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Subject: Why are most of the ships UNSC we see Frigates?

Posted by: Cmdr DaeFaron

Posted by: Need2StopSmurfn
Correct me if i'm wrong but most of the UNSC vessels we see ingame are all Frigates with the exception of the PoA, And some of the Home/Harpers fleet.

Seriously seeing a Marathon class cruiser leading an attack with 5 Halcyon class cruisers following a UNSC carrier and a few destroyers and frigates right behind would be awesome.

Really makes UNSC look bad


A: Frigates are the most numerous UNSC ship.
B: Marathon's were actually pretty rare. Compared to the rest of the fleet there were few.
C: Halcyon class cruisers were also few. Their age meant only a few got put back into service. Most if not all were actually planned for dismantling before the war.

i read somewhere that PoA was the only Halcyon class cruiser built. so big, tough and expensive that they didn't want to make anymore

  • 04.04.2011 6:59 PM PDT

We have armour that can electrically charge itself the moment it is struck, quickly enough that is can stop the incoming projectile, guns that can move quick enough to shoot down missiles within the extremely limited range of the gun, and mines that can tell the difference between friend and foe and blow up only the bad guys.

I don't pretend to know what makes them tick, only that they work. In 500 years there is no reason we can't have plasma-defeating shields (not "forcefield" but electromagnetically charged defenses) and unamnned ships that can identify alien ships and attack at will. Telling the difference between human and aliens is a damn sight easier than the difference between two human armies and civillians.
It would not require Haloverse "AIs" Nor is it any more advanced than we can do today, just more reasily availible.

I think that it's the way it should of been, with space engagements being fairly even (between two ships of similar tonnage) and ground battles being a total loss for the UNSC.

That said, with the lack of kinetic energy transfered to the target, we have materials today that can simply shrug off plasma at 6000*C and survive the stresses of controlled atmospheric (re-)entry while not radiating that heat energy away. Perfect for infantry, giving them a chance to survive a plasma bolt uninjured.

  • 04.05.2011 4:39 AM PDT

About me: I am a vicious wolf of a man.

But really am sweet at heart. =)

Frigates are easily produced in large numbers. Unfortunately they area also easily destroyed.

The canon conclusion is that most of our destroyers and cruisers were destroyed at Reach.

But lets not kid ourselves, the real reason is Bungie didn't want to build so many different ship models.

  • 04.05.2011 5:19 AM PDT

don't know of any material that can survive 6000*C, the temperature of re-entry from orbit is nowhere even close to that temperature, though the plasma trails coming off the shuttle are way way way hotter than the actual heat hitting the heat-shield, also the reason those materials survive re-entry is because they are ablative, designed to sacrifice themselves in 'phase-change' style cooling.

also this armour you are referring too, its a British armour concept in R&D, it uses two layers of armour, the inner layer is hugely charged and the outer layer is earthed. so when a substance penetrates the outer armour (like a jet of molten copper from a shaped charge warhead) it completes the circuit and gets instantly vapourised by the massive current passing through it, its fantastic concept!

also Covenant plasma weapons will be much much hotter than 6000*C, look at plasma cutters used in modern industry, they reach temperatures of something like 16,500*C, which will cut through ANY material, nothing at all will be able to resist that, could cut through a sheet of pure diamond with a plasma cutter and that isn't even high energy plasma!

  • 04.05.2011 10:27 AM PDT

Don't worry, you're still your mom's favorite Bnet member.

Why does the US Navy only have so little Nimitz class Aircraft Carriers?

[Edited on 04.05.2011 11:06 AM PDT]

  • 04.05.2011 11:06 AM PDT

Posted by: Changsta inc
Racism isn't wrong if it's funny.

They're much easier to produce than the massive Halcyon Class or Marathon Class cruisers. If you go to Halo Nation you can see size comparisons.

[Edited on 04.05.2011 11:10 AM PDT]

  • 04.05.2011 11:09 AM PDT


Posted by: PLUT0NIUM 235
don't know of any material that can survive 6000*C, the temperature of re-entry from orbit is nowhere even close to that temperature, though the plasma trails coming off the shuttle are way way way hotter than the actual heat hitting the heat-shield, also the reason those materials survive re-entry is because they are ablative, designed to sacrifice themselves in 'phase-change' style cooling.

Uhhuh, therefore a good replacement for SAPI plates when fighting aliens. Remember, the best armor is not to be hit. An armor that gives you a 50% chance of surviving a hit is as good as the armor on today's battlefield so would be better than the crap they apparently get given.

And my bad, I can't think why I thought my material could withstand such temperatures. I can't even find the article in question tbh. Just ignore what I said. :P

Posted by: PLUT0NIUM 235
also this armour you are referring too, its a British armour concept in R&D, it uses two layers of armour, the inner layer is hugely charged and the outer layer is earthed. so when a substance penetrates the outer armour (like a jet of molten copper from a shaped charge warhead) it completes the circuit and gets instantly vapourised by the massive current passing through it, its fantastic concept!

