Technical Jargon

DEW Arrays  |  Photon Torpedoes  |  Missiles  |  Phased/Cloakable Systems  |  Energy Dispersal Shields  |  Gravimetric Shields   |  Phased Shielding  |  StarFighters  |  Computer Systems  |  Neural Implants

DEW Arrays

• DEW stands for Directed Energy Weapons. These are often installed in "arrays," meaning several types of weapons can be fired from the same emitter.
• DEW Arrays consist of one or more of the following: 
  • Shield Disrupters, designed to disable enemy shield systems
  • Laser Disrupters, designed to cause more damage than a phaser
  • Molecule disrupters, designed to break apart molecular and atomic bonds, thus causing instant fusion
  • Phasers, the basic phased energy release.  Similar in effect to a "laser," and based on the same principle, but much more advanced and powerful.

Photon Torpedoes

• Similar to missiles in theory, but more sophisticated.  Torpedoes use on-board computes to find their designated targets, or they can simply be set to home on the closest enemy target.  They carry a package of matter and anti-matter.  There are 2 types of torpedoes, one which is smaller but faster than the other. Photon torpedoes always have some warp capability, and can be fired from warp speeds.

Missiles

• Missiles are simple, propelled packages of some type of explosive element.  The most common is matter and anti-matter, but some missiles carry only anti-matter.  These types of missiles can only be fired against physical targets, since anti-matter explosions are most fierce when there is abundant matter to combine with, which is not found in the partial "vacuum" of space.
• There are many different types of missiles, ranging from small models with no on-board navigation, to larger models that have a long range and advanced guidance systems. These larger models can compare with photon torpedoes, and were developed first - but the standardization of photon torpedoes, combined with their ability to be fired from warp speed, has made them more common on starships.
• Smaller missiles, with limited guidance systems and low range, are often more maneuverable than even the smallest photon torpedoes, and as such are often used on small ships (such as StarFighters) in place of torpedoes.

Phased/Cloakable Systems

• The advent of cloaking systems allowed ships to remain virtually undetected by other ships' sensors.  The only disadvantage to this was collisions, and the fact that cloaking is never perfect.  However, it is effective, and is becoming widely in use on medium size and larger ships.  Cloaking systems often require vast amounts of power, however, it is rumored that some smaller models have been designed that require only minimal amounts of power.  Of course, these systems would be far less effective than the larger systems, however, their use in small applications makes their development a tightly held secret of StarKeith Research & Development.
• Cloaking systems work by cloaking shields, which bend light perfectly around an object.   This requires some amount of computational power, and as such cloaking shields cannot be put in just anywhere.
• Phased systems work on a different system than cloaking, however, the net effect is the same.  Phasing involves placing matter "out of phase" with the rest of the universe, thus rendering it impermeable to any matter or energy.  Depending on how much "out of phase" an object is placed, it could be still slightly felt or acted upon by normal forces, such as gravity and light. 
• The net energy required for phased systems is much larger than for cloaking systems, and so therefore it is only used on ships who's internal power plants can support it.
• The combination of cloaking and phasing systems results in the phased/cloakable system, which renders an object such as a ship or a missile or torpedo totally undetectable by any conventional means.  It is also totally unaffected by shield systems (except for phased shield systems) and as such, phased/cloakable weapons often fly right to the center of an enemy ship and re-phase and explode, usually resulting in the destruction of said ship.  These weapons are very deadly, and as such are governed by a totally separate regulation than for normal space weapons.  Great care is taken to see that these weapon systems are not misused.

Energy Dispersal Shields

• Energy dispersal shield systems disperse energy from a directed energy source (such as a DEW array).  They have no effect on physical matter nor do they keep out all types of radiation (such as light). 
• These type of shields are the most common, and are relatively efficient.

Gravimetric Shields

• Gravimetric shield systems are based on gravity and matter.  They deflect the effects of localized gravimetric distortions (such as those found in some enemy gravimetric weapon systems) and matter. 
• Gravimetric weapons produce small, temporary black holes, which can often take out entire sections of larger ships, or swallow smaller ships whole.  This is a great danger to smaller ships, and also to larger ships.  Thus the development of gravimetric shield systems was a major priority for StarKeith during one of it's encounters to a race using gravimetric weapons.
• In the way of matter, gravimetric shields manifest themselves as a physical surface, off of which solid substances "bounce" off. Depending on the amount of energy (also called "density") that is put into a gravimetric shield, it can block either air, air and water, or air, water, and matter.  Different combinations are possible, but they require sophisticated shield generators and large amounts of energy.

Phased Shielding

• Phased shielding systems are a combination of both energy dispersal and gravimetric shields, however, they are "phased" into different frequencies out of phase with the host ship, sometimes blocking incoming phased weaponry.
• The three different levels of phased shielding are as thus:
  • Level 1:  This level of shielding offers the least protection.
  • Level 2:  This level of shielding changes the phase of the shielding, whereas level 1 does not.
  • Level 3:  This level of shielding not only changes the phase of the shielding, but also actively and passively scans for incoming weapons, and adjusts the shield phase to match.

StarFighters

• StarFighters are a type of fighter designed to be extremely small and maneuverable.   Typically one-man ships, they hardly qualify as deep-space capable.  Most StarFighters have limited range and small fuel capability, however, they are often armed with plentiful (if not as heavily powered) weaponry, and their ability to fly and fight at supralight speeds makes them a valuable asset. 

Computer Systems

• The computer systems of StarKeith are based on FTL (Faster than light, also known as supralight or super-luminal) computing techniques.  The computer cores of all major computer systems are encased in a mild Hyperspace field, allowing the electronic and light impulses within the computer to subjectively travel faster than light, thus decreasing processing time while increasing response time.
• The computer systems of StarKeith are all, to some extent, self-aware.  The master computer of both StarKeith and the Federation is HAL, which is a massive computer installation spanning thousands of star systems and consuming more hard data storage than every brain in every living creature in the entire galaxy.  HAL is technically a living being, and he is interfaced into many aspects of StarKeith.  He offers advice to ship captains and crew via Hyperspace transmissions, and can be a valuable resource due to his immense capacity.
• The computer systems of more modern ships and other structures have what are known as molecular-circuitry in their systems.  This uses the molecular structure of crystals as the actual physical logic units in the computer's CPU's and other devices. 
• Some computers use atomic-circuitry, utilizing the very structure of the atom as the building blocks for the circuits themselves.  These computers have a great deal of power in a very small space, but require extensive support structures.  The HAL core at Keithia under the FOK/StarKeith building is a prime example of this type of computer technology.

Neural Implants

• StarKeith's biological medicine and technology have advanced to the point where the definition between "man and machine" is very narrow, and very fuzzy.   Personnel are regularly implanted with enhanced features, such as min-computers in their brains, wireless computer links, enhanced muscles and other body parts (generally the entire body is enhanced to almost superhuman abilities), and other sensory enhancements. These modifications would qualify most StarKeith personnel as "cyborgs."
• The computer enhancement of the brain allows computers and humans to communicate directly, and this is a great asset in battle situations where immediate responses and actions are required. 
• Neural implants also allow for something called "implant education," where knowledge is fed through the neural implant, and the student learns directly in his/her mind.  It is a most effective way to teach, and is widely adopted for all applications of learning.