U.S.S. Freelander: 1

SHIP: U.S.S. Freelander
CLASS: Marathon

The Marathon-class Cruiser was a United Federation of Planets starship in service during the 2360's. Their service lives were short due to a unique hull design that was costly both to construct and to maintain, lack of speed and poor armament, and concerns about their tactical viability. After only 20 years in service they were subsequently retired altogether. Despite the inherent disadvantages of the design, if upgraded appropriately and handled well, they could be among the most effective, and likely the most expensive, ships in Starfleet.

Originally designated as a Heavy Warship, the most noteworthy design feature was a series of internal cross bracings and honeycombs that made the ships surprisingly resistant to battle damage; ships of the class were able to remain operational despite sustaining breaches to all compartments and losing 90% of their armor.

However, when compared to later ships, the original Marathons were sorely underpowered and under gunned. Their Mark II fusion impulse engines provided but a third of the output of later reactors and their armament consisted of a mere six Phaser cannons and a single Photon Torpedo launcher.

When early frontier encounters with the Klingons proved disasterous, the ships were pulled from the front lines and designated as heavy transports. Their tough hulls allowed several vessels to be retro-fitted for planetary landings and, for a while, they were one of the only Federation starships able to do so effectively. The rest of their lifespan was spent transporting heavy goods out to new colonies and surveying newly discovered planets. A series of smaller 'untility vehicles' were designed to be stored on ship and off-loaded via a heavy duty ramp on the underbelly of the ship.