Some spaceships from a silly crossover alternate universe where instead of the Eugenics War, there was the COBRA wars.
---
The better part of a century before Zephram Cochrane launched the Pheonix, another human mind had teased out the secrets of warp theory. During the COBRA wars of the 1980s the renegade scientist Dr. Mindbender had managed to unlock the principles of Warp Travel. While the rest of COBRA's leadership was initially hesitant on it's utility towards the aim of global domination, eventually Cobra Commander saw it's usefulness in an emergency measure. As such between 1990 and 1993 COBRA assembled the Coatl. Work on this was done mostly by B.A.T.s and other robots wherever practical and by highly compartmentalized human labor for most of the rest. As things became more desperate for COBRA in the final stages of the COBRA wars Cobra Commander, the Baroness, Zartan, Doctor Mindbender, Destro and Storm Shadow as well as 594 COBRA scientists, engineers, technicians, vipers, physicians and other specialists as well as 200 B.A.T.s, a playload of high end industrial equipment, vehicles, seedstock, a genebank and a set of 32 exowombs. The final battle of the COBRA wars as a delaying action to allow the Coatl to launch. To clear the atmosphere, the Coatl used a nuclear pulse drive based on the earlier Project Orion to clear the atmosphere, then it deployed it's for warp nacelles and jumped to warp, using a set of drive charges as a smokescreen as it vanished from RADAR.
During it's launch most of the computers which held it's blueprints or any information on Warp Theory were destroyed. Even so one was specifically spared, though it's information was only partially correct. It described the Coatl as an orion pulse drive craft meant to evacuate a section of COBRA from the earth, though it's intended destination was Mars. The Warp Nacelles were described as a set of cooling systems. After the escape there was some who posited that the Coatl had been outfitted with a cloaking device, but as scans and probes found no evidence of any presence being established by COBRA on the red planet or elsewhere in the solar system these the general consensus on earth was that the Coatl destroyed itself in it's escape attempt.
Meanwhile the Coatl began it's thirty six year journey and six times the speed of light. Most of it's crew would remain in stasis, with only a small number of engineers and technicians awake at any one time working in shifts. Due to conflict with the Andorians, the Vulcans were unable to maintain scientific surveys of Sol System. It would latter be noted that at least one Andorian ship on a long rage scouting mission detected the Coatl during it's voyage and got a good scan of it, but gave it little consideration due to the fact that it was away from their territory and the comparatively primitive craft posed no threat. Baring a few minor mechanical failures the voyage was uneventful until the Coatl arrived in the Cobra System, delivering it's crew to Cobra Prime. After arrival the Coatl unloaded it's cargo and jettisoned it's fusion reactor to touch down on the planet's surface. The hull of the Coatl would decades latter serve as a space station and would gradually be cannibalized for raw materials in the creation of a Cobra Prime shipyards.
After it's long journey concluded in 2030, the passengers of the Coatl made their way to the surface of the moon of Cobra Prime. Once they arrived on their home system, the interstellar refugees focused their efforts planet-side for the next half century. Their first priority was survival, their second was the establishment of a power base. They set up farms, built factories, raised families, used exowomb technology to expand their population rapidly, gave these future generations an vision and fought to conquer the bronze age native Sauroids. Cobra Commander's (latter known as the First Commander) plan would take lifetimes to be realized. Manned spaceflight was only reestablished in 2078 and that was limited until 2082. After that point, the Coatl was extensively rebuilt. Much of it was broken up and either salvaged or recycled. The Habitat Module was extensively renovated to serve as crew quarters and onto it was built ore processors, machine shops, fabricators, storehouses and assembly berths. First it assembled low range mining ships collecting material from Cobra-II's ring system, but it's first warp capable ship was completed in 2086: the Cobra Space Navy ship Squamate (Experimental Test Vehicle 01).
Several systems from the Squamate were directly salvaged from the Coatl, most notably it made use of four of it's Warp Nacelles. Three were used in it's construction while the forth was kept as a spare. This fact contributed to the trilateral hull profile common on COBRA warships. The Squamate was 108 meters long and originally weighed 7,500 tonnes and had a crew of 30 while being powered by a fusion reactor. It could carry some cargo internally, as well as either a shuttle or an external cargo pod. It's maximum speed was 6 C. It had multiple redundancies to many systems. It's shakedown cruise was successful, even if it did have a few problems. Initially the Squamate was unarmed.
