Designed in the closing weeks of the Kennewes Offensive, the Na-S/S Rook is a high end defensive station designed to be entirely automated. Named after the infamous chess piece, the Rook was meant to live up to its namesake, by fielding sufficient firepower to easily devastate hostile hordes of units that might wander into its line of sight. The size of a medium corvette, the Rook is unnaturally well armed because of a lack of crew or high end STL engine, instead mounting a pair of vicious side-mounted Curbstomper Arrays, and a single, massive multiphase cannon that makes up more than 45% of its overall mass.

While the original Kante-class stations proved to be effective and reliable, they lacked the general 'oomph' that some SMODIoN defense planners were looking for. Kennewes was the testing ground of a lot of new NAM technologies, and battle data being relayed from the surface was key to the shaping of the station. As a sign of the generally deadly power these units field, it employs technologies borrowed from both the X-Tech Malchick-class and Aerotech Tolchok-class ships, designs of the same NAM technological generation.

In YE 34, existing Rooks were upgraded and new systems were installed. The foremost being the addition of the multiphase cannon coupled with the removal of the aether cannon from its arsenal. Other changes were made to the units, including an overhaul of the shielding systems, the removal of the mass mesher device and the addition of more point defense weapons.

• Heavy Armor, Shields
• Heavy Weaponry
• Excellent ECM
• ACE AI Core
• Low-Maintenance Design and Self-Repair Functions

• Defense of Nepleslian assets
• Establishing and solidifying forward bases
• Force multiplier

Class: Na-S/S-04a Rook-class Automated Defense Platform Type: Orbital Facility Designers: Nepleslian Arms and Munitions Manufacturer: Nepleslian Arms and Munitions Production: Full Mass Production Fielded by: Star Military of the Democratic Imperium of Nepleslia, Nepleslian Arms and Munitions

Crew: ACE-only. Maximum Capacity: Up to two humanoids can enter for maintenance reasons. However, there is no life support, and no amenities to make more than temporary visits feasible.

Length: 60 meters (196.85 feet) Width: 20 meters (65.6 feet) Height: 25.5 meters (83.66 feet) Decks: N/A

Continuum Distortion Drive: 8000c Hyperspace Fold Drive: .5 LY/min Sublight Engines: .05c Range: Up to 10 years of nonstop deployment. Craft will then make Hyperspace Fold to nearest maintenance facility, or risk burning out. Lifespan: Theoretically infinite, as long as repair facilities are functional for the 10-year maintenance cycle. Refit Cycle: One full refit every 10 years. Self-repair systems cut down on the need for regular repairs.

See Damage Rating (Version 3) for an explanation of the damage system.

• Hull: 15 (Starship)
• Shields: 15 (Threshold 3)

The central area of the platform, and something of a control center. The room shares coloration with the maintenance conduits, with white walls and green floors and ceilings. This area contains manual targeting systems (watched very closely by Drei, of course), and also serves as a hub for the service conduits, and a recharging station for the numerous drones that roam the station.

The most frequent denizens of the numerous maintenance corridors that criss-cross throughout the vessel, these drones are outfitted with a number of tools allowing them to make quick fixes to damaged systems in a short amount of time, including a fusion cutter/ welder, numerous standard tools, and a small NCS module loaded with Leptonium, Nerimium and Durandium alloys. The machines are about 3 feet tall, and one foot across, with a shiny silver color scheme. They are constructed from light-weight durandium and move and propel themselves via a very small gravitic drive. A down-sized Drei AI controls the drone, and receives orders from the ship AI. There is also a security variant that eschews tools for weaponry.

These are standard Nepleslian hallways in condensed form, about large enough for an ID-SOL to sit comfortably in. The walls, ceiling, and floor are all lightly padded to allow some comfort when using them. The passages have white walls with green floors and ceilings. The passages lack gravity, making them, and by extension their contents, very well protected from scalar radiation.

Heavy-duty Nerimium Plating and Frame The overall design of the Rook is something like a slightly hexagonal box with very strong emphasis on solidity. Function took precedence over form, so to some, the Rook is a rather ugly design. As these units were meant to be largely disposable, state of the art armor was forsaken, instead favoring cheap, but reliable materials such as Nerimium. Armor is thickest at the front and side flanks, but a bit weaker in the platform's rear.

NCS Sublayer w\ Surface Repair Channels A complex network of active NCS nanobots constantly perform repairs on the critical systems of the Rook, ranging from fixing tears in the hull, to re-aligning sensors systems. There is enough stored material to initiate the equivalent of a single full repair/retrofit cycle on the ship, including weapons, armor and electronics. Thanks to the nigh limitless power generated by the Rook's hyperspace tap, these systems can run for years at a time.

Advanced Command/Combat Executive AI The Rook has a single ACE (Combat) AI system that runs all the systems aboard the platform. This unit is subservient to higher ranking intelligences found on Star Military of the Democratic Imperium of Nepleslia vessels.

NAM Aerofighter Communications Package The Na-S/S-04a is equipped with standard radio, directed laser and subspace transmissions. 4 multi-directional laser projectors are mounted in multiple tactical positions set across the Rook's outer hull.

NAM Subspace Databurst Transceiver With the innovations in CDD technology, craft equipped with this system are capable of sending large amounts of information at FTL speeds, to and from ships and between units employing this device. The data is typically encrypted using a specific song or video files as the key and spliced with anti-tampering ICE programs, that will attempt to foul up unauthorized users and automatically self-destruct the data in case of interception. Due to the frequent use of this method of transmission by other nations, databursts are to only be used in case of emergency, such as death, or completion of an assignment and subsequent requests for evac. The transmitter employs the Rook's CDD bubble for transmission.

NAM Platform Sensors Package The Rook mounts an impressive sensors package that allows it to track down targets using a variety of high-energy systems, including propulsion, power generators and certain kinds of stealth. Essentially a supped-up version of the sensors used on the F/A-02, these sensors were designed to make hiding in defended star systems exceedingly difficult.

Na-SC/P-02b Hyperspace Tap Generator Two hyperspace tap generators, much like those found on the Na-B-01a Tolchok-Class Battleship. It provides primary power to the platform, the ASC and is used to create hydrogen, which powers the station in emergency situations.

Heavy Fusion Generator Three fusion generators to provide emergency power for the station.

NAM CPS-05 During the YE 34 refit, NAM installed the latest version of its CPS system into the Rooks. These provide the same coverage with a lower power draw. In addition, with a combined shield system, more space and power could be devoted to weapons systems.

Continuum Distortion Drive

NAM Light Plasma Impulse Drive Na-PID-04a

• Heavy Multiphase Cannon: 1, DR Variable
• NAM Na-LRMS-XX "Curbstomper" Long-Ranged Missile System: 2, DR Varies
• NAM Twin Plasma Turret: 4, DR 3

As a corvette-sized platform, the Rook has build times similar to those of light vessels such as the NaX-SC-01a Malchick Stealth Corvette.

Authored by Exhack and approved by Wes on Apr 6, 2008 ¹⁾