"I am the God of preposting, yah!"
- |]agomar
|
A Kushan Epic
The first ever Homeworld br | | | Author: | | | IP: | static-3XXXX | | Date: | 01/31/01 03:01 | | Game Type: | Starcraft | | Labels: | none | | Report Rating: , # of Ratings: 2, Max: 9, Min: 8
Lifetime Rating for |]agomar: 8.6667 |   |
Welcome. Let's get straight to our feature presentation, the first ever Homeworld battlereport! You might wanna refer to my earlier br, "A Protoss Epic," the styles are much the same but they've been improved here for a game of the magnitude of Homeworld.
PS If you don't like me using your names, run around your house three times and you'll feel much better. I learned this from experience.
Hello and welcome to this special presentation of the Galaxy News Net - your number one source for the big stories, the breaking information, and the earth-shattering events that could change the very way you look at our Universe. I'm Drefsab, sitting in for Nobody, who's off to Temptation Island for the month.
And now, it's on to our breaking news. We'll be with you for the next couple hours as this story unfolds:
We have word that a massive battle is brewing deep within the blazing red nebula some have come to call the Fields of Plaz, between a renegade fleet of Kushan survivors and a flotilla of the Taaidan Emperor's Imperial Guard. This conflict could determine the entire future course of our Galactic Society, so we immediately turn to Field Correspondant derek for more. derek, take it away.
derek: Well Dref, the massive Kushan mothership under the command of the dreaded Captain |]agomar has just left hyperspace at the extreme south of the Nebula. A Taaidan flagship headed by the ruthless Admiral Ender lies in wait for the Kushan minions to the North, and harvesters have been set to work on both fronts. Research vessels ease out of their construction bays, and we have word that Dagomar has just initiated studies looking into corvette chassis enhancements. It seems that Ender is waiting a little longer . . . but he makes his move now by going straight for a workable Capitol ship Drive.
Both sides launch new harvesters to help them obtain additional alloys from this rich garden of resources, but while |]agomar opts for a second research craft, the Taaidan construct a third harvester. It seems both commanders are going for very different tech trees - we'll see how it plays out. Here to give us a better look into these myriad strategies is our resident tactical expert, former General Fractal_Wave. Hi there Fractal
Fractal: Hello derek, hi to all our viewers. Well it certainly seems both sides are diverging quickly with regards to their upcoming intentions for battle. As Kushan negotiators frantically try to hammer out a rite of passage agreement from their foes, Dagomar continues to produce scouts as possible early harrassment. He has about ten by the time his second harvester lumbers out of its docks, and continues to construct ever more. He also makes a couple probes, and, sending these out in widely diverging directions, he rapidly spots his industrious foe.
 
The successful probe is quickly spotted by Ender's own scouts, but it manages to scuttle and send three fighter pilots to their deaths! This is definately an excellent move by the Captain, crippling his enemy's early fighter production while gaining quick reconaissance. The move to corvette drive is interesting. It may mean we'll be seeing a great many heavy strikecraft in the near future; perhaps to counter the capitol ships Dagomar suspects his foe is moving toward. On Ender's side, things are going nearly equally smoothly, except in one field: scouting. The Kushan quickly raises a powerful web of scout-based defenses, which immediately locate and annihilate incoming probes and fighters. Although the Taaidan manage to find their opponants, the cost is certainly high. What's more, follow up reconnaissance is brutally denied by ever increasing fighter swarms, buttressed for the first time by corvettes. When going for frigates, as Ender seems to be doing, the one sure counter against vettes is always the Assault Frigate. Yet the Admiral completely skips this valuable dreadnought, instead quickly building a number of Ion Cannon Frigates, which, though dreadfully powerful, simply don't have the coverage needed to effectively combat strikecraft. To his credit, however, the yellow economy is very strong, and a substancial wing of scouts has been created to counter enemy strikecraft.
derek: Um, scouts don't usually fare too well against corvettes, do they Fractal.
Fractal: Er . . . no. ( nervous coughing )
derek: In any case, Dagomar is now fully concentrating on creating a powerful light corvette wing. His resources run out for a second, yet he now has three harvesters so a new mineral shipment is soon within sight. It looks like a powerful flotilla of 10 light corvettes, each with a single turreted gun, now lies in wait for an enemy attack, supported by 15 roving scouts. The vettes sail off to guard the harvesters, while the scouts stay near the mothership to continue the anti-rec screen. More harvesters are created as the entire mothership begins to move, lumbering closer to the main stash of asteroids near the center of the nebula.
