Basestar Type-B
the transitional Cylon warship
The Basestar Type-B was a Cylon capital ship of the Cylon War, the first to combine the flattened-cone profile of the Type-A with the Y-shaped layout of later baseships. One was destroyed over the ice moon Djerba by the assault ship Osiris.
The Basestar Type-B was a type of warship used by the Cylons during the Cylon War. Deployed at some point before the tenth year of the war, it was the first basestar to feature the Y-shaped design that became iconic in later iterations, combined with the flattened-cone shape of the earlier Type-A.
Design#
The Type-B marked a transition in basestar design, joining the flattened-cone shape of the Type-A with the now-iconic Y-shaped configuration of later baseships. It was heavily armed, mounting roughly sixty-one or more missile launchers able to fire both nuclear and conventional warheads, and it carried a complement of approximately 143 Raiders. The ship was driven by sublight engines and reaction control thrusters. Unlike the modern Type-D, the Type-B was unable to detect nuclear missiles carried aboard an enemy vessel.
The engagement over Djerba#
A Type-B basestar was encountered by the Orion-class assault ship Osiris over the ice moon Djerba. The basestar did not at first detect the stealth-coated Osiris, but once the assault ship was spotted it launched its Raider complement and opened fire with its missiles. After heavily damaging the Osiris, the basestar was ultimately destroyed by nuclear detonation when the crippled assault ship rammed it and detonated its nuclear complement.
Frequently asked questions
- What was the Basestar Type-B?
- The Basestar Type-B was a type of warship the Cylons used during the Cylon War. Deployed at some point before the tenth year of the war, it was the first basestar to feature the Y-shaped design seen in later iterations, combined with the flattened-cone shape of the Type-A.
- How was the Type-B basestar armed?
- The Type-B carried roughly sixty-one or more missile launchers capable of firing both nuclear and conventional warheads. It launched a complement of approximately 143 Raiders and was driven by sublight engines and reaction control thrusters.
- What happened to the Type-B basestar at Djerba?
- A Type-B basestar was encountered by the Orion-class assault ship Osiris over the ice moon Djerba. It did not at first detect the stealth-coated Osiris, but once spotted it launched its Raiders and opened fire with its missiles. After heavily damaging the Osiris, the basestar was destroyed when the crippled assault ship rammed it and detonated its nuclear complement.
- How did the Type-B differ from the modern basestar?
- Unlike the modern Type-D, the Type-B could not detect the nuclear missiles aboard the Osiris, a limitation that proved fatal when the assault ship rammed and detonated against it.
Sources
- WikiBasestar Type-B — Battlestar Wiki entry
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Related entries
Basestar
The basestar was the Cylons' primary capital ship, an armored carrier and battleship hybrid. The modern Type-D, grown from hardened organic matter and run by a living Hybrid, led the Fall of the Twelve Colonies.
Cylon Raider
The Raider was the Cylons' space superiority fighter, a living organism fused to a metallic exoskeleton. Sentient, capable of resurrection, and eventually capable of refusing orders, the Raider was the counterpart to the Colonial Viper across both Cylon wars.
Cylon
The Cylons were a race of sentient machines created as military robots by Graystone Industries on Caprica. Built from research into artificial consciousness, they rebelled against their human masters, fought a decades long war, and forty years later returned to annihilate humanity.
Cylon War
The Cylon War, also called the First Cylon War, was a twelve year interstellar conflict between the Cylons and the Twelve Colonies of Kobol. It began when the Cylons rose against their human creators and ended in a sudden Armistice that held for over forty years.
Djerba: the ice moon of Sector 12
Djerba was an icy stellar body in Sector 12 that held a winter resort before the Cylon War. Captured by the Cylons early in the conflict, it became a deep enemy stronghold and the site of a costly engagement during the Ghost Fleet Offensive.
Orion-class
The Orion-class was a class of Colonial assault ships developed decades before the First Cylon War. Armed with battlestar-grade kinetic weapons on a compact hull and fitted with the most advanced stealth coating in the Colonial Navy, it earned the affectionate nickname "pocket battlestar" and served chiefly as a reconnaissance and espionage vessel.
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