List of starships in ''Babylon 5''

Appearances

In the episode "A Distant Star", Captain Sheridan tells the crew in C&C, "Take a good look people... if you're supremely lucky, you'll see two like her in your lifetime." Sheridan's comment conveys the rare nature of Explorer-class vessels. Indeed, "A Distant Star" is the only regular episode* in which an Explorer-class vessel appears.

An identical ship to Cortez is seen for a few seconds in the background in the fourth season episode "Rising Star".

In the series Crusade, we learn that Captain Matthew Gideon was the captain of an Explorer-class ship. This was not EAS Cerberus, however. Cerberus was an Omega-class destroyer.

* The episode "A Late Delivery From Avalon" contains a flashback to the Earth Alliance's first encounter with the Minbari, which allegedly comprised an Earth "Explorer Division" encountering a Minbari fleet. An Explorer ship may be visible in these brief scenes, but this has not been confirmed.

Purpose

The primary mission of all Explorer ships is research and exploration, thus they only possess moderate defenses consisting of four turreted 52 millimetres (2.0 in) pulse cannons, four twin particle beam arrays, and two squadrons of Starfuries. This makes Explorer ships large, ill-defended targets. Their massive jump engines and powerful fusion reactors, however, enable Explorer-class vessels to escape dangerous situations quickly.

Explorer ships spend a great deal of their time exploring The Rim, the uncharted and unexplored areas of space that have not been claimed by any known race. As this is the case, Explorer ships are often the first class of Earth Alliance vessel an alien race might come into contact with. This privilege and burden of first contact is not taken lightly and, as the slightest misinterpreted action can result in tragedy, the crews and commanding officers of Explorer ships are extremely well versed in first-contact procedures.

Due to Explorer-class ships dominating the exploration field, they are equipped with the latest in sensor and communications technology, allowing greater ease in contacting and communicating with different alien species. Also, several large planetary drop ships allow Explorer ships to chart and explore entire planets within a few short weeks, laying the foundation for a more detailed expedition.

Though Explorer-class ships have more than enough power to jump into hyperspace and go where they will, the bulk of an Explorer-class ship's mass consists of spare parts with which to build jumpgates. The continual construction and distribution of jumpgates makes it easier for other Earth Alliance vessels and commercial ships to jump into new areas of space. Some fans have speculated that this provides the Earth Alliance with a quick and effective way to quickly expand humanity's sphere of influence, as well as to gain valuable resources and revenue, as Earth Alliance can charge vessels transit fees for the use of jumpgates, but there is no evidence from any broadcast episodes of the show to support this claim.

Origin and design

The CGI model was designed and modelled by Foundation Imaging Co-Founder Ron Thornton. The mesh of the fighter's cockpit is based on altered design of the Starfury cockpit.^[3]

Depiction

The Frazi-class fighter is depicted as a heavily armored^[4][5] type of fighter and it can fly both in space and in a planetary atmosphere.^[6] The fighter is piloted by one person located inside a spacious, under-pressurized cockpit.^[7][8] Several Frazi-class heavy fighters were capable enough to outmatch even Centauri Sentri fighters during the Narn-Centauri War.^[7][9] In the episode "Revelations", it is seen that the Frazi fighter is equipped with a computer system that responds to voice commands. It can travel in hyperspace but is limited to using jumpgates rather than forming jump points.

Depiction

A G'Quan-class cruiser is an immense ship armed with two heavy hard-mounted forward-firing laser cannons, two energy mine launchers, and pulse cannons. The G'Quan was designed to replace the older, more haphazardly designed T'Loth cruiser, which was last seen in 2258.

The G'Quan-class cruiser does not have artificial gravity. The cruiser's powerful forward laser cannons can slice an opposing vessel's hull into pieces, and are strong enough to damage even the ancient warships of the Shadows.^[13] The energy mines used by the Narn explode close to enemy vessels and send out shock waves capable of damaging or destroying enemy ships.

The great majority of the G'Quan-class cruisers were destroyed during the Narn-Centauri War. The greatest losses came at the Battle of Gorash 7, which was an attempt by the Narn to destroy the main Centauri supply base on a planet called Gorash 7. A fleet of Shadow vessels intercepted the Narn armada and completely annihilated it.^[13] However, a few Narn cruisers managed to survive the war, and they played a key role in the war against the Shadows.^[13][14][15] After Narn was liberated from Centauri rule in 2261, the Narns quickly began to rebuild their fleet, and within a few years many new G'Quan-class cruisers had been placed into service.

