I am a collector of FASA, Star Fleet Battles and newer Star Trek starship miniatures, but I also like to fill in the gaps with my own crude custom ships. Here are a few with their rationale for existing.
USS Ouranos, escort.
Smaller Federation long-range convoy escort ship to hold off Orion raids on vulnerable trade routes.
Design notes: This is a design to use the smaller saucer section from the USS Grissom type (Oberth class) as the basis for a series of smaller Federation ship classes. FASA used the TMP Enterprise saucer for a lot of ships in smaller scales; here I imagine the Grissom saucer was earlier used for a cheap convoy escort ship powered by a TOS Era nacelle.
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Ouranos class Federation escort (TOS era)
Length 152 m (499 ft)
Mass 32,000 tons
Armed with phasers
Sheliak battleship.
The Abider class in early encounters faced off against Excelsior, Constellation, and Ambassador class Federation ships. Less maneuverable but heavily armed and armored, this ship would be called in to enforce treaty provisions on disruptive neighbors.
Design notes: I like the Sheliak as a non-humanoid species that has a minor regional empire. The Sheliak ship from TNG was a redress of the merchant man model however I took the design elements such as the paired forward modules and flat primary hull from that ship to create this custom battleship. The rationale is the Sheliak had warships that would be a reasonable challenge to starfleet.
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Abider class Sheliak battleship (pre-TNG era)
Length 619 m (2031 ft)
Mass 7.4 million tons
Armed with gravitic surge cannon
Ferengi D'ertgur freighter.
This is the intermediate size Ferengi ship between the heavily armed Marauder and small merchant ships or shuttles. Most Ferengi families or corporations can't afford a Marauder or other heavy ships, but one of these long-serving 280-meter freighters can support regular trade with a useful profit margin.
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D'ertgur class Ferengi transport (TNG era)
Length 280 m (919 ft)
Mass 50,000 tons empty, 494,000 tons max load
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These ships are usually armed. However they are hard pressed to generate enough power for the electric-wave arc pulse weapon that can be encountered on the Marauder, if also running at high speed and powering shields. Often this weapon is sold off and the ship mounts old klingon weapons of the operator's choice.
"D'ertgur" is pronounced with a soft g (like a j) and is a Ferengi term for a corporate "berserker" who enters an ecstatic trance while rapidly building up profit.
Cardassian TOS and TMP era cruisers.
Design notes: The Cardassians have been established as a rival to the Federation, Klingons, and Romulans, so I wanted to show how their ships developed before their first war with the Federation (pre-TNG). The Cardassian technology seems a step behind the Federation's and so they relied on tightly controlled formations of cruisers like these. The TOS-era ship, probably ranking in power between a Klingon D4 cruiser (FASA version) and D16 destroyer, has exposed deflector generators and nacelles embedded in the forward hull. It is called the Lelaug class. The TMP-era version may be equivalent with an early D7 cruiser, snd shows an early stage of enclosing the nacelles in the familiar Cardassian layout. This one is the Kelarim class.
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Lelaug class Cardassian cruiser (TOS era)
Length 229 m (751 ft)
Mass 63,100 tons
Armed with phasers and spatial torpedos
Advanced close- formation tactics to coordinate firepower vs individually stronger opponents. Squadrons of this type suppressed Klingon incursions, defeated Degrar battle fleets in two major wars in 2246 and 2261, and wiped out the armed Orion colony at N'rutoka in 2258.
The design dispensed with easily-jettisonable nacelles to expedite production of ships.
Kelarim class Cardassian cruiser (TMP era)
Length 261 m (856 ft)
Mass 84,600 tons
Stronger phasers and shields, experimental interlocking shields but this fell out of favor.
Integrated nacelles into forward hull for ease of manufacturing. Limited repairability.
These ships conquered in 2283-87 thirty systems of the Degrar, a species distantly related to the Anticans that had a coreward empire peaking in strength in the 1920s-2050s but broken up by 2310.
