Kiev and Maréchal

 

Common European Space Agency Destroyers

 

By Bryn Monnery, Laurent Esmiol, David Gillon and D Hebditch

 

Introduction

 

Although universally known as the Kiev Class after the Ukranian first of class, the Kiev and her sister ships resulted from a 2250s multinational programme snappishly titled as the Common European Space Agency Destroyer, or CESAD. The CESAD was a landmark class, being produced in large numbers for the ESA nations and other clients and being the first ship of its size to feature such a heavy missile armament and be capable of independent operations.

 

Over the succeeding half century the CESAD class has been upgraded, updated and modified, but is now universally regarded as obsolete. However in the midst of the Kafer War no quiet passage into retirement is possible for the survivors and like almost every other class of Terran warship these old ships have been flung into the front-line, performing ably even when newer designs were not available to back them. Equally the CESAD was also the progenitor for the classic Maréchal class destroyers which are still in frontline service with the MSIF and other nations

 

Acknowledgements

 

The concept of the Kiev as a common European design is by David Gillon. Artwork is by Laurent Esmiol. The spreadsheet at Appendix 3 is by Michael Bolda.

 

Below: HMS Camperdown and USS Reagan racing away form Adlerhorst orbit in response to a Kafer incursion into the Vogelheim system on 8 July 2301

 

Narrative

 

HMS Camperdown powered away from Adlerhorst orbit, pushing hard to get in position. The faster USS Reagan tore past the British ship to screen the redeploying human warships. Captain Richard Parsons settled himself on the bridge, trying his best to communicate calm to the rest of the crew.

 

It was hard to do. Three Kafer Beta class battleships were inbound into the Vogelheim system and there were only five human ships to meet them. The Reagan was a fast, powerful ship, but the other three ships were mere frigates, fine as guard ships but outclassed for what was coming. As for the Camperdown, well she was nearing 32 years in service. Most worrying for the crew was the fate of three of her cousins in service with the Ukrainians at Eta Bootis, all destroyed by the Kafers.

 

Parsons had spent numerous years in the service patrolling the frontiers of space, chasing the occasional pirate and protecting merchants during recent wars. He had spent almost as much time in simulators and on command courses learning the tactics of space warfare; only the very cream of the crop ever got command of an RSN warship. Yet this was his first time in real action, and the nerves were beginning to get to him.

 

Nevertheless he had faith in Camperdown, he had faith in his crew, he had faith in the other ships in the squadron and he had faith especially in the ship’s heavy missile armament. He would have to play this one very cleverly.   

 

Index

 

Development History

Design Characteristics

Service History

Statistics

Appendices

 

Above: The Sevastapol on OQZ patrol duties in the Sol system in 2295 having completed her latest refit. (Space Forces Monthly)

 

Development History

 

The concept of common ESA warships has its roots in the Alpha Centauri War and the ESA’s crash warship building programme. This resulted in several classes of warships being developed and built whose commonality and economies of scale allowed savings across the board. By combining cripplingly expensive research and development ESA managed to swiftly claw back the Argentine lead in warship technology.

 

By the 2230s the ESA nations had largely moved away from common designs, with the leading nations constructing their own warships. However the economic downturn of the 2250s combined with emerging markets for warship construction in non-ESA nations led to the idea gaining common currency again.

 

The driving force behind the idea was France, with strong support from the ESA shipbuilding industry. Ukraine had approached France with a proposal to purchase a number of destroyers and to protect her far flung colony at Eta Bootis. At the time the French had the innovative Ypres frigates about the enter production but this was not what Ukraine wanted. France started to float the idea of the CESAD as a cheap, but capable medium sized warship.

 

Reactions varied; Azania was positive as was Bavaria, although the British were less enthusiastic. A trawl of potential buyers outside of the ESA revealed that several nations would join with Ukraine in expressing interest in the CESAD. Consequently the programme was given the go-ahead.

 

France took the lead designing the craft although work was subcontracted around all the CESAD partners. The ship quickly took shape, perhaps too quickly as the Batch 1 CESAD craft were limited in their living quarters making them somewhat uncomfortable for their crews over long durations. The first CESAD, the Kiev, came out of the yards in 2258.

