| Hammer Heavy Corvette |
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Information AboutHammer Heavy Corvette |
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Nicknamed "coffins" by their small three-man crews the Hammers sacrifice almost all crew space to make room for the extra armor and weaponry of the Heavy Corvette that is essentially stuffed into the cramped chassis leaving only enough room for a modarately fast engine (about half the speed of the " Arrow ") and the crew space. The crew space is in the form of three cockpit "cocoons" which require a technician's help to enter. The only way for a Hammer crewmember to exit without the help of a technician is to eject the cocoon. Fortunately for the crew it is a fair payoff. The Hammer is the best armored and armed strikecraft in the entire Mothership Fleet and its projectile cannon turrets (each piloted by one gunner each) have enough coverage to promise death to any enemy strikecraft within range that doesn't have the most extraordinary engine power (such as the rather unusual " Swarmer s" that the " Tempest " was invented to counter) as well as, in the right numbers, any slow-moving Capital Ship . In addition the projectile cannons are capable of unleashing explosive projectiles known as "burst fire" that can prove deadly to either a single unprepared Frigate or a surprised Interceptor wing. As such, the Hammer's operational limits are more often measured in crew endurance than damage, fuel loss, or ammunition. Unfortunately, Hammers do prove ineffective unless moving quickly and in groups of five or more against capital ships equipped with anti-strikecraft weaponry. In these cases the preferred strikecraft is often the " Thunderbolt ". Because of the large area of space that has been converted from crew space to weapon space leaving a vast gap of area unexploited, the Hammer has often been remodelled for diplomatic purposes. What is done is simply a cutting out of all the unneeded weaponry and armor, leaving a vast amount of space for an ambassadorial entourage. One of these modified Hammers was used during the Homeworld War as the diplomatic shuttle for the ambassador who dealt with new alien lifeforms, most notably the Bentusi and Kadesh . SEE ALSO EXTERNAL LINKS |
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