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Adding another RP to the pile, one of a kind that i have run on other forums with great success. Here's hoping Dakka likes it too.

Remember: this is only the Recruitment Thread, posts here are to be expressions of interest, character sheets and their discussion and where questions about the RP are asked.
A Shared Dream


For centuries mankind had looked up to the night skies in wonder and awe, naming the Constellations, watching the silent dance of planets and moons, and dreaming that one daythey could swim amongst them in the infinite void of space.
Mankind’s first steps into space were crude and infrequent. Fuelled more by internal bickering and posturing than any desire for genuine advancement of their people, many astounding leaps of discovery and invention soon ignored in favour of the next one. Their landing on the moon, merely a few decades after inventing powered flight, was cast aside as trivial as Mars became the next target for competing nations to aim for.
It wasn’t until Europe federated in 2018, and led by France combined the resources of all it’s former independent nations, and founded the first lunar colony within sight of where Neil Armstrong had placed mankind’s first footprint on the dust, that mankind realised the potential of a race united with one purpose. Two years later, within the confined main hall of Lunar Base Joan D’arc, Representatives from every nation on Earth’s surface signed the Human Systems Alliance charter and pledged their country’s support in colonising the wider galaxy. For the first time in it’s history, Humanity stood united under a shared dream, the Human Systems Alliance was born.
Although united under a mutually elected government, the nations of earth was still allowed a certain level of independence, their existing governments where slotted into an overarching hierarchy with few problems, each elected an ambassador to represent them on the council and were allowed to pursue their own projects to colonise space, provided they obeyed the laws and directives of the Alliance and shared their findings freely with the entire planet.
Space ship technology advanced in leaps and bounds, in 2045, England’s HMS Queen Victoria landed on mars, its prototype Ion drive propelling it across the vast gulf between planets at a fraction of the time it had taken earlier probes. In 2092, Japanese and German scientists perfected an energy shield generator that rendered anything within its protective bubble almost immune to projectiles. 2102 saw the perfection of Terra-forming tech by America, and by 2105 the first trees were planted under open sky on Martian soil. 2120 was the birth year of the ship-mounted rail gun, developed by Germany as a way of destroying asteroids or other solid objects that could breach a ship’s shield, and it’s use as an offensive weapon was realised immediately.
Aware of the possible dangers the galaxy could contain, the Alliance Navy was formed, its members plucked from around the world, and trained in orbit above the world of their birth. Their ranks swelled as colony after colony was founded across the solar system, and thousands of eager men and women flocked to defend their new homes. Hundreds of dull grey ships prowled the solar system, ensuring that everyone remember the union that had allowed them to get even this far into space.

It has been over a hundred years since the Alliance Navy was formed, and mankind has spread far amongst the stars. You are an Officer-Cadet of this proud organization, training for six years to command your own ship, explore, defend and command the cosmos. Now, as your final days at Fort Norton Academy draw near, you eagerly await the awarding of your ceremonial sword and the ship that comes with it.


Here are the ground rules.
- the fleet will consist of 9 ships within the class outlines below.
-I will have the final say on the effectiveness of all attacks.
-try to write your posts like a story.

Players take the role of a soon to be graduated Ship Captain and have control over their ship and all crew, attached Marine or strike craft teams, which they will name and equip according to the class guidelines i will lay out, and will engage other ships and strike craft squadrons.

Ships consist of Four parts, engines, hull, hardpoints and shields.

Engines

Engines can be attacked to cripple the ship and prevent it from moving. This damage can be repaired.

Hull

Hull is the main body of the ship and will be targeted first unless the player firing the weapon chooses another point. Hull strength (or Health) is equal to the number of hard points the ship has) If the Hull is too heavily damaged, the ship will be destroyed. Minor repairs are possible during battle.

Sheilds

Shields are defensive energy fields capable of defecting anti-ship fire and energy weapons, but can be bypassed entirely by strike craft and torpedoes.
Each ship has a shield strength equal to their hardpoint total, when these are gone the hull itself starts to take damage. Shields regenerate to half strength if the ship takes no damage for a round, then to full after two rounds.

Marines and Strike-craft squadrons
Marines provide internal ship security and perform boarding/counter-boarding actions.

Strike craft squadrons come in three types and are limited to one type per launch bay. Strike-craft operate as independent characters when deployed, their combat post are considered separately from their mother-ship, but they must return to re-arm after making an attack, successful or not.