 

Production was split partly on workshare principles, but with a heavy bias towards pragmatism and construction efficiency. Where possible the purchasing nation was responsible for spaceframe construction and fitting out. Drive and power systems were produced centrally as was a significant proportion of the ship's combat systems but provision was made for the purchaser to customise the final weapon system configuration with their own preferred armaments and sensors. In practice this meant the French, British and Bavarian ships were almost entirely home produced, Azania built the spaceframe for her ships but transferred them to French yards for fitting out, while the Ukraine constructed hull modules for incorporation into spaceframes being built in French yards. Other nations bought complete vessels from the French production line

 

As combat ships however the CESAD were very capable and were a match for the much more expensive Ypres, and superior to the Manchurian Tunghus. The success of the design led to the design of a complimentary heavy ship the Common European Space Agency Cruiser, or CESAC, sometimes known as the Konstantin Class.

 

The second batch of the CESAD started construction in 2265 and was built with an extra two habitats to increase the living space for the crew. This ship was taken up by many of the buyers of the Batch 1 CESAD. Many lessons were learned from the CESAD programme but the French domination of the programme was increasingly resented by Britain and Bavaria and this was the last common ESA project to be launched.

 

The subsequent development of the stretched Batch 3 of the CESAD became an entirely French project which resulted in the Maréchal Class destroyer. The Maréchal was externally somewhat similar to the earlier CESAD but was internally equipped with an entirely new generation of avionics and sensor systems. The ship was substantially lengthened to include a lander hanger while a new ring habitat made the ship vastly more comfortable than its predecessors and giving the option of attaching mission specific modules.

 

The Maréchal set the standards for long range destroyers in the early 2270s and following upgrades are still respectable performers. New versions of the Maréchal were being produced for export into the 2290s and they have proved easy to upgrade. While more modern destroyers have greater combat power these classic ships have lost nothing in versatility.

 

Above: HMS Camperdown on operations in the Vogelheim system in 2300 as part of the International Peacekeeping Squadron. Camperdown and Copenhagen were the only CESADs still in operation with the RSN by this time. (RSJF Media Ops)

 

Design Characteristics

 

CESAD Batch 1

 

There were five key design characteristics for the initial CESAD design. These were:

 

-         Common hull design using standard RT2 composite materials. Whilst the sections had to be cast in a special facility they could be assembled in almost any shipyard.

 

-         Modular approach to internal systems allowing individual nations room to customise avionics, sensors and other systems.

 

-         A heavy missile armament to maximise long range firepower. A laser armament providing close defence and allowing close combat against smaller targets.

 

-         Protection in the form of hull armour and shields developed for the Ypres.

 

-         A commonly produced drive system utilising a French Alsthom designed 50MW fission reactor and a commercially available British Rolls-Royce Clyde-550 stutterwarp drive.      

 

Hull design

The hull is composed of three distinct parts all of which are armoured.

 

-         The bow contains the bulk of the operational, non-engineering, systems of the ship. Including the bridge, computers, TAC, sensors, stores, life support and almost all of the weapons. It also contains much of the ship’s recreation space.

 

-         The spin habitat, which includes only sleeping quarters and a very small med bay. These quarters are extremely cramped and are a bare minimum for extended operations.

 

-         The stern contains the fission powerplant and the stutterwarp drive. In addition the bulk of the engineering components and fuel is stored here.

 

Overall dimensions:

-         Length: 59 m.

-         Tonnage: 5410 tonnes

 

Armament

The armament on the batch one was fairly standard, although several nations used different systems the fit remained the same. However as the ships went into refit a greater divergence of system emerged. The initial layout was:

 

-         5 x Guiscard LL-55 laser weapons mounted in five turrets.

-         12 x CESAM carried in three bays located in the bow with three remote piloting stations.

 

Electronics

Sensor systems are provided by Darlan Opto-Physique whilst the targeting computer and combat system are based on the Black Arrow SSIS-2 developed for HMS Dreadnought.

 

-         Active with one working station:

-         DSAP S-2252. (Active: 10)

-         Passive with two working stations:

-         DSMSP S-2253T (Passive: 5)

-         Standard Navigation systems, Gravitational sensors, Deep system scanners.

 

Engineering Systems

-         Power Plant: Alsthom 50Mw fission reactor.

-         Drive:   Rolls-Royce Clyde 550 Old Commercial 30MW stutterwarp drive.

