by Ben Robinson
1 Bridge
2 Main Viewscreen
3 Cloaking Field Emitter
4 Cloaking Field Generator
5 Photon Torpedo Launcher
6 Short Range Sensors
7 Defensive Shield Plating
8 Central Navigational Deflector
9 Subspace Communications Antenna
10 Space Environment Sensor Group
11 Window
12 Plasma Power Conduit
13 Atmospheric Flight Flow Sensor
14 Defensive Shield Emitter
15 Tactical Command Transceiver
16 Port Warp Wing
17 Starboard Warp Wing
18 Active/Passive Targeting Sensors
19 Lower Wing Hinge Plates
20 Upper Wing Hinge Plates
21 Warp System External Resupply Connections
22 Deck 3 Cargo Bay External Access
23 Deck 3 Access Hatch
24 Subspace Communications Beacon
25 Deck 1 & 2 Dorsal Blister
26 Warp Wing Induction Energy Storage
27 Reaction Control System Thrusters
28 Warp Field External Shaping Plates
29 Disruptor Cannon Structural Extension
30 Wingtip Disruptor
31 Secondary Disruptor Cannons
32 Primary Disruptor Cannon
33 Deck 7 Loading Bay
34 Deck 5 Central Corridor
35 Escape Pod Launch Chute
36 Escape Pod Access
37 Deck 4 Officer’s Quarters
38 Deck 3 Officer’s Quarters
39 Captain’s Quarters
40 Ship’s System Monitor Room
41 Horizontal Decking
42 Vertical Frame
43 Deck 1 Storage
44 Deck 2 Storage
45 Bloodwine Barrel
46 General Storage Container
SPECIFICATIONS
Length
139.13m
Beam
210.28m
Height
42.51m
Mass
208,500 metric tonnes
Crew
36
Performance
Warp 9.6
OPERATIONAL HISTORY
There was little indication that the Rotarran would become so famous when she was built at Dek’Go’Kor in 2358 by the House of Gowron. At the time Gowron was building a political power base outside the High Council and the Rotarran was one of several ships under his control that patrolled the outer reaches of Klingon space.
After K’mpec died in 2367 the Rotarran was recalled to the heart of the Klingon Empire and took part in the Klingon Civil War, but although she was involved in a handful of skirmishes with ships loyal to the House of Duras, she wasn’t engaged in any major conflicts. Following Gowron’s victory, the Rotarran was assigned to patrol the Klingon-Cardassian border and consequently was part of the fleet that massed at Deep Space Nine in 2371 when Gowron declared war on Cardassia.
The Rotarran spent the next year fighting Cardassians with some success and the crew distinguished themselves with several notable victories, but when the Dominion entered the war things changed dramatically. The crew were horrified to discover that their ship was outgunned by the Jem’Hadar, who were routinely overpowering Klingon ships. For seven months, the Rotarran did little but run from her enemies. The crew became increasingly demoralised and dissatisfied. By mid-2372, they were convinced that victory was impossible, and that they were never destined to reach the gates of the Klingon Valhalla, Sto’vokor.
The Rotarran was commanded by General, later Chancelllor, Martok. Under his command she became famous as the ideal Klingon fighting ship.
However, at this point Gowron put General Martok in charge of the Rotarran and she began what would become a famous career. She earned a stunning series of victories in the Dominion War that culminated in her leading the Klingon fleet in the Battle of Cardassia.
Martok’s period in command did not begin well. He had only recently been rescued from a Dominion prison camp and his spirit was nearly broken. The crew he inherited were in an even worse state—constant defeats had broken their morale and left them in despair.
During the first mission Martok avoided combat and his very un-Klingon caution did nothing for the crew’s spirits. His lack of confidence actually led to him being challenged by his first officer, Worf. However, winning that challenge helped to rekindle his warrior spirit and the Rotarran completed her first mission by destroying a Jem’Hadar fighter and rescuing 35 Klingon survivors from the battle cruiser B’Moth.
The months that followed were bloody ones for the Rotarran, but under Martok’s command she became an efficient and deadly fighting ship. When the Dominion took control of Deep Space Nine she joined the combined Starfleet and Klingon forces based at Starbase 375, with the Second Fleet. This phase of the war was especially hard, with the Klingon and Federation forces constantly being forced back, but the Rotarran was revitalized under her new commander and scored some significant victories that culminated in the her leading the Klingon forces that helped to retake Deep Space Nine in the first significant Alliance victory of the war.
Shortly afterward, Martok was made commander of the Ninth Fleet. Rather than move his flag to a larger, more prestigious battle cruiser, he chose to keep it on the Rotarran, believing that a Bird-of-Prey was a true fighting ship and emphasising that he would lead from the front rather than from a flagship far behind the lines.
