Battlecruiser

The battlecruiser is a type of terran capital ship employed in the Koprulu Sector. Battlecruisers were employed during the Guild Wars when space engagements were fought by capital ships and medium-sized gunships. The development of anti-capital ship starfighters, such as Wraiths, did not spell the end of battlecruisers. The large warships adapted to carry strike craft which augmented and complemented the combat value of both. Battlecruisers continue to be an integral part of terran space forces as general purpose warships and command ships during extended campaigns.

Battlecruisers stem as far back as the early days of the Terran Confederacy in the 24th century and continue to be used in the 26th. While there are many classes of battlecruisers, all are armed with lasers and protected by neosteel armor. Gravity accelerators are also found on all battlecruisers.

Battlecruisers use force fields for protection, but because they consume vast amounts of energy, these are only used when a battlecruiser is vulnerable, such as leaving warp space or entering an atmosphere. Otherwise the battlecruiser relies on its heavy armor for protection.

Battlecruisers are frequently referred to as "battleships".

Classes
Many battlecruiser classes exist. Known classes include:

Leviathan-class
The Leviathan-class battlecruiser is an uncommon battlecruiser class and although still operating at the dawn of the 26th century, had largely been supplanted by the Behemoth-class variant. The Leviathan-class is capable of traveling through warp space and features ports for transport craft, smaller craft linking into the ship via hydraulics. These ports are located perilously close to the bridge however, making a Leviathan vulnerable to any enemy boarding action.

Behemoth-class
The Behemoth-class battlecruiser was the most common battlecruiser class and represented the "standard" battlecruiser variant during the Great War. The Behemoth variant is greatly advanced from its Leviathan-class predecessor, featuring the ability to operate within planetary atmospheres and even land on planets. It also features a total of four docking bays (as opposed to hydraulic entry points) which are equipped with force fields, allowing easy deployment of fighters without fear of decompression and greater resilience to enemy boarding actions. Like the Leviathan, it is capable of traveling through warp space, even capable of making jumps within a planet's atmosphere.

Behemoth-class armor consists of the standard neosteel, along with energy shields, while armament consists of multiple burst laser batteries (at least 8 around the ship's 'hammerhead') and a complement of nuclear warheads. Despite the heavy arsenal, Behemoth armament is slightly constricted in that its laser batteries cannot fire at targets to the side and are vulnerable to interceptors and its warheads are reserved for orbital bombardment rather than space combat. A saving grace for the Behemoth-class exists in the form of the Yamato cannon. One such use of these weapons is that of carrying out a scorched earth policy. However, the cannon's primary weakness is its huge energy requirements and while the installation of a colossus reactor allows for increased energy storage, it is not a long term solution. The Terran Dominion's Behemoths required access to physics labs to "power up their weapon systems". Should a fleet commander lose access to these accelerators, an entire Behemoth-class fleet can be crippled.

Fighters are an integral component to battlecruiser deployment and the Behemoth-class conforms to this, capable of deploying Wraiths and scoutships to engage the enemy. It is also akin to a terran carrier, capable of housing hundreds of soldiers and hardware and maintaining dropships and shuttles for rapid deployment. Searchlights are also featured.

Despite its shortcomings, the Behemoth-class has proven to be an enduring design, keeping up to date with periodic upgrades while its hammerhead design had provided the basis for future classes. Although more advanced classes of battlecruiser have been developed, the Behemoth-class continue to remain in service.

Hercules-class
The Hercules-class battlecruiser came into service after the. It is largely based on the Behemoth-class, albeit equipped with additional laser batteries for a greater volume of fire. Plasma torpedoes are an optional armament, capable of saturating an area with a lethal deluge of fire, ideal for breaking up oncoming attack waves or ravaging a defensive position. As with the Yamato cannon, a sufficient reserve of energy was needed to unleash a plasma torpedo bombardment.