History

The Hyperion class is an older type of EarthForce warship, smaller and less heavily armed than the newer Omega-class destroyer, but still a capable design. It saw its heyday during the Dilgar and Earth–Minbari wars. In both wars, the Hyperion class was the primary ship of the line, alongside the Nova-class dreadnought. Although the majority of them were destroyed by the end of the Earth–Minbari war, they are still a common sight in Earth fleets, often deployed on long-range patrols or as escorts for the newer, more advanced destroyers. Hyperion cruisers were still in EarthForce service as late as 2281.

Design

1,025.39 metres (3,364.1 ft) in length and massing 8,400,000 metric tons, the Hyperion carries a crew of 356 and 200 troops. The design boasts a powerful armament in the form of one heavy double-mount plasma cannon (the big guns mounted forward), two particle/laser turrets (mounted on either side of the forward hull), eight medium pulse cannon turrets (the bubble-like turrets mounted all over the ship), and two heavy missile launchers. In addition to the armament, the cruiser has potent defenses in the form of a 6–8-metre-thick (20–26 ft) armored hull and a standard defense grid. The Hyperion class is capable of carrying six Starfury fighters and two shuttles. As with most ships of its size, Hyperion class ships are capable of both using jumpgates and creating their own jump points.

Unlike the later Omega class, the Hyperion class did not have rotating sections and the ships operated in zero-gravity. As such, the crew would normally be seen strapped into their seats during operations. Since the ship lacks artificial gravity technology, acceleration would be limited to levels the crew could tolerate, which would normally be below 2g's for extended periods.

Notable cruisers

• EAS Aegean: Cruiser fighting on Sheridan's side during the civil war, shortly seen in hyperspace behind Agamemnon during the season 4 episode, "Endgame".
• EAS Clarkstown: This ship ambushed General Hague's flagship EAS Alexander at the Io transfer station after he rebelled against President Clark. Unfortunately, General Hague was killed by a shot to the midsection of Alexander during the attack. After the death of Hague, Major Ryan took command and, with some reluctance, gave the order to fire on and destroy Clarkstown, which was captained by a friend of Hague, Captain Maxwell, with whom Major Ryan was acquainted.
• EAS Excalibur: One of the EarthForce ships sent to stop General Hague's coup off the transfer point in Io. She was disabled during the firefight, allowing Hague's EAS Alexander to escape. Since this ship is unrelated to IAS Excalibur from Crusade, presumably the ship was decommissioned or otherwise destroyed shortly afterwards.
• EAS Hyperion: Commanded by Captain Pierce, he served and participated in the Earth–Minbari War previously years before and commanded the Hyperion in the resolution of the Great Machine incident at Epsilon III seen in the season 1 episode, "A Voice in the Wilderness".
• EAS Lexington: Commanded by Roger Stearns and John Sheridan, she participated in the destruction of Black Star as shown in the TV movie, In the Beginning.
• EAS Prometheus: Commanded by Captain Michael Jankowski. This ship started the Earth–Minbari War by firing on Valen'tha in July 2245 at the first contact between the two races, as shown in the TV movie, In the Beginning. This encounter took place on the rim of unexplored space in a region known as Falcon's Reach. However Prometheus was destroyed in the Earth–Minbari War.

Origin and design

The fighter was designed and modelled by Ron Thornton.^[17]

Depiction

The Nial is the most advanced and powerful fighter built by any of the younger galactic races. It has incredible firepower, speed, and maneuverability. The armament of the Windstar consists of three gravimetrically-enhanced neutron particle beam cannons,^[16] similar to those found on a Sharlin-class warcruiser. The neutron cannons can fire at a rapid rate and can annihilate any other fighter within range. The fighter is also capable of much greater acceleration than Centauri, Human, or Narn fighters, and it is also more maneuverable in battle. The Windstar is also equipped with the standard Minbari stealth technology, which prevents other vessels from achieving target lock and, in some cases, from even being able to detect the fighter on sensors.^[16][18] Given these overwhelming advantages, it is not surprising that the Nial is the most feared fighter among the younger races.

History

The Nial has served the Minbari faithfully for hundreds of years. It was prominent in the Second Shadow War, where it proved capable of destroying even the highly advanced fighters of the ancient Shadows. During the Earth–Minbari War, the Windstar wreaked havoc on the Earth fleet; a single Nial would often destroy ten or more Earth Starfury fighters without being damaged itself. The Nial is set to serve the Minbari and the Interstellar Alliance well into the future.

