Message to Spacers 9

Heraklon-class Transport

By Patrick Stutzman

he Heraklon-class transport is one of the primary freighters in use by the Galactic Republic around the time of the Dark Wars that plagued the galaxy. Versatile in scope, the transport has proven itself to be rather useful to many different organizations for many different reasons.

The simple layout of the ship allows for easy navigation throughout. The bridge and all quarters for the crew have been placed in the fore of the ship, and the engineering section and ship systems are located aft in the tail of the ship, leaving the majority of the ship dedicated to cargo holds. The cargo section can be set up for transportation of goods as a bulk freighter, or it can have partitions installed with little effort to accommodate specialized cargo like livestock or exotic creatures.

In addition to the movement of cargo, the Heraklon-class transport also can be configured to allow a sufficient amount of passengers to take berth and fly to another world. The ship can be equipped to accommodate up to 450 passengers in steerage quarters, each with three fold-up bunks and storage lockers for any personal effects, or up to 150 well-to-do guests in luxurious cabins. A number of travel companies have purchased a fleet of the transports with extreme luxury upgrades to be used as cruise liners and offered vacation trips to exotic destinations within the Core Worlds and the Inner Rim.

In order to take advantage of cheaper production costs, the Heraklon-class transport was designed without any defense systems. The idea, as promoted by the sales representatives of Sadon Shipwrights, is that the transport should stay focused on its primary objective: transport goods from point A to point B. Given, the Heraklon-class vessel can perform the job very well when moving cargo within the Core Worlds where little threat of pirates or other outlaws exists. Beyond that, trader captains will do one of several things: not travel there, rely on luck or the will of the Force that nothing happens to them, travel with other merchants in a caravan, or hire someone with an armed vessel to fly escort for protection. In fact, the same sales representatives at Sadon have stated that they have a network of pilots that are more than willing to be hired to provide armed escort services for their clients and recommended one or more of those pilots to their customers.

History

Sadon Shipwrights, having a long history of designing and selling reliable transports for the general public, created the Heraklon-class transport as an improved version of the older Dionad-class transport that was in use by private organizations within the Republic a few years before the outbreak of the Mandalorian Wars. Featuring upgraded computer systems and an improved hyperdrive system, sales for the Heraklon-class started high and maintained that level of success for quite some time, becoming more popular that similar transports created by rival shipbuilders.

An incident that brought the Heraklon-class vessel into the limelight was when the Zhug brothers sought to enter the port of Iziz in 3,951 BBY. Despite their efforts, Colonel Tobin's blockade prevented their entry by shooting down the ship and forcing it to crash on the nearby moon of Dxun.

The incident, coupled with the bad press that followed, caused sales to drop significantly for a while. As some executives at Sadon looked to designing a new freighter to eventually replace the Heraklon-class transport, others saw an opportunity to revisit their advertising strategies and presented the ship in a new light, focusing on the safety of the crew and cargo of the ship should an accident take place. The ploy worked, and sales rose again to profitable levels, guaranteeing stability for the ship in the galactic market for many years to come.

Heraklon-class Transports in the Galaxy

Most of the Heraklon-class transports found in the Core Worlds and Inner Rim are configured to be cruise ships and passenger vessels, ferrying people between various star systems as far out as some prominent Outer Rim worlds. Many of the ships that travel away from the Core Worlds will be accompanied by at least two starfighters or one armed vessel, perhaps more depending on the importance of the contents being carried.

However, most of the transports encountered throughout the galaxy are the ones carrying cargo. These typically do not have any type of armed escort, instead depending on their wits and local law enforcement to protect them and their cargo from any interlopers.

Others that have managed to get their hands on a Heraklon-class vessel have been known to adapt the ship to be used for smuggling. Although customs officials may suspect illicit cargo being carried within the holds of the ship, crafty smugglers have found a myriad of pockets within the boughs of the ship to safely stash what they want to hide.

Pirates have successfully used the transport for their own purposes as well. Altering part of the central section of the ship with concealable hangar bays, many pirate gangs house several small fighters in concealed hangars to ambush an unsuspecting merchant vessel venturing too close to the pirates' claimed territory. They also have been known to use the transport as a mobile base to avoid being discovered by the authorities.

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About the Author

Patrick Stutzman is a freelance game designer whose credits include Threats of the Galaxy and the upcoming The Clone Wars Campaign Guide for the Star Wars Roleplaying Game Saga Edition. He also maintains his Web site, Star Wars: The Forgotten Tales, and works on SWRPGNetwork under the name of Jan Tolbara. Currently, he lives in Kansas City with his wife, two children, and an annoying Force spirit that follows him wherever he goes. If you have any tips on how to get rid of this spirit, let him know.