The following material is an adaptation of the starship design from MACROSS 7, a sequel to the original Japanese MACROSS TV series (which became Robotech here in the U.S.). Please feel free to use, copy, and distribute it as you see fit. All I ask is that you give proper credit to the author and do not claim that it is your own work. Comments and suggestions are welcome.

THE NEW MACROSS (NEXT AGE) COLONY SHIPS

Original RPG Stats by DANIEL HENWOOD (dhenwood@hotmail.com)
Modified RPG Stats by MARK MCALISTER(mcalister@cytechcis.net
Background text by DAVE DEITRICH (deitrich@mcs.net)
Background info provided by the MACROSS ONLINE COMPENDIUM

BACKGROUND

The New Macross-Class Colony Ships are the latest long-range exploration and colonization vessels being used by the UN Spacy to probe the far reaches of the galaxy. The first of these vessels, the New Macross 01, was launched from Earth in September 2030, and since then an average of one New Macross ship per year has been launched from the solar system or one of the older human colonies. The new colony ships have replaced the older Megaroad-Class Colony Ships that had been in service ever since the launch of the SDF-2 Megaroad-01 in June 2012.

The New Macross ships represent a fundamental redesign and redevelopment of the UN Spacy's colonization strategy. The new vessels are designed to be the flagships of colonization fleets carrying well over 1 million civilian settlers. The colony portion of the New Macross vessels (usually called the "City" part) alone can carry over 350,000 people, a vast improvement over the 80,000-colonist capacity of the Megaroad vessels. In addition the City block provides much better protection for the civilians than earlier ships did. The semi-transparent dome covering the city can be enclosed by a heavy projection shield that completely protects the colony from attacks (except for external areas, see below). When not in danger, the shield can be lifted off the dome to provide colonists with an awe-inspiring view of the stars. The raising and lowering of the shield gives the impression of a giant clam opening and closing its shell, which has led to ships of this class being nicknamed "clamshell ships" and "clamshell colonies".

The New Macross vessels are also intended to serve as the flagship for the colonization fleet's military escort forces. Unlike previous colony ships the New Macross vessels are actually two starships in one. The front part of the ship is a military Battle Carrier which can separate from the colony part and engage in battle separately when necessary. The carrier (usually called the "Battle" section) can carry over 350 variable fighters at maximum capacity and contains sophisticated communication and radar systems which allows it to effectively coordinate the fighter wings and escort ships in battle. In addition the battle section is transformable (has two modes of operation, Cruiser and Attack mode) and is armed with an impressive array of anti-warship weaponry, including missile launchers, rail guns, and a heavy particle beam cannon modeled after the original Macross Cannon on the SDF-01 Macross. The Macross Cannon is of particular interest, as it is a self-contained spaceship that can be released from the New Macross battle section and maneuvered and fired under its own power if necessary. The performance of the New Macross battle sections has been so impressive that the UN Spacy has constructed a few of the battle carriers individually (without the city sections) to serve as command ships for all-military space fleets.

The interiors of the New Macross city sections contain large metropolitan areas that are over 50 square kilometers in size. These cities are usually extremely clean and well kept, and feature many parks and public areas for use by citizens. Most colony residents enjoy a high standard of living, which helps to offset the boredom of long-distance space travel. The only exceptions to this rule are residents living in the external habitation modules of the city section. Each city ship can have up to 5 external living areas attached to the main hull. These areas are not protected by the projection shield and are therefore much more vulnerable to attack. Usually these areas are used for agriculture or additional parks, but occasionally they are used to house additional settlers who are added to the mission at the last minute. These areas usually become havens for "second-class citizens" and can resemble the slums of most major cities.

Previous colonization fleets usually consisted of one Megaroad ship and a modest escort fleet. However, when a New Macross ship is launched it is accompanied by a fleet of special-purpose colony ships that make up a self-supporting community in space, allowing the ships to operate for years without contact from home. (current estimates are that a New Macross colony fleet can operate for up to 30 years without resupply.) The accompanying colony fleet usually includes at least one of each of the following ships; Three Star-class mobile factory ships, Riviera-class (and/or Mark Twain-class) resort ships, Hollywood-class amusement ships, Einstien-class research ships, Beginhill-class military training vessels, and Sunflower-class agriculture ships. These ships are in addition to a moderately large military escort fleet made up mostly of Uraga-class variable fighter carriers, Maizuru-class cruisers, and Stealth Frigate escorts.

To date 15 New Macross colony fleets have been launched since 2030. So far only two of these fleets have met with significant problems or resistance. The New Macross 05 and New Macross 07 colony fleets encountered the Varuta forces and Protodeviln beings while exploring near the center of the galaxy, leading to the UN Spacy/Varuta War of 2045-2046. The Macross 05 fleet was destroyed shortly after landing on the planet Rax in 2045, and the Macross 07 fleet suffered heavy damage including the loss of the Battle 07 carrier on the home planet of the Protodeviln during the final battle of the war. Fortunately none of the other New Macross fleets have encountered similar problems yet, but no one really knows what dangers are still waiting in the unexplored parts of the galaxy the ships are heading into.

