The Titan Heavy Lift Vehicle (HLV) is the Protectorate’s primary interstellar troop transport. They are designed to move large amounts of troops and heavy equipment quickly and safely from one star system to the next, and deliver them in potentially hostile conditions. These are the ships that are required to move large combat vehicles such as the Trebuchet and the Wolfhound. Each Titan can move an entire platoon of tanks, APCs or combat robots and their crews, or an entire company of marines. The HLVs are a heavily-used workhorse during wartime operations. While the Protectorate can employ a variety of transports for hauling goods and material, special considerations required a unique vehicle for transporting men and weapons of war. Combat vehicles tend to be heavy, and also travel with massive amounts of ordinance. Their crews need accommodations as well. The same goes for combat personnel. These are needs a normal transport often cannot meet. The Titan, with special vehicle bays, ordinance racks and, essentially, an internal barracks, can take just about any ground force anywhere. The Titan comes equipped with 240 sleeper pods (used both for hibernation and as normal beds), a galley, showers and heads. A colonial marine company typically consists of about 180 personnel. The Titan itself has a crew of 18, most of whom stay awake through all but the longest voyages (three weeks or more). Colonial marines always hibernate on any trip of longer than three days. Though it is a transport vessel, the HLV has powerful defensive weaponry. It has a large medium-range missile launcher, particle beam cannon and defensive rail guns. These armaments are not enough to make it a combat vessel, but they are excellent at providing the ship enough breathing room to land, drop its cargo, and take off again. Still, HLVs are always escorted by fighters, pinnaces, frigates or destroyers. HLVs are usually sent in large numbers, as part of a task force whose specific job it is to deliver them into a hot zone. Such a task force usually includes a cruiser, an escort carrier and a number of frigates, destroyers and pinnaces. The larger ships carve a way through the system to the target planet, and the pinnaces and fighters escort the HLV’s groundside. Enjoy, and let me know what you think.