The centerfold

the battle cruiser centerfold is the flagship of the rogue trader James McAllund's fleet. like many things in his dynasty, this ship was an heirloom inherited from his father, who claimed that his father inherited it from his father, who claims he found it dry-docked on the moon of an agri-world. a short, fat-looking vessel built during the great crusade, this frigate uses technology largely unseen in the imperium other than on ships of its age. though very, very old, it's still far from outdated. like most things in the imperium, the older the tech, the better. taking advantage of powerful void shields, three large sublight-engines, and a warp drive estimated to be capable of jumps 500% more precise than most leading patterns, the ship was renovated and given a new coat of paint, as well as given several improvements. lining the hull are dozens of flax cannons concealed under retractable armor plating, able to be deployed when diplomacy fails. less subtle are the four massive macrocannons, two on each flank, designed to obliterate ships many times its size. under the main fuselage where the hangars and residential areas are located lie two massive guns, the inner workings largely mysterious, able to be pointed forward for ship-to-ship combat, or leveled towards a planet's surface to wreak destruction.

as far as the gearheads can tell, this ship was intended to be used as an all-in-one vessel, used for rapid deployment to warzones where fast deployment of reinforcements and support were crucial, and heavy resistance on all fronts were expected. in order to achieve this, it's able to house and deploy thousands of soldiers as well as a large fleet of aircraft, while also being able to act as a lynchpin in naval warfare. it's devilishly fast, both in realspace and the warp, able to outrun and outmaneuver many more specialized patterns of voidcraft, and able to make jumps far more accurately than most ships. unfortunately, it never got the chance to do so, as the great crusade concluded before it was finished, and was forgotten in the fires of the horus heresy.

when james' great-grandfather found the ship, it was locked in a large, closed-off drydock, the only reason it had survived for that long. the interior hadn't been touched for over 10,000 years. it was a miracle that anything had remained, much less most of its internals. much o the McAllund's wealth at that time was filtered into the renovation of the ship, replacing almost all of the plating, both interior and exterior. over the course of half a decade, the ship centerfold was fully operational and took flight. it contained a large garrison of soldiers, an entire fleet of fighter craft and dropships, a miniature park, an ampitheater (for announcements, award ceremonies, presentations, and the occasional boxing match) a fully stocked gymnasium including a track, a shooting range/armory, a galley with several different areas resembling restaurants (though you have to use your own money to eat there instead of the mess hall, where a far more utilitarian option is served) a nightclub, a library/records office, a clinic, and a lightning-fast tram-system to connect it all.

with a standing military of 2,000 soldiers an entire squadron of drop ships, fighter craft, bombers, hundreds of missile batteries, railgun arrays, macrocannons, and autocannons protecting the ship, the centerfold is well suited to its role as a flagship, and can easily mount an offensive both in void combat and laying siege to a planet.

important crewmembers edit | edit source
beatrice LeChelle

beatrice is James' personal secretary, setting up meetings, organizing large events, and answering calls. her desk is located almost immediately across from the lift to James' private quarters and the "VIP guest bedrooms". as stated by James numerous times, beatrice is an integral part of the everyday functions of the ship, often juggling several problems at once. despite rumors, she and James have never had any romantic relationship of any sort, maintaining a strictly professional relationship. (author's note: James did in fact ask her out once, but she declined, thinking it would interfere with her career and didn't want to just become another name on James' "list." James understood, and they remained colleagues.) alongside her ability to multitask, she displays incredible conflict de-escalation skills, an incredible memory, and, due to her position as personal secretary to James, is able to pull rank on just about anyone not part of the top brass. she owns a small feline animal that she keeps in her personal quarters, who she has a small framed picture of on her desk. in what little free time she has, she enjoys miniature gardening, reading romance novels, and playing with her pet.

