Hammerhead-class cruiser

Hammerhead-class cruiser The Hammerhead-class cruiser was a type of warship used by the Republic Navy during the Old Sith Wars, the Mandalorian Wars, and the New Sith Wars.

Characteristics


This ship was a cruiser and a successor-design to the smaller Praetorian-class frigate. Serving on the line in fleet engagements as a courier and as a command ship of large fleets, it was a workhorse of the Republic and a common sight near Republic-controlled worlds. This ship could also undertake independent operations, unlike the Republic blockade runner, which was never observed outside a supporting fleet. Hammerheads were able to enter atmospheres and land on planetary surfaces.

The spaceframe resembled the later Consular-class space cruiser and the CR90 corvette, though this may have been coincidental. They also bore a large resemblance to the EF76 Nebulon-B escort frigate of the Galactic Civil War era, due to the vertically elongated bridge.

Though their exact armament was unknown, by 3,956 BBY they appeared to possess at least seven turbolasers, with three batteries of two and a single turbolaser cannon mounted atop the hammerhead bridge structure all facing forward, as well as an unknown number of quad-lasers pointing aft. As demonstrated by the Endar Spire and the Harbinger some years later, they also appeared to have a number of lighter, point-defense laser cannons for use against small craft mounted at various points along the hull.

They were propelled by four ion engines emitting particles in the orange section of the visible spectrum during the wars around 3,956 BBY, but this changed over time, earlier ships having three engines that emmitted blue particles. This may have indicated a continuous upgrade program was in place for these vessels over the years, or perhaps these two vessels were variant designs.

History


Hammerheads were first seen in service in the Great Sith War, where they participated in the First Battle of Empress Teta. During the restoration period after the war, it was mass-produced at such a scale that Rendili Hyperworks would finish a new cruiser every ten days for several years.

During the Mandalorian Wars thirty years later, they remained in frontline service, sometimes alongside an Inexpugnable-class command ship, itself a class made to sell more Hammerheads. With a third of the Republic's fleet crushed at Malachor V during the Wars, and another third, including bigger Interdictor-class cruisers, taken by Revan to form the basis of his Sith Empire's forces, the ailing Republic government turned to these smaller capital ships to halt the Sith advance.

During the New Sith Wars, they remained in service. During that war, they each held a squadron of Aurek fighters and had undergone radical upgrades and design revisions since their debut thousands of years before. Much like the Invincible-class dreadnaught, the Hammerhead-class cruiser was one of the longest serving classes of ship in any military, with versions of it being maintained in active service for at least 3,000 years.

Known ships

 * Admiral Dodonna's flagship
 * Champion of Iridonia
 * Endar Spire
 * Harbinger
 * Sojourn
 * Testament
 * Veltraa

Behind the scenes


The Hammerhead-class cruiser was first introduced in the video game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic; it is within one such vessel, the Endar Spire, that the game's tutorial level takes place. Near the end of the game, when the Ebon Hawk crash-lands on Lehon, the player can see the remains of a Hammerhead-class ship that had crashed into the rocks on the shore at an earlier date. It could be possible that this was the vessel used by Revan and Malak during their search for the Star Forge, however this cannot be confirmed. In the game's sequel, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords, much more information on this class of vessel is given, including deck plans for crew quarters, a medical bay, and engine rooms.

In the second timeline trailer for the upcoming MMO Star Wars: The Old Republic, a new and more heavily armed variant of the Hammerhead-Class can be seen.

Leland Chee has confirmed that the ships seen in the Knights of the Old Republic games are of the same class that was named in Darth Bane: Path of Destruction, but that the version of the book and that of the game may have different specifications, considering that they are used approximately three thousand years apart from one another.

The wreckage of a Hammerhead-class vessel can be seen on the volcanic world of Mustafar in the expansion for Star Wars Galaxies, Trials of Obi-Wan. Why it is there and how it came to be is never explained, however.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 8: Flashpoint, Part 2
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic: Days of Fear
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 17: Nights of Anger, Part 2
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 21: Daze of Hate, Part 3
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 25: Vector, Part 1
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 31: Turnabout
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 32: Vindication, Part 1
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 34: Vindication, Part 3
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 35: Vindication, Part 4
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 42: Masks
 * Iridonian Darkness
 * Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
 * Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords
 * Darth Bane: Path of Destruction
 * Star Wars Galaxies: Trials of Obi-Wan