EAS Agamemnon

EAS Agamemnon

The Earth Alliance Starship Agamemnon in 2259
First appearance	"Points of Departure"
Affiliation	Earth Alliance (Sheridan's forces in Civil War)
Launched	After 2248
General characteristics
Class	Omega-class destroyer
Fighters	Starfuries
Propulsion	4 main sublight engines Jump engines
Length	1714.3 m

EAS Agamemnon is a fictional starship in the science fiction series Babylon 5. Agamemnon is an Earth Alliance Omega-class destroyer. She was named after the Greek mythic figure who commanded the Greek forces during the Trojan War.

EAS Churchill

EAS Churchill is a fictional spacecraft, an Omega-class destroyer, from the science fiction television series Babylon 5. Churchill is under the command of Captain Sandra Hiroshi. Churchill is presumably named for Winston Churchill.

After Earth Alliance President Morgan Clark declares martial law in mid-2260, several EarthForce units rally around General William Hague in open defiance of the martial law decree, calling for Clark's resignation. Hague places his flag on EAS Alexander. Several engagements follow, during which all of Alexander's attending vessels are destroyed^[20] and Hague himself is killed. Alexander then makes its way to Babylon 5.^[21]

Captain Hiroshi and her crew evidently chose to support the rebellion against President Clark; Churchill also sets a course for Babylon 5, arriving after Alexander. Captain Hiroshi informs Captain John Sheridan and his command staff that President Morgan Clark is aware of the presence of Alexander at the station and warns them that Clark has ordered a fleet to seize control of the station and put it under control of Nightwatch.^[21]

During the ensuing battle between Clark's fleet and Babylon 5, Alexander, and Churchill, Churchill is severely damaged. Seeing no other choice, Hiroshi sends her flaming destroyer on a collision course with one of Clark's destroyers, EAS Roanoke. Both ships are destroyed in the collision. Churchill 's surviving Starfury fighters dock with Alexander and are transferred to Babylon 5 in order to bring the latter's fighter squadrons back up to full strength.^[21]

Depiction

Designed to allow the Centauri to cause serious damage on the battlefield, the Primus was given a massive array of weapons including ion cannon turrets, battle lasers, missile launchers, and others. These weapons make the Primus more than a match for most of its Narn counterparts. Besides these advanced features, the Primus also possesses a gravimetric drive system which gives ships of this class an advantage by providing artificial gravity^[13] and tractor beams. However, this capability uses between 50% and 65% of their total power output. Additional problems stem from the class's extreme age, as these warships have been in service for more than two centuries and require periodic refits and upgrades. Primus-class battlecruisers possess very thin armor, as fitting them with thicker protection would interfere with the gravitic countermeasures and leave the vessel vulnerable in combat. This weakness is partially offset, however, by the powerful ion weapons of the Centauri. On one occasion, a Primus battlecruiser was able to shear a significant section off Babylon 5 with a single salvo of its forward ion cannons.^[22] Even so, the thin armor and age of the Primus does leave it vulnerable to new alien warships with thicker armor, such as the Narn G'Quan-class cruiser and the Earth Alliance Omega-class destroyers. Furthermore, the most recent Earth Alliance warship, the Warlock-class destroyer is significantly more powerful than the Primus in all areas, and may have given the technological edge to the Earth Alliance over the Centauri.

Appearances

These ships have appeared in Babylon 5 both during the series and subsequent movies. They have been seen in episodes such as "Midnight on the Firing Line", "Believers",^[23]:123 Babylon 5: The Legend of the Rangers (movie), and others. Combat between a Raider Fighter and a Starfury is depicted in the Babylon 5 season 1 opening credits.^[24]

In the episode "Midnight on the Firing Line", G'Kar, the Narn ambassador to Babylon 5 is proved to be supplying weapons to the Raiders under official orders from his government.^[23]:85 These weapons were said to be far superior to typical Raider weaponry because of the intensity of the blast damage to a discovered cargo ship.^[25]:249

Depiction

The Raider fighter is a delta-winged craft with simple weapons and weak armor.^[26] The Raider ships cannot form their own jump point thus limiting their ability to attack larger ships or also to run from the more powerful escorts from the other races. Because of this, they have been known to utilize a "Battle Wagon" class of ship that can form its own jump point into hyperspace. The "Battle Wagon" is not an actual combat ship in its own right but rather a carrier for Raider Fighters. The "Battle Wagon" first appeared in the Babylon 5 episode "Signs and Portents".^[25]:178 An alternative version of it is seen in the TV movie Babylon 5: Thirdspace.^[27]:199

