Idris-M

The Aegis Idris-M (Idris Military) is a frigate used by the UEE Military. It is used for everything from long duration patrols to scouting dangerous jump points to interdiction.

Variants

 * Idris-M: Military variant of the Idris frigate used by the UEE Military.
 * Idris-P: Peacekeeper variant of the Idris frigate used by the UEE patrol services and civilian.

Special editions

 * Idris-K: Aftermarket upgraded version of the Idris-P with laser weaponry.

Early development
In 2545, the initial specification of the ship that would become Idris was established by the United Planets of Earth’s (UPE) Weapons Development Bureau (WepDev). The frigate was part of a range of forward-thinking plans that attempt to reform Earth’s military after the First Tevarin War. These plans imagined a peacetime UPE with significantly expanded borders, both with territory annexed from the Tevarin and the increased colonization of more distant planets. The specifics of what would be the Idris called for the development of an 85-meter, corvette-class spacecraft that could dock a pair of patrol fighters. These corvettes would be built more affordably and in greater numbers than current ships-of-the-line and would be rapidly deployed to help patrol the burgeoning United Empire of Earth (UEE). The prime contractor role (covering both design and manufacturing) for the new ship was assigned to Aegis Dynamics via no-bid contract with a number of component and support contracts going to smaller, now defunct concerns.

In 2549, the prototype of the ship began its space trials after three years of development pledged with typical bureaucratic confusion to outside observers. The ship was completely different from the initial specification of a corvette: a massive frigate-class spacecraft massing several times the original proposal, mounting an enormous railgun, and carrying a fully functional flight deck capable of supporting multiple classes of fighters and bombers. Contradictory to the observers, the move from the proposed corvette to the frigate was painless and seemingly natural for those involved, with the design specifications being revised multiple times as the reality of the post-war Empire became increasingly clear. Messer aligned planners quickly identified the project as important to establishing their own power base and they worked carefully with Aegis and other contractors, particularly Aim-Krug, responsible for the railgun installed on the first flight of ships, to expand the scope of design to define a model for the modern warship. Expansion from the original corvette to the frigate was a rare decision that was in the best interests of all persons involved. Highlighting the suggested importance of the project, the first ship was named after the recent victory at Idris IV, already being mythologized as a foundational element of the new Empire.

Flight I
In 2551, the first and the lead ship of the Idris frigate, UEEN Idris was commissioned in a ceremony at Aegis’ newly constructed Idris System factory complex. The launch was attended by Imperator Ivar Messer, who presented a famous speech seen today as a prelude to him taking increased control of the UEE in the name of public safety. The initial factory constructed by Aegis to produce the ships included six berths that would work around the clock. The first six Idrises laid down were all commissioned by May 2552 and began service tryouts then extended patrol assignments later that year. From the start, the high-tech ships were desired assignments for navy crewmen who correctly identified that the then-lavish ships would play a major role in coming events.

Flight II
In 2553, a major delay in production occurred following the revelation that there were significant issues with the layout of the original six ships that made them particularly prone to fires. Poor placement of firefighting equipment and personnel combined with limited availability of shipboard retardants led to several significant fires, culminating in the deaths of seventeen sailors when one such fire spread to the forward magazine aboard the UEEN Ashton. Production of additional Idrises was delayed for eighteen months while a full review and redesign was conducted. In 2555, first flight-two Idris was launched. With the early issues resolved, Idris production continued at pace and the powerful frigates quickly became a common site around the Empire.

Present
The average Idris-class frigate commissioned between 2560 and 2800 had a thirty-year operational lifespan; in modern days, this average has been nearly doubled through both updated technologies and a greatly specialized overhaul process that essentially rebuilds any given ship once over the course of a decade. Aegis has continued to expand the number of available berths at their Idris IV factory over the centuries as demand increases from both the military and civilian users. In August 2587, the original UEEN Idris was decommissioned with 43 tours and nine combat stars. As of June 2950, it is the sole remaining Flight I Idris, mothballed in drydock at MacArthur, where it is often discussed as a potential museum piece highlighting the military’s role during the Messer era.

