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The Shipyard subforum doesn't specifically say it's for screenshots only, this thread is a repost from the old site and contains my fleet doctrine for my Shipyard, if it does belong in another subforum I apologize for the error
This is not meant to be followed by anybody else but you are more than welcome to adopt or modify it to suit your needs. If anything I would like to see some of the turret classifications adopted (L-Rating) because those are extremely useful information when naming and sharing turrets.
Re-post:
I was originally going to post this onto my shipyard thread but the more I thought about it the more in depth and complex it got so i thought it would warrant it's own thread. The following is my UCS Fleet Doctrine, it will cover everything from ship classifications, naming conventions, and structural markings. This doctrine is still a work in progress and may see changes as I add more ships and turrets to my catalog.
TOC:
Starship Construction
Lights and Color Codes
Docking
Turret Naming Convention
Fleet Naming Convention
Fleet Classification
Starship Construction:
When I build design ships I like to put equal emphasis on form, function, and realism. I want my ships to fight hard and look good doing it all the while maintaining a realistic feel. There are many things to consider when building a ship for space travel and even more if they are to operate solo in deep space.
1) Crew. Ships need to be manned, bigger ships need more manpower to function. Just shoving a couple of quarters in your giant ship won't cut it. Small ships need not have physical beds and may have "fold out bunks" but they still need room to do so
2) Food. Either stored in the cargo bays or grown on the ship a crew needs to eat. This also includes the need to mess halls on larger ships. Smaller ships crews can get away with eating a frozen dinner at their bunk.
3) Toiletries. You may not mind the smell of your crew but here at the UCS we care about hygiene. Large ships feature multiple shower/wash facilities. Smaller ships are equipped with in wall toilet/sink combinations.
4) Air. Airlocks are an absolute must. Doors into space are never acceptable. Airlocks can vary in size but there must be at least two doors between the pressurized cabin and space. Some small ships may not even be pressurized or have a small enough cabin to regulate the pressure.
Lights and Color Codes:
Beyond the red/green aviation standard marking lights I've started using more and more color coding on my ships, all my hull lights are white except colored lights will indicate something:
Red - indicate an airlock. These lights will be on the entrance to the airlock
Yellow - caution. So far these have been used as markers to the MAM docks and the flight deck of the Hammer
Blue - Core room + Engineering Sections.
My standard corridors are four high with bulkhead arches every 5th meter. These bulkheads are color coded.
Grey bulkhead with a blue center indicates the core deck.
Grey bulkhead with a red center is the lowest deck that isn't the core deck. This deck so far has been general quarters
Grey bulkhead with a green center is the next deck up from red that isn't the core deck. This deck so far has been officer quarters.
(I've yet to build any ships with more than three main decks so that's all I have.
The tops of doors are also color coded:
Blue doors are control rooms
Yellow doors are storage
Black doors are maintenance access
Green doors are nutrition related
White doors are bathrooms
Docking:
The UCS uses a simple classification system for docking, turrets and ship docks both share this designation but turrets use it as part of their naming convention. Docking uses an "L Rating" that indicates how many enhancers are needed to dock, while an L is used indicating the shape of each side "t" shapes are more commonly used when constructing docks.
L0 would require no enhancers, while L1 would need a single enhancer. The First number in the group is always the length of the dock. Long docks that do not require additional width can simply use a single number (L5) while docks that do not require additional length but are wider do need to use a two number designation (L1-3). For larger docks a third digit is added indicating the height. The M.A.M. Docking ports on my M.A.M.M.O.T.H. are L17-9-2
Turret Naming Convention:
My turret naming convention is still in development, I want to develop a system for naming turrets that is descriptive yet simple. All UCS turrets are named using their L-Rating and the type of the weapons followed by a slight description.
Anti Matter Turrets are indicated by an "AM" followed by the number of barrels then the number of individual cannons per barrel. My standard heavy gun is an L15-5 AM2-4 while my lighter standard turrets are L5 AM2-2
SD-BB Missiles Turrets name will indicate how many missile clusters it has followed by STS (Ship To Ship) and then if missiles are a cluster instead of single launcher a number will indicate that information.
