Like their interstellar cousins, Collective ACX carriers form the core of maritime carrier groups, providing point defense for the offensive ships in the formation. While most nations no longer build aquatic carriers due to the logistical advantage of using starships, the Collective use them as an easy to produce alternative for planetary defense, and as a way to challenge enemy maritime forces on contested worlds where the starfleet might be otherwise engaged.
At 450 meters in length, the ACX is the largest aquatic vessel in the galaxy. It is capable of holding up to 20 fighters in its interior hangars, which are launched from bays in the sides of the hull. Despite its massive bulk, the ACX’s powerful engines give it a top speed of 36 knots. It isn’t quite as fast as the smaller CCX cruisers, but it is enough to stay reasonably mobile in combat.
The ACX packs a potent arsenal of defensive weapons, made up of two electron cannons and a photon interceptor, providing defense against all forms of guided ordinance. In addition to these defenses, it has a heavy belt of starship-grade armor plating capital-grade gravity shields, making it incredibly resistant to enemy fire.
The ACX is a difficult barrier to break for enemy forces, requiring concentrated fire to sink. It makes Collective aquatic carrier groups all but immune to fighter and missile strikes, requiring the enemy to close to gun range and engage the well-armed rai warships in vicious duels, which often end with their enemies going down as twisted, rent hulks.