Hexamilion-class frigate

The Hexamilion-class frigate was the second major class of colonial frigates procured by the UNSC Navy. Introduced in 2413, this class was a direct response to the limitations behind the earlier. Slow and rather toothless, the Graftons had major limitations in both their capability as a military ship and their lack of strategic mobility. While the former had been solved by using older destroyers shipped out from SolCore, even their most modern starships had the capability to be refitted for interstellar travel, and even fewer had it working when they were laid down; a huge problem for a Navy that was now beginning to look towards expanding their influence over the colonies.

More than doubling in size over their predecessors, the new colonial patrol vessels were the first class of frigates in UNSC service that had the option of accepting slipspace drives as built. Only the first block boasted this feature across all vessels at commissioning. The sheer cost of the translight engine, even more than a century after its unveiling, meant that the majority of all subsequent orders would incorporate this system later into their service lives. To make up for this, their firepower was upgraded substantially and protection was at least properly present, allowing the Hexamilions to fight multiple smaller engagements before withdrawing for resupply. Otherwise, they were still considered basic by the standards of the time, unable to truly compete if they fought against modern fleet vessels in any major way.