Luna-Class AKA Riker's Titan In STO?

[CaptainHoliday]

hey this is a question if we will see the Luna Class in STO as a playable ship. This is the ship class Will Riker took command of in the Titan book series. Riker became Captain of the USS Titan, a Luna-Class ship.

I hope so. I would like Cryptic to clear this up. The Luna-Class is a ship design geared for scientific research and exploration, part of the Federation's push to go to exploration after the Dominion War ended. There a Trek Wiki page on the class, and in the 4th Titan book there are visual charts of the Luna-Class.

It is a cool-sounding ship, bigger than the Intrepid class but smaller than the Akira or Sovereign. But a ship geared for exploration and research sounds appealing to me.

The Luna-Class and the USS Titan was mentioned in the first timeline entry, you can go back and look at the 2379 year.

So can Cryptic clear this up, what do you all think about this?

[Stu1701]

I'd like to see the Luna class in STO. Cryptic has said they would be using the books as influence for the Path to 2409 stories. I don't see why the Luna class shouldn't be a playable ship.

[CaptainHoliday]

I'd like to see the Luna class in STO. Cryptic has said they would be using the books as influence for the Path to 2409 stories. I don't see why the Luna class shouldn't be a playable ship.

The fact that the Luna Class was mentioned in the Path To makes it more plausible definitely.

[Arachnidus]

We've been asking this question for a long time. Sadly, we haven't gotten an answer...

[phifur]

I have no fact's to back this up. Just a feeling I feel the Luna Class will be in the game. Like you said 4 books and the timeline story have the Luna Class. Even the movie Star trek Nemesis talk about Will Riker and the USS Titan. I would be very surprise if the Luna Class is not in the game.

[ransomwk]

They probably have to negotiate rights to use it, but I also hope it's in. If I decide to play Federation I'll definitely have one in my garage.

[dmckey]

That's definitely a cool looking ship I hope to see it in game :). I can't see cyptic having any troubles getting it into the game seeing how they have access to paramount intellectual property rights.

[osena]

Yea the Luna looks real nice form the cover art of that one book but it is not vary well armed

[phifur]

Yea the Luna looks real nice form the cover art of that one book but it is not vary well armed

That makes it all the more challenging. ;)

[Trsmash]

It may not be a direct class in which you can bring up, but odds are that if you can get the Soverign class you can use the ship customization to bring it to the same configuration possibly.

[spskeff2]

I think It was either Kestrel or Awen that twittered yesterday that her whiteboard is FILLED with potential starship class names. I would bank on the Luna class being included.

[ransomwk]

Well they need a top line science ship for the feds, and with the Luna most of the work has been done for them. The dimensions and capabilities are already established, all they would have to do it make the polygons for the game and give it some 2409ish stats.

[PattonJ007]

Yea the Luna looks real nice form the cover art of that one book but it is not vary well armed

Well the Luna Class is an "exploration" vessel ... not a battle cruiser, but then again so were the Intrepid and Sovereign Classes.

[Sark]

Well the Luna Class is an "exploration" vessel ... not a battle cruiser, but then again so were the Intrepid and Sovereign Classes.

The Luna-class still falls into a somewhat different category than either of those vessels, since the Sovereign is a ship of the line and built for multipurpose functioning and the Intrepid was also built specifically to be able to pack a considerable punch in a small, fast package. The Luna's more of a true science vessel, and because of the times it'll still have considerable(ish) armament, but nothing nearly so dramatic, I would think, as either of those classes.

[Arsinoe]

Verry probable it will make the game since its been mentioned in the path to............

[AllahMode]

looks slick tho..

http://www.stogeek.com/w/images/c/cd/Luna_class_starship.jpg

[CaptainHoliday]

looks slick tho..

http://www.stogeek.com/w/images/c/cd/Luna_class_starship.jpg

I could do without the raised part of the hull.

