Cruiser
A powerful multi-role ship with greater endurance and size compared to destroyers and corvettes. They are the smallest platforms capable of mounting spinal lasers and the like.
There is no singular preferred design and role for a cruiser or cruiser-equivalent in the known universe. Their prestige makes for an acceptable diplomatic transport, the extra space allows for more scientific and/or medical equipment, and cruisers are generally cheap and easy to maintain.
In a fight, cruisers mount sufficient firepower to take on multiple smaller, weaker ships with appropriate tactics and are afforded increased survivability to compensate for decreased tactical maneuverability, but are less significant an investment as battleships. Specialized artillery cruisers even mount the spinal weapons which made that class of ships so desirable, but sacrifice flexibility, mobility, and self-defense capabilities to do so. Overlap resulted in the battlecruisers, especially popular in F-MAG and the SUAF, but otherwise cruisers remain the backbone of most smaller FTL-capable nations.
There is no singular preferred design and role for a cruiser or cruiser-equivalent in the known universe. Their prestige makes for an acceptable diplomatic transport, the extra space allows for more scientific and/or medical equipment, and cruisers are generally cheap and easy to maintain.
In a fight, cruisers mount sufficient firepower to take on multiple smaller, weaker ships with appropriate tactics and are afforded increased survivability to compensate for decreased tactical maneuverability, but are less significant an investment as battleships. Specialized artillery cruisers even mount the spinal weapons which made that class of ships so desirable, but sacrifice flexibility, mobility, and self-defense capabilities to do so. Overlap resulted in the battlecruisers, especially popular in F-MAG and the SUAF, but otherwise cruisers remain the backbone of most smaller FTL-capable nations.
