KDF E7 Class Heavy Cruiser

Description
In the Year 2375 the Klingon High Command decided that a replacement was needed for the aging but reliable D-7 Ktinga class. As a result, 200 were commissioned by council, assigned to Morak for design and construction, the first 25 sent into active service by 2378. IKV certification was granted the following year. It was Morak's intention to honor the original design of the D-7, while incorporating modern innovations in the design.

The ship is reported to be in the same class range, though larger than the original D-7, and has about the same maneuverability and crew compliment. That is where the similarities end, however. The vessel is reported to be faster (though the same speed at impulse, much faster at warp), have more armor, more weaponry and stronger shields than its predecessor. Overall a marked improvement.

This vessel is reported to have a single torp launcher aft and fore, 4 medium long range disruptor cannons (ventral wing pods), 4 fore and 2 aft short range light disruptor cannons, and 5 very short range defensive disruptors located in key positions on the hull (2 Dorsal, 3 Ventral), mainly used to defend against drones, small vessels and torpedoes.

The ship has 4 hangars, one main hanger aft that contains one small drop ship and 3 fighters, one just to the front of the engineering assembly, located on the ventral boom and used primarily for 2 shuttles and storage access, and 2 aft-facing bays on the ventral crew module with 1 shuttle each. Like the D-7, this ship can carry up to 200 ground troops.

The vessels main strength over its predecessor appears to be the addition of extra armor plating without reducing impulse speed and the 4 long range medium disruptor cannons, making the ship much more effective against capital ships. The cannons have a slow firing rate however, so the ship still has to rely on hit and run tactics to stand up against ships outside of its class. The D-7s weakness on its ventral rear hull has been eliminated.

This vessel is reported to be on par with the early Mark 1 Vorcha class cruisers, circa 2351, but is inferior to the improved Mark 2 Vorchas from 2365. As a result of the deployment of this vessel, the D-7 has been reclassified as a cruiser. Mainframe upgrades are expected for this vessel over the next 40 years, with a total expected useful operational age of 120-140 years.
Length: 329m Height: 51m Width: 241m
Decks: 19
Mass: 256,000 metric tons
Complement: 64 Officers, 340 Enlisted (404 Total Standard Crew), 200 ground troops
Power: 1 Type 8 Dilithium Warp Core, 2 Type 4 Fusion Cores
Embarkment craft: 1 Drop Ship, 3 Fighters, 4 Shuttles
Propulsion: 2 STN810 Dilithium Graf Units, 2 SBN20 Impulse Units
Velocity: Warp 5.5 Cruising, Warp 9.0 Maximum Speed
Weapons and cloak: 4 medium long range disruptor cannons, 6 short range light disruptor cannons (rapid fire), 5 very short range defensive disruptors, 2 Type 7 Torpedo launchers, Type J4e Cloak array (4 emitters, 2 coils)
Shields: Type H4, 35 emitters
Armor: Grade 7a