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.
Note that many of these are the "older" designs for a species, not meant to be the newest or most powerful, but they play a vital historical role or help fill in the universe of Star Trek
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Others are from non-canon species entirely, since I am filling in the map
Orion rival cartel ships (post-TMP era)
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In 2314 Orion ships from two rival cartels, the “Leaping scythe” (red miniature) and the “Throatslicer” (annular drive) raced to locate a Promellian weapons cache. The mostly Andorian-crewed USS Talas (Thufir class destroyer) found out about the suspected cache and joined in the hunt. The Talas prevailed, rescuing important historic artifacts while hiding from Orion scans several unstable or dangerous devices of mass destruction.
When the two Orion cartels put aside their conflict and threatened to bring in additional ships to disrupt the crew's efforts to neutralize the weapons, Starfleet responded by sending two old but refitted reserve ships, the Larson class destroyer NCC 4412 USS San Martin and the Loknar class frigate NCC 2804 USS Ksitigarbha, and the Orions left the USS Talas to complete the mission.
Design notes: Orion ships can have a wide variety of forms. The “Leaping scythe” has several winglike modules for jamming and sensor equipment and a nacelle similar to those of the “Wanderer” class. The “Throatslicer” is more speed-focused and has a circular drive module resembling the fast, overpowered Orion ship in the remastered episode “Journey to Babel”.
The Thufir shown, like my favorites the Larson and Loknar, is a FASA design. Not originally appealing to me when I first saw the startship recognition book, it has grown on me over the years after I saw new canon Starfleet designs in First Contact and Voyager.
Exploration cruiser Jianzhen 2231.
The JianZhen is an unusual ship because it is a private Federation long-range cruiser, not part of Starfleet. The ship and its mission was sponsored by multiple organizations including the Jain Offworlds Congregation, the Buddhist Society Interstellar Outreach, the Reform Taoism Association, the Andorian-Aenar High Reach Mission, and the Vulcan Science Academy. The concept was to have an exploration mission that did not have an armed ship, to avoid conflating the peaceful mission with the perception of Federation expansion or threat assessment.
The design of the JianZhen incorporates Human, Vulcan and Andorian components and a merger of their best engineering theories. The warp configuration was a combined annular and-aft nacelle (Vulcan and Andorian respectively). The JianZhen has two additional hulls to contain all the sensors and scientific equipment, also housing the dual independent shield systems, a very expensive and impractical defensive setup. This balanced out the lack of weaponry other than an anti-meteor pulsing tractor beam.
The JianZhen was used in long range surveys of unexplored space and multiple first contacts. In its third four-year mission the ship found a temporary subspace corridor to the Small Magellanic Cloud, but then took many years to locate a marginally stable wormhole return to the alpha quadrant.
Devore Imperium cruiser (TMP era)
Smaller, earlier Devore long-range ship. The Devore are one of the rising powers in the delta quadrant. Fiercely protective of their borders, they have also started sending expeditions to find and eliminate threats from species with threatening mental/psychic abilities.
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The “Clear eyes” class were older Devore ships built in the midst of the bloody war against the eurypterid-like Atra’thei, the first high-psychic species that the Devore had encountered and who had prevented Devore imperial expansion.
After bombardment of the homeworld Atra VI in (Earth common-era year) 2277, these cruisers eliminated the remaining enemy colonies and interdicted any resistance movements, hunting down their bases and supply routes until the surviving Atra’thei had retreated from the sector. The “clear eyes” cruisers had the ability to track ships passing in warp and disrupt their warp fields. A century later some were still employed on risky long-range surveillance missions with dedicated crews.
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​​Devore Imperium cruiser "Clear Eyes" (TMP era)
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Length 307 m
Mass 180,000 tons
Refractive shielding increases stealth, weapons unknown
Vaadwaur destroyer (update of old pre-fall design, post-Voyager expedition)
The reawakened Vaadwaur started with few ships and minimal population. Scrambling to rebuild their strength, the Vaadwaur joined up with several different colonies of refugees from Borg attacks, worked as mercenaries, and established production of new weapons, cloning and breeding programs. They had manufacturing designs and found a hidden factory for critical parts for their destroyer type ship, which was upgraded with better weapons and shields. These ships gave additional strength to support their assault fighters and reduce losses.
Rasa’nliss cruiser (Romulan War/pre-TOS era)
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The Rasa’nliss New Interstellar Republic is closer to the galactic core than the Degrar and Breen. They are a new starfaring species that has expanded onto several colony worlds, some already containing transplanted life of a similar form. The Rasa’nliss are bipedal reptilians with long tails, adorned with quills on their skull and down the back of the neck. Their pre-sapient ancestors and ecosystem were derived from another planet, Utav II, transported by unknown entities. After they achieved spaceflight, they were later protected by Wdajet before she ascended.
In (Earth common year) 1907, Rasa’nliss IV launched sublight sleeper ships with eggs to colonize multiple worlds. In 2114 they developed warp drive; their first ships have a round forward hull with three long warp nacelles behind it.
In 2139 the Degrar conquered most of planet Rasa’nliss IV, however a resistance movement prevented full occupation. Two years into the invasion a slave revolt spread across the Degrar empire. This was partly engineered by the Rasa’nliss, who pushed back the enemy from their homeworld with the help of slaves of several species on hijacked Degrar stations and ships.
The Rasa’nliss built new ships, the most powerful being the Wossoq class cruiser: these liberate nearby worlds, although the Degrar suppressed the Slave revolt and prevented further expansion. The Rasa’nliss form the New Interstellar Republic with rights for liberated species.
Rasa’nliss cruiser, Wossoq class
Length: 300m
Mass: 120,000 tons
Warp 4 max
Antimatter-charge missiles. Electron particle beams. Plasma Sphere weapon.
