Spiculum medium fighter (Allodon)

only given numeric designations
Ship specification
Class	Spiculum
Designation	Deep-space medium void-fighter
Origin
Commander
Affiliation	Allodons (Renegade Aspect)
Alias
Warp Capabilities	Slower-than-Light only
Status	Fully operational
Weapons	two twin-linked pulse-phaser batteries, hardpoints for missiles
Previous Campaigns

At a Glance

Length: 12 meters

Width: 10 meters

Mass: 30 tons

Crew: One

Range: 40000 miles fully fueled.

Description

Based upon the footage from the >>REDACTED<< Conflict, Spiculums appear to be the main multi-role space fighter used by the Allodons. They are sturdy, rugged craft that are built around their weapon systems, tasked with clearing the void around and ahead of the Allodon's starships of enemy fighter craft. They are well-protected by thick criton hulls, reinforced frames, and strong energy shields comparable to most well established and mature spacefaring races.

Capabilities

Spiculums are dedicated space-superiority spacecraft that have been utilized by the Allodons for a great deal of time, undergoing many revisions and redesigns over the millennia to produce the current model, which has been optimized for a single goal: eliminating opposing void-capable fighters and bombers.

To this end Spiculums are designed almost like they're solid blocks of armor with compartments bored into them in order to fit other components inside. The criton armor is almost seemless, with the armored hull segmented in some areas as if the manufacturers only did so because they knew sections of hull would have to be replaced or repaired sooner or later. Overall, the armor on a Spiculum is thickest on its front and rear, but its sides are only slightly thinner, so while attacks from the sides, above, and below might gain some advantage, the overall level of protection are still formidable.

The absorption shields of a Spiculum are fairly strong as well. They are NOT the phased dimensional shields found on Allodon capital ships, though: apparently there are limitations to just how small the shield generators can be. Thus, the Allodon fighter shield technology is simpler and much more on a level that most other spacefaring races can understand.

The propulsion systems used by Spiculums is somewhat unexpected - the Allodons use nuclear pulse engines combined with low-level gravitic turbines. This hybrid system (which is similar to what all of their starships use) detonates fissionable radioactives in minute quantities using anti-proton lasers to produce high levels of thrust, while the gravitic turbines alter the craft's mass in specific ways to create an inertial stabilizer. In space, Spiculums are quite maneuverable, moreso than would be expected, and have been seen in void combat sometimes making turns as if they were flying in an atmosphere, and other times performing maneuvers that would have subjected the pilot to extreme G-forces that would have either severely injured or killed an unprotected pilot. This is due to the fact that the inertial stabilizers reduce the physical effects of the G-forces inflicted on the pilots to a more manageable level.

It goes without saying that the exhaust of a Spiculum's engines is highly radioactive, something the Allodons do NOT seem overly concerned about.

As seems to be the rule with the Allodons, the computer systems within a Spiculum are relatively crude and primitive given their overall level of technology. The electronic systems are remarkably simple and silicon chips are used extensively. This means that Spiculums don't use a lot of automated systems; the pilot himself is responsible for sensors, jammers and electronic countermeasures, defenses, navigation, and target acquisition. All of this is partially mitigated by the fact that Allodon pilots wear Cyberhelms (so the AI does a lot of the work), but the actual physical piloting is based purely upon the skill of the pilot himself.

While partially streamlined, Spiculums aren't exceedingly effective in atmospheres: the lose a great deal of maneuverability in any atmosphere thicker than 0.5 Earth-relative. However, their inertial stabilizers partially offset this to prevent a pilot from losing control. Despite that, Spiculums are rarely ever used for planetary assaults on worlds with more than thin atmospheres - those are situations in which Manubalistas are deployed instead.

Combat Abilities

The weapons on Spiculums consist of linked batteries of pulse-phasers mounted on either side of the fighter's fuselage. The cannons are set up in such a way that they fire in sequence so that by the time the last phaser in the battery has fired, the first one has finished recharging. Overall, the energy weapons on a Spiculum can lay down a withering continuous barrage of fire at everything in front of it that seems almost limitless.

Contained within the body of the fighter are a pair of enclosed sockets designed to hold missile pods. Typically the missile load seems to consist of a pair of large anti-ship missiles (similar to photon torpedoes) or shield-draining "Tyken's Rift" torpedoes (one in each missile bay), or alternatively a total of eight anti-fighter missiles (four in each bay). The type of anti-fighter missile used universally by the Allodons is something they refer to as a "Chaser missile": a remarkably sophisticated and advanced grav-turbine propelled missile that's guided by an ultra-sophisticated AI system that seeks out its target with a determination that goes beyond monomania. Chaser missiles simply refuse to be deterred and will only give up its original target by locking onto another identically-shaped craft. If it misses its target on the first pass, it will search, reacquire, and come around for another strike. Upon getting close enough, its proximity warhead will detonate the californium used to power the grav-turbines, creating a minute nuclear explosion equal to a ton of TNT.