While the Ascendant Dawn was and continues to be considered the hero of the Solar War in the minds of the American public, some have asserted other vessels were far more worthy of the title. Such was the case for the Flame of Liberty, another Roosevelt-Class orbital destroyer that rose to notoriety during the war’s penultimate battle over Titan.

Much like the Dawn, the Flame was one of twelve Roosevelts constructed by Windfall Starship Systems and completed in the spring of 2162. Initially, the ship was christened as the Sword of Providence and was immediately given over to the command of Capt. Melanie Bhatia. The Sword’s agility, formidable armament and inclusion of the controversial linear skip drive made it a revolutionary design, meant to support the slower, hulking flagship – the New Liberty. The Sword of Providence was officially commissioned on April 2, 2162 and immediately deployed alongside her sister ships to defend the Windfall shipyards at Titan. Much like the bases at Luna, the shipyards had become a constant target for the superior numbers of the Chinese fleet since the conflict’s beginnings.

Just four months later, the Battle of Titan earned the Dawn its place in history with Capt. Miles Edson’s famous gambit. Maneuvering his vessel to strike at the crippled New Liberty, the Dawn fired on the reactor, igniting it and crippling the Chinese fleet. As the Dawn skipped away, Edson rallied the remaining American ships and soon won the day.

Yet far less known are the efforts of Capt. Bhatia and the crew of the Sword. After successfully harrying Chinese cruisers for several hours, the imminent destruction of the New Liberty dreadnought forced Bhatia to change tactics. The flagship, having borne the brunt of Chinese missiles and railguns, found itself on the brink of a complete systems collapse. As the crew of the New Liberty began an immediate evacuation, the all too fragile escape capsules became easy prey for enemy ships.

Hearing reports of the flagship’s defeat and with a sudden lack of communication from high command, Bhatia made the decision to disengage hostilities and launch a full-scale rescue operation. The Sword of Providence rushed toward the New Liberty, utilizing its skip drive to hop past storms of debris and enemy missiles. Engaging magnetic systems meant for securing cargo, the Sword gathered up over half a dozen escape capsules before skipping back to the Ark of Mercy – one of the fleet’s remaining medical cruisers. With its cargo delivered safely, Bhatia repeated the run four more times before Edson performed his famous maneuver aboard the Ascendant Dawn. The New Liberty was completely annihilated and much of the surrounding region was doused in a wave of deadly gamma radiation.

While Edson rallied the American ships to strike at the vulnerable Chinese fleet, Bhatia saw no reason to discontinue her previous efforts. Yet earlier runs had taken their toll, damaging many of the Sword of Providence’s systems, including radiological defenses. Knowing that continued radiation exposure would place all their lives in jeopardy, she addressed her crew as they unloaded their most recent batch of survivors:

“Crew, this is your captain speaking. What we have experienced here today is more than any should be asked to endure and yet, endure it you have. Each and every one of you is a reflection, not only of the best parts of our nation… but of all humanity. The lives we have fought for and saved here today are a testament to your selflessness, your courage, and your compassion.

“I have been informed that the radiation protections of the Sword have been compromised and, though not yet to lethal levels, we have all already received more than our fair share of rads. I cannot, in good faith, order you all back to stations. But there are still people out there, people who need our help. And so you all have a choice before you: For those of you who wish to stay aboard the Ark, I advise you to do so without shame or reservation. Go home to your families and your loved ones. Carry our spirit forward and tell our stories. You have fought this war to its end as far as I see it and you have earned your respite and honor.

But this ship… our ship… the Sword of Providence… stands ready to support our comrades left across the battlefield, no matter the cost. I ask not as your captain but as a fellow human being that you join me in bringing those people home. Let us be the flame that lights the path to hope…”

– FINAL TRANSMISSION OF CAPT. MELANIE BHATIA (USSC 947 SWORD OF PROVIDENCE)

As Bhatia concluded her words, she instructed her helmsman delay departure from the Ark of Mercy, to give those who wanted to leave time to do so. Yet immediately it became apparent: none of the crew sought to disembark. Bolstered by that knowledge, the Sword left the Ark of Mercy behind and skipped back into the irradiated battlefield, completing another three successful runs.

On her fourth run, a Chinese destroyer delivered a direct hit to the now-limping Sword, crippling the ship’s engines and shutting down its reactor. The disabled vessel careened into the debris field, bouncing from impact to impact. Within moments, the entire crew – including Capt. Bhatia – were lost and the Sword became another wreck adrift over Titan.

In the months to follow, American haulers returned to the site of the battle to begin gathering the dangerous scrap that now floated perilously close to the bases over Titan. Among the recovered debris was the wreckage of the Sword of Providence, which was hauled back to drydock to remove its classified – and by that time illegal – skip drive technology.

Though the USSC intended to scrap what was left of the Sword, the former vessel quickly found a swell of support. From the ship’s eight successful rescue runs, 186 individuals from the New Liberty’s crew had been saved. 152 of them would survive their injuries past the war. The survivors demanded that the Sword be rebuilt and restored in honor of those that had given their lives for their sake. The USSC denied the request at first, but the survivors continued to petition the American government, earning the support of several high-profile members of Congress. The USSC finally conceded. And the ship was rebuilt and returned to active status in October of 2164, its crew comprised exclusively of service members who had survived the New Liberty because of Bhatia and her crew’s efforts. To further commemorate the valiant act, the Sword of Providence was renamed the Flame of Liberty, commemorating both the words of Captain Bahtia’s famous speech and the vessel the crew had once served.

