Na-YF/A-6X(A) “Scythe” Stealth Fighter/Interceptor
General
Class:	Na-YF/A-6X(A)
Type:	Stealth Fighter/Interceptor
Designer:	Nepleslian Arms and Munitions
Manufacturer:	NAM (Aerotech)
Fielded by:	Nepleslian Star Navy (Aquila Flight)
Production:	15 units
Crew
Crew:	1 (Pilot and ACE AI)
Dimensions
Length:	22.56 meters (~74.02 feet)
Wingspan:	19.58 meters (~64.24 feet)
Height:	3.90 meters1) (~12.80 feet)
Propulsion and Range
Atmosphere Speed (Cruising):	Mach 3.2 (1.0982 km/s)
Atmosphere Speed (Max):	Mach 4.7 (1.6612.1 km/s)
Sublight (Engines):	.400c
Sublight (Boost):	.415c2)
FTL:	17500c
Range:	Unlimited (10-day supply of nutrient-enriched solution)
Durability and Maintenance
Service Lifespan:	30 years
Refit Cycle:	1 year
Damage Capacity
Hull:	Tier 7, light armor (even by fighter standards)3)
Shields:	Tier 7

The Na-YF/A-6X(a) “Scythe” is a multi-role endo-/exo-atmospheric stealth fighter/interceptor designed in early YE 36 and fielded by the Nepleslian Star Navy the following year. This version of the Na-F/A-6 is extremely advanced (thus requiring better-than-average skills to effectively be utilized) and is the sister design of the less-advanced F/A-6(b) “Sabre.”

• VTOL/STOL capability
• Anti-starship weaponry
  • Very stealthy
• CFS-equipped
• Two-stage spacial/planetary propulsion system
• Highly maneuverable

• Aerospace Superiority
• Starship-Hunter
• Limited Strike Role Capability

Flag officers and strategists alike had, during the twilight years of the horrific Second Mishhuvurthyar War, noted a growing trend of sub-par quality among the small craft of the Nepleslian Star Navy. Consisting of expensive-to-maintain, practically-obsolete relics and their notoriously under-equipped, overspecialized, and over-complicated replacements (which had a well-deserved reputation as flying deathtraps, to boot), it soon became apparent to said officers and strategists that something - hell, anything - had to be done.

As a result, in YE 35, it was agreed upon by heads of the NSN that a drastic overhaul program was required to update the Navy's beleaguered aerospace wings, which - thanks in part to that aforementioned “flying deathtrap” - were notorious for their pilots' high tendency of being shot down within a single sortie. Spearheaded by a Rear Admiral Titus Orion, the program would facilitate the modernization of a majority of Nepleslia's existing aircraft with better mission capabilities, with the additional caveat of introducing several new aerospaceframes fresh off the drawing board. One such project started later that year, codenamed “Reaper,” resulted in the prototype Na-YF/A-6X craft known as the “Scythe”. The brainchild of an engineering team led by Lieutenant Commander Jayden Solaris, the prototype starfighter was in the summer months of YE 36 submitted to NAM's X-Tech division for further refinement, where it was finally completed during that year's winter by a joint Aerotech/X-Tech production team.

The first prototypes were pushed forward and commissioned for use in YE 37 by the aforementioned Rear Admiral Orion after the attack on Fort Sentinel by the Reds. Aptly given the designation of “Scythe” following an especially one-sided simulation test against an entire squadron of the “flying deathtraps,” the YF/A-6X(A) is as versatile as it is deadly. Given the steep learning curve associated with the starfighter (courtesy of the highly-delicate touch its stealth systems and spinal-mounted "Dark Zenith" Anti-Neutron Cannon require), operation of this fighter craft requires a skilled pilot with both high mental capabilities and extensive training in the aircraft's multiple subsystems. Thus, the Scythe is limited to select pilots handpicked for their ability to handle the intense strain the craft places on its pilots - and is consequentially estimated to only see limited production as a specialist aerospacecraft. A mass-production model, the F/A-6(b), has also been developed and contains scaled-down versions of the YF/A-6X(A)'s systems intended for general usage.

Commissioned by Rear Admiral Titus Orion in YE 37, the FA-6X “Scythe” is a stealth-capable multirole fighter/interceptor, intended for anti-starship roles whilst retaining a considerable measure of anti-fighter capability. Boasting the latest generation in military aerospace technologies, equipped with the vaunted Combined Field System, and outfitted with the best of X-Tech's tried-and-true stealth systems, the YF/A-6X(A) “Scythe” is a fast and highly capable aerospace-superiority starfighter intended for both exo- and endo-atmospheric use. Put simply, she's fast, surprisingly durable, can pack one hell of a punch, and - in the right hands - can out-fly her rivals with ease.

