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Space Fleet
Before there was Battlefleet Gothic, GW produced a simple little game known as Space Fleet. Very basic in nature
(and using a silly game mechanism for combat) it lasted a short while before disappearing. Barely worth mentioning,
except for some excellent starship miniatures produced for it, the Imperial 'sword' ships. I meant to buy some, but never
got around to it, and before I knew it, they were gone. Later, when 'fleet scale' was developed, I realised these ships
would be perfect and went about acquiring some. There are many more ships in this range, but I was only interested the
the sword ships.
I've used the below images (taken from the net) until I could get my own painted. |
Gothic BattleshipThis battleship is the mainstay of the Imperium, forming the core of most
Imperial battlefleets. Operating in squadrons or individually, they bring both the protection and the
authority of the Imperium to the star systems they visit. In battle, the vortex torpedos and powerful
laser batteries make it a dangerous opponent, while its own strong shield defences protect it from
enemy attacks. |
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Firestorm CruiserPatrolling the vast areas of the Imperium, Firestorm squadrons hunt down
pirates and rebels, watch for signs of alien invasion, and fight innumerable small battles at the fringes
of Imperial space. Similar in design to the Gothic battleship, it relies on its greater speed to respond
to unexpected enemy manoeuvres or move to exploit weakness in the enemy line. These cruisers
jump from system to system, maintaining regular contact and reaffirming the ever watchful presence
of the Imperium. |
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Cobra DestroyerUsually acting in support of battleship squadrons, Cobra
destroyers are among the fastest warships in the Imperial Fleet. They operate in large squadrons
and move into close contact with the enemy before firing their lasers and vortex torpedos. |
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Overlord SDNRarely used to patrol the Imperium's many star systems or to resolve
minor disputes, the Overlord is designed exclusively for war. Its role is to fight in the huge battles the
Imperium wages against its most powerful enemies. The firepower of these vast ships is capable of
reducing enemy ships to rubble, and are often chosen as the flagships of large important battle fleets
when the Imperium gathers the fleets for war. |
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Conversion Notes
Converting the above ships held an interesting problem. The actual models are slightly too small for their given classes
when using regular scale and too big when using fleet scale. Since I wanted to use them for fleet scale, I settled on a
compromise. I use each model for the next ship class in size instead of the one it was designed for. So I use the cobra
model for the firestorm cruiser, the firestorm for the gothic battleship, and the gothic becomes the new ship class, the
Overlord SDN. I use smaller generic models for the cobra destroyer squadrons.
The Overlord SDN is actually a cross between a double sized Gothic battleship and the Emperor Capital ship (not
shown). All special weapons (on all ships) are energy torpedos. There are several more ships in this range which I haven't
created ship displays for, either because I don't have the stats, or I didn't like the models.
For regular scale use them as shown but ignore the Overlord SDN, as it doesn't actually exist. |
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