Earth Alliance Hyperion Class Variants ## ## Hyperion Class Variants (Hyperion Class Heavy Cruisers Defiant, Viper, Arcturus, Texas, Lenthal, and Bosphers, along with Battlecruiser Hood and Carrier Komandorski Straits, pictured) Hyperion Heavy Scout The skirmishes with the Narn, from 2219 until 2224, showed that the Oracle Scout was lacking in firepower when a fight inevitably turned into a close in fleet slugfest. The Farscape project converted some Hyperion cruisers into a Heavy Scout model. The sensor from the Oracle scout was emplaced in the nose an Alpha model Hyperion replacing the wide arc Medium Plasma cannon. Unfortunately, the conversion was so expensive that only a few were constructed, so Farscape models are rarely seen. Hyperion Heavy Scout (Farscape model, Rare 10% restricted) Hyperion Monitor Cruiser (rare): The Monitor Cruiser variant was first built in 2260, by President Clarke as a way to allow the more powerful Omega class destroyers fleet action. These Hyperions were armed to the teeth, but maneuvered almost as bad as an Orestes Class ship. These ships were not new builds, but refits of older Theta, Epsilon, and Delta model Hyperions. Having two of its aft thrusters removed, the freed room in the engineering section allowed for more aft weapons to be mounted. More rearranging of the thrusters was done, and more weapons somehow were fit onto the hull. In the end, this model of the Hyperion was armed with, in the Forward Section, 2 HLC, and 1 MPC. In the Port and Starboard sides, 2 MPC, 2 MplaC, and 4 MLC. The Aft was armed with 2 MLC and 2 MPC. The primary was armed 3 SPBs. The ship still fielded a flight of Starfuries, and had the standard interceptor arrays. Hyperion Monitor Cruiser SCS (Xi Model) Hyperion Battlecruiser (Rare): (EAS Vanguard pictured) The Hyperion Class Battlecruisers (Mu and Nu models) were an attempt by the Earth Alliance to supplement the difficult and time consuming construction of the Nova Dreadnoughts with a cheaper, easier to produce variant of the Hyperion, with the firepower of a Nova. The Hyperion Battlecruiser (Mu model) was first prototyped in the form of the EAS Illustrious. Weapons were in the forward section 2 turreted HLC, side sections had 2 turreted MLC per side, aft had two 300 degree MPC, and the primary had 4 SPB. The interceptor grid was still the same. The ship also had a new thruster arrangement with four main thrusters, the engine was upgraded to provide the extra thrust, the hangar was enlarged to accommodate one and a half squadrons of Starfuries, and the sensors were upgraded to what would later be considered (but rejected) for the Omega Class. The members of this subclass were powerful ships, but also much more complex and expensive to produce than the Nova. Only a handful were built, and those that survived to the late 2250's were refit to another "Battlecruiser" spec (Nu model). The later Hyperion Battlecruisers (Nu models) had their weaponry changed into two forward turreted HPC, and two turreted HLC per side. None survived the Drahk attack on Earth. Hyperion Battlecruiser (Mu Model) SCS Hyperion Battlecruiser (Nu Model) SCS Hyperion Picket Cruiser (Rare): (EAS Suffren pictured) The Hyperion Picket Cruiser was an attempt to build a scout ship that was more robust than the Oracle. The Picket Cruiser had its forward MplasC replaced with another sensor array (the same as the forward array in the Oracle). The rest of the ship was a standard Theta model Hyperion, with the HLC replaced with MLC. These ships performed satisfactory, but where not as effective as the Oracle. They lacked the ELINT abilities of the Oracle, though, and while better at detecting ships than the Oracle, the lack of ELINT made their usefulness questionable. The few that were built survive today as sensor ships at colonies too new to have their own sensor network up and operational. Hyperion Picket Cruiser (rare) SCS (Omicron Model) (EAS Vulcan Pictured) Hyperion Sniper Cruiser (unique) SCS (Located at Paul Brown's Variant's Reject Page, though it may not be Paul's personal design. Known as the Hyperion Heavy Stealth Cruiser) Hyperion Cruiser (EAS Falcon pictured) Hyperion Strike Cruiser (rare) SCS (Upsilon Model) The Hyperion Strike Cruiser was