The Squamate's name was symbolic of it's purpose. Squamata is the taxonomic order of reptiles which includes lizards and snakes, as well as encompassing the ancestors of both modern groups. It is the latter that the Squamate drew it's name from, for like those ancestral reptiles the Squamate was to be the progenitor for COBRA's space navy. It was built to serve as a training craft for crews, test out new designs and to perform various interplanetary tasks. Even so after the creation of a long range Subspace Scanner array everything changed. Up until this point COBRA's leadership had operated on the assumption that their were no other space fairing races anywhere close to earth. It came as quite a shock when a warp field was detected within 3 light-years of Cobra Prime. Fearing the possibility of attack, COBRA began a crash space armament program. Among the manifestations of this was the arming of the Squamate. MARS provided a set of four Laser Cannons and sixteen Torpedo Launch cells, a fact which also increased the ship's mass to 8,200 tonnes, the crew complement to 36 and ate up a fair bit of internal space due to the addition of capacitors and a reworked power system. These changes were distinctly unpopular with the crew. Regardless the upgrade would prove to be essential in dealing with the coming challenges.
With the detection of Warp Signatures passing within 3 lightyears of Cobra Prime plans for Starship (and in particular warships) construction were accelerated. In doing so there was not much time for radical redesigns. The Garter class Frigate (the first starship made entirely in Cobra Prime) was a product of that. In practice the Garter class Frigate was a modified version of the Squamate, making use of many of the same parts and components. Even so it boasted a number of improvements and modifications using experience with the previous. It was enlarged to 120 meters long which allowed for extra room for weapons power system for six laser cannons (with recharged 25% faster). It weighed in at 11,500 tonnes, thanks in part to a reinforced hull. It was outfitted with a set of impulse engines which were a considerable improvement in acceleration while freeing up space for a small shuttlebay in the enlarged aft of the craft. It's crew was enlarged to 42 spacers, but also included a complement of 24 Battle Android Troopers (generally kept in storage) on the off. In it's initial configuration the Garter's top speed was still 6c, though it could achieve that while consuming less energy than her older counterpart.
The first Garter class was completed in 2092. After performing within expected parameters in it's shakedown cruise six additional ships were ordered that were delivered over the next 14 years. Their real test came in 2109 when COBRA had it's first contact with another spacefaring culture, specifically a group of Nausicaan raiders. In their first raid one pirate vessel attacked an asteroid mining operation, making off with an impulse equiped mining ship before COBRA's fleet could respond. Seven months latter (and after the sensor network was improve) another such raid was attempted by was fought off by the Squamate, Stonefish and Ferret. While the Ferret and the Squamate did take significant damage, the raider was forced into retreat. Even so, they launched their third and most serious attack in 2112 when four raider ships launched an attack against Coatl Station's shipyards. In that battle they went up against Cobra Prime's orbital defense stations, six Garter class ships, the Squamate, a dozen mining ships carrying lasers and four squadrons of Mark-1 Stiletto and Star-Rattler fightercraft. Two orbital defense stations, five mining ships, 9 fighters, the Stonefish and the Anguilla were destroyed while the Garter and Ferret were damaged. Even so the casualties on the pirate side were much higher. Three raider ships were destroyed outright while the forth was crippled and captured.