Andorian Tharofsor cruiser.
An Andorian ship from the Romulan War Era, not the largest class but fast and heavily armed. The nacelles are stacked vertically and the forward module is less massive.
Design notes: The Andorian inspired Federation designs in FASA tended to have the nacelles close together and so I imagined this would be a holdover from the arrangement in their pre-Federation warships.
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Tharofsor class Andorian cruiser (Romulan War era)
Length 251 m (823 ft)
Mass 88,900 tons
Armed with particle accelerator cannon
Jem'Hadar System Control Ship.
The SCS is a flagship for defending the Dominion's borders rather than for expeditionary fleets. One of these was scanned by the USS Erendira (Nova class) during its mission in the Gamma Quadrant.
The USS Erendira was a Nova class ship (similar to the Equinox). She was trapped in the gamma quadrant in 2370 after exploring a subspace corridor beyond New Bejor, shortly before New Bejor was destroyed by the Dominion. The ship and crew survived by discovering a Xocatael supply route and hiding among these enemies of the Dominion.
Design notes: The original Dominion 'scarab/bug' shaped light warship was one of my favorite Trek designs due to its distinct layout and color scheme, but the later, larger Dominion ships although cool, were less unique in their 'winged' layout. This is a design that keeps the 'scarab' like aft module as part of the layout of a larger Jem'Hadar ship.
Jem'Hadar Pursuit Ship (left miniature), Xocatael ship (right miniature)
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The Xocatael were a gamma quadrant quasi-pterosauroid winged species that evolved on a thick-atmosphere “super-Earth” and colonized small gas giants or super-earths. They built the largest pre-Dominion empire in that quadrant, resisted Hurq raids and temporarily pushed back the T-Rogorans, and their explorers scouting into neighboring quadrants faced skirmishes with the Promellians and Vaadwaur, and destroyed a long-range Menthar expedition.
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The appearance of the Jem’Hadar marked the tide turning against the Xocatael. The first Jem’Hadar-Xocatael war 1421-1456 was bloody for both sides but the Dominion could recover their losses more quickly. By 1597-1632 the second Jem’Hadar-Xocatael war exterminated the remaining Xocatael colonies. But the Xocatael had constructed mobile city-ships and hid them deep in gas giants, and carefully the survivors migrated system by system away from the expanding Dominion and closer to the edge of the galaxy or in the direction of the delta quadrant.
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The Xocatael gave up on maintaining large warships but built faster ships to keep their colonies in contact. Realizing their great enemy still persisted, the Jem'Hadar built pursuit ships, a larger and faster frigate derived from their standard attack craft. They continue to hunt the Xocatael across the gamma quadrant.
Federation Marklin class.
Destroyer from the Four Years War (Federation-Klingon conflict), here shown with a D-16.
Design notes: My interpretation of a FASA design from the non-canon, pre-TOS Klingon-Federation "four years war". I like this one because of the central module overlaying the saucer section. I can imagine this layout being common in older pre-TOS ships, and there is a hint of this in the Shenzhou design from ST:Discovery (of course the nacelles being out of the design era, but I could imagine the more colorful livery of the ships in this show as a holdover from the colors of Romulan War era ships such as in the Starfleet Museum website...yes I feel free to mix together my favorite canon and non canon Trek designs)
Early warp ship FaXian 2065.
FaXian was one of several starship experimental projects already in progress in the divided Earth of the early 2060s, and rushed to completion by agencies within ECON after the Phoenix flight of 2063 showed the practicality of warp drive. It therefore was a competitor to the Bonaventure, Valiant and Connestoga projects. The ship has a fusion powered warp capability, but not antimatter so is rated for non-tactical warp. It did have an advance over contemporary ships in installing a primitive multi-layered structural integrity field. Made flights to several nearby star systems, but was used more cautiously after the disappearance of the similar Valiant, and survived into the 2090s before retirement.
