RRW Hobus
The R.R.W. Hobus is a Flambard Dreadnought, a variant of the infamous Scimitar series; it is presently under the command of Commander Ailar.
RRW Hobus | |
Captain: Ailar | |
Starship Data | |
Ship Class: | Flambard Dreadnought |
Faction: | Romulan Republic (detached to Starfleet) |
Status: | Active (as of 2410) |
History
Scimitar-class starships were designed and built by the Remans; after Shinzon's failed coup, the new Imperial Senate decided that the design was an excellent one, despite its Reman origins-and promptly co-opted the design, including variants such as the Tulwar-class.
Unfortunately, the Hobus Disaster threw the Empire into disarray, and construction on a warfleet of such vessels was slowed down dramatically. When the Empire splintered, there were a number of Imperial shipyards that found themselves isolated. Some shipyards were cannibalized for parts; some were still held by the Empire; and some were liberated by the newfound Romulan Republic. One of these shipyards was the Mandukar Shipyard at Hfih'rihan, a near-empty star system save for a number of asteroid belts. The size of the shipyard was large enough to produce Scimitar-class ships as well as its variants, and the Republic wasted no time in getting the yard back into operation. One of the first batch of Tulwar-class ships produced was named for the star that precipitated the Romulan crisis: the R.R.W. Hobus.
While the flagship of the Republic had been fiercly debated, and ultimately given to Tiaru Jarok, the Hobus was given to a contemporary of hers, Captain Ailar. Thus far under her command, the Hobus has been at the forefront of a number of events critical for the growth of the Republic.
A major refit of the ship occurred in the aftermath of the Iconian conflict, as the ship was redesigned to new Romulan Republic specifications as a Flambard-class dreadnought.
Features
Scimitar-class Features
The Flambard-class dreadnought is a variant design on the Scimitar dreadnoughts, and as such, has a number of features that are unique to such ships. While some vessels of that class may lack certain modules, the Hobus contains them all.
One thing that all of such ships have-as with virtually every Romulan warbird-is the famous Romulan Battle Cloaking Device. Despite the significant size of the Hobus, this device cloaks the ship from all but the most sensitive and dedicated sensor arrays. The device can cloak the Hobus in the middle of pitched battle, although the activation does have an adverse effect on the shielding systems, rendering it temporarily vulnerable to weapons already locked upon it before breaking the lock. Unlike most warbirds, however, the Hobus cloak allows the ship to activate its weapon systems without breaking stealth for a short period of time. It can also maintain its shields under cloak, although this seems to be dependent upon the charge in its singularity core.
The Hobus has a series of secondary shields to bolster its defenses in a heated conflict.
Controversially, the Hobus also contains a thalaron power source used to power a spatial radiation pulse. While the Federation outlaws thalaron weaponry, the Romulan Republic-particularly in its early days-felt that a massive deterrent was needed to help protect the fledgling government. Captain Ailar feels that a weapon is a weapon, and if the use of a thalaron pulse will end a conflict quickly, she will use it.
The Hobus has no shuttlecraft save for a single Commander's Gig, which is used as a scientific scouting vessel. In situations where a shuttle would be necessary beyond the Gig, Scorpion fighters are used instead (see below).
Defense Systems
The Hobus utilizes a significant variety of plasma weaponry in the form of cannons, arrays, and turrets. None of these are what one would call the most advanced weapon systems, but they make up for it in volume. The projectile weaponry is a considerable upgrade. The aft launcher uses Breen technology to launch a torpedo loaded with transphasic mines, giving the mines a reach they don't ordinarily have. The fore launcher continues the transphasic theme, but the payload is a straightforward torpedo. The launcher is designed to reload rapidly, giving it a superior rate of fire.
The Hobus has a hangar with a number of Scorpion-class fighters, giving it another avenue of attack when necessary.
The shielding systems are an advanced Romulan prototype, based on a covariant system, allowing the Hobus to handle multiple attacks at once.
Engineering Systems
The Hobus is powered by an advanced Romulan singularity core.
The impulse engines are an advanced Romulan prototype, designed to work together with the deflector and the shield systems, giving it superior maneuverability for something so large.
Notable Crew Members
- ↑ It will not escape attention that there are a LOT of Romulan men named "Tovan Khev". The name is roughly the Romulan equivalent of "John Smith"; they are legion.
Ship Plaque
Ship Motto: "Openness and truth have more power than secrets." - D'Tan