Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
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Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
Length: 1,137 meters
Width: 548 meters
Height/depth: 268 meters
Maximum acceleration: 3,000 G
Maximum speed (atmosphere): 975 km/h
Engine unit(s): Primary drive engines (4 aft-mounted; 2 port, 2 starboard);
Secondary drive engines (2 aft-mounted; 1 port, 1 starboard);
Tertiary drive engines (2 aft-mounted; 1 port, 1 starboard)
Hyperdrive rating: Class 1.0
Backup: Class 15
Hyperdrive range: 60,000 light-years (effective)
Power output: 3.6 × 1024 W
Power plant: Hypermatter annihilation reactor
Shielding Equipped: (roughly equivalent to that of a Victory I-class Star Destroyer)
Navigation system: Navigation computer equipped
Armament: DBY-827 heavy dual turbolaser turrets (8)
Medium dual turbolaser cannons (2)
Turbolaser cannons (unknown number; may be a modification)
Point-defense laser cannons (52)
Tractor beam projectors (6)
Heavy proton torpedo tubes (4)
16 torpedoes each
Complement: Alpha-3 Nimbus-class V-wing or V-19 Torrent starfighters (192)
ARC-170 starfighters (36)
Eta-2 Actis-class light interceptors (192)
LAAT/i gunships (40)
Military walkers (24)
Various shuttles
Crew: 7,400
Passengers: 2,000 troops
Cargo capacity: 20,000 tons
Consumables: 2 years
Dimensions
A stock ship was 1,137 meters long, making it one of the largest capital ships capable of atmospheric operations, landing on planets to load and unload troops and vehicles.
The Venator-class was born from the success of the Acclamator-class assault ship and was designed by Lira Blissex for the purpose of serving as a medium-sized, versatile multi-role warship.
Roles
While designed primarily for ship-to-ship combat, the Venator had secondary roles ranging from starfighter carrier, to military transport and battleship escort. The expanded carrier role made the Venator-class popular amongst Jedi starfighter aces.
As a popular multi-role warship of the Republic Navy, the Venator was considered heavily armed and armored enough to lead assaults on Rim worlds like Utapau as well as fast enough to chase down blockade runners. Due to being relatively less self-sufficient than other ships in the fleet, the Venator-class often relied upon supply lines to aid long-range campaigns.
These vessels also sported the red color of diplomatic immunity all Republic ships sported; by the beginning of the Galactic Empire, the hulls were deprived of this symbol of the Republic, giving them a dull gray appearance.
Offensive and defensive systems
The armament of a single Venator-class Star Destroyer consisted of 8 DBY-827 heavy dual turbolaser turrets, 2 medium dual turbolaser cannons, 52 point-defense dual laser cannons or turbolasers, and 4 heavy proton torpedo tubes.
A turbolaser cannon aboard the Venator-class Star Destroyer Guarlara being destroyed by flak guns on Invisible Hand.The Venator-class's eight heavy dual turbolaser turrets were its main weapons and had two tracking modes. In its precise, long-range tracking mode, the DBY-827 could hit a target vessel at a range of 10 light minutes. During close-range fights, the turrets could rotate in three seconds with their fast-tracking mode. In terms of firepower, these weapons rivaled the main battery on the later Imperial-class Star Destroyers.
The DBY-827 had seven different power settings. This allowed the Venator's pilots and gunners to select a range of destruction, from a small strike to a vaporizing blow. As a true warship, the Venator-class Star Destroyer could divert almost all of its reactor output to its heavy turbolasers when needed. As a result of this, a flotilla of Venators could break through the shields of a Trade Federation battleship with ease.
At the suggestion of Anakin Skywalker, a heavy SPHA turbolaser cannon was installed within the ventral hangar bay of some Venator-class ships of the Open Circle Fleet. These weapons were meant to protect the Star Destroyers while they opened their long ventral doors to the army complement bays. They would be used to considerable effect during the Battle of Coruscant.