SD-KB Missile Turrets have not been developed but they would be referred to as "IR"
D1000 Turrets also have not been developed but they would be referred to as "Rocket Pods"
I've not worked out all the details regarding multi weapon turrets yet.
Additionally turrets get a short description at the end, this will sometimes include color scheme. "L1-2 Duel STS9 Missile Rack" "L15-5 AM2-4 Heavy Turret" "L0 AM2 Deckgun Grey"
Note:
"Deckgun" is typically used for low flat turrets while "turret" can be anything.
Shotgun turrets should be indicated as "Flak"
Turrets built specifically for anti-fighter support should be labeled as "PD" (Point Defense)
Note: With the new weapons coming out I will have to do a lot of research into what works best as turrets and adapt it into the naming convention
UCS Fleet Naming Convention:
The UCS naming convention is made up of several parts. <Fleet> <Classification> <Serial Number> <Build> <Code Name> <Additional Refit> The fleet is the short code for the shipyard be it UCS or UCC depending on if it's a civilian ship or a military. Class is the ship class (explained below). The Serial number is the amount of "blocks" used in the construction of the ship indicated in build mode. The number of cubes on a ship may change during refits but the serial stays as it was when it was serialized. The build indicates how many refits the ship has seen and last up is the code name or short name. The name typically follows a theme that's for each class such as birds for fighters. Originally the fighter classification had additional numbers to prevent multiple ships getting the same number but that system has been dropped. If a new ship gets the same serial as an old one I'll just increase the number by 1. If a ship is refit to fit another role or a major structural overhaul it will gain the "Additional Refit" classification which is a MK1, MK2, ETC
Fleet Classification:
All ships fall under several main classifications there are four of these so far. Fighters (FTR), Light Capital (LC), Battle Capital (BC), and Capital Carrier (CC)
Fighters (FTR):
Fighters are the smallest combat ships out there and their armament and crew will vary based on role. Most of these small craft will not have the necessary equipment to operate in deep space and generally have uncompressed cabins.
Assault Fighter:
As The the main fighting craft of the UCS the assault fighter has a good balance of speed, maneuverability and weaponry. They are uncompressed and thus rely on space suits for life support making them unsuited to operate in deep space for extended time. Assault fighters are often sector patrol or designed/adapted for carrier operations.
Light Assault Fighter:
Smaller, less weapons... the Light Fighter is primarily used as personal shuttles and used sparingly as air support for ground theater operations or when it's the only thing that will fit on small carrier craft. You do not want to take one of these into combat.
Heavy Assault Fighter:
Bigger = better. Heavy fighters carry more armor, weapons, and shields into battle. They may also be equipped with turrets. Their size often leaves them unable to be carried in hangers so they may be equipped with life support (although no deep space heavy fighter exists in the UCS catalog).
Interceptor:
These are not so much a separate class but any fighter can be classified as an interceptor if they have an exceptionally high thrust to mass ratio.
Deep Space Scout:
Scouts are specifically built for the expanse, they may be regular fighters themselves but are modified with life support systems and a pressurized hull even if they may not have an active airlock. Armaments are typically light.
Recon Scout:
Same as the scout but equipped with radar jammers.
Stealth Fighters (S):
Highly classified stealth craft capable of not only actively jamming radar but cloaking as well. Due to the constraints of cloaking these typically won't have any auxiliary systems.
Gunship:
The largest of the fighters, they are loaded with as many turrets as you can safely mount on the hull. Gunships will have a small crew compliment and the cabin may be pressurized but might not have active airlocks and are still commonly unsuited for deep space.
