Hiigaran Frigates
The Hiigarans, with their emphasis on larger,
more multi-roled shipping, get two more classes of Frigate
than the Vaygr. The Hiigarans
are definitely stronger in this area. Where the Vaygr get a specialised
Fighter for trumping each hull class (Assault
Craft, Lance Fighter and Bomber
for attacking Fighters, Corvettes and Capitals respectively), the Hiigarans
get a Frigate that does the same: Flak, Torpedo
and Ion Beam Frigates. You need a Research
Module and a Frigate Facility to start
your Frigate production, getting a basic, all purpose, bog standard model
called the Torpedo Frigate. Hiigaran Frigates
have two tech tiers, requiring an Advanced Research
Module before you can get to the more specialised Frigates for
specific missions. Hiigaran Frigates generally contain about 16000
hit points, and wear Medium armour. They're
generally pretty damn good at what they do, but every weapon
system will hit them on the first go, and they are often the
first targets of choice by every unit that has the luxury of making a
choice.
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Torpedo Frigate
Basic Frigate |
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While this is the most primitive of the Hiigaran Frigates, the Torpedo
Frigate is the nearest thing to an all-purpose unit in the
whole game. Its gold. It becomes available the moment the Frigate
Facility is installed, and should be used as the basic building
block of your Frigate walls. Oddly enough, it flies in the face of
typical Hiigaran design and has no turrets, using only indirect missiles
like a Vaygr ship. To the uninitiated, it looks a little plain and
uninspiring, but its chassis forms the basic foundations for all Hiigaran
Frigates. It has no equivalent in the Vaygr navy.
Sharp eyed statisticians will notice it only starts out with only
12,000 hit points and even with both Armour
Upgrades it barely exceeds an unimproved Frigate.
It certainly isn't the lovable old Homeworld
Assault Frigate - but if you follow through the upgrade path
for these things and use them in numbers they become extremely potent.
Like all missile ships, fire rates are slow, but people tend not
to notice with the Torpedo Frigate.
Some online players build nothing but Torpedo Frigates, ignoring
the other Hiigaran frigates, convinced of their innate superiority
over every other Frigate in the game. Technically, the Torpedo Frigate
is a Corvette killer - a job it does extremely
well. But it seems just as adept as obliterating Fighter clouds
as it is battering Frigates. The ship starts off with a small Cluster
Torpedo that slaps into a Frigate in one nasty lump for 380
points or splits into four independently guided warheads
that chase down Strikecraft to share that 380 points of pain around.
A sizeable wall of these fellows can vapourise a substantial chunk
out of any Strikecraft cloud in one salvo, or take out a couple
of Frigates. They are not to be under-estimated.
If the target dies, Torpedo Frigate warheads simply reacquire
whatever happens to be near them - the only missiles in the game
that can
do this, as far as I can tell. A cloud of unused warheads will
simply work their way from one hapless target to the next until
they run
out of range. If that wasn't enough, they enjoy the best weapon
range of any Frigate in the game: the same as a Destroyer's
main weaponry or 4500m, which is double
the range of every other Frigate in the game. And if you
still aren't satisfied, you can research the Improved
Torpedoes upgrade and gain an additional heavy torpedo
that can inflict 1520 points on other
Capital targets! Both the cluster and anti-capital warheads enjoy
the same
ranges and targeting perks.
At the very least, they make excellent backup for Strikecraft,
or a good all weather escort for any Capitals. Again, numbers count.
This thing has great firepower, but it's clearly had its armour
nerfed to compensate. Running into a wall of these guys is a real
worry - but running from them will almost certainly inflict horrendous
losses. The best way to tackle these ships is to focus fire on them
and reduce their numbers quick smart, especially if you've got Bombers
up your sleeve, and Laser Corvettes
can cut through them like butter. Be quick, otherwise you won't
have too many Strikecraft left. A rain of Torpedo Frigate torpedoes
will seriously dampen the enthusiasm of many opponents. |
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Prerequisites
Research Module
Frigate Facility |
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Perks
2 Torpedo Frigate Armour Upgrades
2 Torpedo Frigate Engine Upgrades
Improved Torpedo upgrade |
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Pros
Hard hitting Strikecraft and (when upgraded) Frigate
killer
Can dent Capital craft
Best weapon range of all the Frigates: same as a Destroyer's!
