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The Star Trek fictional universe has presented a number of designs for Romulan starships. Since Star Trek: The Next Generation, larger Romulan starships have been referred to as Warbirds. Bird of Prey (22nd century) The Bird of Prey was an advanced starship encountered first in the Star Trek: Enterprise episode Minefield named for its aggressive bird-like styling, the earliest featured Bird of Prey was encountered by humans – specifically those aboard the Earth starship ''Enterprise – in 2152, and was revealed to have advanced tactical systems including a cloaking device. This type of Bird of Prey was only seen in the episode "Minefield", at least two were in service in the year 2152 and where encountered when the Enterprise struck a mine during a survey of a Minshara class planet. The two Birds of Prey ordered the Enterprise to leave the system at once notifying them that the planet they had attempted to reach was "annexed" by the Romulan Star Empire. Drone ship The drone ship was designed to be remotely controlled across vast distances of space, using the telepathic abilities of captured Aenars. The vessel was heavily armed and extremely maneouverable, capable of dodging torpedoes fired at close range. The vessel's primary task was to imitate the visual and sensory appearance of alien vessels such as the Andorians and Vulcans using holographic technology and specially configured disruptors, attack a vessel of another race and so create instability and distrust among the powers of the time. Upon its discovery however, the vessels' actions may have served instead to promote greater co-operation. The drone project was overseen by Admiral Valdore, a former Romulan Senator and presumably the namesake of the later Valdore class of Warbird. There were at least two of these vessels constructed by the Empire. The two featured craft were destroyed by each other when the captured Aenar pilot was contacted telepathically by another member of his race. In the original script, Valdore referred to the drone vessels as "Raptors" though this never made it to the screen. Bird of Prey (2260s) The Bird of Prey was a variety of Romulan starship in use during the 2260s (not to be confused with the Klingon platform also known as the Bird of Prey). Ships of this class were built as a saucer-shaped primary hull with two nacelles attached by forward-angled pylons; the most distinctive feature, however, was a red and white bird in flight painted onto the bottom of the hull. According to background lore, the original script for the episode "Balance of Terror" called for the Romulans to have a ship that was a copy of the USS ''Enterprise'', which the Romulans had built using Federation technology that they obtained through espionage. However, the producers ultimately decided to have the Romulan ship only vaguely resemble the Enterprise, as evidenced by the saucer-like hull and cylindrical pylons. In the episode "Balance of Terror", one such vessel crossed the Romulan Neutral Zone, destroyed three outpost satellites, and retreated as a test of Federation strength; however, the Bird of Prey was destroyed by the USS Enterprise before it reached Romulan space, possibly causing the century-long wait before another Romulan vessel was seen. Birds of Prey had advanced weapons compared to Starfleet ships of the period, featuring a cloaking device and powerful plasma-based weapon; however, the ships were slower than Federation craft, possibly even lacking warp drive. This ship also seemed to suffer from an acute fuel shortage in the episode, which implies limited range, and also more of a Federation-style fusion or antimatter-based drive system as opposed to the artificial quantum singularity power sources of the later Romulan ships in Star Trek: The Next Generation. D-7 class
Scout ship This small Romulan vessel was first seen (obliterated) in the TNG episode "The Enemy", and later that season in "The Defector". It is used as a surveying/research vessel and transport. It is a small craft that was observed to hold a crew complement of about three. The class is equipped with deflector shields. Its forward crew cabin has a blunt-nosed profile bearing a distinct resemblance to the 20th century Boeing 747. The ship model was designed by TNG art illustrator Rick Sternbach. The scout ship later received the designation Talon in the Star Trek: Armada computer game, though this name is non-canonical. Known scout ships Science vessel The science vessel was a redress of the scout ship model, though hosts a crew of up to 73. The vessel was known to be equipped with deflector shields. Known science vessels Dderidex-class warbird The D'deridex class, literally "Grand Executioner", also known to Starfleet as a B-type Warbird, is a heavily-armed class of starship used by the Romulans in the mid- to late 24th century. This class was first encountered by Starfleet circa stardate 41986.0 in 2364 when the starship ''Enterprise''-D encountered an example, commanded by Commander Tebok, that violated Federation territory while investigating the destruction of outposts on both sides of the neutral zone (TNG: "The Neutral Zone"). The Romulan class moniker was revealed in the episode "Tin Man". Powered by an artificial quantum singularity, the D'deridex class is substantially larger than a Starfleet ''Galaxy'' class starship, despite most of the Warbird being hollow, and believed to have greater firepower. The D'deridex class served during the Dominion War. On board, decks are lettered and sections numbered: some crew quarters are on C deck and launch bay 3 is on deck E, section 25. In real life, the D'deridex class was designed by Andrew Probert for Star Trek: The Next Generation. Known Dderidex class starships Romulan Shuttle Romulan shuttles are know to be in use in the 2370s and are similar in size to a Federation ''Danube''-class runabout. The only featured vessel of this class was that of Senator Vreenak, shown visiting Deep Space 9, in the episode "In the Pale Moonlight". This type of vessel is known to possess a cloaking device, the ship was seen decloaking after landing at the station, the design scheame and design follows the general Romulan design of a D'deridex-class. The game Star Trek: Armada II refers to this class as the Kestral class, though this name is not regarded as Star Trek canon. Valdore-type The Valdore is a type of starship utilized by the Romulans. This type of starship was first seen in the movie Star Trek: Nemesis. Like the D'deridex class, it is larger than a Galaxy class starship. Very little is known about these ships: they are equipped with cloaking devices and appear to be very manuverable despite their size. In spite of this, the two featured vessels were quickly disabled by the Reman Warbird Scimitar; in comparison, the ''Enterprise''-E was heavily damaged but still able to impair the Scimitar (however it should be noted that the Scimitar intended only to disable the Enterprise-E as Shinzon needed to board the starship and capture Picard alive; he had no reservations about annihilating the other Warbirds). The sleek and modern design is similar in concept to the Klingon Bird of Prey and may have been designed to serve during the Dominion War although may have been developed in response to the new ''Sovereign'' class starship or the ''Negh'Var'' class battleship - two newer designs. At least two starships of the class existed in 2379. The ship's official class designation is unknown: it is listed in the customisable card game as the Norexan-class (Valdore being the name of an individual ship), whilst the Star Trek: Titan novels identify the frame as Mogai class; however, none of the three names have been confirmed onscreen. Due to the named onscreen vessel Valdore, this is how the class is most commonly known. Known Valdore-type starships Trivia | |||||||||
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