Editing UNSC destroyer

{{Era|UNSC|HCW}}
{{Ratings}}
{{Ship Class Infobox
|image           = [[File:Heart_of_Midlothian.png|300px]]
|name            = '''Destroyer'''
|manufacturer    = [[UNSC]]
|class           = [[Destroyer]]
|length          = Varies between classes<br/> c.{{Convert|485|m|ft}}<ref name="enc">'''[[Halo Encyclopedia]]''', ''page 248''</ref><ref name="class">'''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]''', ''page 139'' (''"What those critics forgot that a UNSC Destroyer sported 2 MAC guns, 26 over-sized Archer missile pods and 3 nuclear warheads. Only seven meters longer than a frigate. No single ship fighters. Almost as heavy than 2 frigates combined mass."'')</ref><ref name="waypoint">'''[[Halo Waypoint]]'''</ref>
|weight          = 7,900 Metric Tons<ref name="waypoint"/>
|engine          = Deuterium nuclear fusion reactor
|slipspace drive = [[Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine]]
|hull            = 1.5 - 2 meters [[Titanium-A]] battleplate <ref name="enc"/>
|armament        = *[[Magnetic Accelerator Cannon]]s (2)<ref name="class"/><ref name="waypoint"/>
*[[Shiva-class Nuclear Missile]]s (3)
*[[Archer missile|Over-sized Archer Missile]] pods (26) <ref name="class"/><ref name="waypoint"/>
*8x [[Point Defense Gun|50mm Point-Defense Autocannons]] (Dual-Barreled)
|complement      = *HEVs
*Pelicans <ref>'''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]''', ''page 13''</ref>
|misc            =
|role            = Fleet escort, assault craft
|era             = *[[Insurrection]] era
*[[Human-Covenant War]]
|affiliation     = [[UNSC Navy]]
}}

'''Destroyer''' is a warship classification in the [[United Nations Space Command|UNSC]] [[UNSC Navy|Navy]], with the [[Hull Classification Symbol]] of '''DD'''. Fast, maneuverable, and designed for long-term endurance, destroyers were intended to escort larger vessels, such as the [[Marathon-class Cruiser|''Marathon'']]- and [[Halcyon-class Cruiser|''Halcyon''-class]] cruisers.

==Specifications==
Although some vessels of this classification are only [[seven]] meters longer than a [[UNSC Frigate]], they have almost double the mass. Unlike most ships in the fleet, destroyers carry no [[C709 Longsword-class Interceptor|single-ship fighters]]; rather, their large mass comes from the one and a half to two meters of [[Titanium A Armor|Titanium A battle plate]] that covers the ship. [[Cortana]] once stated that destroyers are essentially the same as frigates except for this additional armor.<ref>'''[[Halo: First Strike]]''', ''page 207''</ref>

The destroyer's armament comes in the form of two [[Magnetic Accelerator Cannon]]s, twenty-six oversized [[Archer Missile]] pods, and three [[Shiva-class Nuclear Missile]]s. For defense against [[starfighter]]s, the Destroyer carries eight [[Point Defense Gun|point-defense autocannons]].<ref name="class"/>

==Class history==
In 2497, the [[Gorgon-class Destroyer|Gorgon-class]], what was then a heavy destroyer with a single MAC, was introduced into service.<ref>'''[[Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe]]''' - ''The Impossible Life and Possible Death of Preston J. Cole.''</ref> Later ships classes would include two MACs as they became standard armament on UNSC warships. These warships were used to put down the [[Eridanus Rebels]] during [[Operation: TREBUCHET]], with the loss of several vessels. The destroyer [[UNSC Heracles|''Heracles'']] was the command ship of [[Battlegroup 4]] during the disastrous [[First Battle of Harvest|first contact]] with the [[Covenant Empire|Covenant]].<ref name="class"/><ref>'''[[Halo Wars: Genesis]]'''</ref>

During the [[Human-Covenant War]], destroyers were looked down upon by many in the Navy. The destroyer class was initially considered too ineffective against the superior Covenant ships, but in reality, it could receive and dish out a considerable amount of damage for its size, and in groups could prove a match for the Covenant's larger [[CCS-class Battlecruiser]]s. Senior naval officers estimated that, on average, [[List of "Seven" References in Halo|seven]] UNSC Destroyers were generally a match for four [[Covenant Frigate]]s.<ref name="class"/>

[[Commander (UNSC)|Commander]] [[Jacob Keyes]] commanded a destroyer, the [[UNSC Iroquois|UNSC ''Iroquois'']] during a [[Battle of Sigma Octanus IV|short skirmish]] over [[Sigma Octanus IV]]. During this engagement, he devised the [[Keyes Loop]] as an act of desperation. The ''Iroquois'' managed to single-handedly destroy two Covenant Frigates and a [[Covenant Destroyer]].<ref name="class"/>

{{UNSC Destroyers}}

==Trivia==
*In the first pages of ''[[Halo Wars: Genesis]]'', a picture of a UNSC Destroyer leaving Slipspace is shown, this being the first canon appearance of a UNSC Destroyer. It had previously only been described in the novels. After this, different incarnations of the UNSC destroyer have appeared in ''[[The Babysitter]]'' and the animated version of ''[[Midnight in the Heart of Midlothian]]''. This could depict different classes of destroyers or show that some have been specially refit.

==List of appearances==
{{Appearances|Halo: The Fall of Reach|Halo: First Strike|Halo: Ghosts of Onyx|Halo Wars|Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe|Halo Legends|Halo: The Cole Protocol}}

==Gallery==
<gallery widths="150">
File:UNSC Heracles.png|Destroyer ''[[Heracles]]'' transitioning from Slipspace.
File:Concept - UNSC_Destroyer.png|Concept art of the UNSC The Heart of the Midlothian.
File:Legends ship 1.png|[[Unnamed Destroyer (The Babysitter)|An unnamed Destroyer]].
File:The Heart of Midlothian 2.png|The Destroyer, ''Heart of Midlothian''.
File:Heart of the Midlothian Schematic.jpg|A schematic of the {{UNSCShip|The Heart of Midlothian}}.
</gallery>

==Sources==
<references/>

{{UNSC Ships}}