Ships of the 42nd Squadron

The May 2025 Squadron 42 newsletter detailed the fighter craft associated with the 42nd Squadron, including ships tied to the unit's history in a past battle. The newsletter included downloadable wallpapers of in-game ship renders. Specific ship model names were presented as part of the in-universe lore of the 42nd Squadron's history.

Much of Squadron 42's campaign takes place aboard an Idris-class frigate — the UEE Navy capital ship that serves as the player's base of operations. CIG dedicated an Around the Verse developer episode to "The Living Idris," showing how the ship functions as a populated environment with crew routines, interior spaces, and animated NPC life throughout.

The CitizenCon 2953 "I Held the Line" showcase prominently featured coordinated formation flying with the 42nd Squadron — multiple player and NPC ships flying and fighting together in space combat. This was shown as a core gameplay element of the campaign, alongside on-foot combat aboard capital ships and direct engagement with Vanduul forces.

Monthly Squadron 42 development reports confirm that ship AI received updates covering point-defense weapons and formation-flying logic — both directly relevant to how the 42nd Squadron's ships behave in combat alongside the player. The June 2024 report also detailed NPC ship AI improvements including elevator interactions for crew characters and transitions between indoor and outdoor ship spaces.