Amazon Class Long Range Patrol Corvette

Look at my railgun. This is the kind of gun they put SHIPS on. It wasn't a case of "Oh, we've got this warship, it needs something besides missiles and CQDS and shit, let's strap this thing on. NO. was a case of a guy making a railgun SO awesome that he just stepped back and said, "This shit needs a fusion drive." And everyone else is like , "You can't put a fusion drive on a gun!" And the first guy is all like, "Fuck you, yes I can. I will strap a SHIP to this GUN. " And everyone else is like, "You mean strap the railgun to the ship?" And the first guy is like, "No, man. I am strapping the ship to the railgun. The ship is an ACCESSORY." And then everyone's minds were blown. Like, there was serious mind blowing going on there. Ears were bleeding.

--Unattributed

The Amazon Class Long Range Patrol Corvette is a light patrol spacecraft in service with the TASA Space Corps. While the Amazon Class is not the smallest ship in the TASA inventory, it is the smallest combat ship capable of operating independently at interplanetary ranges. Because of this, it has become the most common TASA ship class.
The Amazon class is responsible for the majority of TASA's routine patrol and escort operations, leaving Frigates, Destroyers, and Cruisers to carry out more deliberate combat operations. This arrangement gives TASA a wide patrol net at minimal cost.

Features

Designed for maximum efficiency, the Amazon Class features an extremely compact design with as little wasted space or mass as possible. It is 65m tall from fore to aft, and __m at its widest. The cramped interior has led some crews to refer to the ship as a “Sardine Can.” Amenities are sparse, including a small galley/rec room, a gymnasium geared towards microgravity therapy, and a medical bay with _ beds. A hygiene room with vacuum showers is co-located with the gym.
The Amazon Class has a standard crew complement of 28 personnel and is usually captained by a Lieutenant Commander. It is often one's first command. Due to the limited number of beds, most crewmembers must double bunk based on shift rotation -- especially when Marines or other passengers are aboard. The ship can also support a four man team of Fleet Security Marines for boarding actions such as shipping inspections or anti-piracy operations.
Though it lacks much of the modularity enjoyed by its larger cousins, the Amazon Class has roughly the same general shape and layout. The ship has bilateral symmetry with a weapons module on the port and streb sides. As with most TASA ships, the combat information center is located mastward. It is divided between an Operations Deck and a Systems Control Deck. Opposite of the command module is the ship's primary airlock, where most hand weapons and vacuum suits are kept for boarding action and EVA.
The airlock module also has outboard mounting points for up to two Mule Class Tactical Launchs or other TASA Skiffs. These skiffs are routinely used in rescue operations or to send Marines to board and inspect merchant vessels. They can also be used to ferry personnel to and from the ship without making dock. Unfortunately, the skiffs can only be boarded by performing EVA, as they are housed externally.
With the standard drive assembly, the ship is capable of accelerating at a maximum of __ to __G (__ to __ m/s^2) depending on carried mass. The typical ∆V with a full tank of reaction mass is _______ km/s. External remass tanks can bring that range up to ______ km/s. For rare missions beyond __AU from Earth, an Amazon Class ship can be outfitted with an extended range drive assembly with a ______ km/s ∆V.
Each pressurized deck from the CIC to Engineering is accessible via a magnetic lift that runs the length of the ship on the keelward side. A pair of ladder on each deck can be used when the lift is out of service or would take too long. They are located on either side of the lift. Commanders usually dictate that each of the two ladders be limited to one direction of travel to avoid congestion. Care must be maintained when using ladders during combat, as the ladders’ hatches may shut automatically to seal off depressurized compartments.

