Match four of round 1 pits the Gorn Heavy Cruiser "C. S.
S. Reptilicon" against
the Klingon D7 BattleCruiser "I. K. V. Fire". This is a match of brawn
against
finesse, with a slower, more damage resistant Gorn packing a heavy
Plasma
Torpedo punch against a more maneuverable and fragile Klingon ship
which
depends on the every turn fire of the Disruptor.
In Star Trek, the Gorns only appear in the episode "Arena", which pits
Captain
Kirk against the Gorn captain over a mistaken matter of colonial
rights.
Captain Kirk wins the battle, yet refuses to kill the Gorn captain.
From such
fruits have derived, in the SFB Universe, the only alliance not based
on
mutual defense or a mutual enemy, but on trust and the shared interest
in
knowledge that both nations have.
The Gorns are bordered by the Federation on the West, the Romulans on
the
South, and the ISC on the East. Like the other Eastern races, the Gorn
use the
Plasma Torpedo as their primary heavy weapon. Unlike the Romulans, who
have
their cloaking device to help their often inferior ships, the Gorns
rely on
superior hulls that can withstand punishment.
Gorns have few habitable planets in their large domain, second only to
the
Romulans in sparseness. They have a few good ships, which patterns them
somewhat along the lines of current day Germany. Gorn ships are not
very
maneuverable, relying on a good all-around phaser suite, good shields,
and
more power than other ships. They also carry more shuttles than most
comparable
ship types, and a good amount of Center Hull to absorb internal damage.
Drawbacks are its slow turn mode and narrow Plasma Torpedo arcs. Both
Plasma
Torpedos can only fire on the same target if it's in the front row of
hexes.
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The Klingon Empire is the primary opposition in the SFB
Universe. They have
the second largest nation and the largest fleet at the start of the
General
War. Klingon ships are characterized by their maneuverability, somewhat
poor
rear shields, fragile hulls, second class phasers, and Disruptors. With
all
those negatives it's hard to imagine how the Klingons could be a major
power.
The secret is the Disruptor. A weapon that requires finesse to use.
Able to
do more overall damage than a Photon Torpedo at close range, and with
better
to-hit numbers than many weapons at all ranges, the thing it lacks is
crunch
power. It can fire every turn, but each firing does half the damage of
a
comparable heavy weapon. So the key is to maneuver such as to be able
to fire
every turn at a favorable range. And that's something that a Klingon
ship can
do.
The key for the Klingon will be to stay at a range of 9 to 15 hexes,
the Glory
Zone for a Klingon ship, where the Disruptors will do an average of 8
points
of damage a turn. Especially important against the Gorn, since the
Klingon has
to stay out of Plasma Torpedo range. Use your maneuverability to keep
up a
high speed while still being able to out-corner the Gorn. Note that you
also
have a drone rack, which can at least take a Gorn phaser out of the
equation
each turn. Your phasers have too short a range and maybe better saved
for
whittling down a Plasma Torpedo.
The Gorn strategy is simple: run the Klingon to a corner and blast him
with
at least one Plasma Torpedo. Since your Torpedo arcs are bad, it's
unlikely
you'll be able to fire both Torpedos quickly. Fire one then chase the
Klingon.
Use your better phasers to supplement your damage. Cycle the Torpedos
so you
have a heavy weapon two turns out of three. Your six shuttles can pack
quite
a wallop and can be used to cover one of the corners.
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