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Originally invented to deliver crew and supplies to surface mining operations, the Cicada has found use in rapid troop deployment, cargo delivery, and habitat construction.
Its detachable payload container allows easy refitting with various vehicles, prefabricated structures, or heavy-duty tug cables for retrieving crashed spacecraft.
The ablative armor is designed to protect its cargo during re-entry, at which point the craft flips so that its articulating engine pods and aerobraking dragfins can activate. Its rapid deceleration during atmospheric landings is almost intolerable to most crew, but Golbersson Starforge proudly assures customers that no Cicada has ever crashed during the so-called "suicide burns".
That said, the ship specifications state that the landing legs are entirely optional to takeoff and landing, and are considered a comfort feature.
In terms of armaments, the Cicada sports two rapid-fire plasma cannons designed for use in-atmosphere. The dorsal cockpit also allows gives the pilot a wide visual field-of-view, making it easy to utilize the plasma cannons to clear a landing zone before touchdown.
Class: Cicada
Size Rating: Shuttle
Manufacturer: Golbersson Starforge
Dimensions: 20
Impulse: 3
Maneuvering: 3
Range: 2
Hull Stress: 1
Heat: 3
Fuel: 6
The Cicada's interior is modest compared to the craft's overall dimensions. It consists of two compartments not including its payload. The first is a vertical access shaft with a ladder that connects the cockpit to a ventral hatch. That lower hatch may also dock with the payload provided it has an interior. The second compartment is the cockpit which houses a circular set of consoles and seating for a crew of three. While most Cicada missions only require a crew of one, in combat scenarios it can be useful to have one crew as a pilot, a second operating the weapons, and a third coordinating with allied forces and monitoring the situation.
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