UNSC destroyer

Destroyer is a warship classification in the UNSC Navy, as well as the now-defunct Colonial Military Administration. Its hull classification symbol is DD. Fast, maneuverable, and designed for long-term endurance, destroyers are intended to escort larger vessels such as cruisers and carriers.

Classes

The Navy has made use of several destroyer classes which vary widely in design.

Standard class

The most common destroyer type used during the Human-Covenant War and the later years of the Insurrection features a distinctive "arrowhead" profile. At 485 meters, it is only seven meters longer than a Stalwart-class light frigate, yet it has almost double the mass; this is because they have between one-and-a-half to two meters of titanium-A armor. This class' armament consists of two Magnetic Accelerator Cannons, twenty-six oversized Archer missile pods, and three Shiva-class nuclear missiles. For defense against single ships the destroyer carries eight twin-linked 50mm point-defense autocannons. Unlike most UNSC warships they do not carry GA-TL1 Longsword interceptors.

Such vessels were in service as early as 2517 and continued to serve throughout the Human-Covenant War. Despite their powerful armament and maneuverability, many Fleet officers looked down upon destroyers, considering them too ineffective against Covenant ships. It was generally agreed that seven destroyers were a match for four Covenant frigates. One of the most notable destroyers was the Template:UNSCship, captained by Commander Jacob Keyes, which performed the daring Keyes Loop during the Battle of Sigma Octanus IV.

Heavy destroyer

Main article: UNSC heavy destroyer

The heavy destroyer class has been in service with the Navy since at least the late 2490's. In 2497, the heavy destroyer UNSC Gorgon was the first ship of its class to be armed with a Magnetic Accelerator Cannon, for which the ship carried only three slugs. Then-Captain Preston Cole served on this ship during the Insurrection. The Gorgon was later assigned to Admiral Cole's fleet during the Human-Covenant War.

Heracles type

Similar in design to a cruiser, the CMA destroyer Heracles belonged to an unidentified class. The Heracles was the command ship of Battlegroup 4 following the disastrous first contact with the Covenant.

DD-993 type

This type of destroyer appears heavily armored and has two thrust nozzles. It has a wide beam and is almost equally tall. Numerous large antennae are mounted across the hull. The only known vessel of this class, hull code DD-993, deployed an ODST-Spartan team during a raid on Heian at some point between 2540 and 2551.

Gallery

• UNSC Heracles.png

  The destroyer CMA Heracles transitioning from slipspace.

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  Heracles, accompanied by two frigates, emerges from slipspace.

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  The Heracles over Harvest with Battlegroup 4.

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  The destroyer The Heart of Midlothian.

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  A schematic of the The Heart of Midlothian.

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  The destroyer UNSC Pioneer.

• Covenant stealth ship collides with UNSC Iroquois.jpg

  The Iroquois collides with a Covenant stealth ship.

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  The UNSC Iroquois from its bow, unleashing a full volley of Archer missiles.

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  Concept art of the UNSC The Heart of Midlothian.

• Legends ship 1.png

  DD-993 near Heian.

Browse more images in this article's gallery page.

List of appearances

• Halo: The Fall of Reach (First appearance)
• Halo: First Strike
• Halo: Ghosts of Onyx
• Halo: The Cole Protocol
• Halo Wars: Genesis
• Halo Wars (Mentioned only)
• Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe
  • Midnight in the Heart of Midlothian
  • The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole
  • Dirt
• Halo Legends
  • Prototype (Mentioned only)
  • The Babysitter
• Halo: Fall of Reach - Boot Camp
• Halo: Glasslands
• Halo: Fall of Reach - Covenant
• Halo: Fall of Reach - Invasion