I got another pair of ship classes for the PUN, though only one of them is truly meant for fleet action deployments.
Vessels of the Protectorate United Navies, part 9: The Aegis-Pilum and Liberator Classes
Aegis-Pilum Class Fleet Shield Cruiser - Even after several decades of thorough exploration, Emilie's Gift still retains secrets for the Borgs to discover. Two of these discoveries were the impulse for the research and development of what would ultimately become the Aegis-Pilum.
The first discovery was made deep within the bowels of the space hulk, found in a half-split ship of vaguely human design. The Low Interference Void Shield Resonator, as the Borgs have elected to name it, can recharge another ship's void shields over great distances, even while the target is under fire. The scientific principles behind this technology are not yet understood, but the system is capable of interacting with a wide variety of tested void shield generators. Tactical implications for this technology can not be overstated. It means that any fleet with an Aegis-Pilum has a pool of free-floating shield capacity ready for use, so to speak. Any allied ship that finds itself under heavy attack could request a recharge to ensure their escape or turn around and defeat their opponent then.
The greatest downside of the LIVSR is the prodigious power consumption. While conversion efficiency depends somewhat on distance, the generated shield strength for an equal amount of power input is lower than for a well tuned, Borg-optimized shield emitter array. Yet the wisdom of the Liberator did not fail to once more give insight into the man's genius. To paraphrase him: "If I wish to shave myself, I will use a razor, not a plasma cutter." Following the idea of Cain's Razor, the power consumption problem was thus solved by increasing available power for the LIVSR and cooling it using the Borg's NCS coolant system.
The Aegis-Pilum class resembles the Argus-Vigil with its wide sponsons jutting out from the broadsides and its lack of hangar bays. Four massive reactors fill out the hull, generating power for the four LIVSR systems that the class is equipped with. One is mounted on the centerline before the bridge, 'super firing' over the ship's armaments - two triple macro cannon turrets and one twin lance turret. Two LIVSR emitters are placed on the broadside sponsons, one per side. The last emitter is rear facing, behind the bridge.
Given that the ship's role will inevitably make it a high value target for the PUN's enemies, the Aegis-Pilum is a very heavily protected ship. Its two separate X-42 phased void shield emitter arrays can also draw from the quadruple set of reactors in an emergency. The class's armor layout is comparable to that of an Imperial battleship and can take hits that might cripple another cruiser.
Power demand is not the only obstacle that needed to be overcome so that the LIVSR system could be used to its full effect. Both the emitters and the reactors powering them produce a lot of waste heat that needs to be dealt with. The answer was found among the wild variety of weapons that Emilie's Gift holds. In essence, the Axial Radiator Lance is a weaponized active heat exchanger which uses massive amounts of heat to power a large anti-ship energy weapon. The weapon has the range of a standard lance weapon while being considerably more lethal.
Liberator Class Atmospheric Drop Cruiser - A common first impression of the Liberator is just how ugly the ship is. Squat and wide with bulbous outgrowths scattered across its hull, it looks like a disfigured brick that tries to imitate the clean lines and long hulls of the rest of the PUN.
Yet that perception of ugliness is not shared by those people who have seen a Liberator perform its signature maneuver, a rapid atmospheric entry. With blindingly bright glowing shields, a red hot hull and a massive shock wave expanding ahead of it, there is no possibility of the Liberator's descent going unnoticed. It is a visceral experience for those on the ground that has earned the Liberator class its most charitable nickname - Meteor.
The Liberator Class Atmospheric Drop Cruiser is a ship that sticks out even among the many other unconventional vessels of the Protectorate. Its origins can be traced back to the costly counter invasion of Doboran. Out of desperation the planetary governor had called for help to repel the ravaging horde of Orks attacking his world and Lord Cain decided to answer the call. While the Protectorate's ground forces decisively defeated the Green menace, victory came at a greater than acceptable price. Casualties were high, especially among the assault elements of the first wave deployed to the surface.
This resulted in several different developments, including the formation of orbital assault brigades with specialized tactics and equipment. And while these new units have their own assault transports to carry them from orbit down to a planet's surface, they still rely on Liberty freighters packed with troop transport BSCs for interstellar shipping. It is here where the Liberator class enters the picture, a cruiser sized ground support platform capable of dropping down into a planet's atmosphere to provide an apocalyptic level of fire power for Protectorate troops on the surface.