similar to the Battlecruiser design, but lacked the enlarged hangar and enhanced engines. It did, however, have four SPBs in the primary, and all outboard HLC's aimed forward. Hyperion Carrier (Unique) SCS (A design by Graves, located at Atlantis's B5W site) (EAS Komandorski Straits pictured) Hyperion Laser Cruiser (rare) SCS (Rho Model) Essentilally a Delta Hyperion (Pulse Hyperion) with all the pulse weapons replaced with their equivalent lasers. It wasn't very popular as the weapons took a long time to arm and fire. Hyperion Suicide Cruiser (unique) During the final days of the EM war, Earth became more and more desperate. When it became apparent that Io would fall, a hasty refit of several Hyperions at the base was undertaken. Basically, they became Kamikaze cruisers, whose only purpose was to ram a Minbari ship and take it to Hell. Of the ships that EA modified to this design, one managed to score a hit on a Sharlin. The design changes included the removal of all plasma and pulse cannons from a Hyperion Theta, +2 engine output, +1 to all aft thruster outputs, +5 to any ramming roll, and damaged increased by a ram by 50%. In addition to these changes, most of these ships carried nuclear warheads that were to detonate on impact. Sadly, only two went off, the one that destroyed a Minbari ship, and one the took out two other Kamikaze Hyperions when a Neutron Laser pierced the magazine carrying the warheads on one of the cruisers, taking it, and another close by, out. HyperiVorlon (Hyperion / Vorlon hybrid) The HyperiVorlon hybrid had a very interesting history, though it shouldn't have. The EAS Phoenix was an older Epsilon Model Hyperion close to being too old and beat up to be refit again to a Theta model. Her captain and crew were not supporters of President Clarke or his policies. The abhorred Nightwatch, and Psi Corp, and refused to let any officials from those organizations, or any officials sympathetic to those organizations, on board. The were an entire ship of General Hague supporters. The ship and crew were allowed to continue patroling the outer colonies by Clarke and his people, as her last status report showed she was in very poor condition after being ambushed by "raiders," who were in actuality psi-corp pilots in Raider craft. To further add insult to injury, she was ordered to the Vorlon border. In the last update from the EarthForce network, her navigational charts were slightly altered so when she would jump back into normal space, she wasn't jumping into EA space, but rather the Ventox system. Any ship that enters Vorlon space never return. Ventox was the closest Vorlon system to the EA. The Phoenix jumped into normal space and the Ventox system on 26 March, 2260. All contact was immediately lost. What the EA didn't know was that anyone who goes into Vorlon space isn't killed, but taken deeper within the empire where they can be watched. There were three latent telepaths aboard the ship which probably helped the ship and her crew in terms of not being treated like a usual trespasser and played with. The ship and crew remained in Vorlon space until 4 May 2261. The crew's memories were altered by the Vorlons, and they had no recollection of where they'd been for the past year, other than being surrounded by angelic looking beings. That, and they suddenly knew how to use the Phoenix's new Vorlon technology that had somehow blended itself into her sytems. The Vorlons seemingly all disappeared at once, and let a few of their toys go free. Externally, the Phoenix looked like a Vorlon Light Cruiser had grafted itself to a Hyperion. The four tentacles usually associated with Vorlon ships had somehow grown onto the ship. Various other Vorlon systems were also now aboard the ship, including the Vorlon shield system, albeit a weaker one than is found on a Vorlon ship. The ship appears to now also be semi-sentient, in that it has defense systems that will not allow EA personel to examine the systems in detail. It was in quarantine near Saturn until the Drakh War, when she was called up to beat back the Drakh. According to those aboard her, the ship seemed bored near Saturn, and seemed excited to be allowed to be an active part of EarthForce again. Hyperi-Vorlon Hybrid Cruiser SCS