 

Crew

The Batch 1 has a total of 70 crew:

-         14 in bridge.

-         11 in TAC

-         37 in engineering.

-         5 troops.

-         1 in steward office.

-         2 in medical bay.

 

Living conditions in the Batch 1 are cramped and crowded, the spin habitats are used for sleeping only and are extremely claustrophobic. Life support is sufficient for 90 days of operations.

 

CESAD Batch 2

 

The main driver behind the Batch 2 design was to make the ship more comfortable for extended durations and make some minor improvements in the overall design.

 

Hull design

There only one change in hull design:

 

-         The addition of two extra modules in the spin habitat for a total of four. The two new habitats are attached via walkways from the existing habitats and braced using cables. 

 

Overall dimensions:

-         Length: 59 m.

-         Tonnage: 5450 tonnes

 

Electronics

The Batch 2 saw the introduction of a slightly improved passive system.

 

-         Passive with two working stations:

-         DSMSP S-2260T (Passive: 6)

 

Engineering Systems

Whilst most of the engineering systems remained the same, both the French and British upgraded the stutterwarp drive to a more advanced model.

 

Crew

While crew numbers remained the same the double of volume in the spin habitat made the Batch 2 a much more comfortable ship for its crew and extended range missions became possible. Indeed life support capacity has been increased to 120 days.

 

Below: Another shot of Camperdown at Vogelheim giving an excellent view of the extra habitat modules characteristic of the Batch 2 CESADs, making the ship much more comfotable for the crew. (RJSF Media Ops.)

Maréchal

 

Sometimes described as the Batch 3 CESAD, the Maréchal is in fact an entirely French project, albeit one that draws strongly on the CESAD series. It introduced several new design concepts.

 

-         A lengthened design for increased internal volume.

 

-         Updated systems including drives, sensors and combat system and materials.

 

-         Increased spin habitat volume and life support. Provision for specialist mission modules.

 

-         Lander bay giving interface capability.

 

Above: Modular sensor package developed for the Maréchal by Darlan. (Darlan Opto-Physique.)

Hull design
The main changes are.

 

-         Lengthened stern to enclose lander bay.

 

-         Spin habitat as a modular ‘ring’ rather than individual habitats.

 

-         The main hull is armoured with RSC 5 composite whilst the habitat is unarmoured and constructed from RTS 4 advanced synthetics.

 

Overall dimensions:

-         Length: 70 m.

-         Tonnage: 5860 tonnes

-         100 tonnes of fuel for small craft.

 

Armament

The overall layout of armament showed little change except for the innovation of UTES technology:

 

-         5 x Guiscard LL-69 laser weapons mounted on five UTES equipped turrets.

-         12 x Ritage-1 carried in three bays located in the bow with three remote piloting stations.

 

Electronics

The combat system saw substantial revision with the use of the Rochard P-15T combat system. 

 

-         Active with one working station:

-         DSAP S-2265. (Active: 10)

-         Passive with two working stations:

-         DSMSP S-2267T (Passive: 10)

-         Standard Navigation systems, Gravitational sensors, Deep system scanners.

-         Basic survey sensors.

 

Engineering Systems

-         Power Plant: Alsthom 50Mw fission reactor.

-         Drive:   Rouchard-Ligget  Propulseur Jérôme”  PJ-30; 30MW old military stutterwarp drive.

 

Crew

The Maréchal has a total of 73 crew:

-         14 in bridge.

-         11 in TAC

-         37 in engineering.

-         5 troops (can be expanded with correct modules).

-         1 in steward office.

-         2 in medical bay.

-         2 scientific.

-         1 small craft.

 

Living conditions in the Maréchal are well in advance on anything that has gone before, and are still some of the roomiest in service, adding to their popularity. The ship has 150 days of life support, giving it excellent endurance.

Above: The IFS Foch (D624) the lead ship of the Maréchaux. Although the oldest class of destroyer still operating in the MSIF these ships are still highly regarded by their crews. (MSIF Media Ops)

 

Statistics

 

CESAD Batch 1

 

Warp Efficiency: 2.57

Life Support: 90 days (72 personnel), Comfort: 0,

Price: 53 Mlv.

