IPV-1 System Patrol Craft
The IPV‑1 is a typical system patrol craft, a starship designed to guard a single star system. Built by Sienar, the IPV‑1 was originally designated the Independent Patrol Vehicle to represent its primary mission—operating independently in antipirate and antismuggling activities. After the rise of the Empire, it was designated an Imperial Patrol Vehicle, though little else changed. Ships of this type are also called monitors or system frigates.
Since a system with a serious problem is likely to have larger and more powerful fleets assigned to it, IPV‑1s are used only to hold down essentially secure systems and rarely get the most promising recruits as crew. IPV‑1 crews also develop strong relationships with local officials and businessmen, since the IPV‑1 has no hyperdrive and is normally assigned to the same system for years at a time. This situation leads to creeping laxity regarding military protocol, or even corruption and outright rebellion. An IPV‑1 makes a perfect pirate ship if it can find a vessel able to carry it through hyperspace or can have a hyperdrive installed—a fact not lost on the crews of such ships.
Capabilities
Though a capital ship, an IPV‑1 isn’t primarily designed to fight other capital ships. It’s an antipirate vessel, focused on catching and destroying smaller ships, especially armed light freighters. An IPV‑1 can take a considerable amount of damage for its size, but its short-range light turbolasers pose little threat to anything bigger than a frigate. As its crews are fond of saying, however, an IPV‑1 can outrun anything it can’t outfight. Lacking a hyperdrive of its own, an IPV‑1 depends on powerful ion engines to get it into action before targets can escape into hyperspace.
During the Galactic Civil War, numerous IPV‑1s were used for missions far from their original design expectations. Before the development of the Lancer‑class frigate, some Imperial commanders used spare IPV‑1s as escort vessels, either carried inside a Star Destroyer or equipped with jury-rigged hyperdrives.
Tactical Fire: As a standard action, an IPV‑1 system patrol craft can forgo all attacks to provide tactical fire to all adjacent squares. All attacks made against enemy starships of Colossal size or smaller within that area score a critical hit on a natural 19 or 20 (though a natural 19 must still be able to hit the target’s Reflex Defense, or else the attack misses).
Sienar Fleet Systems IPV-1 System Patrol Craft (CL 13)
Starships of the Galaxy, page 140.
Colossal (frigate) capital ship
Initiative: +0; Senses: Perception +5
Defenses: Fort 36, Ref 17 (flat-footed 12) ; +12 armor, Vehicular Combat
Hit Points: 660; DR: 15; SR: 165; Damage Threshold: 136
Speed: fly 4 squares
Ranged: point-defense light turbolasers +2 (see below) and
medium concussion missiles +2* (see below)
Fighting Space: 1 square (starship scale); Cover: total
Base Attack: +0; Grapple: 46
Abilities: Str 63, Dex 20, Con —, Int 14
Skills: Initiative +0, Mechanics +5, Perception +5, Pilot +0, Use Computer +5
Crew: 12 (normal); Passengers: 10 (troops or prisoners)
Cargo: 200 tons; Consumables: 1 month; Carried Craft: 2 shuttles
Payload: 24 medium concussion missiles
Hyperdrive: Not equipped
Availability: Military; Cost: not available for sale (black market value 3,000,000 used)
* Apply a −20 penalty on attacks against targets smaller than Colossal size.
Point-defense light turbolasers (gunner)
Attack: +2, Damage: 2d10×2
Medium concussion missiles (gunner)
Attack: +2 (−18 against targets smaller than Colossal)), Damage: 8d10×2, 4-square splash