Wait a minute - Fractal is that a Salvage Corvette cruising out of the Mothership?
Fractal: It certainly looks like it! It seems Dagomar is making the perfect capitol ship counter - salvage vettes, which, in numbers, can capture an entire Carrier if they have to! The devious spacetugs seem to have set coordiantes for the middle of the map - yes, they're departing, guarded by the entire scout wing.
derek: Ender already has Controllers now, but he's not really protecting them against strikecraft very well. The tugs approach the primary Taaidan resourcing operation . . . they've spotted the big controller and are heading straight towards it!
Fractal: If they pull that vessel over to their mothership, the full economic benefits of Ender's capitol ship research push will have been fully erased.
Drefsab: Excuse me, Fractal, but some of us here aren't military experts. Just what does a controller do?
Fractal: Well, essentially a Controller acts as a base for the harvesters - rather than having to travel all the way back to their flagship to deliver their resources, they can simply deploy them in the much quicker Controller, which is commonly right on site. This saves an awful lot of time, and is perhaps the only advantage Ender has at the moment.
derek: Of course, Controllers can also resupply strikecraft.
Fractal: And with heavy armour, they're difficult to destroy and therefore an absolutely perfect salvaging target. Dagomar's got to be happy now derek.
derek: Well, I'm not so sure about that, because 3 Ion Cannon Frigates have just lumbered onto the scene! The Frigates have only one massive Ion Cannon gun, and they're poor maneouverers . . . so at short range they wouldn't be much of a threat to strikecraft.
Fractal: However, at long range, the already slow Salvage Corvettes seem to be moving at an even more sluggish pace. What's more, when they're locking on to the Controller they'll be stationary - this could turn into a disaster for Dagomar, as one hit from an Ion beam can smash any strikecraft instantly!
derek: I think you may have underestimated the Captain there, Fractal. For even now he's directing his Scouts away from their guarding duties . . . to attack the Frigates! Although the capitol ships' armour is much too thick for the little scout mass drivers to penetrate any time soon, the light fighters are certainly distracting the enemy ships! All three have swung totally about, just as the salvage vettes surround the Controller, activate their power fields and drag it slowly toward their mothership.
Fractal: Those scouts have opened fire! The Ion Frigates don't know which way to shoot at their lightning-quick, swarming attackers, and hopelessly whirl about to assault their tormenters. Meanwhile the hapless controller dwindles slowly into the red haze of the nebula!
derek: The scouts continue to harass those frigates, and now the Controller is truly beyond range. Dagomar disengages his fighters and bids them to return to their escort now far away, giving them a speed burst as he does.
Fractal: But the Frigates don't give up! They continue on their course, but now are supported by a number of scouts. This is getting interesting . . . it could turn into a major assault on the Kushan mothership!
derek: However, Dagomar now has about 5 Multi-gun-corvettes, another 3 light corvettes to add to his previous 10 and 6 mighty Heavy Corvettes. All of these, especially the latter, will hurt those frigates very badly indeed.
Fractal: The tugs make it home, and the Controller is rolled into the mothership, where its crew will be detained and new personnel will take the controls. The vessel will leave the 23-mile mothership a loyal Kushan.
derek: But out of the towering beacons of the nubula three dark shapes emerge, lusting for revenge. The Captain immediately orders 13 light corvettes, 6 heavy corvettes and all his big multi-guns to engage this dangerous new threat. The Frigates pass straight through Dagomar's harvesters and bear down upon the Kushan mothership, just as they take their first fire and the battle is met.
Fractal: The scouts are utterly squashed in the record time by the multi-guns. A single frigate lets loose with a sizzling beam of ion plasma but just barely misses its target. The entire, swarming might of the Kushan navy swirls about the Taaidan capitol ships, and focus fire on the leading vessel. Shreds of armour tumble down into space as the vessel erupts in a blaze of inferno glory - derek that's 500 men!
derek: An honourable death. Just a minute - that's three salvagers coming in through the battle!
