11.11 Graviton Torpedoes

The Camelot carries 40 graviton torpedoes, which are no-kill devices intended to weaken, and in some cases totally disrupt, enemy shield systems. The standard graviton torpedo carried by the Camelot is an elongated elliptical tube constructed of molded gamma-expanded duratanium and a plasma-bonded binary-bonded terminium outer skin. The completed casing measures 1 x .80 x .5 meters and masses 170 kilograms dry weight. Phaser cutters, which also provide penetrations for warhead reactant loading, split the finished casing equatorially for hardline QTDN connections and propulsion system exhaust grills. Within the casing are installed variable-phase 45 MW graviton polarity sources which are ringed by ten 550 millicochrane subspace field amplifiers, one-time fusion compression generators, target acquisition, guidance, detonation assemblies and warp sustainer engine. The holding and combiner tank shells are gamma-welded hafnium tritanide. The tank liners, as well as the warp sustainer engine coils, are all constructed from high-pressure cast silicon-copper carbide to maximize field efficiency.

The multimode sustainer engine is not a true warp engine due to its small physical size, one-eighth the minimum M\ARA chamber size. It is actually a tiny m\a fuel cell, which powers the sustainer coils to grab and hold a hand-off field from the launcher tube, to continue at warp if launched during warp flight. The cell, a cylinder 17cm in diameter and 40cm in length, is limited to a narrow warp frequency range and cannot add more than a slight amount of power to the initial grabbed warp field. Other flight modes are triggered according to initial launch conditions. If shot at low impulse, it boosts the speed 75% higher sublight velocity; If launched at high sublight, the sustainer will not cross the warp threshold, but continue the high near-c velocities. The sustainer engine actually draws from a small M\A tank included onboard the torpedo, which makes up 20% of the internal volume.

-Other Applications-

Graviton torpedoes, being specialized gravity devices, have found their way into many other applications. Reinforced torpedo casings are able to penetrate geologic formations for deep gravity-field modifications in terraforming and planetary engineering projects. They can also be used to disrupt gravity fields around planets, causing massive problems on groundside.