 

Ship Status Sheet

Movement: 5

Radial Reflected:   5(6)

Radial Profile:   -1

Screens: 2

Lateral Reflected:   8

Lateral Profile:   1

Radiated signature: 3(6)

Targeting Computer: +1

Armour:   4

 

Hits

Bridge: Captain, Helm, Navigator, Communications, Engineering, Computer.

TAC: Active Sensors, 2xPassive Sensors, 6xFire Control, 3xRemote Operators

Hull Hits: 48/24/12

Power Plant Hits: 66/12

Damage Control: 6 teams

 

Armament

5  x2+1 turrets for Ukraine or 5 x1dl for french ships.
5 TTA

12 CESAM with 3 datalinks or 12 Ritage-1 for French ships.

 

CESAD Batch 2

 

Warp Efficiency: 2.56 (2.84 on French and British ships)

Fuel: 20 tons (1 refuel for utility shuttle), Cargo: 450 cubic meters,

Life Support: 120 days (72 personnel), Comfort: 0

Price: 55.75 MLv. (75.25 MLv for upgraded drives)

 

Ship Status Sheet

Movement:   5 (6)

Radial Reflected:   7

Radial Profile:   0

Screens:   2

Lateral Reflected:   8

Lateral Profile:   1

Radiated signature:   3(6)

Targeting Computer: +1

Armor:   4

 

Hits

Bridge: Captain, Helm, Navigator, Communications, Engineering, Computer.

TAC: Active Sensors, 2xPassive Sensors, 6xFire Control, 3xRemote Operators

Hull Hits: 46 using Bryn’s rule (106)

Power Plant Hits: 66/12

Damage Control: 6 teams


Armament

5  x2+1 turrets for Ukraine or 5 x1dl for french ships.
5 TTA

12 CESAM with 3 datalinks or 12 Ritage-1 for French ships.


          Active 10     Passive 6.
          Hull points 56/28/14            Powerplant points:      66/12

Maréchal

 

Warp Efficiency: 2.76

Fuel: 20 tons (1 refuel for utility shuttle), Cargo: 290 cubic meters,

Life Support: 150 days (80 personnel), Comfort: 0, Price: 79 Mlv.

 

Ship Status Sheet

Movement: 6

Radial Reflected:   6

Radial Profile:   0

Screens: 2

Lateral Reflected:   8

Lateral Profile:   1

Radiated signature: 3(6)

Targeting Computer: +2

Armour:   3

 

Hits

Bridge: Captain, Helm, Navigator, Communications, Engineering, Computer.

TAC: Active Sensors, 2xPassive Sensors, 6xFire Control, 3xRemote Operators

Hull Hits: 62/31/15           

Power Plant Hits: 66/12

Damage Control: 6 teams

Armament

5 x1dl with UTES
12 CESAM with 3 datalinks or 12 Ritage-1
 

Above: The IFS Du Guesclin, HMS Sluys and the Württemberg above Tirane in 2262 comemorating the first major battle of the Alpha Centauri War fought between two Argentine warships and ESA auxiliary crusiers from France, Bavaria and Britain exactly 100 years before. (Space Forces Monthly.)

 

Service History

 

France

 

France purchased six Batch 1 CESADs, known as the Paladin Class, it then procured a further six Batch 2s as the Odysseus Class. The Batch 1 Paladins, Roland, Bertrand Du Guesclin, Montmorency, De La Tour d'Auvergne, Charles Martel and Cyrano de Bergerac were well received in-service and saw their last service during the Central Asian War in the core systems before being retired. The only combat loss was the Montmorency which was lost to Manchurian ambush. Some were sold on to French clients and others scrapped to recover the Tantalum used in the drive.

 

The Odysseus class; Odysseus, Agammenon, Menelaus, Hector, Achille and Ajax followed on swiftly after the Paladins and provided the mainstay of the French long range destroyer fleet in the late 60s and early 70s when they were increasingly supplemented by the Maréchals. The Odysseus were prominent in the early years of the Central Asian War especially operating against Manchurian privateers on both the French and Chinese Arms.

 

At the end of the Central Asian War and with the commissioning of the Patrie Class destroyers the Odysseus began to be paid off. The first three were sold to Azania while remaining three were retained in service following the rise in Franco-German tensions and saw service in the core during the 2292-93 war, when the Hector was destroyed in the Battle of Hochbaden, before finally being paid off being sold to Freihafen.

