Dreadnought class (alternate reality)

This page details a counterpart of Dreadnought class in the alternate reality created by Nero's temporal incursion; for the Dreadnought class in the primary universe see Dreadnought class.

STARSHIP CLASS
Dreadnought-class
Affiliation:	Federation, Starfleet (Section 31)
Type:	dreadnought
Service period:	2259
Dimensions
Length:	1,459 meters
Width:	~740 meters
Height:	~275 meters
Specifications
Crew:	minimal
Armaments:	type VII phasers, (phaser drones and phaser arrays), torpedo launchers, experimental weaponry
Defences:	deflector shields

"Dreadnought class: two times the size, three times the speed, advanced weaponry, modified for a minimal crew. Unlike most Federation vessels it's built solely for combat."

— Khan, 2259

In an alternate reality, the Dreadnought-class was a 23rd century starship type operated by the Federation's Section 31 program as a warship in the 2250s decade. In this reality created by the temporal displacement of the Narada, the lead ship of the class was the USS Vengeance, launched under the command of Admiral Alexander Marcus in the year 2259.

Specifications

Port side view of the USS Vengeance in 2259

The Dreadnought-class starship was a class of vessel designed by Section 31 in preparation for hostilities against the Klingon Empire. The design borrowed heavily from contemporary starships in Starfleet service and featured a saucer section and secondary hull. The vessel was two times larger than the Constitution-class of the era and was three times as fast. Automation was common aboard the ship and was enhanced so as few as one person could command the vessel via voice commands.

The vessel was similar to those of other ships of the era and was armed with phaser arrays capable of firing while at warp, multiple torpedo launchers, and other experimental weaponry including attack drones that could be launched toward an enemy vessel and fire upon a target before impacting it. She was heavily armored and was designed with protective armor plates that could slide into place to protect vital components of the vessel during combat. It was also capable of withstanding extreme damage that could destroy other vessels, such as when 72 photon torpedoes detonated on her hangar deck.

Ships of this class were equipped with Mark IV warp capabilities making them faster than other ships of the era and capable of exceeding maximum warp to catch up with a starship it was following by interfacing with their warp bubble. Its bridge was smaller than contemporary vessels and it featured an expansive shuttlebay and, at minimum, nine hangar bays. In contrast to other Federation vessels, the interior of the Dreadnought class starships were very dark.

History

Designed by Khan Noonien Singh, the Dreadnought-class was built in secret in orbit of Jupiter and the prototype was completed in roughly one year. After a terrorist attack upon Earth and the dispatching of the USS Enterprise to apprehend the culprit on Qo'Nos, the prototype Vengeance was taken by Admiral Alexander Marcus to intercept the Enterprise and eliminate the threat before his origins and the Admiral's actions in them were exposed. The Vengeance overtook Enterprise near the Neutral Zone; however, she escaped destruction with the Vengeance pursuing and intercepting them in orbit of Luna. The Vengeance would later be destroyed after being captured by Khan and piloted into the city of San Francisco.

The fate of the ships of this class has not be revealed. However, in 2260, Section 31, had fleet of ships that resembled this class of ship and were equipped with more advanced cloaking devices.

General overview

USS Enterprise and USS Vengeance face off

The Dreadnought-class was roughly two times the size of a Constitution-class starship. A ship of this class was designed to be operated by a minimal crew, one person if necessary. The class had advanced warp capabilities.

Configuration

Bridge

Bridge of the USS Vengeance

The bridge of the ship was small and cramped compared to the more spacious bridge of the Constitution-class. It was designed to be run by the captain single-handedly if necessary. It was possible to operate the navigation and propulsion of the ship with only simple voice commands. Also in stark contrast to the Enterprise bridge, the Dreadnought's bridge was very dark - in lieu of bright lighting and shining white walls, the bridge was largely black, though still well lit.

Engineering

Engineering was designed so that it could run autonomously if needed. Like the bridge, the engineering section was cramped and painted in shining black. The interior featured a more refined design compared with the engineering section on the Enterprise - for example, there were no coolant pipes or mains directly accessible by the crew.

Sensors

Ships of this class were equipped with multidimensional radar and space region observer systems.

Transport and cargo

A ship of this class had at least seven hangars. Hangar 7 was located on deck 13.

Tactical systems

One of the torpedo launchers

Khan was involved with designing the weapons for the Dreadnought-class. The weapons were significantly more advanced than contemporary Constitution-class weaponry. While most other Starfleet ships were designed for exploration and research, the Dreadnought-class ships were designed solely for combat. The deflector dish could be covered by protective armor plates while the ship was not traveling at warp speeds to defend the dish from damage during a battle. The ship was extremely durable in design and could remain intact even after the internal detonation of 72 photon torpedoes and a high speed collision with a city.

The Enterprise takes fire from the USS Vengeance

The weapon systems included an array of advanced phaser emitters. The powerful discharges from these weapons arced indirectly at the target and could be fired while the ship was at warp. Single hits could penetrate through the shields and cause major hull breaches to a Constitution-class starship.

A drone launched by the USS Vengeance

The weapon systems also included two massive swivel-mounted torpedo launchers that could be deployed from under the saucer section from behind protective armor plating. They could rotate and launch a volley of torpedoes at various firing arcs from aft to forward of the ship. A Dreadnought-class ship could also launch drones that in turn were capable of launching several photon torpedoes before crashing into a target.

Propulsion systems

The Dreadnought-class featured two angular warp drive nacelles, unlike most Starfleet ships that had featured cylindrical nacelles. The Vengeance was described by Khan as having "three times the speed" of the Enterprise.

The USS Vengeance fires on the USS Enterprise

The Dreadnought-class ship had the capability of tracking down and attacking a fleeing enemy ship while at warp speed.

Known vessels

• USS Vengeance