Though other Roosevelt destroyers that survived the Battle of Titan would continue on into active service, the Flame of Liberty was in a class all its own. Its reconstruction had further updated the vessel, adding significantly more armor plating and a new complement of weapon systems. While most Roosevelt ships were intended to support larger craft, the Flame had been outfitted to operate far more independently. As a result, most of the Flame’s future missions over the next several decades paid homage to the ship’s moment of glory. While patrols of trade convoys were always on the table, the Flame was often utilized for high-profile extractions, refugee support and humanitarian escort.

In the 2190’s, as most Roosevelt destroyers were beginning to be retired, the Flame was given another series of technological upgrades and began to be utilized as a transport for covert operations. Its drone suite was significantly upgraded, allowing for a complement of remote fighters. Working with the US Orbital Marines, a full barracks was added to the ship’s lower levels, assisting a series of black ops missions that have only recently been declassified. Their engagements included everything from undermining the growth of the Grayson Rebellion to countering attacks by the Guardians of the Gates of Heaven. Most recently, two pairs of Hachiman perimeter defense cannons were added to the Flame’s already impressive armament, greatly improving the vessel’s ability to repel enemy attacks.

Though the ship’s linear skip drive remained aboard the vessel throughout the decades, reports show it was never utilized. Doing so would violate any number of interplanetary treaties. Its use was seen as something only for the most extreme of emergencies that fortunately never came to pass.

In 2218, the Flame of Liberty was, at long last, slated for decommissioning. Its final duties were to patrol the busy shipyards at Titan, who were already alive with the construction of the new Outbound fleet. When Admiral Peter Kohler caught wind of the intended retirement, he quickly intervened and suggested “the tough old girl” be given one last assignment within the ranks of the Outbound fleet and to fly once more with her sisters.

Like her sister ships, the Freedom’s Cry was born of desperation. Constructed during the height of the Solar War, the Roosevelt-Class represented Windfall Starship Systems’ willingness to deploy experimental technologies into active combat. Agile, heavily armed for their size, and equipped with the controversial linear skip drive, these destroyers were designed to complement the massive dreadnought New Liberty.

However, unlike many of her sister ships, the Freedom’s Cry was never heavily modified for specialized roles. This relative “purity” of design would prove to be her greatest strength.

During the Battle of Titan, the Freedom’s Cry was assigned to the outer defensive screen, operating in tandem with several other Roosevelt destroyers to delay advancing Chinese formations. While ships like the Ascendant Dawn executed daring offensive maneuvers and the Sword of Providence (later Flame of Liberty) undertook rescue operations, the Freedom’s Cry remained locked in sustained combat along the periphery.

Over the course of the battle, the Cry engaged multiple enemy cruisers and missile platforms, relying on coordinated maneuvering and precise railgun fire to disrupt incoming waves. Though heavily strained, the ship avoided catastrophic damage—due in no small part to disciplined command decisions that prioritized survivability over risky engagements.

When Captain Miles Edson’s decisive strike triggered the destruction of the New Liberty, the Freedom’s Cry was positioned far enough from the blast center to avoid the worst of the radiation and debris wave. While many ships were crippled or destroyed outright, the Cry emerged battered—but intact.

This status made her an immediate asset in the aftermath of the battle. As the American fleet regrouped, the Freedom’s Cry served as a command relay node, coordinating damaged vessels and helping reestablish operational cohesion in the absence of centralized leadership.

Following the war, the Freedom’s Cry was reassigned to the Homefront Armada, a temporary defensive fleet stationed in orbit over the United States in the post-Solar War era. Though lacking the fame of her sister ships, the Freedom’s Cry became one of the most consistently deployed vessels in the USSC. Officers often referred to her as “the ship that stayed ready.”

By 2218, the Freedom’s Cry—like the rest of the Roosevelts—was deemed outdated. Plans were made for her decommissioning, with discussions ranging from scrapping to limited preservation.

However, the emergence of the Outbound Hope Mission changed her fate.

With the Ascendant Dawn selected as flagship, it became clear that the symbolic and practical value of the Roosevelt-Class had not yet faded. The Freedom’s Cry sprang back into relevance, undergoing a modest retrofitting to support long-duration escort operations beyond the Sol System.

If the Ascendant Dawn inspired a nation and the Flame of Liberty embodied its compassion, then the Freedom’s Cry ensured that both legacies endured. The Freedom’s Cry represents a different kind of heroism—one not defined by singular acts of brilliance or sacrifice, but by consistency, discipline, and survival.

The Lincoln-Class cruiser evolved out of a need for heavy warships in the wake of the Solar War of the mid-22nd century. With US interests now stretched across every corner of the Sol system, the navy needed a vessel that was capable of substantial speeds, heavy armament and – when necessary – operational independence. While some factions within the Windfall Starship Corporation and the US Congress encouraged the United States to disregard the treaties that had mothballed the Linear Skip Drive technology characterizing the Roosevelt line, more pragmatic voices began work on what would ultimately prove to be a far more lasting design.

