NS (or the DDS as it was back then) first began looking at an unmanned space combat in 2107. The early project was known as the Stoat UCV, in many ways a scaled down Panther using many of the same components. The Stoat project was quietly cancelled in the early 2110s as the technology was not considered yet ready for an unmanned superluminal space combatant.
The next step was an unmanned combat ship which could work with a manned ship. This was the Future Large Unmanned Space Vehicle (FLUSV) project. FLUSV was also cancelled.
Finally in 2115 the idea of an unmanned space combat was revivied with the Lavender project. This has been delayed a number of times but NS finally feels the technology is mature enough. An order has been placed for the first Lavender which will be part of the next Ship Building Plan. Although a fleet of Lavenders is planned it is likely there will be a gap before any further ships are ordered to allow for feedback on the design.
