One of the smaller Klingon warships, the Br'el is also one of the first to mount cloaking technology after its procurement from the Romulan Star Empire in the 23rd Century. Small, nimble, and stealthy, the Br'el served as an excellent light combat craft for the Klingons into modern times. Requiring little more than a dozen crew members, the Br'el were built in great numbers. They were built in so many numbers that eventually ships of this class fell into the hands of raiders, pirates, and foreign organizations.

Unable to take on enemy cruisers head to head, the Br'el nonetheless is an effective combat vessel and in numbers their effectiveness climbs exponentially. A pack of Br'el Birds of Prey on the hunt are a deadly force to be reckoned with.

A bird of prey design that was the smallest of those shown, the Br'el didn't have many crew members (Star Trek III) but carried enough firepower to be a threat to Federation starships. They were officially named in the TNG episode "Rascals" when they were operated by a group of Ferengi. After the first appearance of the Bird of Prey the ship's size jumped around from being its same relatively small self to being into the HCV/Capital Ship size range. Because of that several Bird of Prey designations have arose to cover each continuity lapse.

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