Explorer
From BattleTechWiki
| |
| Explorer | |
|---|---|
| Production information | |
| Manufacturer | Irian Technologies |
| Use | Touring Craft |
| Tech Base | Inner Sphere |
| Cost | ??? |
| Introduced | 2703 |
| Technical specifications | |
| Mass | 50,000 tons |
| Length | 205 m |
| Top Thrust | 0.1G |
| LF Battery | No |
| Armament | None |
| Armor | 27 tons Standard |
| DropShip Capacity | None |
| Crew | 1 officer, 8 enlisted, 5 first class and 5 second class passengers |
| Grav Decks | 1 (80m diameter) |
| Escape Pods/Life Boats | 3 escape pods |
| Heat Sinks | 79 |
| BV (1.0) | 424 |
| BV (2.0) | ??? |
Contents |
[edit] Description
Introduced at the height of the Star League as a touring craft to ferry VIPs and the wealthy elite, the Explorer Class is the smallest JumpShip design still functional, though not in common use, in the modern Inner Sphere.
The decline in interest even during the JumpShip starved Succession War era is due to the Explorer's inability to carry DropShips. Harking back to the earliest eras of interstellar travel, the Explorer Class lacks a Docking collar and relies entirely upon its own internally carried quartet of shuttle craft for interplanetary transit. The space that would have gone towards a docking collar was instead devoted to cargo space and passenger accommodations, including a 80-foot Grav Deck, an almost unheard of luxury on such a small vessel.
While a sought after luxury item and status symbol during the golden age of the Star League, the numbers of Explorers has steadily declined between combat losses and break-downs due to lack of spare parts. The largest surviving concentration of Explorers resides with original manufacturer, Irian Technologies of Clipperton, who opted to convert their shipyards to the production of the smallest JumpShip in common use, the Scout Class, during the early Succession Wars.
[edit] Armament
The Explorer-Class is completely unarmed, not even able to rely on a carried DropShip's armament, protected only by its 27 tons of standard armor. This was intentional in the belief that the harmless design would escape notice and hostile intent, and while it worked during the Star League era, it led to the design suffering heavy losses during the unrestricted warfare of the Succession Wars.
[edit] Cargo
The Explorer has a single large cargo bay capable of storing 247 tons of cargo. Like the passengers, cargo is brought to and from the ship by its four assigned shuttle craft.
[edit] Variants
The single known variant of the Explorer mounted a portable Hyperpulse Generator. This absurdly expensive modification is only used by the ultra rich, the largest corporations and Star League government diplomats.
