Epoch-class heavy carrier

UNSC Epoch-class Heavy Carrier Cost: 2450 | 400 | 350 Build Time: 46 seconds. Uses: 1 command, 45 supply.   Hull: 12000 Armor: 12 Provisions: 24 Squadrons: 6   MAC Damage: 22 MAC Cooldown:   Missile Damage: 52 Missile Cooldown:   AA Autocannon Damage: 60 AA Autocannon Cooldown:   Naval Coilgun Damage: 22 Naval Coilgun Cooldown:   Nuclear Missile Damage: 21 Nuclear Missile Cooldown:   Heavy Strike Craft AI-Linked Point Defense Grid Bident Missile Volley Flight Control AI   The Epoch-class heavy carrier is a large vessel that holds numerous wings of fighters and can take a tremendous beating in combat.

 

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Epoch: large, and in charge! A proud Epoch Captain

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The Epoch-class heavy carrier is a heavy support ship in service to the United Nations Space Command.

It excels as a flagship, coordinating the fleet and deploying strike craft.

Overview

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A massive capital carrier that gives relief to any UNSC commander, the Epoch-class formed the cores of battle groups during the Insurrection and beginning years of the Covenant War. Epochs are renowned for their impressive durability and large inventory of fighters. The Epoch's shipyard description

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History

As the Human-Covenant War dragged on, it became clear that previous vessels were under-gunned when compared to the fierce ships fielded by the Covenant Empire. When the Athens-class carrier was retired from service, it left a large hole in the UNSC's carrier arsenal, and it was filled with the Epoch-class Heavy Carrier.

At 2,563 meters, the Epoch is one largest warships in the UNSC's roster, behind the venerable supercarriers such as the Punic-class or the UNSC Infinity herself. It is heavier than all other carrier classes aside from the aforementioned supercarriers, have been in service since before the war, and continue to serve after. The UNSC Atlas is one such ship, tied to the legendary Spartan program and was the site of John-117's deadly confrontation with four ODSTs which left two dead and two severely wounded .

Weapons and Tactical Usage

Mounting a light but rapid-fire Magnetic Accelerator Cannon, rows of Archer Missile Pods, and a set of bow-mounted Breakwater heavy naval coilgun batteries, the Epoch can pack a punch against Innie ships and even smaller Covenant vessels, but was not intended to deal much damage on its own in ship-to-ship combat with larger enemy capital ships. Instead, its sizable fighter capacity and thick armor were intended to allow it to function as a battlegroup leader, soaking up damage while it replenished the battlegroup's fighter swarms. It comes with a set of abilities to compliment this role:

• Heavy Strike Craft: UNSC combat doctrine has put more importance on properly armoring strike craft better against Covenant weaponry, and fitting better weapons to counter energy shields. As a result, this ship's hangars will field sturdier and harder-hitting fighters, at a cost to some of their speed and turning.
  • Upgrades the armor rating and firepower on the Epoch's strike craft, but at a cost to their speed and agility.
• AI-Linked Point Defense Grid: The Epoch is equipped with a large number of AA weapons on its flanks. Though already potent, the effectiveness of these weapon systems can be further enhanced by linking the AI to them. By using complex and precisely timed overlapping fields of fire, enemy strike craft are forced into evasive maneuvers and herded into kill zones. This will reduce the damage and mobility of enemy strike craft within range.
  • Greatly decreases the agility, speed, and firepower of any enemy strike craft within a wide range of the ship.
• Bident Missile Volley: The Bident missile is a more advanced version of the Fusion Rocket found on the Marathon cruiser- a heavy missile using a fusion drive for propulsion with a variable warhead. With more capable maneuvering thrusters and a fusion warhead, Bidents can be used to effectively engage many small targets at extreme range.
  • Fires a swarm of improved, hard-hitting missile that can target multiple targets at extreme range. Can be set to autocast.
• Flight Control AI: Fleet Admiral Hood's influence ensures that Epoch-class vessels are assigned only the highest grade AIs. These AI can coordinate with nearby carriers, tapping into their comms systems and perfectly managing the maneuvers of huge numbers of UNSC strike craft simultaneously.
  • Gives the Epoch's strike craft, as well as those of nearby allied carriers, a firepower, evasion, and agility boost. Requires Lord Hood as the chosen Admiral.

Do not rely completely on her armor, however, her significant cost means she is anything but a throwaway vessel. Her low speed and agility means that a losing fight will be hard for her to escape from, so make sure she has sufficient backup and an escort screen to protect her.

Credits

• Model - Malcontent1692
• Texture - Malcontent1692

Trivia

The ship's captain is shown to be prideful and quite indignant about her ship's name being mispronounced.

Gallery

External links

• Halopedia Article