Eltorian Baseship       An Eltorian Baseship functions as a mobile command center and base of operations. Using a typical exocarrier for scale, baseships are incredibly large. Up until their first appearance in the sol system in 2022, the largest ship seen in terran history was the Neosapian flagship Olympus Mons II. This craft was several times larger than the terran flagship, the Resolute II. For as large as the Olympus Mons was in comparison to the Resolute, a baseship is when compared to the Olympus Mons. A baseship's size is a necessity of its function. With a crew off over six thousand, the necessary equipment, weapons, food, and supplies are not easily stored on a smaller craft. Which, incidentally, must make voyages as far away as another galaxy. Given its wealth of resources and unimaginable girth, it is a small wonder that its inhabitants often think of a baseship as a smaller version of their home world. Offensive capabilities:       The main offensive weapon of any baseship is a yesil. Yesil, translated from Eltorian, means 'mouth from which death spews'. A less literal translation would be 'gun'. Yesils are uniformly distributed along the surface of the hull in rows. Each station has two modes: a recessed or inactive mode and an active mode. In its recessed mode, a yesil looks like any other part of the hull (A). In its active mode, a yesil morphs outward into a bump or nodule (B). While in this mode it is capable of launching a plasma burst at any target within its range of view. This range is 360 degrees horizontally and 180 degrees vertically (or one half of a sphere). The plasma bursts launched by a yesil are several times more powerful than the plasma missiles launched by Eltorian battle armor. A yesil is routed to a yesiler (gunner) station. Each yesiler station controls 10 yesils, covering an area of approximately 50 square meters of hull. Direct control of the Yesils can be rerouted to the bridge as needed. However, yesils under bridge control tend to reflect a loss of accuracy. As is often the case in remote control. This is particularly evident when targeting smaller objects. The Sphere:       Another weapon employed by a baseship is something that is simply referred to as 'The Sphere'. On the surface The Sphere appears to be a large, glowing, orange/yellow ball which is capable of incredible speeds and swallowing planets. However, the truth is far more complex. The Sphere's surface is a solid metal sheath, golden in color. This sheath protects the internal components from potentially harmful radiation and energy based attacks. At the same time it allows energy to escape from within The Sphere and into space. The internal components consist of a thick layer of dispersion/projection cones followed by two equal-sized compact generators located at The Sphere's center. One of these generators fuels the The Sphere so that it may propel itself through space and project energy. However, what appears to be a single generator is actually several hundred coupled together in a small space. Considering one such generator can (and does) power a single battle armor indefinitely, the power output of such a device is staggering. This is why both generators are coccooned in dispersion/projection cones. Energy build up from either generator is bled off through these cones to the outer skin. This is why The Sphere does not overheat or just plain meltdown when it is activated. The energy bleed phenomenon is also why The Sphere has a 'fiery' appearance and leaves a comet-like trail as it travels. The second generator is responsible for producing a 'warp field'. A warp field bends time and space, resulting - under the proper conditions - in a tear in the fabric of reality.       To move, The Sphere simply focuses its energy bleed in a particular direction. The Sphere then moves in the opposite direction. Given that it can focus this type of bleed on any portion of its outer skin, The Sphere has an incredible level of maneuverability. Given the levels of energy it can produce, it has the speed to match. The Sphere's movement and function are controlled by an on-board central processing unit. This is located in between The Sphere's generators. For practicality, it is heavily shielded from both the heat and the various other forms of energy the generators can produce. The CPU is divided into two halves which function together to operate The Sphere. Looking at the CPU from The Sphere's maintenance port, these can be referred to as the right and left halves of the CPU. The left half is used strictly for astro-navigation and sensors. Programed before launch, it coordinates the energy bleed to move the sphere to its assigned location and back. It also contains a minimal sensor package. Though not terribly sensitive, it can detect the power surges most commonly associated with the use of an energy-based weapon and objects that are in motion around it. This half of the CPU also has a small degree of artificial intelligence. For example, if an object where to get in it's way The Sphere would automatically calculate a path around the object so that it could continue on to its target. Higher level decisions are left to the right half of the CPU. This portion of the CPU is used to make tactical decisions as the situation arises mid-mission. These decisions include threat assessment (to the unit itself), targeting adjustments, and whether to attack/retreat. All offensive functions are controlled by the right side of the CPU. These functions include controlled discharges of electromagnetic energy and use of the warp generator.       