[dru_mcd]

They probably have to negotiate rights to use it, but I also hope it's in. If I decide to play Federation I'll definitely have one in my garage.

Yes, I think you're right. Cryptic might have to buy rights from Pocket Books / Simon & Schuster before they could use the Luna design. It would be nice if they could, though.

[JMD10222]

Yes, I think you're right. Cryptic might have to buy rights from Pocket Books / Simon & Schuster before they could use the Luna design. It would be nice if they could, though.

Maybe,but doesnt CBS have the rights to everything ST?? Anything created for the license is fair game for CBS since they own the IP. Kinda like anything created under the Star Wars license technically belongs to Lucas including fan made fiction.

[Mighty_BOB_cnc]

Yes I would like to see the Luna be a playable class. Although I will admit I only say that because she's a nice piece of eYe candy. >_>

[rencal1975]

Would be very cool to see some ship classes from the book series in the game. The Luna is definitely one that I'm curious about and it would be the shizzle if they put it in the game.

[Azurian]

Maybe,but doesnt CBS have the rights to everything ST?? Anything created for the license is fair game for CBS since they own the IP. Kinda like anything created under the Star Wars license technically belongs to Lucas including fan made fiction.

To clarify who owns the rights, here is the Pocket Books / Simon & Schuster contest rules for the Luna design contest. (It's actually still up on their website):

http://www.simonandschuster.net/content/feature.cfm?sid=44&feature_id=2893


All entries must be original and the sole property of the entrant. Please retain a copy of your submission. All entries and any copyrights therein become the property of Pocket Books and Paramount Pictures and will not be returned. By entering, entrants hereby transfer and assign all intellectual property rights (including, but not limited to, copyright and trademark) in and to the drawing and description, to Sponsors. By entering, entrants agree to abide by these rules and grant to Sponsors the right to edit, publish, display, promote, broadcast and otherwise use their entries without further permission, notice, or compensation, in any media now known, or hereafter developed.

By entering, entrants release Pocket Books, Paramount Pictures and their respective project partners and their respective parent companies, subsidiaries, affiliates, divisions, advertising, production, and promotion agencies from any and all liability for any loss, harm, damages, costs or expenses, including without limitation property damages, personal injury and/or death arising out of participation in this contest, the acceptance, possession, use or misuse of the prize, claims based on publicity rights, defamation, copyright infringement, trademark infringement, invasion of privacy or the violation of any other intellectual property rights.

So there you go, the copyrights belong to both Pocket Books and Paramount Pictures. And since STO is considered a project partner with Paramount, Cryptic should have the rights to put the Luna-class in STO.

[RookActual]

The only reason I think the Luna would not appear in STO is for the same reason I don't believe we'd ever see an Achilles-class, Fek'lhr, Premonition or a few others. They were designed by another game developer, and while Paramount owns the license, I know that I would not like to duplicate something from a 'competitor'....as it would seem an admission that I lack creativity.

Yes, of course there are vessels Cryptic had no say in the design of that they will incorporate, but that's because they were 'root license' designs and many will be heavily demanded by fans. I wouldn't expect to see vessels designed by other game publishers/developers, though. That does not entirely cover the Luna, as it has only appeared in novel form to my knowledge, and I hope that it does not, as it is a unique vessel..

[Velociraptor]

I just had an odd thought, and I'm not sure if it's appropriate for this thread but as the Luna-class is more of a science vessel, would it have Higher stats for sensors and scientific stuff? maybe faster too rather than a militaristic akira class. You could have military, Diplomatic, and Scientific classes with different specialties and stats in general. Maybe for the ship-maker thing each part will have certain stats correlated with it, and the prebuilts would be stereotypes of specialization in one of those three. Or maybe four categories, you could have economic class too:p

again I didn't want to hijack or kill this thread I just wasn't sure there was one for this particular topic. And all your talk about the scientific and exploration-specific Titan with less weapons got me thinkin...

