Carrier
From Encyclopedia Hiigara
A carrier is a type of capital ship whose chief purpose is to launch, supply, repair, and refuel strike craft. In several cases a carrier can also construct new strike craft and in some cases, even frigate sized vessels. Carriers also generally serve as command ships although this is not their chief function.
Carriers are often lightly armed, the majority of their power being diverted to their hangar bay and its various services. Rather than carrying large weaponry such as heavy missiles or ion cannons a carrier is armed only with its durable armor and small projectile cannons. As such, carriers frequently require the escort services of several frigates, preferably true capital ships. There are exceptions however and the Turanic Raider Lord-class Carrier has gained infamy as one of the few carriers to be heavily armed, carrying a mounted ion cannon on its front.
[edit] Sub-classifications
The type of ships described above (with the exception of the Lord-class) are standard carriers, with no significant differences from the base design of a carrier. There are several sub-types however. Light carriers are those ships which can carry out most of the jobs of a carrier but lack construction capabilities. A light carrier's job is to provide minimal support for strike craft during the heat of a battle rather than increasing a fleet's size or serving as a flagship. Support frigates could therefore technically be seen as small light carriers.
Another type of carrier is the more loosely-defined "attack carrier." An attack carrier is a ship which, while being able to provide the services of a carrier, is also able to carry heavy weaponry that puts it on par with frigates or larger vessels. Often this increased firepower comes at the cost of another attribute such as manuverability. Attack carriers are often also light carriers but not always. The aforementioned Lord-class is an example of an attack carrier but it is not a light carrier (it can manufacture its own ships). On the other hand Hiigaran battlecruiser is both a light carrier and attack carrier having heavy weaponry while also minimal carrier services.
