Dreadnought

Dreadnought is a designation used to describe a type of starship that is usually built solely for combat, with the best weapons and the strongest defences. Starfleet's first dreadnoughts, the Federation-class, were developed in the 2250s and 2260s in response to the growing Klingon threat. The Klingons themselves developed many dreadnoughts in response. (Star Fleet Technical Manual and TOS novels: The Klingon Gambit and Fortunes of War, #1: Dreadnought!).