beatrice is a young woman in her mid twenties with dark brown hair kept in a bun, and wears a simple white dress shirt under a pink sweater, a black tube skirt, leggings, and black heels. despite being somewhat introverted, she can be rather stern when she needs to be, though still within professional levels. under her desk she keeps a small stub pistol that she's received training for, though to this day she hasn't had to use it.

general Mukali

formerly a highly decorated imperial guard commander forced to retire due to health concerns, Mukali is the general of all infantry and ground vehicles stationed on the centerfold. shrewd and calculating, Mukali has fought in over 100 different warzones throughout his 40 year military career, starting out as a mere conscript, climbing the ranks and becoming an officer, eventually becoming a colonel. known for his calm and rational demeanor, he's often seen as overly strict and micromanaging of his troops and not easily impressed, though nobody can deny his expert leadership skills. his troops aren't especially find of him, but they recognize that more often than not, Mukali's plan is the best one, so having faith is essential. though his leadership and strategic genius are no doubt unquestionable, his personal fighting skills are nothing to be scoffed at either, highly proficient with the chainsword and boltgun. it's not clear when he managed to acquire it, wether it be from his military service or his personal wealth, but at some point he came into the possession of an ornate suit of human-operable power armor. it has a cobalt-blue polish, with a deep, ultramarine (not the 13th legion) cloak made of heavy, sturdy fabric, hung under his pauldrons. on his breastplate he wears his service record, dozens of medals, each meaning a different thing, wether it be a flawlessly executed victory, a long, grueling campaign brought to a close, or a particulary honorable kill, Mukali wears these with distinction and pride. other items he uses are his bolter and chainsword, which he did acquire from his military career. unusual for a normal unaugmented human, even in power armor, Mukali wields his bolter in one hand, like a pistol, so that he may use his chainsword in the other. though he does not often lead from the front, preferring to stay behind ad watch the battle unfold, Mukali has no aversion to personal combat, often challenging the enemy commander to personal duels. while this has little strategic value other than allowing an experienced fighter to have a chance to "cut off the head" so to speak, Mukali often finds this a useful morale reinforcement, furthering his reputation as a leader that is unusually strict, but always knows what he's doing.

general Mukali has been compared to a catachan due to his intimidating physique, calling Mukali "large" would be an understatement, standing at over 6'7" and weighing in at just under 300 pounds of muscle without his armor. his skin is a deep shade of brown, as dark as ebony, and has black, curly hair in braided rows across the top of his head, stopping at the base of his neck. though nobody's worked up the courage to ask him, the running theory is that it has something to do with his culture. he speaks in a thick accent, which soldiers under his command quickly pick up. during his service in a veteran guardsman squad, his right eye got clawed out by a carnifex, which he repayed in kind by beating and stabbing it to death with his lasgun. he later received a mechanical eye and a medal for his efforts, as well as a large scar sweeping from his brow to his lower cheekbone. though Mukali doesn't often show it, he's a deeply spiritual man, praying to the emperor every night, and wearing an aquila under his armor. while it's common knowledge he's at least modestly religious, he believes that his personal religion should be left out of professional matters, instead favoring strategy and skill over faith and zeal to secure victory.

while he recognizes James McAllund as his employer and superior officer, general Mukali only respects him at a strictly professional level, believing him to be immature, childish, eccentric, and incompetent as a leader, which is kind of understandable, however, he also gives credit where credit is due, as he respects that James recognizes he couldn't lead an army, which is why he hired a formal astra militarum general instead of trying to lead his forces himself. Mukali also realizes that James is far more important to the function of the fleet than himself, for he sees how his soldiers react to James' charm and wit, and how James' social skills have avoided the deployment of Mukali's forces entirely on more than one occasion. additionally, though mukali is indeed the commander-in-chief of boots on the ground, James is an incredibly skilled naval commander, and while his tactics seem reckless and almost insane at times, he'd rather have James in the centerfold's captain chair.

