The Nebula-class was developed along-side the Galaxy-class in the 2340s and ’50s. While Starfleet firmly believed in the feasibility of the Galaxy-class, they wanted a more cost-effective ship that would be able to perform much of the same missions as the larger, more expensive capital ships under construction.
Part of the design that was approved by Starfleet included a multi-mission module that could easily be exchanged within days at a suitably euipped starbase. The first pod consisted of a sensor dome attached to the rear of the ship. Designed to aid in long-range reconnaissance and search-and-rescue operations, the sensor pod quickly proved its usefulness, so much so that several Nebula-class vessels were allocated to border patrols.
Although the basic Nebula design has approximately 80% of the capability of a Galaxy class vessel in most areas, the addition of the mission pod brings that figure up to 95% or more in that specific area. This flexibility actually allows the Nebula design to accomplish almost identical missions despite its smaller size.
With the flexibility given to it by the replaceable pod-module, the Nebula-class has quickly become one of the most produced and utilized starships of the 24th century.
The Nebula Class has a 3rd shuttlebay located in the POD Pylon. The ships 2 Brunel Workpods are the only craft assigned to it. The main use is as a repair/maintenance/specialty use bay.
Pod Specifications
Between missions, Commanding Officers may dock at a starbase (Obsidian Command or a TF starbase) and swap their pods for one of the others. By default, new Nebula class vessels in Obsidian Fleet come equipped with the tactical pod.
Sensor pod: The majority of the first Nebula-class ships were outfitted with this pod, which greatly extended the ship’s sensor range. With this pod the Nebula-class ship is virtually unmatched in regards to sensor capability. Ships with this pod module were routinely assigned to deep-space exploration, hostile border patrols or long-range reconnaissance.
Weapons pod: With the recent Borg invasions and Dominion War, Starfleet quickly mobilized to deploy the weapons pod, which contains 8 forward-facing “pulse” torpedo launchers, and 3 Type X point-defense phaser emitters. The launchers are fed by an additional 200 photon torpedoes stored in the pod itself. The weapons pod is also equipped with two shield generators (one main, one backup), since it was realized that the pod would be an easy target. The shield generators are the same type used through-out the rest of the ship, and draw power directly from the auxiliary energy reserves during Red Alert situations.
Tactical pod: This is a late 2370s addition to the Nebula-class fleet, and is quickly becoming the default module for all new Nebulas being built. The design combines the scanning capabilities of the sensor pod and the offensive capabilities of the weapons pod into one module. There are disadvantages to this design. The tactical pod contains 75 fewer torpedoes (125) and only three torpedo launchers – two forward, one aft – in order to make room for the sensor pallets. Also, the scanners are primarily designed to aid in targeting for the torpedoes and phasers, and as such are not optimized for long-range usage.
Hospital pod: This specialty pod, while not found in wide-spread use, includes the same medical facilities found in large starbases and is equipped to handle several hundred casualties at once.
Habitation/Colony pod: This pod contains a large number of residential quarters, and is sometimes used on long-term missions, or on missions focusing on populating a colony. Depending on configuration, up to 6,000 people can be ferried in the habitation module. With slight modifications, this module can be configured to act as a troop transport, enabling the ship to carry several thousand troops. This module also contains a dozen dedicated transporters, allowing the roughly 5,000 troops to be beamed out within a relatively short amount of time.
Shuttlebay/Hangar pod: This experimental pod includes a large shuttle hangar with the space to hold a significant quantity of fighters and runabouts. A typical Hangar pod would contain the following:
- 8 Gryphon Fightter-Bombers
- 16 Valkryie Space Superiority Fighters
- 3 Danube Class Runabouts
- 1 Arrow Class Runabout
- 4 Brunel Workpods
Note: While the saucer section can detach, it cannot be re-attached without the assistance of a starbase and would, in the interim, leave the engineering section propelled by manoeuvring thrusters and warp only. The deck listing below is that of a Nebula equipped with the tactical pod. As such, the first four “decks” are essentially sub-decks while the ship proper begins on what would customarily be deck 5 but is, in this instance, deck 1. The sub-decks comprise the pod.