Despite this, the YF/A-6X(A) is in no way, shape, or form a “flying tank” - and only a complete and utter fool (read: a novice pilot) would treat it as such. The Scythe's highly-acclaimed shielding systems - effectively its only line of defense - are, for instance, anything but impenetrable and will fail if subjected to prolonged abuse; additionally, the starfighter is highly vulnerable to powered armor, as the former has no real way of countering the latter's sheer maneuverability, especially at closer ranges where stealth is of little to no use whatsoever - hence, it's (obviously) best to engage said targets at longer distances, where said stealth is of use……yet this brings up a third drawback, namely that the YF/A-6X(A) (owing to its stealth-oriented nature) suffers immensely in terms of combat stamina, as evident in the ship's sub-par missile reserves.

Ultimately, the Scythe is best utilized in lightning-fast “alpha strikes,” drawing upon the element of surprise in order to eliminate her foes while avoiding any kind of prolonged engagement - as even a ship blessed with superior maneuverability and concealment can't remain hidden (or lucky) forever……

The hull of the YF/A-6X(A) “Scythe” consists of a Durandium Alloy/Zanarium frame layered over with protective plates of Zanarium-laminated Nerimium Armor, giving the craft impressive structural durability versus its counterparts in the Nepleslian Star Navy while maintaining a (fairly) light overall weight - and drastically reducing its sensor footprint before any active stealth systems are used.

Encased within a protective layer of Zanarium, the Scythe's cockpit is lined with miniaturized arrays of sensors which feed data directly to the Neural Control System mentioned below, providing tactical information directly to the pilot's brain via wireless uplink. Additionally, a panoramic Volumetric HUD system (along with the accompanying “traditional” instruments) is also provided, in order to help ease pilots into the transition - or allow them to fall back to something familiar in situations of extreme stress.

In a bold move away from the current neural technologies employed onboard vessels of the Star Military of the Democratic Imperium of Nepleslia, data analysis on recovered Ayana-Class Escorts (and more importantly NovaCorp's Superconductive Quantum Interface Device (SQUID) technology) has given NAM a means for stepping up their (proverbial) game - as demonstrated by the “Kraken” Neural Control System.

A definitive nod to the aforementioned SQUID, the Kraken essentially links - via wireless (read: telepathic) connection - the pilot's organic mind to the Scythe's synthetic systems, thereby allowing the pilot to control the aircraft at literally the speed of thought. As one might imagine⁴⁾, this consequentially grants the YF/A-6X(A) both unparalleled mobility and reaction speeds - though comes at the cost of drastically-increased mental strain on the pilot with extended use. As such, the Kraken is able to be deactivated, thus allowing the aerospacecraft to be flown entirely by hand via the included traditional flight sticks and manual controls.

In the event of emergency takeoffs and/or powered armor system failures, the YF/A-6X(A) can be operated with or without a M10 Raider Light Armor or Hostile being worn. However, usage of the Disrupter Flight Suit is highly recommended, due to the additional degree of safety it provides.

The life support system within the Scythe provides up to 10 days of a highly-nutritious - yet horrifically bland - solution; additionally, the environmental systems within the cockpit pod are effectively self-reliant in terms of supplying a breathable atmosphere as long as said pod is within the hull of the ship and connected to the dedicated power systems. An ejected pod can support one unarmored occupant for 24 hours, and can be boosted to 60 hours using the supplemental life support systems of a PA.

The YF/A-6X(A) features a miniaturized second-generation Hyperspace-Tap Reactor - with markedly-improved performance over the original model - as its primary source of power generation. Clad in Zanarium, featuring an output comparable to that of an equally-sized Aether Reactor, and - somewhat - difficult to detect (courtesy of the aforementioned cladding), this reactor system provides more than enough power to meet the impressive energy requirements of the Scythe, even when under a full load.

For the purposes of localized “quiet” energy generation, the Scythe employs a Zanarium-sheathed Miniaturized Military-Grade QNC Generator, procured from the United Manufacturing Cooperative. This redundancy provides the Scythe with a highly-efficient active power generator/distribution system, therefore allowing this aerospacecraft to operate with a nearly-limitless range, only restricted by the needs of its pilot.

In addition to the subsystems mentioned above, the YF/A-6X(A) features two Zanarium-encased Hyper-Capacitor Arrays which allow for it to operate a limited number of systems for up to 8 hours, or be combat effective for up to 20 minutes (depending on how hard said systems are pushed).

As a word of caution, the Anti-Neutron Cannon is not usable with just the power from this system alone - rather, the capacitors are meant for situations which prioritize absolute stealth over speed.

Designed by a joint MFY-NAM team and housed (unsurprisingly enough) within a protective casing of Zanarium, the Energy/Matter Converter and Anti-Neutron Containment System, when used in tandem, permit the operation of the Scythe's signature weapon - the (in)famous "Dark Zenith" Anti-Neutron Cannon.