 

France took the lead with the so-called Batch 3 or Maréchaux and commissioned seven of these craft which were completed in the 2270’s. These were the Maréchal Foch, Maréchal Suchet, Maréchal Marsin, Maréchal Ney, Maréchal Bouvier, Maréchal Villars and the Maréchal Leclerc. These ships are the oldest destroyers still in regular MSIF service and are very highly regarded. They have seen heavy action against the Kafers with the Maréchal Suchet and Maréchal Bouvier being lost in action. 

 

Below: Maréchal Foch and Maréchal Ney of the French 3e Flotte's Division de Torpilleurs 31 being provisioned above Beta Canum-4 in Spring 2301. These ships would form the backbone of Rochemont's operations in the Beta Canum Cluster over the next year. Note the Foch is being fitted with troop accomodation modules. (MSIF Media Ops.)

Britain

 

Britain was always the most lukewarm of the ESA nations towards the CESAD project. They had already been proceeding with their own high-tech Dreadnought destroyer project, which the RSN had high hopes for. However the Dreadnought was a cutting edge design which had already suffered numerous cost overruns. The Treasury was looking for a way of curtailing these costs and along with the Foreign Office began to push for participation in CESAD. Ultimately a messy, very British, compromise was reached Dreadnought and her two sisters would be completed, but the MoD would purchase CESAD as its main combat destroyer of the 60’s and 70’s. She would also participate in the CESAC project.

 

The British purchased six CESAD, three Batch 1 ships and three Batch 2. These were named the Trafalgar, Nile, Sluys, Cape St Vincent, Copenhagen and Camperdown. The naming of these ships after victories over the French or French allies was noted in the popular press and perceived, rightly or wrongly, as the RSN’s commentary on being levered into the CESAD programme.

 

Once in service however the Battle Class proved capable and popular ships. Although not quite as cutting edge as the Dreadnoughts they were certainly more reliable and easier to operate. The Batch 1 ships operated almost exclusively in the core systems and were frequently deployed on OQC duties. The longer ranged Batch 2 were more frequently used as command ships for colonial squadrons on the French Arm and on patrols on the Chinese Arm.

 

Trafalgar, Nile and Sluys were eased out of service in the late-2270s, being sold on and were replaced by Resolution Class destroyers developed from the Dreadnoughts. However the 3 Batch 2 Battles were retained in service and continuously upgraded giving good service in the colonies in the unstable years of the Central Asian and German Reunification Wars.

 

Copenhagen and Camperdown remained in service through the 2290s although Cape St Vincent was retired due to a chronic drive malfunction. These ageing ships were retained specifically for peacekeeping duties in the Vogelheim system, with one routinely deployed to the system and the other refitting at Earth. Plans were well laid to retire these ships when the Kafer War erupted which led to both ships being retained during the hostilities.

 

Camperdown in particular wrote herself a glorious footnote to her service in action with the force protecting Vogelheim, and then as a part of Rochemont’s Fleet. She has since returned to Earth for a hero’s welcome, it is likely both ships will be paid off soon although there is talk about retaining them for core defence duties or converting Camperdown into a museum. 

Azania

 

Azania leapt at the opportunity to become involved in the CESAD programme and Azania was the main supplier of drive coils for export versions of the ship. Azania procured 3 Batch 1 CESAD Isandlwana, Nkandhla and Majuba which were used extensively as at the time they were the most capable ships in Azanian service.

 

A further 3 Batch 2s were procured as the Blaauwberg, Vegkop and Magersfontein specifically to support the expansion of Azania's colonial holdings at far off Joi in the 61 Ursae Majoris system. These were later supplemented with the purchase of three former French Odysseus Class CESADs due to the increased tensions at 61 Ursae Majoris caused by the Elysian Revolt. These ships were renamed as the Otavi, Mavinga and Mbholompo.

 

The hard used Batch 1s were increasingly used only as training ships and guard units in the Alpha Centauri system into the early 90s and they have since been sold on. To replace them three new build Maréchaux were procured: Shaka, Cetshwayo and Mbuoto

 

Bavaria

 

Bavaria was a keen member of the CESAD programme and adopted the design as the Württemberg Class. Bavaria built five Batch 1 CESADs as the Württemberg A class: Württemberg, Franken, Schwaben, Baden and Pfalz. These were, like so many of their sisters, mainly deployed in the core systems, although during the Central Asian War they were also deployed to beef up convoy escorts after these started falling prey to the long range fire power of Manchurian raiders. The Pfalz and Württemberg were both lost on escort missions.