Fractal: Indeed those pilots must be having a terrible time in their buffeting craft, yet they lock on to a single massive capitol ship and tow the helpless, turretless vessel out of battle! What a move!
derek: The other Frigate is absolutely no match for the full brunt of the Kushan militia and detonates in a mighty fireball, searing the sides of those tugs as the slowly pass by. There goes the captured leviathan - into the much larger mothership, and just as it enters the Controller sails out! Amazing!
Fractal: Dagomar's scouts quickly replenish their nearly exhausted fuel supplies at the Controller's primary docking panel, as the lumbering craft thunders off to guard a batch of harvesters. derek, things are getting pretty intense here, and it sure seems like the Kushan have the advantage.
derek: Oh certainly Fractal, and what a move by the captain. Defeating three frigates with zero losses is no easy task, and that capturing ploy has got to humiliate his foe - especially so soon after claiming a Controller.
Fractal: Despite his recent victory, however, the Captain is quickly moving away from vettes, and has just ordered his scientists to work on Capitol ship drive and chassis. It seems like he expects his foe to be developing counters to strikecraft now, and that a rapid change in direction can catch Ender offguard once again. I'm not sure whether the Kushan will be successful, however, since the Admiral is now balancing his forces with immaculate care, ready for anything - erm, excuse me derek, but what is this strange disease infront of me here?
derek: Oh that's just Probe. He's an exotic dancer. Give him a couple coins and he'll go away.
Fractal: I don't wanna give this thing - this "Probe" - my hard earned 25 cents. Security! ( hard thuds heard, slamming doors, vague curses ).
derek: There we go. Anyway, back to the action.
Fractal: Dagomar is now making assault frigates, and is moving straight to their Ion Cannon counterparts. Sources tell us he's researching Destroyer technology, like his counterpart appears to be doing.
derek: My goodness . . . both sides are really building up now. Ender seems to be moving with an explosive bomber/assault frigate duo, a thuroughly excellent mix, with the frigates being superb against corvettes and the bombers being excellent against all large vessels besides missile destroyers or drone frigates. The Kushan Commander now has 4 Ion Cannon Frigates, 4 Assault Frigates, a Support Frigate and a huge, hulking Destroyer in his fleet - quite an armada. He's researching Drone Technology, but before he can complete this he powers up the massive Capitol ship engines, arranges his craft in a Wall stance and thunders off for the Taaidan mothership. Over 40 strikecraft support the giant militia as it dissapears into the nebula, just as Dagomar starts work on a second destroyer, a third Controller and his very first Drone Frigate. The fleet rumbles forward, but suddenly a powerful wing of Attack bombers in Delta formation spears down out of space, releasing a hoarde of powerful plasma bomblets!
Fractal: The scouts whirl in to attack, and, seeing the onrushing fighters, the bombers disengage and head out for the mothership instead. Yet the scouts are relentless, absolutely obliterating the Taaidan craft and continuing on their course. Now a powerful brigade of triple assault frigates emerges from the nebula's brilliant core, swirving hard to evade the Kushan navy. The yellow vessels are spotted, but not engaged as Dagomar heads straight for the enemy mothership to end it here, once and for all.
derek: The Taaidan assault frigates tear into the mining Kushan harvesters, which quickly scatter in fright. The Captain sends in some 25 strikecraft to take care of the capitol ships - yet I'm forced to question the intelligence of this move, Fractal. Let's call in our expert on Taaidan military strategy, DrAwesome.
DrAwesome: Thanks derek, welcome viewers. Yes well, this could end up being a disaster for Dagomar. He badly needs those strikecraft to support his larger fleet against the swarms of attack bombers and interceptors the Admiral has back at his flagship. What's more, he's forgetting that these capitol ships are Assault frigates - capable of blasting vettes out of the spacelanes while retaining the tough armour of the Ion Frigates. The Kushan scouts will be tougher to destroy, but then they do so little damage to capitol ship armour that they're probably better off defending against the bombers.
Fractal: Very true, very true. Indeed, as the primary Kushan armada goes into combat above the Taaidan mothership, Dagomar's corvettes are blown to smithereens, apparantly leaving his scouts behind to discover just how hard it is to penetrate the heavy capitol ship armour plates.