After a review of the captured Naussicaan ship's databanks and the interrogation of the it's surviving crew it was soon deduced that this raid represented the entirety of their assets. More importantly the raider was soon gutted and examined. Naussicaan technology was for the most part a kitbash of systems that were stolen from those they preyed upon and crude copies there-of, but was still decades ahead of COBRA. Numerous systems which were only theoretical to COBRA engineers such as the use of antimatter as a power source were shown in practical form, as were improved warp coil designs and hull polarization systems. Over the next decade these mechanisms would be examined, tested, dissected and ultimately replicated. Even so, the need for an enlarged fleet persisted and so five more Garter class frigates would be built between 2114 and 2121. As these ships incorporated some of the new technology into their designs (and the older vessels were gradually refit), these latter vessels are are called Garter Block-1 Refits. They had a maximum speed of 18 c (Warp 2.5) and considerably improved durability. A three ship squadron of these ships led by the Garter did the first interstellar survey of the three nearest star systems around COBRA prime in 2122 to 2123
While the creation of COBRA's first carrier units is generally considered to be of greater historical importance, one would be remiss to neglect mention of it's older sibling the Adder class. While the refitted Garter class Frigate was a considerable improvement in terms of speed, durability and firepower there were still concerns. While a general assessment of their capacities showed that they had become more than a match for their raider counterparts, their were still concerns about the threat posed by larger, better made dedicated warships of the established powers listed in the raider's logs could pose. Initially three ships were ordered in 2121 (the Adder, the Cottonmouth and the Asp, named for Cobra Prime's three continents) with MARS's engineers working day and night. Work began on this first batch in 2123 with the respective ships being launched in 2126, 2127 and 2129. In 2133 five more of these ships were ordered with some minor improvements and refinements, mostly to simplify production and improve reliability.
The Adder's warp systems were identical to those of the of the Wasp, as was it's general performance at FTL speed with better STL maneuverability due to the fact that it weighed only 200,000 tonnes. It was 190 meters long and had a crew of 200 spacers, in addition to some 30 Void Vipers and 300 B.A.T.s in storage. Each ship also carries a pair of S-5 Dragon shuttlecraft, though it could also carry three Stiletto fighters. It was heavily armored and carried a main armament of eight torpedo tubes and two heavy particle cannons, each of which was more twelve times as powerful as those medium models mounted on a Frigate but had a lower rate of fire, plus four aft medium particle cannons. It's main energy weapons were placed in armored turrets to maximize coverage.
The Adder was the product of brute force engineering applied to creating a brawler. Built to be both take and give punishment and specifically to engage craft either comparable or larger in size with concentrated firepower. Even so, this came at the cost of STL maneuverability and a limited ability to respond to multiple assailants and generally requires an escort for support. The Adder class first taste of combat against pirate vessels in 2134 and saw a few more engagements which were similarity easily won. Even so, their true test came in 2142 at the battle of C-3 when the Adder class Cruisers Asp and Copperhead (as well as four escorts) were confronted by a squadron of three Klingon D-5 Cruisers. In that fight two of it's escorting frigates were destroyed, another was crippled and had to be towed back to COBRA prime while the Asp suffered major damage and needed several weeks of field repair work before it could limp home for proper repairs. The Copperhead while suffering less damage still needed some yard work afterwards. Even so, one ship was destroyed outright while the remaining two were forced into retreat after receiving damage, with one of said ships being unable to limp back to Klingon Space, forcing her crew to abandon ship and scuttle. While this did prove that Coatl Station's Shipyards, MARS and the Academy of Science could produce ships which at least hold their own in a firefight with the established power, they were now faced with the threat of a large expansionist power. Among the responses of the Third Commander to this threat was the commissioning of three more Adder class cruisers with upgraded Warp systems.
In the third Naussicaan Raid, COBRA's fighter corps got it's first taste of battle. Fightercraft were initially designed as low cost defensive craft for the Cobra-II lunar system, but in the battle their high speed and maneuverability proved their effectiveness. Fighter attacks disrupted the pirate's formation while laying in missile and light energy attacks from multiple vectors which softened their defenses an struck at vulnerable systems. One ship was destroyed mostly by fighter attacks and the one which was captured did not escape after it's warp drives were struck by fighter attacks. This (as well as subsequent war games) proved the effectiveness that a single man fighter could show in battle, which was taken into consideration in future spacecraft design and doctrine. Garter class frigates would carry a single Stiletto Fighter as would subsequent ships in their range. The upgrade from Mark-1 impulse Fightercraft to Mark-2 fighters capable of warp travel at 2 C in 2120 was a further boon. Even so, their were still considerable limitations imposed by range. As preparations were made to establish COBRA's first out of system colony in 2127, work began on the Wasp. COBRA's first dedicated carrier. Construction would take five years to complete, with the Wasp entering service in 2133 after passing it's shakedown cruise.
