Trillions For Defense…

Federation Starfleet keeps its ships busy. Patrolling colonies, scouting threats, supporting police, survey, and contact, training with System Defense Forces, disaster relief, – the missions are endless. Throwing training and routine maintenance and it’s no wonder the tax burden is so enormous.

I expect the Federation’s biggest warships, the Concordant Battlestars, are held in strategic reserve. Assigned guard duty. They’re docked at bases, or in deep space ghost orbits, cruising at low TsIa in critical systems. They only leave the home systems for war or gunship diplomacy. Times when the Federation needs to get nasty and darken somebody else’s sky. With collapsium clad dragons.

There are sound strategic reasons why Battlestars stay close to home. The Home Systems are at the center of the Federation areas of influence. The ships can be sent anywhere in Federation Outworlds at need. But the big planets like having big guards. Budget committees like having heavy metal guarding their legislative offices. Starforce pays close attention to public demands.

Many of Starforce's best and brightest avoid capital ship duty, preferring the dash of destroyer duty and the important cruiser missions. But it’s a waste to reserve such expensive assets strictly as a fleet in being. Starships are meant for the stars. Warships can’t prevent or deter wars if potential enemies can ignore them. The outworlds also need to see where their taxes went.

Starfleet strategist worry. That’s their job. On the edges of known space, the Starkaad slept fitfully, and Korrillians ravaged. Someday, perhaps soon, there would be violent conflict. Those Star nations outnumbered the UFP, even as the Federation outnumbered their historic GPR and Azzie foes. Elsewhere, Bugs buzzed about. The Ranan and Hissss’t are perpetual threats. Along with The Rulanthu and other, even nastier potential and real foes. Those Star nations need constant reminders: Don’t Annoy the Union.

In the 26 teens, Starfleet began a new program, sending out a few Capital Ships to show the flag. Detach Battlestar and Battleship divisions from defensive duty, set them to cruising about the known worlds and beyond.Remind the colonies what protects them. Remind threats to stay polite. To go boldly where no Battlestar had flown before.

In 2017 Federation services organized an Operational Group – what we’d call a task force. It would be built around a Battlestar Administrative Pair (call it a Division), their escorts and scout couriers. The capital ships selected were battlestars, fleet cruisers, and destroyers. Selected ships were new, but built on the old, versatile ‘Expeditionary’ pattern. Each carries ground combat troops, assault boats, and fighters. Embarked on the capital ships were selected Space Marines or Planetary units forming a marine Operation Group subdivision. Assault craft to transport the marines into battle. And 300 Starfighters to screen and defend the big ships and troops. Make a hell-a-nice Guard day flyover.

Battlestar Division 555 were given this outreach patrol mission. Social Justice Warrior and Responsible (1)  finished acceptance trials, the latest out of Solar shipyards. They had a veteran cadre, still integrating and training up new crews.

The heavy metal was accompanied by the veteran Cruiser Division 1212, Fleet Cruisers Heimdall and Loki. Built as flagships, heavy arms and armor, fast and tough. Originally identical, they’d been customized, outfitted and manned for different, complementary duties.

Heimdall is the eye and the shield of the OG. Less armor than a battleship, but faster, harder to hit. An enhanced sensor package, equal to a Survey Battlecruiser. Heimdall’s captain liked getting in close and hitting her targets with megabolts and starbombers. Heimdall carried armored cavalry and bombers; more heavy metal.

Loki is a sneak and sniper. Working with Heimdall, Loki held back, used passive sensors and forwarded target info to hit her foes. Loki carried a Special Forces battalion, stealthships, and more classified covert action assets.

Operational Force Summers were the escorts. Twelve destroyers from the 1524 Destroyer Administrative Team. Should be all eighteen, but Starfleet never has enough destroyers. The rest of the DAT were on detached service or refitting and repairing. Summers was the Destroyer Leader, her sistership Katniss was on detached service. Eleven line Destroyers followed Summers. Faith, Swan, Leia, Padme, Ray, Natasha, Alice, Mulan, Wanda, Sonya, and Heidi. Glorious Names of ancient lineage in the High Republic and Union space navies. Earlier ships with these names had fought and won dozens of desperate battles.

Forty-eight Scout couriers were attached. The fleet train was Heavy Repair Ship Shade, three massive Replenishment ships and four Fleet tug/tow boats. A half-dozen corvettes escorted the fatties.

The Op Force carried an entire Starfighter force. And a division of Space Marines and Commandos. Attachments from other services: IPA, Survey, Contact and Diplomatic Service, BRINT, Security, Health, Ecology, and PSI Corp.

January 2, 2618, they left lunar orbit, passed Starbase Spectre in a review, and thence into the big dark.

(1) They almost named Responsible as‘Herald of Free Enterprise’. A homage to the UFP’s sometime allies the Mercantile League. But some spoilsport looked up that name other before she was launched. Not a happy history. Might embarrass or offend Augusta.

D is for Disruptor

Firearms are the medium tech weapons in Space Opera. Lasers blasters and fusion guns are higher tech. Disruptors, particularly energy disruptors are the really fancy stuff. Blasters blast things up. Disruptors screw things up, make them fall apart, disintegrate them.

Disruptors work on either sonic or magic energy principles. Sonic disruptors can be built to effect protein or metal. Higher tech (more expensive) energy versions can effect both. Stunners work on much the same principles. A combined disruptor and stunner weapon costs about one fourth more than a single function disruptor. The inspiration from Star Trek is obvious.

B is for Blaster

"Hokey Religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side."

In FGU's Space Opera game, blasters are ancient weapons. Apparently originally invented by the most ancient of Forerunner civilizations, the Blaster has been used for at least 37,000 years since the Korelians (one "L") found them in an archeological site.

Blasters are the standard small arm of most Tech Level 8 civilizations. They fire magical space opera energy bolts, and are related to the Novaguns that are the standard Spacecraft weapons. Compared to more primitive Lasers, blasters are less effected by smoke, dust, and other atmospheric interference, and have measurably more penetrating power. Compared to higher tech Energy Disruptors they have longer range, abet with less penetrating power.

Blasters have a certain amount of recoil, making rocket guns and lasers preferred for microgravity combat. Blaster also require more exotic materials than laser weapons. Still, blasters are very deadly and very effective. They certainly deserve respect from both their users and from potential targets. And they're endorsed by Buck Rogers and Han Solo; how can you beat that?

A is for Android

There isn't much to say about FGU's Space Opra game's androids. There is no provision for android pcs. There is a catalog of standard utility and combat robots in the equipment list. Just enough to cover R2D2 and C3P0 as very limited NPCs.

Robots and androids have a limited use in the Space Opera battlefield. There exists a special Anti Robotic Positronic Disruptor Field or APROBPDIF series of weapons, which knock out positronic higher level computer function. Armor and standard forcefields are not effective protection  against APROBDIF attacks. Only specialized defensive screens work at all well, and only in the most expensive models.

Androids are a speciality of the Mekpurr, furry aliens of feline stock. They have the technical expertise and economics to support heavily shielded robotic brain equiped androids (should be Felinoids, I suppose.) Mekpurr Androids are programmed for obediance and loyality; they make up much of their army and space force enlisted personnel.


Space Opera, in my opinion missed an opportunity for some interesting role play by deemphasis on Artificial Intelligence, robots, and specifically androids. I'd look to Spacemaster if I intended to focus on Androids in my games.