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Spy Ship
- 144 statements
- 25 feature instances
- 15 referencing feature instances
| Spy Ship | type |
FeatureClass | |
| Spy Ship | label |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship | page |
SpyShip | |
| Spy Ship | comment |
A vehicle, in whatever medium, that looks like a civilian one, but is actually there to gather intelligence. Typically disguised as old fishing trawlers, because they're so ubiquitous on the oceans that even though every navy and spy agency knows fishing trawlers are used for spying there's no way to know which ones are spy ships and which are genuinely just there to catch fish. Has nothing to do with romance between spies. Supertrope of Van in Black. The naval version of Spies In a Van. See also Black Helicopter. |
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| Spy Ship | fetched |
2023-09-04T05:45:05Z | |
| Spy Ship | parsed |
2023-09-04T05:45:05Z | |
| Spy Ship | processingComment |
Dropped link to ArkadyRenko: Not an Item - UNKNOWN | |
| Spy Ship | processingComment |
Dropped link to EmpireEarthII: Not an Item - UNKNOWN | |
| Spy Ship | processingComment |
Dropped link to HomeGuard: Not an Item - FEATURE | |
| Spy Ship | processingComment |
Dropped link to InUniverse: Not an Item - FEATURE | |
| Spy Ship | processingComment |
Dropped link to LongRunner: Not an Item - FEATURE | |
| Spy Ship | processingComment |
Dropped link to RedAlert3: Not an Item - UNKNOWN | |
| Spy Ship | processingComment |
Dropped link to ReportingNames: Not an Item - FEATURE | |
| Spy Ship | processingComment |
Dropped link to TheOtherWiki: Not an Item - UNKNOWN | |
| Spy Ship | processingUnknown |
ArkadyRenko | |
| Spy Ship | processingUnknown |
RedAlert3 | |
| Spy Ship | processingUnknown |
EmpireEarthII | |
| Spy Ship | processingUnknown |
TheOtherWiki | |
| Spy Ship | isPartOf |
DBTropes | |
| Spy Ship / int_164eec8f | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_164eec8f | comment |
The titular Oregon of The Oregon Files is a ship with a nearly derelict appearance that serves as a home base for its crew of former intelligence and special operations operatives. | |
| Spy Ship / int_164eec8f | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_164eec8f | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| The Oregon Files | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_164eec8f | |
| Spy Ship / int_247422c7 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_247422c7 | comment |
Honor Harrington presented several forms of this: Dedicated spy ships disguised as merchant vessels, sometimes trolling around for suspiciously long periods of time waiting for a cargo to arrive. Actual merchant vessels collecting what information they could for their government, including merchant ships captained by reserve officers from their home navies). These ships would sometimes be fitted out with better communications equipment or engines to help them gather info and run it home, in addition to carrying out their actual freight-hauling business. Merchant ships trying to shadow a military force on the move is much rarer (as it is very difficult behavior to justify In-Universe). The one time it happens, the Havenite warship being tailed turns around and attacks their follower once it becomes clear there is no legitimate reason for them to be following them. Unfortunately for the destroyer crew, the merchant ship was actually a heavily armed privateer, and the ensuing battle is a short one in the Privateer's favor. |
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| Spy Ship / int_247422c7 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_247422c7 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Honor Harrington | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_247422c7 | |
| Spy Ship / int_261c8d3f | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_261c8d3f | comment |
The Simpsons: The episode "Bart the Murderer" featured a pizza van with satellite dishes on the roof listening in on the Simpsons when Bart is accused of murder. Marge notes it had been there a week and asks how long it takes to deliver a pizza. The van drives off and is replaced with another van with "Flowers By Irene" on the side. "Homer the Father", a 2011 episode had a series of these, each of them having the initials of an American government agency but standing for something completely different (CIA = Chinese Intelligence Agency, FBI = French Bureau of Investigation, and ATF = The A-Team of Finland). |
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| Spy Ship / int_261c8d3f | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_261c8d3f | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| The Simpsons | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_261c8d3f | |
| Spy Ship / int_2f3eb71f | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_2f3eb71f | comment |
The GLA Bomb truck can serve this purpose in Command & Conquer: Generals, as it can be disguised as any vehicle (allied, hostile, or one of the neutrals that are there to be turned into Action Bombs by the Terrorist unit) and is only revealed when detonating, which doesn't have to be done manually. Even better against AI opponents, who don't react at all to the random passenger car that's running over their infantry one by one. | |
| Spy Ship / int_2f3eb71f | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_2f3eb71f | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Command & Conquer: Generals (Video Game) | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_2f3eb71f | |
| Spy Ship / int_4abb6c74 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_4abb6c74 | comment |
Tom Clancy's Without Remorse has Russian "fishing trawlers" following a fleet battlegroup on a highly classified and sensitive mission. Fortunately, they're known to be gathering intel and are easily fooled. | |
| Spy Ship / int_4abb6c74 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_4abb6c74 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Without Remorse | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_4abb6c74 | |
