Database and Lore

The Hiko Mark 1 Class Heavy Assault Carrier

* Spoilers if you haven't read past Gabatrix: The First Peace arc* “The great carriers of the Shal’rein are no laughing matter. They are better than anything. They are the means to the beginning and ending to a ground invasion,” a Yutilian centurion. As the Itrean Civil War was near the initial beginning, the Shal’rein clan knew immediately that they needed to get a replacement vessel for the aging Tiltras. They got their wish. Although delayed in construction, the Hiko class Assault Carrier would fill the ranks of the incredible ground combat capabilities of the Shal’rein to such an extreme ability that it’s easily able to dominate planetary invasions. Design Prior to 2339, the Shal’rein clan’s economic troubles and fleet assets were degraded. While there was still a strong desire to have a viable set of warships, much of the former glory days of the pre-Emphra warships were coming to a close. This forced the clan to adapt to their new classes of vessels that could try to stay on par with the T’rintar and Aksren clan fleets. This by no means meant that the Shal’rein were inept or inadequate in future space combat. If anything, the Shal’rein knew that they needed to keep up and introduce newer and better equipment. The Hiko class is, by all means, an overhaul of the Tiltra class, an already popular if mostly antiquated vessel by the 2350s. Shal’rein assault carriers were considered bulky but incredible warships. Their abilities in serving as aerial gunships, troop and vehicle deployers, aerial launch platforms, and makeshift command posts make them virtually indomitable. The Hiko was, by all means, the best assault ship that any Itrean clan would ever see. The conjunction of light railguns, heavy CIWS batteries, intercept missiles, and heavy interceptors and gunships meant they could rake ground defenses with ease. As a tradition, the carriers are easily able to land on the water and deploy their soldiers to fight underwater. The carriers can carry submersibles, tanks, and even the mighty light mobile ground carriers to other worlds in space. The carrier is essentially two vessels in one. Similar to how UHN assault ships function, the rear engine module and habitation ring can disconnect while the main carrier performs the ground invasion. Both the lander and engine module can operate independently of one another in full scale operations. When pressed, the Hiko does carry one dual heavy railgun turret. This can be fired from the ground towards orbital resistances or against other warships. The vessel also carries a formidable anti-missile and anti-aircraft armament, even if it is mainly meant to engage ground targets. The rear centripetal rotating engine module is also designed to incorporate a railgun to fire down at ground emplacements. Inside, the carrier can house hundreds of battle tanks, thousands of soldiers, or other variations of vehicular equipment. Technically, the carrier can’t operate underwater but can easily land and operate on the surface. The Shal’rein have other assault carriers that are more attuned to underwater operations. Much like many of the Itrean planetary assault carriers, the Hiko does carry slot side launchers to deploy planetary aircraft upon atmospheric entry. History While construction of the Hiko was limited due to the temporary ceasefire from Zilik’s Disease, this didn’t stop the Shal’rein from slowly building up its assault carrier force. Technically, ground invasions were rare for the Itreans, even by the 2340s, but this didn’t stop the carriers from being utilized. Even in non-combat operations, the carriers can still move soldiers or serve as highly defensible transports. The Hiko was still a terrifying sight on some occasions. Even if forced into ship-to-ship combat, the vessel was quite formidable and able to challenge other Itrean battleships in battle. Only a few times did the Hiko make any attempts to engage in contentious battles on a planet. The most noteworthy would be the attempted invasion of the Aksren world Praxen. It would be one of the few but failed offenses of the Shal’rein clan. The Aksren fleets placed a valiant defense against the Shal’rein clan attack. Many of the Hikos and other transports were destroyed before they even reached the ground. A few of the Hikos did manage to reach the surface and deploy ground vehicles, but by then, the Aksren defenses completely overwhelmed the opposition from orbit and on the ground. Many Itrean analysts claim that the Hiko was far from inferior. It was simply outnumbered and outgunned. Regardless, Praxen has been far from ever damaging the reputation of the craft. If anything, the carrier has still performed rather well, being the most powerful assault craft in current Itrean possession. At the current moment, the Shal’rein clan wishes to remain focused on producing more viable warships rather than attack transports. Rumors do persist that the Shal’rein are going to replace the Hiko with the new Mark 2. This is in response to the T’rintar clan Tiltra Mark 2 that was recently introducd in 2348. * Spoilers if you haven't read past Gabatrix: The Violet Wave arc* The Hiko class Carrier would gain a notable reputation when a single ship of its class, the Garja, had managed to score a critical moment with the UHN. Led by Lesser Adjunct Shira’s planned assault, the Garja almost singlehandedly engaged and wiped out the entire ground defenses of the Aphadus military base. The Garja’s defenses and interceptors quickly eliminated all the planetary aircraft. According to Shira, long after she had defected, the carrier was more than adequate in its job. No ground vehicles were ever needed, as the vessel was more than capable of wiping out all resistance. After Shira’s defection, the Garja was interned by the T’rintar clan. At the current moment, it's being kept at New Atrea pending reassignment for the T’rintar Shal’rein to utilize in their Tiltra carrier divisions. According to the T’rintar clan, capturing enemy vessels is especially difficult. However, defections are slowly on the rise, and future interned ships may start to fill the ranks of the clan fleets.