Light Capital (LC):
Some Light Capital class ships are not much bigger than fighters but they have a higher amor rating, are always compressed and must have active airlocks. Not all LC class ships are suited for operating solo in deep space as they typically do not have the necessary systems. For a ship to operate solo in deep space they must have onboard storage, aeroponics, mess hall, barracks, and shower facilities. Ships without food producing capabilities can function in deep space provided they have adequate storage. Crew morale will suffer without proper shower facilities and if they have to "Hot Bunk"
Light capitals are separated from fighter class, which may be the same size, due to their armor rating. All LC ships must be constructed with separate internal and external hulls.
Corvette:
The most basic of of the LC class operated by a small crew. These ships can vary in size and are considered "fast attack craft". They often fulfill the role of heavy fighters and can generally be found on system patrol duty. Corvettes typically are not equipped for deep space operations.
Gunboat:
Still technically a corvette gunboats are optimized more for DPS over speed, they pack more turrets and primary weapons than it's sister class and due to the heavier weapon load outs gunboats are more suited for fleet operations. Gunboats typically will be the largest of the corvettes so they may fully support deep space operations.
Frigate:
The Muscle of the LC class, frigates are the largest of the LC class ships and the smallest ships that should always be suited for operating in deep space. They pack powerful primary weapons, turrets, shields, as well as have enough room left over to keep a crew comfortable. Frigates should be equipped with cargo bays and may even have docking capabilities.
Patrol Frigate:
The patrol frigate is a sub class, any frigate not suited for deep space is to be considered one. They will be smaller than normal frigates but generally still larger than gunboats and lack provisions for deep space.
Battle Capital (BC):
All Battle Capital ships are designed specifically for combat and everyone should have all the systems necessary for operating solo in deep space. Their hulls are thick, their weapons are powerful and they feature an array of turrets. This class features a "sandwich" of shield generators in between the inner and outer hulls. Heavier ships may even feature multiple layers.
Destroyer:
This class features multiple "destroyer grade" direct fire weapons and will always have at least one large deck gun/turret as well as many supporting turrets. Destroyers may also be capable of supporting several fighters as well.
Cruiser:
Cruisers may vary in size and are considered the sister class to the destroyer. The biggest distinction in the cruiser class is they favor vertical launch missile tubes over large forward deck guns. Their weapon additional weapon loadout will still be very similar to the Destroyer, they should have powerful direct fire weaponry and excellent turret coverage.
Battleship:
Battleships are easily identified by their massive deck guns and should always be equipped with more than one and they should dwarf any other turret/deck gun in the fleet. Battleships are some of the largest fighting capital ships out there, in addition to the heavy deck guns, battleships will be loaded with turrets and powerful direct fire guns.
Battle Cruiser:
Just like the smaller cruiser this can be considered a sister class to the battleship. These will heavily favor vertical launch missiles over the battleships main deckguns but will still have the same capabilities of direct fire and auxiliary turrets.
Capital Carrier (CC):
Carriers are the heart of any fleet, they provide the support for all the vehicles that are not capable of supporting themselves for extended flights into deep space. Carriers should be not only equipped to handle their own crew but should have enough provisions to support an entire fleet. These will often be the command ship of any deployment so they are often equipped with CIC facilities and some prisoner management as well.
Shortdeck Carrier:
Small cheap carrier only capable of supporting a few small fighters. They will be equipped for deep space and possibly medical endeavors.
Light Carrier:
Packs as many fighters it can into a small package. With additional heavy landing pads these ships can support larger fighters and small corvettes. Light carriers will have excellent turret coverage but poor or no direct fire capabilities.
Fleet Carrier:
The biggest carriers around, designed to support entire fleets of ships and cast control over many sectors. The main flight deck should be able to easily handle heavy fighters, gunships and small corvettes. Additional landing pads may dock corvettes and gunboats. Excellent turret coverage and may feature some proper direct fire capabilities typically optimized for range.
Additional Classes:
Freighter (FR)
The freighter classification covers anything that is a work ship. From tiny shuttles to mighty cargo haulers and planet harvesters
Note: I probably should add additional classifications for cargo pods, these would include L ratings.
Medical (M)
Any medical ship; ambulances, field hospitals, hospital ships.