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Configuration loosely based on Wdajet's ship which they observed in early warp exploration.
Wdajet's ship (ancient to pre-TOS era)
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Wdajet was a member of the same species as Kukulkan (The being who appeared as a winged serpent in The Animated Series). They are designated “Preserver type 3” for intervention in the development of other species. Wdajet visited Earth, including Egypt and Caral, Peru roughly 3500-3000 years BCE. She earlier had visited Rasa’nliss IV 80,000 years ago. Wadjet transplanted the proto-Rasa’nliss reptiloids onto at least two additional worlds leaving zigguraut-like structures. Around 2150 she ascended to a higher state of existence, leaving her ship to an unhatched egg and a trusted crew of caretakers.
Design notes: Kukulkan's ship was my favorite creation from the Animated Series and is (probably deliberately) shaped somewhat like it's winged-serpent creator. It is hard to figure out from the cartoon images what the exact 3D shape should be, so I imagined that each member of this species has a personal, customized ship tens of thousands of years old, but modified from the same original frame.
Tellarite "galleon" trading ship (pre-Romulan War era)
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Tellarite galleon (translated name from a historical Tellarite wooden ocean ship similar to an Earth galleon). Early Tellarite warp ship used for trade, an advance on their sublight sleeper ships that had already established multiple colonies.
A galleon class ship, "Grand fields" established first Tellarite trade route with the Coridan, although the Tellarites were initially impeded in expanding their influence by existing Vulcan- and Andorian-aligned factions and a long Orion relationship with the major Coridan corporations.
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Length: 265m (869 ft)
Mass: 98,000 tons standard, over 200,000 tons full load
Warp 2 max
Merculite missiles. Lasers.
Polarized hull plating but no shields
StarLiner Empress of Isidria (post-TMP era).
Most Federation citizens and friendly nonaligned visitors requiring transport between UFP member star systems or outposts go on ships such as the USS Jenolan or civilian equivalents, comfortable enough but intended mainly for efficient transit. Purely cargo ships are slower and less resource-intensive.
Those who want an actual luxury-focused liner experience would reserve a stateroom on the Empress of Isidria. This ship is not built to get you to a destination fast, but would cruise through a nebula, or orbit a ringed planet, letting passengers gaze at beautiful sights through vast windows (with appropriate force fields, filters and safety features of course). Besides every generous multi-room cabin having a large window, there are huge transparent-dome public areas. You can dine under the stars after a day of enjoying a multitude of zero-g and variable-gravity sporting and entertainment stadiums, both inside the central saucer or in separated modules and pods.
Like many civilian operated ships the Empress of Isidria has a warp drive derived from a reliable older Starfleet design. The ship was designed and crewed by the Risa-Casperia Interstellar Outreach Consortium.
StarLiner Empress of Isidria
Length: 520m
Mass: 2.2 million tons
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Lysian Alliance destroyer upgraded (TNG era)
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After the unfortunate first contact between the Lysian Alliance and the Federation manipulated by the Lysians' enemy the Sattarans, the Lysian Alliance urgently worked to improve their defenses. This destroyer was in recent production but shipbuilding was halted, while improved disruptors and shields were installed, with some help from Ferengi merchants. Although still not a match for Starfleet or the major powers the upgraded Lysian ships kept the Alliance's borders secure while closer ties to the Federation were built.
Udomo Republic cruiser (post-Dominion War era)
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The Udomo Republic is closer to the galactic core than the Federation. Udomo are single-eyed bipeds with a thin layer of soft scale-like patterns over deep-yellow skin. In the early stages of colonizing nearby systems, they inadvertently infringed on and fought over a mining-colony system vs. a Breen client state (the Gialeq, ammonia breathers with multiple arms) who were barely more advanced in their technology. A Breen ship intervened in 2442 , first destroying the mining base, then attacking the Udomo system where it destroyed the orbital and transatmospheric missile defense force. Udomo cruisers of this type were recalled from the other colonies but were no match, however the bombardment was stopped by the Starfleet ship USS Vitalii Skakun. The Udomo have applied to join the Federation.
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This is a primitive "non tactical warp" ship (fusion powered warp field, point to point capability, but cannot maneuver during jumps).
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Udomo republic cruiser
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Length: 200m (656 ft)
Mass: 28,908 tons
Warp 3 max
Nuclear fusion missiles and X-ray lasers, no warp targeting
Qsehom Star Union cruiser (post-Dominion War era)
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The Qsehom Star Union was the first major starfaring civilization encountered by the USS Vanguard on its essentially one way trip to M33 Triangulum. In the galaxy M33, mollusc-derived lifeforms of various types predominate among the sentient species instead of bipedal humanoids, reptilians and other quasi-vertebrates in the MWG (although in each case there is a diverse mix of other, completely different forms of life and energy beings).
In the Qsehom Star Union the most common member race on ships is a tripod, bulky “chest”, two-armed, slug-head form w long neck and antennae. The second most common allied species is an amphibious, chiton-like species with tentacles on the “tail” end and large quills on dorsal side.
These ships are a three-nacelle cruiser mainly meant for scientific investigations.
Qsehom Star Union cruiser (M33 Triangulum; USS Vanguard expedition)
Length: 282 meters
Mass: 187,000 tons
Good shields, neutral particle beams and phasers.
Design notes: imagine Captain Qerrk and his trusty crew facing off against a more advanced strange starship that came from another galaxy. But the stranger is us.
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For additional starships including Federation, Romulan, Cardassian, Sheliak and others: https://tracyconsumer.wixsite.com/trekshipcustomminiat
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More starships:
https://tracyconsumer.wixsite.com/trekshipcustomminiat/starships-gallery-3