Diligence-class light destroyer

The Diligence-class light destroyer was a class of destroyer used by the CMA Navy throughout the 25th century.

Design details
The Diligence-class is an older classification of warship entered into service during the 25th century, originally classified as a cruiser. During the era in which it was designed, human starships had much less firepower than their successors, resulting in a ship that is-by modern standards-substantially underarmed. As such, it was reclassified as a destroyer later in its life to better reflect the evolving standard of ship construction.

Armaments
The Diligence was introduced in the 25th century prior to the onset of the Insurrection. As such, it predates the introduction of the Magnetic Accelerator Cannon (MAC) as a standard warship armament, and thus instead relies on a variety of naval autocannons and missiles for its primary armaments. The primary armament of the ship is a single Mark 33 Spitfire naval autocannon, supplemented by six M60 Sentry autocannons. Additionally, the ship is outfitted with forty M35 Ares missile launchers, and for point-defence carries ten M710 Bulwark point defense guns.

Beginning in 2496, the Diligence-class began a series of refits that resulted in ships of the class being retrofitted with two "outrigger" MACs to help the ship stay competitive with more modern destroyer designs, such as the introduced only three years later in 2499.

Ships of the line

 * – The lead ship of the class
 * (DD-993) – Participated in Operation: GREY VEIL.
 * (DD-439)

Operational history
The Diligence-class light destroyer entered service within the CMA Navy in 2433. Originally classified as a cruiser, the Diligence-class was eventually reclassified as a destroyer as ships grew in firepower and mass. Starting in 2496, the class was fitted with two powerful outrigger MAC systems—one on each side of its main fuselage. Some Diligence-class destroyers were operated by the Colonial Military Authority as peacekeeping ships,, seeing active use within the CMA Navy for over a century. By 2525, the class had been retired for decades. However, with the dawn of the Human-Covenant War, some were brought back into service with the UNSC Navy and were retrofitted for combat against the Covenant.

In 2544, a Diligence-class destroyer, the, deployed a squad of Orbital Drop Shock Troopers and a SPARTAN-II commando, Cal-141, via SOEIV to the Covenant-occupied planet Heian. The commando team infiltrated a former alien settlement, where they engaged several Unggoy and a Jiralhanae chieftain before assassinating a Covenant Prophet. After the mission, which resulted in the deaths of the Spartan and one ODST, the vessel retrieved the survivors.

List of appearances

 * Halo Legends
 * The Babysitter