USS Undaunted, early Federation cruiser
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​The Undaunted class is larger, more advanced, and sleeker than the more exploratory Daedalus class and has stronger phase cannon and some of the first true defensive shields. Most crucially, the Undaunted had ​confidential equipment codenamed Red_Band, an anti 1st-gen cloak unveiling technology connected to powerful sensors in a partial ring around the spherical primary hull. The few Undaunted class ships completed during the war help solidify the Earth and allies' first decisive advances against Romulan systems. Post-war several additional ships were completed with expanded science facilities and re-dedicated to the exploration role.
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Design notes: The Daedalus is cool because it revives an early sketch for the original Enterprise. But the "saucer" design that was picked went through stages of refinement. The "sphere" design may have ended up in the same place. This is my preferred version.
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Undaunted class cruiser (Romulan War and early Federation era)​
Length 278 meters​ (912 ft)
Mass 152,000 tons
Armed with phase cannon and photonic torpedoes​
Wright class cruiser (Romulan War)​Length 230 meters (755 ft)
​Mass 46,200 tons
Armed with phase cannon, spatial torpedoes and photonic torpedoes​
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Built as emergency replacements for Human losses during the Romulan War, the Wright class retained the firepower of the NX class but in a quick to assemble hull and less advanced but cheaper warp drive, adequate since the Romulans had non-tactical warp only. The T tail configuration of the warp nacelles was a hallmark of the Alpha Centauri colony builders, while some variants built at the Utopia Planitia Shipyards had the V tail configuration of warp nacelles that ultimately became more common in Starfleet vessels. A few ships were built by the Andorians and supplied to Earth and Tellar, these had the warp nacelles stacked one on top of the other but a similar hull and performance. Wright class ships provided needed reinforcements in the bloodiest months of the War. Most were worn out and quickly decommissioned when peace returned.
Romulan assault ships, TMP era
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As a secondary maneuver during the Tomed incident, the Romulans tried to sneak the "Unflinching Talon" an M8/Nightwing class assault ship [left miniature], and two I7/Vespin class supply transports ("Rea's Satchel" and "Crosswinds Trader") across the neutral zone to the Mu Quellari system. However the Federation Thufir class destroyer "USS Talas" tracked them through the neutral zone using classified sensor equipment "Blue_Tines" that sees through the Romulan 4th-gen cloaking device and its Klingon derivative. When realizing their incursion was being tracked the Romulans sent two V4 cruisers followed by the new, powerful Z-5 "Battlequeen" while the Talas called for support from the Excelsior class "USS Zelensky". The Talas destroyed one of the V4s when they attacked and then damaged all three ships of the assault force. However then the Z-5 showed up [see below].
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Design notes: These are FASA designs, but I liked how the styling fit the progression from earlier Romulan ships to the TNG era, and also the attention to the logistical side of a fleet. ​​​​
Romulan Z-5 "Battlequeen", post-TMP era
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This warship is intermediate in the development of Romulan capital ships between the Z-1 and the TNG warbirds. Under orders to intervene at Mu Quellari, the Battlequeen gave up on the now-ineffective cloaking device and with a direct attack forced the Federation destroyer Talas to back off from confronting the assault force. The Talas fell back on the USS Zelensky with the Z-5 in pursuit. The Talas and Zelensky exchanged long range fire with the Z-5 and then maneuvered to keep the worst-depleted shield of the Battlequeen under constant pressure. However the outcome was still in doubt when the ​​​showdown, like other confrontations during the Tomed incident, was ended before a full scale war erupted, in this case when the Romulan ships silently regrouped and withdrew from Mu Quellari. Z-5 class ships were rarely scanned afterwards, and may have been difficult to build due to an early and complex quantum singularity drive.
