A cruiser was a designation given to starships, usually capital ships, of varying sizes and capabilities. While usually considered to be reserved for ships around 400-600 meters in size, the term sometimes included corvettes and frigates alongside actual cruisers. Examples included the Consular-class space cruiser, the CR90 corvette, the Arquitens-class light cruiser, the MC80 Star Cruiser, and the Venator-class Star Destroyer, often referred to as a "Republic attack cruiser." The Kilji species' government of the Kilji Illumine used Kilji war cruisers and Kilji picket cruisers.
By the time of the Separatist Crisis, the Jedi Order typically used the Republic's cruisers for its diplomatic missions across the galaxy. However, some tasks required less conspicuous and smaller starships such as the Delta-7 Aethersprite-class light interceptor.
Cruisers, similar to corvettes and frigates, were depended on for a variety of roles, both in civilian and military applications. In military navies, cruisers served the vital role of filling in the space between small starfighters and large capital ships. According to the Anaxes War College System, warships were divided into seven main classifications. Cruisers were classified to be between 400-600 meters, heavy cruisers at 600 to 1,200 meters, and battlecruisers at 2,000 to 5,000 meters. These classifications were flexible, however, and some ships could be moved to a higher or lower class depending on their total firepower and function.
There were multiple sub-classifications of cruisers, including and merchant cruisers. Arrestor cruisers were specialized cruisers that used powerful tractor beam projectors to steer traffic and patrol. An attack cruiser, such as the Venator-class Star Destroyer, was a cruiser honed in for ship-to-ship combat. In the Galactic Empire, attack cruisers were considered a step down from the standard Star Destroyers. A battlecruiser, was a significantly larger type of cruiser. One example of a battlecruiser was the Maelstrom-class, or the Resurgent-class, which was 2,915 meters long. For the Chiss Ascendancy, a battlecruiser was more of a commodious label for midsized alien starships until their capabilities could be better defined.
A dreadcruiser was a type of cruiser used by the Hutts. Meanwhile, a heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser that was larger than the standard, but were classified below destroyers in the Anaxes War College System. Despite this, at least one heavy cruiser, the Subjugator-class, was large and formidable enough to also be considered a battleship, a battlecruiser, and Star Dreadnought. The Subjugator-class was 4,845 meters in length, far longer than the 600 to 1,200 meters that would classify a heavy cruiser in the Anaxes War College System. The MC85 Star Cruiser, another model of heavy cruiser, was 3,438 meters long. Other heavy cruisers included the Dreadnought-class heavy cruiser, the Lioaoin cruiser, the Chiss heavy cruiser, the Emissary-class Republic Cruiser, the Vindicator-class heavy cruiser, and the Interdictor-class heavy cruiser.
Light cruisers were smaller than the standard cruiser, with models including the Consular-class space cruiser at 115 meters, the Arquitens-class light cruiser at 325 meters, the Carrack-class light cruiser at 350 meters in length, and the Imperial Gozanti-class cruiser at 63 meters.
Other cruiser sub-classifications included bulk cruisers, patrol cruisers, picket cruisers, pocket cruisers, Star Cruisers, and war cruisers.
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