Nightmare

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One of six Corellian gunships captured by House Plagueis during the taking of the new Ascendant Fleet, the Nightmare has become an attack ship of the Hellfire raid fleet. When outside of large engagements, it roves through both stellar and planetary battlefields, crushing fighter resistance and crippling freighters and defensive positions.

History

Originally built in 18 BBY for the Galactic Republic, the DP20 frigate Nightmare was meant to bolster the Galactic Empire's fleets - a job which it performed admirably. It was used in several smaller engagements with insurgents and as-yet-unconquered worlds, and showed the hardiness and reliability of Corellian designs throughout its service years. Even after the rise of the Rebel Alliance, it remained in Imperial hands, and was therein until the end of the Vong War. As several ships of its model, refurbished and newly-made alike, were added to the 108th Expeditionary Scout Fleet, it too was roped into the group - an Imperial donation to the safety of a newly unified galaxy.

Serving with the 108th, the Nightmare was largely relegated to warding off the fighters of pirates and other scum, and enjoyed a moderately busy schedule until 36 ABY. While the crews of the 108th, and most of the crew of Nightmare herself, were on leave at Ord Pardron, it was nearly deserted when the Ascendancy and the Plagueians aboard struck.

With only three crewmen aboard, the Nightmare became the first DP20 captured by Plagueian hands.

Characteristics

Designed to serve more adequately as a vessel of war than its relative, the CR90, Corellian gunships had a greatly reduced amount of space for passengers, troops, or cargo. During their design phase, two words guided the shipwrights and engineers of CEC: Fast and deadly. As such, engines made up half of their available interior space, with the rest reserved for deflector shield generators and weapons systems. Because of this speed and lethality, they were ideal craft for raiders and pirate fleets, but also saw extensive use by the Rebel Alliance and were even used by local Imperial fleets.

The DP20 gunship bore a stock armament of eight double turbolaser cannons, four concussion missile tubes, and six quad laser cannons. This made the vessel useful for a number of reasons. Ideally, it was meant to destroy fighters, bombers, and other snub or shuttle craft en masse; where a capital ship's bulk made accurate strikes against such craft difficult, the gunship could pinpoint and destroy them with much greater accuracy. However, they were also capable of harrying and dealing damage to larger ships, while still being maneuverable and quick enough to evade powerful craft such as Star Destroyers. In Plagueian hands, these vessels have become central to crippling and raiding ships for supplies and slaves.

DP20 ships held accommodations for forty-five crewmen and forty-six gunners; in Plagueian hands, both posts are occupied by Subjugates. In addition, the 120-meter craft always house a Sith, and the crews rotate outward. In the close-knit environment of such a small ship, crew members become akin to families, something that increases the possibility of Subjugate crewmen finding identities and rebelling. To combat this, the crews of the gunships are routinely cycled out or, if necessary, purged. The Sith aboard is both a measure against boarders and a safeguard against slaves; in such enclosed spaces, a lightsaber and the Dark Side make them more than a match for invading soldiers or a crew of lightly-armed slaves.