Basestar (TRS)

This article is about the basestars as seen in the Re-imagined Series. For the Original Series version, see Basestar (TOS).

A basestar (known interchangeably as a "baseship") is the most prominent example of the Cylon military presence.

The basestar appears in three forms in the Re-imagined Series.

Cylon War-era basestar

Cylon War-era basestar
Race:	Cylon
Type:	Military
FTL:	Unknown
Propulsion:
Crew:	Centurions
Capacity:
CO:	{{{co}}}
XO:	{{{xo}}}
Role:	Carrier / battleship hybrid
Weapons:	Nuclear and conventional missiles, Raiders
Armaments:	{{{arm}}}
Defenses:	{{{def}}}
Aircraft:	{{{aircraft}}}
Aviation facilities:	{{{facilities}}}
Fate:	{{{status}}}
Emblem:	[[Image:{{{patch}}}|175px|Ship's patch]]
Other Images:	Gallery
Dimensions
Length:	{{{length}}}
Width:	{{{width}}}
Height:	{{{height}}}
Weight:	{{{weight}}}
Wingspan:	{{{wingspan}}}
Other:	{{{otherdi}}}
Game Information
Cost:	{{{construction}}}
Construction Time:	{{{construction}}}
Hull Size:	{{{hull size}}}
Hull:	{{{hull}}}
Mobility
FTL Cooldown:	{{{ftl cooldown}}} turns
Speed:	{{{speed}}} m/s
Turn Rate:	{{{turn rate}}}°/turn
Armor Sum
Armor Total:	{{{armor total}}}
Armor Left:	{{{armor left}}}
Armor Right:	{{{armor right}}}
Armor Front:	{{{armor front}}}
Armor Rear:	{{{armor rear}}}
Armor Top:	{{{armor top}}}
Armor Bottom:	{{{armor bottom}}}
Armament
DRADIS Range:	{{{dradis range}}} m
Processing Power:	{{{processing power}}}
Munition Slots:	{{{munitions}}}
Munition Cooldown Period:	{{{munition cooldown}}} turns
Squadron Slots:	{{{squadrons}}}
Squadron Size:	{{{squadron size}}}
Special Abilities:	{{{special abilities}}}
Additional Information

The basestar used by Cylon forces during the 12-year Cylon War consisted of two flattened cones connected at their centers by a thick pylon, giving the battleship a conical saucer-like appearance (Razor Flashbacks).

A model of a Cylon War-era basestar on display in the defunct museum.

Raiders deployed from the basestar through access points from the ship's hull.

Basestars pummeled battlestars in close combat using its series of missile batteries.

During Operation Raptor Talon, the original battlestar Columbia was destroyed by basestar missiles and Raider attacks as Galactica and another unnamed battlestar pressed their attacks.

The origins of the original basestars are unclear. However, as Cylons were a creation of man in the early days before the war, it is probable that man himself (through the efforts of various colonies) designed the various ships and weapons used by the Cylons for the original purpose in intra-colonial wars prior to the Articles of Colonization.

A model of this basestar design is displayed over 40 years later on Galactica, as part of its planned museum (Miniseries, Night 1).

Guardian basestar

Main article: Guardian basestar

Towards the end of the first Cylon War, the Cylons built a prototype basestar that has roughly the same shape as the modern basestar (Razor). The first hybrids were developed for this model.

Modern basestar

Modern basestar
Race:	Cylon
Type:	Military
FTL:	Yes
Propulsion:
Crew:	Humanoid Cylons, Cylon Centurions, the Hybrid
Capacity:
CO:	{{{co}}}
XO:	{{{xo}}}
Role:	Carrier / battleship hybrid
Weapons:	Nuclear and conventional missiles, Raiders, Heavy Raiders
Armaments:	{{{arm}}}
Defenses:	{{{def}}}
Aircraft:	{{{aircraft}}}
Aviation facilities:	{{{facilities}}}
Fate:	{{{status}}}
Emblem:	[[Image:{{{patch}}}|175px|Ship's patch]]
Other Images:	Gallery
Dimensions
Length:	{{{length}}}
Width:	{{{width}}}
Height:	{{{height}}}
Weight:	{{{weight}}}
Wingspan:	{{{wingspan}}}
Other:	{{{otherdi}}}
Game Information
Cost:	{{{construction}}}
Construction Time:	{{{construction}}}
Hull Size:	{{{hull size}}}
Hull:	{{{hull}}}
Mobility
FTL Cooldown:	{{{ftl cooldown}}} turns
Speed:	{{{speed}}} m/s
Turn Rate:	{{{turn rate}}}°/turn
Armor Sum
Armor Total:	{{{armor total}}}
Armor Left:	{{{armor left}}}
Armor Right:	{{{armor right}}}
Armor Front:	{{{armor front}}}
Armor Rear:	{{{armor rear}}}
Armor Top:	{{{armor top}}}
Armor Bottom:	{{{armor bottom}}}
Armament
DRADIS Range:	{{{dradis range}}} m
Processing Power:	{{{processing power}}}
Munition Slots:	{{{munitions}}}
Munition Cooldown Period:	{{{munition cooldown}}} turns
Squadron Slots:	{{{squadrons}}}
Squadron Size:	{{{squadron size}}}
Special Abilities:	{{{special abilities}}}
Additional Information

