Ship Z-98 Gazarant Starfighter

AutoFox

Tech Mod/Tech Archiver
Tech Moderator
Joined
Jul 4, 2012
Messages
3,724
Reaction score
1,817

alexander-ivanov-z98.jpg

Z-98 GAZARANT

AFFILIATION
Open market.

MANUFACTURER
Subpro Corporation.

CLASS
Starfighter.

ROLE
Starfighter.

COMPOSITION
Titanium and transparisteel.

DIMENSIONS
Length - 14 meters.
CREW
1.

PASSENGER CAPACITY
N/A.

CARGO CAPACITY
60 kilograms.

HANGAR CAPACITY
N/A.

CONSUMABLES
4 standard days.

SPEED/MANEUVERABILITY
The Z-98 Gazarant has a top speed of 110 MGLT and has decent maneuvering characteristics.

ARMAMENT

EQUIPMENT

DESCRIPTION
The Z-98 Gazarant is a multi-role combat spacecraft produced by the Sublight Products Corporation, better known as Subpro. Seeking to make a splash in the starfighter market, the company intends for this model to go head-to-head with Incom-FreiTek's new T-6/5 Light-X interceptor. This strategy, as well as the model underpinning it, has its roots deep in a corporate betrayal that goes back over a century.

The Z-98 Gazarant is a direct descendant of the Z-95 Headhunter, a joint project undertaken by the then Incom Corporation and Subpro. The Headhunter, named after a Fresian predator species, turned out as one of the finest snubfighters of its day; although both companies contributed more or less equally to the design, it was Incom which took the lion's share of the credit - and credits - from the deal. Although both companies had the rights to manufacture and sell the design, the agreement stated that both Incom and Subpro were restricted from selling to enemies of the Galactic Republic. This had little impact until the establishment of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, and the subsequent Clone Wars; Incom, with its factories located inside the Republic, had no trouble selling the type to the fledgling Grand Army of the Republic, while Subpro found itself with most of its facilities located in Separatist space. Although it sold other designs to the CIS, Subpro was unable to profit from the Z-95 during the war; meanwhile, Incom's marketing increasingly diminished and even omitted Subpro's role in developing the Z-95 to begin with.

After the Clone Wars, Incom further developed the Z-95 into the T-65 X-Wing, still considered by many to be among the finest starfighters ever made. The X-Wing and its variants went on to become the standard starfighter of the Rebel Alliance, and later the New Republic; after the Galactic Civil War, Incom's marketing would tout the X-Wing as "the fighter that destroyed the Death Star". Subpro, meanwhile, limped along with mostly aging and obsolescent designs, jealous of Incom's success.

But if you can't beat 'em, copy 'em.

Although the X-Wing was popular, Subpro realized that the Z-95 was still holding its own, both in combat and in the market. Although Incom would eventually cease production of the type, Subpro would still build them, trying to recoup their losses on the extensive production lines they had set up. Although very far from the hot new fighter it had been prior to the Clone Wars, the design was still sound, and Subpro had Incom's example of just how versatile it could be; with a few tweaks, it could be fresh again.

The Z-98 Gazarant, although based on a shortened version of the Z-95's original space-frame, is otherwise an all-Subpro effort; according to its advertising, it is designed to "keep costs down, performance up, and enemies on the run". The ship derives its name from another Fresian predator, and retains the profile of the old Headhunter, albeit nearly 3 meters shorter; its internal systems have been thoroughly modernized and simplified wherever possible, and it loses nothing in the way of performance, with speed and maneuverability similar to the T-70 X-Wing. Armament consists of a pair of medium laser cannons on the wingtips, plus a proton torpedo launcher with a 4-shot magazine. Unlike the stock Z-95, the Z-98 is equipped with a class 2 hyperdrive and a full-featured navicomputer as standard equipment, plus 4 days of consumables, giving the Z-98 much longer "legs" than its predecessor.

Time will tell if the Z-98 will put Subpro in the spotlight it was denied by Incom and the Z-95. Initial sales have been encouraging, however, with the manufacturer's aggressive marketing and nostalgia for the older design playing a large part in this initial success.

LEGALITY
Restricted. Z-98 Gazarants are starfighters, and are subject to extra licensing requirements and increased scrutiny by authorities.

INTENT
To create a successor to an older starfighter design for the current era of our story.

 
Top