Specifications
| Category | Cruiser |
| Duration | 100 years |
| Resupply | 4 years |
| Refit | 7 years |
| Personnel | |
| Officers | 155 |
| Crew | 625 |
| Marines | 128 |
| Passengers | 120 |
| Speed | |
| Cruising Speed | Warp 6 |
| Maximum Speed | Warp 9.3 |
| Emergency Speed | Warp 9.9 (for 12 hours) |
| Dimensions | |
| Length | 442.3m |
| Width | 470m |
| Height | 130m |
| Decks | 34 |
| Auxiliary Craft | |
| Shuttlebays | 3 |
| Fighters | Gryphon Fighter-Bomber: 2 Valkryie Space Superiority Fighters: 8 |
| Runabouts | Danube Runabout: 2 Delta Flyer Runabout: 1 |
| Shuttles | Type 11 Shuttle: 2 Type 15 Shuttlepod: 6 Type 8 Shuttle: 6 Type 9 Shuttle: 4 |
| Transports | Wyvern Hopper: 2 |
| Workpods | Brunel Workpod: 2 |
| Armament | |
| Defensive Systems | Ablative Armour |
| External Defensive System | Point Defence Batteries: 10 |
| Shielding Systems | Auto-Modulating Shields Metaphasic Shielding |
| Phasers | Type X Array: 8 |
| Torpedos | Burst-Fire Torpedo Launcher: 2 – Photon Torpedoes: 250 – Quantum Torpedoes: 125 Tri-Cobalt Devices: 14 |
Deck Listing
| Deck | Description |
| 1 | Sub-deck A – Pod Tactical Sensor Systems |
| 2 | Sub-deck B – Sensor Sub-systems, Forward Torpedo Launchers, Aft Torpedo Launcher, Torpedo Loading Mechanisms |
| 3 | Sub-deck C – Torpedo Storage, Torpedo Maintenance Bay |
| 4 | Sub-deck D – Sensor Sub-systems, Pod Access |
| 5 | Deck 1 – Captain’s Ready Room, Main Bridge, Observation Lounge, Executive Officer’s Office |
| 6 | Deck 2 – Junior Officers’ Quarters, Environmental System Controls |
| 7 | Deck 3 – Junior Officers’ Quarters, Flight Control Centre, Primary Sensor Array |
| 8 | Deck 4 – Main Shuttlebay, Upper Shuttle Maintenance Bay, Shuttlebay Operations |
| 9 | Deck 5 – Lower Shuttle Maintenance Bay, VIP Quarters, Primary Communications Array |
| 10 | Deck 6 – Transporter Rooms 1-4, Main Science Labs 1-10, Chief Science Officer’s Office |
| 11 | Deck 7 – Senior Officers’ Quarters, Hydroponics Bay, Auxiliary Deflector Control |
| 12 | Deck 8 – Crew Quarters, Commanding Officer’s Quarters, Executive Officer’s Quarters, VIP Quarters |
| 13 | Deck 9 – Senior Officers’ Quarters, Stellar Cartography, Officers’ Mess |
| 14 | Deck 10 – Ten Forward Lounge, Stellar Cartography (Lower Bay), Fusion Reactors 1-4, Saucer Impulse Engines, Main Computer Core (Level 1) |
| 15 | Deck 11 – Holodecks 1-4, Gymnasiums 1 & 2, Banquet Halls, Security Office, Brig, Main Computer Core (Level 2) |
| 16 | Deck 12 – Main Sickbay, Sickbay Main Computer, Surgical Ward, Neo-natal Ward, Biohazard Ward, Critical Triage Ward, Primary ICU, Overflow ICU, Trauma Stasis Unit, Medical Sciences Ward, Main Computer Core (Level 3) |
| 17 | Deck 13 – Cargo Bays 1 & 2, Residential Quarters, Primary IDF Generators |
| 18 | Deck 14 – Cargo Bay 3 & 4, Cargo Loading Doors, Residential Quarters |
| 19 | Deck 15 – Marine Facilities, Armoury, Maintenance Bay 1 |
| 20 | Deck 16 – Captain’s Yacht Docking Port, Secondary Communications Array |
| 21 | Deck 17 – Crew Quarters, Upper Mess Decks, Tactical Sub-systems |
| 22 | Deck 18 – Crew Quarters, Auxiliary IDF Generators, Sensor Maintenance |
| 23 | Deck 19 – Crew Quarters, Lateral Sensor Arrays, Secondary Computer Core (Upper Level) |
| 24 | Deck 20 – Crew Quarters, Lower Mess Decks, Sensor Sub-systems, Secondary Computer Core (Lower Level) |
| 25 | Deck 21 – Holodecks 5 & 6, Deuterium Storage, Main Probe Storage |
| 26 | Deck 22 – Structural Integrity Field Systems, Deuterium Storage, Matter Injectors, Forward Torpedo Launcher, Torpedo Loading Mechanism, Torpedo Bay, Graviton Polarity Generator 1, Shuttlebay 2, Shuttle Maintenance |
| 27 | Deck 23 – Main Navigational Deflector, Graviton Polarity Generators 2-4 |
| 28 | Deck 24 – Main Engineering, Chief Engineer’s Office, Storage Bays 1-6, Graviton Polarity Generator 5 |
| 29 | Deck 25 – Science Labs 11-15, Engineering Labs 1-3, Maintenance Bay 2 |
| 30 | Deck 26 – Aft Torpedo Launcher, Torpedo Loading Mechanism, Torpedo Bay, Primary Shield Network Generators, Secondary Probe Storage |
| 31 | Deck 27 – Environmental Support, Waste Management, Maintenance Bay 3, Maintenance Equipment |
| 32 | Deck 28 – Cargo Bays 5-9, Replicator Matter Tanks, Secondary Shield Network Generators, Forward Tractor Beam Emitter |
| 33 | Deck 29 – Antimatter Generator, Antimatter Storage Pods, Machine Shops and Fabrication Centres, Auxiliary SIF Generators |
| 34 | Deck 30 – Aft Tractor Beam Emitter, Antimatter Supply Manifold, Antimatter Injectors, Antimatter Loading Hatch, Warp Engine Core Jettison Hatch |
Ships of the Line
- USS Roanoke
- USS Hiroshima
- USS Endeavor
- USS Santa Maria
- USS Livingston
- USS Endurance
- USS Chesapeake
- USS Niña
- USS Pinta