GM'S NOTE: The interior colony section for every New Macross vessel is designed differently to form unique cities in space. If you plan to use a New Macross ship as the focus of a Macross 7 campaign then I highly recommend at least mapping out the city interior, as the characters will probably be spending most of their free time (and possibly a lot of their duty time) inside the city. One easy way to do this is to take a detailed map of the city of your choice and draw an oval 5 km long by 3.5 km wide around the downtown city section.

RPG STATS

Government: New Unity Government (Earth)
Ship Type: Long Distance Emigration Ship/Space Attack Carrier
Class: New Macross Class
Manufacturer: ORTEC Company/Three Star Heavy Industries/UN Spacy
Crew:

Battle Section (2,000 total)
Command Tower: 74
Main Ship: 1,226
VF Pilots: 240 + 100 reserve
Troops: 360
City Section (360,520 total)
Crew: 10,520
Civilian Colonists: 350,000

Notable Ships of Class:
New Macross 05 (launched 2036, destroyed 2045 by Varuta forces)
New Macross 07 (launched 2038, battle section destroyed 2046 by Protodeviln Gepruniti)
New Macross13 (Next Age Carrier comandeered by the Black Rainbow Terrorist group & modified with a Sound Jamming System to be used against the UN Spacy in an uprising against the UNG.)


BATTLE SECTION STATS

MDC BY LOCATION: 
(1) Main Body                                  50,000
    Arms (2)                                   25,000 each
    Flight Decks/Arm Shields (2)               10,000 each
(2) Main Engines/Leg Units (2)                 22,500 each

(3) Command Tower                              11,000
(3) Sensor Array (Top of Command Tower)         2,000

(2) Secondary Thrusters (2)                     5,000 each
    Small Guidance Thrusters (40)                 400 each

    Gunship/Main Gun (1)                       22,500
    Rail Cannons (2)                            3,500 each
    Tri-Barrelled Particle Beam Guns (4)        1,500 each
    Airlocks/Access Hatches (70)                  200 each
    Outer Hull (per 40ft area)                    150
    Interior walls (per 20ft)                      20

(4) Pin Point Barriers (4)                      5,000 each
(5) Sound Jamming System Antennae (2)           1,000 each

NOTES:

  1. Depleting the MDC of the main body will put the Battle Carrier out of commission. All internal systems will shut down, including life support and internal gravity. The ship itself will be an unsalvageable floating wreck.
  2. Depleting the MDC of the main engines will force the ship to rely on its secondary engines. Depleting the MDC of the main engines AND secondary engines will leave the ship adrift in space. If in an atmosphere, the ship will crash (destruction of the main engines will render the antigravity system useless due to loss of power).
  3. Destroying the command tower will instantly kill the command staff and deprive the ship of all forms of long range communications, radar and targeting. The range and targeting capabilities of the secondary systems are equal to that of a VF-11 Thunderbolt. The ship can still operate, but is at -3 on initiative, -3 to strike, and number of attacks per melee of the weapon systems are reduced by half. Destroying the main sensory array on top of the command tower will have the same effect, but the command staff will not be killed instantly.
  4. The Pinpoint Barriers regenerate at a rate of 1,250 MD per second (2,500 MD per melee round). If destroyed, a barrier will completely regenerate within four seconds (2 melee rounds). See the Pinpoint Barrier System entry for details.
  5. There are two Sound Jamming Systen Antennae (one located on each shoulder in attack configuration, and located on the sides of the ship in cruiser mode). When one antennae is destroyed, only 50% of incoming missles are effected, when both antennae are destroyed, the jamming system ceases to function altoghether, leaving the ship vulnerable to all incoming missile attacks.

SPEEDS:

Speed(sublight): 0.20 speed of light (32,000 miles per second)
Speed(Auxiliary Drives): Mach 3
Space Fold: Range Unlimited (1 light year every 6 minutes)
Planet bound:
Can land if necessary but not designed to maneuver in an atmosphere.
Maximum Range: Unlimited (estimated 30 year life span)

STATISTICAL DATA:

Length (cruiser mode): 4,983 ft (1,510 m)
Length (command tower only): 610 ft (185 m)
Height (attack mode): 3,861 ft (1,170 m)
Weight: 6,250,000 tons (empty) / 7,700,000 tons (standard)
Fold System:
ORTEC/Shinnakasu/General Galaxy Advanced Fold System Cluster
Sublight Drive:
ORTEC/Centinel Impulse Drive Cluster
Gravity Control System: Internal
Auxiliary Engine:
Shinnakasu/Shinsei Industries/Agar Nuclear Pulse Rocket Motor Cluster
Radar System: Stealth Aegis Pod

