Originally posted by Commander Drax:
I think the ships look sufficiently alien enough to be explained away as Villani builds, this is a line I take when explaining the weird styling of the ship's illustrated in the T4 rulebook and the Starships book, and that later models have more of a solomani influence in their design philosophy (compare the T4 Safari ship illustration to the Classic Traveller Type K)
Agreed, the Vilani certainly contributed to the very bulky look of M:0 starships. But, I have always viewed the Rule of Man as the decadent feeders off a plutocracy where Big was always Better. Hence the enormous automated Starships meant to last a thousand years.
Sadly, for the Pocket Empires they were for most part salvaged and scavanged for spare parts as one approaches midnight till only a fraction of what the smallest cruiser becomes a mere shadow of its former self.
This is not to say that there might not be an odd derelict waiting on the outer edges of the frontier just waiting for some enterprising (read: foolish) StarMerc to haul in for the Prize Bounty.
But, many dreadnaught has just become an orbital battlestation as the means (read: supplies) and the knowledge to keep the ship Jump capable disappear.