The Wayfarer class  cruisers built upon the lessons of the Antares class, providing an affordable cruiser design which was well suited for independent patrol and exploration duties.

The design by the independent designer, P.T.Riley was a compact looking ship with a deflector mounted in a recess in the front of the saucer section, with a tapering elongated primary hull with upward swept nacelle supports.

Compared to the Antares class it was far more warp dynamic, giving much better cruising range despite utilising the same power plant.

In 2238  USS Wanderer (NCC-1512) was fitted with a secondary hull in the dorsal position for use in trials of the design intended for the Vagabond class, the ship retained this hull until she was lost without trace in 2253