Someone in another thread talked about civilian starships. To date, there’s been some conversation about some of the canonical spaceframes. But it occurs to me that there are a bunch of Mission Profiles that should be civilian-oriented.
Some of the standard Mission Profiles work for civilians: Crisis and Emergency Response, Entertainment Pleasure Ship, Civilian Merchant Marine, Technical Test Bed, and Scientific and Survey. But there are a bunch of common civilian ships that don’t seem to fit in those categories.
Here are some additional Mission Profiles for civilian ships:
Cargo and Supply Hauler
Cargo ships are designed to get materials from one location to another, and to keep the materials safe during transport. While replicators may have lessened the need to move manufactured goods from one world to another, there will always be a need for transporting materials, whether they be unreplicatable ores and minerals, fuel and power systems, specially-made goods or anything else that might be in demand. Of course illegal or controlled items are also frequently smuggled on cargo vessels.
Systems:
Increase Structure or Weapons by 1
Departments:
Command: 2
Conn: 2
Engineering: 3
Security: 3
Medicine: 1
Science: 1
Talents
Improved Warp Drive
Rugged Design
Extensive Shuttlebays
Personal Starship
Many starships are personally-owned. Some people – like Vulcan Ambassador Sarek – have jobs that require them to travel between worlds frequently enough that it’s easier or more practical to have their own ship to do so. Some folks develop wanderlust, and choose to spend their time travelling through space in the future equivalent of a personal RV.
People who operate on the shadier side of the law – smugglers, mercenaries, or assassins – might also have personal starships, always travelling to stay ahead of the authorities or to travel to the next gig.
Systems:
Increase Computers or Engines by 1
Departments:
Command: 3
Conn: 3
Engineering: 2
Security: 2
Medicine: 1
Science: 1
Talents
Improved Warp Drive
Improved Power Systems
Improved Impulse Drive
Improved Hull Integrity
Passenger Ship
Passenger ships exist to get large numbers of people from one place to another. These can be the 23rd-century equivalent of passenger trains: a ship with many cabins to ferry folks from one world to another. Passenger ships may also be about vacations and/or pleasure; they can be the future equivalent of cruise ships, with shipboard entertainment: theatres, swimming pools, extensive spas, and the like (although the standard “Entertainment Pleasure Ship” mission profile from Utopia Planetia might also cover this type of ship).
A more utilitarian version of the passenger ship is the prison transport: when a world needs to transport a group of prisoners to another system, they’ll have a ship outfitted with a number of cells into which their convicts can be locked up. Prison ships will have a greater number of security systems, and far fewer amenities.
Systems:
Increase Comms by 1
Departments:
Command: 2
Conn: 2
Engineering: 3
Security: 2
Medicine: 2
Science: 1
Talents
Advanced Medical Ward / Sickbay
Deluxe Galley
Extensive Automation
Improved Warp Drive
Scout / Explorer
While Starfleet often plays a role in exploration, they aren’t the only ones who do so. Non-starfleet folks might probe the limits of known space, revist a system that hasn’t been checked out in a while, or look for better/faster trade routes through complicated sectors of space. They may also be sent to low-contact worlds or polities to check up on the local developments, rather data about sensitive sectors.
Explorers can also be prospectors: the first people to check out a world for mineral deposits or other valuable items.
Systems:
Increase Sensors or Engines by 1
Departments:
Command: 2
Conn: 3
Engineering: 2
Security: 2
Medicine: 1
Science: 2
Talents
Improved Hull Integrity
Redundant Systems
Automated Return
Sophisticated Astrometrics Facilities
Mining Craft
Mining remains an important occupation in the 23rd and 24th centuries. Whether it’s about mining dilithium or pergium, numerous ores and minerals are essential to the trade routes of the Federation and its trading partners.
Mining craft are specialized with equipment for drilling, extracting and refining raw materials. They may also double as ore haulers, or may simply load up more specialized haulers. Mining craft often come in a few variations: some vessels are specialized for asteroid work, whereas other might be intended for setting down on mineral-rich planets.
Systems:
Increase Engines by 1
Departments:
Command: 1
Conn: 1
Engineering: 3
Security: 3
Medicine: 2
Science: 2
Talents
Advanced Research Facilities
Advanced Sensor Suites
Advanced Transporters
Rugged Design
Sport / Racing
Starship racing is uncommon in the Federation, but certainly not unheard-of. Some starships are designed to push the limits of speed or other forms of performance.
Non-racing ships might also be oriented toward sport: the Tsunkatse transmission ship and arena is one such example. The hunting/safari ships, such as the Hunter ships that persued Tosk, might be another example.
Systems:
Increase Engines by 1
Departments:
Command: 1
Conn: 1
Engineering: 3
Security: 3
Medicine: 2
Science: 2
Talents
Advanced Research Facilities
Advanced Sensor Suites
Advanced Transporters
Rugged Design
Mercenary Operations
Some worlds and polities still prefer to work with privately-contracted military forces: battleships, military drop-ships, troop transports and the like.
Systems:
Increase Engines by 1
Departments:
Command: 2
Conn: 2
Engineering: 2
Security: 3
Medicine: 2
Science: 1
Talents
Ablative Armor
Fast Targeting Systems
Improved Damage Control
Expanded Munitions
Rapid Fire Torpedo Launcher
Pirate Raider
Whenever valuable goods are being transported from one location to another, there’s piracy. Some polities, like the Orions, are renowned for embracing piracy as a legitimate vocation.
Pirate ships tend to be designed to hit fast and hard, grab the booty, and then sneak back into hiding.
Systems
Increase Weapons by 1
Departments:
Command: 2
Conn: 3
Engineering: 2
Security: 3
Medicine: 1
Science: 1
Talents
High-Resolution Sensors
Improved Warp Drive
Improved Power Systems
Improved Impulse Drive
Scavenger
Space also includes many groups or species that specialize in scavenging. Scavenger ships are designed to travel to derelict ships, abandoned stations or failed colonies and retrieve anything of value left behind.
Sometimes – as in the case of the Acamarian Gathers – scavenging doesn’t wait for a location to be abandoned.
Systems
Increase Sensors by 1
Departments:
Command: 1
Conn: 2
Engineering: 3
Security: 3
Medicine: 1
Science: 2
Talents
Advanced Sensor Suites
Advanced Transporters
Dedicated Personnel (Engineering)
High-Resolution Sensors