The Manticore class is a heavy destroy starship based on the earlier Chimera-class heavy destroyer. It has several features from earlier Starfleet designs, such as articulating nacelles (typically found on an Intrepid).

In the wake of the Borg invasion of 2381 and the subsequent skirmishes with the newly formed Typhon Pact, the United Federation of Planets and Star fleet found themselves spread thin and with many starship classes aging, no longer being able to keep up with the growing development of their adversaries. Older starship classes such as the Excelsior and Ambassador classes had been retired. Even the beloved work horse of the Federation for many years, the Galaxy-class was nearing its retirement.

Smaller classes of starships like the Intrepid-class and Nova-class were being replaced by the newer Luna-class starships. The Federation and Starfleet found themselves in a yet another space race with the other super powers in the galaxy as the Romulan Star Empire and Klingon Empire began to produce faster and stronger ships of their own.

Deep space exploration and diplomatic perseverance have been the fundamental missions of the United Federation of Planets and Starfleet since the early days of the NX-01 Enterprise and Captain Jonathan Archer. However, turbulent times and trials fire have lead to the Federation to take into consideration the dangers of exploration and the unavoidable evils of war. With many deep space exploration vessels being cut off from any nearby Federation ships, the Starfleet Corp of Engineers began to design starships that utilized the best of both worlds.

Originally a prototype design for a Heavy Destroyer, the Manticore-class was later altered at the core and cosmetically to serve as a multi-purpose vessel with emphasis being placed on the capabilities of serving Starfleet as a Deep Space and Heavy Escort. A starship that was as much of a science vessel as she was a formidable battleship in times of great need. It took Starfleet years to design and months to build. A costly starship to produce, the Manticore-class is the next generation in ingenuity.

A Commanding Officer's dream and an Engineer's nightmare, the Manticore-class starship is new to Starfleet service as of 2392 with only a couple having been launched and only a few planned. Named after the fabled creature of Persian legend, the Manticore-class is a small yet mighty starship that packs a punch and able to go a few rounds with ships larger than her. She is Starfleet's David, able to bring down some Goliaths as needed. Constructed with a duranium/titanium hull, suited with ablative armor and equipped with multi-layered shielding systems in addition to added regenerative shielding to protect her vital areas, the Manticore-class not only dish out a beating, but also take one.

The Manticore's assets do not end there. She's also fast enough to make those adrenaline junkie helmsmen salivate at their stations. Capable of pushing her engines to their limits, the Manticore can easily break a warp factor of 9. She was also designed with Slipstream engines in mind, though these features have not yet been brought online and remain relatively untested in the field. The major downside to the Manticore-class is the significant power drain that she causes on starship's systems shipwide. Engines have been known to overheat if abused. The power needed to keep the starship running at peak performance does require the starship to replenish her supply of dilithium quite regularly.

These are the specifications for the starship Camelot.

• Class: Manticore
• Role: Heavy Escort/Deep Space Explorer
• Duration: 100+ Years
• Time Between Refits: 24 Years
• Time Between Resupply: 5-10 Years

• Length: 615 Meters
• Width: 402 Meters
• Height: 65 Meters
• Decks: 15

• Officers: 40
• Enlisted Crew: 410
• Civilians: 300
• Emergency Capacity: 2,900

• Cruise Speed: 9.0
• Maximum Speed: 9.99
• Emergency Speed: Slipstream

• Multi-Layered Shielding Systems
• Regenerative Shielding (vital areas only)
• Duranium/Tritanium Double Hull
• Ablative Armor

• 4 Forward launchers
• 3 Aft launchers
• Sensor Jamming Capabilities

• 20 Type XI Phasers
• 80 Quantum Torpedoes
• 80 Photon Torpedoes
• 4 Tri-cobalt Torpedoes

• Shuttlebays: 1
• Shuttles: 4
• Runabouts: 1