The
mainstay and backbone of the
Minbari Fleet, the Sharlin Class War
cruiser is the most powerful ship among the younger races, and probably the "tallest". Its beam weapons are very powerful, vaporizing most fighters with one quick shot, and quickly cutting into larger ships. The Warcruiser is very large, around 1.6
km long and almost 1.9
km tall. These ships were used with great effectiveness in the
Earth-Minbari war, where they almost, and should have, destroyed all of Earth's forces.
There is of course artificial gravity on board. The Warcruiser also carries a large complement of Nial Class Fighters.
These ships are crewed primarily by the Minbari Warrior Caste, though the Religious Caste has a presence on these mighty vessels as well.
The ruling body of the Minbari, the "Grey Council", has permanent residence on a special Warcruiser.
Earth's first contact with the Minbari Warcruiser was the incident with the Prometheus, in which, the Earth Alliance Hyperion Class Heavy Cruiser, saw that the Warcruiser had it's Gun Ports Open. The Prometheus fired and crippled the Warcruiser, killing the Minbari Spiritual Leader Dukhat in the process, and launching the Earth-Minbari War. (cf. "A Late Delivery From Avalon", and "In the Beginning")
The first time a human was aboard a Minbari Warcruiser was at the close of the Battle of the Line, where Jeffrey Sinclair was abducted by the same Minbari Warcruiser and it was found that Sinclair had a Minbari Soul, forcing the Grey Council to bring their eminent victory to a halt, ending the Earth-Minbari War. (cf. "And the Sky Full of Stars", and "In the Beginning")
The ruling body of the Minbari, the "Grey Council", has permanent residence on this specific Warcruiser.
The Earth Alliance's first victory over a Sharlin Class Warcruiser was the Black Star incident, when John Sheridan, covertly attacked and destroyed the Minbari Black Star, the flagship Warcruiser of the Minbari Fleet. This gave Sheridan the name "Starkiller" and also put Sheridan under much scrutiny from the Minbari Warrior Caste. (cf. "Points of Departure", and "In the Beginning")
Significant Episode Appearances
Legacies
Points of Departure
The Illusion of Truth
Severed Dreams