MY FAN PAGE FOR FRIGATES

AN ESCAPE VELOCITY TRILLOGY FAN SITE.

In Escape Velocity there are many different types of space ship for you to buy:ships for fighting, ships for carrying cargo, and even ships for just playing around. Each ship is in a class, there are destroyers, fighters, heavy fighters, intercepters, shuttles, freighters, light freighters, the list goes on and on. This little page is dedicated to my absolute favorite class of ship, the Frigate. I believe that I'm the only person on Earth who has actually searched through every Escape Velocity game, and more than half of the Total Conversion plugins, to find the Frigates they contain, and their stats. Some People may call me crazy, but I call me wierd and unique. There are five catagories here, each one has a download link to its specific game or plugin in case you wish to see these ships in action. You can also email me here to send me positive comments and/or reports of Frigates I didnt' mention from total conversions I didn't look at.

The Frigate type ships have changed since their origonal form. The First Frigates were designed for speed, and to carry enough firepower to defeat ships even a bit larger than themselves. Although this idea does not come out in most of the Ev's. Usually they carried twenty to thirty guns of medium and small sizes. As ships changed Frigates went out of favor and finally dissapeared entierly, replaced by the Cruiser, and Destroyer classes. During WWI however America sold 50, formally mothballed, outdated Destroyers to England so they could try to protect their convoys. These ships carried torpedo tubes and were more designed for surface combat, than destroying the deadly U-boats. The British got rid of the Torpedo tubes, and a couple of other weapons, and the ships that came out were called Frigates. Nowadays the ships on the high sea's that are classed as Frigates fit the definition out of my dictionary quite well. Though in fact Destroyers came from these ships, so saying that a Frigate is a small destroyer isn't really correct.

Frigates are my favorite class of ship, they have just the right balance between manuverability and firepower, and I don't just mean in EV/O/N, I mean in general. During the war of 1812 a couple ships showed up as steadfast fighting ships ideal for the war, Frigates were amoung the most honered of those. The Constellation, and Constitution were both Frigates and they both have gone down in history. There are others which I don't feel like digging in my mental attic to remember which also earned places in the marine warfare hall of fame. Nowadays Frigates, much like battleships, have gone out of favor, though unlike battleships they take a secondary place instead of being totally removed from service. They are no longer heavily armed fighting ships among the best in the navy. They are escort ships for protecting slow convoys and Aircraft carriers. I think it's a shame, but then again, the admirals who take care of this stuff probably know best.

As a secondary note:I do believe that in the space warfare of EV universes, Frigates and Destroyers should take first place in a governments list of front line warships. Easier and faster to build than the Hulking carriers that have taken precedance in modern marine warfare, these ships can have the firepower, and manuverabilty, to pack a heavy punch when used properly. As testimony to this, in all three EV's Frigates, and/or Destroyers are commonly seen on war borders, usually beating up on each other.

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The very first Escape Velocity, it was the start of an avalanche, click on the picture above to download it.The first Escape Velocity has a small selection of these wonderfull Frigates, and they are hard to get, but because of that each of them is precious:

One of the most common frigates is the Confederate Frigate:

It is seen quite often in Confederate space making sure that the citizens are safe. Almost anywhere you go in confed space you are sure to see one of these. However getting one of your own is a very difficult matter. The Confederation doesn't share their ships with anyone who hasn't done them a large favor, and the ship has a huge crew. The Confed Frigate is armed with a pair of proton turrets, a pair of torpedo tubes and missile launchers, and a whole lot of amunition for them both. It also has a huge amount of shields, it is not recomended to attempt attacking one.

The only other frigate in Escape Velocity is the Kestrel Escort Frigate:

The Kestrel is easier to get than the Confederation Frigate, it does not require missions. Never the less, it is still very hard to get. It costs 10 million, when you get one of these you are basically spending your life savings. It is also availible on only a few planets. But it is availible all the time. The Kestrel is armed with a pair of proton turrets, a pair of torpedo tubes and missile launchers, and lucky you, a pair of lightning fighter bombers. Once again, it is not recomended to attempt attacking a Kestrel Escort Frigate.

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Escape Velocity Override is the second game in the EV trillogy, click on the picture to download it. EV Override is a little better than Escape Velocity about Frigates, there are still two but they are quite common. They are also, however, quite far apart:

The first of them, and the one you are most likely to see flying around, is the Voinian Frigate:

The Voinian Frigate is extremely common anywhere near Voinian space. They are most often seen dueling with UE destroyers. Unfortunently, it is only availible after a series of grueling missions and it costs alot. Once you have it you are stuck in a slow ship, but it sure does carry some power. The Voinian Frigate is armed with two nuetron turrets, and two rocket turrets. This makes it a bad idea to go anywhere near its front when attacking it.