 

After the war the Württemberg As were retained despite doubts about their capabilities in the modern space warfare environment. The three survivors were deployed as guard ships, a role they were in when the War of German Reunification broke out.

 

No fewer than six Batch 2 CESAD/Württemberg Bs were procured specifically to fill the long range patrol role for the far flung Bavarian colonies. These were Würzburg, Bayreuth, Regensburg, Hauptstadt, Neuklagenfurt and Freiburg. The only casualty during the service of these ships in the Bayersiche Stern Marine was the Haupstadt, lost in a fleet action with the Manchurian main force on the Chinese Arm.

 

A license to build five Batch 3 Maréchaux as the General class was purchased from France at the end of the Central Asian War, but only two, Wrede and Ruprecht, were completed before the outbreak of hostilities with France in 2292.

 

Germany  

 

The opening of hostilities with France in the War of German Reunification brought every Bavarian, whether born on or off Earth, face to face with the question of where their loyalties lay. For the crews of the ships of the BSM those questions also determined the future of their vessels. A single Württemberg A, Schwaben, passed into the service of reunified Germany, going on to play an important role in the battles against the French in the Eta Bootis Finger. Post-war the DSKM retired the ship, cannibalising parts to support the remaining Württemberg B's.

 

Three Württemberg B's rallied to the German cause, all surviving the war. However post-war they were placed in inactive reserve, their crews transferred to other vessels, where they remain. German losses on the French Arm have given rise to the possibility of these ships being reactivated to supplement the defences of vulnerable systems.

 

The first two of Bavaria's new Generals came over to the DSKM straight off their shakedown cruise, the remaining three, Gneisenieu, Lützow and Seydlitz, were actually commissioned directly into the DSKM beginning in early 2293. The Lützow was destroyed by the Kafers at the 2nd Battle of Beta Comae Berenices, whilst other ships of the class have also been involved in combat operations on the French Arm.

 

Freihafen

 

German reunification resulted in Bavaria joining a new German Bundesrepublik, but some of Bavaria's colonies did not want to become part of the new state. The most notable was the massive colony of Garten on Tirane with a population of 200 million, many of whose natives served in the Bayersiche Stern Marine providing a large proportion of its manpower. The colony also boasted its own system defence force, the Raumwaffe.

 

In the aftermath of the War of German Reunification Garten declared its independence as Freihafen and the Raumwaffe absorbed most of the BSM's assets in the Alpha Centauri system. This included no fewer than three Württemberg class destroyers; Franken, Bayreuth and Neuklagenfurt. Two of these were involved in the 3rd Battle of Alpha Centauri in 2294, staving off a German incursion into the system, and the Neuklagenfurt was knocked out and badly damaged by the Admiral Hipper after destroying a German frigate. The Neuklagenfurt was recovered but has never been repaired.

 

Following Freihafen's declaration of independence the new nation's government entered into discussions with France over the purchase of two Odysseus Class ships to bolster the Raumwaffe. This was agreed in 2296 and resulted in the transfer of Achille and Ajax. Today all four CESAD ships are still in operation, although the Franken is regarded more as a training ship than an operational warship. However all four vessels are aging and the Raumwaffe is pressing for the procurement of a new series of destroyers.

 

Heidelsheimat

 

Similar events to those on Tirane occurred in the remote Bavarian colony of Heidelsheimat as the senior BSM officers - including many Garteners - refused to acknowledge the orders of the newly formed DSKM. The small squadron stationed at Heidelsheimat included the Baden, which became the flaship of the newly independent colony, however the ship suffers from a chronic lack of spare parts and rarely puts out from the orbital terminal. Freihafen is regularly reported to be in negotiations to acquire the ship.  

 

Ukraine

 

Ukraine was a major force behind the development of CESAD, and the construction work on these ships provided the kick start for Ukraine’s small shipbuilding industry. Ukraine received the prestige of being the first nation to bring the CESAD into service as the Kiev Class.

