The Lodestar-class destroyer, designed and built by the megacorporation Halcyon Industries for use in the Threshold 's primary space force, the Federal Navy is designed to pester larger ships from a distance with its considerable axial-gun and long-range lasers which are rarely seen on Threshold Naval Vessels, which typically favor guns and missiles. The lasers give the ship much-needed range advantages, allowing the ship to fight at standoff distances quickly skirting away from all enemies. While still heavily favored as parts of Federal Navy fleets, many are considered to be aging.
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Development History
The Lodestar-class Destroyer is an older line of ships in the Threshold Navy, designed during the Collapse of the Coalition. Initial fears were that Coalition Splinter-groups would take control of ships and pose a threat to the Threshold's resources and allies. It was seen as imperative that the Federal Naval possess the ability to counteract the range of Coalition ships. Many great minds fled the Coalition to live with relatives in the Threshold and these individuals were hired to help develop the weapon systems for the Lodestar.
Initial development was largely shrouded in mystery, and most test-flights of the hull design featured mock-up mass-driver turrets in place of the laser-turrets, lest the Coalition be angered or offended by the obvious intent.
Design
The Lodestar is one of the more variable ships of the Federal Navy; multiple models exist for a variety of purposes; the initial model was a "cruiser-killer" sporting two axial-mass drivers. Soon to follow was a laser-focused model which replaced the mass-driver turrets with 7cm laser turrets. Other variants included a much more Thresolder "brawler," sporting larger 229mm guns, and "cannonade," with as many as ten 155mm cannons, and a "multirole," variant with only one axial-mass driver and more mass-driver turrets, as well as improved electronic-warfare capabilities. The following models only featured a singular 1500mm axial gun and are more fit for combating numerous smaller ships, whereas the original standard model is better suited to killing larger vessels than itself. The cannonade model soon fell out of popularity, being horridly short-ranged compared to other models of the Lodestar, and most were converted to "brawler" types with larger 229mm guns.
The initial design is meant for range and harrying. Not as heavily armored as other Thresholder vessels, the Lodestar vies for speed instead with oversized engines originally designed for cruisers, though never used for them.
All Lodestar-class ships have undergone at least one refit, with exception of the last two-dozen, built with the modern equipment that others had to be modified with. Though not original to the Lodestar design, all models were upgraded to be able to field two Mk3 Remora conformal shuttles for additional ferrying and transit capabilities. By original design, the vessel also has an athwartships hangar bay, split by a pair of blast-doors. Each side also has external clamshell blast doors that can close rapidly in the face of oncoming fire.
Another addition found in the refitted models and newer ones is an upgraded electronic warfare system comparable to most other ships of its size.
Designed for a war that never came, many models of the Lodestar found themselves being continually modified to fill differing roles. They frequently found themselves being used as deterrent ships to quiet sectors of space with their mere presence, as no pirate could hope to compete with any destroyer. Others, designed to compete with the Coalition, found themselves patrolling space near the large starnation. Indeed, most of the ships of the class found themselves on such patrol duties. Others still are assigned to escort dreadnoughts and carriers, or part of defensive screens alongside Kozane dō cruisers.
Operational History
Operational Ships
781 Federal Navy
381 Expeditionary Corps
134 Commonwealth Guard
41 Halcyon Industries