New Republic Guardian

The New Republic Guardian is a variant of the New Republic Defender designed to provide close fire support for Republic ground forces. The ship itself is very basic, even more so than the New Republic Defender. The engine struts are both shorter and thicker, and unlike those of the Defender, are completely fixed. The hull has been heavily armored to endure heavy ground fire, which has also lessened the starship's flight performance. However, its heavy defenses allow it to bring a formidable array of support weapons to bear on enemy troops. It sports a pair of autoblasters mounted on swiveling turrets which allow the starfighter to accurately strafe small targets like infantry and speeder bikes while hovering just over ground troops. They are also the ship's primary anti-aircraft weapon. The second weapon is a standard MG7 proton torpedo launcher, useful for not only taking enemy starfighters, but also for destroying armored ground vehicles like tanks or walkers. Lastly, the ship mounts a grenade launcher to destroy clusters of troops and light vehicles. Unlike most New Republic starfighters, Guardians are typically manned by New Republic Army personnel and are used similarly in a way to the Empire's TIE ground targetting.