Stock Ships:
The Missing Vessels

An Official Supplement
for West End's Shatterzone

Barracuda Class Destroyer

By Dave Pilurs
All Material © 1995 West End Games

The Barracuda is the current standard Fleet destroyer armed with nuclear weapons and equipped with boosted Serenium shields. Before the reintroduction of nuclear warheads in the Fleet inventory and before the invention of shield boosters, the Barracuda was designed and intended as a dedicated convoy escort and fleet defense ship. It filled both these roles with great efficiency, but at some point its importance grew. With nothing more than the addition of nuclear missiles and shield boosters, the erstwhile escort ship became a small-but-powerful capital ship in its own right. .

With as many as 8,000 hulls in service and ripe for refit, the Barracuda became a hip-pocket enforcer of Fleet policy. With a delivered cost less than 10 million credits, the Barracuda will remain one of the most dominant Fleet warships ever constructed for decades to come. As it is, wherever a major Fleet action is underway, Barracudas ride the strike group's flanks and support the fighters with nuclear firepower. Eventually, anyone visiting any system with a dedicated Fleet presence will find at least one Barracuda-class ship orbiting overhead or on maneuvers nearby.

The only feature most Barracudas lack is Skipjump drive, but this will change in the next 10 years. As Fleet turns its greatest emphasis from the Near Colonies and Inner Frontier to the Shatterzone and Outer Frontier, it will need a rough-andready ship to support its carriers and dreadnoughts. For this, the Barracuda is an ideal choice.

The only thing preventing the Admiralty from simply scheduling every Barracuda in the inventory for Skipjump drive installation is the cost. A Skipjump drive still costs 6 times as much as a standard QDrive. When the price falls (as it must), the installation will begin. Until then, the Barracuda stays on the Consortium side of the 'Zone.

Fleet regards this ship as military hardware, especially when armed with nuclear weapons. That hasn't stopped privateers from snapping up surplus hulls and refitting them for their own use. It hasn't stopped planetary governments from purchasing the ships from the Consortium, either. The ship exists in a shocking array of versions and variants. Most of them remain tough enough to travel anywhere on the Consortium side of the 'Zone, and some of them could vie for the honor of being, ton-for- ton, the most vicious ship ever constructed.

Many small-time privateer captains lay awake when they should be sleeping, imagining the big score that will let them buy into this part of the space traveler's dream. But for most of them, the possibility of owning this ship is only a dream. The vessel is a valuable commodity, and fetches top credits even in the aftermarket.

Of course, for those with connections, nothing is impossible. Operational Barracuda hulls have had their ownership transferred from one owner to the next for as little as 50% of their cost new, but you can bet that those ships are few and far between.

Total Tonnage: 2,678 tons
Available Tonnage: 170 tons
Mass Value: 33
Cost: 8,203,000 Cr
Stealth: 4 W vs Radar)
Crew: 36 + 4 Passengers for 6 months + Coldsleep
Maintenance Cost; 5,250 Cr every 6 mos.

Cargo Capacity
Ammo Bays: 72 tons allocated to store missiles. 48 tons allocated to store mass driver reloads. 36 tons allocated to extra blaster cannon barrels.
Segmented Bays: 12 tons allocated for computer bays. 42 tons allocated for drive bays. 18 tons allocated for equipment bays. 36 tons allocated for equipment lockers. 30 tons allocated for reactor bays. 30 tons allocated for segmented cargo bays (Oxyfor 15). 18 tons allocated for sensor bays. 60 tons allocated for weapon bays. 4 tons allocated for weapon lockers.
Pod Bays: 40 tons allocated ibr escape pods.

Sensors
Diagnostics: (26 units)
Visual Scanners: (26 units)
Passive: Scanners (0- 3/10/20/40/100): Scanners front, back, left, right, up, down
Radar, Type C (0,3/10/20/40/100): Scanners front, back, left, right, up, down
Visual (0,3/10/20/40/100): Scanners front, back, left, right, up, down

Weapons

Gatling Blaster 7 (1-5/8/10/20; dam: 45): 8 mounted in 4 twin turrets. 1 turrets mounted left; cover front, back, left, up, down. 2 turrets mounted right; cover front, back, right, up, down.
Mass Driver (3-10/20/30/75; dam: 39): 4 mounted in 2 twin turrets. I turret mounted top; covers front, back, left, right, up. 1 turret mounted bottom; covers front, back, left, right, up.
Missile Launcher (5- 25/50/100/200): 6 Launchers; 3 mounted left, 3 mounted right.
Stiletto HE: 36
Stiletto NUC: 36
Missile Launcher (5- 25/50/100/200): 18 launchers; 4 mounted front, 4 mounted back, I mounted left, I mounted right, 4 mounted top and 4 mounted bottom.
Hull Toughness: 30
Max Wounds: 11
Facings: 9
Armor: + 11/41
Armor Points: 99
Shields: SER +7/48; w/Boosters: +3/51
Shield Configuration Points: 63; w/Boosters: +27/90
Reaction Drive: Value 38
Propulsion Points: 7 PP
Maneuver Rating: -3
Quantum Drive Rating: 34
Energy Plant: 4 Value 13 Fusion Reactors
Total Energy Points: 720 w/2 reactors running @ 90% efficiency