Torpedoes acquire new targets when the original target
dies
Probably the nearest thing to an all-purpose Frigate
in the game |
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Cons
Shoots slowly
More readily overwhelmed than its siblings
Only starts with 12,000 hit points. |
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Flak Frigate
Anti-Strikecraft Frigate
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Quite simply, this is the ultimate Strikecraft killer for
Homeworld 2. Flak Frigates are easily recognised
by their rear winglets and the collection of hexagonal protrusions
jutting from their noses. They are advanced units unlocked by the
Advanced Research Module. They come equipped
with over and under Flak Turrets: essentially
double barrelled shotguns that blast small clouds of explosive shrapnel
at fast moving targets first with one barrel, then the other. They
are ideal for close quarters combat - and like many shotgun-like weapons
in computer games, rapidly lose potency at long range. With a bit
of cross-fire these things will absolutely murder even the biggest
Strikecraft clouds - unless the Strikecraft
on the receiving end are frantically focus firing on the Flak Frigates
themselves. They're fantastic against Fighters,
and pop Corvettes without too much effort.
They're the equivalent of the Vaygr's Assault
Frigate.
They rarely hit their targets: rather, the splash damage from all
their exploding shells weakens whole Squadrons and often smokes
several Fighters at a pop. Anything that sports Light
Armour is in serious trouble.
Unfortunately, they're almost completely useless against anything
Frigate sized or bigger. They have the shortest weapon ranges in
a Frigate: barely that of a regular Fighter. With their shorter
ranges they'll cheerfully rush enemy capital lines pursing straggling
Strikecraft - where they're invariably crushed before you can rein
them in. While Torpedo Frigates can sit back
and handle the mainstay of enemy forces at some range, the Flak
Frigate specialises in countering the smaller targets, point
blank. In the Flak Frigate's case, crossfire is everything. One
or two Flak Frigates can be useful, but four or five are nasty,
nasty, nasty...
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Prerequisites
Research Module
Frigate Facility
Adv. Research Module |
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Perks
2 Flak Frigate Armour Upgrades
2 Flak Frigate Engine Upgrades |
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Pros
MASSACRES Fighters
Mangles Corvettes
Looks spectacular in action - little cloud of explosions
with a light show to match |
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Cons
Labours against Frigates and Capital craft
Short firing range
Unhappy habit of racing ahead to their doom |
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Ion Beam Frigate
Anti-Capital Frigate
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One of the few vessels to make it unchanged from the first
game, the Ion Beam Frigate is an advanced
Frigate that only becomes available after an Advanced
Research Module is installed. This is the equivalent of the
Vaygr's Heavy Missile Frigate.
While the Flak Frigate specialises in small
targets, the bulbous Ion Beam Frigate exclusively
tackles the big end of town - probably the only finicky specialist
in the Hiigaran arsenal. Some netgamers feel its sluggish ways are
made completely redundant by Capital warships or swarming Strikecraft.
Against Strikecraft, Ion Beam Frigates do
absolutely nothing: they just sit there and take whatever comes at
them - even if there are no other units in the vicinity. And they'll
suffer bad losses from the heavier and longer ranged weaponry of a
Capital warship.
They're slow to fire, a little awkward to move around and are readily
trumped, but half a dozen of these will inflict serious damage on
large targets at reasonable range. This Frigate is best used as
a support weapon, and really needs to have something covering or
at least a few distractions for the opposition for it to do its
good work unmolested. Sprinkling these powerful units amongst your
Frigate wall will certainly beef up its effectiveness and augment
a Destroyer force, but you will need to
keep an eye on them. Their beams last a few seconds, raking across
any large targets that can't move out of the way. While they're
good against Platforms, they'll take
a serious pummeling in return from heavy gun Platforms.