Let's just turn it over to the cameras for a moment as the battles near that Taaidan mothership play out.
derek: OMG! Those assault frigates are ruining Dagomar's resourcing operation! They manage to wipe out two Controllers, but are taking some damage from those scouts. Meanwhile, the main squirmish is lighting up surrounding space like a mini nova! The pride of the Taaidan fleet, the Destroyer Ruthless has been torn to spacedust in a hail of Ion Cannon fire, but so far only a single Taaidan bomber has destroyed!
Kushan turrets are rolling about to target their lightning-fast foes, but their mounts are simply too slow and the blue ships are taking a terrible beating. Three ships erupt in awesome fireballs, as dual Ion Frigates - including the captured one - and a single assault frigate are slashed to spacedust! We have reports of widespread panic in the Kushan ranks, but through it all Dagomar keeps his calm and sends in his 20 remaining scouts, which up to this point have still been pestering the yellow Assault Frigates. A drone frigate activates its hyperdrive near the Kushan mothership, and soon it materializes right in the thick of the battle, its deadly little drones speeding to catch up kilometers behind. It could be too little too late . . . .
Fractal: I'm not so sure about that! Taaidan Bombers and Interceptors are now taking their first heavy fire, and it's not a pretty sight. The brave pilots are caught utterly unprepared in a swirling firestorm of Kushan projectiles, and in the resulting chaos the Heavy guns atop the capitol ships lock on, opening a rolling barrage of devastating proportions! As space erupts around them the Kushan fighters scream through the firey explosions and smash their swirling foes.
derek: But wait a minute - now two assault frigates and a support frigate steam in to reinforce the Taaidan, along with those three marauding frigates, and they begin to pepper the already damaged Kushan vessels with crippling volleys of turret fire! Blazing, superheated Plasma enshrouds the battle as both sides take heavy losses.
Fractal: Things seem pretty much evenly matched - but wait - that's a missile destroyer coming out of the Taaidan flagship! Good grief - it's letting lose some mighty salvos as Dagomar's Ion Frigates take it in the teeth from the Admiral's newly produced corvettes!
derek: In this furious hail of beam and bullet, Dagomar finds himself outgunned and outclassed. Yet now a glittering blue Destroyer a mile long thunders out of hyperspace and sizzles the Taaidan Missile Destroyer, whose armour begins to buckle under the assault. The tide seems to have turned as the hulking vessel finally goes down in a blaze of glory, yet now a fully furnished Standard Destroyer eases out of the yellow mothership. A standard Destroyer is far less effective against strikecraft than its fighter-killing missile-carrying counterpart, yet it's absolutely lethal against capitol ships. With twin Ion cannons and double turrets shooting wildly the Taaidan battlewagon engages its foes, which immediately focus fire upon it. It's going to be a close one, since only a single yellow Assault Frigate has been vanquished so far!
Fractal: But the critical element in all this is not going to be numbers - it's going to be damage taken. The Kushan forces have been through alot already, and despite the presence of a support frigate and a repair corvette not a single blue ship is in the green anymore. All Taaidan strikecraft have finally been slaughtered, but they're no the ones that count now. OMG - look at that!
derek: Nearly all of Dagomar's frigate forces are blown back and away in absolutely spectacular explosions as the core of his fleet is completely shattered! That must be an awful lot of firepower being directed at the Kushan armada!
Fractal: Oh, definately. And now Dagomar is faced with no option but to retreat his remaining, hugely outgunned vessels into hyperspace - before they too are slaughtered by the Taaidan flotilla. The Captain gives the order, his two remaining destroyers and single surviving frigate ease into hyperspace - yet one of those destroyers detonates before it can leave!!
derek: That must be a crushing blow to Dagomar, who must know that a split second could have saved over a thousand marines from their deaths. Nonetheless, he is forced to put the loss behind him as he retreats his scouts . . . yet they are trapped by a fresh wing of corvettes and are massacred by the capitol ship turrets! Only TWO Kushan fighters make it out!