In terms of self defense in void combat, the Liberator class is equipped with two triple macro cannon turrets and one twin lance turret, the standard PUN cruiser armament. While the Borgs did not intend for them to be used in ground support, the reality of battlefield necessities has led to several instances where a Liberator has used its main weapons to blow up hive spires and mountain ranges.
Operating a vessel whose size is measured in kilometers in-atmosphere is a dangerous prospect, exposing the ship to a plethora of threats. For this reason, the Liberator class is very heavily protected. The cruiser's underbelly is fully covered in massive slabs of angled armor which add to its brutal appearance. In practical terms, the armor is thick enough to shrug off direct hits from ground based anti ship weapons. Similarly, the ship's twin X-44 void shield emitter arrays are configured to primarily protect it against attacks from below.
To carry the cruiser's massive bulk required the development of a wholly new type of anti gravity generator with plenty of redundancy to minimize the risks of crashes. Each of the seven 'Atlas' AG-13 gravity engines onboard a Liberator is powerful enough to counteract the gravitational pull exerted on the ship when operating in-atmosphere. Three are required to make the descent and deceleration from orbit a smooth affair. Also, the Liberator's plasma thrusters are strong enough to return to orbit with only one working gravity generator, while additional AG-13s can compensate for a partial loss of propulsion. The combination of very powerful gravity engines and plasma thrusters give the Liberator class a surprising level of agility, its brick-like shape deceiving those who have never seen it in action.
The actual mission payload of the Liberator is made up of many different components.
Batteries of Vigil laser defense cannons are mounted all across the ship for self defense, to shoot down enemy aircraft and high precision ground support. Magnetic accelerator cannons in retractable ventral turrets can deliver heavy kinetic bombardment. The prow and broadsides mount various launch cells for modified No.9 torpedoes as well as smaller guided weapons. Two hangar bays allow the cruiser to launch and recover Cain wings and transport aircraft. The ship is also equipped with a series of drop pod launchers as an alternative deployment method for the embarked assault units and their gear.
Sensors, communication, command and control facilities ensure the flow of accurate information and keep the troopers on the ground safe from friendly fire.
So far only eight Liberator class cruisers have joined the PUN's expeditionary forces, yet in their short service history they have been put to good use pulverizing the ground forces of Orks, Tyranids and Necrons. Having a Liberator parked over their head has also convinced several Imperial PDF and T'au garrison commanders that surrender is probably the right decision.
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Imagine for a minute what the power output of a reactor onboard a Lunar class cruiser must be to power shields, weapons, electronics, propulsion, etc. Now take that amount of power times four and run two void shields with it that are rated to handle that much energy. Yeah, the Aegis-Pilum can get very close to invulnerable to marco and lance weapons if the captain wants it so.
The Axial Radiator Lance is also something interesting, but it definitely needs some limitations, because otherwise the PUN gets a stronger Lance weapon that doesn't consume any power. So it is an alien design that is not yet understood. It can not be scaled down and is far too large in volume to be mounted in a turret. It also requires a lot of heat to fire, so much infact that maybe only one of the PUN's grand cruisers could feasibly use it as the ARL needs a certain minimum heat input.
What the Borgs can do, is improve their regular heat management systems with the insights gained from studying the weapon.
Last note about the Aegis-Pilum, these things are gonna be rare, only ever deployed in battle fleets and expeditionary forces. The LIVSR emitters, the ARL and the NCS coolant system are expensive components to produce.
Onto the Liberator! There were a few options for what a ground support ship could look like, be it orbital support like the Super Destroyer from HD2 or the Acclamator from the SW prequels. I decided to go with something that looks like the Titans from BF2142 on steroids. Park a ship roughly 4 kilometers in length inside the contested planet's atmosphere at about 10-20 km altitude and rain hell down upon the poor fellas opposing Protectorate troops.
The Liberator has a limited transport capacity for assault units, it is primarily a platform for fire support, electronic warfare, communication, command and control, etc.
There is of course also the psychological element both for Protectorate and enemy troops. Also also, parking a Liberator directly over enemy's head can act as a great disincentive to shooting the ship down, few people would agree with the idea of getting buried underneath the crashing ship. Similar effects can be achieved by positioning the cruiser above a hive spire where the planetary governor resides.