Strike-craft types:
Interceptors: (Seven Per Squadron) Excel against other strike craft and torpedoes, yet can't touch capital ships.

Bombers: (five per squadron) Slower and less maneuverable that Interceptors, these carry short range butpoweful Plasma Missiles that can even wound dreadnoughts, they lack any ability to defend themselves for interceptors however.

Strike-Fighters. (five per squadron.) the jack of all trades of strike-craft, can engage any target, yet are less effective at either role.



Hardpoints.

These are the weapons and advanced systems of the ship, each class has a limited number of these and can equip whatever weapons the captain wants selected from a list.

Point Defences. These fast-tracking weapons are ideal for destroying fast moving strike craft and torpedos. but they lack the power and range to damage other ships.

Flack Cannon: Powerful Anti Strike craft weapon. Inaccurate but will shred any strike craft hit by the blast.

Launch Bay(One of each type per ship only. Carriers can have as many as desired.) Strike craft and Transports launch and re-arm here.

Heavy Cannon: The most basic anti-ship weapon. Moderate Range, Moderate power, Moderate Accuracy. Cannot target Strike craft.

Torpedo Tube: Powerful Anti-ship weapon, Very long range but it's torpedoes take one round to reach their target and can be shot down by strike craft or point defences.

Ion Cannon (Batteships, Destroyers and dedicated Frigates only)(takes up two slots) Extremely accurate Anti ship weapon. limited range, high power. (note) any Frigate with this hard point will automatically assign it's reaming Hard points to cooling and power systems. Battleships and destroyerswill assign one other per cannon.

ESM Pod. grants greater accuracy to the ship and to nearby allies. can detect stealth ships within a certain range. Multiple pods within a fleet increase detection range

Ion Cannon Coolant Pod Has no function, can be destroyed to increase Ion Cannon Recharge time.

Bridge (Will not take up a hardpoint): the command and control center of the ship. if destroyed the ship counts as crippled.

Ship Classes

Note: Maximum of two player battleships/carriers, given on a first-come fist-serve basis, the rest of the fleet can consist of any mixture of cruisers or frigates

Dreadnoughts (NPC only):
30 Hardpoints.
Crew of 1000
The Final word in fleet engagements. massive, heavily armored and armed, these ships can tear apart entire fleets on their own with little trouble, the bad news is that they are rarely seen without an escorting fleet of smaller ships.

Battleships:
10 Hardpoints.
Crew of 500
The heavy hitters of the fleet, slow but it's powerful Ion Cannons can tear smaller ships to shreds.

Carriers:
10 Hardpoints.
crew of 350 (plus flight crews.)
The heart of a fleet, provides other ships with a dense fighter screen and bomber squadrons and advanced targeting sytems. (Comes with a free ESM pod. Many have any number of Launch bays. Weapons are restricted to point defenses, torpedo bays, (max of 2) and heavy cannons.)

Cruisers.
8 hardpoints.
Crew of 150
The middleweight of the fleet, faster than battleships, slower than frigates.

Destroyers: 8 hardpoints.
Crew of 150
Specialized cruisers, designed solely to target enemy capital ships. Vulnerable to Strike craft and torpedoes (Must have at least 2 Ion cannons. May not take point defenses)

Frigates. 4 hardpoints.
Crew of 50
The light, hit-and-run main body of the fleet. Vulnerable to battleships but can gang up on cruisers.

Character sheet:
(Note: all characters must be human.)

Name:
Age:
Gender:
Personality:
Nationality:
Rank: Officer Cadet/ Lt Commander (this is the only part of character creation I set.)
Appearance:
Bio


Ship Name:
Class:
Appearance:
Hardpoints:
Bio: (can be newly constructed or an old vessel)

Here's an example, the character that will be my controlling hand in the RP

Name: Maya Sharpe
Gender: Female
Age: 32
Nationality: European Federation (German.)
Personality: Driven, demanding. She knows that everyone can achieve much if they put effort into it, anyone who she feels doesn't try their hardest isn't worth her time.
Rank: Admiral
Appearance: Tall and imposing, Flame-read hair hangs down her back in a long braid. Suffered intense burns across her entire body during the Battle for New London and still bears the scars across her face and neck.