The next months saw Martok record some famous victories aboard the Rotarran, including one of the most important Alliance victories of the war – the Battle of Chin’toka, where the Rotarran distinguished herself. In early 2375, the Rotarran mounted the famous raid that saw her ignite a solar flare that destroyed the Monac shipyards.
Of course, the Dominion War was far from an endless succession of victories, and the Rotarran was one of only 14 Alliance ships to survive the disastrous Second Battle of Chin’toka, where the Breen Confederacy joined the Dominion and used a previously unknown form of energy dampening weapon to inflict a devastating defeat on the Alliance forces. Weeks later she barely survived the misguided attack on Avenal VII.
However, the Rotarran not only survived but was upgraded to resist the Breen weapons and was in the vanguard of the Alliance fleet that took Cardassia, finally bringing an end to the Dominion War in 2375. Martok himself had become Klingon High Chancellor in the weeks preceding the battle, but insisted on keeping his trusted Bird-of-Prey as his flagship, and as a result the Rotarran ended the Dominion War almost as famous as her illustrious commander and her deeds are still celebrated in songs throughout the Klingon Empire.
Martok regained his warrior’s spirit, when Worf made him fight for command of the Rotarran.
The I.K.S. Rotarran fires on a Jem’Hadar attack ship during the Dominion War.
DECK PLANS
DECK 1
1 Miscellaneous Systems
2 Corridor
3 Ladder from Deck 2
4 General Storage
DECK 2
1 Miscellaneous Systems
2 Overflow Bunks
3 Ladder to Deck 1
4 Corridor
5 Engineer ‘Lab’ Quarters
6 Washroom
7 General Storage
KEY TO HARDWARE
POWER GROUP
EPS SWITCHING NODE
POWER FREQUENCY INVERTER
BACKUP POWER CELLS
PRIMARY CAPACITOR BANK
KLYSTRON RELAY
STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY FIELD GENERATO
INERTIAL DAMPING FIELD GENERATOR
ELECTROHYDRAULIC SYSTEMS
COMMAND AND CONTROL GROUP
SMALL MONITORING CONSOLE
MULTI-OPERATOR CONSOLE
SYSTEMS CONTROL STATION
SYSTEMS DISPLAY REPEATER
DEDICATED HARDWARE ACTIVATION
COM PANEL
FABRICATION SUBSYSTEMS
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br /> MOLDS & COATINGS SUBSYSTEM
SIX AXIS MATERIAL SHAPER
MATTER SEPARATOR
TRANSPORTER SYSTEMS
EMERGENCY TRANSPORTER
GENERAL PERSONNEL TRANSPORTER
WARRIOR/CARGO TRANSPORTER
SENSOR AND COMMUNICATIONS GROUP
INTERNAL SENSOR
SENSOR DATA PREPROCESSOR
INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS NODE
EXTERNAL RF COMMUNICATIONS ANTENN
EXTERNAL SUBSPACE ANTENNA
SUBSPACE RADIO ASSEMBLY
EMERGENCY BEACON
ATMOSPHERE HANDLING GROUP
ATMOSPHERE RECIRCULATOR
LOCAL CONTAMINANT SCRUBBER
LARGE ATMOSPHERIC SCRUBBER
DUAL-GAS LIQUIFIED ATMOSPHERIC STORA
EMERGENCY OXYGEN SUPPLY
SPACECRAFT HARDWARE ELEMENTS
LADDER
REPAIR BENCH
SUB-FLOOR ACCESS
SMALL CARGO CONTAINERS
MEDIUM CARGO CONTAINERS
COLD STORAGE CARGO
VACUUM OR PRESSURIZED CARGO
BLOODWINE BARRELS
FLUID HANDLING GROUP
RESERVE DEUTERIUM FUEL STORAGE
IMPULSE DEUTERIUM FLOW CONTROLLER
DEUTERIUM CHILLER ASSEMBLY
TYPE I FLUID STORAGE
TYPE II FLUID STORAGE
TYPE III FLUID STORAGE
WATER-ONLY STORAGE
COOLANT RECIRCULATION
WASTE FLUIDS PROCESSING
CONDUIT PURGE FLUID RESERVOIR
SODIUM HEAT EXCHANGER
PRESSURIZATION GAS SPHERE
FLUID SCRUBBER/SEPARATOR
STANDARD FLUID PUMP
CRYOGENIC RECIRCULATOR
DECK 3
1 Main Engineering
2 Miscellaneous Systems
3 Cargo Bay
4 Quarters
5 Washroom
6 Computer Systems
7 Captain’s Quarters
8 Corridor
9 Transfer Aisle
10 Elevator
DECK 4
1 Main Engineering
2 Miscellaneous Systems
3 Cargo Bay
4 Quarters
5 Escape Pod Chutes
6 Tactical Conference Room
7 Forward Impulse Engine
8 Transporter Pad
9 Engineering Support
10 Upper Impulse Engines
11 Sensor and Communication Systems
12 Ladder to Deck 4 Entry/Escape Hatch
13 Ladder from Deck 5
DECK 5
1 Main Engineering
2 Impulse Engineering Support
3 Systems
4 Food Preparation
5 Consumables Storage
6 Mess Hall
7 Medical Bay
8 Weapons Lockers
9 Warrior Gear Storage
10 Training Hall
11 Medical Bay Overflow
12 Transverse Corridor
13 Washroom
14 Transporter Room
15 Auxiliary Control
16 Central Corridor
17 Escape Pod Chutes
18 Bridge
19 Ladder to Deck 4
20 Sensor & Communciations Systems
21 Ready Room
DECK 5L
1 Cloaking Generator
2 Generator Transverse Plasma Conduit
3 Ladder to Decks 5 & 6
4 Computer Core Processor Module
5 Computer Core Access Well
6 Catwalk
