Vaygr Fighters
 The
Vaygr's inferior technology starts to show early on in any multiplayer
game. There's only one tier of research in a single Research
Module. But the Vaygr have to unlock all their regular Strikecraft
hulls by researching separate tech's. However, this is probably an act
of game balancing by the developers to keep the Vaygr player from obliterating
the Hiigarans too soon! Vaygr Strikecraft are designed to tackle everything
their own size and dominate it - but they can also seriously savage targets
far bigger than themselves. They get Corvette killing Fighters and Frigate
killing Corvettes, reversing the usual size trumping between the different
hull sizes.
Fighters are the most basic units to get off
the ground. Apart from the trio of Scouts, all
Vaygr Fighters come in squadrons of five to seven and lots of stripes.
They enjoy a higher unit cap over the Hiigarans. While they might be more
numerous, their lighter hulls suffer higher attrition rates and need a
lot more backup and plenty of re-docking. The Fighter
Facility does not require any prerequisites to be built, but most
vaygr Fighter types don't become available until the Research
Facility is finished and their respective tech's. are studied.
Vaygr Fighters only get two Fighter Upgrades,
and each upgrade applies collectively to your entire Fighter force. The
first level is fairly cheap, but the second suddenly gets expensive.
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Survey Scout
High Speed Scout |
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These are the high speed eyes and ears for your fleet. Survey
Scouts are specialised spotters, and essential for keeping
an eye on the map. In fact, these little guys, when fully upgraded,
can outrun speeding Probes! This high speed is offset by a lack of
any Sensor upgrade (enjoyed by the Hiigaran
Scout), so while they might be very fast, they have to edge closer
to the enemy. They're great for chasing down Probes
and maybe Hiigaran Scouts but their negligible armour and weaponry
are simply token gestures. Provided they don't make the mistake of
stopping or turning they can outrun most shipping.
If upgraded with the EMP capability, they
can even freeze other shipping for about half a minute. While EMP
is short ranged, don't underestimate its capacity to paralyze and
completely knobble enemy shipping. Its a great battle turner, but
it does require some practice and fiddly micro management, and there's
a 70 second recharge time.
Survey Scouts come in trios. You can build
these immediately without any prerequisites in the game. They're
great little spies - but need a little minding and they take up
precious Fighter slots. |
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Prerequisites:
none |
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Perks
2 Fighter Engine Upgrades
EMP weapon upgrade |
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Pros
Excellent speed: when fully upgraded, can out run Probes
Good Probe repellant
EMP spell temporarily freezes all shipping
with range |
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Cons
Hopeless at combat - steer clear of all
action!
Massacred by any anti-Fighter systems
Vaygr version doesn't get a Sensor upgrade
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Assault Craft
Anti-Fighter Fighter |
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This is the basic bare bones Vaygr Fighter; the lesser equivalent
to the Hiigaran's Interceptor.
What it lacks in firepower it makes up for with superior numbers.
These swarmers are lighter, faster and more numerous. They form the
first armed units the Vaygr can churn out in numbers and you can knock
these out the moment your first Fighter Facility
is built. They suffer high attrition rates and need frequent reinforcing.
While the Vaygr player is struggling to tech their Strikecraft force
up to scratch in the early stages of a game, the Assault
Craft is there to watch over them.
They're excellent for countering Bombers,
Lance Fighters and meeting Interceptors
on their own terms. But it really is only capable of tackling targets
its own size. You'll find them starting to struggle against Corvettes
and Platforms unless you've darkened
the sky with these things, y, and up against Frigates and Capitals
they're all but useless except as distractions for point defences
and other anti-Strikecraft weapons.
But don't ever leave home without them. Vaygr forces rely heavily
on mixed forces where each type of ships is covering its comrades'
shortcomings, and Assault Craft fill out
a Vaygr Strikecraft cloud nicely, especially covering Bombers
and Lance Fighters. You should also use
them extensively to cover any Capital Shipping, keeping those enemy
Bombers at bay.
Assault Craft fire 30
point bursts of rapid fire, missing 90% of the time. Since
they have the numbers and fire pretty frequently, chances are a
full squadron will always kill another Fighter
or two with every salvo. One on one against an Interceptor, they
have shorter range, shoot slower, and with less accuracy, but they
don't suffer any weapon penalties like the Interceptor does: Assault
Craft can actually inflict more damage against Frigates,
but that isn't saying much. Its excellent mobility and speed is
ideal for striking out across the map, but is offset by its slight
strength.
But any deficiencies lone Assault Craft
have are compensated for by coming in squadrons of seven. Weight
for weight, an Interceptor squadron is
moreorless comparable to an Assault Craft squadron
with a slight edge on firepower - assuming no losses of course.
You can identify these fighters by the dark "spear-point"
shaped clouds they form. When set to Aggressive,
they bunch together in a tight little knot, making them very susceptible
to concentrations of enemy fire, especially from Flak
Frigates. Their basic shape forms the foundation from which
all Vaygr Fighters are based. |
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Prerequisites:
Fighter Facility |
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Perks
2 Fighter Engine Upgrades |
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Pros
Comes in squadrons of seven!
