What happened to the Majestic Class Heavy Cruiser?

The Majestic Class Heavy Cruiser was one of my two favorite ships from the New Class designs, the other being the Republic Class Star Destroyer (I know it was not a new class design but it was introduced at the same time). Of all the New Class designs the Majestic looked to the most promise, increase its fighter and consumable capasity and it could take on just about any ship AND star fighter out there. Less than half a ISDs' length yet it could engage one in direct combat, and given how small it is, it is more economical to build Majestics than the larger frames available.

Yet the first time we see them is the last time, I have read most of the Bantam books following the BFC I did not see one Majestic class mentioned at any time. What happened to design? Did I miss something, it looked like a solid ship, was there an in story reason or did none of the following authors use it? Did anyone else like the ship? And if so aside from the suggestions made above how would you improve/modify it?

 

Out of Universe Explanation: The New Class was forgotten by the majority of authors. Other than one minor mention in Spectre of the Past, they never appear in a non-sourcebook again.

In Universe Explanation: The New Class is still around, mixed into the various fleets. Newer designs have taken it's place as the primary warships of the GADF.

Ultimately, if a warship isn't a Star Destroyer or a Mon Cal cruiser, they tend to get forgotten.

--Adm. Nick

 

I like to think that the horrible drawings of the New Class ships and the Republic-class Star Destroyer from Cracken's Threat Dossier also helped ensure that those ships were barely used in the EU.

 

The Majestic-class cruiser is undoubtedly a most unattractive of the vessels shown in CTD, other than the Endurance-class fleet carrier.

Thanks to the second edition of Starships of the Galaxy, the Nebula/Defender-class Star Destroyer has been retconned into a much more attractive design. And since the Star Destroyer shared a common hull with the Endurance, we can also retcon away the ugly depiction from CTD as well.

@Sinre

The Yald is a PERFECT candidate for a Majestic heavy cruiser. Of course, I think people also tend to assume that she is a Majestic because Commodore Brand was on it, and we all remember him being on the Indomitable.

--Adm. Nick

 

The only mention I can find of Majestic-class ships in the NR navy after the BFC trilogy is the appearance of the Indomitable in the first Agents of Chaos book... by James Luceno, inclusive author exemplar.

Those were fairly hideous. In defense of WEG, they were in their dire financial straits at the time - doesn't make them any less ugly, though.

 

Well, I theorized before that (parts of) the NewClass-program was actually a huge failure, where political demands/ideologie trumped military/strategic sense.

Aside from that the only time the NC-ships feature prominently are during the NR's low during the BFC (11,000 actual worlds). So, few worlds - few ships.

We also know, that after BFC until HOT a dramatic process of decentralisation within the NR took place, so many of the actually built NewClass-vessels might have ended up within local or planetary fleets (Nebula-class SDs with the Diamala), while the central Navy "returned" to the better and proven designs of MC-cruisers and Star Destroyers, as well as adding battle cruisers and Star Defenders.

 

Alas, 'tis true.

This is one of the primary reasons I'd love to have a video game (or several) set during the latter years of the New Republic/the Vong War. Even if the name doesn't scream "Star Wars" enough for the books' purposes, a game can at least have some in the background much more easily.

I always wonder where we'd be if we'd never had the X-Wing games... probably still a galaxy where the only major ship class was a Star Destroyer.

Alas, 'tis also true.

In the New Class's defence, though, some of the fanart that exists of them is very attractive -- and still (mostly) faithful to the designs.

[image=http://www.darkjedibrotherhood.com/wiki/images/4/4d/Majestic-class-Heavy-Cruiser.jpg]

Nothing ugly about that in my view.

 

Canon-wise, I treat CTD's horrible New Class drawings as in-universe rejected designs.

 

That rendering of the Majestic is far superior to the stuff in CTD. If the "wings" were reduced even further, the design might be fairly attractive.

--Adm. Nick

 

The Republic-class is another that really benefits from a slight redesign, and looks pretty great in various 3D models that have been done of it.

[image=http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a172/Huntaer/sfsf/RepublicStarDestroyer.jpg]

 

Ah, I just wait until Warb_Null comes up with them as models for Empire At War.

 

Are you sure it isn't? Remember, it's a "GFFA Victory-class". Who designed the Republic-class SD again?
Even if it's not a Republic-class, it's probably the next generation of its type.

 

I am still bitter that the first GA warship named for Admiral Ackbar WASN'T a Mon Calamarian design...

I would be happy if we saw a Mon Cal heavy carrier or Mediator-class named for Ackbar. Or a Scythe-class battle cruiser serving in Stazi's forces.

--Adm. Nick

 

I won't be happy until we see multiple ships named for Ackbar, including a Viscount. And a couple more ships named for heroes. Who could resist seeing the Mon Cal heavy carrier (give me a class name, dangit!) Adar Tallon, or the Viscount-class Jan Dodonna. Or Republic-class cruiser Zev Senesca. Mediator Biggs Darklighter. The possibilities are endless.

Nothing could match the awesome potential of seeing some new Star Defender variants operating during the Sith-Imperial War: the Han Solo, Wedge Antilles, Tycho Celchu, and Lando Calrissian. There's all kinds of potential for callbacks there; have a new SoroSuub battleship: the Nien Nunb-class. I demand that my inner fanboy be sated.

 

You'll be even less pleased when at the end of FOTJ the GFFA reveals their newest Mon Cal cruiser, the Natasi Daala.

 

I might actually burn the book if that happens.

That is like the people of Alderaan naming a starship the Tarkin.

--Adm. Nick

 

There's precedent with other vessels, so why not?

 

My personal fantasy is that the surviving Mon Calamari of the Legacy era design and build a new ship- the Ackbar-class Star Cruiser (or even better, Star Dreadnought/Defender), which will then go on to blow up many, many Pellaeon-class Star Destroyers as part of Admiral Stazi's fleet. Although at the moment they don't have a planet, but if there's a time jump and they have a few years to build more shipyards, well... yeah, not going to happen, but I'd still love to see a Mon Cal class named after Ackbar someday. Just as long as it doesn't happen during the novels, it'd probably end up being really bitter or stupid or ironic, or useless, since the novels haven't really progressed past the point of "Star Destroyer approaching!" There have been a few attempts here and there over the years, but especially since LotF and nwo FotJ, its been pretty simplistic, to say the least.

And ooh, that is very nice fanart. At least we finally got a new Republic/Nebula design in SotG 2007, but otherwise the New Class is still not likely ever to be brought up again. So many lost opportunities.

 

I think they had a garbage-hauler with that name, but I could be wrong.

 

Now don't be mean. That's unkind on the garbage.

 

It shouldn't be hauling garbage. It should be hauled away AS garbage.