Template:Starfighter-Current The Miy'cal Interceptor was widely utilized during the Hapan civil war and was the main fighter craft of the Draconian Union during the last four decades. It gradually became more common with the other factions of the conflict as time went by. It was designed by Zion Tech and produced in unison with Olanji/Charubah. Even though the fighter had its shortcomings, Miy'cals became very popular since it was easy to produce and faster and easier to maneuver on the battlefield.
History
Development
During the early years of the Hapan civil war, the navies of both sides consisted mainly of large capital ships, and fighter squadrons were reserved for secondary duties. However, as the fighting went on replacing the losses became essential, and House Olanji, which owned Olanji/Charubah provided the Draconian Union with capital ships, while the Sword Confederacy's Hapan Consortium yards were limited to produce smaller craft. As a result the Confederacy relied more on the fighter force to destroy the Union vessels, and in the third battle of Lorell, an entire Draconian Escort Fleet was destroyed by dozens of fighter squadrons, which alarmed the Tarii of the Union. Zion Tech, owned by House Par'wandi and the prime starfighter producer within the Hapes Cluster, was tasked with designing a new superior starfighter to replace the aging Olan'til Interceptor. The Miy'cal Interceptor was created to fill in the need of a fast and agile fighter to protect the convoys and the battle fleets against enemy fighter craft.
Service
When the prototype was produced in 3962, the fighter was the fastest military spacecraft ever tested for use within the armed forces of the (now splintered) Hapes Consortium, but the weakness of the shield were questioned by many. They were readily mass-produced in Olanji/Charubah's Charu Wheels shipyards, but the lack of strong protection put the life of the pilot at danger, and at times that cyborgs were not available it was rather difficult to train pilots at a fast pace. The worries were confirmed on the battlefield, while the Miy’cals were successful at small confrontations against light vessels, it was common to lose an entire wing of them in hours in a major space battle. However, some of the greatest fighter aces of both sides of the Hapan civil war were Miy'cal pilots, due to its incredible speed and manoeuvrability, a good pilot could be really deadly with it.
The decline of Miy'cals started when imported Z-95 Headhunters were introduced to the Royal Hapan Navy after the reunification of the Hapes Consortium. Not only did the Z-95 have stronger protection, but it was also armed with proton torpedoes, making them effective against the heavier ships, as well as fighters. While Z-95 had weaker sublight drives, its manoeuvrability was on par with the Miy'cals. King Andrew I replaced the aged Miy'cals with Z-95s and reassigned the remaining ones to second line duties. Even still Miy’cals can be found on backwater Hapan planets’ militias or as a source of spare parts for Miy'til Interceptors, whose design was mainly inspired by the design of Miy'Cals.
Ship Statistics
Design & Hull
While the development of the Miy'cals were in discussion, it was decided that the ship’s design should be based on an animal that have always been the symbol of speed and agility in the Hapes Cluster; the Alsinian Cave Bat. Resembling an attacking bat, the Miy'cal's laser cannons are located under the front of the cockpit. The hull was very light in order to achieve speed but did not provide as good protection as the previous models.
Armament
The Interceptor’s armament was limited to two heavy laser cannons under the cockpit, and it did not possess any heavier armament against capital ships or large freighters. From the beginning Miy'cal was developed as an anti-fighter weapon so the laser cannons when utilized with agility and speed, proved to be satisfactory for that particular purpose.
Shielding
In order to achieve high level of speed and maneuverability and to make production easier, the shields of Miy'cal were lighter and less advanced than other contemporary craft such as Z-95. The speed of the Interceptor was believed to be its main defence, therefore despite the complaints made by pilots, the shields were never upgraded.
Power & Engines
The initial models of Miy'cal only had sublight drives for short range combat, but over time the necessity of hyperdrives became apparent, especially on escort duty. Therefore all Miy’cals produced after 3974 came with a hyperdrive capable of level 4 speed.
Famous Miy'cal Interceptors
The Flame of Justice
The personalized Miy'cal made for the son of Lady Eledri Olanji; Count Sehar Olanji, Flame of Justice had two concussion missile launchers instead of the hyperdrive, and had stronger shield than regular Miy'cals. Count Olanji enjoyed fighting side by side with the troops and often led the initial wave with his fighter. Painted bright orange, Flame of Justice became a rallying point for all members of the Draconian Fighter Corps until the death of Count Olanji during the second battle of Charu in 3991.
