Hmm, the Eisen being a Vesuvius is one thing I still don't accept... its name is wrong, I insist
. Well, as always, let me present my side...
There is another class of heavy carrier out there - the vessel we saw in Armada. Furthermore, we don't know for certain that there are no other heavy/heavy fleet carrier classes out there... certainly, we never knew there were Plunketts and Murphys out there. I imagine that had anybody suggested the existence of a new Heavy Artillery Cruiser class before SO came out, we probably would have laughed him out of the Chatzone, quoting all the trouble Tolwyn had in WC4 trying to get his precious Vesuvii
. Fact is, ladies and gentlemen, things have been changing in Confed, too. Obviously, ever since Paladin's faction gained a majority in the Senate, the Navy has been seeing an influx of cash (how else, may I ask, would the whole Midway experiment come into being?)
Ergo, there might be other classes of ships we don't know about. Whether they are being produced, and the Eisen is a brand new ship, or whether it was simply an older vessel that was repaired and recommissioned (much like the Lex, except in this case with a new name being given, which does sometimes happen), is irrelevant. What it comes down to is that unless somebody from Origin specifically tells us so, the Eisen cannot be definitely proven to be a Vesuvius class. I can't prove that it actually is a different class, but my argument is sufficient proof that it
need not be a Vesuvius class. And, since your sole argument for it being a Vesuvius is that it can't be anything else, your argument is rendered useless.
BTW, Earthworm, Confed most certainly does maintain a large presence in Kilrathi space... don't ya go quoting False Colours on me, because I've read it
. You must keep in mind that False Colours was a long time ago, and notably the Kilrathi were given leeway because of certain flawed arguments posed by certain treasonous individuals. Since then, many things have obviously changed, and that's why we've got a Naval Station in Tal'q. They may not have heavy fleet carriers, but they sure do have Excaliburs and corvettes (also an unidentified but presumably new class of capital ship, note, since I find it hard to believe they'd be Ventures).
[Edited by Quarto on 01-12-2001 at 03:59]