Posted by: nightraven1901
« on: September 15, 2017, 02:42:50 AM »
Best battles? I have a few good ones. Quite a few. But I have to include a non-mod engagement first, just because of the shit that happened. I'll tell you what I mean...
Vanilla EaW, Rebel Campaign, Hard difficulty (not that it matters much). Right before the final wave of planets are unlocked and the Death Star thrown at you. Planet Bespin, low orbit. Two corellian gunboats are formed alongside each each other, mere specks against the enormity of Bespin's silhouette. Their orders: assail the Empire directly, alone. Their attempted suicide is not to be unique- from Yavin to Atzerri similar pairs await. Our Rebellion will not be forced back. It will not be carved apart by the Imperial's superweapons. We will take not a step back, comrades!
Story mission complete. Pause the game; time is short. Examine the lines as they reveal themselves; star destroyers abound. The assault will begin in around ten places at once as I send a coherent wave of gunboat pairs at the Empire, and they sling ISD fleets back (thankfully not very well armed things, but still. Bear with me here). Good. That's exactly the match-up I'm hoping for.
Correlian gunboats have an unlimited power-to-engines ability in vanilla; only reduces their fire output by a quarter too. When active, I've noticed they run at the exact same speed as a proton torpedo. The empire is not particularly flush on concussion missile launchers in vanilla. Battle is joined over a dozen muted populaces spread over as many worlds. They're going to see some s*** today, I promise myself. I forget where they met first. I suppose history felt no need to distinguish anymore, it didn't matter. The story would be the same across a dozen worlds.
We emerge. Gunboats: power to engines. Forward advance. The first battle had three Imperial-classes. Not the most I'd see in one place, but enough. Their bombers were out and on approach. They represent the real threat. Gunboats cut in, tracing along the outside of the enemy's firing range. Only when they get to bearing 135 relative do they get the approach order, diving into the lee of fire between the three big ships' tail-ends. Missile fly out at a gentle pace. Ion cannon fire races back, triple as fast. But the briefest kiss from the Imperial big guns; with shields still strong I order retreat in two directions, back along their course. Bombers follow, lead by the torpedoes they released. I race away at equal speed. The glowing trails last a few seconds, but fade as the torpedoes run out of fuel. My smug-arse smile widens. It is, at least, possible.
They're out of the Imperial's line for less than eight seconds before the Victory covering their rears gives my second gunboat a sound hiding. Reverse course again; split the ships. Use the first to draw some heat; spread the enemy's fire across what shields I bothered to bring with me. Her shields buckle but don't quite break. She fires a scathing rebuke at the larger ship, bruising it's nose ion cannon array. I laugh as the Imperial crews probably think they've won the trade. They have not. My pair of little ships sprint away like startled rabbits, pursued but not caught by Imperial hounds. Their shields solidify with each second away from Imperial firing arcs. At half strength they re-engage. Another short, brutal and apparently one-sided affair. Shields nearly stripped for a handful of shield-piercing missiles. It's roughly minute six or seven at this point and every gun they enemy started with is still operational. This will take a long time. But by minute ten I'm getting more confident about this, and my attackers tarry longer and longer near the slow-to-react frigates. Contrary to usual strategies it's engines and hangars I'm after first today. Shields then turbolasers come next. It takes hours. Maybe one-and-a-half for the first battle. It would have felt a damn sight longer to the poor bastard Imperials as they're helplessly cut out from their fleets and pecked to death by pass after pass from these two gunboats. Each ship is left its ion cannons to prevent enemy reinforcements, until no other hardpoints remain on the map. Then my ships impudently stand under the fire from the destroyers, shields gone and forgotten, to finish their larger foes eye-to-eye. Reinforcements dive out of hyperspace on top of them. And they disappear into the asteroid fields again; not running but stalking.
If I could have ordered them to moon the enemy through the bridge portholes, I would have. I settle for isolating and eliminating them too. One and a half hours later I am proud to report the following engagement statistics:
Rebellion ships present:
2x Correlian Gunboats.
Losses:
None, but inventory reports note the ship's captains requesting two cans of spraypaint and new shield capacitors after the battle. Something about "worn beyond safety limits..."
Imperial ships present:
3x Imperial Star Destroyer
4x Victory Star Destroyer
13x Acclamator Cruiser
24x Tartan Patrol Cruiser
4-5x Broadside Cruiser *** Rebellion Intelligence appears to have lost the relevant data for this report; may have been four or five ships ***
Level Three or Four Space Station
A near limitless amount of TIEs
Losses: the f***ing lot, mate.
The best part isn't this one lonely battle, though. That ends and within the literal second the next fight begins. The entire battle line is on the move. The resultant mess of fighting keeps me awake long into the night, around ten or fifteen hours. Each fight is at most three gunboats (one of them had an extra. Bloody rebel captains! I swear you don't see this kind of insubordination when commanding Imperial ships!) against everything the AI had placed there, bar three- they were defensive operations with my fleet available and a station. I create around ten of these After-Action reports in one galactic week, each one the same. Station plus ISD-lead fleet lost to nothing on behalf of the Rebels. From this point forward the Corellian Gunboat is my favourite vanilla ship. 10/10 missile boat. Would use to terrorise Imperials again. Hell, if you asked me right afterwards, I might just have agreed to marry one. Even tier five stations are no match for these suckers and enough patience!
I might let someone else go quickly, that got longer than I'd anticipated. But I definitely have more battles that are worth a story... Another day,