Ship Designations
As Anla'Shok, we have long been watching for the return of the Shadows. This has required us to follow the activities of other races, to monitor events and shifting spheres, and to be alert for the first signs of the Darkness returning as Valen commanded. Because of this, and the recent addition of humans to the Anla'Shok, we have found a need to devise a system for ship designations which aids us in tracking events and the ships involved.
Ship designations are usually 2 or 3 letter codes which summarize the ship's class, role, and capabilities. We have drawn on traditional classifications for the basic system and adapted them to better suit our needs. We have also seen the value in maintaining consistency with the proprietary labels applied by governments to their ships, though this can sometimes prove challenging-particularly in the case of the humans, who have a habit of "underrating" their warships. This list is meant to provide a fairly standardized designation system which maintains most of the familiarity of the traditional designations while providing some more meaningful classifications.
PRIMARY DESIGNATION
The first letter of the designation represents the ship's hull size, configuration, and the basic mission or role of the ship. These codes are as follows:
| Letter | Meaning |
| A | Auxiliary |
| B | Battleships |
| C | Cruisers |
| D | Destroyers |
| E | Scouts (Electronic Warfare) |
| F | Frigates |
| G | Gunboats |
| L | Landing Craft |
| U | Civilians (unarmed) |
| Y | Fighters |
| Z | Bases |
PRIMARY EXTENSIONS
Primary Extensions are qualifiers on the ship's primary function.
| Letter | Meaning | Examples | Notes |
| C | Cargo transport | AC, UC | Auxiliary only, except for Assault ships |
| M | Merchantman (Cargo + Personnel) | UM | Auxiliary only, except for Assault ships |
| P | Personnel transport | AP, UP | Auxiliary only, except for Assault ships |
| T | Tug, Repair, Salvage, HazMat | AT | Auxiliary only |
| V | Carrier | CV | |
| Z | Tender | AZ, CZ |
ROLE DESIGNATIONS
These designations are used to help define and clarify the exact role of the ship.
| Letter | Meaning | Examples | Notes |
| repeat | Standard role | BB, CC, DD, FF | Only used if there are no other qualifiers |
| H | Standard role, Heavy | CH, CVH, ACH | |
| L | Standard role, Light | CL, FL, CVL | |
| A | Attack, Assault, Strike roles | CA, FHA | |
| E | Escort role | DE, DEG | |
| K | Monitor, System or Planet Defense | DK, ZK | |
| N | Mine Warfare | AN, DN | Further modified under special designations. |
| Q | Patrol (Warships), Armed (Auxiliary) | GQ, CQ, AQ | |
| S | Survey, Exploration | AS, AHS | |
| U | Unarmed (Civilian) | ZU | Usually only used for Bases |
| W | Planetary (World) Bombardment | CW, AQW |
SPECIAL DESIGNATIONS
Finally, it is sometimes desirable to specify special configurations or considerations for ships. These usually indicate a further specialization of the role of the ships:
| Letter | Meaning | Examples | Notes |
| X | Experimental, Prototype | GAX, CHX | |
| J | Command, Flagship | CCJ | |
| I | Minelayers | ANI | Often Auxiliaries |
| O | Minesweepers | DNO | |
| R | Radar, Recon, Scout, ELINT | DER | For ships other than dedicated EE types |
| G | Guided Missile | DEG, FEG | Usually used in Escort roles |
| D | Defense | DED | e.g. Centauri Guardian Arrays |
EXCEPTIONS
As with any rule, there have to be exceptions. Certain classifications of vessels used by various warships are not directly defined within this system. This is particularly troublesome in the case of warships, where they often get labels such as "Corvette" "Dreadnought" or even simply "Warship." We have chosen to keep the system simple, and have only made exceptions where it was deemed necessary to aid recognition.
DN - Dreadnought
BC - Battle Cruiser (The B primary designation is correct, at least)
Corvettes are rated as FL Light Frigates.
Warships are evaluated on an individual basis, i.e., Vorchan Warship is FA.
The Centauri Kutai Gunship actually fits better into the Frigate classification, but Gunboat is used to conform to the "Gunship" name.
NOTES
Ambiguity - Some combinations may at first appear to give multiple meanings, but in such cases there is usually only one classification which make sense. For example, the CC designation indicates a standard Cruiser, for it makes no sense to define a ship as a cargo-hauling Cruiser. If such were the case, extra designations would have been added to help clarify the situation - a cruiser which hauls cargo or personnel is going to be intended for use in assault situations, as is the case for the Narn T'Loth Assault Cruiser, which is assigned the designation of CPA.
This section was produced by Anla'Shok Jamie Coleman.