We have our latest ship acquisitions from Star Trek Starships, and they are ready for review!

These latest three in this ongoing series include; Issue #11: U.S.S. Reliant NCC-1864, Issue #12: U.S.S. Thunderchild NCC-63549, and Issue #13: Jem'Hadar Battlecruiser.

The solid construction of these models, is again, the first thing that I notice as I take them out of their boxes. Most of each ship is made of metal, with only a minimal amount of resin pieces. The detail of each ship is still amazing to me. They are scaled appropriately, so they don't feel like a little kid's toy, but even at their scale-model size, you can see every detail of the panels and markings that make up the personality of each ship.

After assembling the stands and setting them into their respective one, I notice that some of the stands fit more snugly than others. Once they were on my display shelf I didn't have any issues, but if you plan to take them down to play with ...errrr...I mean, examine...you should be careful when doing so, so you don't accidentally drop either the ship or the stand. I get the feeling that they wouldn't break...but who wants to take that chance.

With each ship comes a corresponding book containing a wealth of information about the individual ship. Be sure to read these books for a ton of great facts, pictures,...and happiness, and interstellar fun, and...well, you get the idea. The following are a few very short excerpts from each book, to wet your appetite.

Issue #11: U.S.S. Reliant NCC-1864

The U.S.S. Reliant NCC-1864 was a Miranda-class starship, a type of vessel employed by Starfleet from the late 23rd century until the late 24th century. There were several slight design variations within the Miranda class, but they were used primarily as science or supply vessels, although they were employed in combat against the Borg and during the Dominion War.

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Some Miranda-class vessels, including the Reliant, were equipped with a weapons 'roll bar' that extended above the rear section of the saucer. This greatly enhanced its firepower as it was fitted with two forward and two aft torpedo launchers in the middle and two tubular phaser banks on each side. Other Miranda-class ships, such as the U.S.S. Bozeman NCC-31911 upon which Benjamin Sisko servid, did not have this 'rollbar', but did have extra cylindrical sensor pods fitted on either side of the saucer section.

Issue #12: U.S.S. Thunderchild NCC-63549

The Akira class entered Starfleet service in the latter half of the 24th century and was built in response to the urgent threats posed by both the Cardassian Wars and the Borg. While exploration remained important to Starfleet, Federation space had become potentially much more dangerous and the fleet had to be equipped to meet these darker times. As such, the Akira class was designed much more for patrol and combat duties.

Unlike many other Starfleet ships that featured a secondary engineering hull, the Akira class comprised of a single primary saucer section, onto the top of which was built a split catamaran-style hull. These beams extended back past the rear of the saucer to a spar, upon the top of which a weapons pod was mounted, while the warp nacelles hung down below on either side.

Issue #13: Jem'Hadar Battlecruiser

The Jem'Hadar battlecruiser was one of three types of ships that made up the backbone of the Dominion fleet in the 2370s. The smallest, and most common, was the Jem'Hadar fighter, the largest was the Jem'Hadar battleship, while the battlecruiser was somewhere in the middle both in terms of size and firepower.

Despite being known as Jem'Hadar battlecruisers, they were in fact not designed or engineered by the Jem'Hadar. Instead, the technology came from the Founders, a race of shapeshifters who ruled the Dominion, a massive interstellar empire that covered large areas of the Gamma Quadrant.

You can sign up for your very own subscription to these warp-speed beauties at Eaglemoss's website.