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Romulan Battleship, Z-5 class (post-TMP era)
Length 423 meters (1388 ft)
​Mass approx. 800,000 tons
Armed with plasma torpedoes and disruptors
Romulan Z14-b type warbird, Romulan name Ralur'iex
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A large Romulan warship powered by an advanced forced quantum singularity containment, successor to the Z-5 and predecessor to the powerful D'deridex class. These had a 5th generation cloaking device. Four of these attacked Narendra III and one was destroyed by the USS Enterprise [-C], before the starfleet ship was itself destroyed. The Z14b was also involved in other raids on Klingon outposts. Most of these ships were kept on the far borders or in reserve during the Dominion War and Reman revolt. After the destruction of the Romulus/Remus system, a group of surviving senators reactivated a fleet of 7 ships waiting to be decommissioned in the Romii system (3 Z14b, 2 Z5 including the “Battlequeen”, 1 older Z1, and a battle damaged D'deridex). They could not stay there due to the expanding zone of devastation and so took the five most-servicable ships into the edge of Romulan space, in a region conquered from the Coriel, and set up the Praetorian Restoration Committee on two colony systems.
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Eiodar cruiser (post-Romulan fall)
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The Eiodar are an expansionist empire in the beta quadrant on the other side of the Romulan Star Empire from the Federation. They had minimal contact with the Romulans because the Coriel and other civilizations are between them. (After the destruction of the Romulan homeworld the Eiodar did eliminate several convoys of Romulan refugees).
The first contact between the Eiodar and Federation was a negative encounter when the USS Kearsarge, a Steamrunner class ship, defended the people of Ipter III from an Eiodar bombardment fleet. The Kearsarge was a veteran of the Dominion war, destroying a Jen'Hadar battleship in the final offensive against Cardassia and being crippled herself in the process (towed to safety by a D7). In the aftermath of the fall of Romulus she found a temporary wormhole leading deep into the beta quadrant. Unlike the Voyager, captain Tharev of the Kearsarge and volunteers from his crew willingly went through the wormhole before it collapsed, after exchanging the remaining crew with an old Continent class transport the Eswari, the only ship close enough to rendezvous with before the wormhole collapsed.
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Ipter III was an industrial, multi-nation, pre-spaceflight civilization that a small Eiodar scout ship had attempted to conquer but failed. The Kearsarge inadvertently approached them because the Ipterans had set up a captured subspace transmitter. Although a borderline Prime Directive violation, captain Tharev let the Ipterans set up an unofficial Federation base (a repurposed convention center) and record their application for membership. Before the Kearsarge left to continue exploration, an Eiodar fleet of 10 ships entered the system. Unable to be persuaded to abandon their plan for revenge for the scout ship that disappeared over a decade earlier, the Eiodar started bombarding the planet and were defeated by the Kearsarge.
Eiodar cruiser "Broad Shoulders class".
Length 200 meters (656 ft)
​Mass 83,900 tons
Armed with magnetic monopole weapons and nuclear missiles.
Federation Suffren class destroyer (post-Dominion War)​
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The Suffren class destroyer was created in the 2430s during a new round of Federation exploration. Fast and efficient with high automation and small crews, these ships were a rapid response force between the systems of newly joined Federation members.
The Suffren class had a new device (codenamed "Amber_Gate") that could force transport of non organic objects through most enemies shields even when rotating frequencies. Photon torpedos were much easier to transport than Quantum torpedos.
In a few decades the major rivals of the Federation found ways to counter the technology but only if they could implement and maintain increasingly complex shield systems. These ships fought battles vs the Devore, Irapina scouts, Breen and Tholians. The Suffren class destroyer also has a detachable monitor module which can be beamed into an atmosphere to support away teams.
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In 2436 the USS Vitalii Skakun encountered species 12658 that was reaching its industrial age but on a planet and entire solar system that was stripped of useful metals by another civilization 12 million years ago. This was not enough time for plate tectonics to replenish. The ecosystem had also been impacted by the alien mining but some species survived and adapted, including the ancestors of 12658 that later evolved sentience. The captain of the Vitalii Skakun intervened by providing resources from outside the system, prompting a fierce controversy on his interpretation of the Prime Directive.
In 2442 the Vitalii Skakun defended the Udomo Republic against a Breen reprisal.