Research Project: Reactive Shielding (NR)

[Adm Garm Bel Iblis]

:: Admiral Bel Iblis stood in front of the observation deck at Shipyard Gamma, watching with satisfaction as 2 Lancer Frigates, the Navare and the Isabeau, drifted into spacedock.

:: These two unimposing ships, named after lovers from a classic tale, would be remembered for the part they would play in the coming war to reclaim the galaxy. The aging warhorse had many plans for them indeed.

****

:: Yun Tilgraze leaned on a table, scrutinizing the holoprojection before him.

"The power requirements of this system are astronomical. Explain to me again why we went to such length to keep this classified and to get you here safely, Dr. Teib?"

:: The Sullustan next to him looked up. His eyes widened in giddy amazement, shocked at the question. He looked up between the golden protocol droid standing across the table and back to Tilgraze, jabbering wildly.

:: C3PO eagerly translated. "He says it is quite ingenious in its simplicity and asks what there is not to understand. The ionic relay is based on the same theory that planetary armies have used for millenia on tanks, walkers ... all that sort of thing."

"Reactive armor explodes outward, taking away the brunt of the damage from anything that hits it ... that is strong enough to penetrate the plating. The same can be applied to energy shielding. The shield is charged with ionic energy. When anything over a given amplitude strikes it, it will produce an energy feedback."

:: Tilgraze broke in again, "But the power supplies of--"

:: Tieb's chattering grew more incesant. C3PO hesitated, equally startled. "He says, of course this isn't a system for starfighters. Phase 1 will employ 2 ships working in tandem."

:: The NRI officer drummed his fingers against the desk. He was frustrated, but his was not to reason why. This was the Admiral's baby. And he had to assume based on his track record that he knew what he was doing.

OOC: These NPCs and much of the groundwork for this and other Peregrine Fleet related research was started in a Storytelling thread (http://www.swforums.net/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7975&highlight=Bel+Iblis) waaaaaay back when before my sabattical from RP.

[Adm Garm Bel Iblis]

Bel Iblis listened patiently to the technicians rattle off the statistics and progress of the development on the new Command Carrier design. The old warhorse was never one for technical specs. Just tell him what it can do and give him people to make it work. He'll do the rest.

But his presence at the R&D facility was a necessary evil. These plans were too important.

When he finally got an opportunity, Garm briskly walked out of the lab. He wove through a short network of corridors to a security checkpoint, then entered the outer room of a testing facility.

The inner facility was dozens of meters long. At one end was a shield projector in front of a sheet of durasteel. At the other was a laser cannon.

From the observation deck, the Admiral watched intently. The cannon warmed up, followed by the flare of the shield wall. Seconds later, the shield flared and crisscrossed with crackling blue energy. The cannon fired.

There was a loud crack as the beam hit the shield, generating another flash as ionic energy splashed out on impact. You could almost hear the collective gasps as the entire staff held their breath.

The Admiral could clearly hear the hoops and cheers from the lab as the smoke cleared. He smiled, keeping his eyes on the durasteel sheet ... barely singed by the laser.

Garm keyed the intercom. "Good work, everyone. But keep your eye on the crosshairs here. Let's see it with a turbolaser in the chamber."

There was another collective intake of breath as the Admiral's words sunk in. In the next minute, the whoe base was buzzing with the excitement of movig to the next phase of the project.

[New Republic Officer]

The control room of the central testing facility was still buzzing with excitement. Inside the massive vacuum chamber, two deflector shield generators held a solid blue wall of energy between them. The tests had gone well, subjecting the reactive shielding array to a variety of conditions and settings.

The system worked beyond expectations. Most engineers understood full well that use in the field was the ultimate test, but they were generally too confident to admit it out loud.

According to the test results, the reactive shielding would be 73% more effective against laser fire, and even provide 25% more protection against ion cannons. The power requirements remained the number 1 problem, and for thousands of technical reasons, appeared to be a permanent design problem ... limiting the effective use of this system to light to medium ships alone. On a more practical level, the cost of refitting a ship ensured that reactive shielding would remain in low circulation for some time.

But for the initial deployment, two Carrack Cruisers were immediately refiitted. It was a field test to determine the effectiveness of the system as more than just ship defense.