nevertheless, just because mukali respects his captain and submits to his authority, does not mean he has to like him personally. Mukali finds James' sunny disposition and his eccentric lifestyle obnoxious and immature, often opting out of any of the centerfold's social events, instead focusing on his own hobbies, which include personal training, personnel training, equipment maintenance, and praying to the small shrine in his room. Mukali finds it hard to make meaningful social connections with anyone without a military background, though this is rarely a hinderance.

vice-captain gildrich

archibald gildrich the XVIth, the squat, patchy old man holding the rank of vice captain, is the second-in-command of the centerfold and her fleet, managing the day-to-day operations of the bridge. when James isn't on the bridge and in command of the vessel, gildrich is the one steering the ship and charting courses. gildrich is often referred to "uncle gildrich" by James, displaying his bond with the elderly man. though it's almost certain there's no biological bond between them, the name most likely originated from how close James was to him during his childhood. after James' father, alexander McAllund, died when James was only a child, gildrich, formerly alexander's second in command and closest friend, assumed command of the McAllund dynasty until James turned 16. during that time, James, along with several nannies, was raised by gildrich as his paternal figure. he and James often teamed up to pull one over on the nannies, often helping James steal sweets from the previous ship's cafetorium. this angered the battalion of nannies that raised James, as they disapproved of the maturity of their boss. unfortunately, gildrich was, most of the time, otherwise occupied with duties of leadership. however, gildrich cared very much for young James, and promised to his father alexander that he'd do his best to kindle the spark of adventure in James. as seen presently, gildrich did wonderfully.

there are rumors that gildrich is at least parially a squat, (a race of short, hardy abhumans that were recently declared extinct via tyranids by the departmento administratum) due to his short, stocky build. gildrich refuses to confirm or deny this, as he likes the mystery. there's been a betting pool going on for over 30 years among the staff of the McAllund dynasty's fleet on which percentage of squat he is, wether he's part squat at all, or when they'll find out. gildrich is aware of this, and put money down on "one fourth", throwing the betting pool into absolute chaos. gildrich dresses rather shabbily, wearing a dirty, loose-fitting officer's uniform that hasn't been in service in over 50 years, speaking to his age. he insists that it makes him look more fashionable, though the faded color, wrinkles, and odor say otherwise. he has a short, patchy grey beard, several teeth missing (the ones that are are still there are a butterscotch-hue of yellow) a blind left eye he wears a monocle on for no apparent reason, well-worn fingerless gloves, and a knitted grey wool cap. nobody's really sure of his age, though according to James' father, he looks exactly the same as when HE was a kid, as well as occupying the same position in the McAllund dynasty. nevertheless, it's very clear that gildrich is a very capable starfleet commander, despite, well, everything saying otherwise, and is completely loyal to the McAllund bloodline. he regularly drinks large quantities of alcohol, is a bit vulgar, sleeps at least 15 hours per day, and seems to always have a hangover. despite this, he's reknown for his advice on any given topic if people will listen, though it's best to steer clear of the following subjects: eldar, tyranids, women, the dark angels chapter, the ordo hereticus, and, obviously, hygiene. despite all his shortcomings, he's a very passionate and knowledgeable old man, and an irreplaceable asset to the crew.

the centerfold's infantry forces

previously mentioned, the centerfold, and as an extension, the McAllund dynasty has its own supply of trained mercenaries to be wielded as james sees fit. almost all of them come from a military background, and thanks to the McAllund's large budget and "rogue trader card of regulation-skirting", have access to wargear seldom seen outside of the official imperial military forces, more specifically the tempestus scions. each one is clad in heavy but flexible carapace armor, as well as a hotshot lasgun, capable of punching clean through armor that a normal lasgun yould leave a bad scorch mark on. each has received training on stealth, reconnaisance, breach-and-clear ops, and shock assaults, and under the stern leadership of general Mukali, their fighting prowess is nothing to be scoffed at. supporting them is a fleet of gunships, aerial troop transports, and dogfighting flyers, though they do lack armored vehicles.