Bio: Coming from a long family history of Military service, Maya thought it was a no-brainer that she would follow her parents footsteps and enlist in the Navy at 18 with no complaints. Graduation at the top of her class and with the highest test scores stunned the alliance brass that tutored her, that combined with her natural good-looks made her the poster girl of the Alliance for several years, yet it was during the Battle of New London that she earned her lasting fame. Successfully defending an entire planet from a Pirate invasion, (that included a mighty dreadnaught,) with only her Carrier, "Vanguard". her rise through the ranks afterwards was meteoritic, and now she serves as a training officer at Fort Norton, prepping the officers of a new exploratory fleet to be formed under her command.


Ship Name: "Vanguard"
Class: Carrier

Appearance:

Hard-points:
2 Torpedo tubes
6 Launch bays. (3 Interceptors, 3 Bombers)
2 point defenses
1 ESM pod.

Bio: Although outdated-looking on the outside, "Vanguard" carries cutting edge tech within her old and battered hull, and is even more Famous throughout the Alliance then it's captain.
Originally designed as a mobile refinery and factory, intended to travel between systems gathering resources, upsurges of pirate attacks against the outer colonies in the years approaching the Navy's one hundred years anniversary, that required the vessel's refit into a dedicated combat vessel. New London was the closest planet to the wandering harvester with the required industry to perfrom the changes, so the Vanguard was sent there. Its was merely a few days after the work was complete that the massive pirate fleet attacked, and the new warship was thrown into the fires of combat all to soon with an entire word at the stake.


An Example of combat posts will soon follow.

Combat posts.


Combat posts are in character posts that involve their ship attacking or making an aggressive move towards another vessel. this is so I as the GM will be able to describe reactions and damage to each players action. Players will be informed as to when they are in a combat situation, at that point, objectives and a list of detected hostiles will be displayed.

Once in combat players are to display a health and shields count, along with their ship name so I and other players can determine their status at a glance.

Aggressive moves include:

Readying or Firing weapons
Launching strike craft,
attempting to ram another vessel.
attempting to go to hyper-space. (although not a combat action per-say, this indicates a desire to leave the combat.)

Non-Aggressive moves include:

Raising shields
attempting repairs
Communicating between ships in the fleet,
maneuvering. (but keep in mind the time frame, no moving across the system before your ion cannon shots have hit the target, for example.)



Combat posts Example:

GM posts:

WIth a sudden flare of light and energy, three pirate Raider-class cruisers emerged from hyper-space almost right on top of the lone "EXAMPLE", readying their trio of heavy cannons as they fell upon their prey.

You are now in combat.

Hostiles: Three Raider class cruisers.

Raider
3 heavy cannons
5 slave bays.(Non combat systems.)

Objectives:
Survive



Player A posts

"EXAMPLE"
Ship Status: Battle stations
Hull: 8
Shields: 8

Alarms blared throughout the EXAMPLE as hostile cruisers began to warp into the system almost right on top of them,

"Alert! Three hostile cruisers detected. Direct front, three thousand kilometers. They're arming weapons."
Sharpe was quick to respond.
"All hands to battle stations," she ordered. "Raise shields, Load both torp tubes. Standby to fire main guns."
"Aye ma'am." her XO replied, "General Quarters. General Quarters, all hands man your battle stations. we are now at condition one."

A flickering field of energy enveloped the Alliance ship, while within its hull crewmen were rushing to their stations, damage control teams were ready, and auto-loaders armed the point defenses and heavy cannons

"There! Target the foremost cruiser, both tubes and all guns. Fire"
"Aye, aye." replied the gunnery officer, "Fire one. Fire two. All guns fire."

A brief burst of atmosphere sprouted from the bow of the EXAMPLE as two huge missiles were launched from their tubes hidden there and streaked towards their target. the Three cannons mount on the ships spine fired in a silent roar, sending high explosives screaming towards the hostile ship
"Clean Launch, Torpedoes one and two are on target." reported the gunnery officer

"Move us away, full speed, open some distance between us."

Its deadly cargo away, the mighty CRUSIER turned about and sped away from its aggressors.


