Database and Lore

The Fibotartin Mark 1023 Class Battleship

*Spoilers if you haven’t read Gabatrix: The First Peace* “The Alara’jal can be identified by one ship, one that has served for almost 100,000 years. The Fibotartin is a behemoth capable of pulverizing any enemy warship in a one-on-one match. Thankfully, there are more of us than them,” A random Yutilian soldier sometime before the Rise of the Empire of Jalgren.            Of all the races, the Alara’jal are the biggest of the Itrean species. No doubt, their warships are equally impressive. However, despite their sizes, the Alara’jal are known for their small battle fleets. Resources often press them to fight against the odds, but even then, the Fibotartin is no laughing matter. Its sheer firepower is enough to obliterate most opponents with ease. Even the lone battleship can inflict substantial damage, and the Alara’jal are used to fighting more opponents than they can handle. Its history is a perfect reflection of the clan species as a whole. However, the Mark 1023 is possibly the last of the clan species’ ship engineering. Only time can answer that question if it truly is the last…. Design            The Fibotartin’s origins go as far back as 72,000 years ago. Its name simply translates to “Siege Tower” in the ancient Itrean language. At the time, the Alara’jal had a series of different warship designs. However, the lack of uniformity in warship designs often plagued past Alara’jal warlords. Parts wouldn’t match, maintenance was difficult, and mass production was cumbersome and slow. Past Alara’jal warlords would try to counter this issue by introducing gargantuan super dreadnoughts that could fight almost by themselves. However, even this method was dangerous. Supersized vessels were still vulnerable to nuclear strikes and can be reduced to burning hulks if the adjuncts weren’t careful. Indeed, the issue remained that the Alara’jal needed a ship design that would work.            The Fibotartin was one of the countless designs used by the Alara’jal during the age of New Space. However, by 100 years after the first design was shoved out of the yards, it was revealed that the build times were significantly less when compared to other warships of similar design. While its craftmanship was somewhat substandard when compared to other Itrean ships, it made up for it in heavy firepower and simplicity. It quickly became a favorite among the Alara’jal, even those that were forced into fighting. There was nothing particularly special about the Fibotartin, and even human scholars could compare the warships to the World War 1 Dreadnoughts of Earth’s past. This often included carrying multiple heavy railgun turrets, numerous autogun batteries, and heavy ballistic torpedo tubes for long-range battle. When compared to other clan species, the Fibotartin was no mere battleship, as the Alara’jal called them. It was a super dreadnought that could pummel opposition.            The Fibotartin would slowly gain fame as the prime warship of the Alara’jal clan. At a time when the Shal’rein used broadside battleships in space, the Fibotartin would tackle several ships in one battle. The Alara’jal saw a perfect balance of quantity and quality in this ship. It could protect larger ships and serve as the main frontline warship. At times, it became the only warship that would see combat. When times of peace flourished in the Alara’jal space, the Fibotartin would serve as the valiant protector against any invading fleets. They were more easily built, and parts were easy to replace. Even the term “Mark” only identifies the fact that the design had seen more improvements than any other warship. It is one of the oldest designs to survive in Itrean history. Even when Jalgren would make his advancements into Alara’jal space, he was met by a few of the defense fleet Fibotartins in hopes of repelling his assault.            During the Empire of Jalgren, all of the Fibotartins were retired and scrapped, replaced by the peace movements that existed in Alara’jal space. It wasn’t until the crumbling Empire and the Rise of the Rototrein Rebellion that the Alara’jal would be forced into combat once again. Even after 20,000 years, the ancient Fibotartin was revitalized. The only change that was made was the addition of a spinning centripetal ring. After the end of the Rebellion, the Alara’jal were on their own again. However, the warlords would rise to power. Once again, Fibotartin battleships would be the frontline hitters.            