 

Ukraine initially bought four Batch 1 CESADs; Kiev, Rostov, Sevastapol and Odessa. However in 2285 the Odessa disappeared en-route to Eta Bootis and has never been seen since, although rumours persist she was mistaken for a French Paladin and attacked by Manchurian privateers. To replace it the former HMS Sluys was purchased from the British and brought into service as the Dnipropetrovs'k.

 

The Ukraine space force has two main roles; defence of Ukrainian interests in the Sol system, with a contribution to OQZ, and defence of the Ukrainian colony at Eta Bootis. The Kievs provided a major contribution to this in combination with the Konstantins and Aconits. The Kievs were ageing, but had been upgraded and were still serviceable, if obsolete, by 2298.

 

When the Kafers invaded Eta Bootis in that year the Kievs were overwhelmed with the Rostov and Sevastapol being destroyed by Kafer forces while escorting fleeing merchants whilst the Kiev was destroyed during the 1st Battle of Tithonus. Only the Dnipropetrovs'k avoided the fate of its sisters being in deep refit at Earth during the early stages of war. However she formed a key part of the Ukrainian 3rd Squadron which fought at the Battle of Beowulf.

 

With her destroyer fleet devastated Ukraine has entered into negotiations with Britain to purchase her remaining Batch 2 CESADs which can be easily supported by Ukrainian industry. The war has made it unlikely that new build top line destroyers or second hand Maréchaux will be available from France soon.

 

Below: The Sevastapol and Kiev patrolling in the Eta Bootis system in late 2297 as tensions climbed following the loss of contact with Station Arcture. Both ships were lost the following year during the Kafer invasion of Eta Bootis. (Ukrainian Ministry of Defence.)

Other Nations

 

The CESAD had some notable successes as an export design, both new build and ‘second hand’. Many are still in service with a variety of nations and many have been radically upgraded to better suit their national requirements. 

 

Appendices


Appendix 1 – Common European Space Agency Missile


The CESAM was developed almost in parallel with the CESAD and was intended to provide a heavy hitting strike capability. Prior to its development most missiles carried an energy weapon and were really remote weapons platforms.


The CESAM project was led by a British design team but included substantial input from Russia and France. Once finalised the CESAM was adopted by most of the nations who signed up to the CESAD and CESAC designs, although under different names. It is known as Silka in Russia, and Selkie in the UK, while in France it was known as the DA-2260 and supplemented the Ritage-1. Although now obsolete and replaced by more sophisticated designs in the leading militaries examples of the CESAM and its derivatives are still in service with many space forces.

Combat Performance

 

Movement: 6
Radiated Signature: 1
Radial Reflected: 1
Lateral Reflected: 1
Radial Profile: -3
Lateral Profile: -4
Hull Hits: 1/1/1
Power Plant Hits: 1/1
Armament: 5x2
Active Sensors: -
Passive Sensors: -

 

Design Characteristics

 

Warp Efficiency: 2.99
Power Plant: 0.1MW Fuel Cell
Fuel: 0.045 tons; 1 hour
Mass: 12.3 tons
Length: 6m
Diameter: 1m
Price: Lv314,000

Appendix 2 – Design Notes


The Kiev and its large cousin the Konstantin have long been somewhat controversial in 2300AD terms. These two ships were detailed in the Star Cruiser box set and subsequently used in the Invasion sourcebook as being in use with a number of nations in addition to Ukraine. This has given rise to the common reaction; why would Britain or Germany be using a Ukrainian destroyer or cruiser? On the face of it something that seems at odds with their relative status in the 2300AD universe.


I
n response most people take the designs to be indicative of the sort of capability these ships should and design their own national, and slightly better, warships to fill the gap. This article takes the proposition that the ageing Kiev Class actually is in use with many nations, although not as a purely Ukrainian design, but an ESA one. While as a background 2300AD is not one that has a lot of international co-operation we feel this arrangement would fit nicely with the ‘Bonds of ESA’ described in the 1st Edition Players Manual.


R
eal life international cooperative designs have something of a chequered history; some have not come off, or had nations withdraw. Others, notably the Panavia Tornado, have gone on to have long and successful service histories.


The evolution of the CESAD through Batch 1 and Batch 2, and ultimately to the Maréchal came about as a response to the natural limitations of the original Kiev.

 

Appendix 3 – Current Dispositions


This spreadsheet contains the current dispositions of the CESAD ships.