GM posts:

Surprised by the sudden reaction of the lone enemy, the cruiser it had targeted opened up with its heavy cannons without raising its own shields first, three shots speeding through the void between the two ships to impact the larger ships shields in bright flares of energy.

the Alliance Cruiser's own shots tore from the unprotected pirate's hull and tore a cannon from its mount. Enraged, it turned to follow its foe, finally raising its own shields.

the other two followed suit, firing their own weapons at the retreating ship, finally bursting its protective field and damaging the armor beneath

Cruiser A status:
Hull: 5
shields: 8

Crusier B status:
Hull: 8
Sheilds: 8

Cruiser C status:
Hull: 8
Shields: 8



Player A then posts:

"EXAMPLE"
Ship Status: Taking damage
Hull: 7
Shields: 0

"We've been hit! Minor Hull damage. Shields are down"
"Solid hits with main guns. Torpedoes are still on target
"Evasive maneuvers." Sharpe ordered, "Contact fleet command. request reinforcements."


Abandoning Ship.

If a player ship drops to below 3 heath, the player in command can announce he/she is abandoning ship instead of performing other combat actions, the ship is automatically destroyed at the end of their post, but the crew survive in escape pods, if their allies win the battle they can be recovered and can request a new ship.

if the Player fleet loses the engagement, the crew of the abandoned ship are taken prisoner by their enemies. players that then decide to go on a rescue mission to save them.

Players can instead choice to keep fighting when at low health, but will be unable to evacuate in time if their ship is destroyed. In that case they are Killed in Action

Very interesting, I like it, and I'm entrigued as to how this will pan out. I do hope we'll meet aliens and be able to do some off-ship roleplaying as well, for interests' sake, even if it does alter from the original purpose of the game.

Also, I added a few more sections to the character form that I think you should make mandatory. (also, for the ship, I might change the Hardpoints/image later depending on how I feel/your thoughts on it)

Name: Natalie Maria Rose
Age: 24
Gender: Female
Nationality: English
Rank: Officer Cadet/ Lt Commander
Personality: Compassionate, kind, friendly, good-natured, polite and often quiet - her words softly spoken. However, when in battle, she is a different person altogether; firm, decisive, strong and cunning. No matter what, she will always prioritise the safety of her crew over her own.
Appearance: 5'11", neck-length blonde hair, soft features, svelte figure.
Bio: Fresh out of the academy, she has always dreamed of the stars; of exploration; colonisation and advancement. She has also always wanted to be successful, and now she is, commanding an advanced battleship. Unfortunately, she has very little actual experience and neither does her crew. They are unproven, and the first few hostile encounters and tricky situations will undoubtedly shape them and bring them closer together as they work side-by-side. There have been many complaints that such a green officer is being given captaincy of possibly the most advanced Battleship in the stars. Some, in her defense, argue that she was the most conveniently available person to take the post, others that it's a fresh start - a new ship with a new crew, and a select few actually argue that she was chosen because of her potential. Whatever the case, Captain Rose stands ready to do her duty.

Ship Name: The Pioneer
Class: Battleship

Hardpoints:
- Point Defences
- Flack Cannon
- Launch Bay - Strike Fighters
- Heavy Cannon
- Torpedo Tube
- ESM Pod
- Primary Ion Cannon
- Secondary Ion Cannon
- Bridge
Bio: A new vessel, the first of the Mars-pattern Battleship sub-class, The Pioneer is aptly named. However, though it is arguably the most advanced of its kind, it is unproved and its crew are as raw as uncooked fish.
Appearance:

Going for a bit of everything huh? A bit odd but I'll allow it. Players will be given opportunities to mess with their ship layout, as for off ship Rping, don't worry, the'll be chances abound I'll wager.

As for aliens, we'll see eh?

Your suggestions for the character sheets have been noted and added, thanks for that.

Edited my character profile and ship profile.

Darkvoidof40k wrote:Edited my character profile and ship profile.

Looks good, welcome to the Alliance Navy! Just one problem, Rose isn't technically out of the Academy Yet, although all players have completed their training and passed their exams, they still need to be given official rank by their tutors. hence the Cadet/Commander rank.

Thats what the first part of the RP will be about, lots of pomp and ceremony and all that, don't worry it'll be over quick.

Ah, I do so enjoy indulging in unnecessary ceremony in roleplays.

Eh, I'll fix the minor details later.

Awesome, I just ordered some BFG aswell.




Name: Skald
Gender: Male
Age:35
Nationality: Scandanvian
Personality: Glory hound
Rank: Captain
Appearance: Heavily augmented. Right arm, chest and the right side of his face were destroyed
in a shipping accident, replace by augmetics.