At 250 meters long and massing 200,000 tonnes, the Wasp was far larger than any previous COBRA warship. It was also outfitted with the fastest COBRA warp drive of it's time, able to reach 38 C (Warp 3.3) with a cruising speed of 25 C (Warp 2.8). It had a complement of 500 personnel. It's armament was comparatively modest with twelve medium particle beam cannons and no missile capacity. Instead it carried a complement of 24 Stiletto fighters and 8 Star Rattler heavy fighters.
The first combat mission of the Wasp was in 2136 in response to raids on interstellar shipping between COBRA prime and the new colony of Vanguard by another small fleet of raiders (in this case an multi-species fleet). In response a carrier group tracked them down to their asteroid orbiting an otherwise unremarkable red dwarf and launched an attack from five AU away. While three fighters were lost in the initial the attack did manage to destroy two of their five ships and damage a third. The rest of their fleet was dispatched by the Wasp's escorts with fighter support fairly easily. Even so, more pressing challenges awaited.
COBRA began to seriously look beyond the Cobra System in the 2120s, which saw the first surveys of nearby systems (all stars within six lightyears of COBRA prime and several beyond said sphere) and the establishment of Vangaurd Colony in 2128. Even so it's efforts were hampered as any interstellar voyage took months. It also saw contact with trade relations in 2127 (through Nerrax, an independent trading world some 13 lightyears away listed in the Raider's databanks, which would eventually be taken over by COBRA in by a coup in 2136) in which refined Dilithium, antimatter, small arms, B.A.T.s and spices were exchanged for capital used to acquire examples of alien technology and engineering information. Systems would be replicated, tested, compared, modified and revised in a process which steadily improved on what capacities they possessed. At first this yielded minor improvements but in a comparatively span of time it led to breakthroughs demonstrated on unmanned test craft. Most notable among these was what would become COBRA's forth generation of Warp Drives. These would be given their first tested in the Oculus class long range survey ship. Construction of two of these ships (the Oculus and the Mindbender) began in 2133 and was completed in 2135 and 2136. A third ship (the Venom) with considerable upgrades was launched in 2146.
The Oculucs was 168 meters long and weighed in at 125,000 tonnes. It had a large spherical primary hull which historians have compared to that of the United Earth/Federation Daedalus class cruiser. Each Oculus class ship has five medium particle cannons, one heavy particle cannon on a retractable forward mount and four torpedo tubes. The Oculus carried a crew of 300 personnel, which included some 60 scientists. It also had 30 B.A.T.s in storage and would generally be outfitted with Cryogenic systems able to accommodate up to 48 people. The Oculus class had a top warp speed of 85c (Warp 4.4) and a cruising speed of 60c (Warp 3.9). Several members of each ship's science team had been subjected to Neural Stimulation: a procedure which increases cognition but also produces a variety of mental instabilities, the most common (indeed nearly universal) of which is sociopathy. Their utility as polymaths is valued, but it does mean that among the functions of the ship's security staff is riot control. In any case, the primary mission of the Oculus class was to survey surrounding star systems.
For it's parasite craft, the Oculus would usually carry three S-5 Dragon Shuttlecraft in it's shuttle bay. However for many missions it would also carry with it three Single use Enclave Establishment Dropships (SEEDs) on external mounts. These simple flower shaped ships were initially designed to deliver troops and supplies to planetary surfaces, but they were soon modified for the purposes of delivering first wave settlers to planetary surfaces. Their basic thrusters systems could allow for safe landings, but were unable to reach orbit again. Each SEED contained 32 settlers in suspended animation, 12 B.A.T.s, several prefabricated shelters, a fusion reactor, a fabricator system, a nutritional synthesizer, two utility trucks, seed stock, a genebank, six exowombs and other equipment. If an Oculus class ship came a across an unclaimed habitable planet it would deploy (depending on it's viability) either one or all three of it's SEEDs, who's settlers would lay claim to this world and prep it for further colonization at a latter date, supplementing their numbers with defrosted settlers held in storage. Between 2136 and 2150 some ten worlds worlds were seeded with some some 18 SEEDs. Of these by 2160 two seed colonies failed due to equipment failure, one was overwhelmed by hostile natives, one was attacked by slavers, two were destroyed by Klingon forces, one was forced to evacute due to threat of Klingon attack and three had survived, received additional settlers and were growing as initially intended.