Generally speaking, Raider fighters are inferior in weapons and capabilities to fighters from the Earth Alliance, Centauri Republic, Minbari Federation, and other alien races. Partly, this is because they are an older design; they tend to be slower and less-maneuverable than fighters from more advanced races. In several episodes of Babylon 5, Earth Alliance Starfury fighters were able to destroy or disable large numbers of Raider fighters while losing few or no ships themselves. As a result of this weakness, Raider Fighters are primarily used by pirates, raiders, and other "outlaw" groups to attack and capture or destroy unarmed civilian merchant starships; they are rarely used in combat against other fighters. Raider fighters are also capable of atmospheric flight.^[25]:178

Depiction

A highly advanced design, the Sentri is extremely fast and maneuverable, and can outfly even the best EarthForce and Narn fighters. Only the Minbari Nial-class heavy fighter is faster and more maneuverable. However, the Sentri's speed comes at a price: the fighter has thin armor plating. The Sentri is thus highly vulnerable to direct hits from enemy ships and even a single shot from an enemy fighter can destroy it.^[30] The Sentri is capable of flying both in space and in a planetary atmosphere. It is also equipped with a sophisticated autopilot system which can fly the fighter even when the pilot has blacked out in an extreme maneuver during battle.^[22]

Depiction

The Sharlin Class Warcruiser is the main starship used by the Minbari Federation in the fictional Babylon 5 universe. Also commonly known as the Minbari War Cruiser, the Sharlin class is very large but conflicting sizes have been noted by different resources. The accepted size figure of 1,600 meters in length and roughly 1,900 meters in height was first noted by fan writer Brandon Bray, who worked as a consultant for Mongoose Publishing, producers of the official Babylon 5 Roleplaying Game. This size was officially accepted by Mongoose and published in their game line.

Sharlin class ships do not use conventional engines like rockets or ion propulsion. Instead, the Minbari War Cruiser used a combination of gravitational and electromagnetic fields for propulsion, a system called a gravimetric drive system in the episode "Mediations on the Abyss". This, described by Minbari Ambassador Delenn in the episode "Matters of Honor", was used to provide propulsion and artificial gravity. No canon information exists on what powered Minbari ships, save for some vague references to fusion reactors. Material from Mongoose Publishing suggests that Minbari warships use an artificial quantum singularity for its main power, while fusion reactors provide a secondary reserve power for this type of vessel. The Sharlin class is very well armed, having gravitic and electro-magnetic cannons. The ship also makes use of stealth technology which allows it to become effectively invisible to the scanners and targeting systems used by the younger races seen in the TV series.

These ships can hold up to 8,000 people. In peacetime the Sharlin class ships only have the 190 person regular crew. In combat situations there can be 60 additional combat personnel, such as pilots, gunners, and other support officers, and about 8,000 ground troops. The low crew requirement is due to the advanced computer system in place. The Valen'tha—a specially equipped Sharlin class—is home to the Grey Council, the leaders of the Minbari government.

The Sharlin class ships have a special holographic chamber. The chamber provides a complete 360 degree 3D image of the space around the ship. Normally it is used as a command center during battle situations. This chamber allows the commander to view the battlefield. A similar chamber is used by the Grey Council.

Among the younger races of the galaxy, the Sharlin class has no equals. During the Earth-Minbari war only a few Sharlin class ships were lost, typically by ramming, while the Sharlin class inflicted heavy casualties on the humans. However, the Sharlin class was no match for the more advanced First Ones—the Shadows were able to destroy a number of Sharlin class ships during the course of the war with ease through the use of planet killer missiles and slicer beams. In Babylon 5: A Call to Arms, a Sharlin is annihilated as it intercepts a planet killer missile aimed at the IAS Excalibur.