[THORN74]

The only reason I think the Luna would not appear in STO is for the same reason I don't believe we'd ever see an Achilles-class, Fek'lhr, Premonition or a few others. They were designed by another game developer, and while Paramount owns the license, I know that I would not like to duplicate something from a 'competitor'....as it would seem an admission that I lack creativity.

Yes, of course there are vessels Cryptic had no say in the design of that they will incorporate, but that's because they were 'root license' designs and many will be heavily demanded by fans. I wouldn't expect to see vessels designed by other game publishers/developers, though. That does not entirely cover the Luna, as it has only appeared in novel form to my knowledge, and I hope that it does not, as it is a unique vessel..

i agree cryptic wouldnt want to use a competitor's desgin, but in this case the LUNA class was designed for the novels and not by a competing game company. The Designer of the LUNA class has posted on these forums. Personally i think the ship is pretty kool. though i like the "mirror verse" version better, and i am not a big fan of the roll bar sensor platform.

i would also like to see the VESTA class (uss Aventine - Ezri Dax's ship) in STO as well. Though the desgin for this class hasnt been released yet. There have been some WIP shots and they look promising. its going to debut in the 2010 SHIPS of THE LINE CALANDER.

[Kinjiru]

Interesting, it's mentioned on Beta as a Luna class, but on M-A the class remains unknown, with a possibility in a non-canon source suggesting that she was a Prometheus class ship.

http://memory-alpha.org/en/wiki/USS_Titan

It was never canonically revealed what type of ship the Titan was supposed to be, and it was never shown on screen. In non-canon source, the supplement Starships released for the Decipher Star Trek Roleplaying Game, suggests the Titan was a brand-new Prometheus-class vessel. In the novel series Star Trek: Titan, it is stated that the Titan was not the first ship of its class, with that honor going to the pathfinder of the class, the USS Luna, and that all Luna-class ships, such as the Titan, were named for moons in the Sol system. The novels also suggested the ship's registry number to be NCC-80102. Neither of these are canonical.

Pocket Books has released a series of novels, called Star Trek: Titan, which is based aboard Riker's ship. A competition to design the new vessel was held. Despite early conjectures that the Titan would be as large as its name suggests, the stipulations of the contest reveal that the ship is approximately 450 meters long, which is notably smaller than the last two starships Enterprise, and is only slightly bigger than the Intrepid class. The contest rules established that within the novels' continuity, the Luna class has a crew complement of 350 and is intended as an extended-mission, deep-space explorer, apparently as a result of Starfleet's efforts to get back on an exploration standing following the Dominion War.

So, are we accepting M-B as canon "enough" in this case?

[Azurian]

The only reason I think the Luna would not appear in STO is for the same reason I don't believe we'd ever see an Achilles-class, Fek'lhr, Premonition or a few others. They were designed by another game developer, and while Paramount owns the license, I know that I would not like to duplicate something from a 'competitor'....as it would seem an admission that I lack creativity.

Yes, of course there are vessels Cryptic had no say in the design of that they will incorporate, but that's because they were 'root license' designs and many will be heavily demanded by fans. I wouldn't expect to see vessels designed by other game publishers/developers, though. That does not entirely cover the Luna, as it has only appeared in novel form to my knowledge, and I hope that it does not, as it is a unique vessel..

Well, normally you are right. Game developers who designed in-house have those copyrights, with permission from Paramount.

But you have to look at who owns those rights. For instance, those ships you mention from Dominion Wars, the ships were from Gizmo Games. (Simon and Schuster were the publishers, they don't hold the copyright to the design). And Gizmo went out of business, so the owner still holds those copyrights.

The Starships used in Armada, belong to Activision, which is part of Blizzard. So you won't see those creations available.

With the ships used in Starfleet Command, they were based off the FASA games and therefore not owned by Paramount. However, the game company that used them was Interplay. They were bought out by Atari, which is the parent company to Cryptic. So Cryptic should be able to put the the Fek'lar warship in STO.