Propulsion systems
Venators were equipped with powerful engines, a Class 1 hyperdrive with an effective range of 60,000 light-years. Its main reactor could annihilate up to 40,000 tons of hypermatter fuel per second, producing 3.6 × 1024 watts of power.
Complement
Despite possessing powerful weaponry and being on par with the Victory-class, the Venator-class was designed with an additional starfighter carrier role in mind. Its hangar bays were far larger than those on other Star Destroyers like the Victory-class and later models like the Imperator-class.
The main hangar of a Venator-class vessel. Prior to the formation of the Galactic Empire, a typical Republic Venator carried a complement of 420 fighters: 192 V-wing or V-19 Torrent starfighters, 192 Eta-2 Actis-class interceptors, and 36 ARC-170 starfighters. The ship also typically maintained a variety of shuttles in its hangars. Since it was capable of entering a planet's atmosphere and landing on its surface, the pre-Imperial Venator-class had a standard complement of 40 LAAT/i gunships and 24 military walkers for planetary operations.
In addition to a standard ventral hangar bay, the bow of a Venator could open up to reveal a half kilometer long dorsal flight deck. This flight deck enabled the Venator-class to rapidly launch hundreds of fighters. However, the slow opening and closing of the armored bow doors could leave the ship extremely vulnerable.
Although strong shielding was used to compensate for this weakness, this design aspect would be entirely omitted from later Star Destroyer designs, such as the Imperator-class. On ships in the Open Circle Fleet, a SPHA turbolaser cannon was positioned near the ventral hangar opening for the purpose of protecting the ship along the ventral arc. The Venator-class also had hangar-openings on its port and starboard side. These were used to dock with space stations, mooring towers, and larger starships, for the purpose of transferring troops and materials.
Command tower
The bridge of a Venator-class Star Destroyer. Because of its carrier role, the Venator-class featured a novel dual bridge tower design. The port tower was the starfighter command bridge, while the starboard tower served as a standard helm and command bridge. On future designs, this dual bridge design was also employed.
The command bridge was designed with dual crew pits where operators would be stationed to control the ship's various functions. Officers would patrol walkways above and have a panoramic view to the outside. This bridge design would become a standard feature on most Imperial warships.
On top of each tower was a hyperwave communications and scanner module. Its function was similar to the scanner globes on the Imperial-class and other KDY vessels, but it had a flat shape. Flagships in Venator flotillas had red-painted conning towers to separate them from others.
If one thing the Prequels did right, it was the design of the ships. How do you like the Venator-class Star Destroyer?
Info and stats taken from this Wookieepedia page. Please credit your sources in future. [Rochey]
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Re: Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
A lot more than your uncredited cut-and-paste.SuperSaiyaMan12 wrote:If one thing the Prequels did right, it was the design of the ships. How do you like the Venator-class Star Destroyer?
Where's it from? The ICS or Wookiepedia?
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Re: Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
What's not to like? It's as well-planned as it could be, having to fit in to a pre-established design heirarchy.
Seafort's right, though - credit where it's due.
Seafort's right, though - credit where it's due.
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Re: Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
The ship's good - the only real issue I have is that describing it's carrier role as "secondary" is innacurate. The ship's got almost six times as many fighters as an ISD despite being barely a third it's size. It's got a heavy main battery, but it's clearly designed first and foremost as a carrier
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Re: Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
True. Although force-projection could be described as a primary role of almost any Republic or Empire cap ship.
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Re: Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
Of course - that's the role of any warship, the question is how they do it.Mikey wrote:True. Although force-projection could be described as a primary role of almost any Republic or Empire cap ship.
If you're referring specifically to the deployment of smaller craft, then it depends on the ship. The VenStar is clearly a carrier, despite it's heavy guns. The ISD is a counterinsurgency platform, with a good balance of heavy guns, starfighters, and ground forces. The Tector is at the far end of the scale, dedicated purely to ship-to-ship combat, with no visible hangar.