Known Sharlin Class Ships

• Drala Fi (Black Star) - The Minbari Flagship during the Earth-Minbari War. Destroyed by Captain John Sheridan on board the EAS Hyperion earning him the title of "Starkiller" by all Minbari, and making him the only publicly known Earth captain to have destroyed a Minbari Cruiser and survive. Since the Minbari lost many ships in the 2-year war, it's almost certain many Earth captains also survived battle with the Minbari, but Sheridan is the only one actually shown "on screen" defeating them. In a later episode, Susan gives Sheridan a piece of the Black Star that EarthForce now had for over 10 years post-war, and EarthForce likely used it to study the Minbari ships and was maybe how Earth managed to break their stealth technology after the war ended, as seen in Season 3 and Season 4 EarthForce ships were able to achieve a full weapons lock onto Minbari ships.^[25]:31
• Trigati - This ship participated in the Battle of the Line. When the order to surrender came, the ship's captain committed suicide rather than obey. His crew took the ship into hyperspace, and spent the next ten years in exile. In 2259, after John Sheridan took command of Babylon 5, the Trigati reappeared and tried to provoke Sheridan into firing on them in the hopes of restarting the Earth-Minbari War. When he refused, another Minbari vessel came out of hyperspace and attempted to force the Trigati's surrender. The Trigati's crew committed suicide rather than obey.^[34]:174
• Ingata - This war cruiser came to Babylon 5 in 2258 while carrying home the body of the deceased war leader Branmer.^[34]:148
• Valen'tha - a specialized advanced war cruiser that serves as home to the Grey Council. It was this vessel that was severely damaged and basically destroyed by EarthForce (the humans) at the disastrous first contact between the humans and Minbari. The EarthForce Hyperion opened fire on the Minbari war cruiser, completely ripping through and destroying the Minbari armor in only one volley, and it ripped apart the Minbari warships hull. The damage done to the Minbari warship by the EarthForce Hyperion was so severe it had rendered the Minbari warship completely disabled and useless, and resulted in the death of the Minbari leader Dukhat along with the majority of the Minbari crew on board. This started the war between Minbar and Earth.
• Dogato - John Sheridan and Delenn commanded the first major battle of the Army of Light against the Shadows in sector 83 from this ship.
• Enfili - This vessel also participated in the first major battle against the Shadows in Sector 83.

History

The Sun Hawk is the primary warship of the Drazi Freehold military. Like all Drazi vessels, this small defense ship has no independent jump capability. The Drazi's lack of jump engine technology is not due to any technological deficiency, but rather due to their proximity to the Centauri Republic. Prior to the Interstellar Alliance's war against the Centauri in 2262, the small Drazi Freehold's territorial expansion and economic growth was stifled by the larger power for many decades. In actuality, the Drazi have been a spacefaring race for far longer than humanity, and their technology is just as advanced, if not more so, than Earth Alliance and Narn technology. Through the skillful use of Jump Gates and their small but potent gunships, the Drazi have been able to defend their small network of colonies from invasion on many occasions. With the Centauri Republic in ruins after the joint Narn-Drazi attack against Centauri Prime, the Drazi are said to be developing their own new class of large, jump-capable destroyers.

Depiction

The Drazi Sun Hawk is a rugged warship and is heavily armed for its size. Its most common use is for system patrol and convoy escort, although it can also be utilized, in larger numbers, as a ship of the line against enemy assault fleets. The Sun Hawk is known for its versatility and can be easily maintained and modified, due largely to its modular fusion reactor and simple plasma drive engines. The fact that it can be easily mass-produced and has low crew requirements has made it something of a major export product for the Drazi, as many of the other, less militarily-inclined League races often purchase these ships for use as escort craft, patrol ships and transports.

Designer Ron Thornton made the Sun Hawk as an improved version of the Liberator from Terry Nation's Blake's 7.

Known Sun Hawk gunships

• Stra'kaf: Participates in the battle at Coriana VI against the Vorlons and Shadows. Near the end of the battle it sacrifices itself protecting Sheridan's and Delenn's White Star from a missile from the Shadow planet killer.

Origin and design

The T'Loth-class cruiser was designed by Ron Thornton.^[35]

Depiction

The T'Loth cruiser appeared several times during the first season of Babylon 5.^[4][36] In the episode Midnight on the Firing Line, the Narn Regime used T'Loth cruisers accompanied by Frazi heavy fighters for a surprise attack on a Centauri agricultural colony near Ragesh III. In the episode Chrysalis several T'Loth-class cruisers are destroyed by Shadow warships. The T'Loth-class cruiser is an older design, and the vessel's lack of artificial gravity makes it slower and less-maneuverable than the warships of the Minbari, Centauri, or Earth Alliance. The ship's two huge wings provide maximum protection for the crew-and-command section which connects the two wings. The T'Loth was eventually succeeded by the more advanced G'Quan-class cruiser, which became the primary warship of the Narn military. By the end of 2258, the last active T'Loths were given back-of-the-line duty guarding unimportant outposts such as Quadrant 37.

Valen Mk. I

The first Valen class cruiser is seen in the movie Legend of the Rangers which reveals that it is a joint project between the Minbari and the Earth Alliance to create a ship for the Interstellar Alliance. This ship was apparently the only one of the type ever constructed. The discontinuation of the model line had several reasons. First, this was the first ever ship constructed as a blend of Earth and Minbari technology, and as such had many design flaws, not the last of which was its being rather ugly. One of the characters in the movie described the first Valen as an "ugly flying brick". Also, constant problems integrating the technology were mentioned.

