A command carrier typically had four frag cannons, two front and two aft. Each cannon was mounted on a track that allowed them to move along the horizontal axis of the ship to engage targets directly in front of, behind, or to either side of the ship, but not directly above or below the ship. Each frag cannon consisted of three barrels that could be fired independently. They were usually fired one after another in rapid succession, similar to a slow gatling gun, to make the barrage harder to evade.