Fractal: The Captain's dual remaining ships emerge from Warp somewhere between his mothership and the enemy's. The survivng frigate - the supporter - sets about repairing the much larger and heavily damaged Destroyer as a new squadron of scouts race up to complement this little fleet. It seems the Kushan are determined to make stand here, ready to face the Taaidan armada which is almost certainly heading their way.
derek: Dagomar: seems to have put his close loss behind him, consoling himself with the fact that he inflicted heavy damage to his enemy before he left, and that at least those annoying frigates are no longer laying waste to his harvesters. He begins construction on a missile Destroyer and its standard counterpart as he lies in wait for the Taaidan, while he flies two repair corvettes over to his last operational Destroyer.
Fractal: He won't have to wait long! The Taaidan fleet of a single Destroyer and three Assault Frigates comes barraling out of the nebula and immediately opens fire, while Dagomar's own Capitol ship swings about to meet them. Ion cannons sizzle, turrets fire, fighters explode, corvettes repair . . . .
derek: The scouts distract the Assault frigates, and for a while the Kushan repairers ensure their Destroyer takes no damage at all. Yet the rotating turrets of the Frigates make quick work of the Aggressive scouts, and now the full weight of the Taaidan militia is thrown at the single defending Kushan ship, which begins to take some serious damage. Dagomar waits to the last minute in retreating his vessel, apparantly expecting the opposing Destroyer to explode shortly. His expectations come out short and the Captain is forced to pull back dissapointed, while Ender constructs a missile Destroyer back home and moves in upon the Kushan mothership.
Fractal: Although the odds look dark for Dagomar and he seems to have lost the war, the Captain vows not to surrender and contructs another Ion frigate with his sparse resources. The Taaidan, now with full map control, set up a crippling siege as they wait for reinforcements, yet the Kushan simply hyperspace a batch of harvesters and Controllers to different areas of the map, resuming resource collection, albeit at a lessened pace.
derek: Things are definately not looking good for Dagomar, yet perhaps as a desperation weapon he creates a number of Salvage corvettes. Just then, another standard Destroyer lumbers out of the mothership to join its now fully repaired equal, and an Ion Frigate also joins the growing navy. Suddenly, in a frantic ploy to retake control of the game, the Kushan Captain orders his fleet to head straight into the midst of the Kushan siege. The stakes are high as each armada sights the other, and the battle is met.
Fractal: Dagomar seems to have had perfect timing here, for that reinforcing missile destroyer is still some miles away! The Kushan Destroyers tear into the once-confident Taaidan fleet, and it is with a shriek of dismay that the Admiral realizes he's outnumbered! The yellow Destroyer is blasted to oblivion, and now it is the Frigates' turn. One dies in a blinding fireball, the other is siezed by those salvage corvettes, and the third turns to flee. Ion cannons sizzle its engines and suddenly it too erupts in a brilliant flare of nuclear energy. The siege is no more!!
derek: What a victory this is for the Kushan! Now a missile Destroyer and a Drone Frigate join the armada as the Taaidan missile destroyer finally emerges out of the central core of the nebula. It finds itself hugely outnumbered, and soon the lumbering behemoth joins the rest of the Taaidan siege as a glowing sphere of expanding stardust.
Fractal: But Dagomar doesn't stop there! He continues with a mighty push into the heart of the Taaidan presence here, and commands his vessels straight towards the enemy mothership! But wait - no fewer than SIX yellow Ion Cannon Frigates appear, and it looks like the Kushan will meet some serious opposition here!
derek: Just a minute - those frigates are still in Move mode! They were further reinforcements for the now vanquished siege, and they simply keep plowing ahead as the Kushan vessels open fire with a veangence! First one, then two, now three frigates fall before the remnants of the once mighty fleet finally begin to roll about to face their attackers! Fractal, what do you think of this brutal fiasco on Ender's part?
Fractal: Horrible but short lived, derek. For in triple apocalyptic detonations, all three of those frigates are crushed in firey succession. Dagomar's push continues unabated, and now there's a very real possibility he might actually win this war!
derek: The scarred Kushan armada finally reaches the enemy mothership, which is heavily defended by a Destroyer, some frigates and a hoarde of strikecraft. Yet Dagomar has learned his lesson form the previous battle, and now his forces are impeccably balanced. The Captain splits off his missile Destroyer to "handle" the strikecraft, while his drone frigate does the same and the rest of his militia opens up upon the opposing destroyer!
