Contact Units, particularly the General Contact Unit (GCU), were the primary spacecraft utilized by the Culture's Contact section and they conducted virtually all of Contact's missions, including scientific exploration, diplomatic missions, espionage, and combat. GCUs were not true Culture warships nor did they fully represent the Culture's technological abilities and civilisation, but they were perhaps the most iconic and visible representative of the Culture due to their exploratory and diplomatic role.
Types[]
General Contact Unit[]
General Contact Units (GCU) were the most capable and common type of Contact Unit. Although there were many classes of GCUs over the years, they generally ranged up to 300 meters in length and carried a complement of humans and drones of about 100 to 300 people. For example, both the Escarpment-class General Contact Unit of the late-20th century CE and the GCU Grey Area of c. 19th century CE were designed to carry a crew of 300.[1][2]
Limited Contact Unit[]
The Limited Contact Unit (LCU) was a smaller, less capable Contact Unit. By the 24th century CE, the Scree-class Limited Contact Unit was the smallest ship of this type. Relatively few were built; they were disfavored as the Minds of the Scree-class were regarded as "guaranteed to go a bit mad" due to the extremely small crew size of five.[3]
General Contact Vehicle[]
Although not technically a Contact Unit, a related ship type was the General Contact Vehicle (GCV); GCVs occupied the area between large Contact Units and small Systems Vehicles.[4] Relatively little information is available about GCVs but based on Culture naming convention, unlike Contact Units, a GCV would be expected to possess significantly more manufacturing and ship-building capacity. For example, the Plains-class GCV was 500 meters in length with 3 hanger bays.[5] It was also designed to transport its own crew of 200 along with an additional complement of 800 personnel.[5]
Description[]
Contact Units were equipped with Contact procedures and equipment, which enhanced their information gathering capabilities.[6] GCUs could perform a full scan of a planetary civilization within a few months, in addition to despatching Contact personnel for low-level reconnaissence.[7]
Though not designed as warships, GCUs were nevertheless well armed and capable of very fast travel.[8] GCUs were considered able to "waste planets."[9]
A degree of eccentricity was expected from the Minds of GCUs by their crews.[7]
History[]
The Troubadour-class, an early class of GCU, was in service by c. 6th century BCE. [10]
GCUs bore the brunt of the fighting during early years of the Idiran-Culture War as more dedicated warcraft were constructed.[11]
In the mid-20th century CE, a "million or so" GCUs were extant. Approximately ten thousand[12] of these were constructed by the Infracaninophile manufactory at Yinang Orbital.[13]
See also[]
References[]
- ↑ The State of the Art, chapter 2.1
- ↑ Excession, chapter 9.7
- ↑ The Hydrogen Sonata, chapter 16
- ↑ Matter, chapter 13
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 The Culture: The Drawings, p. 50
- ↑ Use of Weapons, chapter 4
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 "The State of the Art", chapter 2.3
- ↑ Consider Phlebas, The war, briefly
- ↑ Use of Weapons, chapter 1.Three
- ↑ Excession, chapter 2.2
- ↑ Consider Phlebas, chapter 1
- ↑ "The State of the Art", chapter 3.1
- ↑ "The State of the Art", chapter 7
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