Civilian usage
For the first two hundred years of production, Idrises were reliably scrapped upon decommissioning; a requirement specified by law for all capital assets by the early UEE government. While Aegis’ shipbreakers were forbidden from salvaging and reusing systems, they were able to recycle roughly 35% of the scrap tonnage in the construction of newly produced frigates.

In 2801, with the passage of the first Surplus Act that gave approved civilian organizations the rights to bid on properly-demilitarized but still-functional spacecraft up to and including destroyer-class vessels. For Idrises, the keel-mounted gun needed to be permanently disabled and all classified subsystems, such as military-spec targeting software, needed to be removed. The law was primarily passed to allow citizens to purchase former freighters and the initial reception to the availability of former military frigates was generally cold. Within two decades, however, the need for larger-scale fighting ships had become greater and Aegis was forced to significantly expand its investment in mining corporations in order to make up for lost scrap resources. Simultaneously, additional citizen armament laws loosened the restrictions on what equipment could be sold off and to whom it could be sold to, gradually going from authorized militia forces to corporate and finally private entities.

Civilianization
In 2875, as the demand for civilianized Idrises combined with expanding life cycles for existing military ships had outstripped the Navy’s ability to decommission existing ships, Aegis launched first-ever Idris Peacekeeper (Idris-P), a purpose-built ship nearly identical in form to the military model (retroactively called the Idris Military or Idris-M), lacking only the main gun mount (which could be readily rebuilt on the secondary market). For the first time, civilian organizations could purchase not only the increasingly limited number of UEEN surplus ships but also commission the construction of their own spacecraft directly from Aegis. The popularity of the Idris platform, already cushioned by generations of developed support system, exploded and had quadrupled by the turn of the century.

Tactics
A properly outfitted Idris with an effective crew can serve as a torpedo boat; in rare instances, the Idris has even used its speed and maneuverability advantages to scuttle opposing cruisers.

Development
The original Idris corvette is designed by Ryan Church (Freelance Concept Artist) in 2013 along with other contributors include Chris Olivia (Chief Visual Officer), Ben Lesnick (Community Manager), Dave Haddock (Lead Writer), Rob Irving (Lead Designer), Chris Smith (Lead Vehicle Artist), Pete Mackay (Designer), and Chris Roberts. The ship was announced in June 2013.

In 2014-03, the team from CGBot whiteboxing the flight deck interior found that the original concept was not sized to fit with the Hornet model as the original concept used the smaller Hornet model from the 2012 cinematics. Since the Idris need to carry multiple Hornets, the ship was upscaled to a frigate. The rework was handled by the Foundry 42 UK team, with contribution from Mike Northeast (F42 Senior Designer), Mark Skelton (CIG Art Director), Paul Jones (F42 Art Director), Stuart Jennett (F42 Concept Artist), Bjorn Seinstra (Senior Artist), Tom Johnson (F42 Project Manager), and Chris Roberts. This was just one of many large project changes made throughout late 2014 and early 2015, including ships, procedural planets, the starmap and the lore timeline.

Design brief

 * Aim: The Idris Corvette. Going to be cool (go with a slightly retro / older look for this compared to RSI lines).
 * Builder: Aegis Dynamics
 * Crew (max): 10
 * Mass (empty): 38,000 kg
 * Length: 85 meters
 * Focus: Corvette
 * Cargo Capacity: 100 tonnes
 * The Idris has room to dock two single-seat fighters: Aurora, 300i or Hornet-level.
 * Thrusters: 8 x TR4, 8 x TR3

Hardpoints
 * 6 x Class 1: Equipped 2 x Behring M3A Laser Cannon
 * 4 x Class 2: Nothing Equipped
 * 12 x Class 3: Nothing Equipped
 * 10 x Class 4: Equipped 4 x Behring M5A Laser Cannon (single-turret)
 * The Idris has dual mount nose, tail, top and bottom turrets and single mount left/right turrets.

Trivia

 * The Idris is named after the Battle of Idris IV in the First Tevarin War.
 * Traditionally, Idris-class frigates are named after star systems, for example UEES Stanton.
 * The spacecraft development lore of Idris is a reference to the game development of the ship, where the ship was also changed from a corvette to a frigate.

Gallery
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