From their launch in the early 2180’s, the Lincoln class of light cruisers would become the workhorse of the USSC over the next three decades.

The Ardent Fire was commissioned at Titan Shipyards in 2182 along with six of her sister ships – including the Bright Pinnacle. Her early years were lackluster, with several early missions patrolling Minerva Station from pirate raids or protecting the Bifrӧst against ambitious rival factions that never materialized.

When the Grayson Rebellion broke out in the mid-2190’s, the Fire and its sister ship, the Pinnacle, were mobilized by then-Captain Peter Kohler in the daring counter-attack that would ultimately topple Grayson and crush the rebellion. As the remaining traitors retreated into hiding obscurity, the USSC organized a specialized task force, Gold Group, to hunt down the survivors. With Kohler – now elevated to the rank of admiral – uninterested in overseeing the task force, the role passed to Captain Evangeline Knapp who utilized the Fire as her flagship. Over the next ten years, Gold Group was able to recapture 23 rebel vessels, destroy 12 more, and recover trillions in US property and Windfall technologies.

Frequent engine issues became a hallmark of the Lincoln line by the 2210’s, with the Fire spending more time in drydock than on active duty for several years. In 2215, the USSC made the decision to decommission half of the remaining Lincolns by the following year. The remaining ships – the Ardent Fire and the Bright Pinnacle among them– would receive full engine retrofits, but would thereafter be retained only for simple patrols and base defense. The newly-minted Dauntless– and King-Class Cruisers would replace the Lincolns’ former niche.

The Fire and Pinnacle were pulled from this fate by Admiral Kohler himself, who personally requested the ships be added to the Outbound Fleet. The request shocked many naval and congressional leaders, especially considering the longstanding personality conflicts that existed between Kohler and the sometimes-abrasive Commander Nathaniel Cortes of the Fire. Still, the moved pleased warhawks within the USSC and the two ships were proudly added to the roster, substantially increasing the firepower of the Outbound escort.

Much like its sister ship, the Ardent Fire, the Bright Pinnacle was one of seven Lincoln-class cruisers brought into service in 2182. Through much of the 2180’s and into the 2190’s, the Pinnacle served in patrolling the often-targeted supply lines between Earth and the rapidly expanding Titan Shipyards.

The Pinnacle and the Fire were reunited once again in 2194, when Windfall engineers recalled the Lincoln ships to fix a faulty power grid that had plagued the ships for years. The retraction was the catalyst for the famed Grayson Rebellion at the end of that year, but also placed both the Pinnacle and the Fire in a perfect position to strike back against the rebel fleet. Under Captain David Zhao, the Pinnacle soon joined Captain Peter Kohler in crushing the rebels over Enceladus. The response claimed Zhao’s life, but earned him the Medal of Honor in 2196.

After extensive repairs – including a complete reconstruction of the ship’s primary bridge – the Pinnacle was soon assigned to the Gold Group taskforce, assisting in the hunt for remaining Grayson sympathizers throughout the system.

In the early months of 2219, Kohler – now an admiral – requested that the aged Pinnacle once more join the Fire in escorting the Outbound Fleet. Commander Joan Thompson, previously a junior officer aboard the Ascendant Dawn during the Grayson Affair, was honored to accept Kohler’s invitation. She looks forward to assisting the Outbound Hope Mission in the new star system.

Unlike the lighter-armed Roosevelts, the Lincoln vessels are considerably more formidable. Boasting 23 weapons hardpoints and two enormous combat drone hangars, the Lincolns are able to serve as both a battleship and a carrier in equal measure. Mission profiles typically station four dozen marines aboard the vessels, though significantly fewer are assigned for the Outbound Hope Mission.

Instead, the marine barracks has been retrofitted to house the Outbound Hope Mission’s USSC science team. While Martian teams exist on both the Ascendant Dawn and the Allan Sandage, the Pinnacle’s American science team are in place to support the DCA leaders also stationed aboard the vessel – namely the Ministers of Colonial Development and the Environment.

Throughout the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, high-speed, single-pilot aircraft dominated warfare. As humanity took to the stars, these fighter craft took on new forms, updated their technologies, and promptly followed along. Space-bound fighters – colloquially known as “starfighters,” played an integral role in every major conflict from the Orbital War to the Solar War. Massive carrier ships – capable of carrying both starfighter squadrons and their pilots – became an integral piece of national fleets throughout the Sol System.

Yet in every decade of the Space Age, starfighters possessed a fundamental problem: At such high speeds, even the smallest piece of debris could shred both ship and pilot. Attempts to add gravitational shielding proved unfeasible due to a starfighter’s small size and minimal reactor output, making starfighters one of the most statistically-dangerous vessels to serve in. Even at the peak of their use during the Solar War, starfighter pilots saw casualty rates more than three times as high as their counterparts aboard capital ships. As designers attempted to minimize cockpit space in the name of armor plating and replace glass canopies with steel hulls and video monitors, the so-called “speedy coffins” became less and less appealing to new recruits.