Bio: I'll write it when I come up with something good. something about ex military and pirates sounds good

Ship name: 'Ragnorok'
Class: Cruiser
Hard-points:
Torpedo tube X4
Flakk cannon
Point defences
Launch bay X2 (Fighters and bombers)
Bio: I'll write it with the captains bio

Did I do it right?

I am also very interested in this.
I will post my sheet later.
I will be taking a Carrier.

Toastedandy wrote:Awesome, I just ordered some BFG aswell.




Name: Skald
Gender: Male
Age:35
Nationality: Scandanvian
Personality: Glory hound
Rank: Captain
Appearance: Heavily augmented. Right arm, chest and the right side of his face were destroyed
in a shipping accident, replace by augmetics.

Bio: I'll write it when I come up with something good. something about ex military and pirates sounds good

Ship name: 'Ragnorok'
Class: Cruiser
Hard-points:
Torpedo tube X4
Flakk cannon
Point defences
Launch bay X2 (Fighters and bombers)
Bio: I'll write it with the captains bio

Did I do it right?

Almost, your rank should be Officer-Cadet/ Lt Commander, you're still a Cadet for now. Ex-pirate is acceptable, ex military is a bit iffy, the Alliance navy is the human military for all extents, although i suppose i could allow an enlisted man to apply for a command rank.

That said, welcome to the Alliance Navy, i look forward to reading what background you come up with.

EDIT: I also need a full name. Middle names optional.

Here is my sheet, please tell me if it is ok:

Name: Garan Majoric
Age: 35
Gender: Male
Personality: Highly Intelligent, and a natural commander. Was the top of his class in training school. He enjoys command, and can follow orders from more senior figures. He won’t hesitate to punish insubordination. He excels in tactical planning and is never unprepared.
Nationality: European Federation (British)
Rank: Lt Commander
Appearance: Tall (6’3”), with brown hair and eyes. His hair is cut quite short. He is healthy, but not particularly fit.
Bio: He was born in London, and is descended from a long line of ship designers and scientists. His father was the designer of the Orion Class Carrier which he now pilots, and his mother was a top laser scientist, and met his father while working on the development of the Nebula class cruiser, over 45 years ago. He had always wanted to explore the stars as a child, and was constantly watching Sci-fi films. He accepted immediately, when offered a place at the training school, and is now ready for command.


Ship Name: Void Phoenix
Class: Carrier
Appearance: Long sleek ship, with a matt Grey/Black hull.
Hard points:
• 1 ESM Pod
• Bridge
• 7 Launch Bays (3 Bombers, 2 Strike Fighters, 2 Interceptors) (One Bay on the Prow, the rest down the sides, 3 on each side)
• 1 Torpedo Tube
• 2 Point Defence
Bio: The Devastator is fresh out of the shipyards. It is the third Orion Class Carrier which has been built, but is by far the most sophisticated. It is fitted with the latest in weapons and computer systems, most of which have been fitted for the first time on this ship. One of the most exiting pieces of technology on this ship is the brand new AI system built into the mainframe. AI has been around for a long time, this system however, uses holo-projectors to make an actual humanoid form for its self. This AI can even take command of the ship in an emergency, such as the death of the captain during a combat situation. The ship carries Hammer Class Bombers, Omega Class Interceptors and Thunder Class Strike Fighters. These strike craft are all brand new out of the factories, but are crewed by experienced pilots, from the recently decommision carrier 'Dragon'. The crew are well trained and hard working, having been trained at the crew schools of Cuba, reputably the best in the world.



(Where did you guys get the ship pictures from, and how do you post pictures on dakka?)

Sounds interesting! But where are the Americans, Russian and Chinese with their space stations and doom lasers?

Name: Mark Reynolds
Age: 38
Gender: Male
Personality: Brash, Risk taker.
Nationality: American
Rank: Officer Cadet/ Lt Commander
Appearance: Average, looks like a typical member of the navy.
Bio: Serving in the navy for 12 years as a NCO, he was finally recommended by his Captain for retraining as a commissioned officer after seeing his command of the Hornet against a pirate raid.