WEAPON SYSTEMS:

  1. MACROSS CANNON MAIN GUN/GUNSHIP: The most powerful weapon on the New Macross-class battle carriers is the Macross Cannon, which is basically the same heavy particle beam cannon used by the original SDF-01 Macross in the war against the Zentraedi. The cannon can fire a beam up to 120,000 miles (192,000 km) long and 2 miles (3.2 km) wide that essentially destroys EVERYTHING in its path. The disadvantage of the weapon is the tremendous power it consumes. Even when connected to the battle carrier's powerful engines the cannon takes a full 5 MINUTES (20 melee rounds) to recharge between shots.

    Unlike in previous ship designs, the New Macross battle carrier's cannon is contained in a completely separate starship unit from the rest of the vessel. This allows a better range of motion and more accurate firing in battle mode, as well as the ability to completely eject the cannon in the event of an overload or serious malfunction. The cannon unit is commonly referred to as the "Gunship", and even contains separate power systems, engines, and life support systems that allow it to function as an independent spaceship if necessary. The gunship can carry a crew of four (pilot, copilot, engineer, and communications expert) but is usually piloted by remote control when necessary. The gunship does not have sublight or fold capacity and cannot fly in an atmosphere.

  2. RAIL CANNONS: Located on each shoulder of the ship in attack configuration, partially concealed, are two heavy rail cannons lightly larger than those of the earlier New Macross ships. These cannons are similar to those on the original Macross (though much more modern) and use magnetic accelerator technology to propel metal slugs at incredible velocities torward a terget. The slugs fired by the cannons are much larger and more accurate than previous rail guns, though the rate of fire of the cannons is slower than earlier versions due to the slug's size.

  3. TRI-BARRELLED PARTICLE BEAM CANNONS (4): Also located on the shoulder of the ship in attack configuration are four tri-barrelled particle beam cannons, (two facing forward, two facing aft) these guns are located on the sides of the ship in cruiser mode and have a 180 degree arc of fire.

  4. HEAVY MISSILE LAUNCHERS (8): The New Macross battle carriers contain eight missile launcher tubes for launching ICBM-like missiles during combat. Resembling torpedo launchers, four are mounted on each side of the ship recessed into the hall and fire forward only. In Attack mode these launchers are located in the shoulders of the ship near the rail guns. The launchers contain long-range nuclear missiles and are usually used only during assaults and heavy combat. The New Macross 07 used these launchers in combat against greater Protodeviln during one battle of the Varuta war. Unfortunately the missiles proved ineffective against the Protodeviln's incredible regenerative capabilities.

  5. RETRACTABLE LASER TURRETS (30): For anti-aircraft/anti-mecha defense the New Macross battle carriers are armed with 30 automated laser turrets that retract into the cruiser's hull when not in use. These short-range lasers can also do moderate damage against smaller enemy spacecraft if they get too close. The lasers are located at key points along the spacecraft's hull. At most 6 lasers can be directed against a single target at any time.

  6. MEDIUM MISSILE LAUNCHERS (12): In addition to the laser turrets, the battle carriers are armed with twelve medium missile launchers for additional anti-mecha defense. Each launcher contains 10 missile tubes allowing volleys of up to 10 missiles to be fired at a single target per launcher. Once depleted, the missile launchers are reloaded by an automated loading system that takes 15 seconds (one melee round) to reload all 10 missiles. Armor-piercing smart missiles are usually used to avoid chances of friendly fighters being shot down by the missiles.

  7. PINPOINT BARRIER DEFENSE SYSTEM: Originally developed by researchers onboard the SDF-01 Macross during Space War One, the Pinpoint Barrier System is a standard defense system on board all UN Spacy starships, including the New Macross battle carriers. The system generates four small disc-shaped force fields that can be positioned anywhere along the ship to deflect missiles, energy beams or projectiles. Each pinpoint barrier is about 200 ft (61 m) in length and can absorb up to 5,000 MD in damage, which then regenerates within four seconds (2 melee rounds). The barriers can also be layered on top of each other to generate a field which provides 20,000 MDC and can even deflect heavy particle beams (usually).

    The four barriers are controlled by operators in the command tower of the carrier. These operators are instructed to defend (1) the command tower, bridge, and sensor array, (2) main engines, (3) hangar bays, and (4) weapon systems, in that order. The operators primarily concentrate on defending the ship against larger spacecraft and leave defense against mecha attacking the carrier to the VF pilots.

SYSTEMS OF NOTE:

MECHA COMPLEMENT (STANDARD):

NOTE: The New Macross battle carriers have enough room to hold an additional 4 squadrons (48 fighters) if necessary, though the landing bays would be extremely cramped at that point.