| Spy Ship / int_4ec0b3f2 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_4ec0b3f2 | comment |
The Final Countdown has the USS Nimitz task force shadowed by a Soviet-flagged "fishing trawler" that isn't doing much fishing. Truth in television, see Real Life below. |
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| Spy Ship / int_4ec0b3f2 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_4ec0b3f2 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| The Final Countdown | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_4ec0b3f2 | |
| Spy Ship / int_64dbb72f | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_64dbb72f | comment |
An odd variation in The Man with the Golden Gun. James Bond discovers that the partially sunken RMS Queen Elizabeth in Hong Kong Victoria harbor has been turned into a British listening post for spying on the Chinese. | |
| Spy Ship / int_64dbb72f | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_64dbb72f | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| The Man with the Golden Gun | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_64dbb72f | |
| Spy Ship / int_7de8951a | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_7de8951a | comment |
Free Traders can sometimes do this in Traveller. | |
| Spy Ship / int_7de8951a | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_7de8951a | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Traveller (Tabletop Game) | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_7de8951a | |
| Spy Ship / int_83d81bd4 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_83d81bd4 | comment |
The second mission of Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War has the player character and his squadron investigating a reconnaissance vessel that had launched UAVs near the Osean shoreline. Later in the game, the Andromeda's signal intercept capabilities play a key role in the plot. | |
| Spy Ship / int_83d81bd4 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_83d81bd4 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War (Video Game) | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_83d81bd4 | |
| Spy Ship / int_85b855e2 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_85b855e2 | comment |
At one point in The Thrawn Trilogy, smuggler and information broker Talon Karrde is discreetly informed by an ally that the ally's ships will attack the Imperial shipyard at Bilbringi. In order to spy on the resulting chaos, Karrde arranges for his ships to take on a legitimate shipping contract to deliver parts to Bilbringi (a ruse which he uses several times, equally often for spying or sabotage). While there, they also happen to record a mysterious but trivial detail that ultimately proves highly valuable to the New Republic. | |
| Spy Ship / int_85b855e2 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_85b855e2 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| The Thrawn Trilogy | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_85b855e2 | |
| Spy Ship / int_872588ce | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_872588ce | comment |
The All Guardsmen Party was once tasked with purchasing a mission ship to use during their work for the Emperor's Most Holy Inquisition. The result was the free trader Occurrence Border, an Alleged Spaceship - or rather half of a spaceship, the front fell off at some point - that has all manner of lethal quirks to it, but functions perfectly as a spy ship, because no one who looks at it would conclude that the Inquisition would use such a deathtrap to deploy its agents. | |
| Spy Ship / int_872588ce | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_872588ce | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| All Guardsmen Party (Fanfic) | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_872588ce | |
| Spy Ship / int_8d81bb26 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_8d81bb26 | comment |
An episode of NCIS takes place aboard the USNS Chimera, a naval "black ship" disguised as an ordinary tramp steamer. Its mission is confidentially revealed to be collecting microbial samples for potential bio-warfare research—and then that turns out to be a smokescreen. Its real mission is to recover an old Soviet nuclear warhead before Russian privateers do. | |
| Spy Ship / int_8d81bb26 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_8d81bb26 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| NCIS | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_8d81bb26 | |
| Spy Ship / int_94aa987d | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_94aa987d | comment |
Your ship in Sunless Sea. Most of your early-game income will be from collecting port reports and picking up information packets from spies for the Admiralty. You can even try to set up your own spy networks in a few ports. | |
| Spy Ship / int_94aa987d | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_94aa987d | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Sunless Sea (Video Game) | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_94aa987d | |
| Spy Ship / int_9a8bf274 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_9a8bf274 | comment |
Command & Conquer: The GLA Bomb truck can serve this purpose in Command & Conquer: Generals, as it can be disguised as any vehicle (allied, hostile, or one of the neutrals that are there to be turned into Action Bombs by the Terrorist unit) and is only revealed when detonating, which doesn't have to be done manually. Even better against AI opponents, who don't react at all to the random passenger car that's running over their infantry one by one. Red Alert 3: Similarly, the Empire's Sudden Transport can disguise itself as a vehicle from any side. It's less effective since any player will keep a lot of detectors on hand, especially if what appears to be an Apocalypse tank suddenly starts zipping across the waves. |
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| Spy Ship / int_9a8bf274 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_9a8bf274 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Command & Conquer (Video Game) | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_9a8bf274 | |