Energy Point Breakdown: *Life support: 99 *Cargo Life Support: 8 *Cargo: 42 Gatling Blaster Turrets (4): 72(288) Mass Driver Turret(2): 3(6) Missile Launchers(24): 1(24) *Shields: 27 Shield Boosters: 45 *Diagnostics: 26 Internal Visuals: 26 *Passive Sensors(6): 2(12) *Radar C *Units(6)-.5(30) *Visual Sensor: 5 Boarding Tubes(2): 500) Comm Scramblers(2): 10(20) *Reaction Drive: 72 Q-Drive: 90 *Computers: 12

Vital Energy Points: 333
Available Energy Points: 387
Energy Points Required to Power All Systems: 731
Reserve Energy Generation Capability: 720 EPs from 2 reserve reactors

Computer System: 3 CPV 13 computers
Computer Point Value: 800 CPs w/2 computers online ,

Computer Point Breakdown: *Life support: 99 *Cargo Life Support: 8 *Cargo: 42 Gatling Blaster Turrets (4): 7(28) Mass Driver Turret(2): 602) Missile Launchers(24): 5(120) *Shields: 27 *Diagnostics: 26 Internal Visuals: 26 *Passive Sensors(6): 2(12) *Radar C Units(6): 3(18) *Visual Sensor: 10 Boarding Tubes(2): 3(6) Comm Scramblers(2): 10(20) Q-Sync Disrupter: 8 Q-Syncer: 3 T-Sync Disrupter: 8 T-Syncer: 3 VR Goggles(20): 1(20) *Reaction Drive: 72 Q-Drive: 47 *Energy Plants: 52 AutoScan 12: 10 EP Coordination +3: 7 *Gee Comp 7: 7 Navigation, QDrive: 5 Probe, Ship,to-Ship: 12 React 13: 6 Q-Sync: 1/shp Seeker +4(24): 5(120) Shield Boost +3: 7 Shunt 15: 7 Targeting +5(12): 3(36) T-Sync: 1/shp

Vital Computer Points: 373
Available Computer Points: 427
Computer Points Required to Drive All Systems: 808
Reserve Computer Points: 400 from I reserve computer.

Notes:
Ammo Bays contain 5 missiles for each missile launcher. Ammo Bays contain 80 Mass Driver Reloads (100 shots/gun). Ammo Bays contain 56 extra blaster cannon magazines for Gatling Blasters.
Ship's computers contain 2 complete sets of the software shown above.
Ship equipped with 2 Q-Drive units, extra Serenium, and Type 3 Shield Boosters.
Equipment Bays contain two 5- man Boarding Tubes and 6 EVMS Units. Equipment Lockers contain 40 ENVI suits and 36 Mag Clamp sets.
Hull coated with chromatic stealth paint (+3 stealth vs. radar). Pod Bays contain 8 EV5 Escape Pods.
Weapon Lockers contain 36 Furtherman F20 Military Laser Rifles and 144 extra magazines.
Ship carries 2 Comm Scramblers, 20 Decoy Pods, 2 Distress Beacons, 2 IFF Transponders, 2 Q-Sync Disrupters, 2 QSyncers, Shield Blinds (cancels +3 Bonus on Scan vs. Shields), 2 T-Sync Disrupters, 2 T-Syncers, and 20 sets of VR Goggles.
Ship equipped with two 5-man Airlocks, a 4-man Bridge, 16 gunner stations, an 8-bed Infirmary, a 20-man Deluxe Lounge, a 10-man Basic Lounge, 40 Coldsteep modules, 6 Alert Crew Quarters, ten 1-man Rooms, ten 2-man Rooms, 4 VIP Quarters, an 8-prisoner Brig, and a 5-man Repair Shop.

External Damage Chart

    1-2: Shield Blinds
    3-4: Reaction Drive
    5-6: Shields
    7: Weapons
      1-3 Gatling Blaster Turret (1-4)
      4-5 Mass Driver Turrets (1-2)
      6-10 Missile Launchers

    8: Maneuver Rating
    9: Sensors
      1-3 Passive Scanners (1-6)

      4-8 Radar Type C (1-6)
      9-10 Visual

    10: Airlock

Stock Ships: The Missing Vessels An Official Supplement for West End's Shatterzone

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