COLONY SHIP (CITY) SECTION STATS

MDC BY LOCATION: 
(1) Main Body (Bottom Shell)                    250,000
    Projectile Shield (Top Shell)               250,000
    Projectile Shield (Per 40 ft area)              500
(2) City Dome                                    50,000
(2) City Dome (Per 40 ft area)                      100
(3) Top Shell hinge joint                        20,000
    Command Tower                                25,000
    Connection Joint/Engineering Section         40,000

(4) Main Engines/Power Plant (2)                 80,000 each
(4) Auxiliary Engines (4)                        10,000 each

(5) Akusho Garden (Acshio Area)                   5,000
(5) Event Subdome                                25,000
(6) Outer Shell Mayoral Tower                    15,000
(6) Outer Shell Mayoral Tower (Per 20 ft area)      250

(7) Pin Point Barriers (8)                        5,000 each

NOTES:

  1. Depleting the MDC of the main body will essentially destroy the City section. All internal systems will shut down, including life support and internal gravity. The colony ship itself will be an unsalvageable floating wreck, and any surviving colonists must be rescued quickly or will die from asphyxiation as the remaining atmosphere drains into space.
  2. In "Shell Down" mode, the semi-transparent city dome is completely covered by the projectile shield. Therefore in order to attack the city dome in this mode the projectile shield must be penetrated or destroyed first. If the City Dome is destroyed while in space (2D4x10) percent of the colonists inside will be instantly killed due to explosive decompression.
  3. If the hinge joint for the top shell is destroyed it will float away from the main spacecraft (assuming the colony ship is in space). The city dome will take 1D6x1000 MD as the top shell scrapes across its surface. If the hinge joint is destroyed in an atmosphere while the top shell is open it will come crashing down, doing 2D6x1000 damage to the city dome. Either way, the effects of the shock waves on the city inside will be catastrophic.
  4. Depleting the MDC of the main engines will force the ship to rely on its auxiliary engines. Depleting the MDC of the main engines AND auxiliary engines will leave the colony ship adrift in space. If in an atmosphere, the colony will crash (destruction of the main engines will render the antigravity system useless due to loss of power).
  5. The Acshio Area and Event Subdome are not protected by the projectile shield, even in "Shell Down" mode. Note: The Acshio Area is unique to the Macross 07, though other New Macross colony ships may have similar attachments.
  6. In "Shell Down" mode, the mayoral tower is protected and contained within the command tower on top of the projectile shield. Therefore in order to attack the mayoral tower in this mode the command tower must be penetrated/destroyed first.
  7. The Pinpoint Barriers regenerate at a rate of 1,250 MD per second (2,500 MD per melee round). If destroyed, a barrier will completely regenerate within four seconds (2 melee rounds). See the Pinpoint Barrier System entry for details.

SPEEDS:

Speed(sublight): 0.20 speed of light (32,000 miles per second)
Speed(Auxiliary Drives): Mach 1
Space Fold: Range Unlimited (1 light year every 6 minutes)
Planet bound:
Can land if necessary but not designed to maneuver in an atmosphere.
Maximum Range: Unlimited (estimated 30 year life span)

STATISTICAL DATA:

Length (city section): 16,500 ft (5,000 m)
Length (connector/engineering section): 2,640 ft (800 m)
Length (Acshio external island): 990 ft (300 m)
Length (overall): 19,140 ft (5,800 m)
Weight: Approximately 7,777,770,000 tons standard
Power System:
ORTEC/General Galaxy Main Reactor(700,000,000 kilowatts per hour)
Fold System:
ORTEC/Shinnakasu/General Galaxy Advanced Fold System Cluster
Sublight Drive:
ORTEC/Centinel Impulse Drive Cluster
Gravity Control System: Internal
Auxiliary Engine:
Shinnakasu/Shinsei Industries/Agar Nuclear Pulse Rocket Motor Cluster

DEFENSE SYSTEMS:

  1. PINPOINT BARRIER DEFENSE SYSTEM: See the Pinpoint Barrier Defense System entry above for full details. The New Macross city section has two PPB systems as opposed to a single system on the battle carrier. If one group of four is disabled or destroyed (e.g. by deflecting a heavy particle beam) the other will continue to function. The operators of the barriers are instructed to defend (1) any breaks or weaknesses in the projectile shield and/or city dome, (2) the command tower and mayoral tower, (3) the main engines, and (4) the engineering section/battle carrier docking section, in that order.

SYSTEMS OF NOTE:

MECHA COMPLEMENT (STANDARD):

NONE! However, the landing bays in the New Macross colony ships have enough room and resources to adequately support up to 3 squadrons (36 fighters) of VFs if necessary.
  • Variable Police Air Patrol Craft: 30
  • Variable Police Space Patrol Craft: 30
  • Variable Ground Police Patrol Craft: 60

    • REFERENCES USED IN THIS DESIGN