Offensively, The Sphere is very powerful. Even if it is not busy swallowing a planet, it is equipped with a formable self-defense system. If an object - say an e-frame - where to encounter The Sphere, it would be scanned by the left portion of the CPU and threat assessment would be determined by the right portion of the CPU. If the e-frame were simply flying toward it, The Sphere would most likely ignore it until it traveled directly into its path. At which point The Sphere would try to move around it. If, however, the e-frame powered up its weapons systems The Sphere would detect it and classify it as a threat. The next course of action being to disable it. This is typically done through a controlled burst of electromagnetic radiation which, in the case of our e-frame, would short circuit most - if not all - its systems.       The Sphere's main method of attack, however, is usually reserved for much larger targets (i.e. planets). This is, of course, the function for which The Sphere is known. Many have described the event as The Sphere 'swallowing' a planet or just making it disappear. Of course this is untrue. What really happens is The Sphere shunts the planet into a region that is best described as a bit of nothingness between universes. This region is commonly called unspace. The process begins when The Sphere locks in a course circling its intended target such that the entire one side of the target is in view. At this time, both generators shift to their highest output settings. The energy generator provides The Sphere with its needed speed while the warp generator begins creating the necessary warp fields. A warp field extends from the surface of The Sphere to the surface of the target. It creates several of these at specific points around the target. Once created, a warp field is highly unstable and will dissipate without a continued boost from the warp generator. This is why The Sphere must circle its target at high speeds and a specific distance. It is only at these speeds that the individual warp fields created will not lose integrity and the entire planet can be enveloped by them. The planet is finally shunted when a critical velocity is attained. This is the velocity at which all the individual warp fields have coalesced into one very big field. At this point the planet appears to get smaller. This is an optical illusion however. In reality the planet is merely moving through the tear in reality the warp field has created. By tightening its orbit, The Sphere shrinks the size of the tear. In doing so the warp field around planet will 'push' the it through the reality tear. Once the target has been successfully shunted The Sphere will slow its velocity resulting in a loss of warp field integrity. This is the point at which the field collapses, sealing the planet in unspace. The warp generator then shuts down and the energy generator reduces its output.       Shunting a planet back to its home reality can be a bit more difficult. The Sphere will create a warp field several times smaller than the object to be retrieved. It will then widen its circular path until the object can fit through it completely. The purpose of this is simple. Just as The Sphere shrinks the warp field to push a planet through a reality tear, widening a warp field will suck the planet back where it belongs. Finding the object to be returned can be the tricky part. Through decades of research on the part of the Eltorians, it has been discovered that an object shunted into unspace will remain 'parallel' with its home reality (i.e.- the spot it lands in unspace correlates with its spot in real space). Furthermore, the object's mass determines how long it will remain in parallel. A smaller object, say a space station, would probably remain in parallel for anywhere between 30 minutes to 30 days. A larger object (planet sized) would remain in parallel for up to 5 Earth years or longer. So in most cases, creating the reality tear at the last known location of an object will return said object back to real space. If however, the object has shifted its position in unspace (is no longer in parallel) then retrieval becomes more difficult but not impossible. The Sphere will then create a small reality tear and quickly pass through that tear itself. Now in unspace, it will find the object and create another reality tear, sending it back to its home reality. The Sphere will then pass through the tear it created before the reality rip closes so that The Sphere may also return. The one drawback to this type of retrieval is that one cannot be certain where the object will resurface in real space. It could return too close to a star, near a black hole, or inside another planet. It is for this reason that extra care is taken to return objects from unspace BEFORE they are fall out of alignment with their home reality.       Defensively, The Sphere can be considered vulnerable. This is because a direct hit from terran missile could easily destroy it. However, making that hit is the real trick. Due to its unfathomable speed and maneuverability, locking onto The Sphere while its in mid-motion is all but impossible. And given its offensive capabilities, it is almost pointless to try.       