The other Frigate is my favorite ship in the game, the Turncoat Light Frigate:

The Turncoat is a renegade ship, it unfortunently has a bad reputation. It is seen fairly often in the southern part of the Override universe, plundering helpless traders. Because it was designed and is used by renegades, the only places it is availible are renegade planets. This makes the Turncoat difficult to reach and buy. But it is availible all the time, and is also fairly cheap for its size and power. It is armed with a pair of blaze turrets, a pair of needle missile launchers, and guess what, a TRIO of Krait fighters. (All of these ships seem to have a pair of everything, I bet you were surprised to hear of one that had a trio of something.)

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Nova is the third EV game, click on the above pic to download the mac version. EV Nova is much better than either of the other two Escape Velocitys about Frigates, there are a group of them, each one is different in some way. and each one is better for a slightly different purpose.

The first is a fairly common sight in and around Federation space. The IDA Frigate. (Impact Drive Assemblies Frigate)

the IDA Frigate is actaully more for cargo hauling than fighting. But when neccesary it packs a nasty punch. It does not require missions, but it is large and therefore only seen on higher shipyards and even then you have to wait awhile. IDA Frigates carry over two hundred tons of cargo, and a hundred seventeen in weapons space. They manuver fairly well for their size and have bad shields, but good armor. They carry a pair of Medium Blaster turrets and a raven rocket turret. There are some poweful variations of the IDA, so take a good look at the version of the ship before attacking it.

The Rebels of Nova use their own variation on the IDA Frigate, the Rebel IDA Frigate.

The Rebel IDA Frigate is practically a whole new ship, which is why I'm putting it here. It looks only slightly different, it has green buffing and the rebel symbol painted on it. It is seen occationally anywhere rebel ships show up, and a little more often in Rebel space. It is armed like a full blown cruiser and can hold its own agains whole task forces. It is only availible after the Rebel missions and then it costs a huge amount. It is armed with a quad light blaster turret, a pair of gravitmetric missile tubes, a rebel viper bay, a pair of heavy blaster turrets, a pair of medium blasters, and four light cannons. DO NOT ATTACK IT UNDER ANY CURCUMSTANCES WITHOUT A VERY POWERFULL SHIP.

The Aurorans are one of the gifted peoples who have access to Frigates, specifically the Enterprise.

The Enterprise is actually meant to be used for a cargo ship, it therefore is poorly armed for a Frigate. But it is heavily armored and has room for plenty of upgrades. It is ocationally availible in Auroran space, it's size means that it takes awhile to build. It is armed with one fusion pulse turret. The stock Enterprise is easy to take out, but beware attacking an Enterprise that is modified!

The Pirates also use a variation of the Enterprise, and theirs is even more of a Frigate, the Pirate Enterprise!

The Pirate Enterprise is very like the IDA Frigate, it has about the same amount of weapons space and cargo space, and about the same amount of armor and shielding. luckily it is easy to get, it can be bought almost all the time on Tichel. The Pirate Enterprise is heavily armored and also quite well shielded. It is used most often by pirates and bounty hunters, and free traders. It is armed with a pair of 150 mm railguns, and a fusion pulse turret. Be carefull when attacking higher versions!

I think you should remember a certain expensive, powerful Escort Frigate from Escape Velocity Origonal, well in Nova it has made a comeback, the Kestrel!

The Kestrel in Nova is very different. It is still expensive, and deadly. However, it is no longer availible anywhere with a hight tech level. You have to complete a major mission string to get at it. The only person you can see flying around in it is Matt Burch. It is armed with four medium blasters, a pair of hellhound missile launchers, a pair of fusion pulse turrets, a pirate viper bay, and a thunder head lance.

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Galaxy's Edge, a total conversion for EV Override, click on the above picture to download it. Galaxy's Edge is fairly reasonable about frigates, there are three of them. Only one is a common sight though.

The Frigate that you will see the most is the Cutlass.

The Cutlass is seen fairly often around the asteroid belt and inner planets. It is used often as an escort for smaller ships and freighters. It is luckily never seen as a pirate. The Cutlass is availible on any world with a reasonably high tech level. It costs a million and two thirds. It is armed with four ruby lasers, and a pair of predator missile launchers. If you are thinking about attacking one in your privateer, think again. It isn't a match for most other capital class combat ships however.

The next Frigate belongs to starlight corp, it is seen only in their space. The Singularity.

The Singularity is only availible after the starlight missions. It carries some serios firepower with eight Telsa beams, two flux

generators, and sixty nova torpedos. The Singularity is a ship well worth having, it has good manuverability and heavy shielding. Don't attack it alone without a ship at least as powerfull.

