There are not many organisations that can boast that they have ships as powerful, if not more so, than Imperial craft. But the Rebels can when they speak of the Mon Cal Cruisers. These ships are the main cruisers in New Republic fleet. They match the Imperial Star Destroyers in speed, and are almost as tough.
Before the Empire invaded Calamari, the cruisers were used as civilian ships. The inhabitants of the water world would use them as pleasure craft, or to aid colonisation efforts. This all changed when an Imperial ship happened upon the peaceful planet, and the Empire began a full-scale invasion. It was an ill-fated move by the Imperials, as the Mon Cals forced the invaders away from the planet, and turned their pleasure cruisers into weapons of war. They threw their lot in with the Rebel Alliance, and began to alter the cruisers for combat duty. Extra hull plating was added. Along with many weapon emplacements. In time, the planet of Calamari was surrounded by orbital shipyards churning out these beautiful but deadly ships.
Unlike the other ships in the Republic fleet, each Mon Cal cruiser is different, making each one unique. To the enemy, the ships are strong and capable of much damage, but to the Mon Calamari they are works of art. As they are all different from one another, it makes the ships difficult to repair, and technicians could not see why the Mon Cals continued to build them this way; but the Calamarians had the cruisers so durable that they were rarely damaged in battles.
One of the most famous Mon Cal cruisers is the MC80 Headquarters Frigate, also known as Home One. This craft is covered in round blimps, and is very well-known throughout the galaxy. Admiral Ackbar used Home One as the command vessel during the Battle of Endor, and then on other major battles afterwards.
The hangar bays on board Home One are modified to contain ten squadrons of fighters, in other words 120 ships. This alone made it a worthy adversary, but its weapons make it utterly deadly. There are twenty-none turbolasers, thirty-six ion cannons, several tractor-beam projectors and very strong shield generators. The Mon Cal cruisers have shields that are more powerful than almost any other cruiser in the galaxy. This is because the have a system whereby when one shield array is damaged or fails, it can be replaced even during battle. Most MC80s carry three squadron of fighters, forty-eight turbolasers, twenty ion cannons, and six tractor-beam projectors. As the Republic grows I size, newer models are being built, including the MC80a, MC80B, and the MC90.
Since the New Republic allows beings from all over the galaxy to join it, it is not unusual to find different species serving aboard the Mon Cal cruisers. But more often than not, the Mon Cals will take care of the command sections themselves, as the controls are built specifically for their anatomies. Their seats can control much of what occurs on board and outside the cruiser according to special movements. Viewscreens are programmed for Mon Calamarian vision, so the pictures seem fuzzy and distorted to humans. Although this limits the use of the command sections to Mon Cals, it does mean that if the cruisers were ever captured by Imperials, they would not be able to use them immediately, giving enough time for the crew to either re-take the ship or self-destruct it.