Where design is concerned, the prototype certainly took more after its Earthforce heritage than the Minbari one. The ship consists of a main bulk with massive, short wings, and a long, straight, thick protrusion at the head of which the bridge is placed. The ship is approximately 1300 meters long (by comparison to the 160-meter Liandra), doesn't possess much in the way of maneuvering capabilities, complementing its lumbering appearance. Weapon systems are not known, but presumably included both Earth and Minbari weapons. It may be of interest that the Valen, despite its considerable size and bulk, was capable of landing on planetary surface. (However, be it noted that very little information is available as to which ships of which races had or had not this capability.) Although this vessel wasn't superior to the Minbari Sharlin class war cruiser, it held one primate in the Alliance: speed. Thanks to a combination of Earth advancements in ion propulsion and some of the Minbari magnetogravitic propulsion principles, it was, according to one of the movie's protagonists, "the fastest ship in the Alliance". It is not known whether this included the Whitestars as well, because the Rangers (to whom all of the Whitestar fleet was reassigned after the Shadow war) operate in at least partial autonomy, answerable only to the Entil´zha.

The first Valen class vessel was destroyed on its maiden voyage when ferrying diplomats from applicant worlds to an IAS expansion summit. Under the command of the Ranger Sindell, it was ambushed by warships belonging to the thralls of a mysterious, old and powerful alien race known as The Hand. They had been tipped off by a traitor, Minister Kafta from one of the applicant worlds, and so had succeeded in critically damaging the Valen before it ever had the chance to return fire.

Valen Mk. II

The new Valen class cruiser is apparently also serving with the Interstellar Alliance. Being first seen several years after its predecessor had been destroyed, this vessel is a more mature product of cooperation between the Minbari and humans (both races having learned from the Victory project). Very little is known about the vessel, as it was only seen onscreen once, briefly. It incorporates technology that was left behind by the Vorlons, following their departure from known space, namely, the ability to enter the quantumspace. This appears to be some kind of alternative to hyperspace and enables the ship to travel twice as fast, compared to the conventional hyperspace.

The Valen Mk. II's design strongly reflects the traditional Minbari approach to shipbuilding, as opposed to the Valen Mk. I. The Valen Mk. II is the craft pictured at the head of this article.

Origin of the name

In the Babylon 5 universe, Valen is a historical figure of great importance to the Minbari people. He is considered "the greatest Minbari who ever lived", according to Delenn. He is mainly credited by unifying the Minbari society and leading them to victory in the last great war with the Shadows one thousand years ago. Valen himself was actually Commander Sinclair, the commander of Babylon 5 before Captain Sheridan.

Technical specifications

The Victory class heavy destroyers are enormous in size, [a mile and a quarter long (6,600 feet), 2012 meters (stated in the 1st. episode of the Crusade)] (2990) in length and are one of the first ships built by humans to use artificial gravity technology provided by the Minbari. The gravity field provides workable gravity just under that found on Earth. A human would weigh slightly less on the ship than they would on Earth.

These ships feature energy and particle beam weapons. The main guns operate at two main power levels. "Level One" provides beams with little more firepower than a White Star. "Level Two" is much more powerful weapon, reverse engineered from Vorlon lightning cannon technology. The discharge is a pulse which originates from three emitters mounted on large "fin" structures at the ship's stern; the beams converge just forward of the bow into a single ravening blast that can destroy nearly anything in its path. The weapon is capable of destroying ground installations through the atmosphere of a planet. Firing this titanic weapon drains all the ship's power and the ship is unable to maneuver, fire weapons or use long-range scanners for approximately one minute afterward.

Only two prototypes of the Victory class were built by Edgar Industries for the Interstellar Alliance: the Excalibur and the Victory. The two ships were intended to be the first in a fleet of Victory class heavy destroyer vessels.

IAS Excalibur (Crusade)

The IAS Excalibur is a starship in the fictional Babylon 5 / Crusade universe. First seen in the Babylon 5 movie A Call to Arms, the ship is a Victory-class destroyer. The ship combines human, Minbari, and Vorlon technology. Despite being built for the Interstellar Alliance the ship is crewed by Earth Force personnel and not rangers during A Call to Arms and Crusade.