Operation of this particular subsystem is, of course, fairly simple (and thus typically automated): As energy is drawn from the Hyperspace-Tap Reactor or QNC Generator, the converter - in a fashion not unlike its vastly-upscaled forerunner - siphons off a minute portion of the aforementioned energy and converts it into anti-matter; immediately thereafter, the products of this process - anti-neutrons - are amassed within the containment field for later usage by the aforesaid cannon.

Given the complexity and advanced technology utilized by the YF/A-6X(A), it made perfect sense to outfit the craft with an extremely fast and powerful control center; thus, at the epicenter of the Scythe is a X-Type Quantum Computer Node, complete with an Advanced Command Executive (ACE) AI (and optional JANE(JOHN) AI integrated personality matrix). This allows for the pilot to have greater control over the entire ship and make optimum use of the Kraken Neural Interface to its fullest capacity, due to said AI being capable of performing a plethora of complicated secondary tasks simultaneously (such as electronic warfare, secondary/defensive weapon management, and countermeasure utilization).

Similar to practically every other vehicle employed by the Star Military, the YF/A-6X(A) makes use of the Monoeye Directional Sensor System as its primary detection system; what's different from every other small craft currently employed by the Star Military, however, is that the Monoeyes employed by the YF/A-6X(A) are retractable. Owing to both tactical considerations and engineering limitations, these cyclopean sensor suites can be found in the following locations:

• On the dorsal surface near the front of the fuselage, in a retractable housing between the starfighter's two dorsal HPLV firing ports; it's protected by a modest layer of Zanarium armor. Mounted in a ball socket.

• On the ventral surface near the front of the fuselage, in a retractable housing just behind the starfighter's two ventral HPLV firing ports; it's protected by a modest layer of Zanarium armor. Also mounted in a ball socket.

• On the dorsal surface of the fuselage, in a retractable housing between the starfighter's wings; it's protected by a modest layer of Zanarium armor. Mounted in a ball socket as well.

• On the ventral surface of the fuselage, in a retractable housing between the starfighter's wings; it's protected by a modest layer of Zanarium armor. Mounted in a ball socket, shockingly enough.

The “miniaturized arrays of sensors ” mentioned in a previous section, the OmniEye Sensor System is included on the YF/A-6X(A) for several reasons, such as the enhancement of the vehicle's overall sensor capabilities by the additional functionality granted, the additional field-of-vision made available to the pilot, and the necessity of the system's Threat Acquisition Detector for countering hostile self-guided ordinance.

Based upon the system utilized by X-Tech's Hray, the communications suite employed by the Scythe allows for highly-encrypted, long-range communication across a vast range of spectra, including laser-, radio-, subspace-, tachyon-, and hyperspace-based frequencies - though all of this does, unfortunately, have a rather significant downside: Despite practically every attempt imaginable (and then some) at miniaturization, the aerospacecraft's communications array takes up a painfully-high amount of internal volume, squeezing out what could have been a highly-versatile modular systems bay………

The Scythe includes three large (and very, very powerful) Dual-Stage Hyperspace-Tap Drives , two of which can be vectored for more “traditional” VTOL usage. When all of these drives - lined with an internal layer of Zanarium for the purpose of emissions concealment - are used in combination, they enable the YF/A-6X(A) to achieve impressive maximum velocities (and equally-impressive amounts of maneuverability) in both vacuum and in-atmosphere operations.

Intended for usage in highly-clandestine operations where avoiding detection is of utmost importance, the Scythe's two Hyperspace-Tap-Assisted Photon Drives allow for a virtually-undetectable (and horrifically slow) means of propulsion.

These tiny multi-directional thrusters, placed about the hull in strategic locations, are a built-in redundancy (in the event of catastrophic battle damage) that also provides a slight (but noticeable) increase in overall maneuverability, in addition to an auxiliary VTOL propulsion system.

Procured from the Lazarus Consortium, the Gravitic Centrifuge offers superior performance and versatility to that of normal Continuum Distortion Drives for a fraction of the cost, space, and power required to use the system. Similar to the aforementioned CDD, the Centrifuge is additionally able to propel the ship at sublight speeds while providing excellent anti-gravity VTOL capability; in contrast, however, the Scythe's Cenrifuge - with the inclusion of publicly-sourced firmware is also capable of bestowing the vaunted shielding capabilities of a Combined Field System.

With the inclusion of Lazarus Consortium's Gravitic Centrifuge technology, the YF/A-6X(A) has the capability of deploying a Combined Field System for both defense and stealth, rendering it nearly untouchable while within the pocket dimension created by said Gravitic Centrifuge. A first among Nepleslian vessels, it is set to revolutionize armament research in the Star Military of the Democratic Imperium of Nepleslia, bringing it one step closer to being on par with the Star Army of Yamatai - and, when combined with the Scythe's already-formidable armor, renders the stealth fighter increasingly difficult to destroy…or even disable.

