Do not fix what is not broken - innovation is no guarantee of victory image - Star Trek: Armada 3 mod for Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion

Not to be confused with its predecessor of 200 years ago, the Raptor of the 24th Century bears a similar profile to its ancient namesake, but that is where the similarities end. No mere scout, today's Raptor is a dedicated attack ship and has the teeth to prove it.

Built in the closing days of the Dominion War during a critical shortage of combat ships, Klingon engineers, denied the time necessary to design a whole new class of warship, instead took a pragmatic but decidedly Klingon approach - they looked backwards, scrutinising past successful ship designs to see which would be best suited to modernisation.

The answer was the Raptor. With the Empire's fleet of Birds of Prey suffering heavy losses at the hands of the Jem'Hadar over the course of the war, the new Raptor was designed specifically to charge head-first into battle and best the Jem'Hadar at their own game - that of combining speed, manoeuvrability and firepower to fight at close range without fear, restraint or mercy.

The Raptor epitomises this form of combat. Powerful engines and manoeuvring thrusters make the Raptor handle like a wild animal in battle, and its shields are supported by thick, durable hull armour, making the Raptor surprisingly tough. Its multiple banks of disruptor cannons rake its targets with glorious destructive energy, making short work of the Empire's enemies and leaving only scorched debris. The Raptor has indeed returned.