Luxury (LX)
Luxury ships include yachts, cruise ships, sportshuttles, basically anything for the rich and wealthy.
This is not meant to be followed by anybody else but you are more than welcome to adopt or modify it to suit your needs. If anything I would like to see some of the turret classifications adopted (L-Rating) because those are extremely useful information when naming and sharing turrets.
Re-post:
I was originally going to post this onto my shipyard thread but the more I thought about it the more in depth and complex it got so i thought it would warrant it's own thread. The following is my UCS Fleet Doctrine, it will cover everything from ship classifications, naming conventions, and structural markings. This doctrine is still a work in progress and may see changes as I add more ships and turrets to my catalog.
TOC:
Starship Construction
Lights and Color Codes
Docking
Turret Naming Convention
Fleet Naming Convention
Fleet Classification
Starship Construction:
When I build design ships I like to put equal emphasis on form, function, and realism. I want my ships to fight hard and look good doing it all the while maintaining a realistic feel. There are many things to consider when building a ship for space travel and even more if they are to operate solo in deep space.
1) Crew. Ships need to be manned, bigger ships need more manpower to function. Just shoving a couple of quarters in your giant ship won't cut it. Small ships need not have physical beds and may have "fold out bunks" but they still need room to do so
2) Food. Either stored in the cargo bays or grown on the ship a crew needs to eat. This also includes the need to mess halls on larger ships. Smaller ships crews can get away with eating a frozen dinner at their bunk.
3) Toiletries. You may not mind the smell of your crew but here at the UCS we care about hygiene. Large ships feature multiple shower/wash facilities. Smaller ships are equipped with in wall toilet/sink combinations.
4) Air. Airlocks are an absolute must. Doors into space are never acceptable. Airlocks can vary in size but there must be at least two doors between the pressurized cabin and space. Some small ships may not even be pressurized or have a small enough cabin to regulate the pressure.
Lights and Color Codes:
Beyond the red/green aviation standard marking lights I've started using more and more color coding on my ships, all my hull lights are white except colored lights will indicate something:
Red - indicate an airlock. These lights will be on the entrance to the airlock
Yellow - caution. So far these have been used as markers to the MAM docks and the flight deck of the Hammer
Blue - Core room + Engineering Sections.
My standard corridors are four high with bulkhead arches every 5th meter. These bulkheads are color coded.
Grey bulkhead with a blue center indicates the core deck.
Grey bulkhead with a red center is the lowest deck that isn't the core deck. This deck so far has been general quarters
Grey bulkhead with a green center is the next deck up from red that isn't the core deck. This deck so far has been officer quarters.
(I've yet to build any ships with more than three main decks so that's all I have.
The tops of doors are also color coded:
Blue doors are control rooms
Yellow doors are storage
Black doors are maintenance access
Green doors are nutrition related
White doors are bathrooms
Docking:
The UCS uses a simple classification system for docking, turrets and ship docks both share this designation but turrets use it as part of their naming convention. Docking uses an "L Rating" that indicates how many enhancers are needed to dock, while an L is used indicating the shape of each side "t" shapes are more commonly used when constructing docks.
L0 would require no enhancers, while L1 would need a single enhancer. The First number in the group is always the length of the dock. Long docks that do not require additional width can simply use a single number (L5) while docks that do not require additional length but are wider do need to use a two number designation (L1-3). For larger docks a third digit is added indicating the height. The M.A.M. Docking ports on my M.A.M.M.O.T.H. are L17-9-2
Turret Naming Convention:
My turret naming convention is still in development, I want to develop a system for naming turrets that is descriptive yet simple. All UCS turrets are named using their L-Rating and the type of the weapons followed by a slight description.
Anti Matter Turrets are indicated by an "AM" followed by the number of barrels then the number of individual cannons per barrel. My standard heavy gun is an L15-5 AM2-4 while my lighter standard turrets are L5 AM2-2
SD-BB Missiles Turrets name will indicate how many missile clusters it has followed by STS (Ship To Ship) and then if missiles are a cluster instead of single launcher a number will indicate that information.