Depiction

The most recent warship designed by the Centauri Republic, the Vorchan is extremely fast and maneuverable, although it's not very well armed and armoured for its class.^[1] The Vorchan is capable of creating its own hyperspace jump points,^[1] and it is capable of flying in a planetary atmosphere.^[26] Its primary weapons are two twin plasma accelerators, which are capable of destroying larger warships of other races (such as the Narn G'Quan-Class cruiser) in just a few hits.^[16] Even the extremely advanced White Star vessels are vulnerable to the Vorchan's plasma cannon fire.^[37]

Depiction

The White Star class was designed and built through a collaborative effort between the Minbari religious caste and the Vorlon Empire. With the reorganization and revitalization of the Rangers as a force with which to fight the Shadows, it was imperative that they be provided with a warship that would not be inherently recognized as either Vorlon or Minbari. As such, the ship was designed and built in secret and in large numbers by the Minbari worker caste. These vessels proved devastating during the Shadow War and the subsequent Earth Alliance Civil War. After the dust had settled, they served as a vital part of the Interstellar Alliance's military assets.

The White Star commanded by John Sheridan was thought to be unique until near the end of the third season (in "And the Rock Cried Out, No Hiding Place"), where it was revealed that the first wave of 40-50 White Stars had entered service. White Stars continued to be built and they were used extensively thereafter. The original White Star was vaporized as Sheridan crashed it into the largest city on Z'ha'dum while detonating two 500-megaton nuclear warheads.^[41]

While they are powerful ships featuring Vorlon and Minbari technology, Earth Alliance Omega class destroyers proved they could lock onto a White Star and destroy it, breaking the Minbari "stealth" advantage they had had previously (in the episode "No Surrender, No Retreat" Captain John Sheridan and Marcus Cole confirmed weapons lock on the White Stars). The advanced Omega class destroyers from the EarthForce proved to be a match for the White Star task force during the Battle of Sector 300, although the whole fleet of Omega class destroyers was obliterated.

Unlike most other large ships in the series, White Stars were numbered rather than being given unique names—Enrique Montoya's Maria (White Star 27) in Season 5 is the only known exception. At least 90 White Stars had been constructed by the end of the series.

The White Star was amongst the smallest ships in the Babylon 5 universe that still possessed the capability of opening its own hyperspace portals (known as "jump points") rather than relying on stationary jump gates or upon jump points created by larger allied craft.

The heavy losses suffered in the conflicts of the Shadow War and subsequent liberation of Earth led to the design of the larger and more powerful Victory class destroyer, an Earth-Minbar joint project based on Vorlon designs. The first results were two prototypes completed five years after the events of the television series. The White Stars were the best ship class of that size of cruiser, but the Interstellar Alliance had been forcing them to face heavy destroyers which highly outclassed them in one-to-one combat. The White Stars were no match for any heavy destroyer of any of the major races in a one-on-one combat (such as an Earth-Alliance Omega class destroyer that completely out-gunned a White Star one-on-one). The only way the White Stars could win would be in groups, as by themselves they were too weak to succeed against a destroyer. The Victory class was an attempt to create a new backbone of dedicated heavy destroyer class vessels for the Interstellar Alliance fleet.

The Black Star

Black Star (Drala Fi' in Minbari) was a Sharlin Class Warcruiser in the fictional science fiction universe of Babylon 5. The Black Star served as one of the flagships of the Minbari Federation fleet, until its destruction in the year 2245.

As told in the episode "Points of Departure", during the course of the Earth-Minbari war, on September 30, 2245 the Black Star entered the asteroid belt between Jupiter and Mars. There the Earth Alliance warship Lexington was escorting a number of warships and supply vessels. The far more advanced and powerful Black Star proceeded to quickly destroy and disperse most of the Earth fleet. The Lexington was heavily damaged and crippled in the attack. The ship's commanding officer, Captain Roger Stearns, was killed in the attack when a large metal beam was ripped off the bridge's ceiling and hit him. Commander John Sheridan, the ship's first officer, survived the attack and took command of the Lexington. Knowing that it was only a matter of time before the Black Star found the Lexington, Sheridan devised a strategy that would use the asteroid belt to his advantage. He ordered the belt mined with nuclear weapons, and then transmitted a fake distress signal to lure the ship toward the Lexington. Sheridan knew that it was standard Minbari doctrine to ignore all surrender pleas and destroy all Earth vessels without mercy, regardless of any damage the Earth vessels may have sustained. As the Black Star approached his ship for the kill, Sheridan detonated the nuclear mines attached to nearby asteroids, catching the Minbari ship in the explosions and destroying it.

The Black Star was the most important Minbari cruiser destroyed in the war, and it was the only clear-cut human victory of the war. The Minbari also lost three heavy cruisers in this attack, in addition to the Black Star. It did little to halt the Minbari advance, but it did raise morale in the Earth Alliance and encouraged the humans to keep fighting.

