Lit Fleet Junkie Flagship- The technical discussions of the GFFA (Capital Ships thread Mk. II)

Isn't Richard Edlund the one who said the aim of the stop-motion shots in ESB were to make the AT-ATs look 50 feet high, even though the models were a foot and a half tall?

 

Not sure. The radio drama and the TESB Sketchbook, may be where the 50ft/15m figure first appears:

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/All_Terrain_Armored_Transport

 

Why is 120km/160km for DS1/DS2 so unpopular?

 

Partly because it contradicts certain interviews given by ILM staffers, and partly because it contradicts Curtis Saxton & James Luceno's 160/900km figures (from, I think, Inside The Worlds of the Star Wars Trilogy).

 

Thanks.

 

For more on the subject, besides Star Wars Technical Commentaries and Wookieepedia, the article written by CeiranHarmony may also be of interest:

https://www.facebook.com/notes/star...f-the-size-of-the-death-stars/641724579210986

 

CH's article contains the "appeal to authority" fallacy. "Just trust LFL on what they say they have, even though they won't show the evidence". I remember he actually tried to show this article as official information in a debate once. Pure nuttiness.

 

SKIPRAY STRONK

 

Gave a quick gander to the new Ultimate Star Wars book, and I didn't see anything too earth shattering in terms of technical stuff. Not that I was expecting too. Other than the 120 km DS1 and the "significantly larger" 160 km DS2, the only thing else I spotted off the bat was its says a CIS Providence-class comes in at 1 km in length and I didn't see any mentions of the Separatist Dreadnought.

I really hope we get a new technical book dedicated to just vehicles down the line as the movies start coming out.

 

Yup - Complete Vehicles is riddled with outdated info at the moment - and needs a replacement.

 

Finally picked up Ultimate Star Wars. Nothing incredibly ground breaking (which is fair, cause I didn't expect the book to do that), but I did find the following bits interesting from a Fleet Junkie perspective:

• Gold Squadron at the Battle of Yavin is confirmed at having just eight Y-wings, of which one survive. Given the fact we have twelve X-wings in Red Squadron, that leaves ten X-wings as part of another squadron not mentioned, but seen during the Death Star approach scene.
• The last medium transport to leave Hoth is the Bright Hope! Love that name and great to see it back into canon. It was escorted by Wedge, Hobbie, and Jason.
• The AT-AT is confirmed at being 22 meters (72 feet) tall.
• The Nebulon-B escort frigate is still a KDY design, but no mention of being used by the Empire. Described as a "Rebel Cruiser" that fulfills multiple roles within the Alliance Fleet.

The entries for the standard winged MC80 Star Cruiser and Home One do have some little tidbits worth noting. For example, the standard MC80 (ie, winged Liberty-type) is described as follows:

"The MC80 star cruisers in the Rebel Alliance fleet operate as command ships and battleships capable of direct engagement with an Imperial Star Destroyer. Each MC80 has a unique design, though common features include a tapered bow, bulbous hulls, hangar bays, heavy armor and shielding, and 10 sublight thrusters. With over 5,000 crew at full strength, it can deploy as many as 10 squadrons of starfighters into a space battle. The MC80's own powerful weapons include dozens of turbolasers and ion cannons."

Not sure if the 10 squadrons is only a reference to Home One (more on that in a moment), but it can be interpreted at the winged cruisers had larger fighter capacities that the old EU said.

The entry for Home One is separate from the winged cruiser entry, but they are still both listed as MC80 Star Cruisers. It is described as follows:

"Sometimes called the Headquarters Frigate because it houses the command and control center for Admiral Ackbar at the Battle of Endor, Home One is the most celebrated of the MC80 star cruisers in the Rebel Alliance fleet. Originally a civilian Mon Calamari vessel intended for long missions exploring deep space, Home One was retrofitted for military service and can function as a flagship, battleship, or carrier. With heavy hull plating and triple-strength shields, the ship carries extensive offensive weaponry and boasts 20 hangars for bearing other warships or starfighter squadrons."