Weapons

By far the most notable feature of the Amazon Class is the large railgun mounted to the spine of the ship. The __cm bore and __m length give the Amazon's railgun firepower comparable to one of the side mounted railguns on an Apollo Class Frigate. The railgun makes the Amazon a serious threat to other corvette sized ships or non-military craft within range. The ship can even pose a danger to larger ships if it possesses a tactical advantage such as the element of surprise. A well aimed shot from the Amazon's main gun could take out vital systems in a capital ship, or even a kill with a lucky shot on the reactor.
The other weapons, by comparison are rather meager. Each weapons module hosts a 14 cm light railcannon turret with a 360 x 190 degree firing arc and a VOMS missile battery capable of housing either 15 small diameter missile tubes or up to 3 medium and 5 small missile tubes (each small VOMS tube can carry two missiles each). Other common configurations are 2 medium and 8 small or 1 medium and 11 small tubes. Current tactics favor using higher quantities of missiles to saturate and overwhelm point defense systems. Since the Amazon Class can carry at most six medium missiles, these ships will usually be equipped with more small tubes instead. The missile batteries are all forward oriented like the main railgun, but once clear of the ship the missiles can burn on an opposing vector at the cost of some range. The ship is also dotted with a few CQDS point defense systems.

Combat Performance

Given the small size of the Amazon Class corvette, the ship is relatively fragile and cannot withstand protracted combat with a larger vessel. Most railgun or missile impacts are an instant kill for a ship of this class. Without any sort of escape pods, the crew survivability rates are extremely low. Any crew abandoning ship would have to don EVA suits or Anti-VAC gear and board one of the docked Skiffs or go on the float and hope for timely rescue -- an unlikely prospect on solitary patrols.
Despite its weaknesses, the Amazon Class has been able to participate in battles successfully. One technique involves grouping three or more corvettes in a “wolf pack” to force a larger enemy vessel to divide its focus between the ships. The wolf pack technique also allows the Amazon corvettes to overlap fields of point defense fire if they are within a few hundred kilometers of each other. This tactic usually results in one or more losses if the enemy is well armed.
Another tactic involves using one or more corvettes to shadow a larger ship such as a frigate or destroyer. The enemy will usually focus fire on the larger threat, allowing the corvette to engage unopposed. The corvette can also loan its point defense fire to the larger vessel as long as the enemy is focused on it. When the corvette comes under threat, it can try to use the larger ship as cover, using the drive plume to obscure targeting sensors.

consumables

The Amazon Class has two chambers of compressed air, allowing it to survive at least two complete depressurizations (more if nonessential decks are evacuated and vented ahead of combat). Catalytic CO2 scrubbers and emergency water catalyzers ensure that breathable air is not the deciding factor in a ship’s mission length. The ship also comes standard with a white water and gray water tank, as well as a waste water recycler.
At normal consumption, the ship could provide drinking water for 4-6 months without rationing. Gray water reserves aren't usually processed for drinking until the return trip on long journeys. The ship’s heads use waterless vacuum toilets and do not produce black water.
Food is usually the deciding factor on the length of a sortie, as it cannot be produced or recycled efficiently. The stores of perishable food usually last 3-4 months, whereupon the crew begins rationing the remaining food supply if they are not replenished. Meals are usually prepared by the automated kitchen unit, but basic kitchen appliances allow crewmembers with culinary skill to make custom meals to boost morale.

Export

TASA has exported the Amazon Class to a number of clients including India, the African Union, the Tranquility Republic and the Republic of Qamar. Many clients operate the Amazon Class as their main orbital patrol craft, while those with small space budgets even treat the Amazon Class corvette as their main line warship. Most Amazon Class ships destined for export lack the iconic spinal railgun, instead mounting additional missiles batteries in its place.
As with all TASA ships, export clients are forbidden from reverse engineering proprietary systems. The penalty for doing so includes a cessation of all active contracts with TASA (including ship software support and maintenance/refit), which is usually enough to deter such actions.

Class

Corvette

Owning Organization

Transnational Aerospace Security Alliance (TASA)

Height

65 meters

Complement / Crew

28 (standard): 4 Officers | 24 Enlisted

Cargo & Passenger Capacity

4-6 Marines or Passengers