For all intents and purposes a combination of the pre-existing Brainspammer and Dazzle ECM Suites, the Flashbang Electronic Warfare Suite takes the best aspects of both and pairs the result with the synthetic reflexes of an ACE AI - thus enabling the Scythe to unleash withering attacks on both virtual and physical targets.

Included to supplement the starfighter's “direct” anti-missile defenses, the AEGIS - although as of YE 38 still untested in actual combat - should (in theory) make tracking the YF/A-6X(A) an even greater challenge for hostile missile guidance systems, thanks to the vastly-increased numbers of potential targets available to the latter.

Its primary defense against long-ranged detection, the stealth aspects of the YF/A-6X(A)'s pseudo-CFS (generated by the ship's Centrifuge) grant the starfighter a measure of invisibility versus scalar radars, aetheric-energy sensors, and similar forms of detection by essentially relocating the starfighter to an alternate “pocket dimension,” thereby rendering it undetectable and - with the Centrifuge's ability to simulate the photons and such that would pass through the space occupied by the “pocket” dimension - practically untraceable to the vast majority of currently-utilized sensing systems.

Meant for operation in scenarios requiring near-perfect degrees of stealth, the Scythe is equipped with Nepleslian Arms and Munition's "Snakeskin" Fluctuating Pigmentation Coating for instances when it is impossible and/or inadvisable to make use of the aforementioned Centrifuge's stealth capabilities. Although the former is nowhere near as “stealthy” as the latter (due to only being able to conceal the infrared, visual, and partial ultraviolet spectrums) and is nonoperational at the higher velocities typically traveled by space-faring vessels, the YF/A-6X(A)'s designers reasoned that the simple versatility - and, more importantly, the fact that it required none of the ship's precious internal volume whatsoever - of the coating was simply too good of a bargain to pass up.

• x 4 OI-V9-W3600 Heavy Pulse Laser Vulcans (Nose-mounted)
  • Purpose: Anti-Fighter, Anti-Armor
  • Damage: ADR 5
  • Range (Planetary): ~2.8 miles (4,500 meters)
  • Range (Space): ~87,000 miles (140,000 kilometers)
• Rate of Fire: 15 pulses/second
  • Payload Effectively unlimited⁵⁾

• x8 SWARM Missiles
  • Purpose: Anti-Armor, Anti-Fighter
  • Damage: ADR 2-3⁶⁾
  • Area of Effect: 10-20 meters⁷⁾
  • Range (Planetary): ~100 miles (160,000 kilometers)
  • Range (Space): Effectively unlimited.

• x2 Na-V6-W3800 "Dark Zenith" Anti-Neutron Cannon (Retractable; located on the ventral surface between the forward wings)
  • Purpose: Anti-Starship, Anti-Starfighter
  • Damage: SDR 1
  • Range (Planetary): 10,000 meters (~6.214 miles)
  • Range (Space): 500,000 kilometers (~311,000 miles)
• Rate of Fire: One three-second beam every 30 seconds⁸⁾

• x3 Point-Defense Phased-Array Lasers (One on the ventral surface of the fuselage and the dorsal surface of each wing)
  • Purpose: Close-In Point-Defense , Anti-Missile
  • Damage: ADR 2
  • Range (Planetary): ~3.11 miles (5,000 meters)
  • Range (Space): ~31,000 miles (50,000 kilometers)
• Rate of Fire: 20 pulses/second

• x1 Hyperspace-Tap Flare Launcher (Retractable; located on the ventral surface of the fuselage)
  • Purpose: Anti-Missile
  • Damage: PDR 5/ADR 1
• Range: 5,000 meters (~3.107 miles)
  • Rate of Fire: 5×3 charges/second⁹⁾
  • Payload 75 charges, self-replenishing

• x3 Anti-Radar Chaff Projectors (Retractable; located on the dorsal and ventral surfaces near the aft of the fuselage)
  • Purpose: Anti-Missile
• Range: 325 meters (~0.202 miles)
  • Rate of Fire: 2 charges/second¹⁰⁾
  • Payload 12 charges¹¹⁾

As mentioned above, the Na-YF/A-6X(A) is outfitted with four under-wing hardpoints; each is capable of equipping one of the following configurations:

• x3 SWARM Missiles
  • Purpose: Anti-Armor, Anti-Fighter
  • Damage: ADR 2-3¹²⁾
  • Area of Effect: 10-20 meters¹³⁾
  • Range (Planetary): ~100 miles (160,000 kilometers)
  • Range (Space): Effectively unlimited.

ASSUMED DIRECT CONTROL OF THIS PAGE on 2016/07/12 after a lack of response from the author in this forum thread.