| Spy Ship / int_a725fd30 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_a725fd30 | comment |
For Your Eyes Only has a British spy trawler haul up a World War 2 Sea Mine in its fishing net, which explodes and sinks it. This sets off the plot as the British and Soviets race to recover the ATAC device it was carrying. | |
| Spy Ship / int_a725fd30 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_a725fd30 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| For Your Eyes Only | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_a725fd30 | |
| Spy Ship / int_a7ae79c2 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_a7ae79c2 | comment |
The Imperial Agent of Star Wars: The Old Republic is given a personal ship designed to look like a luxury cruiser but with the firepower of a heavy gunship. | |
| Spy Ship / int_a7ae79c2 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_a7ae79c2 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Star Wars: The Old Republic (Video Game) | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_a7ae79c2 | |
| Spy Ship / int_aa9f34b0 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_aa9f34b0 | comment |
Wa ga Na wa Umishi: Disguised as a fishing boat. Allegedly from North Korea. | |
| Spy Ship / int_aa9f34b0 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_aa9f34b0 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Wa ga Na wa Umishi (Manga) | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_aa9f34b0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_ab42c63a | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_ab42c63a | comment |
The Emmy-winning two-part episode "Ship of Spies" from Season 1 of Get Smart. Agents 86 and 99 search for stolen plans on a freighter full of spies. | |
| Spy Ship / int_ab42c63a | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_ab42c63a | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Get Smart | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_ab42c63a | |
| Spy Ship / int_b369b969 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_b369b969 | comment |
This goes back to Dr. No: Quarrel runs a simple fishing boat, but he helps out secret agents all the time. | |
| Spy Ship / int_b369b969 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_b369b969 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Dr. No | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_b369b969 | |
| Spy Ship / int_b389ac77 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_b389ac77 | comment |
In Cryptonomicon, Detachment 2702 use a decrepit old boat and, ahem, "Tactical Negro Impersonation", to provide a cover story for how the Allies managed to locate a Milchcow - a resupply U-boat - when said submarines very rarely transmit anything, and thus cannot plausibly be located via Radio Direction Finding. The mission is... not an unqualified success. | |
| Spy Ship / int_b389ac77 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_b389ac77 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Cryptonomicon | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_b389ac77 | |
| Spy Ship / int_b8d2ac56 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_b8d2ac56 | comment |
In Live and Let Die, the pleasure boat of Quarrel Jr. has a secret compartment with equipment for Bond that Rosie Carver inadvertently discovers. It leads her to think Quarrel Jr. is an enemy and Bond quickly explains what he's really up to. | |
| Spy Ship / int_b8d2ac56 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_b8d2ac56 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Live and Let Die | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_b8d2ac56 | |
| Spy Ship / int_c43df4d8 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_c43df4d8 | comment |
Doctor Who: "Remembrance of the Daleks" has a variation. The Seventh Doctor encounters an antenna van that seems to be tracking who's paid their TV license fee, but is actually tracking alien (read: Dalek) energy signatures. | |
| Spy Ship / int_c43df4d8 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_c43df4d8 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Doctor Who | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_c43df4d8 | |
| Spy Ship / int_da73059 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_da73059 | comment |
The Living Daylights has the nautical equivalent of Spies In a Van with Felix Leiter's pleasure boat housing surveillance equipment. | |
| Spy Ship / int_da73059 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_da73059 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| The Living Daylights | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_da73059 | |
| Spy Ship / int_e6267766 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_e6267766 | comment |
Star Wars Legends: At one point in The Thrawn Trilogy, smuggler and information broker Talon Karrde is discreetly informed by an ally that the ally's ships will attack the Imperial shipyard at Bilbringi. In order to spy on the resulting chaos, Karrde arranges for his ships to take on a legitimate shipping contract to deliver parts to Bilbringi (a ruse which he uses several times, equally often for spying or sabotage). While there, they also happen to record a mysterious but trivial detail that ultimately proves highly valuable to the New Republic. |
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| Spy Ship / int_e6267766 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_e6267766 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Star Wars Legends (Franchise) | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_e6267766 | |
| Spy Ship / int_f7f52529 | type |
Spy Ship | |
| Spy Ship / int_f7f52529 | comment |
Villainous example with Largo's "yacht" the Disco Volante on Thunderball. The version that appears on The Remake Never Say Never Again even adds a pretty advanced secret communications room. | |
| Spy Ship / int_f7f52529 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Spy Ship / int_f7f52529 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Thunderball | hasFeature |
Spy Ship / int_f7f52529 |
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