The last Frigate is obviosly russian, the Cherenkov Frigate.

The Cherenkov is seen only around earth. It is only availible after the russian missions. It is well armed with ten ruby laser turrets, ten rocket launchers and tenthousand rockets, 8 guided rocket launchers and a thousand guided rockets, and four carried starstriker fighters. The Cherenkov is actually much like the Star wars Frigate below in that it would be classed as a cruiser in EVO, Don't count out its power to pulverise you from afar when attacking it.

There is only one Frigate in star wars plugins, Strangely it looks much like the IDA Frigate. It would be classed as a dreadnought in normal EVO. But in star wars it is only a meduimly sized ship. The Nebulon-B Frigate:

Here is the buy desc of the Nebulon-B from the first plugin:Kuat Drive Yards' Nebulon-B Frigates are among the Rebellion's most useful multi-purpose vessels. The Nebulon-B has an reliable combination of on-board weaponry and high shield capacity. While it lacks great speed, it can take a battering from just about anything short of an Imperial class Star Destroyer. The Nebulon-B has a large hangar bay, with a full complement of 4 X-Wing, 4 Y-Wing, and 2 A-wing Fighters. It also has numorous turbo laser turrets.

I much prefer the second plugin and its Nebulon-B:The Nebulon-B Frigate is seen ocationally used by private corperations, traders, and pirates. More often it is seen as a rebel or new empire ship. It is availible on any high tech level planet for an outragous sum. It is armed with 12 red laser turrets and 12 turbo laser turrets.

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Polycon EV, the first ever total conversion for Escape Velocity Nova! Polycon deserves a place in the EV hall of fame for being this. Click on the picture to go to the download page at www.evula.org/anubis/download, from there you can find links to all the parts. And here, at last, is somebody who regognised the true potential of the Frigate class. Polycon is riddled with Frigates, from common, inexpensive patrolers, to Massive, priceless, Heavy Frigates. Polycon has them all. The slow and fast, the powerfull and the weak. You'll never be lacking a nice Frigate here, no matter which government you join!

The First Frigate is also the most inexpensive, fastest, most manuverable, and the next most poorly armed. Never the less, with good upgrades this ship can become a force to be reckoned with! It is the Ghoral Frigate:

The Ghoral costs four million, making it the cheapest Frigate availible. It is availible on almost any shipyard in and around polycon space, for this price. The Ghoral is armed with eight Meson Cannons that fire from the obvios places on the tips of it's wings, in the buy desc they are called quad meson cannons, it also carries 23 missles and two thermal turrets. This Frigate is seen often in polycon space, as a part of smaller governments, such as messiah mining and david. It is also seen as a trader, and of course, pirate. The Ghoral Frigate stars the line of ships that count on their forward firing weapons, so it is extremly manuverable for a ship of it's size. Be carefull when attacking one because if you get in it's line of fire it can bring down your shields rapidly. If you have another Ghoral or some fast ship you can stay out of it's line of fire and keep yourself from harm. This Frigate also has room to sell those nasty thermal turrets and replace them with a gamma rack or two. The Ghoral is my personal favorite of these polycon Frigates, it is an ideal beginning warship, to get before you can afford something larger. I seriosly suggest buying this ship as your first fighting ship.

Messiah mining has designed and built it's own Frigate, classed as "Heavy Frigate". The Howler:

The Howler is named after it's main weapon, which can be seen in the center of the ship and on it's three arms, it is availible only on Messiah Mining. Supposedly it is classed as a mining ship, and that is what you will get in the long buy name. But in the desc the ship is called a Heavy Frigate, and make no mistake, this is not a mining ship, this is a Frigate. The Howler has an amazingly large amount of cargo space, crew, and weapons space. It is in fact so large that it is used as a mining station in at least two systems. Because of this size it costs a whopping 36.millon credits! This Frigate carries four howlers, as can be seen in the picture,this is actually not extremly good weaponry as the weapon fires in a streight line, slowely, and does not do an extremly impressive amount of damage. But to make up for it the ship also carries two scimitar fighters and fifty torpedo's. The Howler Frigate has a very bad turn rate, which combined with it's forward firing weapons, causes a problem. As a result this ship tends to hang back and use it's long ranged howler guns to hit the enemy from afar. When fighting this ship, take out it's fighters and then attack it from behind where it can't reach you. Usually if you stay quite near the ship it won't fire it's torpedo's.

