Database and Lore

The Kiyliy Class Gun Dreadnought

*Spoilers if you haven't read past Gabatrix: The First Peace arc* “Shal’rein dreadnoughts might be easily dismissed as a lesser threat when compared to the Aksren and T’rintar dreadnought variants, but the Kiyliy is still dangerous. The Shal’rein know how to use them, and they have many of them,” Fleet Adjunct Iol Designed as a replacement for the Mondra and Oldra class Dreadnoughts, the Kiyliy would not only be suitable warships but one of the better ships in the clan fleet inventory. Their technological innovation would help forge the Yu’il class Battleships and serve as viable fire support platforms. Entire strategies and tactics have been remade thanks to their introduction; however, they had faced a troubling beginning. Design The Kiyliy class, as expected, is a direct continuation of the Mondra class Dreadnoughts. The entire frame uses a similar layout and design. However, the most significant difference is that the Kiyliy would incorporate numerous changes in armament. For one, the ventral bridge was moved to the bow, and the reliable short-range CIWS/Missile batteries were included in the front dorsal and ventral sections. The powerful two twin heavy railgun turrets have been incorporated into the hull. Four light railgun turrets also mark the sides of the frame to provide additional firepower. The incorporation of so much firepower meant that an enormous amount of energy would be needed to fire them. One of the biggest learning experiences in the Shal’rein clan was the issues with the Qitilix class Battleships. Their sheer power draw put enormous stress when the dual twin medium railguns had to be fired. The dreadnoughts of the Kiyliy class would solve this problem. The design structure saw a fitting of additional power generators. This would allow the vessels to fire indefinitely until they ran out of ammunition. However, the most significant issue that struck the Shal’rein clan was the fact that their economy was still trying to recover from the destruction of the Emphra. Even if a large amount of attention was placed upon building larger and more powerful warships, construction for the expensive Kiyliy would be slow. At the same time, however, the Shal’rein had little issue in building dreadnoughts when compared to the other Itrean clans. Larger ships could carry more firepower and still be relatively cost-effective to certain sizes. The cylindrical frames of the Oldra and Mondra were cheaper to build than the elegant wedge- shaped frames of the past. In the end, the construction of the Kiyliy was to begin immediately.  History Despite the early promises of what the Kiyliy offered, there were additional problems. Zilik’s Disease would wipe out half of the Itrean population and would usher in a temporary ceasefire. The early prototype of the Kiyliy dreadnought showed that it did solve all the Qitilix battleships' problems, but the construction had slowed to a halt. For the Shal’rein, the Yu’il class Battleship would be rushed forward in the design spectrum to help appease critics to provide a more viable, cost-effective warship, but the support for the dreadnoughts was still quite strong. Unlike the other Itrean clans, the Shal’rein don’t necessarily look at their dreadnoughts as command ships. While they can perform that role, they are generally just fire-support platforms most of the time. Despite the high costs, the ceasefire would end, and construction of the Kiyliy would continue forth. Despite a few that were commissioned, many of them wouldn’t see genuine service until a couple of years later. By then, entire strategies had to be devised on how the new Shal’rein dreadnoughts would be used. Against the Emphra, the results were the same in having to come up with new battle strategies. In the Itrean Civil War, the Shal’rein began to use the Dreadnoughts to fill in the mid and side portions of large fleet formations. The battleships would form the battle line as they would press forward. This would ensure that the dreadnoughts side-mounted railguns would have better arcs to fire upon the enemy ships. Much like the days of Horatio Nelson, the Shal’rein clan also had a “Crossing the T- Maneuver,” where they would use the dreadnoughts to drive a wedge through the center of enemy fleets. The envelopment would overwhelm the enemy defenses once the Shal’rein finally closed in. It was this maneuver that made the Kiyliy class a formidable design. The dual heavy railguns and light support from the other ships could easily bash through enemy formations in large enough numbers. However, even with such concepts, the dreadnought was still not in the high enough numbers to be used in such fashions. Only a few battles were there enough to be used in such a way, and it proved to work when it was. With the inadequate numbers, the dreadnoughts would often travel and operate alone most of the time. By itself, the warships proved adequate. Some argue that the Kiyliy is the weakest of the Itrean clan designs, but others disagree in that it’s the most effective for its purpose. UHN analysts often quote that “while the Shal’rein dreadnought might have issues, it’s still incredibly dangerous and more than a match against any single UHN warship.” Many were thankful that the Shal’rein clan never employed them in the Battle of Oshun, or the outcome would have been far worse. The Kiyliy class would start to see high enough numbers that the Shal’rein began to look at a new vessel. The Del’rein class Dreadnought was even more powerful but still expensive to produce. Despite the new ships, the Shal’rein still build the cheaper Kiyliy to hopefully see their full potential usage.    *Spoilers if you haven't read past Gabatrix: The Violet Wave arc* It wouldn’t be until the Battle of Aphadus that the UHN would get a chance to see the Shal’rein dreadnoughts in their usage. Their powerful railguns were used to be able to snipe the colony from extreme distances as the Aphadus defense fleet closed in on them to engage them. However, little did many know was that the maneuver was being used to lure away the defenses in hopes of a quick hit-and-run assault on the world. Devised by Lesser Adjunct Shira, her idea was to use the dreadnoughts as “dangerous but worthwhile targets to the UHN defenses.” Her knowledge of the commanders allowed the maneuver to be made flawlessly for her to lead the assault on Aphadus. At the same time, the Battle of Aphadus had revealed some UHN analysts' fears. It wasn’t a matter of the Shal’rein warships at being impractical, but how they were used. With exemplary leadership, any vessel could be dangerous. It would be a Kiyliy dreadnought that would be in pursuit of Shira when she defected. A single warship, which was more than enough to destroy her carrier, would close in on her ship. She managed to jump to New Olympia with the Shal’rein vessel right behind her. However, her acknowledgment of the power of the New Olympians had proven to her worth when one of the super dreadnoughts vaporized the enemy warship, saving her ship in the process. The scene was displayed to UHN analysts further to evaluate the resources of the New Olympian colony.