Mercury class battlestar

2007-11-11T19:44:20Z

Sirnovelty: We now know that Galactica looks like she always has.

:''For the unnamed original class, to which ''[[Galactica (RDM)|Galactica]]'' belongs, see [[Galactica type battlestar]].''
{{Ship Data|
image= BSPegasus.jpg
| title= ''Mercury'' class battlestar
| race= Colonial
| type= Military
| ftl= Yes
| crew= Unknown (at least 2,450)
| role= Capital battleship/carrier
| weapons= Primary and point-defense [[KEW|Kinetic Energy Weapons]], conventional missiles, nuclear warheads, Vipers, Raptors
| length= {{Meters2Feet|1850}}
| width= {{Meters2Feet|744.9}}
| height= {{Meters2Feet|334.9}} <ref>[[:Image:Mercury_class_battlestar_blueprint_dimension.jpg]]</ref>
| status= Final known ship of this class destroyed at the [[Battle of New Caprica]]
}}

The '''''Mercury'' class battlestar''' is an advanced Colonial capital warship/carrier introduced into the [[Colonial Fleet (RDM)|Colonial Fleet]] sometime after the First [[Cylon War]].

==Overview==
Following the end of the [[Cylon War]], the [[Galactica type battlestar|original battlestars]] remained in service as other battlestars were built. Their numbers steadily increased to a grand total of 120 ships in the Colonial Fleet. Newer models employed networked computers which had been prohibited during the war. Being networked, and compromised by the [[Command Navigation Program]], led to the Cylons being able to hack the system, thus rendering the ships defenseless ([[Miniseries]]).

A ''Mercury'' class battlestar sports several features not found aboard ''Galactica'' such as automated sliding doorways and basic computer recognition stations at vital areas. At the time of the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies]], a ''Mercury'' class battlestar was a top-of-the-line vessel.

The physical appearance of the ''Mercury'' class is different than that of the original battlestar. The "neck" section is smaller, and the ''Mercury'' class is equipped with eight [[sublight]] engine pods, compared the older class's six. These are also more "boxy" in appearance than those of the original. The [[flight pod]]s also appear to have two entrances each, above and below the mid-line. Combined with computer assisted landing, this gives the ''Mercury'' class a faster rate of Viper recovery than ''[[Galactica]]''. Unlike ''Galactica'', ''Pegasus'' appears to have a full armor "skin."

This, probably the largest of the battlestars, may be able to carry a maximum of 180 [[Viper Mark VII]] fighters (six to eight squadrons and one reserve squadron)<ref>Intelligence Debrief: Cylon Basestar, "Battlestar Galactica: The Official Magazine," June/July 2006, page 56.</ref>.

The [[Battery|gun batteries]] on the ''Mercury'' class are arranged very differently from ''Galactica's''. Where as ''Galactica's'' large guns are clustered along her top side, with secondary batteries concentrated along the flight pods, the guns of the ''Mercury'' class are found all over the ship ([[The Captain's Hand]]). The greatest concentration of large turrets are found along the side of the ship, within the valley created by the upper and lower halves of the hull, including the flight pods. Four are mounted on the underside of the upper hull on the ship's bow, below which sits four non-turreted large guns; these form the main forward batteries. Two more turrets are mounted on the front and back of each flight pod. The ''Mercury'' class's secondary guns are distributed all over the ship and do not clearly emerge from the hull like ''Galactica's''.

[[Image:Pegasus01.jpg|right|thumb|''[[Pegasus (RDM)|Pegasus]]'' from fore and below, with the Fleet in the background]] [[Image:Pegasus_Hi-Res_1a.jpg|right|thumb|[[Viper (RDM)|Mark VII Vipers]] landing in ''Pegasus's'' port flight pod]]
[[Image:Pegasus_Hi-Res_5a.jpg|right|thumb|Some of ''Pegasus's'' [[Kinetic Energy Weapon|batteries]]]]
[[Image:Pegasus-Comparison.png|right|thumb|Comparison of [[Battlestar (TOS)|original series battlestar]] and ''Mercury'' class]]

Based on figures from the episodes "[[Pegasus (episode)|Pegasus]]" and "[[Razor]]", the standard crew complement of a ''Mercury'' class battlestar is in excess of 2,500, which is significantly lower than found on a ''Galactica''-type battlestar. Despite being larger in size than its preceding ship class, this level of crew appears to make operating battlestars of this class manageable, due to heavy computer automation.

In addition to having better armament and weapons than ''[[Galactica]]'', the ''Mercury'' class battlestar has production facilities to build new [[Viper (RDM)|Viper Mark VIIs]] from basic resources ([[Scar]]).

Unlike ''Galactica'', which must retract her flight pods to execute an [[FTL| FTL jump]], the ''Mercury'' class battlestars's flight pods are fixed in place and do not retract during a jump ([[The Captain's Hand]]). This suggests that a ''Mercury'' class battlestar's jump system is more advanced than the older battlestars's.

== Known ''Mercury'' class battlestars ==
*Battlestar ''[[Mercury]]'' (for which it is presumed the class is named)
*Battlestar ''[[Pegasus (RDM)|Pegasus]]''

== Notes ==
The shape of the ''Mercury'' class resembles the [[Battlestar Galactica (TOS)|Original Series]] [[battlestar (TOS)|battlestar]] more than the Re-imagined Series' ''[[Galactica (RDM)|Galactica]]''. Its engine pods number eight, compared to ''Galactica'''s six engine pods. The pods aboard the ''Mercury'' class battlestar appear more directly integrated with its rear section, and its flight pods share the original angular shape.

The visual effects artist of the re-imagined ''[[Pegasus (RDM)|Pegasus]]'', Jose A. Perez, has commented that, "The new design was somewhat of a cross between the look of the [[TOS|old class]] [[battlestar (TOS)|battlestars]], and yet with elements of the [[Galactica (RDM)|new one]]. Aside from that, it has mostly hull plating (to absorb more damage) , as opposed to the ''[[Galactica (RDM)|Galactica]]'' which has more ribbing."
Mr. Perez also commented that, "The harder edges [ of the [[Pegasus (RDM)|''Pegasus'']] ] were intentional as well, to match the interior style of the sets more."

==References==
<div style="font-size:85%"><references/></div>

{{sourcebox|Correspondence with Jose Perez}}

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Mercury class battlestar