200,000 Metric Tons or
20,000 Metric Tons (Home One)
Starfighters: 120 Fighters
36 Bombers
6 Shuttles
Passengers:
1.200
The Rebel Alliance's premier battlecruiser and flagship, the MC-80 was
designed as a galactic commerce and luxury liner by the peaceful, but
highly intelligent, Mon Calamari. There are three examples of the MC-80 in
existence, the largest of the sixteen or so Calamari cruisers. They are Home
One, Independence, and Defiance.
The Mon Calamari Star Cruisers are the main cruisers in the New
Republic's battle fleet. They are durable ships that are as fast and
almost as tough as the larger Imperial Star Destroyers. It must be noted
that even Imperial Navy commanders have reluctantly admitted that the Mon
Cals are superior space combatants.
The Mon Cal cruisers were originally civilian ships designed for pleasure
cruises and colonization efforts. However, when an Imperial ship found the
Mon Calamari homeworld, the Empire's invasion forces were dispatched
immediately. After forcing the Empire from Mon Calamari, the Mon Cals
converted their ships to military duty by adding thick hull plating and
numerous weapon emplacements. The Mon Cals became totally committed to the
Alliance's cause and built huge shipyards in orbit around Calamari.
Each Mon Cal cruiser is unique in design; to the Mon Cals, their ships are
as much works of art as weapons of war. While this individualized design
bewilders most technicians, the Mon Cals fin it a logical approach. Mon
Cal ships are notoriously difficult to repair, but they are so durable
that they are seldom damaged in combat. Notable Mon Cal ships include the
round, blimp shaped Headquarters Frigate (also known as Home One)
and the winged Medial Frigates.
Home One served as Admiral Ackbar's command vessel for the attack on the
second Death Star and went on to excel in a number of other pivotal
battles against Imperial forces. An exceptionally well armed vessel, it
carries an incredible ten squadrons of starfighters, for a total of 120
fighters. Its weaponry includes twenty-nine turbolasers, thirty-six ion
cannons, and multiple tractor-beam projectors and shield generators. Mon
Cal ships have unusually powerful shields; extra shield redundancies allow
the Mon Cals to quickly replace the damaged shield array while in combat,
and this made it much more difficult for Imperial guns to wear down a Star
Cruiser's defenses.
Even standard Mon Cal MC80 cruisers maintain three squadrons of
starfighters (thirty six fighters), forty eight turbolasers, twenty ion
cannons, and six tractor-beam projectors. A number of more powerful
cruisers, including the MC80a, MC80b, and MC90, are being built.
While beings of all species served aboard Mon Cal cruisers, the command
sections are geared specifically toward the Mon Cals unique aquatic
anatomy. Controls are affected not only through computer keyboards, but by
making specific movements in the command chairs- while natural to the Mon
Cals, these movements are often difficult for other species to perform.
Bridge display monitors are geared to the Mon Cals' vision spectrum; to
humans, theses holodisplays seem warped and distorted.
In the early years of the New Republic, the type remained in front-line service as command ships, with Ackbar using the
Independence as his flagship at the Battle of Brentaal IV, and the
Home One leading the fleet at the First Battle of Coruscant, Battle of Bilbringi, and the Second Battle of Ciutric IV.
However, this did not end the careers of the older vessels. The Home One served as a squadron command ship
and remained in commission as the Supreme Commander's personal flagship until 23
after the Battle of Yavin, while the Independence was still on active duty in the early years of the Yuuzhan Vong War, commanding a patrol force based near Mon
Calamari.