By the end of the Solar War, the USSC began to experiment with a return to drone technologies, suggesting a pilot would be far safer on board a capital ship while the automated fighter journeyed out and into the fray. While drone fighters had once controlled the skies of twenty-first century warfare, the speed and distances associated with space combat made drone usage unfeasible well into the twenty-second century. Windfall engineers scrambled to find solutions, ultimately turning to their often-mysterious OMEGA project.

Though specifics are highly classified, OMEGA technologies networked together a subject’s neural systems with advanced technologies, bridging the gap between humanity and machine. The earliest programs had focused on better integration between SAI systems or mechanized warsuits, but Windfall engineers proposed similar systems could be utilized to better network pilot and drone. While the technology took several generations to perfect and saw sporadic use in the decades to follow, the system proved sufficiently safe for mass deployment of integrated “Omega-C” drone pilots by the beginning of the 2210’s. Communication delays between pilot and drone dropped dramatically, allowing for drones to deploy over a far larger area – and maintain their remarkable speeds – while their pilots continued to operate from the safety of a larger vessel.

As the Omega-C program took hold, the USSC found itself facing a new problem – a lack of qualified pilots. Traditionally recruited from the ranks of commissioned officers, the rigors of training as drone pilot – combined with the genetic lottery of being a viable candidate to undergo the Omega-C implant procedures – proved to be a significant barrier that left the USSC starved for suitable candidates. In 2212, the USSC changed its doctrine, testing incoming enlisted recruits for implant compatibility and immediately placing those who passed into accelerated drone training programs.

Recently, reports of increased risk-taking behavior, impulsivity and deteriorating mental health amongst enlisted drone pilots have brought the wide spread “test-and-chip” policy of the USSC under scrutiny. The USSC has denied any correlation and assures the public that the people it entrusts with this powerful technology undergo the best in screening and continued mental health check-ups.

The Mk. III is the latest generation of Windfall’s combat drones, combining an outstanding balance of speed, maneuverability, firepower, and pilot-to-drone networking. Incorporating the latest Omega-C technology, drone pilots can maintain near-instantaneous communication with their craft with only minimal neural side effects.

Though usually deployed from a specifically-designed carrier, Shard fighters can also be utilized using a drone suite, an inclusive attachment that can be fitted onto any capital ship of sufficient size. Acting as a signal transmitter, a docking bay and a recharging station, drone suites have allowed for widespread deployment of Omega-C drone squadrons in the recent decade, without a full rebuilding of the USSC fleet.

Within the Outbound Hope fleet, three military vessels possess Drone Squadrons. The Lincoln-Class Light Cruisers Ardent Fire and Bright Pinnacle were each fitted with NIMITZ-2 EXPANDED Heavy Drone Combat Suites immediately upon assignment to the mission. Each vessel can field three squadrons – two utilizing standard Mk. III fighters and a third with modified Mk. IIIB sensor-configured drones.

The Roosevelt-Class Destroyer Flame of Liberty possesses a far-smaller Albatross-Expanded Combat Drone Suite, allowing it to field a half squadron of six drones at a time, with an additional six units held in reserve. The new suite – and updated drones – replace earlier models that were already fitted for previous missions undertaken by the Flame, but the ship’s squadron name – Cinder Squadron – remains a steadfast tradition.

Gunships are small, maneuverable vessels meant to fulfill any number of mission profiles, including scouting, surveillance, escort, and even customs and law enforcement. In combat, their heavy armament makes them ideal for capital ship support and – with proper atmospheric ratings — ground support.

The Osprey-Class Gunship was designed by Windfall Starship Systems to replace the earlier Kite-Class that had served as a workhorse of the USSC since the 2180’s. Though reliable, the Kite’s sensitive power systems and high-maintenance reactors were a frequent drain on naval resources, prompting the USSC to push Windfall into contemplating new designs. The resulting Osprey-Class improved the Kite’s design in almost every metric, boosting everything from engine speeds to magazine sizes to make an efficient and powerful weapon of war.

The Osprey is configured around a high-yield, multi-vector weapons architecture designed for rapid, large-scale target neutralization. Its missile system consists of armored launch bays housing a mix of munitions capable of independent target acquisition and course correction in contested environments. These systems enable saturation strikes across dense target zones, overwhelming both active defenses and hardened infrastructure. Complementing this is a pair of railgun placements, utilizing high-capacity capacitor banks and superconducting rails to accelerate deadly tungsten projectiles. In short, a single Osprey is capable of leveling an entire orbital station with ease.

The Osprey-Class is built to support a crew of six, relying on improved SAI integration to reduce the number of servicemembers required for sustained missions. Though a fully-outfitted Osprey is capable of operating for up to six months without resupply, such an event is unlikely. Like most gunship types, the Osprey lacks a gravitational drive. This makes the ship highly dependent on orbital or deep-space stations or capital ships and operating more often within short range mission parameters.

If the Osprey lacks anything compared to its predecessor, it would be its loss of atmospheric capability. While the Kite had an impressive atmospheric rating that allowed it to do everything from bombing runs to troop support, the Osprey’s larger frame and heavier engines made atmospheric missions untenable. The Osprey’s inabilities in this area come at no great loss to the USSC. In recent years, the change is reflective of a greater policy shift within the USSC that favors tactical orbital strikes and ground troop support, making the change a minor loss able to be reassigned to other, older vessels.