Fractal: The action is fast and furious as two mighty Juggernauts collide for the umpteenth time. The Taaidan Destroyer is blown to smithereens by the scorching Ion Cannons, and now the core of Dagomar's somewhat damaged fleet whirls around to engage the remaining capitol ships. The Drone frigate has been crushed, the Missile Destroyer is well into the red - yet there are no more strikecraft of any kind at the Taaidan mothership!
derek: All yellow opposition is simply erased and now, for the very first time, the Kushan directly open fire upon the Admiral's mothership with the full force of Ion Cannons and nuclear missiles. The massive vessel begins to flame, yet something tells me this war isn't over quite yet.
Fractal: That something would have to be the hoarde of corvettes and defense fighters which are now lining up just behind the Taaidan mothership, correct?
derek: Um . . . yeah, that would be it.
Fractal: In any case, Dagomar suddenly spots those Defense Fighters, and, knowing that they can deflect anything except for missiles, Ion beams or Mines, he continues to fire upon the mothership with his main force, while opening up upon the fighters with his Missile Destroyers. derek, this is not going to be pretty . . . will you look at that!
derek:Good grief . . . there goes Ender's entire defense fighter force, but what Dagomar doesn't know is that he's just opened up a pandora's box of terrifying proportions. Waves of Interceptors and Corvettes scream out from their out-of-view lair behind the Taaidan mothership, and for once the already damaged missile Destroyer finds itself thuroughly overwhelmed!
Fractal: The Destroyer manages to obliterate nearly all of Ender's Corvette force before erupting in a spectacular explosion, and in a startling reversal of fates this leaves a hoarde of Interceptors nibbling away at the two remaining Kushan Destroyers, which can do nothing but continue firing at the burning Taaidan mothership. There's no way that mothership is going to blow before the Destroyers are vanquished. Looks like this is yet another failed assault.
derek: You're wrong! Look - a missile destroyer has suddenly Jumped in to rescue the fleet! It's easing down slowly from above - the tide has turned yet again!
Fractal: A single assault frigate rolls out of the Taaidan flagship as the missile destroyer thunders ever closer, and two salvage corvettes attempt to tow it back to the Kushan mothership. Both are smashed within seconds by the interceptors, yet now that missile battlewagon is finally within range, releasing a salvo of rockets which zip out to smash the swooping yellow Interceptors!
derek: Holy Cow of Pakistan! Those Interceptors are being slaughtered - there's not a single one left as two new salvage corvettes come stumbling in through the glowing cinders to finally capture that Assault Frigate!
Fractal: The Missile Destroyer joins in the bombardment as the Salvage corvettes finally lock on to take their prize - derek I think it's over - the mothership is definately on its last legs, and there it goes in a vast, thundrous explosion, illuminating this entire sector of and taking the wretched Admiral Ender to a firey doom!!
derek: Dref . . . I'm speechless. What a battle . . . over 100,000 casualties, the destruction of an entire division of the Imperial Fleet and the vaporization of one of the greatest Admirals ever to navigate our galaxy . . . .
Drefsab: So true, so true. Well thank you Fractal and derek for that moving commentary on what may just be among the most important events we've ever reported. The fate of 600,000 Kushan souls lay in the balance here today; all were saved by the prowess of the valiant Captain Dagomar. With this battle won, it is entirely possible that the rebellious Kushan survivors may, someday, rejoin their long lost brethren in the skies above Hiaagara. You can count on us to be there to cover it all!
Some other news today:
We have word that the renowned writer |]agomar ( yes, he's related to the Kushan Captain ) has just released a new article on battlereports.com - dealing with this very conflict! All fans of this truy inspiring author should definately take a look at the stirring piece. Tune in for our 11:00 newscast for reviews and |]agomar's new rookmark total.
Also, |]agomar has, in a press conference held earlier today, voiced his intention to report a good war in the Starcraft parallel Universe very soon. Asked what type of generals should notify him of any upcoming battles which he could write about, he replied only with "Good ones. And maybe Wang for cheap entertainment." Johnny Vegas Productions, our parent company, neither endorses or dismisses these last comments regarding the ever eccentric Wangsonn.
Finally, sources tell us that the fabled, enigmatic writer/commodore WC3 William is about to release a battlereport "within days." Information is still sketchy, but if our sources are correct this would be a momentous occassion indeed.
Thanks for watching ( or reading ), and we here at GNN wish you the very best of goodbyes.
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