Modular taskforce cruiser

The basic design of the modular taskforce cruiser was fairly simple. In its baseline configuration, the ship consisted of a command section, a life-support system, quarters for a skeleton crew, and an engineering section. Since this was a support vessel, armament was light for its size. On its own, the baseline configuration did little more than transport a small amount of cargo. The real purpose of this framework was to carry mission-specific modules.

Mission Function Modules, also known as "MFMs," were independent units which were attached to the skeleton of the modular taskforce cruiser. Each vessel carried one module, but it was believed that Tagge planned to produce miniature modules to allow a ship to perform several simultaneous functions. In a single day at a shipyard or other properly outfitted facility, one module could be removed, and a new module could be mounted and connected to the vessel's life support, power, and communications systems.

Outfitted with tons of medical equipment and staffed with thousands of medical droids and personnel, the hospital module was used to assist in numerous types of disaster situations. It cost 750,000 credits.

Used mainly to punish rebellious planets, the inquisition module was outfitted with equipment for mass executions, destroying a planet's information infrastructure, reinforcing the Imperial Army presence on a world, or completely destroying the world's population if necessary. It cost 425,000 credits.

Designed for long-range espionage, this module carried 500 probe droids among its cargo, and was employed in observation actions from outside the border of enemy territory. It cost 6.3 million credits. It carried 12 TIE/LN starfighters for defense.

The rescue module was used to assist in the aftermath of a space battle. The 40,000 metric tons of cargo capacity were mainly dedicated to repair parts for starships, and the crew included 2,130 technicians. The 140 doctors aboard would search for any survivors remaining in the area, and the technicians would make whatever field repairs were possible to fly damaged ships to the nearest friendly shipyard. Ships with this module were intended to be paired with a hospital ship. It cost 500,000 credits.

The survey module was designed for rapid planetary and system exploration operations. Assisted by its complement of airspeeders and droids, it was capable of completely analyzing a planet, including surveying for natural resources and good colony sites, within a standard day. It could also plot viable hyperlanes from the survey location to major trade routes. It cost one million credits and contained over 100 airspeeders, 5 Skipray blastboats, and 6 TIE/sa bombers for defense.

Though the Imperial Navy had long preferred to maintain a fleet of ships which each filled a specific niche, this was an expensive policy which became progressively harder to maintain. After a report was commissioned on streamlining fleet operations, Tagge Industries Shipyards Limited won the contract for a new multi-role starship. The modular taskforce cruiser was the result of a design program which recognized the fundamental similarity of many single-role designs.

In 10 ABY, during the reign of the reborn Emperor Palpatine, at least one of the cruisers was stationed over the Deep Core planet Byss, and was later in use by the Imperial forces under Supreme Commander Luke Skywalker. The modular taskforce cruiser Reliance was employed as a star hauler, ferrying cargo into the Byss Security Zone. The Reliance was infiltrated by New Republic commandos, who stowed away inside a shipment of Viper Automadon war droids carried in its cargo hold. Carried to port by the star hauler and shuttled down to Byss, the commandos hijacked the war droids and launched an assault on the Emperor's Citadel.

The modular taskforce cruiser first appeared in the second issue of the Star Wars: Dark Empire comic series written by Tom Veitch, illustrated by Cam Kennedy, and published by Dark Horse Comics on February 18th, 1992. The Dark Empire Sourcebook for West End Games' Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game, written by Michael Allen Horne and released on June 15th, 1993 gave the starship the name "modular taskforce cruiser," while it was identified as an "Imperial star hauler" in the fourth issue of Dark Empires sequel series, likewise created by Veitch and Kennedy, and published on March 21st of 1995.

• Dark Empire Sourcebook
• Star Wars Galaxy Magazine 8
• The Official Star Wars Fact File 93
• The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia