Skate

Boron Skate Class M3+ Heavy Fighter Buy: @ 5,984,203 Cr Speed (Min-Max) 62.4 - 156 m/s Acceleration (Min-Max) 11 - 29 m/s2 Steering (Min-Max) 16 - 40 RPM Hull Strength 11,250 Max. Shield (Total) 3 x 25 MJ (75 MJ) Shield Reactor 1,160 MW Cargo Class (Min-Max) 145 - 320 @ M Laser Capacitor 7,800 MJ Laser Recharge 195 MW                                                                                                          Main x 8                                                                                                          Front x 1                                                                                                          Back x 1

Boron Skate Prototype Class M3+ Heavy Fighter Speed (Min-Max) 122.4 - 180 m/s Acceleration (Min-Max) 23 - 35 m/s2 Steering (Min-Max) 23.5 - 42 RPM Hull Strength 10,000 Max. Shield (Total) 3 x 25 MJ (75 MJ) Shield Reactor 1,000 MW Cargo Class (Min-Max) 170 - 275 @ M Laser Capacitor 7,800 MJ Laser Recharge 195 MW                                                                                                          Main x 8                                                                                                          Front x 1                                                                                                          Rear x 1

Overview

A very capable M3+ fighter, the Boron Skate is versatile and quick, but suffers poor shielding and a large profile. It is probably the only effective Boron fighter in the fleet with the possible exception of its prototype variant.

The Skate's main drawback is its price: like all ships of its class, it is overpriced, at marginally more than double the price of the basic M3, so is best used as a personal fighter rather than a fleet one.

A note for the curious: the Skate's wingspan exceeds the width of most TM berths. Fortunately, it seems to dock perfectly well without complications.

Background

Encyclopedia Entry

The Royal Boron Navy wisely waited to see how Bala Gi's M3 Plus offerings were accepted before developing its own version. The Skate is the result and is an extremely capable heavy fighter.

Variants

Skate

The standard Skate against which the Prototype is compared.

Skate Prototype

The Prototype Skate is faster and more agile than the standard version, but has a slightly smaller shield generator and a smaller cargo bay. It is still large enough for ammo supplies.

Physical Characteristics

Its hull is curiously shaped, with four wings arranged in a cross shape, and a short nose. It is famed for being nigh-on impossible to miss with weapons fire due to its large cross-section, Though with that said it is a very good looking ship.

Combat

The Skate performs reasonably well in combat with well-rounded stats, but its weak shielding for its class and high price as an M3+ makes it impractical for fleet combat.

Equipment

Missiles

Mosquito Missile Wasp Missile Dragonfly Missile Silkworm Missile

Disruptor Missile Firefly Missile Thunderbolt Missile Tempest Missile

Hurricane Missile Cyclone Missile Tornado Missile Aurora Missile

Remote Guided Warhead Beluga Missile Hammerhead Missile Rapier Missile

Firelance Missile Wildfire Missile Windstalker Missile Banshee Missile

Its laser generator is good, and it can use the ammunition-based Energy Bolt Chaingun effectively due to its improved cargo space over the Barracuda and M3 class in general. Its front and rear turrets allow it good coverage for missile and additional fighter defence, using mid-range lasers such as the Phased Repeater Gun.

Availability

Variant	Depths of Silence	Great Reef	Kingdom End	Lucky Planets	Ocean of Fantasy	Queen's Retribution
Skate	x	x	x	x	x

The Prototype is not purchasable, but is available as an ownerless ship in Terran Conflict.

Suggested Roles

It is best used in conjunction with a carrier or TM class ship, since, like all fighters, it cannot hold enough jump fuel for extended operations, and its reliance on ammunition for its staple weaponry makes this worse.

See Also

Ships by Class

M3+ Ships

Argon	Eclipse (Prototype)
ATF	Fenrir
Boron	Skate (Prototype)
Goner	none
Kha'ak	none
OTAS	Notus Hauler
Paranid	Medusa (Prototype)
Pirate	Eclipse (Advanced) • Kea
Split	Chimera (Enhanced)
Teladi	Kea (Enhanced)
Terran	Cutlass
Xenon	LX
Yaki	Tenjin