First assembled at Titan in 2218, the Osprey line has been largely untested in modern combat. Even with a general replacement of Kite gunships with newer Ospreys, military budget issues – complicated by public feuds over the funding of the Outbound Hope Mission – have made the rollout slow and lackluster. By supplying the Outbound Hope Mission with six Ospreys, Windfall hopes they can showcase their new design by making it part of one of the most important moments in human history.

The Turing-III Research Platform is the third generation of a mobile research station developed by the Martian Engineering Union. Intended to deploy Martian scientific efforts to the farthest reaches of the Sol System – and now beyond – the vessel incorporates all the elements of both a sophisticated starship and a major research laboratory.

Boasting the unique, circular design common to many Martian vessels – a trend birthed from early stereotypes about Martians in flying saucers – the platform lacks a distinct “fore” and “aft” section and operates from a bridge situated at the structure’s interior. While the vessel benefits from eight Quasar-Class Advanced Ion Engines on its belly, Martians tend to prefer the delicate use of gravitational drives as a means of propulsion. Eight Herschel-IV units exist on massive maneuvering fins surrounding the central circle structure and allow for a slow but precise and fuel-efficient vessel.

The Allan Sandage was originally constructed for use by Dawes University of Sisyphus as a mobile research platform for post-graduate studies. Built in 2216, it was one of four Turing-III vessels and included state-of-the-art research facilities and living spaces. Returning from Saturn shortly after the announcement that the Martian Collective would be participating in the Outbound Hope Mission, the vessel was leased by the government and incorporated into the growing Outbound Fleet. Chancellor Nabhitha Singh personally selected the leaders and scientific teams that would participate as part of the daring interstellar project.

The Sandage’s sixteen laboratory spaces run the gamut of scientific disciplines, incorporating everything from geologic analysis suites and zero-gravity voids to experimental colliders and genetic libraries. A wide tube-like corridor that runs around the central structure incorporates greenspace walls used to study a multitude of plants and insect colonies. Much of the rest of the ship is devoted to residential areas, where scientists-in-residence can sleep, eat, exercise and relax from their often-regimented work schedules.

Beneath the bridge in the platform’s center is an expansive computer core which acts as the server for the ship’s Martian Artificial Intelligence, a Mars-specific counterpart of the famed SAI found on most USSC vessels. Commonly referred to as “MAI-A,” the intelligence specializes in data analysis, allowing for detailed scientific examinations in a fraction of the time. Unlike typical SAI models, MAI-A is able to split her attention between multiple functions and physical locations, monitoring both ship systems and numerous laboratory experiments with only a minor loss of processing speed.

Complementing the work aboard the Sandage is a separate Martian facility aboard the Ascendant Dawn, the flagship of the Outbound fleet. While laboratory space there is minimal, the additional locale acts as a sort of embassy for Martian political interests and allows them greater access to Admiral Kohler and Governor Delacruz. It is for this reason that Dr. Shineman – head of the Martian delegation into 354-PA – will actually complete the weeks-long journey starward aboard the Dawn and not the Sandage, leaving the Martian vessel under the command of the esteemed astrophysicist Leia Chandrasekhar.

In 2218, an SNN commentator described the launch of the Harmony transports to be “the Icarus moment for Kepler CEO Elias Maren.” While Kepler spokespersons – and even Maren himself – rushed to refute the claim and label the Harmony vessels to be “the next chapter in luxury vacation experiences” the next several months only proved the validity of the statement. The six ships the company had manufactured failed to find a buyer, with each of their price tags nearing a trillion dollars. Maren and others began to try and explain away the poor investment as a “ship not ready for the modern age” while talks of bankruptcy began to stir behind the scenes.

On the heels of the immensely-successful Olympic line, the Harmony ships were meant to spare no expense and redefine a new standard of luxury. With wide, opulent interior spaces decorated in an ornate art deco style, the ships were intended to appeal to the ultra wealthy like never before. Several prominent luxury cruise lines had expressed interest in the vessels in their early development stages – before their price tags began to skyrocket into the obscene.

The design itself is close to perfection. Like every Kepler ship of the 23rd century, the Harmony ships incorporate the elegant “tandem” propulsion systems, improving on the Mahmoud AIE and Charioteer Gravitational Drive systems that had been popularized in the earlier Olympic IV models. Living spaces are meant to be massive and lavish, with many suites incorporating smaller quarters intended for assistants, nannies and other staff of potential high-end guests. Elaborate promenades, green spaces and entertainment facilities were intended to be second-to-none. Restaurants, clubs and shops cluster around a central “entertainment canyon” – a depression in the ship’s hull that allows for a multi-level view of the stars. Under atmospheric conditions, the canyon’s transparent roof can be retracted into the hull, allowing the canyon to enjoy the local breeze.

While just slightly larger than the Olympic IV, the Harmony vessels were designed to support no more than 3000 passengers at a time – roughly half of their Olympic counterparts. Kepler officials speculated that cruise lines could easily set ticket costs in the millions and hypothesized elaborate voyages between the Jovian moons or through the asteroid belt.