The Meredians are reminescant of the Emalgha from EVO and the Aurorans from EV Nova, they use slug firing weapons and have primitive ships. They were going to have two frigates, but due to limitations they have only one. The blandly named Meredian Frigate:

The Meredian Frigate is a poor ship in comparison to what it is up against. It turns only a little bit faster than the Howler and still carries forward firing weapons, this seems to be a charictaristic of Polycon Frigates. The ship is armed with FPC's, two pnumatic cannons, and two Heavy pnumatic cannons. This is extremly poor armament for a ship of it's size. The shielding and armor are quite good, but the whole ship, with all it's problems, cost's 11.million, which I feel is overpriced. There is plenty of room for extra weapons though. Destroying this ship is a simple matter of staying out of in front of it, just like the rest of them. It is availible on the Meredian shipyard.

This Frigate is probably the best of them all, manuverability, shields, armor, and best of all, turrets! This is the Byspa Frigate:

when you look at this ship the first thing you should think should be, Enterprise. And that is so, the byspa Frigate looks remarkably like the Enterprise of Nova. This ship is my second favorite Frigate in polycon, though others may like a different ship. The Byspa is armed with three pnumatic turrets, and of course the standard missiles. It's manuverability and speed are unmached by any Frigate exept the Ghoral, and I still get the impression that this one is a tad faster. The Byspa's standard armament isn't so hot, but it can be easily beefed up to challange much larger cruisers. The cost is about the same as the Meredian, but for a much better ship. It is availible on New Valeeied shipyards. When attacking this ship you can no longer attack from the rear and feel safe. Your best bet is probably to just plain have a better armed ship. Because there are really no hints I can give. I wouldn't suggest attacking this one without another Frigate or a Cruiser. The shields on this one are well worth having, not to mention the armor.

Here we have the USS Vandergrift, which is the only Frigate I could find this much information about:

The USS VANDEGRIFT is an Oliver Hazard Perry Class guided missile frigate.  This class currently consists of 51 ships making it the largest single class of warships built by a Western Navy since World War Two. 

Built By:  Todd Pacific Shipyards Corporation , Seattle, WA

Keel Laid:  13 October 1981

Christened: 15 October 1982

Commissioned:  24 November 1984

Displacement:  4,100 Tons

Length:  453 Feet 

Beam:  45 Feet 

Complement: 

15 Officers 

186 Enlisted 

Propulsion: 

Two General Electric LM2500, Gas Turbines (40,000 HP) One Controllable Pitch Propeller 

Two 350 Horsepower Electric Drive Auxiliary Propulsion Units 

Auxiliaries:  Four 1000 Kilowatt Ship's Service Diesel Generators 

Maximum Speed:  30 + Knots 

Aircraft:  Two SH-60B MK III LAMPS Helicopters 

Armament: 

Mk13 Guided Missile Launcher 

Harpoon Anti-Ship Missile 

Standard Anti-Aircraft Missile 

Mk75 76mm Rapid Firing Gun 

Mk32 ASW Torpedo Tubes (Two Triple Tubes) 

Mk15 Close-in Weapons System 

Combat Systems: 

AN/SPS-49 Air Search Radar 

AN/SPS-55 Surface Search Radar 

Mk92 Fire Control System 

AN/SLQ-32 Electronics Warfare System 

AN/SQS-56 Sonar 

Mk36 SRBOC Decoy System

SQR - 19 Towed Array Sonar

compared to the frigates I've been showing we see that the Frigates of EV are alot different from real ones, and personally, I like them better.

Also, I couldn't finnish this page without mentioning the most famous American Frigate ever, the Constitution!

The Constitution was, and still is, a Frigate from the war of 1812, it was one of six warships commisioned to be built for the newly formed united state's navy, though only three were actually made. It was one of the three of these that were built, and it was the first to be launched. The Constitution was a Frigate, along with it's sister ships. It was built and launched in the Bosten harbor, and went on to become the most famous ship of the war. The Constitution fought many battles and earned herself the name, Old Ironsides, from here durability. In fact, she got the name after cannon balls were seen to rebound from her hard oak hull. After the war the ship continued to serve for a long time. Finally, it was sceduled to be dismantled, and a new ship built. But thanks to a poam by Oliver Wendell Holmes the ship was kept alive and with public funding it was repaired instead of destroyed. However, in a couple more decades the ship was once again in a state of disrepair. And once again public funding saved the ship. School children all over the country donated their pennies to help raise the several million dollars needed to once again bring the ship to it's old glory. When the Constitution again emerged it went on a tour, visiting every major harbor, and having tours. Then it sailed to Boston, where it was origonally built, and now it is a major tourist attraction. You can visit the old ship, and see where the naval guns used to fire from their ports, where brave men fought and died for their country. You can also see the oldest Frigate still counted as an active part of a country's navy.

The constitution was an old style Frigate, in the days it was built in Frigates were designed for getting the most speed with the most amounts of weapons. Nowadays a ship like this would be classed as a cruiser. Here is a set of the Constitution's stats.