Originally developed in the Clone Wars by the Huppla Pasa Tisc Shipwrights Collective, a rare but updated version of the Ginivex Class Light Starfighter has found its place among backwater worlds, pirates and traders. It has developed a reputation as an agile, compact, and easy to transport aggressor or trader defense ship that is relatively simple to maintain and can operate with a high degree discretion and stealth.
The Ginivex-class has a unique, “fanblade” profile created by its retractable solar sail-like wing. The slim vessel’s iridescent fan-like wing extends from its dorsal and ventral surfaces via two extension booms. The wing folds inward to create a compact storage profile and non-aggressive general flight configuration.
Aside from the nearly extinct existence of the original Ginivex, the post-Clone War variant, the Type B offered by SoroSuub, can be quickly identified by the different pairing of weapons on the outer booms, narrower ship profile, and smaller engine nacelles. These design changes enable the Type B to be a much more flexible design, often stored and launched from an escape pod bay. With these changes, the Type B has found limited success among clandestine groups and pirates as an aggressor/interceptor starfighter.
Even with the galaxy in the throws of war and these design alterations, Ginivex starfighters are still exceedingly rare as design flaws limit their effectiveness within a modern military force.
Design
Fanblades are armed with four energy-based cannons, two primary (inboard) and two secondary (outboard). The dorsal secondary cannon can swivel into the correct forward firing position, regardless of whether the fan is open or closed. In combat mode, these cannons have an enlarged firing arc and gain linked firing capabilities. When the boom arms are shut, these cannons still point forward because of the ship’s unique multilink mechanical arm design and the ship becomes a stealthy vessel often mistaken for something much less lethal.
When the fan blades are extended the vessel enters combat mode, which increases the fighter’s target silhouette, firepower, and shielding. The fan’s material serves as the transmission plane for deflector shield energy thus alleviating the need for a deflector dish. With shields fully energized, the fanblade becomes a nimble and aggressive adversary. The downside, however, is that the energy output of the deflectors makes them readily visible to nearly all sensors and it quickly loses any element of surprise. Because of this shortcoming, many regional forces have passed on adding these light starfighters to their fleets. However, the abrupt announcement of the sensor signature tends to trigger surprise and fear among traders and civilians, so this sensor shortcoming is now a design feature often tactically exploited by skilled pilots. When not in combat mode, the starfighter loses the benefit of enhanced shields.
An added feature of the fanblade is its ability to serve as an alternative form of solar sail propulsion that gives it a degree of backup in the event main engine failure. Ion baffles are integrated into the sublight engines, which make it very stealthy when the blades are retracted and with its size, it is often mistaken for an escape pod or lifeboat. Because the fanblade serves as the deflector shield emitter, any damage to the wings can quickly limit or eliminate the vessel’s hyperspace capability. The loss of any major portion of the wing spells interstellar doom for such a tiny ship, and the safety systems on a Ginivex will prevent the vessel from entering hyperspace if the deflector is seriously damaged or offline.
At the head of the ship is the bulbous cockpit, designed only for use by humanoid occupants. Landing requires the fan to be retracted; the ship rests on four points — fore landing pad, starboard and port retractable legs, and the ventral cannon mount. There is no cargo space designed into the craft; cargo is limited to what can be stuffed into the cockpit and onto the single-person, cramped jump seat.
Variants
SoroSuub Type B
Piracy has dramatically expanded with the outbreak of the Galactic Civil War, so wealthy independent traders found themselves increasingly vulnerable to raids. When SoroSuub obtained the license to manufacture the design, it found a unique opportunity create a niche, multirole “defensive” starfighter to serve this specific need. With its outside dimensions being nearly identical to that of a 700-series escape pod/boat launcher system, SoroSuub modified the Ginivex design by reducing armor and the footprint of the propulsion and power systems to a civilian design. These changes enable the Type B to fit into a 700-series escape pod/boat launcher tube common to many freighters, yachts, and other civilian and paramilitary vessels.
The SoroSuub civilian-grade propulsion system used in the Type B is underpowered compared to its original military design. The limited burst capacity of the power systems reduces weapon firing to half of the systems at any one time. This flaw has been transformed by SoroSuub’s marketing team into a unique multirole design. The Type B often sports two different weapons systems to accommodate different mission parameters, illustrating its flexibility in addition to its transportability. As a result, operators can have a transportable ship that requires little-to-no mothership reconfiguration and a design that can be configured to meet multiple tactical needs.
SoroSuub found initial success in selling the Type B to independent merchants, but also discovered a lucrative outlet among clandestine organizations, syndicates, and privateers. Given the ship’s limited defenses, organized forces often operate them in flights of two or four with coordinated tactics to hit and disable adversaries quickly. The little ships cannot withstand a beating, so raider-style tactics are common among flights of Ginivex. Within certain military circles, it is largely believed that if more than one Ginivex is around, there’s something “special” going on.
The Ginivex has become the fighter of choice where no starfighters should exist.
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