But none of this was meant to be. The six Harmony vessels sat unused for more than a year while Kepler struggled with how to make up their crippling losses.

Their salvation came from an unlikely source. In October of 2218, Kepler’s greatest rival – Windfall Starship Systems – began to catch wind of a possible anti-trust lawsuit against their near-total control of the Outbound Hope Mission project. While Windfall had already established plans to develop passenger transports of their own, they opted to forgo their construction and urged the Department of Colonial Affairs to consider the purchase of all six Harmony transports and a small fleet of Olympic IV vessels. The DCA agreed, ultimately deciding on a price less than half of what Kepler had hoped to recover. While some DCA leaders suggested reserving some or all of the Harmony ships for a renewed colonial roster of the wealthy and elite, the proposal was ultimately rejected. Spaces once meant to be occupied only by the upper echelons of society would now be inhabited by Outbound colonists from all walks of life and class.

With the ability to showcase their finest ships as part of the Outbound Fleet, Kepler has managed to stay in business. With over 15,000 calling the Harmony transports home for the weeks-long voyage starward, Kepler hopes it can recapture the public eye and reestablish its place among the stars in the years ahead.

The DaVinci-Class Engineering Platform is a fully independent, deep-space manufacturing vessel designed to take refined resources and turn them into finished orbital infrastructure without planetary support. Though first produced in 2214, the DaVinci is one of a long line of construction vessels meant to operate far from home, allowing a minimal crew to begin building a foothold for civilization out in the void of space.

While ships like the Vulcan-Class industrial platforms are equal parts refinery and factory, the DaVincis concentrate far more on processing already-refined materials into well-engineered structures. Each ship possesses a massive centripetal forge in its aft section, which allows the ship to manufacture the sizeable beams and supports that other portions of the platform will process into still-larger structures. From immense bays on either side of the fore of the ship, teams of construction drones or human-driven engineering vessels can deploy to assemble objects as big as space stations – or as small as family-sized housing units. Though DaVinci ships can — theoretically — be used to construction new vessels, doing so would be far less efficient than a traditional drydock or shipwright station

The first team of six DaVinci platforms were developed to assist in constructing Heimdall Station, a sizable military platform completed near the Bifrost ring in 2215. The DaVinci ships proved remarkably hardy and efficient, prompting the Department of Colonial Affairs and the USSC to depend heavily on the ships in the years to follow. In 2218, the DCA opted to allocate three of their DaVinci platforms to the Outbound Hope Mission with the intent to help the new colony in establishing orbital resource facilities and planetside structures for habitation and administration.

The Vulcan-Class Industrial Platform is Windfall’s attempt to satisfy the manufacturing needs of the Outbound Hope Mission by combining together several previously-existing elements into a somewhat disjointed – yet effective – industrial machine.

Initial designs for the mission involved a need for large-scale manufacturing, particularly during the settlement portion of the operation. The inclusion of three Da Vinci-Class Engineering vessels would satisfy the large-scale construction projects, but other needs persisted – particularly on a smaller scale. The Vulcan-Class platforms were meant to scratch two such itches: They would serve as both mobile resource refineries and as manufacturing centers to meet the needs of the colony’s significant population.

While many starship designs included some abilities in both of these areas, larger-scale operations were usually assigned to terrestrial or station-based setups. Windfall engineers looked to establish something grander, though its ultimate “Hephaestus” design was scrapped by unanticipated budget shortfalls. Instead, engineers looked to what already existed in an attempt to meet the needs of the operation.

The workhorse of what would become the Vulcan-Class Industrial Platform is a pre-existing design – the WSS “Pilgrim” tug ship. These heavy vessels are often utilized around Windfall shipyards and are intended to haul heavy cargo and ship components between stations. While generally slow, their propulsion systems are remarkably dependable and able to safely maneuver large and delicate objects.

Mounting the Pilgrim to a spine-like platform rig gives the vessel the ability to secure more than a dozen essential industrial pods – typically designed as independent, automated units on space stations throughout the Sol system.

At the bow of the platform, Windfall engineers placed three pairs of Ptah-Class manufacturing pods, recently designed by Windfall for the Jovian Trade Collective and their growing enterprises throughout Jupiter and its moons. Each pod is secured to the rig to operate as its own, automated factory. Pulling refined resources from the set of storage units further aft, printers and independent construction rigs can repurpose themselves to create anything from simple panels of ceramic deck plating to sophisticated equipment.

The rest of the ship accommodates earlier steps in the production process. Six resource bays and two expanded bays are secured next, meant to hold harvested resources or finished goods. Docking ports on each of them are meant to cater to the MOLE extractor units also slated for the fleet. At the stern, two wedge-shaped refinery stations process ores and dust into usable materials.

The entire industrial process is automated by a sophisticated civilian-grade AI (CAI) that manages the entire operation from a central core aboard the Pilgrim. With no atmosphere outside of the tug, everything is entirely independent and controlled remotely by human operators. A robotic transportation system channels resources in the storage bays to and from the refineries and manufacturing pods as needed.

Meant exclusively as a short-range vessel, the Pilgrim tug design lacks any gravitational drive, which became the final piece of the platform puzzle. Fitting a standard Mercury-D drive between the manufacturing pods allowed the newly-minted Vulcan-Class Industrial Platform to keep up with the rest of the Outbound Fleet.

