Chaos Escort
The smallest and most common type of warship available, Chaos Escorts are lightly armed and armored, but compensate for this by being extremely fast and manoeuvrable. As their designation suggests, they often accompany larger ships during fleet actions, screening them against torpedo attacks or enemy escorts.
In the Fleets of Chaos, Escorts normally act as raiders, penetrating deep into Imperial Space to prey on vulnerable supply ships and transports. Weak individually, such Raiders group up in squadrons for both mutual protection.
Since Chaos fleets are generally very heavy on the Cruiser and rarely have anything between escort and capital ship, they wisely (wisdom should be Chaos heresy) have pretty powerful escorts for their size and cheap enough to come in ridiculously vast numbers. Pretty good at countering Imperial torpedo spam, too. Or rival Chaos fleets' attack craft.
Escorts fall under two broad types: the much larger Raider, which is better-armed and protected, and the smaller Destroyer, which is a lot nimbler and faster.
Destroyer
Ordnance-boat
Iconoclast
A constant peril to shipping, roving squadrons of these Destroyers are a regular part of pirate fleets. Weak on their own, this is normally compensated by sheer numbers, and enough Destroyers working together can even bring down a Cruiser. Other than swarm tactics, they are usually seen engaging enemy escorts, destroying attack craft, and shooting down incoming torpedoes.
The Iconoclast itself is armed by a short-ranged Weapons Battery turret. Sooo...what are those tubes on the sides for if not guns or torpedoes? Chaos, that’s what. Being crazy-stupid for its own sake. Lore-wise it is actually a well-armed ship.
...This ship does look pretty cool, though. Rogue Traders like it.
- Length: 1.3km
- Mass: 6.1 megatonnes approx
- Crew: 16,500 crew, approx
- Acceleration: 7.2 gravities max sustainable acceleration
Raider
Basic
Infidel
Jokes aside, originating from the Monsk orbital shipyards, this was meant to replace the Cobra-class Destroyer, the designs were found to have been stolen. A few years later, ships bearing the same description were reported to be attacking Imperial supply convoys. As a result of this, the class was redesignated as the Infidel.
Imperial efforts to reconstruct the stolen plans resulted in the development of the Falchion Escort class. In 938 or 939.M41, the two "sister" classes (the Falchion and the Infidel) would confront each other for the first time in a naval battle over Sabatine.
The Infidel is armed with front Torpedo tubes, as well as a short-ranged Weapons Battery in front.
- Length: 1.8-2km; approx
Lance-boat
Idolator
A giant tuning fork with rocket engines.
Said to be the product of the Dark Mechanicus Forge World of Xana II, the Idolator-class Raider incorporate features and systems of possibly xenos origin. These ships were also infamous for their incredible long-ranged gunnery, which points to a targeting system that the Adeptus Mechanicus cannot readily duplicate.
It is easily identifiable for its bizarre prong-shaped prow. Don't ask us why the forces of Chaos like to stick four flimsy-looking prongs at the front of their ship, it is not like it is reinforced to withstand a ram like their Imperial counterparts.
The Idolator is armed with a short-ranged front-facing Lance battery as well as a mid-ranged Weapons Battery.
- Length: 1.8-2km; approx
In Battlefleet Gothic
The cheapest and smallest ship type available, the Escorts are also some of the fastest and agile ships available. There is no limit to the number of Escorts that can be included in a list except points, so use them to round of a fleet.
That aside, use Escorts to screen your much more expensive units from Ordinance or Torpedoes, or harass isolated ships.
In Battlefleet Gothic: Armada 1 & 2
Much like their counterparts on the tabletop, Escorts are cheap and quick ships. Aside from their obvious role as Torpedo screens for much more expensive vessels, they've also been used as scouts and spotters.
| Vessels of the Traitor Legions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spaceships | ||
| Space Station | Blackstone Fortress | |
| Super Battleships | Abyss | |
| Battleships | Battleship (Gloriana - Planet Killer) - Ark of Omen | |
| Cruisers | Light Cruiser - Cruiser Heavy Cruiser - Grand Cruiser | |
| Escorts | Escort | |
| Others | Silver Tower of Tzeentch | |
| Combat Spacecraft | Doomfire Bomber - Swiftdeath Fighter | |
| Landships | ||
| Siege Carriers | Siege Carrier | |
| War Machines | Chaos Harvester - Nurgle Plague Tower - Woe Machine | |
| Titans | Questor Scout Titan - Slaanesh Subjugator Feral Scout Titan - Ravager Battle Titan Chaos Warlord Titan - Chaos Emperor Titan Skull Reaper | |
| Troop Transports | Mastodon | |
| Superheavy Tanks | Baneblade - Fellblade - Plaguereaper Tower of Skulls | |
| Airships | ||
| Flying Fortress | Harbinger | |
| Aerospace Vessels | Stormbird | |
| Seaships | ||
| Oceanic Battleships | Oceanic Battleship | |