In the decade following the Black Star's destruction, many Minbari, especially within the warrior caste, harbored a strong animus toward Sheridan, and called him the "Starkiller" because he destroyed the Black Star in a sneak attack (which they considered a dishonorable act). Sheridan, on the other hand, never felt any remorse over what he had done; as the ranking officer aboard a warship in a time of war, his duty was to protect his crew and defeat the enemy, and fulfilling that duty meant resorting to asymmetric warfare. The fact that the Minbari had a "no quarter" policy and destroyed any human ship regardless of combat ability/status (something most humans considered dishonorable) was also a strong motivational factor.

When Sheridan took command of the Babylon 5 space station, many Minbari were at first angered by the choice. However, when the Shadow War began, the Minbari put aside their contempt for Sheridan and joined with him to drive the Shadows from the galaxy. Near the end of the Shadow War, Sheridan would once again use the same tactics that he used against the Black Star. He seeded a number of asteroids in the Corianna solar system with nuclear weapons, and used these weapons to attack a number of Vorlon and Shadow vessels.

Earthforce One

EarthForce One is used to transport the Earth Alliance president to other planets. EarthForce One plays a significant role in the plot arc of the series, beginning with the first-season finale episode, "Chrysalis". In that episode, Earth Alliance President Luis Santiago is killed in an explosion of EarthForce One. Santiago's Vice-President, William Morgan Clark, assumes the presidency after being sworn in aboard EarthForce Two.^[42] Clark is later implicated in a plot to purposely destroy EarthForce One and thereby assume the presidency.^[43][44]

Liandra

The Liandra is a fictional starship in the Babylon 5 television movie Babylon 5: The Legend of the Rangers.

The Trigati

The Trigati appears in the Babylon 5 episode "Points of Departure". It was a Sharlin-class Minbari war cruiser. The Trigati was at the Battle of the Line.

The Trigati was at the Battle of the Line. When the religious caste decided to surrender, Sineval - the war leader in command of the Trigati - committed suicide rather than surrender. Kalain, the executive officer of the ship, took command; the ship and crew disappeared into hyperspace in a self-imposed exile.

Over the next decade, the ship was occasionally seen in hyperspace. Captain John Sheridan of Babylon 5 said that he had heard of rumors of a Minbari ship being where it was not supposed to be. Otherwise, the ship and crew had not been seen or heard from since the war.

All that changed shortly after Captain Sheridan took command of Babylon 5. Soon after Sheridan arrived, Kalain appeared on the station. He accosted Hedronn, a member of the Grey Council who was visiting Babylon 5. After his encounter with Kalain, Hedronn informed Captain Sheridan of the situation. Security located Kalain in Delenn's quarters, and took him into custody.

Then the Trigati appeared at Babylon 5. Kalain committed suicide in his cell by swallowing a blue liquid he was carrying with him. The commander of the Trigati contacted Babylon 5, and demanded that Kalain be released. When Sheridan refused, she launched her fighters even though Earth would consider this attack an act of war.

Sheridan realized at the last minute that the Trigati was trying to provoke them into an attack when he saw that the Earth Alliance equipment could lock on to the Minbari fighters (during the war, the Minbari had always jammed Earth Alliance scanners). He ordered that no offensive action be taken, and sent a signal into hyperspace.

The Trigati and fighters did not engage Babylon 5 or its defending squadron of Starfuries, but instead began to withdraw from the area. However, another Minbari war cruiser came through the jump gate, and demanded the Trigati surrender. When the Trigati tried to leave the area, the other cruiser fired upon it, disabled her. At that point the cruiser ordered the Trigati to prepare for boarding. However the Trigati's crew decided that death was the only honorable course open to them, and activated a self-destruct device. The Trigati's fighters flew in close to their mother ship, and were incinerated when she exploded.

The effect of the Trigati's destruction on Human-Minbari relations was limited. Many in the warrior caste considered the Trigati and her crew to be heroes and martyrs. The situation did lead to some tense moments in relations between Babylon 5 and the Minbari. However relations between the Minbari and Babylon 5 continued to improve on the whole over the next year, especially since the Shadow War caused the two races to largely put their differences behind them in the upcoming conflict.

The Trigati is an important example as it highlighted a fundamental weakness of the Sharlin design. The other Sharlin disabled the Trigati by slicing off its aft fin, part of the gravimetic drive system. As the Sharlin design has no other propulsion system, the Trigati was completely disabled.