// Threat Assessment · Hostile
Classification: S.C.A.R. Small Craft
◀ Small Craft Registry
Ripper
Boarding Craft
S.C.A.R. · UGA Threat Assessment
// Ripper · Recovered Gun-Camera Still
TypeConverted small craft
ProfileSmall, heavy for its frame
ToolSingle arm · heavy cutting claw
PropulsionOversized side thrusters for pulling torque
TargetsComms arrays, fins, propulsion feeds
DeploymentNever alone
LossesFrequent when the press fails
Assessed ThreatLow to escorted traffic · high to any hull caught alone
Status Active Threat
"Most of what we know came from the ones that failed."
// Assessment Summary
A ripper is a small, heavy hull fitted with a single arm and a heavy cutting claw. It is quick enough to stay on a ship through evasive maneuvers. Bulky hulls cannot do the job. They cannot hold on one specific part of a moving target.
It presses into anything that sticks out (a comms array, a fin, a propulsion feed) and cuts. If the cut doesn't take, oversized side thrusters tear the piece loose. A ripper that misjudges the press is usually lost.
It presses into anything that sticks out (a comms array, a fin, a propulsion feed) and cuts. If the cut doesn't take, oversized side thrusters tear the piece loose. A ripper that misjudges the press is usually lost.
// Pattern
A ripper is never found alone. Its job is to open a ship for the craft behind it. One on scope means the rest of the raiding party is close.
// Source
UGA intelligence on rippers comes from hulls recovered after a failed press.