Winter-class prowler
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The Winter-class prowler,[6] also known as the Winter-class stealth corvette, is a prowler in service with the UNSC Navy, primarily designed for speed and stealth with the purpose of deep-space reconnaissance.[1] Winter-class prowlers commonly monitor former member species of the Covenant and human insurrectionists, precautionary measures taken by the Office of Naval Intelligence to ensure humanity's safety.[3] Ships of the class are typically designated with the hull classification symbol PRO, though those that receive the prototypical upgrades have the IX hull code, denoting an "Unclassified Miscellaneous Unit".[1]
Overview[edit]
Design details[edit]
Somewhat similar in functionality and design to the Black Cat-class subprowlers used by the Office of Naval Intelligence in the early 26th century, prowlers of the Winter class are constructed with a smaller and more compact frame than other prowler classes. With an aerodynamic frame, swooped back wings, and narrow cockpit, Winter-class prowlers bear resemblance to a number of UNSC space fighters rather than a warship. However, its design is intended to improve speed and versatility during atmospheric operations.[3]
Propulsion[edit]
The Winter-class is equipped with an experimental set of three fusion drives, which are only distantly related to their mainline UNSC counterparts. These utilize new technologies and control software, and are so advanced only ONI technicians are qualified to maintain them.[1]
Some examples of the class, such as the ONI Acrisius, are fitted with a prototypical slipspace drive. This allows these select few craft to travel to distant parts of the Milky Way at a relatively high speed, monitoring the ex-Covenant races and human Insurrectionists for signs of trouble.[3]
The Cataphract, a Winter-class Prowler acquired by James Solomon on the gray market for his work as a private military contractor for ONI, boasted an astonishingly powerful slipspace drive, the result of several years of postwar FTL development with Forerunner technology. This allowed Cataphract to move across the stars quicker than just about anyone.[7]
Crew and complement[edit]
Five personnel are enough to optimally crew each Winter-class, with each being reserved a station in the prowler's bridge; a Commander, a navigator, a technician, a tactical director and surveillance controller. However, only the first two are required to operate one of these vessels, with the latter three spots only being filled during infiltration missions. Nevertheless, each individual is highly skilled, with the Commander receiving specialized training on concealment and deception. This is because each person has been sourced from the so-called "Prowler Corps", whose traditions and secrets separate them from the rest of ONI, and indeed, the rest of the UNSC.[1]
A maximum of twenty passengers can be carried by the prowler. These can include remote strike teams, which are deployed with high-yield nuclear warheads close to heavily-fortified invasion beachheads and staging areas - an operation which many rarely survive. For other missions, covert field teams could be carried which can be ordered to redirect enemy attention away from the prowler, should they get close to discovering the vessel.[1]
The standard Winter-class prowler could fit an entire Spartan fireteam.[7]
Armament[edit]
Like every other model of prowler, the Winter-class is only equipped with a modest arsenal of weapons. The most powerful of its armaments is its aft-mounted CBU-R68 Moray mine rack, which deploys potent explosives with small chemical propellants that allow them to maintain specific coordinates in space. This allows the Winter-class to act as a minelayer, covertly creating minefields to inflict casualties on unsuspecting Covenant fleets. Two M8545 40mm coilguns and three M995 Backstop lasers are fitted for purely defensive purposes.[1]
Sensors and countermeasures[edit]
While not truly invisible to Covenant sensors, the Winter-class is outfitted with an impressive suite of cloaking technologies designed to distort their emissions and sensor profile. This allows these ships to trick Covenant sensors into identifying the Wi