However one of the reasons why the Oculus class was built was a specialized long range scouting mission performed in 2138 through 2143. The Oculus was dispatched to make the journey with an extended fuel supply, much of it's science crew reduced (including the elimination of any Neural Stimulated personnel), it's life support systems augmented with additional redundancies. Making use of Warp Lanes for speed boosts the Oculus was able to reach the area near Sol in less than two years and began examining the surrounding area for signs of development from earth. While a set of agents (including a pair of ninjas) were deployed via shuttle the Oculus itself went out of it's way to avoid contact. The ship was hailed several times, but always responded with a set of audio responses in Faljei (a Sauroid language) while avoiding confrontation and eventually scouted out Sol. Eventually it was determined that on earth humanity was a minor player and even with the assistance of the more advanced Vulcans they were just beginning to push beyond Warp 2. Satisfied with the results, the Oculus returned back to Cobra Prime with the intel. While the data they provided was accurate at the time, the launch of the Franklin, Daedalus, Intrepid and NX classes would soon render said intel out of date. Moreover while the Oculus did not provide any information as to it's origins, nationality or mission on it's return journey it was scanned and catalogued several times by ships of several different species. In of itself a minor point, but on it's return journey the Vulcan science ship Sh'Raan detected human lifesigns aboard this ship. While inconclusive at the time this was enough to spark interest in the matter by the United Earth and Vulcan governments.
---
Hope you enjoy!
Zor
---
During it's launch most of the computers which held it's blueprints or any information on Warp Theory were destroyed. Even so one was specifically spared, though it's information was only partially correct. It described the Coatl as an orion pulse drive craft meant to evacuate a section of COBRA from the earth, though it's intended destination was Mars. The Warp Nacelles were described as a set of cooling systems. After the escape there was some who posited that the Coatl had been outfitted with a cloaking device, but as scans and probes found no evidence of any presence being established by COBRA on the red planet or elsewhere in the solar system these the general consensus on earth was that the Coatl destroyed itself in it's escape attempt.
Meanwhile the Coatl began it's thirty six year journey and six times the speed of light. Most of it's crew would remain in stasis, with only a small number of engineers and technicians awake at any one time working in shifts. Due to conflict with the Andorians, the Vulcans were unable to maintain scientific surveys of Sol System. It would latter be noted that at least one Andorian ship on a long rage scouting mission detected the Coatl during it's voyage and got a good scan of it, but gave it little consideration due to the fact that it was away from their territory and the comparatively primitive craft posed no threat. Baring a few minor mechanical failures the voyage was uneventful until the Coatl arrived in the Cobra System, delivering it's crew to Cobra Prime. After arrival the Coatl unloaded it's cargo and jettisoned it's fusion reactor to touch down on the planet's surface. The hull of the Coatl would decades latter serve as a space station and would gradually be cannibalized for raw materials in the creation of a Cobra Prime shipyards.
After it's long journey concluded in 2030, the passengers of the Coatl made their way to the surface of the moon of Cobra Prime. Once they arrived on their home system, the interstellar refugees focused their efforts planet-side for the next half century. Their first priority was survival, their second was the establishment of a power base. They set up farms, built factories, raised families, used exowomb technology to expand their population rapidly, gave these future generations an vision and fought to conquer the bronze age native Sauroids. Cobra Commander's (latter known as the First Commander) plan would take lifetimes to be realized. Manned spaceflight was only reestablished in 2078 and that was limited until 2082. After that point, the Coatl was extensively rebuilt. Much of it was broken up and either salvaged or recycled. The Habitat Module was extensively renovated to serve as crew quarters and onto it was built ore processors, machine shops, fabricators, storehouses and assembly berths. First it assembled low range mining ships collecting material from Cobra-II's ring system, but it's first warp capable ship was completed in 2086: the Cobra Space Navy ship Squamate (Experimental Test Vehicle 01).
