"There is record of a Battle Tug named "Jan Zizka" but no NCC number is known."

Thus reads the listing in the painting guide of the Starline 2400 minitures for the Federation battle tug Jan Zizka.

AFAICT, the exact NCC number is unknown, as is what differences (if any) exist between "normal" battle tugs and the USS Jan Zizka.

Without specifying a YIS or a NCC number or a "color backstory", I'd like to suggest that the "Missing Battle Tug" has the following:

1. is different from the "vanilla" battle tugs.
2. is a "emergency/hostilities only " production option (either a early General War or a result of the Second Fed/Kzinti war production (about year 136?)
3. is a "permanent" conversion (like the Klingon carrier tugs) that is not intended to be used for "normal" tug missions. (and as such, would be either scrapped following whatever war it was built for or, mothballed).

If we assume that the YIS was year 136+, then one possible configuration would be:

a battle pod, and a "modified" tug.

The modified tug, (being "new" construction in fall year 136 or later) might have been a tug that retained the CA saucer instead of conversion to the "normal" Tug saucer type.

in table form, the differences are:

System	CA saucer	Tug Saucer
Photons	4	0
BTTY	2	2
Tran	2	2
Ph-1LFL	2	0
Ph-1RFR	2	0
Ph-1FH	2	2
Ph-1LRA	0	1
Ph-1RRA	0	1
LAB	8	4
Bridge	2	2
FHull	12	12
EMBR	2	2
Impulse	4	4
APR	0	1
Probe	0	1
Shttl	0	2
Trac	0	2
Total	42	38

NOTE: the Tug has room for a plus refit that includes 1 Drone rack (type G), and 2 phaser 3's (one LS, one RS)

If the Plus refit (available after year 165 IIRC) is taken into account, the Tug saucer has "room" for 41 SSD boxes, while the plus refit of the CA saucer added the systems to the secondary hull, rather than incorporating the added systems in the saucer.

As such, that means there are some 41 SSD boxes incorporated in the Tug Saucer, while the CA saucer has but 42 (or a net difference of 1 SSD box between the two designs.)

If the "Jan Zizka" saucer were pattened after a CA saucer, then there needs to be room to add the required systems that the tug saucer has but a vanilla CA saucer lacks.

these include:

System	Number
Lab	-4
APR	1
Probe	1
Shuttle	2
Trac	2
total	-2

One solution (not a good one IMO) would be to "use" the space that eventually was taken up by the "Plus Refit" (the 2 phaser 3's and the drone rack) on the theory that in year 136 there was no one who could forsee that the space had to be reserved for a year 165 refit. (and by implication, means that the resulting design could not receive the plus refit after 165...)

Unless some one else has a suggestion as to what 2 SSD boxes on the CA saucer could be substituted for the needed changes?

Anyway, back to the proposal.

the Pros would be:

1. when combined with a battle pod, the Jan Zizka would have 10 photons, (4 in the saucer, and 6 in the battle pod).
2. when combined with a battle pod, the Jan Zizka would have 10 phaser 1's (instead of the normal 8 phaser 1's)
3. depending on what is decided about the plus refit, the Jan Zizka would have 2 or 4 phaser 3's.
4. Again, depending on what is decided about the plus refit, the Jan Zizka would have either 0,1 or 2 Drone racks.
5. the Federation would thus be able to build a Dreadnought without having to use a DN slip way.

Cons include:
1. possible shock due to the 10 photons.
2. given that this proposal is for a permanent conversion, the ship would, (for all intents and purposes) be a Dreadnought in all but name (a slow DN, to be sure).
3. the conversion of a CA to this design is a major conversion, and reduces the number of CA building slots in the current turns (in F&E terms that is) production.

If the ship were built in year 165+, then the design would be 2 SSD boxes "larger" than the vanila BT design (again due to the plus refit using space in the saucer area.

I have no idea what a BPV this would have, but I'm guessing that since a CA saucer BPV is 60/20, and the Tug BPV is 88/60, then a CA saucer with 2 x 15 box warp engines might "weigh in" at 100 BPV. (if any one would care to express an opinion, it would be welcome as I admit this is a WAG.)

comments?

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Wednesday, March 21, 2007 - 09:43 am: Edit

NO NO NO NO NO.

No Fed tug with photons.

The "Jan Ziska" is a standard tug with a standard battle pod, not a new ship type. The "name" was just an informal "nickname" for a tug with a battle pod.