Ship: Horizon
Class:: Battleship
Appearance: A long ship, designed for firing broadside shots.
Hard Points:
- 1 ESM Pod
- Bridge
- 1 Flak Cannon
- 1 Launch Bay
- 7 Torpedo Tubes



Bio: One of the older capital ships, designed as a commerce raider of traditional naval tactics. Severely outdated, but still has enough firepower and sheer superstructure to keep up with more modern warships. Very minimal ablative shielding, but has a very solid hull. Has been refitted several times to comply with naval standards and to act as countermeasures against the latest technology of rival ships. Originally designed as an upgrade from the lesser Battle Cruiser, known as the "Eisenhower" class the Horizon was the second ship of her class. Much larger than a conventional Battle Ship, the Eisenhower class had far more firepower than any conventional ship of it's time.

Forty years on, and with the arrival of the latest Dreadnought class ships, the Eisenhower class ships have become all but obsolete. The Horizon is the only surviving member of her class, being saved from scrapped as it's fate by Admiral J. Chester, one of the former commanders of the ship. Being refitted with newer ESM modules and a complement of Plasma Torpedoes, it no longer has an advantage over conventional Battle Ships but can match newer ships with it's sheer mass, shrugging off hits that would cripple even the most technologically advanced warship. The years of service and refitting have not caught up well with the Horizon, although it's hull and weapons are up to standard, the old Behemoth class reactor simply cannot power the latest shield generators that the Alliance fleet uses, hence the Horizon has far weaker shields than a ship typical of it's size. The Horizon has had over eight Captains in it's service history, the latest being Commander Reynolds.

RaptorsTallon wrote:

(Where did you guys get the ship pictures from, and how do you post pictures on dakka?)

The pictures are from video games:

EVE-Online
Homeworld 2

Snarky wrote:

RaptorsTallon wrote:

(Where did you guys get the ship pictures from, and how do you post pictures on dakka?)

The pictures are from video games:

EVE-Online
Homeworld 2

How do you post them?

with html...

Use the tag [ img] Your image URL here! [/img ]

No spaces.

Thanks, I will try to find a suitable image.

It seems that everyone and their mother is taking ESM pods, you're worried about sneak attacks, eh?

Edit: Yay. Post 500!

Edit 2: Snarky and Raptor, looking good. Welcome to The Alliance Navy!

When will you be starting the game?

Consider me intrested....

But have exams now....... safe me a spot?

I've noticed that ESM pods can detect stealthed ships. Will there be a stealth module for us to take on smaller boats like Frigates (a-la Space U-boat wolfpacks)?

Also, can we refit our ships at dock later on (i.e. change our hardpoints)?

Will it be map based, i.e we can decide where to send our ship/fleet, or will it be a linear story?

I have been trying to add a picture, but it just keeps showing up as a White box with a red cross in it. What can I Do?

Can you post that code that causes red cross?

Ok, it's just the URL of a pic from google images, I take it that is ok.

[img]http://www.eve-files.com/media/corp/j0sephine/ct2_c.jpg[/img]
Here, that should work.

Thanks

no offence, but that's a Caldari titan you've chosen as your ship pic... It's far bigger than what a battleship should be.. here's a size comparison I lifted.

The medium ships are carriers and dreadnoughts. The smaller ships are what battleships should be, and the tiny dots are cruisers and lower!

RaptorsTallon wrote:Thanks

No problem.

I would like to join, but i have already bit in trouble due the other RPs so maybe later?

Sorry, I have never played eve. I just looked on google images and looked for something cool looking. I'm sorry if it is gigantic, it just looks good.
I heared that eve had good looking ships so I searched 'Eve online ships' and thats what it returned.

Is it ok for me to keep it, or should I find another one?
Could I just say that it looks the Caldari titan, but it is smaller, about carrier size?


EDIT: I have found another ship, of appropriate size.

Well, although my EVE ship picture isn't of a battleship, and I was aware of that at the time, as we are only using these images for asthetic purposes, comparative size in their original environments is mostly irrelevant.

However, we should generally try and keep the ship images as similar as possible, so I'm going to suggest using these rules:

1) Use EVE online ship images only.
2) Try and keep to the size of your ship when you search for pictures, though they don't actually have to be the same class. (ie my Battleship image wasn't of a battleship, but rather of a Phoenix which is of a similar size)
3) Only use Caldari ship images (so our ships don't look totally different to each other), and perhaps the others to represent ships created by different countries - but due to everyone being united, the ships should follow the same basic style. These others could also be used to show older ships.