Several systems from the Squamate were directly salvaged from the Coatl, most notably it made use of four of it's Warp Nacelles. Three were used in it's construction while the forth was kept as a spare. This fact contributed to the trilateral hull profile common on COBRA warships. The Squamate was 108 meters long and originally weighed 7,500 tonnes and had a crew of 30 while being powered by a fusion reactor. It could carry some cargo internally, as well as either a shuttle or an external cargo pod. It's maximum speed was 6 C. It had multiple redundancies to many systems. It's shakedown cruise was successful, even if it did have a few problems. Initially the Squamate was unarmed.
The Squamate's name was symbolic of it's purpose. Squamata is the taxonomic order of reptiles which includes lizards and snakes, as well as encompassing the ancestors of both modern groups. It is the latter that the Squamate drew it's name from, for like those ancestral reptiles the Squamate was to be the progenitor for COBRA's space navy. It was built to serve as a training craft for crews, test out new designs and to perform various interplanetary tasks. Even so after the creation of a long range Subspace Scanner array everything changed. Up until this point COBRA's leadership had operated on the assumption that their were no other space fairing races anywhere close to earth. It came as quite a shock when a warp field was detected within 3 light-years of Cobra Prime. Fearing the possibility of attack, COBRA began a crash space armament program. Among the manifestations of this was the arming of the Squamate. MARS provided a set of four Laser Cannons and sixteen Torpedo Launch cells, a fact which also increased the ship's mass to 8,200 tonnes, the crew complement to 36 and ate up a fair bit of internal space due to the addition of capacitors and a reworked power system. These changes were distinctly unpopular with the crew. Regardless the upgrade would prove to be essential in dealing with the coming challenges.
With the detection of Warp Signatures passing within 3 lightyears of Cobra Prime plans for Starship (and in particular warships) construction were accelerated. In doing so there was not much time for radical redesigns. The Garter class Frigate (the first starship made entirely in Cobra Prime) was a product of that. In practice the Garter class Frigate was a modified version of the Squamate, making use of many of the same parts and components. Even so it boasted a number of improvements and modifications using experience with the previous. It was enlarged to 120 meters long which allowed for extra room for weapons power system for six laser cannons (with recharged 25% faster). It weighed in at 11,500 tonnes, thanks in part to a reinforced hull. It was outfitted with a set of impulse engines which were a considerable improvement in acceleration while freeing up space for a small shuttlebay in the enlarged aft of the craft. It's crew was enlarged to 42 spacers, but also included a complement of 24 Battle Android Troopers (generally kept in storage) on the off. In it's initial configuration the Garter's top speed was still 6c, though it could achieve that while consuming less energy than her older counterpart.
The first Garter class was completed in 2092. After performing within expected parameters in it's shakedown cruise six additional ships were ordered that were delivered over the next 14 years. Their real test came in 2109 when COBRA had it's first contact with another spacefaring culture, specifically a group of Nausicaan raiders. In their first raid one pirate vessel attacked an asteroid mining operation, making off with an impulse equiped mining ship before COBRA's fleet could respond. Seven months latter (and after the sensor network was improve) another such raid was attempted by was fought off by the Squamate, Stonefish and Ferret. While the Ferret and the Squamate did take significant damage, the raider was forced into retreat. Even so, they launched their third and most serious attack in 2112 when four raider ships launched an attack against Coatl Station's shipyards. In that battle they went up against Cobra Prime's orbital defense stations, six Garter class ships, the Squamate, a dozen mining ships carrying lasers and four squadrons of Mark-1 Stiletto and Star-Rattler fightercraft. Two orbital defense stations, five mining ships, 9 fighters, the Stonefish and the Anguilla were destroyed while the Garter and Ferret were damaged. Even so the casualties on the pirate side were much higher. Three raider ships were destroyed outright while the forth was crippled and captured.
