Throwing my modest designs into the fray... enjoy or rip apart, your pick.

The foundation of the Republican Pathfinders was a landmark in the history of human space exploration. Their mission was to find a safe normal-space route through the Sargasso Deeps, a huge wasteland of rocks, radioactivity and unstable gravitic anomalies that made straight-line hyperspace jumps through it a dangerous - if not suicidal - proposition. It took ten years and a fleet of a thousand brand new ships, but the Terran Republic cheered them on as they neared the end.

Until, you know, they actually reached the other side.

The public, with its typical mercurial nature, forgot about the Pathfinders, and with public interest went government funding. So now, having saved the galaxy for commerce, the Pathfinders do commission work for some of the major corporations of the galaxy, mapping out hazardous sectors and escorting vulnerable caravans through hostile territory.

All of the Pathfinders are master-grade astrogators at least, their commanding officers have uncanny instincts when it comes to hyperspacing, and every last one of them is nuttier'n a can of cashews. Heaven forbid someone should keep them from going where they want to - all of their ships are outfitted with surplus thermonuclear weapons, and they don't shy away from using them.

The following is a list of ships found in the typical Pathfinder Expeditionary Fleet. All ships are comparably advanced to the average univeral fleet. (All TLs are 0.)

Striker class Corvette (71)
Hull: 3 2 1
Engines: 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Shields: 2 1
[a] Kinetic Autocannon [2/4/6, 3+, 2/1/1]
ABCD
[ b ] 1Kt Thermonuclear Mortar [4/8/12, 4+, 1/1/2, Expendable]
AB, AC, AC, BD, BD
Hyperdrive [O], Armor Plating, Electronic Warfare System [O], Long Range Sensors [O]
1[HEQ], 2[2Ea], 3[HEb], 4[ESb], 5[HSb], 6[EQb]

Trailblazer class Frigate   (227)
Hull: 6 5 4 3 2 1
Engines: 6 5 4 3 2 1
Shields: 3 2 1
[a] Twin Kinetic Autocannon [2/4/6, 3+, 3/1/1]
ABCD
[ b ] 1Kt Thermonuclear Missiles [4/8/12, 4+, 1/1/2]
ACE, ACE, BDF, BDF
[c] 1Mt Thermonuclear Missiles [4/8/12, 4+, 1/1/3]
AB
Hyperdrive [O], Armor Plating, Security Team [OOOOOOOOOO], Drone [OOO]
1[HQ], 2[EQ], 3[Ha], 4[Eb], 5[Hb], 6[Sc]

Cartographer class Destroyer   (297)
Hull: 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Engines: 5 4 3 2 1
Shields: 3 2 1
[a] Heavy Kinetic Autocannon [3/6/9, 3+, 1/2/2]
ACE, BDF
[ b ] 1Mt Thermonuclear Missiles [4/8/12, 4+, 1/1/3]
AB, AB
[c] 1Mt Neutron Missiles [4/8/12, 4+, 1/1/3, No Hull Damage, Extra Crew Casualties]
AC, BD
Hyperdrive [O], Armor Plating, Security Team [OOOOOOOOOO], Drone [OO], Spinal Mount (9/18/27) [O], Long Range Sensors [O]
1[HQ], 2[EQ], 3[Ha], 4[Eb], 5[Hc], 6[S]

Plunder class Command/Cargo Ship   (308)
Hull: 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Engines: 1
Shields: 5 4 3 2 1
[a] 1Kt Thermonuclear Missiles [4/8/12, 4+, 1/1/2]
AC, BD, EF
[ b ] 1Mt Thermonuclear Missiles [4/8/12, 4+, 1/1/3]
AB, AB
[c] 1Mt Neutron Missiles [4/8/12, 4+, 1/1/3, No Hull Damage, Extra Crew Casualties]
AB
Hyperdrive [O], Armor Plating, Security Team [OOOOOOOOO], Cargo Bays
1[Ha], 2[Eb], 3[Hc], 4[S], 5[H], 6[Q]