Alliance Assault Frigate (Mark II)

• Appeared in:
  
  I
  II
  III
  IV
  V
  VI
  CW

• Size:
  700 meters long

• Weapon:
  15 laser cannons, 20 quad laser cannons, 15 turbolaser batteries

• Affiliation:
  Rebel Alliance

• Type:
  Modified Dreadnaught

• Manufacturer:
  Rendili StarDrive

• 

From the Expanded Universe

To help fill the need for Alliance capital ships, Rebel engineers turned to the frameworks of old, decommissioned Dreadnaught cruisers as a starting point. The notoriously crew-intensive warships were heavily modified, with huge portions of superstructure stripped away in order to lower fuel consumption and increase engine capacity.

Though the modification procedures allowed for some variance among craft, the most commonly recognized assault frigate configuration had huge dorsal fins, extensive automation, and could operate with a crew of under 5,000 -- less than a third of the Dreadnaught's requirements.

A splinter group of Rendili StarDrive designers saw room for improvement in the assault frigate, and covertly developed what was informally dubbed the Alliance Assault Frigate Mark II. Again based off the Dreadnaught shell, this version of the ship incorporated an advanced Mon Calamari-designed deflector shield subsystems that could increase overall shield output for limited stints without burning out the shield projectors. This gave the frigates a short-term tactical advantage.

Not as numerous as the more common "mark I," the Mark II nonetheless saw heavy use, particularly early in the Galactic Civil War. When Rendili StarDrive caught wind of the seditious designers within their ranks, a loyalty purge brought an end to the Mark II project. Though a few Rebel shipyards continued to use the Mark II modification and manufacturing scheme, the Rebellion's internally-designed Mark I stood the test of time. It even remained part of the New Republic fleet in the nascent government's formative years.