After a review of the captured Naussicaan ship's databanks and the interrogation of the it's surviving crew it was soon deduced that this raid represented the entirety of their assets. More importantly the raider was soon gutted and examined. Naussicaan technology was for the most part a kitbash of systems that were stolen from those they preyed upon and crude copies there-of, but was still decades ahead of COBRA. Numerous systems which were only theoretical to COBRA engineers such as the use of antimatter as a power source were shown in practical form, as were improved warp coil designs and hull polarization systems. Over the next decade these mechanisms would be examined, tested, dissected and ultimately replicated. Even so, the need for an enlarged fleet persisted and so five more Garter class frigates would be built between 2114 and 2121. As these ships incorporated some of the new technology into their designs (and the older vessels were gradually refit), these latter vessels are are called Garter Block-1 Refits. They had a maximum speed of 18 c (Warp 2.5) and considerably improved durability. A three ship squadron of these ships led by the Garter did the first interstellar survey of the three nearest star systems around COBRA prime in 2122 to 2123
The Adder's warp systems were identical to those of the of the Wasp, as was it's general performance at FTL speed with better STL maneuverability due to the fact that it weighed only 200,000 tonnes. It was 190 meters long and had a crew of 200 spacers, in addition to some 30 Void Vipers and 300 B.A.T.s in storage. Each ship also carries a pair of S-5 Dragon shuttlecraft, though it could also carry three Stiletto fighters. It was heavily armored and carried a main armament of eight torpedo tubes and two heavy particle cannons, each of which was more twelve times as powerful as those medium models mounted on a Frigate but had a lower rate of fire, plus four aft medium particle cannons. It's main energy weapons were placed in armored turrets to maximize coverage.
The Adder was the product of brute force engineering applied to creating a brawler. Built to be both take and give punishment and specifically to engage craft either comparable or larger in size with concentrated firepower. Even so, this came at the cost of STL maneuverability and a limited ability to respond to multiple assailants and generally requires an escort for support. The Adder class first taste of combat against pirate vessels in 2134 and saw a few more engagements which were similarity easily won. Even so, their true test came in 2142 at the battle of C-3 when the Adder class Cruisers Asp and Copperhead (as well as four escorts) were confronted by a squadron of three Klingon D-5 Cruisers. In that fight two of it's escorting frigates were destroyed, another was crippled and had to be towed back to COBRA prime while the Asp suffered major damage and needed several weeks of field repair work before it could limp home for proper repairs. The Copperhead while suffering less damage still needed some yard work afterwards. Even so, one ship was destroyed outright while the remaining two were forced into retreat after receiving damage, with one of said ships being unable to limp back to Klingon Space, forcing her crew to abandon ship and scuttle. While this did prove that Coatl Station's Shipyards, MARS and the Academy of Science could produce ships which at least hold their own in a firefight with the established power, they were now faced with the threat of a large expansionist power. Among the responses of the Third Commander to this threat was the commissioning of three more Adder class cruisers with upgraded Warp systems.
At 250 meters long and massing 200,000 tonnes, the Wasp was far larger than any previous COBRA warship. It was also outfitted with the fastest COBRA warp drive of it's time, able to reach 38 C (Warp 3.3) with a cruising speed of 25 C (Warp 2.8). It had a complement of 500 personnel. It's armament was comparatively modest with twelve medium particle beam cannons and no missile capacity. Instead it carried a complement of 24 Stiletto fighters and 8 Star Rattler heavy fighters.
The first combat mission of the Wasp was in 2136 in response to raids on interstellar shipping between COBRA prime and the new colony of Vanguard by another small fleet of raiders (in this case an multi-species fleet). In response a carrier group tracked them down to their asteroid orbiting an otherwise unremarkable red dwarf and launched an attack from five AU away. While three fighters were lost in the initial the attack did manage to destroy two of their five ships and damage a third. The rest of their fleet was dispatched by the Wasp's escorts with fighter support fairly easily. Even so, more pressing challenges awaited.
COBRA began to seriously look beyond the Cobra System in the 2120s, which saw the first surveys of nearby systems (all stars within six lightyears of COBRA prime and several beyond said sphere) and the establishment of Vangaurd Colony in 2128. Even so it's efforts were hampered as any interstellar voyage took months. It also saw contact with trade relations in 2127 (through Nerrax, an independent trading world some 13 lightyears away listed in the Raider's databanks, which would eventually be taken over by COBRA in by a coup in 2136) in which refined Dilithium, antimatter, small arms, B.A.T.s and spices were exchanged for capital used to acquire examples of alien technology and engineering information. Systems would be replicated, tested, compared, modified and revised in a process which steadily improved on what capacities they possessed. At first this yielded minor improvements but in a comparatively span of time it led to breakthroughs demonstrated on unmanned test craft. Most notable among these was what would become COBRA's forth generation of Warp Drives. These would be given their first tested in the Oculus class long range survey ship. Construction of two of these ships (the Oculus and the Mindbender) began in 2133 and was completed in 2135 and 2136. A third ship (the Venom) with considerable upgrades was launched in 2146.
