Armaments: 1 Magnetic Accelerator Cannon 7 Archer Missile Pods/20 Pod 12 Anti Starfigther Laser Cannons Equipment 2 Pelican Dropships 4 Scorpion Tanks 12 Escape Pods 4 Warthogs 12 ODST HEV Pods Primary Role: Ground Support. Secondary Role: Anti Starfighter/Anti Missile. Description: About half the size of a standard UNSC Figate, the Caelus Class Escort was designed as a platform to carry one low power MAC cannon. The MAC cannon fitted to the Caelus class was unsatiable for penetrating the armor of even the smallest Covenant capital ships, but it excelled in ground strikes. The Cannon could destroy anything from a column of troops to a fully shielded Scarab. The idea was, large numbers of this relatively inexpensive ship could provide excellent ground support. Unlike fighters and bombers, they could loiter over a battlefield indefinitely, providing precision strikes for troops on the ground. The Caelus class was also fitted with several Archer Missile Pods for close in defense, and 12 anti Starfighter Laser Cannons. These Cannons were based on work done on the Spartan Laser Project, although they were much larger. Since they fed directly off the ships reactor, they could be fired almost indefinitely. These new laser provided good protection against Covenant Fighters and Boarding Craft. During the 2nd Battle of Earth, the Caelus class proved extremely important for ground troops. Ships of the class were responsible for the destruction of over 572 Scarabs, 3048 Wraith Artillery tanks and countless support vehicles and emery troops. 172 of the 203 Ships were ultimately destroyed by the end of the battle. Because it could not expect to successful engage Covenant ships the Caelus required local Space superiority in order to operate effectively.