Talk:Capital ship

Halcyon

I think we should perhaps add the Halcyon class to this page. But I suppose we should come up with good definition of what a capital ship is, exactly. By my logic, at least, if the Marathon class is a capital ship then its predecessor must be as well. ElFroCampeador ^TALK File:Marine Corp CPL.JPG|20px]] 18:38, 12 April 2008 (UTC)

Cruisers

Do we have in-universe sources for cruisers being considered capital ships in UNSC conventions? My own research indicated that battlecruisers are the smallest ships that are usually considered capital ships, and armoured, light and heavy cruisers are not. For that matter, the term Light capital warship appears to have been a term somebody came up with - anything smaller than a battlecruiser is not considered a capital ship, in modern naval parlance (at least as far as I know). -- Qura 'Morhek ^{The Autocrat of Morheka} 01:24, 17 May 2014 (EDT)

Already deleted the other article. It was started in 2007, and nobody ever checked to make sure it was a term that actually existed. It's amazing how a mistake can persist for so long. -- Qura 'Morhek ^{The Autocrat of Morheka} 20:52, 17 May 2014 (EDT)

In hindsight, I was wrong to exclude heavy cruisers as capital ships given how they are used by the UNSC. They seem to be the heaviest frontline combatant ship class that existed before the war ended, not including carriers, and we've seen them take on capital ship duties - fleet command and control, ship-to-ship combat, etc. I've restored the Valiant, Marathon and Autumn-classes, though the Halcyon, as a light cruiser that saw little service, should remain off it. -- Qura 'Morhek ^{The Autocrat of Morheka} 17:41, 26 December 2015 (EST)

Shadow of Intent refers to Spear of Light (a CRS light cruiser) as a capital ship. Whether this is a mistake or not, I'm not sure. --NightHammer^{(talk)(contribs)} 17:46, 26 December 2015 (EST)

The CRS-class occupies an odd niche. It's intended for the same roles as its larger cousins, but with smaller troop complement and less heavy armaments. It does still possess an energy projector, and has been used in ways you would expect of a much larger ship - Spear of Light holding its own for a while against an Assault Carrier being a good example. Not to mention that Covenant ship classifications have ALWAYS been a mess to figure out. I would tentatively add it to the list, but with a note saying that, as a light cruiser, it technically shouldn't be. -- Qura 'Morhek ^{The Autocrat of Morheka} 20:09, 27 December 2015 (EST)

It may also be of note that the Prelates had specifically been assigned to the light cruisers to refit the vessels to make them more formidable, which enabled the Prelates to temporarily prove superior to the Sangheili over High Charity. So maybe the cruisers were given more armaments and improved hull, among other things. --NightHammer^{(talk)(contribs)} 20:16, 27 December 2015 (EST)

Poseidon-class light carrier

Is the Poseidon truly large enough to be considered a capital ship? A typical UNSC carrier is certainly heavily armed, but the Poseidon is only slightly larger than a Strident-class heavy frigate. --O.B. Carson (talk) 12:09, 28 October 2017 (MST)

As I understand, "capital ship" is a role used for the heavier, more vital ships of a fleet - the carriers, battleships, and in the UNSC heavy cruisers. Given the tonnage of a Poseidon, its support role, and the fact that the source for the Poseidon name doesn't call it one, it's fair to say it's not considered a capital ship. -- Qura 'Morhek ^{The Autocrat of Morheka} 04:15, 3 November 2017 (EDT)