 5,520 MSP
Commander Control Rating 1 BRG
Intended Deployment Time: 24 months CDE 75% Morale Check Required

Starfire VII Drive Complex (1) Power 11040 Fuel Use 41.43% Signature 11040 Exp 23%
Fuel Capacity 2,000,000 Litres Range 50 billion km (18 days at full power)
Tau S1118 / R1118 Shields (1) Recharge 1118 seconds (1 per second)

Unit G21 Particle Lance-48 (1) Range 800,000km TS 31,736 km/s Power 150-12 ROF 65
30cm C10 Extreme X-ray Laser (2) Range 1,000,000km TS 31,736 km/s Power 24-10 ROF 15
Rusconi Inc Twin 30cm C10 Extreme X-ray Laser Turret (1x2) Range 1,000,000km TS 25000 km/s Power 48-20 ROF 15
Heavy PD Cannon MK II (2x5) Range 50,000km TS 24000 km/s Power 0-0 ROF 5
Kumbar & Bora Direct Fire Control R1000-TS40000 (1) Range 1,000,000 km TS 40,000 km/s ECCM-5
Starfire VI Gas-core Anti-matter Power Plant R45 (2) Total Power Output 90.5 Exp 5%

Unit Zeta 889 Active Search Sensor AS364-R400 (1) GPS 96000 Range 364.3m km RES 400 ECCM-6
Unit Zeta 889 Active Search Sensor AS229-R100 (1) GPS 24000 Range 229.5m km RES 100 ECCM-6
Dedicated Anti-Missile Search Sensor AS66-R100 (1) GPS 54 Range 17.6m km MCR 1.6m km RES 1 ECCM-2 EH-80

Electronic Warfare Jammers: Sensor 6 Fire Control 6 Missile 6

This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
This design is classed as a Warship for auto-assignment purposes

3 Likes

How’s your fuel situation now? I tried using frontline ships with 120-180% power, and fuel crisis took decades to resolve. Great way to get faster ships, though.

Have you considered using CIC and other similar facilities?

1 Like

Pretty nice ship, I generally play with pretty slow research so I don’t have a refference for the tech level but it seems to be a pretty good ship.

A bit chonky for a frigate in my opinion but what are frigates anyway? :stuck_out_tongue:

Two points that you should improve though:

  • The maintenance life of the ship is really short, with very high amount of MSP. 0.5 years of maintenance life is nothing for a ship with 2 years of deployment time, you should likely replace some MSP storage with engineering spaces.
  • You don’t seem to have put your gauss cannons on turrets, and as a result their TS is the same as your other weapons. If you put them on turrets you can bring their TS up to match your BFC max TS (x 4 mult) and increase their effectiveness by a lot.

You might also want to split your engine into two to four. It’s less efficient in term of fuel but that way there is more redundency.

1 Like

Your latest design Starfire VII is literally faster than my missiles.

2 Likes

I got pretty lucky with Sorium overall and have invested alot into mining it as much as quickly as possible, so it isn’t a huge concern for me. Honestly I haven’t had much reason to fly my ships either since this game overall was fairly peaceful as I only found my first true NPR 100+ years into the game (not counting the Spoilers that I’ve encountered: but even I’m very defense oriented so most of my ships simply sit in orbit waiting for something to shoot)

I’m still a big enough noob that I’m not sure what CICs or other extra things do and I seem to forget to add them to my other ship designs as well :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes: . Something I should consider on my Starfire VIII’s (maybe make a dedicated command variant? That sounds fun.)

1 Like

I appreciate the feedback!

I actually have maintenance cycles disabled for this campaign so it’s not something I have to worry about except for combat damage although this has still caused me problems when my Starfire engines were destroyed. You’re pretty much right on the money with suggesting I split my engines up. Sacrificing range for redundancy may be smarter since I’ve pivoted to using this ship in a defensive / quick response role anyhow; especially against the (spoiler!) Swarm I’ve had to rely heavily on my larger ship designs to win consistently.

As for the gauss cannons…I’m embarassed to say that I realized this as an issue previously when dealing with (spoiler!) Precursor NPRs and watching my point defense be nearly useless. I actually do have an updated 17% size turret available but it seems I forgot to install it on the latest iteration…I may need to contact my local Spacemaster to resolve this issue :sweat_smile:

Yeah, the speeds do get a little crazy at this tech level (and it’s only going to get better from here!)

I’m not the most knowledgeable about Commander bonuses on ships, so I’d just link the new wiki entry.

But, basically, an officer in CIC gives combat bonuses (to hit chance?), aux bridge is for ship’s XO who’s second in command and takes over if main bridge/CO is dead and provides crew training buff. Main Engineering, I’m not really sure how exactly it influences engineering, because I do not think it’s written anywhere in detail, but I think it is supposed to decrease accident chances (equipment failures) and improve damage control? Not sure.

Flag Bridge is for at least one ship per fleet, but it’s been a while since I set up a command structure, so I won’t be of much help there.

What was the coolest battle you’ve fought so far with these ships?

1 Like

My most interesting battle with them was a Raider ambush in the Proxima Centauri system. This was awhile ago, but from what I remember and noted down they had snuck up on a battlegroup of around 8-12 Starfire III’s and IV’s (albeit I don’t remember the exact models, I really need to take better notes :sweat_smile: ).

Because my ships hadn’t had their shields raised, I lost two frigates in the opening salvo followed by my ships chasing down the raiders. It was close as another three frigates were rendered useless thanks to the loss of their engines. Ultimately, victory was mine but it certainly highlighted the need for me to develop more early warning vessels and keep a closer eye on my systems. I vastly undervalued the need for proper intelligence which is why I took so many losses in the first place!

1 Like

It’s been a while, but there’s a Formation feature in Aurora where you can set up screening ships for your main task force by setting up stations relative to a fleet, defined by degrees of angle and distance, can be useful to protect from being ambushed.

Can you comment on your ship design weapon systems evolution? How their practical application affected your design decisions?

2 Likes

Formations isn’t something I messed around with alot, mostly because I didn’t understand it but it sounds like it would help me out alot.

As for my weapons, I mostly focused on lasers and intermittently (every 30 in game years or so) I would try to incorporate missiles into my fleet although I couldn’t ever settle on a design I liked. Mostly because I couldn’t decide how I wanted to integrate missiles into my fleet (single, larger battlecruisers vs squadrons of missile destroyers? larger, fewer, and deadlier torpedoes or swarms of medium sized missiles? what about the supply chain?)

Ultimately I’ve pivoted primarily to sticking with lasers and recently started researching and catching up on particle beams since I prefer to keep the enemy at a distance.

1 Like

Missiles are the ultimate ā€œkeep them at a distanceā€ weapon!

The issue with missiles is they’re expensive and logistically challenging. I recommend using them as the backup for really difficult flights. Use lasers (or other beam weapon of choice) for most situations and missiles for rare but tough fights.

E.g. your freighters could tow a small, high endurance missile pod (all canister launchers and a MFC) for years without encountering the enemy, but that one time you do, you can blow one or two ships to pieces.

If you include a tractor module in your battleship designs, when the threat warrants it you can do the same: tow a disposable missile pod to a fight, shoot, drop it, and run into beam range. Ala the Honor Harrington book series

3 Likes