Topic: All you Titan designers, take note: Pocket Books "Design the Titan" contest

[Chris Johnson]

And I was never a fan of the Galaxy design.  The saucer is too disproportionate when compared to the secondary hull, like there was little thought given to aesthetics and balance when they designed.  It very nearly turned me off TNG once the design started showing up in the newspapers.  In fact, I cheered when that pregnant whale was trashed in Generations, one of the few things about that movie worth praising.

I just can't see the fanboy-ish aspect of this at all.  Perhaps if I was a kid, maybe.  But not now.  I never hated the Galaxy-class.  I liked it.  I'm a fan of it, and of what it represents in the Federation.  When warships came and pleased the many warship-happy Star Trek fans that encouraged "sims/RPGs" revolving around these ships, I sighed.  Well, if there's one safe realm, it's the era of TOS/TMP.  I'm glad I'm a fan of that era of Trek, it certainly doesn't take as bad a bashing as TNG does here.

Well, so much for the Starfleet tradition of naming shuttles after great explorers.

Considering that it's rare for Starfleet to name shuttles, let alone ships after important people in worlds other than Earth, there is a limitation for names unless you expand beyond great explorers.

Smiley, it's debatable as to whether Runabounts count as shuttles or starships.  But they are named after rivers.

[Rat Boy]

Do runabouts count as shuttles? I mean, I think that they might not be, but there are certainly shuttles at least as big as runabouts.... And they were named after rivers....

Runabouts are their own vessels, since they have an NCC registry and a U.S.S. in their official name.

[Rat Boy]

Chris, do yourself a favor and check out the Collector Edition DVD of First Contact and check out the featurette on the concept art.  I found a lot of the preliminary designs for the -E to be hideous*, and even John Eaves' final sketch paled in comparison to the blueprints that Rick Sternbach created for the folks at ILM to use to build the final model.


* = Although there was one bridge concept drawing I found rather interesting and thought would work well for a ship like the Akira.

[Chris Johnson]

I might do that once I get my hands on it.  But keep this in mind: I don't have the typical weapon/hot-rod-loving taste in Starship design that made ships like the Sovereign and Prometheus-class so popular.  Some designs you might find hideous I would find nice-looking, possibly.

[Rat Boy]

The problem with those preliminary designs is that they didn't look like any ship that could have even vaguely fit any Starfleet design fashion.  None of them looked like that whale of a Galaxy and they still managed to look terrible.

[Chris Johnson]

Well, without the help of Eaves, I doubt the Sovereign-class you come to love would've looked like it did.  It could've ended up as a simple "whale-of-a-Starship" you despise.  I don't think it would've made First Contact any less-appealing a movie, in my opinion.  But it had been canonically proven that the Enteprise-D's form, although artistic in some ways, definately followed function.  And in times of battle, it was an effective class of starship.  I couldn't see any reason to trash it, other than--nevermind.  I'd rather not be insulting.

[Rat Boy]

I couldn't see any reason to trash it, other than--nevermind.  I'd rather not be insulting.

No, you did, otherwise you wouldn't have said that.

[Chris Johnson]

Of course, we can argue all we want against the two class of starships and turn it into a flame fest.  It seems I've lit the match, but I guess I'll put it out.  I'm just tired of the Galaxy-class bashing I keep seeing where I go in such subjects, and we're going off-topic anyway, Rat Boy.

[OlBuzzard]

"Chill!"

"He started it!"

"Did not!"

"Did so !"

"Did not !"

"DID SO !"

"DID NOT ! "

"Ugly !"

"UGLIER !"

"UGLIEST !"

"B O Y S !"

 

[ModelsPlease]

Technically, Buzz, this is his second command.  The Enterprise-D was his first command, so this is like a step backwards for him, like a modern carrier captain being given charge of a frigate.

If ya really wanna get technical it's his third. Ryker took command of a Klingon vessel as well, and ordered the Enterprise D to surrender. Don't recall the name of the episode but it was the one with the hull eating parasites.

As for the Titan, I was always one for hoping it was a cool new ship. But more than likely it's a Sovie, Akira or possibly a Prometheus class. But that would be my guess if we had ever seen it in Nemesis. I'm not familiar with the Luna or Nelson classes but I'd love to see what they look like. I also think the Galaxy is not over done at all and my reasons being...Ent D was thrashed by a 20+ y/o BoP. The Galaxy was thrashed by Kamikaze Jem bug ships. I would rather tend to agree in that case Bigger was NOT better. Heck for all we know the Titan could be an Intrepid or Excelsior B ( Lakota ). It's anyone's guess. But....I too love Azel's and WZ renditions of it and they get my vote.

As for Ol'B's ships I for one WANTED  them and I think it's a shame that ya scrapped them.

[F9thRyker]

USS Titan NCC-80102, Luna class starship

http://www.simonsays.com/content/feature.cfm?sid=44&feature_id=2893

If anyone wants to take a shot at it, they get to have their design on the front cover of the first book

Azel, WZ, I know you guys have done nifty Titans- feel like submitting yours? You'd both be in with a good chance, especially if you worked together- WZ makes some kickass ships, and Azel's schematics and design plans are unsurpassed...

[Captain Pierce]

Yeah, that's the thing, MP--nobody knows what it looks like yet, because nobody's won the design contest!    It won't be over until August sometime...

Also, just to be annoying, it won't be on the cover of the first novel--that's already out.  It will be probably be more like the third or fourth...

More tidbits about the design (from that first novel): it has a "forward observation lounge," location unknown.  When it's first mentioned, it seems to be right off the bridge as Ent-D's aft lounge was; but later the people who seemed to walk right off the bridge to get there have to take a turbolift to get back.   ???  Also, it has a "Ten Forward"-ish mess hall/bar/rec deck somewhere.  (Making it the primary rec area seems odd, as the sense of the room I get so far isn't anything along the lines of Main Recreation from TMP...)

It bears repeating, since Ryker has relinked to the contest, that it's open to residents of the US and most of Canada (excluding Quebec) only.  Sorry. 

[Chris Johnson]

I would imagine (on the Enterprise-D) that it's not right next to the bridge, but below, and that one set of doors on the bridge can take you to there, whereas the other way to get through to the conference lounge is somewhere below the bridge, on deck 2, where I believe the lounge is located.  If I interpret "forward observation lounge" correctly, on the Titan (and other Luna-class Starships), it could be facing forward and still be on deck 2, and you might not be able to just simply take entrance #1 on the bridge like you would in the Enterprise-D.

I guess I need to grab the book, although I'm yearning for older ones as I'm less-hesitant to grab 'em first.  I guess it's just the way Berman recently took Trek in both the Pre-TOS and late-late-TNG-eras.  However, I do like the description of the Titan in its words, so I might go ahead and find out stuff on it by getting the books...

[Captain Pierce]

Rick Sternbach's Enterprise-D blueprints (just for the record, I picked them up very cheap at Barnes & Noble once, so I'm not a loser :p ) show the conference lounge on Deck 1, with the only access to them being through that door on the starboard side of the Bridge upper level.