Artemis-class battlecruiser

"Leaders in taking down Covvie Capital Ships since 2537."

- A serviceman's remark on the Artemis-class.

The Artemis-class Battlecruiser, variably known as the Artemis-class Heavy Cruiser and often called by its crew as the Crocodile, was a unique model of heavy cruiser used by the. While most ships developed to stall the Covenant were fast, well-armoured or outfitted with dozens of weapon systems, the Artemis-class did not benefit and even suffered from its subpar quantities in these areas. Instead, it's simple superstructure served only to carry and support the most advanced coilguns ever to be fitted on a human warship, with every inch of it dedicated to ensure that this focus would not end in its destruction. By combining its powerful sensor systems, experimental ammunition and surprising turning speed, this battlecruiser was capable of taking down even the toughest of Covenant ships.

Armament
The armament of the designs which bear the Artemis name are varied, with the earliest incarnation sporting a variety of missiles and turrets across its hull, but one variable has always remained constant. The entire ship's superstructure is built around its experimental Series-VI Heavy Magnetic Accelerator Cannons. The Series-VI was designed to reduce the long cooldown the cannons experienced after firing, something which too often prevented the weapon from firing another round before being destroyed. To resolve this, the Series-VI features redundant electromagnetic rings built away from the primary coils, switching out the used rings to allow the cannon to fire twice in immediate succession. However, the true problem was not the resting period for the coils themselves, but the fact that the fusion reactor could only barely produce enough electricity to sustain another fire. In light of this, not only do the cannons receive a small reactor of their own to hasten the process, but the individual coils are fitted with heat and stress sensors which are linked up to the cannon's firing mechanism. With this data, the firing crews can determine which ones have completed the cooldown and fire another shell below the recommended power requirements, though the resulting round's reduced velocity and damage potential forces it to be only used in the most desperate situations.

However, whereas the Series-VI was still similar in design to its predecessors, the munition itself was designed from scratch. Classified as the XM42CSEM and dubbed by naval personnel as the "Cov-Killer", this shell was designed for use against Covenant. The shell is covered by a Nickle-Cobalt alloy which splits off immediately after firing, after the munition would undergo a brief arming period which leaves it at limited effectiveness. Once armed, a simple sensor within it waits to reach a predetermined distance from its target, after which it would explode into seven main fragments which would collide with its shields. The multiple impacts and the subsequent ionic interference would wreak havoc on the cycling effects of the shield generators, performing far better than any comparable ordnance at the UNSC's disposal. Only three are enough to eliminate the shields of all but the heaviest Covenant cruiser - hence why these battlecruisers are commonly deployed in pairs, where the first can offload their Cov-Killer rounds while the second follows it up with standard Tungsten slugs.

The secondary armaments are largely subpar to all other cruisers, acceptable only because of its role. The only one which is even moderately effective is its three Shiva-class nuclear missions. The Shiva's name is fitting for its purpose, where its dozens of megatons payload can bring ruin to any foe which it happens to collide with. Because of their stacking rarity however, they are used only when they are significantly outgunned, and when they are deployed they are frequently fired with a swarm of decoy missiles. The other two weapon systems have little value for various reasons. The M910 point-defence gun is a large turret designed for anti-fighter work, a huge threat against the Artemis '  lightly-armoured hull. While it has an ideal amount, the low performance of the M910 and their positioning on the hull means they are rarely used to their maximum potential. Lastly, despite their eight pods of M58 Archer missiles being effective against unshielded Covenant ships, their low quantity and the accuracy of Covenant emplacements mean only a small handful can ever impact the hull.

Superstructure
Lacking the standards of other cruisers at the time, the Artemis-class was still outfitted with a thick enough hull to withstand most projectiles. The outermost and therefore the strongest substance which made up the majority of the plating were sheets of battleplate being packed three-four metres thick. Known for its resilience against kinetic weaponry, it made up the armour plating on most military warships, however the intense heat plasma gives off can burn through metres of the metal very quickly, though not as quickly as. Both metals are organised into ten centimetre sheets, alternated by either a five centimetre layer of Reinforced Carbon-Carbon or an empty vacuum. RCC is far more resistant against energy weapons, remaining solid up to 2000oC, however it cannot hold up to impacts in the same way Titanium nor Vanadium can. Meanwhile, the vacuum limits heat by reducing the ways it can pass on by convention, creating barriers to thermal expansion until its breached.

Interior supports don't have as much thought put into them, with reduced strength when compared to other ships. Columns of are arranged in horizontal and vertical 40m2 wired squares, which is significantly larger than those on most cruisers. Despite the fact that each column is subjected to increased stress on impacts, this also cuts down the cost for an otherwise expensive ship. If additional support is needed, or a place for the combat armour to be welded onto, then the squares can be entirely composed of TR steel.

Ships of the Line

 * UNSC Artemis - Flagship of the class, destroyed
 * UNSC Defender - Destroyed at the First Battle of Harvest
 * UNSC Iron Throne - Flagship of the second batch, destroyed during the Siege of Miridem.

Trivia

 * This article is based off the ship of the same name which appears in the mod "Sins of the Prophets".