The Oculucs was 168 meters long and weighed in at 125,000 tonnes. It had a large spherical primary hull which historians have compared to that of the United Earth/Federation Daedalus class cruiser. Each Oculus class ship has five medium particle cannons, one heavy particle cannon on a retractable forward mount and four torpedo tubes. The Oculus carried a crew of 300 personnel, which included some 60 scientists. It also had 30 B.A.T.s in storage and would generally be outfitted with Cryogenic systems able to accommodate up to 48 people. The Oculus class had a top warp speed of 85c (Warp 4.4) and a cruising speed of 60c (Warp 3.9). Several members of each ship's science team had been subjected to Neural Stimulation: a procedure which increases cognition but also produces a variety of mental instabilities, the most common (indeed nearly universal) of which is sociopathy. Their utility as polymaths is valued, but it does mean that among the functions of the ship's security staff is riot control. In any case, the primary mission of the Oculus class was to survey surrounding star systems.
For it's parasite craft, the Oculus would usually carry three S-5 Dragon Shuttlecraft in it's shuttle bay. However for many missions it would also carry with it three Single use Enclave Establishment Dropships (SEEDs) on external mounts. These simple flower shaped ships were initially designed to deliver troops and supplies to planetary surfaces, but they were soon modified for the purposes of delivering first wave settlers to planetary surfaces. Their basic thrusters systems could allow for safe landings, but were unable to reach orbit again. Each SEED contained 32 settlers in suspended animation, 12 B.A.T.s, several prefabricated shelters, a fusion reactor, a fabricator system, a nutritional synthesizer, two utility trucks, seed stock, a genebank, six exowombs and other equipment. If an Oculus class ship came a across an unclaimed habitable planet it would deploy (depending on it's viability) either one or all three of it's SEEDs, who's settlers would lay claim to this world and prep it for further colonization at a latter date, supplementing their numbers with defrosted settlers held in storage. Between 2136 and 2150 some ten worlds worlds were seeded with some some 18 SEEDs. Of these by 2160 two seed colonies failed due to equipment failure, one was overwhelmed by hostile natives, one was attacked by slavers, two were destroyed by Klingon forces, one was forced to evacute due to threat of Klingon attack and three had survived, received additional settlers and were growing as initially intended.
However one of the reasons why the Oculus class was built was a specialized long range scouting mission performed in 2138 through 2143. The Oculus was dispatched to make the journey with an extended fuel supply, much of it's science crew reduced (including the elimination of any Neural Stimulated personnel), it's life support systems augmented with additional redundancies. Making use of Warp Lanes for speed boosts the Oculus was able to reach the area near Sol in less than two years and began examining the surrounding area for signs of development from earth. While a set of agents (including a pair of ninjas) were deployed via shuttle the Oculus itself went out of it's way to avoid contact. The ship was hailed several times, but always responded with a set of audio responses in Faljei (a Sauroid language) while avoiding confrontation and eventually scouted out Sol. Eventually it was determined that on earth humanity was a minor player and even with the assistance of the more advanced Vulcans they were just beginning to push beyond Warp 2. Satisfied with the results, the Oculus returned back to Cobra Prime with the intel. While the data they provided was accurate at the time, the launch of the Franklin, Daedalus, Intrepid and NX classes would soon render said intel out of date. Moreover while the Oculus did not provide any information as to it's origins, nationality or mission on it's return journey it was scanned and catalogued several times by ships of several different species. In of itself a minor point, but on it's return journey the Vulcan science ship Sh'Raan detected human lifesigns aboard this ship. While inconclusive at the time this was enough to spark interest in the matter by the United Earth and Vulcan governments.
---
Hope you enjoy!
Zor