Minotaur-class
The Minotaur-class battlecruiser was in service to the Terran Dominion by 2502. Minotaurs are largely based on the Behemoth-class, and have additional laser batteries for a greater volume of fire. In 2503, these warships were suddenly recalled to Korhal IV. They were ordered to abandon their current assignments, disembark passengers and cargo on nearby habitable worlds, and proceed immediately to the Dominion capital to be refitted for interatmospheric combat.

The Minotaur-class may be upgraded by a variety of tactical systems. Equipped with a Type-V Yamato cannon and energy shields, Minotaurs can also be equipped with missile pods for use against aerial targets and a defensive matrix.

The interior of Minotaur battlecruisers are known to feature personal quarters, a brig, a mess hall and a bridge.

Gorgon-class
The Gorgon- class (or at least the Bucephalus, a flagship) has dimensions of about 560 meters length by 82.4 meters wide, and a crew numbering approximately 8000 people. It is larger than the Behemoth-class. Its features include a bridge. Its statistics are as follows:


 * Power: Class 10 Fusion
 * Armaments:
 * 16 J23Ship-to-Ship Missile Launchers
 * 25 Crew-Served Batteries
 * 145 Point Defense Systems
 * Air Wing: Variable
 * Ground Ordnance: Variable
 * Shield: Active for Warp and Orbital Insertion
 * Range: Variable; Standard Equip: Koprulu Sector
 * In-System Speed: 1 AU per Cycle

Other Classes
The Starcruiser is an advanced battlecruiser prototype sold by Crazy Bob's Bazaar.

By 2504, the Loki was undergoing testing at Valhalla. A prototype, it was deemed a "super-battlecruiser."

StarCraft

 * For StarCraft gameplay information see: Battlecruiser (StarCraft).
 * For StarCraft in-game quotations see: StarCraft Battlecruiser Quotations.

StarCraft: Ghost


In StarCraft: Ghost, the battlecruiser acted as a support unit for Nova. Through targeting, the player could call down a Yamato Cannon strike that dealt damage to all objects in an area.

StarCraft II

 * For StarCraft II gameplay information see: Battlecruiser (StarCraft II).
 * For StarCraft II in-game quotations see: StarCraft II Battlecruiser Quotations.

Known Battlecruisers

 * Main article: List of battlecruisers

Leviathan-class

 * Merrimack (converted prison ship)
 * Thunder Child

Behemoth-class

 * Bismarck
 * Gray Tiger
 * Hephaestus
 * Huey Long
 * Hyperion
 * Iron Fist
 * Jackson V
 * Napoleon
 * Ragnorak
 * Theodore G. Bilbo

Norad-series

 * Norad II
 * Norad III

Minotaur-class

 * Emperor's Fury
 * Helios
 * Victory

Gorgon-class

 * Bucephalus
 * White Star

Other or unknown classes

 * ''Aeneas
 * Aleksander (UED flagship)
 * Amphitirite
 * Antigone
 * Eos
 * Herakles
 * Hurricane
 * Iron Justice
 * Jackson's Revenge
 * The Kimera
 * Kimeran Juggernaut
 * Loki (Super-class)
 * Meleager
 * Metis
 * Palatine
 * Patroclues
 * Tahoe

Known Battlecruiser Commanders

 * Admiral Gerard DuGalle
 * General Edmund Duke
 * General Arcturus Mengsk
 * General Horace Warfield
 * Commodore Georg Darabont
 * Captain Bolshev
 * Captain Buzan
 * Captain Alexander Davidoff
 * Captain Robert Mason
 * Captain Roger Merriman
 * Captain Jim Raynor
 * Captain Rourke
 * Captain Elias Tudbury
 * Captain Everett Vaughan
 * Colonel Jackson Hauler
 * Commander Hale
 * Commander Haley
 * Major Tom Hawkins
 * Major Spaulding
 * Lieutenant Matt Horner
 * El Kang the Quixotic