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These fleets are named after the Segmentum in which they are based, such as the '''Warfleet Solar''' and so on. These fleets are then sub-divided subdivided into smaller fleets patrolling individual [[sector]]s and [[subsector]]s, again they and are also generally named after the area they are safeguardingsafeguard. For example, for example [[Battlefleet Gothic]] will be protecting protects the Gothic Sector.
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[[Image:FleetSymbol.jpg|thumb|180px|right|'''Imperial Navy''' symbol{{Fn|12}}]]
The '''Imperial Navy''', or '''Navis Imperialis'''{{Fn|15}} , is one of the armed forces employed by the [[Imperium]]. While the [[Imperial Guard]] is responsible for the Imperium's ground forces, the Imperial Navy is responsible for the fleets of warships that soar between the stars and planets in the Imperium as well as engaging threats both inside and outside the Imperium's borders. The Imperial Navy is the military arm of the [[Imperial Fleet]]{{Fn|1}} and was, until their separation after the [[Horus Heresy]], a branch of the [[Imperial Army]].
==Organisation==
[[Image:SegGalacticPic.jpg|right|230px]]
==='''Fleet Structure'''===
The Imperial Navy is organized into five fleets are arranged around , each assigned to one of the five [[Segmentum|Segmentae Majoris]] that comprise . Each fleet is named for the Imperium, and Segmentum in which they are based at , such as the five [[Segmentum FortressBattlefleet Solar]]es.
The Imperial Navy administrative Center center is the '''Naval Headquarters''' on [[Terra]].{{Fn|9}}
====Fleet Headquarters====
*Segmentum Pacificus - [[Hydraphur]]
*Segmentum Obscurus - [[Cypra Mundi]]
*Segmentum Tempestus - [[Bakka]] *Segmentum Ultima Segmentum - [[Kar Duniash]]
===Fleet Personnel===
*{{Main|Imperial Navy Hierarchy}}
The Imperial Navy is headed by the [[Lord High Admiral of the Imperial Navy]] , who is often one of the [[High Lords of Terra]]. He oversees five [[Segmentum]] Lord High Admirals.
Below the Lord Admirals are various Sector and Battlefleet commanders, then individual ship [[Imperial Navy Captain|Captain]]s and junior officers , and below them finally a myriad array of Non-Commissioned Officers. The Imperial Navy has a corps of [[Commissar]]s that oversee the morale and discipline of Naval personnel, known as the [[Fleet Commissariat]].{{Fn|6}}
The Imperial Navy also operates '''[[Naval Security]] Battalions''', also known as '''Naval [[Voidsmen|Armsmen]]'''{{Fn|6}}. These consist of units of armed soldiers intended to put down mutinies, board enemy ships, and protect Imperial Navy installations. Typically, Naval Security troopers are equipped with black body armour and [[shotgun]]s.{{Fn|4}}
Imperial Navy vessels require personnel from other Imperial factions in order elements to function. These include [[Navigator]]s from the [[Navis Nobilite]] for navigation{{Fn|13}}, [[Astropath]]s for interstellar communication{{Fn|14}}, and [[Tech-Priest]]s from the [[Adeptus Mechanicus]] for higher maintenance{{Fn|14}}. One of the foremost duties of the Navy is to transport the [[Imperial Guard]] to warzones, and as such , every Navy vessel , no matter how small , will sport some means of training deck to accommodate them.{{Fn|11b}}
The lowest level of personnel in the Navy hierarchy are bondsmen, which in truth who are little more than slaves. Alongside [[Servitor]]s, these poor souls undertake the most thankless and often most dangerous tasks on a vessel. Bondsmen are acquired from a variety of by various means, such as rounding up criminals or unsavory elements of Imperial society or simply being born into their status aboard a vessel. Bondsmen 's duties include cleaning, hauling ammunition into weapons chambers, shoveling fuel, and manual labor. Working long hours and only fed meager rations, Bondsmen are met with brutal discipline should they protest their status.{{Fn|11a}}
[[Image:NavyImage3.jpg|thumb|right|Imperial Navy workers load a [[Torpedo]] into its firing tube{{Fn|12}}]]
==Vessels==
*{{Main|Imperial Navy Vessels (List)}}
The Imperial Navy is composed of deploys a vast array diversity of different vessel types of vessels - , from one-man attack fighters to huge kilometers-long Battleships that are many miles long.
=== Battleships ===
[[Image:EmperorBattleshipIllustration.jpg|right|thumb|250px|Emperor Class Battleship]]
[[Battleships]] are huge colossal vessels, with colossal amounts of weapons significant weaponry and shields, and . They usually serve as the flagship for the Admiral of the Fleet, though this is not always necessarily the case. Although very powerful, battleships are very slow to manoeuvre and cannot react quickly to enemies that rapidly change course. Imperial battleships can have crews of anywhere between 25,000 to 3,000,000 or more depending on sources, including large numbers of Imperial Navy armsmen to defend against enemy boarding assaults. Battleships can be up to 8 kilometres from prow to stern and displace billions of tons. Because they represent such a vast expenditure of resources and require a fairly advanced technical base, these are typically constructed only in the largest shipyards above the major [[Adeptus Mechanicus]] [[Forge World]]s. These vessels are precious assets and are carefully husbanded, usually employed in only larger fleet formations.{{Fn|2}}
There are various classes of Imperial Battleship, but the ''Emperor'' and more recent ''Retribution'' are by far the most common in the Imperial Navy.