[RookActual]

Well, normally you are right. Game developers who designed in-house have those copyrights, with permission from Paramount.

But you have to look at who owns those rights. For instance, those ships you mention from Dominion Wars, the ships were from Gizmo Games. (Simon and Schuster were the publishers, they don't hold the copyright to the design). And Gizmo went out of business, so the owner still holds those copyrights.

The Starships used in Armada, belong to Activision, which is part of Blizzard. So you won't see those creations available.

With the ships used in Starfleet Command, they were based off the FASA games and therefore not owned by Paramount. However, the game company that used them was Interplay. They were bought out by Atari, which is the parent company to Cryptic. So Cryptic should be able to put the the Fek'lar warship in STO.

My point was more or less aside from copyright. I just don't expect to see such ships, out of creative self-respect

[FelFox]

Well, the ship's looks were designed for the books, but you have to remmeber that this was a new ship class designed in star trek. Riker was supposed to captain it in Nemesis and Picard makes mention too so it is a true canon ship, however it was never actually shown or explained what it was.

Personally I don't think Cryptic would worry too much that it's only looks come from a book, they all technically work together so it should be fine. That and I really really want one hehe.

[CaptainHoliday]

Well, the ship's looks were designed for the books, but you have to remmeber that this was a new ship class designed in star trek. Riker was supposed to captain it in Nemesis and Picard makes mention too so it is a true canon ship, however it was never actually shown or explained what it was.

Personally I don't think Cryptic would worry too much that it's only looks come from a book, they all technically work together so it should be fine. That and I really really want one hehe.

I agree totally

[Interdictor]

looks slick tho..

http://www.stogeek.com/w/images/c/cd/Luna_class_starship.jpg

I think it would look better if the "upper pod" was mounted further back - like in the same spot where the nacelles meet the secondary hull instead of the aft saucer.

[Devren]

From Simon & Schuster:


The Ship:
U.S.S. Titan, NCC-80102, Luna-class. The Titan is a midsize Starfleet vessel, approximately 450 meters in length (larger than the U.S.S. Voyager, smaller than the Enterprise-D), with a crew complement of 350. Titan's hull configuration is comparable to other established Starfleet vessels.


The Luna-class is Starfleet's newest-generation long-range explorer, a starship not built specifically for combat, but like the Constitution-class of the previous century, a vessel designed for a long-term multipurpose mission into uncharted space. Equipped with conventional tactical systems (deflector shields; phasers; quantum torpedoes), Titan also boasts state-of-the-art propulsion and cutting-edge scientific equipment, as well as being a testbed for experimental science tech not yet available on other classes.

The Titan is manned by the most varied multispecies crew in Starfleet history, with humans taking up less than 15% of the 350-member crew. The diversity of the crew is intended to facilitate stories that will explore the ways that beings of different cultures, biologies, psychologies, and physical appearances learn how to work together, or fail to, depending on the circumstances they encounter. Titan has eight shuttlecraft of various sizes.


The story behind the Luna-class:
The Luna-Class Development Project was initiated in 2369 in response to the discovery of the Bajoran wormhole, and originally conceived as leading a planned Starfleet wave of deep-space exploration in the Gamma Quadrant. The project was spearheaded by Dr. (Commander) Xin Ra-Havreii, a Starfleet theoretical engineer at Utopia Planitia. Field testing on the prototype U.S.S. Luna was under way by 2372 in the Alpha Quadrant, and construction of the fleet was scheduled to begin the following year. Unfortunately, contact with the Dominion and the subsequent outbreak of hostilities mothballed the project indefinitely, as Starfleet redirected its shipbuilding resources to the production of vessels better suited to combat.