The Mark 1023 is the last known design of the Alara’jal clan. It features two triple railgun batteries, one dual railgun turret behind the dorsal bow turret, dozens of dual autogun turrets to shoot down enemy missiles, heavy-laden armor, and multiple bow tubes to launch ballistic nuclear and antimatter warheads. The ship is designed for basic purpose anti-ship warfare. Other ships that are more designed for specific tasks, such as dreadnoughts, base busters, or command ships, are used alongside the Fibotartin. However, the Fibotartin is generally designed as a multi-role vessel being a master of none. Their philosophy almost mirrors the Aksren: If there aren’t enough ships to get the job done, then just build more. History            While there is plenty of recorded history of the previous older variant Fibotartins, there is little information on the Mark 1023. Most of this stems from the issue that very few were built to start with. With the advent of the disease that wiped out much of the Alara’jal and the fact that the capital world had been taken, minimal infrastructure was available to build them. Indeed, only one shipyard: Zalri’Eko was constructing it. Most of the information provided from Itrean sources claims that little was done to improve it over the original Mark 1022. Only slight changes to the engines and the addition of two autoguns were the only major difference.            There were three battles that the Mark 1023 participated in, all but one being a victory. By that time, Zalri’eko was continuing to fight against inevitable defeat. It was suspected that only 11 Fibotartins were constructed in total in the final 40 years of its suspected life. It was suspected that shortages in crews were the determining factor in limiting more from being built. By the time of the final Battle of Jox’ta 3, four battleships, one cruiser, and one dreadnought would participate in the final battle of the Alara’jal clan. It would mark the end of the Alara’jal and eventually echo the reports that no further Alara’jal survived.            It wouldn’t be until much later, during the Emphra War, that the other Itrean clans would discover Zalri’Eko. However, with the Emphra in hot pursuit, little time was available to analyze the outpost. All Alara’jal stationed reported either dying from starvation/thirst or possibly ending their lives. Only a single uncompleted hulk of a Mark 1023 resided in Zalri’Eko shipyard beside the three completed dreadnoughts. No further attempts were made to uncover if any other Alara’jal warships left the station before its inevitable demise. *Spoilers if you haven’t read Gabatrix: Relics* It wasn’t until nearly fifty-five years later that a new expedition was launched to Zalri’Eko. Operation Reliquary was made by both the UHN and T’rintar clan alliance to investigate if there were potential survivors from Zalri’eko. During the daring raid on one of the listening outposts, it was revealed that a single Fibotartin Battleship had escaped Zalri’eko’s demise. The Alaron had jumped to the outer fringes of Itrean space to a habitable planet for the refugees to settle on. There, the survivors created a colony to grow and flourish. The Alaron was all but abandoned in deep orbit to remain as a relic of a bygone era.            However, the present caught up to the Alara’jal living on their peaceful planet. With Aksren forces investigating the wake of the UHN/T’rintar’s movements, they launched a reconnaissance fleet to combat any potential forces that lie in the remote system. With the help of the allied forces, the Alara’jal had managed to get the Alaron’s guns operating just enough that they surprised and destroyed one of the Aksren battleships.            With the Alaron, allied forces conducted a planetary evacuation for the Alara’jal. The thousands of inhabitants would safely jump away from the system back to the Sol System before the Aksren would launch another fleet to attack the system. With the Alaron secured and the Alara’jal living on Earth, a new initiative was made to restore the Alaron to its current battle status.            The fact remained that even with living Alara’jal, the number of survivors was still small. Over one thousand wasn’t enough to quantify a reviving military. This, accompanied by the fact that the people embraced pacifism, further called into question if the Alara’jal were willing to fight at all. However, a small group of Alara’jal did want to help provide a defense for Earth. The Alara’jal Lophen’heim (militia) was established, and an initiative was made to train and arm volunteers to operate the Alaron. The battleship was given a massive overhaul, replacing broken down equipment, salvaging parts, adding T’rintar equipment and weapons, and ensuring full operational status. The ship was officially added to the T’rintar clan fleet as part of the Earth/Itrea Defense Force.            Over Earth, the Alaron now serves as a training and defense combat platform. Its enormous size easily sits out in the fleet of smaller T’rintar warships. While its combat capability is somewhat degraded, it still serves as a sign of Alara’jal resistance. Debate rages if the Alara’jal will eventually see a new wave of Fibotartin construction, where the Alaron will serve as the basis of passing on the torch for the trained crews to man new warships in defense of their homeland. But, for now, the ship is to remain until the depletion of its replacement parts renders it unusable. Its legacy remains a testament of Alara'jal engineering.