*[[Apocalypse Class Battleship]]
*[[Emperor Class Battleship]] - carries an immense amount of attack craft in addition to its normal, incredibly powerful weaponry.
*[[Invincible Class Fast Battleship]]
*[[Nemesis Class Fleet Carrier]]
*[[Oberon Class Battleship]]
*[[Retribution Class Battleship]] - which is noted for its powerful broadside firepower and its very large amount of torpedo tubes
*[[Vanquisher Class Battleship]]
*[[Victory Class Battleship]]
=== Cruisers ===
Smaller that than Battleships, [[Cruiser]]s are the '''Ships ships of the line''' in Imperial Fleets. There are several different sub-categories of Cruiser.
====Grand Cruisers====
[[Image:VenganceClassGrandCruiser.JPG|right|thumb|180px|Vengeance Class Grand Cruiser]]
[[Grand Cruiser]]s are significantly smaller than battleships, yet distinctly larger than regular cruisers. These vessels are usually very old in design and , do not incorporate many of the features that are typical in current Imperial Navy vessels, like the armoured prow, and are not entirely compatible with current navy Navy tactical doctrine. Due to this, many are retired from active duty, but are still used by reserve fleets. There are also some modernised versions of grand cruisers in service, but since these they are much larger and more heavily-armed than their predecessors, they are more often classed as battleships. These kinds of vessels are usually purpose-built or modified from battlecruiser hulls and are not commonly encountered in the Imperial Navy.{{Fn|2}}
*[[Avenger Class Grand Cruiser]]
====Battle Cruisers====
[[Image:ArmageddonClassBattleCruiser.JPG|right|thumb|170px|Armageddon Battle Cruiser]]
[[Battlecruiser]]s are based on a hull-design that is similar to the regular Cruisers, though Battle Cruisers are generally somewhat larger and more heavily armed, incorporating more advanced power distribution systems capable of supporting battleship-grade weaponry in a cruiser hull.{{Fn|2}}
*[[Armageddon Class Battle Cruiser]]
====Cruisers====
[[Image:Dominator Class Cruiser.jpg|right|thumb|160px|Dominator Class Cruiser]]
[[Cruiser]]s make up the majority of a fleet. Though not as powerful as a Battleship, cruisers are much faster and can still deliver a deadly blow. There are multiple classes of cruisercruisers, most based on the same general hull design but incorporating different combinations of broadside batteries, lance turrets and starfighter hangars. Cruisers can carry a crew complement of anywhere between 1,000-100,000{{Fn|3}}, depending on sources. While cruisers are still particularly complex, it is not uncommon for them to be constructed on smaller Forge Worlds or any [[Civilised World]] that has with a shipyard suitable for constructing vessels of their size.
*[[Dictator Class Cruiser]]
====Light Cruiser====
[[Image:EndeavourClassLightCruiser.JPG|right|thumb|160px|Endeavour Light Cruiser]]
A subset of the cruiser category are the [[Light Cruiser]]s. These ships fall in size between cruisers and escorts, mixing the firepower and durability of the former with the speed and manoeuvrability of the latter. Light cruisers are a fairly common ship class, for they are relatively simple to construct for being a capital ship, and they are uniquely suited for reconnaissance patrols and for making a presence where their speed and manoeuvrability are an advantage, and where having a larger number of smaller hulls allows the Navy to monitor a wider area of space.{{Fn|2}}
*[[Dauntless Class Light Cruiser]]
[[Escort]] ships are the smallest type of ship in the Imperial Navy fleets, found in two distinct sub-classes.
The larger of the two are [[Frigate]]s, which are better armed and more heavily armoured.
[[Destroyer]]s are generally smaller, but they are by far the fastest and most manoeuvrable interstellar warships employed by the Imperial Navy. They are usually organised in squadrons of 2 to 6 vessels and will always operate as a group. The main task of the escort ships is to serve as a screen for capital ships against enemy torpedoes and attack crafts so that they can get into position more quickly and safely. They are also employed behind the gun line to finish off enemy cruisers that have been damaged so that the larger vessels can concentrate on the most important threats in an enemy formation. Most escort classes specialise in a certain role, such as the '''''Cobra''''' class torpedo boat destroyers or the '''''Firestorm''''' class frigate with its armour-piercing prow-mounted Lance. Escort ships are normally not more than 1.5 kilometres in length, with destroyers generally being only 750 metres to 2 kilometres from prow to stern.{{Fn|2}}
=== Note on variations in Classes ===
While naval warships can be defined along a fairly limited number of classes based on weapon configurations approved by the [[Adeptus Mechanicus]], the form these vessels takes varies widely throughout the Imperium. For example, a ''Lunar'' class constructed above [[Cypra Mundi]] in [[Segmentum Obscurus]] may bear little resemblance to a ''Lunar'' class constructed above [[Kar Duniash]] in [[Ultima Segmentum]] and even less so to a ''Lunar'' class, constructed among the vast shipyards of [[Mars]]. Nonetheless, they will all have roughly the same operating characteristics and weapon configuration, and thus can be easily serviced by any orbital facility throughout Imperial space.{{Cite This}}
=== Attack Craft ===
*{{Main|Aeronautica Imperialis}}
The branch of the Imperial Navy known as the [[Aeronautica Imperialis]] is responsible for the majority of Imperial Aircraft. These aircraft are used both for space-combat and providing air support to Imperial ground forces.
===Aquatic Vessels===