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Re: Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
The description in the OP was a cut'n'paste from this Wookieepedia page.
As for the ship itself, I like it but the dual-bridge thing looks pretty damn ugly, IMO.
As for the ship itself, I like it but the dual-bridge thing looks pretty damn ugly, IMO.
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Re: Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
I am, as well as to the deployment of infantry (standard and mechanized,) armor, etc. I'm not sure what the Tector is, and I know the Executor-class was used primarily as a strategic command platform, but I imagine it had similar capabilities if not far greater basedon its size.Captain Seafort wrote:If you're referring specifically to the deployment of smaller craft
I happen to like the swallow-tail bridge design.
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Re: Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
Does anyone else think the number of fighters on board is a bit high? There's 460 in total. Would there really be that much space aboard to house and maintain all those craft?
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Re: Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
That's pretty much just what I was about to ask, Rochey. 460 fighters? Holy cow! That's a fairly ridiculous amount, IMHO.Rochey wrote:Does anyone else think the number of fighters on board is a bit high? There's 460 in total. Would there really be that much space aboard to house and maintain all those craft?
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Re: Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
A Nimitz-class carrier typically carries 80 aircraft, so I don't see a problem with a ship over 30 times its size only carrying a little over five times as many, regardless of the greater size of the aircraft and the space devoted to heavy weapons.Rochey wrote:Does anyone else think the number of fighters on board is a bit high? There's 460 in total. Would there really be that much space aboard to house and maintain all those craft?
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- SuperSaiyaMan12
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Re: Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
Sorry I left it unacreditted. Posted it right before I went to work.
Anyway, 460 fighters is realistic for a ship that size. The ISD SHOULD carry at least 200 fighters, giving its size is a mile long, instead of a dinky 72. And the Executor-class SHOULD have a standard compliment of well over 5000 starfighters.
Anyway, 460 fighters is realistic for a ship that size. The ISD SHOULD carry at least 200 fighters, giving its size is a mile long, instead of a dinky 72. And the Executor-class SHOULD have a standard compliment of well over 5000 starfighters.
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Re: Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
More like almost four times as large man...hehehe...Captain Seafort wrote:A Nimitz-class carrier typically carries 80 aircraft, so I don't see a problem with a ship over 30 times its size only carrying a little over five times as many, regardless of the greater size of the aircraft and the space devoted to heavy weapons.Rochey wrote:Does anyone else think the number of fighters on board is a bit high? There's 460 in total. Would there really be that much space aboard to house and maintain all those craft?
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Re: Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
Let's see... the Nimitz-class is 340m x 78m (max beam) x 12m draft (I don't have the keel-to-bridge height.) That's 318,240 m^3.
The Venator is 166,984,368 m^3 by your figures. That's almost 520x the volume of the Nimitz-class. Even if we treble the Nimitz figures to adjust for height rather than draft, I'd say that's a bit better than four times the size.
The Venator is 166,984,368 m^3 by your figures. That's almost 520x the volume of the Nimitz-class. Even if we treble the Nimitz figures to adjust for height rather than draft, I'd say that's a bit better than four times the size.
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Re: Ship of the Week: Venator-class Star Destroyer
The Nimitz is 317m long, has a beam of 41m, and a hull depth of 30m - total volume roughly 390,000 m^3.SuperSaiyaMan12 wrote:More like almost four times as large man...hehehe...A Nimitz-class carrier typically carries 80 aircraft, so I don't see a problem with a ship over 30 times its size only carrying a little over five times as many, regardless of the greater size of the aircraft and the space devoted to heavy weapons.
The VenStar is 1137m long, has a beam of 548m, and a hull depth of 268m, and is a rough pyramid - total volume rougly 27,800,000 m^3.
My very rough estimate based on cubing the length difference was actually a massive underestimate - the VenStar is actually over seventy times the size of the Nimitz.
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