There is one known way to counter the use of The Sphere. This is the use of a planet-wide anti-warp generator. An anti-warp generator is modified warp field generator that senses and adjusts for the use of other warp field generators in its proximity. A warp field can essentially be seen as a device that pulls reality in a specific direction. In starships, it creates a wave that then propels the ship along. In The Sphere, it pulls at reality until it tears apart. An anti-warp field is always negative and reactionary. To extend the analogy, for every direction a warp field pulls reality an anti-warp field pulls it back the other way, neutralizing the effect. It is for this reason that anti-warp fields first found service in the Eltorian Military. They were used to cripple warp driven ships. It was only later that it was discovered a planet with a large enough anti-warp field generator could not be shunted by The Sphere. Defensive capabilities:       The hull of every baseship is composed of an organometallic compound. Combining the regenerative abilities of the organic with the strength of a metal, organometallics provide for a sound and very solid vessel. The regenerative qualities of the hull make regular minor repairs unnecessary. During battle this can be a great asset. Though, the healing properties of the ship do have their limits. When sufficiently damaged, the ship will become incapable of repairing itself. Typically, work crews will have to repair these damaged sections enough so that the natural healing properties of the vessel can take over.       Often times a baseship appears to have a reddish/pink glow surrounding it. This is not a trick of the light but rather the main form of defense for the ship. Eltorian force shield generators are energy efficient and can deflect most energy based bombardments. On the other hand, projectile attacks (fusion torpedoes, missiles, etc.) have only a little trouble breaking through. Force shield generators are placed at key locations along the hull with one generator protecting about 100 square meters of hull. As effective as the shields can prove to be, they can still be overloaded by excessive blaster/plasma fire. Sensory and Communications:       Many terrans have jokingly referred to a baseship as a space squid. The reason for this are the large tentacle-like structures that protrude out of the front of MOST baseships. Contrary to popular belief, they are not used to crush unsuspecting spaceships that got just a little too close. These are, in fact, the sensory and communication systems of the ship. Each tentacle is packed with all manner of sensors and antenna. When in full sensor mode the tentacles will reach out away from the body of the ship. This effectively increases their range several times over. In combat, the tentacles will tend to stick closer to the body (usually underneath it) so as to avoid damage. To protect the tentacles during battle they are covered with a porous force shield. This allows a significant level of protection while experiencing only a minor decrease in functionality. A solid force shield would completely dampen both sensors and communications.       As mentioned earlier, most baseships have these tentacle-like structures. But there are those which do not. Instead, these ships have a structure that resembles something close to an aquatic fin. It serves the same purpose as the tentacles, and has a comparable level of functionality. The only real difference is the obvious physical design. But then again, this is a standard in baseship design. No two are exactly alike: some have 'tentacles' while others have 'fins'. The design of the body is never the same either: some are more rounded while others are more angular.       The effective range of Eltorian sensors is quite large. Assuming no interference existed, a baseship could pick up and track a vessel from clear across the solar system. Its communication system is even more powerful, allowing transmissions to be sent and received from other solar systems and beyond. Crew:       A baseship has a standard compliment of about 6000 Eltorians (though often there tend to be more). A typical breakdown runs as follows: 3680 Guardsmen 320 Officers (160 section commanders, 160 seconds) 500 Elite 75 Bridge crew 500 Security (all security personnel are trained yesilers) 600 Yesilers (all yesilers are trained engineers) 328 food preparation and distribution       The officers and guardsmen are the members of the crew which tend to do the most fighting. They are essentially the e-frame pilots and jumptroops all rolled into one. As such they fly into battle using battle armor or operate one of the massive arachnid-like land based mecha used for ground assaults. The Elite go where ever they may be needed to maintain order or to just simply get the job done. The bridge crew handles the piloting of the ship and coordinates any and all attacks. The bridge only requires 25 Eltorians to run it, so in fact there are 3 separate bridge crews (including the captain) which take shifts running the bridge. The 500 security officers serve primarily as a means of maintaining ship security but are also used to supplement the 600 yesilers on board in times of need. The 600 yesilers also function as the baseship's engineers, explaining why in certain situations they require security to supplement them. 328 crew members function in food preparation and distribution. Engines:       A baseship has two warp driven engines housed towards the rear of the craft. These function to create a distortion wave that can propel the ship at faster than light speeds. For a ship of this size, such speeds are usually reserved for travel outside of a solar system. Faster than light travel within a system is typically ill-advised due to the increased number of objects (planets, asteroids, stars, etc.) that a baseship could crash into, destroying it in the process.