7 Cargo/Torpedo Elevator
8 Cargo/Torpedo Transfer Track
DECK 6
1 Torpedo Launcher
2 Docking Vestibule
3 Catwalk
4 Cargo/Torpedo Transfer Track
5 Ladder from Deck 5L
6 Lower Computer Core
7 Cargo/Torpedo Elevator
8 Port Torpedo Storage
9 Starboard Torpedo Storage
10 Torpedo Special Ops
11 MIscellaneous Systems
12 Transverse Cargo/Torpedo Track
13 Port Fabrication &Repair
14 Starboard Fabrication &Repair
15 Raw Materials Storage
16 Molding & Coating Facility
17 Astronics Repair & Storage
18 Weapons Lockers
19 Deuterium Fuel Storage
20 Main Engineering
21 Engineering Support
22 Lower Impulse Engines
WEAPONS AND DEFENSIVE SYSTEMS
With few exceptions, every mission of a B’rel-class Bird-of-Prey will involve the use of at least one active weapon in the ship’s arsenal as well as the defensive shields, subspace signal intelligence devices, and stealth measures such as the cloaking generator.
The two primary weapon systems chosen by every modern Klingon commander are the plasma-powered disruptor cannon and the photon torpedo. Variants of both weapons have been available throughout the history of the vessel class and have been honed to a high degree of efficiency and lethality, often with an ‘acceptable’ trade-off of higher risk to the safety of the crews using them. Disruptors run hot from increased plasma pressures and shot frequency, and photon torpedoes have been known to detonate prematurely or track friendly targets, but the Empire continues to produce large quantities of weapons that it knows are proven in battle.
Protecting a Bird-of-Prey goes hand in hand with its offensive systems. High-energy EM shield envelopes stop most beam weapons and torpedoes early in a fight, backed up by hardened hull plating and structural integrity fields. False identifier codes, deceptive sensor echoes, and communications meant to confuse the enemy are all tools accessible to the warrior crews. Energy for all main systems, including weapons and defense, comes from the ship’s twin warp cores, which are doubly surrounded by additional layers of plating. Perhaps the most intriguing use of that power lies in the cloaking generator, which renders the ship nearly invisible in all wavelengths to an adversary’s sensors. While the majority of the B’rel-class vessels cannot fire weapons when cloaked, the Galaxy was witness to a Bird-of-Prey that could, and future developments from the Empire must be closely watched . . .
DISRUPTOR CANNONS
The Bird-of-Prey’s primary weapons are twin disruptor cannons at the tips of the wings. In contrast to Federation ships, which use phasers—a form of directed energy beam—the disruptor cannons fire bolts of superheated plasma that is drawn from the warp engines, through the wings and into the cannon itself, where it is compressed and accelerated before it is fired.
Each disruptor assembly consists of primary and secondary cannons, two stages of accelerator, superconducting toroids that hold a reserve supply of plasma, a cryogenic system that cools the disruptor after it is fired, targeting systems and torsion arms that can adjust the exact angle of fire, and krogium particle injectors, which bind the plasma together so that it doesn’t dissipate before it is delivered to its target.
The cannons are most effective when the wings are in the down position. In this alignment, internal systems constrict the central conduit putting the plasma under greater pressure and increasing the energy density, all of which makes the plasma bolt more powerful. Plasma bolts can, of course, still be fired with the wings in the horizontal and even in the landing position, but the plasma has a far lower energy yield and causes less damage. For this reason, a Klingon commander will typically lower the wings to the ‘attack’ position before dropping the cloak.
Today’s standard Bird-of-Prey wing-mounted disruptor weapon retains a number of operational features originally developed in the 2140s, most importantly those related to the way the components connect with one another.
Superhot plasma generated by the twin warp cores is channeled into the wingtip disruptor assemblies for compression, acceleration, and firing. Redundant conduits off the main wing plasma tunnel converge on the disruptor plasma supply duct
, and from there feed into the first-stage accelerator and superconducting reserve toroids.