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Prerequisites
Research Module
Frigate Facility
Adv. Research Module |
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Perks
Ion Beam Frigate Armour Upgrades
2 Ion Beam Frigate Engine Upgrades |
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Pros
Mangles Frigates and Capital ships
Instant gratification weapon - no waiting for slow old
missiles |
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Cons
Needs to get into firing position before it can start
being useful
Outranged and seriously trumped by Capital craft
For all its power, not very good against Subsystems
at all
Completely vulnerable to Strikecraft |
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Defence Field Frigate
Force Field Frigate
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This special Frigate generates a large, spherical force field that
blocks most kinds of enemy weapon fire. The field remains up for 20
seconds before requiring a 30-40 second
recharge. The field is hollow: enemy ships can fly around inside
it and shoot, but it blocks 90% (or thereabouts) of all incoming fire
from the outside. Your forces within can still shoot out. The only
problem is that being slower than other ships, it, and its protective
field, tends to be left behind when your forces race off to engage
the enemy. Some micromanagement is required to get them working -
and they also get picked on by enemy ships. Effectively, it supports
your fleet by temporarily reducing the damage being inflicted
on it.
For the most part, the field will block all Strikecraft
and Frigate fire, but I have noticed the
large weapon systems on the Battlecruisers
fire through the sphere as though it isn't there.
This is the most advanced Frigate in the Hiigaran navy, only becoming
available when an Advanced Research Module
is installed and the Defence Field tech
is researched. Unfortunately, Defence Field Frigates
don't score any Armour or Engine upgrades, and only have a pissy
underside turret for minimal defence. They come with more armour
than a regular Frigate, but they'll slow down any upgraded Frigate
Strike-Forces, and can be blown away almost as an afterthought.
I haven't seen these used too often in a battle - the micromanagement
they require can be a bit of a handful once a full battle is underway
(when you really need them). They rarely seem to be in the right
spot at the right time and are always trailing the ships they're
supposed to be protecting. |
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Prerequisites
Research Module
Frigate Facility
Adv. Research Module
Defence Field tech |
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Perks
none |
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Pros
Produces a huge spherical force field... |
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Cons
...for 20 seconds before its battery goes flat
30-40 seconds recharge time
Its very lightly armed
Its expensive
Its field doesn't stop Battlecruiser weaponry |
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Marine Frigate
Hijacking Frigate |
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With Salvaging removed from Homeworld
2 players must resort to the Hiigaran Marine Frigate
to capture vessels. This is the equivalent of the Vaygr's Infiltrator
Frigate, and has virtually the same vital statistics and skills.
There's a severe cap on the number you can build, and the AI's always
seem to blow these things away first regardless of what's going on
around them. They're best used against lightly armed Capital craft
- and exceptionally worthwhile when you run off with an opponent's
Mothership! Unfortunately, capturing enemy production vessels doesn't
let you manufacture the enemy's ships.
They do come with a light Kinetic Turret
turret similar to a Flak Frigate (sans the splash
damage) so they're not entirely useless in a fight, but with absolutely
no upgrades to go with them you should either capture lightly
armed vessels or give them lots of support. They do get more armour
than a regular Frigate (20,000 hit points,
to be precise) and they can fly at a pretty fair clip but they are
invariably the first to be shot down and you will pobably have to
micromanage them for best results or expect to be building a lot
of replacements.
As the ship classes get larger, the time it takes to hijack a victim
skyrockets. It can take long minutes to overpower a Mothership,
giving your opponents plenty of time to respond and come to its
rescue. Until the process of capturing or disabling is complete,
the victim can still shoot back (pictured). Doubling up Marine
Frigates does very little except decrease this takeover time
by a tiny fraction - although its probably worth your while if your
Frigates are in danger of being destroyed. Marine
Frigates can steal anything Frigate sized or larger: grabbing
a string of enemy Frigates isn't such a bad idea... assuming they
survive.
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Prerequisites
Research Module
Frigate Facility
Adv. Research Module |
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Perks
none |
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Pros
Hijacks Frigates, Capital craft and Motherships. |
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Cons
Always blown up first - well, after Resource Collectors,
that is!
Its very lightly armed.
Its expensive.
Low, low unit cap.
It takes time to overpower a ship.
Ships that are being hijacked are still alive, kicking - and shooting
back. |
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Hiigaran Corvettes
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