3125 Scale Carnivon Light Cruiser (CL) SRZ

The Carnivons are a species that is often described as “wolf-like,” but they are, in fact, genetically related to the Kzintis and Lyrans, and all three apparently descended from some ancestral species. How they came to be on such widely separated worlds is unclear. Curiously, the felinoid species (descended from solitary hunters) created fairly unified stellar empires, while the Carnivons (descended from pack hunters) remained a species rather than a nation. There is no such thing as a Carnivon “government.” Instead, at any given time, there are anywhere from a dozen to two dozen hordes (each of millions of members), each subdivided into packs (each with hundreds of thousands of members).

Carnivon ships are different from those of almost any other empire in that the crew do not have cabins or staterooms but sleep in relatively small cubicles reminiscent of caves. Most of the Carnivon crew’s off-duty time is spent in common areas engaged in various sports or other social activities.

The Lyrans and Kzintis hated the Carnivons on sight, more so even than they hated each other. It took just over 50 years for those two empires to slaughter the Carnivons.

But what if the Carnivons hadn’t been wiped out? What ships would they build?

The Light Cruiser design actually entered service before the larger heavy cruiser, perhaps as a sort of “proof of concept” for the new “middle years” technology upgrades before the Carnivons invested in larger hulls. Carnivon records indicate that at least 15 ships of this type were constructed, but by the start of the General War, only 10 were in service, the others having been lost in action or to various other causes. At least three ships of this class were still listed as available at the start of the Andromedan War, but none of them survived that conflict. The ships generally served (prior to the Andromedan War) as “fillers” for large task forces or as patrol ships in sectors not deemed important enough for a larger unit (or when a larger unit simply was not available). They were able to hold their own against Lyran and Kzinti light cruisers or destroyers but found Orion Raider Cruisers difficult opponents. By the middle of the General War, the surviving ships were relegated to duty as convoy escorts or station ships and continued in that role during the Andromedan War. Even then, the ships might be assigned temporary patrol sectors. Known names include Timval, Rimval, Jenval, Alval, Wolval, Simval, Steval, and Leaval.

The ship is available in a variety of materials. Ships are unpainted, use standard flight stands available from many sources, and, while designed for gaming, make fine display pieces.