Pleased with Windfall’s design, the Department of Colonial Affairs now intends to send three such vessels through the Bifrost Station and on to new adventures.

The Persephone-Class Agricultural Platform represents the cutting edge of extraterrestrial food production technology. Developed by Windfall Starship Systems in the decade prior to the Outbound Hope Mission’s launch, the class was designed to address one of humanity’s most persistent challenges: sustainable, high-efficiency food generation beyond Earth.

Conceived as the successor to the aging Ceres-Class platforms, the Persephone design achieves a dramatic increase in output while simultaneously reducing crew requirements. This is made possible through the integration of advanced Civilian-AI (CAI) systems, which oversee nearly every aspect of the ship’s operation. From nutrient cycling to harvest timing, the CAI ensures a level of precision and consistency that earlier platforms failed to meet.

The defining feature of the Persephone-Class is its rotating agricultural ring, a structure roughly 205 meters in diameter that encircles the vessel’s central spine. This rotating band serves as the primary site of agricultural production, generating sustained artificial gravity by way of centripetal force rather than NearGrav technologies. This stabilizes growth conditions and allows for uniform distribution of biological material.

Within this ring, dense arrays of cultivation systems are arranged to maximize efficiency. These systems are optimized most commonly for the production of protein-rich algae, a highly adaptable and resource-efficient food source capable of being processed into a wide variety of consumables. Artificial lighting cycles, tightly controlled by the CAI, simulate ideal growth environments while integrated harvesting and processing systems ensure that production flows continuously with minimal interruption. The CAI’s constant monitoring and adjustment of environmental conditions allows the system to operate at peak efficiency at all times, reducing waste and maximizing yield.

The result is a self-contained agricultural ecosystem, capable of sustaining large populations with far greater reliability than previous orbital platforms. This makes the Persephone-Class particularly valuable for distant or developing colonies, where supply chains are fragile and self-sufficiency is critical.

Systems aboard a Persephone ship are so well-maintained and calibrated that – once full production of the vessel is established – buyers will have the opportunity to install a medical suite whose systems are specially-calibrated to produce useful medical products and pharmaceuticals. This option is available thanks to a corporate partnership between Windfall and the TraumaTek corporation.

As the Persephone-Class line is still in its infancy, a single vessel, the Gaia-II, has been assigned to accompany the Outbound Hope Fleet as a proof-of-concept platform. Its presence within the fleet is both practical and symbolic, providing a stable and renewable food source while demonstrating the long-term viability of the design under deep-space conditions.

The General Supply and Distribution Freighter (GSDF)-3 is a highly common transport vessel capable of long-distance travel and exceptional dependability. Built upon Windfall Starship Systems’ “Journey” hauler chassis, the GSDF-3 prioritizes precision handling and deployment capability over raw cargo volume. While utilized throughout the Sol System in limited industrial roles, the GSDF-3 has found its most critical application within the Outbound Hope Mission, where it serves as a cornerstone of early settlement strategy. Four such vessels, modified by Windfall technicians into specialized transport ships, have been redesigned to support rapid colonial expansion through the delivery of pre-fabricated infrastructure.

Unlike its larger counterpart, the GSDF-4, the GSDF-3 employs a streamlined configuration of three massive reinforced cargo pods. Small crews of 2-6 individuals are housed in the habitation module that sits above the main magnetic clamps that hold the first of the pods. By many ships’ standards, the GSDF-3 living quarters are remarkably spacious and often customized to meet the needs of the crew or family operating the vessel. In Sol, it is not at all uncommon for families far larger than six to call the ships home while parents and kin operate the vessel as a primary means of income.

The smaller “Journey” chassis allows for greater maneuverability and control, an important consideration when transporting delicate or highly specialized construction assets – as is the case within the Outbound Hope Mission. Here, pods are specifically engineered to house pre-fabricated structures, including family housing modules, economic centers, and essential support facilities. Each pod is fitted with stabilization systems and deployment interfaces, ensuring that structures can be delivered intact and made ready for rapid assembly upon arrival. This focused design reflects a focus on mission-critical delivery, where accuracy and reliability outweigh sheer carrying capacity.

Upon reaching the destination, GSDF-3 haulers are expected to offload their cargo in carefully coordinated sequences, enabling the rapid establishment of shelters, operational hubs, and systems supporting quality of life. Unlike the GSDF-4, the GSDF-3 is rated for atmospheric travel, allowing the ship to glide in carefully over designated landing sites to deploy their essential cargo.

The General Supply and Distribution Freighter (GSDF)-4 Expanded Cargo Hauler is a heavy transport vessel built around Windfall Starship Systems’ widely utilized “Mule” XLD-Hauler chassis, a platform long regarded as the backbone of civilian and industrial logistics across the Sol System. Designed as a direct evolution of earlier cargo models, the GSDF-4 emphasizes scalability, durability, and ease of maintenance over specialization.

While commonly employed throughout established trade networks, the class has taken on renewed importance as part of the Outbound Hope Mission, where reliable cargo transport is essential to long-term success.

