Postat 12 January 2007 - 12:46 AM
Venator-class Star DestroyerVenator
A Venator-class Star Destroyer above Coruscant.
First appearance Revenge of the Sith
General Characteristics
Class Star Destroyer
Fighters Starfighters (35 squadrons)
LAAT/i gunships
AT-TE walkers
Armaments Heavy turbolaser batteries
Double turbolaser batteries
Laser cannons
Heavy proton torpedo tubes
Defences Deflector Shielding
Power 3.6E24 W
Length 1,137 meters[citation needed]
Also known as "Republic Attack Cruisers," Venator-class Star Destroyers were the successors of the successful tradition of the Acclamator-class assault transports and the Victory-class Star Destroyers. While the Acclamator was primarily an armed troop transport and the Victory was a jack-of-all-trades, the Venator was primarily a starfighter carrier/destroyer.
The Venator-class destroyer was 1,137 meters long and carried a crew of 7,400. Its main reactor could consume up to 40,000 tons of fuel per second and had engines that could accelerate the massive vessel at almost 30,000 m/s². The ship was capable of operating within atmospheres and landing for docking as well retrieving/disembarking the ground forces.
The Venator-class carried 420 starfighters in its large hangar bays, a feature phased out of successor destroyer designs in favor of heavier weapons on the ships themselves. Standard fighter complement was 192 V-Wing starfighters, 36 ARC-170 starfighters, and 192 Eta-2 Actis Jedi Interceptors. 40 LAAT/i gunships and 24 AT-TE walkers were carried for ground operations. Combined with its fighters, the Venator's powerful engines, strong deflector shields and armament consisting of 8 heavy turbolaser turrets, 2 medium dual turbolaser cannons, 52 point-defense laser cannons, 4 heavy proton torpedo tubes, and 6 tractor beam projectors made it one of the most powerful and fearsome medium warships of the time. Venator-class ships could divert almost the entire output of their main reactor to their weapons, giving a maximum firepower of over 800 teratons. Some Venator-class ships also carried SPHA-T turbolaser walkers in their hangar bays, which were used to provide extra close-range firepower and to defend the open hangar bays, the most vulnerable part of the ships.
Venator-class Star Destroyers were deployed in a number of battles during the Clone Wars, most notably during the Battle of Coruscant when upwards of a thousand of the ships helped protect the capital. As the Galactic Republic transformed into the Galactic Empire, the Venator ceased production in favor of the newer Imperator-class and Tector-class Star Destroyers. Thousands of Venators procured during the Clone Wars were slowly mothballed over the succeeding decade. Even though the "Imperator" and "Tector" classes fit the Imperial policy of rule through terror better than the Venator, many tacticians and fleet commanders preferred the older design of Star Destroyer, due to its carrying capacity and sleek appearance, and would have opted for an upgraded design of the Venator rather than the new Imperator.