Astraeus-class Support Carrier

"Why the hell is there a colony ship in my fleet?"

- Admiral Thibaut Foch

After the successes of war-time refits of Phoenix-class Colony ships, the UNSC Navy commissioned a purpose built military variant, designed to perform combat as part of a fleet. While principally armed with a MAC battery, secondary cannons, and missiles, and carrying fighter complements, their main role is as a fleet support vessel, using on-board factory modules to build the necessary supplies for ongoing combat operations, including ammunition, spare components, satellites, whole vehicles, and pre-fabricated ground bases. In addition, they carry a sizeable ground complement, allowing them to support major offensives, and continue to push the front. They also have high endurance, allowing them to operate far from home. While such abilities make it comparable to the Argo-class Assault Carrier, differences in weaponry and armour make it ill suited for unsupported planetary assault, and instead it works best supporting other vessels.