Starship Builds: Panhandle-class Special Operations Command Vessel

Panhandle-class

Introduction

Strap yourselves in, this is going to be a long one. First of all, I realize that this build is not going to be for everybody. It isn't sleek. It isn't sexy. My wife says it it looks like a circuit board, looking down from above. I get that. If it isn't for you, that's completely cool.

That said, this is my favorite build that I ever assembled. It was inspired by the Pik-Up but the character did not have that much money in the ol' Gal-Bank account so I started building. I started with a Crimson Fleet Phantom, because they have a Reactor with 20 power when all of the other A-class ships I was capturing only had 16 or 18. Heck, the Ghost only has a reactor on par with the Frontier. I knew this beast would need power. I just didn't know how much before it was all said and done.

Then I started expanding and upgrading as I played the character. The ship went through many iterations, including a spell where I swapped in Nova Galactic All-in-One habs because I had not yet realized how the connect points worked and the HopeTech restrooms kept getting deleted. Now, there are only three parts from the original Phantom left on the ship; two of the Deimos Landing Gear and the Nova Galactic NG-20 landing gear. The ship is in its final form, with the one caveat being that you might need to use another shield if you are not part of the UC Vanguard. I recommend the Warden SG-400. It's not as strong, but also uses 2 less power.

 

Lore/Head Canon

All militaries employ special operations and the Freestar are no exception. During the Colony War, it was necessary to deploy commandos, often for extended operations, deep into enemy territory. The Freestar fleet turned to HopeTech, a recently established ship manufacturer to build them something that could easily disguise itself as a typical freighter, while being able to serve as a field command center, mobile barracks, and resupply dump all at the same time.

The result was the Panhandle-class line of Special Operations Command Vessels. Named after towns that once existed in the Texas Panhandle, the Panhandle-class was produced in very limited numbers. HopeTech records five such vessels being made, while some UC estimates place it at six or even seven. HopeTech's official five were christened the Amarillo, Borger, Darrouzett, Dumas, and Mobeetie. Rumors of the Pampas and Tulia abound, but again, there is no official record of them being constructed and Ron Hope prevented any sort of intensive accounting of materials and labor used during the Colony War, especially by United Colonies officials or contractors.

The Borger and Dumas were destroyed during the war.  The Darrouzett is listed as missing in action. The Amarillo is rumored to be sitting in a private collector's warehouse. The Mobeetie was severely damaged over Niira and the wreckage only recently salvaged and restored for personal use. Since then, the Mobeetie has plied its trade as a tramp freighter and discount passenger liner all over the Settled Systems.

Assembly

 

Undercarriage

• (2) HopeTech Nose B - Aft
• (2) Taiyo Spine B (note that these anchor the entire substructure to the Main Deck)
• (6) HopeTech Pipes A - Mid
• (2) HopeTech Thruster
• (2) HopeTech 5 Landing Gear
• Hope 4 Landing Bay
• Nova Galactic NG-20 Landing Gear in wide formation. (note that this is from the Phantom. You can also purchase at Titan.)

For now, we are just going to put together the two retro-thruster assemblies. Start with the HopeTech Nose B pieces. Attach each one to the aft of a Taiyo Spine B. Attach three HopeTech Pipes A - Mid together and attach to the forward point of the Taiyo Spine B. Attach the two HopeTech Thrusters to the front HopeTech Pipes. Arrange all of the pieces as shown in the photo. We'll come back to these once the Main Deck is constructed.

Main Deck

• (2) SAE-5110 Engines, attached to rear of Engineering Bay and aft-most AIO
  
• (4) 220CB Landing Gear, 2 on Port, 2 on Starboard, placed at the most forward and aft positions
  
• HopeTech Engineering Bay 3x1
• HopeTech Cargo Hall 3x2
• (3) HopeTech All-In-One Berth 2x1, vertically stacked along the Port side
• (3) Porthole Port, attached to the forward point of all three AIO berths. If placed on the rear point, the portholes will delete the bathrooms.
  
• HopeTech Infirmary 2x1, attached to the 3x1 Engineering Bay, in front of the 220 CB Gear
• Vanguard Bulwark Shield Generator (or shield gen of choice), attached to aft point of middle AIO
• StorMax 30 Cargo Hold attached to the aft, port point of middle AIO
• Hope 11 Docker Sbd, attached to aft, starboard point of Workshop, to the fore of the Infirmary
  
• HopeTech Workshop 2x1
• HopeTech Messhall 3x2
• Porthole - Bottom attached to the foremost, starboard point underneath.
• (3) HopeTech Bumper A, attached to the forward points of the Messhall and fore AIO.

 

Attaching the Undercarriage is fairly simple. Each of the retro-thruster assemblies attaches so that the Taiyo Spine sits just inside from the aft 220CB Landing Gear, and the HopeTech Thruster is just inside the forward 220CB gear.

The Hope 4 Landing Bay attaches behind the Porthole - Bottom, at the aft and middle points of the Mess Hall.