The GSDF-4’s defining characteristic is its configuration of ten massive external cargo pods, mounted along the Mule chassis in a modular arrangement. This design philosophy mirrors that of larger platforms (such as the Ceres Agricultural design), allowing individual pods to be detached, replaced, or serviced without requiring extensive downtime for the ship itself.

This modularity has proven especially valuable for Outbound Hope engineers, who must maintain operational readiness far from established infrastructure. Damaged pods can be swapped and replaced with minimal disruption, ensuring continuous transport capability even under challenging conditions.

Unlike more specialized haulers, the GSDF-4 is built for versatility. Its cargo pods are typically loaded with raw materials, industrial components, and general goods, making the vessel a critical link in sustaining both construction efforts and civilian life within the fleet.

Where the GSDF-3 focused on more mission-specific logistical support, the GSDF-4 serves as a general-purpose workhorse. Its role within the Outbound Hope fleet is straightforward but indispensable: to move the materials that make expansion possible. Whether transporting refined metals, structural components, or bulk resources harvested en route, the GSDF-4 ensures that the fleet’s more specialized vessels can continue their work without interruption.

Though lacking the prominence of warships or the innovation of agricultural or industrial platforms, the GSDF-4 Expanded Cargo Hauler represents a quieter kind of necessity. Built on a proven chassis and designed for endurance rather than glory, it stands as a reminder that even humanity’s boldest ventures rely on the steady movement of goods through the void.

The CERES-Class agricultural platforms are five food production vessels constructed for the Outbound Hope Mission using the popular and multipurpose “Mule” XLD Hauler chassis created by Windfall Starship Systems. Given the importance of a strong food supply for the colony, these ships were among the first approved and manufactured for the 2219 Outbound project, having been officially rolled out in the early days of 2218. Collectively with the Gaia-II — an experimental PERSEPHONE-Class ship of similar design — the ships are meant to establish a viable and even redundant food production system until planet-side agriculture is able to surpass them.

The Ceres platforms produce the vast majority of foodstuffs by growing and harvesting vast colonies of genetically-enhanced algae. In twenty sizeable aquatic chambers known as “green vats,” algae is cultivated and autonomously collected using a combination of artificial sunlight and nutrient-rich “dietary matrix.” This matrix — colloquially known as “dough” — is then placed in barrels and distributed to the ships of the fleet.

All Outbound ships are outfitted with food synthesizers capable of taking the matrix and using it to replicate any number of food items. Much like an archaic 3D printer, the synthesizers are able to realign the proteins and sugars of the matrix while adding various artificial flavors and chemical texture cultivators. In doing so, they can create a wide variety of food-like substances relatively indistinguishable from the inspiration.

Fully-deployed and secured to the planet’s surface, a single Ceres platform is able to produce roughly 12-15,000 kilograms of food per day, benefitting immensely from planetary gravity, minerals and natural sunlight.

Like any ship built along the Mule design, living quarters aboard Ceres ships are small but optimized for their crew size. Living areas are modest and compact, with private quarters but a public recreation space, gym, kitchen and lavatories. Like many Outbound ships, they are not designed for long-term habitation and crew members are welcome to visit any of the larger transport vessels during the weeks-long voyage starward.

The OH-MOLE8 Resource Extractor is a highly specialized adaptation of Windfall Starship Systems’ compact “MOLE” extraction rig, modified specifically for service within the Outbound Hope Mission. Despite its modest size, the OH-MOLE8 stands apart from standard civilian models through the inclusion of a miniaturized gravitational drive—an addition that allows it to travel alongside the Outbound Fleet and operate far beyond traditional industrial zones.

This capability, rare among vessels of its scale, defines the “Outbound Hope” designation and transforms the MOLE from a localized mining tool into a deep-space resource asset.

Built for efficiency in extreme environments, the OH-MOLE8 is equipped with twin high-output plasma drills capable of cutting through dense asteroid material and fractured planetoid surfaces. These drills are used not only to extract resources directly, but also to destabilize and fragment larger bodies into manageable debris fields.

Once material has been broken apart, the vessel deploys swarms of autonomous harvest drones. These drones rapidly scan surrounding debris, identifying valuable elements and transporting them back to the ship’s internal bays with minimal need for human oversight. Within the MOLE’s compact processing systems, collected materials are sorted, compressed, and formed into standardized cube-shaped packages optimized for storage and transfer.

The entire process is designed to maximize yield while minimizing operational complexity, allowing the small vessel to punch far above its weight in terms of productivity.

Within the Outbound Hope fleet, a complement of ten OH-MOLE8 units operates in coordination with the much larger Vulcan-class industrial platform. While the Vulcan platforms handle large-scale refinement and manufacturing, the MOLEs serve as their forward extraction arm.

Working ahead of or alongside the fleet, these ships harvest raw materials from asteroids and other celestial bodies, delivering processed resource packages directly to the Vulcans for refinement and eventual use. This partnership creates a continuous supply chain, enabling the fleet to generate critical materials without reliance on pre-existing infrastructure.

Small, rugged, and relentlessly efficient, the OH-MOLE8 embodies the practical ingenuity at the heart of the Outbound Hope Mission. While larger ships may carry the ambitions of humanity, it is vessels like the MOLE that provide the raw materials to make those ambitions possible.