Somtaaw "Minion" Heavy Tug

Cataclysm Statistics

Class: Frigate
Cost
: 650 RUs
Build Time: 60 s
Support Req.: 10 SUs
Maneuverability: low
Acceleration
: 75 m/s^2
Max Velocity: 398 m/s
Hit Points: 11,000
Repair Rate: 80/5 s
Sight Radius: 12,000 m
Firepower: 500
Coverage: 3%
Mass: 50,000 tons
EMP Stun: 1.5 s
Leech Dam.: xx/s

Salvage Points: 2
Repair Droids: 3
Nav Lights: 7
Leech Points: 7
Required Tech:
Frigate Drive

Upgrade Tech:
Afterburner
Repair Bots
Advanced Frigate Drive
Armor Level 2
Infection Vaccine
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Weapons: Mult.: Damage: Range: Fire Time:
Ram Attack¹ - 1,700 0 m 30 s
Cutting Beam² - 20/s  0 m  30 s 
Info
¹Ram push time 30 s; wait after ram 10 s.
²Upgradable (60 damage per second).

The Minion class of heavy tugs is another pre-landfall design, which has been resurrected and adapted to the unique needs of Kiith Somtaaw. The original Minion design was used for moving massive modular sections of the scaffold and Mothership into position for final lockdown. For the Somtaaw, this frigate class hull with a massive bow section, a heavy engine module and built-in grapple capabilities was exactly what they needed in an asteroid tug. With extensive modifications to the high-output fusion drive and a redesign of the armor layering, the newly christened Minion was ideal for pushing very large asteroids out of dense, dangerous belts of debris for fast processing close to the command ship. In circumstances where a larger mass needs to be broken down in order for Workers to harvest it, The Minion employs a short-range fusion torch to carve up the target rock.

Since the Minion is a relatively simple vessel to fly, the 5-man crew is usually composed of non-combat flight officers fresh from training, in order to give them experience in the field. While this "on the job training" is highly efficient, and frees experienced personnel up for more complex vessels and tasks, it does lead to some unusual interpretations of the Minion mission profile. Recently, the mining fleet headed by the command-ship Kuun-lan was under attack by a Turanic Raider fleet, backed up by a Chieftain Class carrier. Standard Somtaaw procedure has all non-combat vessels, including Workers and Minions, retreating to the command ship at the first sign of battle, but two Minion crews took it upon themselves to ignore this command. Realizing that the pirate Carrier would eventually overwhelm the Somtaaw Acolytes and Seekers, forcing a retreat from a highly valuable belt of radioactives, the Minions drove straight into battle and rammed the Chieftain broadside. After grappling on and giving maximum power to their fusion drives, the Minions were able to push the Pirate Carrier deep into a fast-moving pack of asteroids, where the larger ship was battered and finally destroyed by rock impacts.

Images

Heavy Tug, with Stats Screen

Ram Frigate

Ramming frigate, view from the bow

Ram Frigate

A tug says "hello" to a Beast-infected Taiidan Carrier.

Ram Frigate

Side view

Ram Frigate