Strength and Dignity

"Ursus Alatus" NC variant Lunar Class Cruiser

                                                  The ship began it's life as LUN132749 in the construction yards of Galliard VII sometime in the 27th millennium. After a long and colourful career the ship joined the cruiser flotilla of Admiral Heinrich "bear" Shecklin in the Kohinowa system, in the early years of the conflict with the Chainian Peoples Republic. The troubles that history remembers as the Rift Wars would last for nearly two hundred years. The Admiral adopted the LUN132749 as his flagship and it's efficiency and success in combat made the ship his pride and joy.  In  467 M28 at the battle of Hi Chi Wen the ship was damaged after a prow ram of the Chainian carrier "Hoonsung" . During it's refit the admiral decided to endow the vessel with the figurehead of a winged bear as portrayed on his family's coat of arms. He also decided to use his personal right, to name vessels, to give the numbered ship the name "Ursus Alatus" or "winged bear". This practice although viewed with a jaundiced eye, are indulged by the Empire, especially when performed by it's more successful admirals. 47 years later some 20 years after the death of the admiral that gave it it's name , the Ursus was severely stern damaged in a one side battle with the Chainian dreadnought "Pride of Beijin". The engines were irreparable and generated only half power .  A scrapping order was placed on the vessel. Just one week before the order was due to be implemented, a second lunar hulk was brought into the yards and an enterprising young tech priest decided to graft two of the hulk's engine tubes onto the exterior of the Ursus. The mod was successful and the ship was returned both to full power and Imperial service.   The Ursus continued in imperial service and serves until today. it is now registered as a member of the 3rd Golgothan battle group stationed at Golgotha Prime naval base. 

Ursus Alatus drifts gently  in the orbit of "serpents tongue", the second moon of Eden 

during the Paradise "gate" campaign.

                                          The Ursus continues to sport it's proud figurehead and performs in every way as a standard lunar. it's separate engine structure does mean that engine critical hits are less effective and the ship receives a 2.5cm penalty for each thruster hit accumulated. 

Ursus Alatus

The Model

                         The model is a major conversion using a plastic cruiser, parts of a vengeance and a number of parts that I have no idea where they came from. The need for the model arose from my aim to have one of each ship in my Golgotha campaign Since I need 16 lunars this gets boring so I decided to build a number of subtly different models with distinctive construction differences and figureheads. the Ursus Alatus is the first. I have included some unpainted pics to give you an idea of what bits come from where.