A Federation light cruiser is a type of light cruiser starship operated by the Federation and Starfleet, a light counterpart to the typical Federation cruiser. Over the course of history, the Federation has had many different types of light cruiser vessels of various designs. Federation light cruisers were ships of the line with performance levels slightly below that of full-fledged cruisers and medium cruisers. Some hull designs such as the Constitution-class could be outfitted as either light cruisers, cruisers or heavy cruisers. (FASA RPG module: Federation Ship Recognition Manual)