Trader

Available at your nearest supergiant star system

The Melnorme Trader is a large ship with a moderate turning rate and average speed. Mostly designed for long range travel and storage to support the Melnorme trade system, the Trader is not a ship of war. Given that, it is still quite capable of defending itself.

Navigation

As stated previously, the Trader is not a very agile craft, but neither is it ponderously slow. Combined with its various weapon systems, the Trader's maneuverability becomes more than sufficient.

Armament

Primary

The primary weapon mounted on a Trader is a chargable Fearton Torpedo launcher. The Melnorme Captain can prepare the missile without releasing it. Doing so moves the weapon through several distinct (and colorful) stages. When it is finally released the weapon will do considerably more damage the longer it has been charging. At full power it can be devastating and possibly even take out a Dreadnought's fusion blast head on.

The Torpedo can also be used to absorb enemy fire or make attacks without releasing it. Used in this fasion it acts somewhat like a high-tech battering ram.

Secondary

The ship's secondary weapon is a Confusion Ray that causes an affected enemy to spin helplessly. A stunned enemy cannot activate their secondary weapon systems or control their attitude jets, but they are able to operate their primary weapon and thrusters normally. An enemy under the effect of the Confusion Ray becomes easy prey for the Trader. If this weapon is employed near the plant, then its effects can be quite perilous.