Upon the war's end in late 2375, Dr. Ra-Havreii correctly judged that the Federation's cultural psychology would eventually shift back toward its pre-war ideals, and pushed to have the Luna-class revisited as a major step toward resuming Starfleet's mission of peaceful exploration (even though the class would no longer be assigned exclusively to the exploration of the Gamma Quadrant). Construction of an initial fleet of twelve Luna-class vessels was completed by 2379, and the Titan was offered to William T. Riker, one of many command officers eager to put the strife of the last decade behind him.

The Luna-class fleet:
The ships of the Luna-class are all named for moons in
Earth's solar system:

Amalthea
Callisto
Charon
Europa
Galatea
Ganymede
Io
Luna
Oberon
Rhea
Titan
Triton


Update 3.25.07 From Trekweb interview with
Geoffrey Thorne on Upcoming Star Trek Titan Novel


Q : What are your feelings about the Titan starship design by Sean Tourangeau and the Sword of Damocles cover art by Ellery O'Connell ?

My feelings about Sean's design can be summed up in one word. GENIUS. There was some groussing about his design from some quarters just after the contest was over but, for me, this is the only way TITAN could have looked. Sean got the era of design right, I think he incorporated the Luna class mission of pure exploration perfectly. Wouldn't change a thing. The cover is equally stellar. And I may have a surprise or two for Sean in SWORD OF DAMOCLES as well. I hope he'll forgive any dings to the hull.

http://stourangeau.deviantart.com/art/U-S-S-TItan-Schematics-2008-73921836

Sorry, couldn't help myself... here are some more pictures for those of you that might not have seen some of the fan-art and books cover:
AC
(1) http://fc01.deviantart.com/fs27/f/2008/036/3/3/U_S_S__Titan_Wallpaper_by_SpecterTerrasbane.jpg
(2) http://www.shipschematics.net/startrek/images/federation/galexploration_titan.jpg
(3) http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/startrek/images/4/4c/USS_Titan.jpg

enjoy ;-)

[RookActual]

I only dislike the struts, how they curl and taper, gives the ship the appearance of a frog or something to me and the nacelles seem far too oversized. It's better than I could draw, and I hate being critical of someone more talented than me, but the design of it is just not that appealing to me. It's really the dorsal and side views that ruin it for me.

[Hurlbut]

Look like 6 torpedo tubes, four fore (2 in pod, 2 on underside of engineering hull) and 2 afts (1 in pod, 1 between shuttlebay and very bottom of engineering hull). 6 tubes isn't only indicative of combat power, it can also mean the ability to put more probes out at once.

[THORN74]

Look like 6 torpedo tubes, four fore (2 in pod, 2 on underside of engineering hull) and 2 afts (1 in pod, 1 between shuttlebay and very bottom of engineering hull). 6 tubes isn't only indicative of combat power, it can also mean the ability to put more probes out at once.

everything in the pod is science related, so the tubes up there only have probes. I suppose they could reconfigure the tubes to fire torpedos (shouldnt be hard), and they could beam the torpedos from the lower deck storage to the pod.

the LUNA class, and TITAN specifically, is suppodes to have the most advanced sensors in all of starfleet. most of them are housed in the pod.

[Hurlbut]

everything in the pod is science related, so the tubes up there only have probes. I suppose they could reconfigure the tubes to fire torpedos (shouldnt be hard), and they could beam the torpedos from the lower deck storage to the pod.

the LUNA class, and TITAN specifically, is suppodes to have the most advanced sensors in all of starfleet. most of them are housed in the pod.
Several probes used torpedo casings. The Pod's tube external ports look same as the bottom ones, so it is feasible that these tubes can use torpedoes or at least their casings.

[JMD10222]

To clarify who owns the rights, here is the Pocket Books / Simon & Schuster contest rules for the Luna design contest. (It's actually still up on their website):

http://www.simonandschuster.net/content/feature.cfm?sid=44&feature_id=2893




So there you go, the copyrights belong to both Pocket Books and Paramount Pictures. And since STO is considered a project partner with Paramount, Cryptic should have the rights to put the Luna-class in STO.

Question answered :D Thank you Az ;)