Good Fighter counter, perfect against Bombers or Lance
Fighters
Faster than the Interceptor
No weapon penalties against different Armour types |
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Cons
Outclassed by Corvettes and Turrets
High attrition rate at the best of times
Massacred by any anti-Fighter systems, especially by
Flak Frigates and Gunships |
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Vaygr Bomber
Anti-Capital Fighter |
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The Vaygr Bomber is a specialised Capital
ship killer, but its real claim to fame is its amazing ability to
destroy Subsystems. No other unit in the
games seems to clip those modules quite as effectively. Being a Fighter,
its highly agile - although not by other Fighter standards - and in
numbers Bombers can pose serious threats to any Capital
shipping lacking any anti-Fighter escorts. Half a dozen Bomber squadrons
easily strip Subsystems and blow away Frigates
with ease.
Apart from looks, Hiigaran Bombers
and Vaygr Bombers are very similar, with identical build times,
speed, armour and range. Weight for weight, the Vaygr
Bomber is slightly less powerful, fires a bit slower and
is slightly less accurate than its rival, but this is offset by
the Vaygr Bomber squadron having six members instead of five. The
Vaygr Bomber delivers 110 points
of damage; with the upgrade this jumps to 195,
actually exceeding the Hiigaran version. An upgraded Vaygr Bomber
squadron at full strength can drop 1170 points
on a target, compared to a Hiigaran Squadron's 950.
They score a 250% bonus against Subsystems,
but only inflict 50% damage against
Platforms.
When it comes to dog fighting and looking after itself, Vaygr
Bombers fail badly, especially if they're busy concentrating
on capital ships. They will be quickly swept from the skies by Interceptors
and Assault Craft, and very vulnerable to
every type of anti-Strikecraft system in the game. Even point defences
can seriously take their toll. But this is more than offset but
their incredible usefulness. With the Plasma Bomb
upgrade a Bomber squadron can unleash astonishing amounts
of firepower that wouldn't look out of place on a Frigate. They're
great early on against those first Frigates, and just the thing
to slip half a dozen squadrons under the guns of a Battlecruiser
and knobble its main weapons - a tactic all good players should
quickly learn. Against a Mothership or a Carrier you should be cherry
picking those production Facilities to kill of any fresh reinforcements
being built. Just make sure you look after them... you'll find their
horrendous attrition rates forcing you to retreat them frequently. |
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Prerequisites:
Fighter Facility
Research Module
Fusion Bomb Tech |
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Perks
2 Fighter Engine Upgrades
Improved Bomb Upgrade |
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Pros
Utterly brilliant against Subsystems: 250% damage!
Excellent against Frigates
Very good against Capital craft
Better firepower (once upgraded) than the Hiigaran
Bomber |
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Cons
Utterly, utterly wiped out by any kind of anti-Fighter
technology: Interceptors, Assault Craft, Flak Frigates, Gunships,
etc
Only 50% damage against Platforms |
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Lance Fighter
Anti-Corvette Fighter
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The Vaygr's extra Fighter is an ostentatious piece of work expressly
designed to pop Corvettes, a job it does
very well. Watch a squadron of Lance Fighters
in action, and you'll see them burn through enemy Corvettes like Interceptors
carving up a cloud of Bombers. Its trademark
signature is an extraordinarily bright red laser beam that lights
up the entire map. For all that bluster, a single Lance
Fighter only packs double the firepower of an Interceptor,
but since these guys come in wings of five, a few rounds from a few
Lance Squadrons will destroy any Corvette squadron, if not an erase
a significant chunk of a Frigate. Sprinkle
a few Lance squadrons in a Vaygr strike cloud and you'll be pleasantly
surprised at how fast even enemy Capital Craft
disappear - they are definitely the hard edge of the Vaygr's otherwise
light Fighter forces. To get the most out of them, there needs to
be plenty of other ships to distract enemy fire for them to do their
work.
Their light armour will see them getting massacred like every other
Vaygr Fighter, but they easily dish out
as much as they take. Its a great little number, but like the Bomber,
a little vulnerable on its own, even when its dispatching Corvettes.
In big battles I seem to notice Lance Fighters
dying very quickly. They have no special rules or restrictions on
anything, other than having 10% accuracy
against all kinds of Strikecraft. With
relatively their low rate of fire, they are outclassed by Assault
Craft and Interceptor wings. You
can identify Lance Fighters by their red
noses and serrated edges. And those vivid red laser beams, of course. |
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Prerequisites:
Fighter Facility
Research Module
Lance Beam Tech |
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Perks
2 Fighter Engine Upgrades |
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Pros
Utterly brilliant against Corvettes
Excellent against Frigates
Very good against Capital craft and Platforms
Hiigarans don't have anything quite like it |
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Cons
Still gets nailed by any kind of anti-Fighter technology:
Interceptors, Assault Craft, Flak Frigates, Gunships, etc. You'll
lose a lot of 'em in action. |
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The Vaygr
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