The modern basestars, first seen some 40 years after the end of the Cylon War, are approximately the same size as a Colonial battlestar but appear to be more technologically advanced . The shape of the newer basestar is closer to its name, with two Y-shaped hulls attached at their centers by a single pylon, giving the warship a distinctive star shape.

While basestars may have a somewhat longer "footprint" due to their "Y" shape, their mass is similar to most battlestars. They are equipped with a superior jump system and no visible means of sublight propulsion, lacking any engine pods or nacelles, but remain capable of chasing down a battlestar (Exodus, Part II).

Basestars operate a fleet of small fighters called Raiders and are capable of deploying hundreds of these simultaneously (see Related Imagery). The enormous amount of Raiders serve as a basestar's primary point-defense system.

Basestars possess several rooms and hallways, that are sleek but generally bland; Cylons project different environments to get around the ship more easily. Data and other functions such as analyzing photographs are handled in literal streams of water that go over a lit up computer glass surface. Cylons can interface with the data by simply placing their hands in the basins.

Command and Control

Baseship control room (Torn).

A basestar is operated by many humanoid Cylons. Up to all seven models of them issue commands for the basestar from a central command and control center. Consensus is typically the normal procedure, although the process of deliberating and voting on decisions may cause the basestar to react more slowly than a battlestar's command and control in a CIC.

A basestar's functions are managed by a partially-humanoid Cylon incorporated into the ship, known as a Hybrid. The Hybrid, for all respects of identity and control, is the basestar. The ship is an extension of her body and she is the ship's mind. The Hybrid, despite its humanoid appearance, is not a considered a fellow Humanoid Cylon and lacks voting power as other agents have in Cylon affairs.

A basestar has a datastream, or computer network, which interfaces with the Hybrid and all aspects of the basestar's operation.

Armaments

A basestar is capable of launching conventional or nuclear missiles from "turrets" mounted throughout the hubs and central axis that rotate to allow the basestar to fire in any direction. Basestar-launched nuclear strikes against Colonial ships are usually carried out only before Raider deployment. One example of a Cylon nuclear attack involved three Cylon basestars that ambush the battlestar Pegasus. They open their attack firing several nuclear missiles before deploying Raiders and switching to a non-nuclear salvo (The Captain's Hand).

A basestar's complement of Raiders is estimated as high as 792 fighters, not counting fighters in repair or otherwise offline.

This tactic, along with the massive amounts of Raiders that a basestar can unleash, suggest a reliance on overwhelming force to destroy a foe. It is probable that basestars use nuclear weapons to destroy the bulk of the Colonial Fleet (using their backdoor in the CNP to compromise their defenses first) in the opening wave of their destruction of the Colonies.

After the Colonial commanders draw away their Raider wings, two basestars are torn apart by the kinetic guns of the battlestars Pegasus and Galactica in a joint mission to destroy a Cylon Resurrection Ship. It would seem that that basestars rely heavily on their Raiders for close-range gun defense through sheer numbers of fighters. Since a basestar does not appear to have batteries (the primary offensive/defensive weapons on battlestars), nor any armoring, basestars appear quite vulnerable to battlestars in close-range combat without Raider fighter support (Resurrection Ship, Part II).

Notes

• Beginning with the episode "Collaborators", a new exterior design is used for the basestars, bearing a sharper, more mechanical look than they previously had. This was apparently an upgrade by the visual effects crew to make the exterior mirror more the interior design, which is seen for the first time in that episode.

Related Imagery

• 

  Raiders being released (Miniseries)    

• 

  Raiders being released (Miniseries)    

• 

  Basestar launching missiles (Miniseries)    

• 

  A basestar above the Armistice Station (Miniseries)    

• 

  Basestar being destroyed during the Battle of the Binary Star System (The Captain's Hand)    

• 

  Galactica surrounded by basestars during the Battle of New Caprica (Exodus, Part II)    

• 

  A basestar infected by a deadly virus (Torn)    

• 

  Basestars over Tauron at the end of the first Cylon War (Razor)