I know. That's why I stated it. All us Brits are kept informed about British technological achievements.
Last time I saw it though it only became charged on being struck, or penetrated by a projectile.

Posted by: PLUT0NIUM 235
also Covenant plasma weapons will be much much hotter than 6000*C, look at plasma cutters used in modern industry, they reach temperatures of something like 16,500*C, which will cut through ANY material, nothing at all will be able to resist that, could cut through a sheet of pure diamond with a plasma cutter and that isn't even high energy plasma!


Nope, covenant small arms are 2000-3000 degrees, kinda pathetic but I guess thats what it takes to shoot plasma at people. :P

  • 04.05.2011 11:15 AM PDT

wow, would have thought Covenant plasma pistols, etc. would pack more of a punch than 2000-3000*C, still more than enough to kill mind, that isn't so bad then. dual layer armour would work wonders against that, have an ablative top layer like titanium then something super resistant to temperature like aerated silica like on the space shuttle.

the electrically charged armour could change the whole thinking around the design of modern armoured vehicles, combine that with an active defence system like 'arena' or the likes and you'll have higher survivability for much much less weight, win - win situation!

best bet for something temperature resistant, mirrored, might sound stupid but mirrors actually reflect infra-red radiation, a highly reflective material would be much better in theory than a dark, matt material. wouldn't you expect UNSC ships to be shiny with this in mind...? plus titanium is fairly shiny as it is!

  • 04.05.2011 11:40 AM PDT


Posted by: PLUT0NIUM 235
wow, would have thought Covenant plasma pistols, etc. would pack more of a punch than 2000-3000*C, still more than enough to kill mind, that isn't so bad then. dual layer armour would work wonders against that, have an ablative top layer like titanium then something super resistant to temperature like aerated silica like on the space shuttle.

the electrically charged armour could change the whole thinking around the design of modern armoured vehicles, combine that with an active defence system like 'arena' or the likes and you'll have higher survivability for much much less weight, win - win situation!

best bet for something temperature resistant, mirrored, might sound stupid but mirrors actually reflect infra-red radiation, a highly reflective material would be much better in theory than a dark, matt material. wouldn't you expect UNSC ships to be shiny with this in mind...? plus titanium is fairly shiny as it is!


Yes! Yes! Yes!

I have been arguing this for so long, the UNSC is more than capable of fielding technology capable of defeating the covenant without forerunner tech.
You just summed it up in 3 neat paragraphs.

  • 04.05.2011 12:38 PM PDT

don't think the humans could have defeated the Covenant, but certainly put up a stronger fight on all fronts. think the main problem was lack of preparation more than anything, its all good if you have time to design ships to counteract the new threat, or vehicles to counteract Covenant plasma weapons.

that is one of the things I think the creators of the series have messed up, the lack of semi-advanced military technology in the human arsenal, right now we have ever increasing un-manned units, yet hardly never seen in the Halo Universe.

when I was writing a Halo Short Story a while ago for an assignment, added my own take on the Halo Universe, it was centred around a prototype Stealth Ship, like a Prowler but much bigger, was a cloak and dagger style story about behind enemy lines recon, etc. there is a space battle in the story featuring a UNSC carrier, which I called UNSC Agamemnon, which was described to launch unmanned interceptors with the pilots safely onboard the carrier in a massively armoured 'citadel' deep within the ship, so tried to incorporate drone technology.

  • 04.05.2011 2:16 PM PDT


Posted by: Son Of Mountains
Posted by: Cmdr DaeFaron

Posted by: Need2StopSmurfn
Correct me if i'm wrong but most of the UNSC vessels we see ingame are all Frigates with the exception of the PoA, And some of the Home/Harpers fleet.

Seriously seeing a Marathon class cruiser leading an attack with 5 Halcyon class cruisers following a UNSC carrier and a few destroyers and frigates right behind would be awesome.

Really makes UNSC look bad


A: Frigates are the most numerous UNSC ship.
B: Marathon's were actually pretty rare. Compared to the rest of the fleet there were few.
C: Halcyon class cruisers were also few. Their age meant only a few got put back into service. Most if not all were actually planned for dismantling before the war.

i read somewhere that PoA was the only Halcyon class cruiser built. so big, tough and expensive that they didn't want to make anymore


It had a sister ship which died in the battle of Reach and used to be the main-line cruiser. So no, the PoA was not the only one built.

  • 04.05.2011 5:25 PM PDT

Most of the Marathons were destroyed early in the war, and the few that remained were pulled back to protect the inner planets. Halcyons were decommisioned, POA was an exception that was specially refitted for it's mission. Destroyers were fairly common, but from what I remember, they could not break atmo, and Keyes mentioned that allot of Captains thought they were unwieldly. Frigates were the cheapest, fastest, and easiest to build. They could break atmo, and had high maneuverability. Obviously, they were the most numerous in the UNSC fleet.

[Edited on 04.05.2011 5:35 PM PDT]

  • 04.05.2011 5:34 PM PDT

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