The NG-20 Landing Gear attaches to the point between the front of the Landing Bay and the port side HopeTech Thruster. The two Hope 5 Landing Gear attach to the two middle and two rear connect points of the Mess Hall.

Command Deck

• (2) SA-4110 Engines
• (2) 700T He3 Tank
• (4) HopeTech Cap B - Mid
• (4) StorMax 30 Cargo Hold, attached to Nova Bracers, Reactor, and Grav Drive
• (2) Nova Bracer
• 104DS Mag Inertial Reactor
• RD-3000 Beta Grav Drive
• Porthole Sbd, attached to aft point of Captain's Quarters
• HopeTech Captain's Quarters 2x1
• HopeTech Battle Stations 2x2
• HopeTech Armory 2x1
• Porthole Port, attached to aft point of Armory
• (2) Porthole Top, attached to top of Armory
• (2) Horizon Weapon Mount, attached to forward points of Captain's Quarters and Armory
• HopeTech Cap A, Sbd with PB-175 Hellion Beam attached
• HopeTech Overseer 400 Bridge
• HopeTech Cap A, Port with PB-175 Hellion Beam attached

 

There is some slight flip merging used to hide the shield generator. If you don't like merging, there will be plenty of spots open just behind the bridge to place the shield without the need to merge. I would personally switch to the Warden SG-400 in that case, as the Vanguard shield just sticks out like a sore thumb.

Without merging, select all of the components and drag them over to attach the SA-4110 engines to the tops of the SAE-5110 engines.

If merging, pull out the forward, port StorMax 30 hold, select and drag everything else over and attach it as described in the paragraph above. Flip glitch in the cargo hold.

 

Structural

• (2) PB-100 Auto Neutron Turret, mounted on Taiyo Equipment Plates
  
• (2) HopeTech Pipes - Aft
• (4) HopeTech Pipes A - Mid
• (2) HopeTech Pipes - Fore
• (2) PB-175 Hellion Beam

 

Attach the PB-100 turrets and equipment plates to the port and starboard Hope Cap B's. Attach the two PB-175 beams to the top of the Overseer 400 bridge. Select all of the pipes and attach them to the reactor and grav drive. The aft pieces should rest on top of the fuel tanks 

Upgrade Path

For me, this is the end of the road. The character that I built this on is not a crafter. She doesn't do outposts, beyond the Landing Pad, Mission Board, and Bounty Board. Therefore, cargo space doesn't have to be exceptionally high. That allowed me to pick cargo holds that match the aesthetic.

The rest of the components have been balanced to give me good performance across the board. It may not be the strongest, fastest, or most durable ship but it still does well at all roles. I can transport most cargo mission loads and up to nine passengers. I can hunt pirates.

All of that being said, if I were to upgrade, I would go with that 1,600 shield, which would necessitate the 40-power reactor and probably a better grav drive. All this, in turn, would point to better/more powerful engines. The end result is something that goes slower, can tank a few more hits, but generally does not present a huge difference in play style.

More likely, I will eventually build up my Science tree in order to pick up Aneutronic Fusion. That way I can mount a couple of weapons to the Horizon mounts.

For Smuggling, to make it a true rogue's tramp freighter, you can add a Shielded Cargo Hold to the remaining point of the Landing Bay and a Scan Jammer. Both are available at the Red Mile on Porrima III. I chose the De Gama 1010 Shielded Cargo Hold and the Multi-Frequency Scan Jammer. Cost: ~15k credits, 1 ly Jump Range, 6 Mobility. That still leaves 28 ly Jump Range and 83 Mobility.

Interior Layout

Normally I don't mention this much or often, but the interior layout came together in an extremely nice way. Each of the AIO habs connect to either the Mess Hall or Cargo Hall. They do not form a contiguous line from back to front. This creates three distinct living spaces for the crew and/or passengers. The Captain's Quarters is positioned in such a way as to be more of a rest area for the crew in the Battle Stations area. Someplace where they can rotate for cat naps or a quick shower.

The Bridge descends down into a small conference room area just outside of the forward AIO. In my head canon, that AIO is the true captain's quarters, as that way the captain can get up, hold a meeting in the conference room, and then climb the ladder into the bridge.

The Infirmary is attached to the Engineering Bay and just across from it is the Cargo Hall. That way, the most likely place for a crew member to be injured is also closest to the area where they can be treated. Once the ship lands at a friendly dock, the Docker is just around the corner from the Infirmary. The workshop is also near the Docker (and Infirmary). I imagine that most docks and landing pads have access to an elevating loader that can be used to wheel a patient out and then descend back down to an awaiting medical transport.

Overall, it just flows well from one workspace to another, with the living spaces easily accessed.

Conclusion

I wanted a ship that paid homage to such genre greats like Serenity or the Millennium Falcon, without being a compromised attempt at bringing one of those ships over to Starfield. I feel like the Panhandle-class is a pretty good representation of that Tramp Freighter archetype.