Imperial Navy (Warhammer 40,000)
The Imperial Navy, or Holy Fleet, is the spacefaring arm of the Imperium of Man's armed forces. Tasked with transporting troops, engaging in ship-to-ship and ship-to-planet combat, and the general protection of Imperial space, it is perhaps the most vital arm of the Imperium's war effort.
Characteristics
The technology of the Imperial Navy is, in general, inferior to that of the other races in the 40K universe. To compensate the Navy relies on astounding numbers, allowing it to remain competitive on an interstellar scale.
Imperial designs favour heavy weaponry and excessive armour over sophistication. Aesthetically their designs employ the same neo-gothic style used throughout the Empire, leading many vessels to resemble space-going cathedrals. Due to heavy restrictions on artificial intelligence, few of an Imperial vessel's functions are automated, and so they must be crewed by thousands of minimally-trained levies.
Organisation
The Navy as a whole is divided into five segmenta, each of these subdivided into sectors, each of these containing a varying number of battlefleets. Battlefleets contain up to 75 capital ships, along with various escorts and support craft. These battlefleets themselves can be subdivided according to the needs of a particular sector.
The maintenance of the Navy's vessels falls to the Adeptus Mechanicus, who take a religious approach to technology that favours ritualized rote learning of procedures over actual understanding of a given technology's operating principles. While this ensures that vessels can be maintained across countless generations, as their operating procedures are immutably engrained into Adeptus rituals, it has caused a technological stagnation within the fleet.
Beyond capital ships, the Navy employs various fighters and atmospheric craft carried by the larger vessels. No separate Air Force equivalent exists within the Imperium.
Spacecraft
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