Fyron: You're perfectly right, although the smaller Terran ships would be manoeverable enough to keep their armor facing the enemy, and the LC & CR can hide behind said armor while delivering broadsides to the enemy.  That said, the Last three in the series will have the armor on the top and bottom, with only a comparatively small gap for weapons to poke out.  That way the only really vulnerable bits are the front and rear, but hey, you can't have everything.
AT: Praise from Caesar, I am honoured.  Although I would say if someone's going to be flinging depleted uranium and other nasties at me, I want the biggest shield you can give me. 
ZeroAdunn: I'm not sure what 'steampunk' is, but I'm gonna take that as a complement.  So, thanks! 