SD-KB Missile Turrets have not been developed but they would be referred to as "IR"
D1000 Turrets also have not been developed but they would be referred to as "Rocket Pods"
I've not worked out all the details regarding multi weapon turrets yet.
Additionally turrets get a short description at the end, this will sometimes include color scheme. "L1-2 Duel STS9 Missile Rack" "L15-5 AM2-4 Heavy Turret" "L0 AM2 Deckgun Grey"
Note:
"Deckgun" is typically used for low flat turrets while "turret" can be anything.
Shotgun turrets should be indicated as "Flak"
Turrets built specifically for anti-fighter support should be labeled as "PD" (Point Defense)
Note: With the new weapons coming out I will have to do a lot of research into what works best as turrets and adapt it into the naming convention
UCS Fleet Naming Convention:
The UCS naming convention is made up of several parts. <Fleet> <Classification> <Serial Number> <Build> <Code Name> <Additional Refit> The fleet is the short code for the shipyard be it UCS or UCC depending on if it's a civilian ship or a military. Class is the ship class (explained below). The Serial number is the amount of "blocks" used in the construction of the ship indicated in build mode. The number of cubes on a ship may change during refits but the serial stays as it was when it was serialized. The build indicates how many refits the ship has seen and last up is the code name or short name. The name typically follows a theme that's for each class such as birds for fighters. Originally the fighter classification had additional numbers to prevent multiple ships getting the same number but that system has been dropped. If a new ship gets the same serial as an old one I'll just increase the number by 1. If a ship is refit to fit another role or a major structural overhaul it will gain the "Additional Refit" classification which is a MK1, MK2, ETC
Fleet Classification:
All ships fall under several main classifications there are four of these so far. Fighters (FTR), Light Capital (LC), Battle Capital (BC), and Capital Carrier (CC)
Fighters (FTR):
Fighters are the smallest combat ships out there and their armament and crew will vary based on role. Most of these small craft will not have the necessary equipment to operate in deep space and generally have uncompressed cabins.
Assault Fighter:
As The the main fighting craft of the UCS the assault fighter has a good balance of speed, maneuverability and weaponry. They are uncompressed and thus rely on space suits for life support making them unsuited to operate in deep space for extended time. Assault fighters are often sector patrol or designed/adapted for carrier operations.
Light Assault Fighter:
Smaller, less weapons... the Light Fighter is primarily used as personal shuttles and used sparingly as air support for ground theater operations or when it's the only thing that will fit on small carrier craft. You do not want to take one of these into combat.
Heavy Assault Fighter:
Bigger = better. Heavy fighters carry more armor, weapons, and shields into battle. They may also be equipped with turrets. Their size often leaves them unable to be carried in hangers so they may be equipped with life support (although no deep space heavy fighter exists in the UCS catalog).
Interceptor:
These are not so much a separate class but any fighter can be classified as an interceptor if they have an exceptionally high thrust to mass ratio.
Deep Space Scout:
Scouts are specifically built for the expanse, they may be regular fighters themselves but are modified with life support systems and a pressurized hull even if they may not have an active airlock. Armaments are typically light.
Recon Scout:
Same as the scout but equipped with radar jammers.
Stealth Fighters (S):
Highly classified stealth craft capable of not only actively jamming radar but cloaking as well. Due to the constraints of cloaking these typically won't have any auxiliary systems.
Gunship:
The largest of the fighters, they are loaded with as many turrets as you can safely mount on the hull. Gunships will have a small crew compliment and the cabin may be pressurized but might not have active airlocks and are still commonly unsuited for deep space.
Light Capital (LC):
Some Light Capital class ships are not much bigger than fighters but they have a higher amor rating, are always compressed and must have active airlocks. Not all LC class ships are suited for operating solo in deep space as they typically do not have the necessary systems. For a ship to operate solo in deep space they must have onboard storage, aeroponics, mess hall, barracks, and shower facilities. Ships without food producing capabilities can function in deep space provided they have adequate storage. Crew morale will suffer without proper shower facilities and if they have to "Hot Bunk"
Light capitals are separated from fighter class, which may be the same size, due to their armor rating. All LC ships must be constructed with separate internal and external hulls.
