Apollo class

Name: Apollo class Type: Light cruiser Affiliation: Star Empire of Manticore Date Introduced: 1856 PD Mass: 126,000 tons Length: 438 m Beam: 46 m Draught: 35 m Acceleration: 414.2 G (517,8 G maximum) Crew: 493 – 35 Officers – 315 Enlisted – 143 Marines Armament: Broadside: 5M, 6L, 4CM, 4PD Chase: 2M, 1L, 3CM, 3PD

The Apollo class was a class of light cruisers of the Royal Manticoran Navy.

Design

They were beam-centric units designed for anti-piracy operations, based on a design study from 1846 PD that focused on overall protection and anti-missile defenses on extended deployments, primarily in the Silesian Confederacy and similar areas.

Apollos were designed to fight a closing battle while maneuvering into beam range, and had electronic countermeasures and sidewalls as strong as some older heavy cruisers, and heavier armor than most light cruisers. The beam armament came at the expense of the missile capacity, leaving only five tubes in each broadside. (Companion)

History

The first seven ships were delivered to the Navy between 1851 and 1856 PD. The Jordan Cartel was awarded a production contract lasting through the 1860s, but three of the first twelve ships failed their full-power trials due to structural flaws. The following scandal forced the Navy to cancel all its contracts with the Jordan Cartel, and start a lengthy investigation. Construction of further Apollos was given over to the Hauptman Cartel; following the investigation, that company was also awarded the remaining hulls still in Jordan's possession for salvage. Hauptman received contract renewals in the mid-1860s and early 1870s PD.

The Apollo class underwent three major refit cycles to update their systems, and served in various roles throughout the Havenite Wars. The remaining units -- of a total of 132 built -- were prepared for decommission in the early 1920s PD.

The Apollo hull was also used as the basis for the Talisman class intelligence-gathering cruiser.

Following the success of Talisman-class, and disappointed by the performance of more recent RMN light cruiser designs, the Admiralty authorized additional Apollo-class ships. This Flight IV version of the class traded broadside lasers for  two additional countermissile tubes per broadside, for a short time being informally known as the Artemis-class. The distinction disappeared as the Flight I ships were deactived and replaced by Flight IV units, with most of the remaining Flight II and III units being refitted to match the Flight IV armanant scheme. (HH3, Companion)

Known ships of the class

• HMS Apollo
• HMS Adonai (HH8)
• HMS Agni (HH4)
• HMS Amaterasu
• HMS Anubis
• HMS Aphrodite
• HMS Ares
• HMS Arethusa
• HMS Artemis
• HMS Athena
• HMS Chiron
• HMS Hera
• HMS Hermes
• HMS Iris
• HMS Leto
• HMS Perseus (CL-92)
• HMS Poseidon
• HMS Thetis
• HMS Xanthus