Also described in a photo action as "The largest, most advanced capital ship in the fleet."

The biggest thing I like is that the vessels are never described as civilian liners. Having them be modified deep space exploration vessels makes it much more reasonable to convert them to capital ships, as they would designed with regular decks and floor plans and most likely already have decent armor and shields to protect the vessel during it's long missions.

--Adm. Nick

 

It is interesting that Nebulon-Bs are still considered escort frigates, but the Rebels are said to have to use them in multiple roles. Of course that leaves the question of who uses them as escort frigates?

 

It mentions that they escort transports and convoys, which the Rebel's have. Plus just because it doesn't mention the Empire using them doesn't necessarily mean they aren't, as each entry is fairly short.

Of course, given the fact that the NEU canon is choosing to introduce uniquely Imperial escorts (Raider-class corvette, Arqitens-class light cruiser, etc), it is entirely possible that the ubiquitous "Rebel Cruiser" will end up being a solely Rebel craft. If that ends up being the case, my preferred explanation for the ship being a KDY design is that it was a prototype not yet in production or only limited production when the Rebels stole it & the designs. Basically, a larger version of what happened at Incom with the X-wing. The Empire decides to pass on the design, but the Rebels end up using the plans to construct additional frigates at secret shipyards, ala Mon Cala.

--Adm. Nick

 

There are other organizations around during this time that could use these ships....the Corporate Sector Authority & Black Sun come to mind.

 

Blue Squadron: getting no respect since 1977.

 

I always found it weird that Tempest Feud explicitly stated that the CSA first started using Nebulon-Bs during the New Jedi Order. And even then it was just a handful. One might think that a government rich enough to buy 520 Victory class star destroyers might be able to afford quite a few frigates.

 

Didn't Tarkin mention Nebulon-Bs as Imperial ships?

 

Do you know where it says this in Tempest Feud?

 

Sure, it's on page 121, at the end of the CSA Starships section. It also mentions them to finally have aquired one single Imperial class Star Destroyer.

 

In all fairness, though, during the Dark Times and Rebellion Era, the Empire would never let them have access to state-of-the-art military vessels, no matter how 'loyal' they were; that they got a bunch of decommissioned VSDs probably required a great deal of diplomacy and money on their part.
The whole statement of 'by the NJO era' is odd; I can only interpret it as meaning that the CSA didn't feel the need for a standing Navy other than as a defense against pirates and raiders (and that maintenance costs of a large navy would be hardly profitable unless there was threat of war)

 

What about Green Squadron?

Then again Blue Squadron doesn't seem to be being remembered much in new canon at Endor.

It seems that pilots from the Battle of Endor are being ignored atm. That needs to be fixed and rectified immediately.

 

Ultimate Star Wars has provided a clarification that is much appreciated on my part.
It states that the TIE/LN starfighters produced on Lothal do indeed have shorter, sturdier wings, allowing them to land on their wings. whilst standard TIE/LN's cannot. Therefore, at least in regards to TIE fighters, Rebels' interpretations of various pre-existing vehicles is not simply artistic license, and the difference between the OT and Rebels TIE/LN is indeed canon. Furthermore, this means that racks are the method of takeoff and landing for most TIE Fighters, which is something I was always a fan of.

 

Doesn't the Raider currently only exist in a couple of "Legendsverse games" - X-Wing Miniatures and Star Wars Armada? Or is it in Ultimate Star Wars as well?

 

Ok, but isnt there a Standard TIE sitting on its wings in A New Hope? And also what of the TIEs in the force awakens trailers that can sit on their wing (though that too could be a newer varient)? Though Yay to Racks! You can see them in the Battlefront trailers as well.

Does it give any reason why TIE Interceptors would not be seen in the Force Awakens era?

 

The TIE is actually hovering in the ANH Special Edition shot. The TIE bomber in ROTJ is on a rack, iirc.