Elkader was not the first capital ship constructed in Zamzara, but it was the first suitable for mass production, and was made to fill many roles - as a salvager, explorer and command platform. But most importantly it can look enemy capital ships in the eye before driving them from Zaran space. Elkader’s stoic and intimidating lines imply the strength of the Zaran people, bristling with efficient and dangerous weaponry, fast enough to dictate the course of battle, tough enough to fearlessly confront the most powerful foes.
Elkader can bring heavy armor-piercing ordnance to bear on large opponents. The bow section is dominated by the aperture of its primary weapons - four cyclic depletion plasma lances. Each burst can inflict nearly half a million points of brutality, and they are enhanced with a piercing effect that allows them to easily shear off turrets and soften armor. The lances are effective at medium range, but vulnerable enemies can be finished off up close with the ship's nose-mounted photoreactor pulse gun. This weapon’s linear accelerator produces a rapid series of bolts that can melt a narrow hole through thick plate armor with most of their energy intact before exploding violently on systems behind.
As a supplement to these weapons, Elkader carries a variety of explosive ordnance. Two shoulder mounted six-barreled rocket projectors - the macro missile launcher - can fire a burst of 12 heat-seeking warheads in an arc toward enemy squadrons. This weapon tracks targets regardless of their IFF, so for situations where discretion is advisable a pair of medium anti-ship missile tubes, each with a four round magazine, can be used to engage targets at long range. These missile weapons are supported by two retractable chaff launchers for distracting enemy point defense.
The destroyer’s protective technology is designed to repel heavy frontal assaults and be proof against frigates and corvettes on all other sides. The compound bow armor plate is seven meters thick, and two sacrificial carapaces clad the dorsal and ventral regions. The sacrificial plate docking points are well protected, but in case of a linkage failure they are designed to detach cleanly. The two plates themselves have armor-reinforcing effects which should be activated before battle; the hull itself has an ionic shield enhancement system. A pair of x-ray turrets on either side of the ship can make short work of lone fighters at close range, but any vessel of this size will have trouble bringing its weapons to bear against flanking bombers.
The ship has a nominal crew of 10 with room for civilian guests, and has a full interior and internal access to most of the vital systems and logic processors. As well as its role in war, Elkader is ready for heroic rescue missions and can store enough cargo (and keep its crew sufficiently entertained) for an extended voyage. It is fitted with three universal standard docks: two rail-only docks are on telescopic arms, designed to tender fighters and cargo ships, and one ventral dock for boarding space stations. The carapace can be extended from the ship for inspection or repair, or to intimidate territorial rivals and scare away predators. Navigational and maintenance controls are on panel two, including a powerful scanner and the triggers and core activation system for the chaindrive - a first for any Zaran ship, and built from salvaged technology, it's still a little unreliable. The missile launchers and chaff can be deployed using panel 10. Wireless umbilical cables enable the bridge to control the lances and photoreactor through control panel one, which also houses switches for the basic defensive effects.
