Database and Lore

The Sira Class Research Vessel

*Spoilers if you haven’t read Gabatrix: The First Peace* “The Syn’s salvaged core can give us much information on our invaders. Let’s hope we can rebuild it before it’s too late,” USA Intelligence Agent Thomasin, 2349.  Simple, easy, and basic, the Sira is a light do- all vessel for the former United Itrean Republic. While poor in battle, the purpose of the ship is to be a research ship, staying out of battle and reporting all important information back to the clan’s chain of command.   Design The Sira class Research Vessel is nothing new when it comes to Itrean vessels. It is actually based on the older Kata class Scouting Battleship that was used by the Aksren clan in the mid-23rd century and shares many familiar features with it. The Itreans, as a whole, have a somewhat haphazard history when it comes to scientific endeavors. In some periods of history, the Itreans would barely engage in venturing outside their territories unless there were profound reasons to do so. Finite resources and expanding populations would often and ultimately be the only deciding factors in why the clan species would bother to develop research vessels. This wasn’t to say that the Itreans never grew curious about the outside environments; they were just generally disinterested in doing so. Instead, the few brave Itreans would be forced to develop their own ships to venture into the cosmos. In the military aspect, the Itrean clans would focus on building what they would call “Scouting Battleships.” Their goal was to perform reconnaissance duties and observe opposing clan systems in order to gather intel. These warships wouldn’t be armed very well and would only use their weapons as a last resort. Many contemporary UHN analysts often compare the Itrean Scouting Battleships as “Recon Frigates.” They are small, cheap, and easy to build. However, after the end of the Emphra War and the creation of the United Itrean Republic, a new effort was made to rebuild all the clan fleets. The need to “Spy” on one another was discouraged under the united government as it would undermine the purpose of the alliance. The concept of the recon ships was dropped in order to make way for a more “Politically Correct” aspect. The Sira class was designed as early as 2303, where a refined Kata class could be built to venture into deep space. The entire interior was made with various composites to withstand intense heat radiation from stars, along with cargo bays to carry supplies and gate probes. The Siras carry an advanced sensor package for studying planets and stellar phenomena. A basic defense armament was given to them, although they were not designed as warships. The vessel could carry one shuttlecraft in a ventral underslung clamp. The Sira was by no means glamorous, but it could get the job done. Construction would commence in 2304 as all the clans expressed some level of interest in having them. Whether they would be true to their official duties wasn’t completely known. History While often overlooked, the Sira class was enjoyed by the various clans upon its introduction. By early 2310, the clans often used the research vessels for their intended purpose, and many Itrean historians have commented that for around ten years, the United Itrean Republic did enjoy a small renaissance of exploration. Over 25,000 solar systems were cataloged by 2324, including visiting countless star systems, with the Sira leading the forefront. The Sira also had the secondary benefit of serving as a scouting ship to find any remaining Emphra remnants that could threaten the galaxy. While they weren’t meant to fight them, they could tunnel various worlds with deep scans. If found, the research ships could relay it to the fleets to engage and destroy. The Shal’rein clan Siras were used quite heavily in the Gular’shel Deep Space Expeditions that lasted for a few years. However, by 2330, signs were more indicative that the Emphra were long gone. At the same time, the United Itrean Republic was slowly collapsing on itself. The age of exploration had come to an end, and the Sira would be resorted as an espionage craft. While cloaking battleships performed their roles in tandem, the research vessels had the ability to hide near cooler stars. The opposing clans made deliberate acts to conduct “Scientific Research” in the star systems of their future enemies. The actions would only infuriate and play a part in degrading the failing united government. With the advent of the Itrean Civil War in 2339, the Sira would return to a role that the other clans had used long before the United Itrean Republic. While the cloaking battleships were taking over the role of gathering intel, the Sira class still carried advantages over the ships that could cloak. The advanced sensor packages of the research ships allowed them to observe communication signals or even potentially disrupt them. The Sira was much cheaper to manufacture as well. By 2340, the Itrean clans knew that the Sira class was hopelessly inadequate for its job as a combat vessel. Most of the clans had severely downgraded their usage as more and more cloaking warships were starting to be manufactured. At the same time, the clans were already building their own reconnaissance ships that performed the roles much better than the aging Siras could ever achieve. While newer scouting battleships mostly replaced them, the Siras would still see some usage in various theaters. By 2348, 90% of the research vessels had been retired from service. However, it would be a Sira class that would prove to be of benefit in 2349 when the T’rintar ship, Syn, would conduct espionage in the Batrice system. Using the Trappist star to hide, the Syn was reported to be using it for espionage for months until the UHN Harmony, a stealth cruiser, picked up the Syn in a patrol near the Trappist star. Ironically, the Syn was using the star to hide itself, but the sensors were partially hindered in return as the Harmony snuck up and ambushed the Syn. Amazingly, the missile strikes that destroyed the Syn prevented the vessel from self- destruction, a difficult accomplishment, as Itrean vessels were generally designed to destroy themselves and their crew in case of severe damage or possible capture. The computer core had been salvaged while computer engineers and scientists desperately worked around the clock to decipher and decode all the information about the Itrean people, their equipment, and more. While it played a significant role for the coming weeks, the T’rintar and UWA Alliance in 2349 would ultimately make it pointless as the T’rintar clan would share intel and information with the UHN.