Corvette:
The most basic of of the LC class operated by a small crew. These ships can vary in size and are considered "fast attack craft". They often fulfill the role of heavy fighters and can generally be found on system patrol duty. Corvettes typically are not equipped for deep space operations.
Gunboat:
Still technically a corvette gunboats are optimized more for DPS over speed, they pack more turrets and primary weapons than it's sister class and due to the heavier weapon load outs gunboats are more suited for fleet operations. Gunboats typically will be the largest of the corvettes so they may fully support deep space operations.
Frigate:
The Muscle of the LC class, frigates are the largest of the LC class ships and the smallest ships that should always be suited for operating in deep space. They pack powerful primary weapons, turrets, shields, as well as have enough room left over to keep a crew comfortable. Frigates should be equipped with cargo bays and may even have docking capabilities.
Patrol Frigate:
The patrol frigate is a sub class, any frigate not suited for deep space is to be considered one. They will be smaller than normal frigates but generally still larger than gunboats and lack provisions for deep space.
Battle Capital (BC):
All Battle Capital ships are designed specifically for combat and everyone should have all the systems necessary for operating solo in deep space. Their hulls are thick, their weapons are powerful and they feature an array of turrets. This class features a "sandwich" of shield generators in between the inner and outer hulls. Heavier ships may even feature multiple layers.
Destroyer:
This class features multiple "destroyer grade" direct fire weapons and will always have at least one large deck gun/turret as well as many supporting turrets. Destroyers may also be capable of supporting several fighters as well.
Cruiser:
Cruisers may vary in size and are considered the sister class to the destroyer. The biggest distinction in the cruiser class is they favor vertical launch missile tubes over large forward deck guns. Their weapon additional weapon loadout will still be very similar to the Destroyer, they should have powerful direct fire weaponry and excellent turret coverage.
Battleship:
Battleships are easily identified by their massive deck guns and should always be equipped with more than one and they should dwarf any other turret/deck gun in the fleet. Battleships are some of the largest fighting capital ships out there, in addition to the heavy deck guns, battleships will be loaded with turrets and powerful direct fire guns.
Battle Cruiser:
Just like the smaller cruiser this can be considered a sister class to the battleship. These will heavily favor vertical launch missiles over the battleships main deckguns but will still have the same capabilities of direct fire and auxiliary turrets.
Capital Carrier (CC):
Carriers are the heart of any fleet, they provide the support for all the vehicles that are not capable of supporting themselves for extended flights into deep space. Carriers should be not only equipped to handle their own crew but should have enough provisions to support an entire fleet. These will often be the command ship of any deployment so they are often equipped with CIC facilities and some prisoner management as well.
Shortdeck Carrier:
Small cheap carrier only capable of supporting a few small fighters. They will be equipped for deep space and possibly medical endeavors.
Light Carrier:
Packs as many fighters it can into a small package. With additional heavy landing pads these ships can support larger fighters and small corvettes. Light carriers will have excellent turret coverage but poor or no direct fire capabilities.
Fleet Carrier:
The biggest carriers around, designed to support entire fleets of ships and cast control over many sectors. The main flight deck should be able to easily handle heavy fighters, gunships and small corvettes. Additional landing pads may dock corvettes and gunboats. Excellent turret coverage and may feature some proper direct fire capabilities typically optimized for range.
Additional Classes:
Freighter (FR)
The freighter classification covers anything that is a work ship. From tiny shuttles to mighty cargo haulers and planet harvesters
Note: I probably should add additional classifications for cargo pods, these would include L ratings.
Medical (M)
Any medical ship; ambulances, field hospitals, hospital ships.
Luxury (LX)
Luxury ships include yachts, cruise ships, sportshuttles, basically anything for the rich and wealthy.
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