Previously, the Empire maintained thousands of each different type of craft. The sector and oversector Navy worlds had to carry dozens of support ships to cover any contingency. Colony exploration might require survey or first contact ships. Spy cruisers were always useful for monitoring pirates and potential Rebel activity. Many ships weren't in common use, but it was better to have too many ships than not enough. Still, it took money from warship production.

Following a report on streamlining fleet operations, a new approach was urged and from proposals, Tagge Industries won the contract and construction began in earnest. The result was the modular taskforce cruiser. Realising the underlying design for many of these craft is very similar, rather than make the same ship over for new functions, the design was a ship that could be reconfigured as needed. The cruiser boasts a single framework, including engines, skeleton crew quarters, life support system and command compartments. Interchangeable modules with mission specific equipment can be added as necessary. With only a day at a space station or orbital facility, a hospital cruiser can be transformed into a long range scout or mining survey explorer.

The cruiser's weaponry is quite light for a ship of this size, but its main mission is support, not combat. In dangerous situations, a group of these cruisers will often have an armed escort.

Mission Function Modules:

Each individual mission function module is an entirely self-contained unit. The module need only be attached to the skeleton and be hooked into the power generators, life support and communications ports.

Each ship can only contain one module at a time. It is believed that Tagge Industries is working on mini-modules so a ship can be outfitted for a variety of smaller-scale functions.

Typical Mission Function modules (MFMs) are as follows...

• Hospital Module
  • Crew: 225 doctors; 400 nurses; 1,500 medical technicians; 1,000 medical droids
  • Passengers: 2,750 (bacta tanks); 1,000 (quarantine ward); 19,600 patients
  • Cargo Capacity: 5,000 metric tons
  • Cost: 750,000 credits
  • Capsule: The hospital module is used in planetary disasters, anti-terrorist cleanup functions and space battle recovery. The hospital module can handle any number of disasters from combat, to radiation leaks. Equipment includes thousands of medpacs, repulsorlift stretchers, five shuttles for transporting casualties and a centralised medical computer.
• Survey Module
  • Crew: 2,000 scouts; 1,500 techs; 5,000 droids
  • Cost: 1 million credits
  • Capsule: This module is used for the rapid exploration of planets and entire systems. Besides the crew, the module contains over 100 observation airspeeders for rapid surveys, 500 exploration droids, 5 skipray blastboats and 6 TIE Bombers for defence. The module has a centralised computer for quick analysis of all gathered data. This module and its crew can completely analyse a planet within a standard 24 hour day and determine likely colony sites, mineral and agricultural resources. The computer and its techs can also calculate likely astrogation routes from any nearby trade routes.
• Observation Module
  • Crew: 1,550 intelligence officers and comscan specialists
  • Cost: 6.3 million credits
  • Capsule: This module is used for espionage and long range observation for intelligence gathering. The cruiser itself does not infiltrate into enemy territory since it would be easily detected by enemy sensors. Instead, the ship is equipped with 500 probots and observation droids, which are deployed around the perimeter of enemy holdings for passive observation. The probots can run the standard light/energy spectrum analysis and eavesdropping on communications frequencies. Some specially equipped (and very expensive) probots can scan very localised hyperspace and cross-channeled radiation (as is used with the planetary security net). With the subspace link-up, the probots can be deployed up to 30 light years away and still have instantaneous communication with the cruiser. The ship has 12 TIE Fighters for defence.
• Rescue Module
  • Crew: 140 doctors; 2,130 techs
  • Cargo Capacity: 40,000 metric tons
  • Cost: 500,000 credits (plus parts)
  • Capsule: The rescue module is used for space battle cleanup and repair. When a cruiser is dispatched to a battle scene, it is loaded with a variety of replacement parts for the ships that were involved in the battle. Doctors search any wrecks that weren't already checked for survivors (presumably a hospital ship is sent with these ships to the battle scene). The primary mission of the techs is to repair what ships they can so that they can be flown back to dockyards for complete repairs (naturally, only drive systems and life support systems are repaired at this stage). Those ships that can not be repaired are analysed and the techs note what must be done to the ship so that it can be returned to the nearest Imperial Shipyard. Military planners at the shipyard will then determine whether repairs will be attempted or the ship simply scuttled.
• Inquisition Module
  • Crew: 100 Inquisitors; 3,600 CompForce/observation staff; 10,000 interrogation droids
  • Cost: 425,000 credits
  • Capsule: This module is the most recent addition and it is used for punitive actions against insurgents and rebellious worlds. Aboard the module's cavernous cargo holds are 15,000 pre-fabricated disintegration chambers, two garrison bases, an Orbital DataNet Eraser unit, probes with sterilisation spores, five cluster bombs with magnetapulse bombs (see page 67 of the Imperial Sourcebook) and a complete orbital nightcloak system.
• Special Operations Module (EH Only)
  • Crew: 1150 Intelligence/Electronic Warfare Specialists; 100 medical personnel; 50 medical droids.
  • Passengers: Maximum of 5 special operations detachments (100 troopers) plus support personnel.
  • Cargo: 70,000 metric tons
  • Cost: 5.5 million credits
  • Capsule: The special operations module can handle the deployment, insertion, support, and exfiltration of small special operations teams. Due to the classified nature of ops, much of the ship is run through automated systems to reduce the loss of secrecy. A large amount of electronic warfare equipment is onboard which increases the effectiveness of the combat vessel. Additional anti-fighter weaponry has been added to the exterior of the module. Although built primarily for use by the Hammer's Fist it is also adaptable for use by the Intelligence Division and the Dark Brotherhood.
• Expeditionary Force Module (EH Only)
  • Crew: 25 doctors; 200 medical technicians; 50 medical droids; 50 intelligence/electronic warfare specialists; 20 logistics personnel.
  • Passengers: Maximum is 1 Battalion of troopers (800) plus support personnel.
  • Cargo: 155,000 metric tons
  • Cost: 1.2 million credits
  • Capsule: The expeditionary force module contains everything an expeditionary ground force will need to perform sustained ground operations against an enemy. Included in this module are intelligence, medical, and logistics sections. These are designed for the Hammer's Fist and other special ground units of the Emperor's Hammer.

Fleet Commander's Notes:

The TFC Roxanna, attached to the Emperor's Hammer Fleet, is typically outfitted with the Observation Module or Rescue/Hospital Module (especially after large battles). ALL of the other modules are docked at the PLT/FAC Triad in case they are needed for rapid deployment by the Auroran Home Guard Battlegroup...