Homeworld
FAQ/Walkthrough
Table of Contents
I - Introduction
Legal Info
Version History
II - The Fleet
001.0 - Fighter Class
002.0 - Corvette Class
003.0 - Resource Class
004.0 - Frigate Class
005.0 - Super-Capital Ship Class
006.0 - Non-Combat Class
007.0 - Mothership Class
III - General Strategies
001.0 - Offense
002.0 - Defense
003.0 - Resource Collecting
IV - Multiplayer Strategies
001.0 - Starting Out
002.0 - Developing Your Fleet
003.0 - Finishing On Top
004.0 - Adapting
V - Single Player Walkthrough
001.0 - Kharak System
002.0 - Outskirts of Kharak System
003.0 - Return to Kharak
004.0 - Great Wastelands Part 1
005.0 - Great Wastelands Part 2
006.0 - Diamond Shoals
007.0 - The Gardens of Kadesh
008.0 - The Cathedral of Kadesh
009.0 - Deep Space - Sea of Lost Souls
010.0 - Super Nova Research Station
011.0 - Tenhauser Gate
012.0 - Galactic Core
013.0 - The Karos Graveyard - The Shining Hinterlands
014.0 - Bridge of Sighs
015.0 - Chapel Perilous
016.0 - Hiigara
Welcome to my Homeworld FAQ.
Any questions, comments, corrections, or contributions are welcome, my email
is tarrun75(at)gmail(dot)com. Please make sure to add something related to
Homeworld in the subject line so I don't have to figure out what game you're
talking about. Also, questions regarding something that's already covered in
the guide will not be answered. Credit will be given to anything sent to me
that I add or major corrections. For corrections, please email me only if
it's something really important, something that will clearly confuse anyone
reading.
Legal information:
This document is copyrighted Tarrun 2006.
This guide may not be reproduced under any circumstance except for personal
or private use. It may not be placed on any web site, magazine or otherwise
distributed publicly without advanced written permission. This guide may not
be used for profit, and may only be used on the following websites:
- http://dlh.net
- http://www.gamefaqs.com
- http://www.mogelgott.de
Use of this work on any other web site or as a part of any public display is
a violation of copyright and is strictly prohibited.
Version History:
First Submission: Version 1.0
II - The Fleet
001.0 - Fighter Class
001.1 - Defender
Cost: 65 RUs
Firepower: 10
Maneuverability: High
Max Velocity: 385 m/s
Coverage: 11%
Armor: 325
Mass: 10 tons
Strengths: Heavy armor means that Defenders are best used as a wall to
protect other ships.
Weaknesses: Defenders don't really excel in anything, and it has a very low
firepower, so don't plan on destroying anything without a lot of these
things.
001.2 - Scout
Cost: 35 RUs
Firepower: 12
Maneuverability: Very High
Max Velocity: 1000 m/s
Coverage: 12%
Armor: 110
Mass: 8 tons
Strengths: Scouts are quick to build and are good for annoying capital ships
while your Salvage Corvettes slip in and steal the grand prize. And because
of how inexpensive they are, they're great to kamikaze into your enemy.
Weaknesses: Weak, both in firepower and armor. They might be able to survive
because of their speed, but don't expect them to destroy anything by
themselves.
001.3 - Interceptor
Cost: 55 RUs
Firepower: 26
Maneuverability: Very High
Max Velocity: 875 m/s
Coverage: 12%
Armor: 160
Mass: 10 tons
Strengths: Better than a Scout in almost every way without increasing the
cost very much. If you actually expect to get anything out of a wing of
fighters, Interceptors are a great way to go. Just make sure to have them in
groups of 25 or higher.
Weaknesses: In terms of the fighter class, none. Its only drawbacks are weak
armor and firepower, but that's why it's a fighter. Interceptors do become
fairly obsolete against more powerful opponents, though.
001.4 - Cloaked Fighter (Kushan only)
Cost: 85 RUs
Firepower: 25
Maneuverability: High
Max Velocity: 775 m/s
Coverage: 4%
Armor: 150
Mass: 10 tons
Strengths: Like the name implies, it's a cloaked fighter. You can attack
enemies without being seen.
Weaknesses: More expensive than the other fighters without getting very much
in return. It also takes a while to build, and it doesn't score very high in
the firepower department.
001.5 - Attack Bomber
Cost: 85 RUs
Firepower: 42
Maneuverability: Very High
Max Velocity: 750 m/s
Coverage: 12%
Armor: 100
Mass: 10 tons
Strengths: The most powerful fighter out there, Attack Bombers are good for
taking on capital ships and Resource Collectors. They're particularly deadly
when you have a group of corvettes protecting it.
Weaknesses: Without that escort, your Bombers won't stand a chance against
the enemy's Strike Craft or Missile Destroyers.
Defense Fighter (Taiidan only)
Cost: 85 RUs
Firepower: 0
Maneuverability: High
Max Velocity: 875 m/s
Coverage: 80%
Armor: 300
Mass: 75 tons
Strengths: It shoots down incoming attacks.
Weaknesses: It doesn't actually attack anything. More often than not it's a
better idea to have an escort that can fight back guarding your valuable
ships.
002.0 - Corvette Class
002.1 - Light Corvette
Cost: 135 RUs
Firepower: 9
Maneuverability: Medium
Max Velocity: 575 m/s
Coverage: 16%
Armor: 900
Mass: 150 tons
Strengths: Higher armor means that Light Corvettes will last longer than the
fighters. They're also pretty cheap.
Weaknesses: Fairly slow and poor firepower. Instead of these, spend the same
amount of resources on Interceptors.
002.2 - Heavy Corvette
Cost: 250 RUs
Firepower: 23
Maneuverability: Medium
Max Velocity: 520 m/s
Coverage: 33%
Armor: 1700
Mass: 150 tons
Strengths: Well protected and fairly powerful, Heavy Corvettes are great for
wiping out Strike Craft. Have five or six of these things guard your Resource
Collectors against Strike Craft and forget about them (until you can build
Multi-Gun Corvettes, that is).
Weaknesses: They're more expensive than most Strike Craft and are still
pretty slow.
002.3 - Repair Corvette
Cost: 150 RUs
Firepower: 5
Maneuverability: Low
Max Velocity: 500 m/s
Coverage: 0%
Armor: 1200
Mass: 150 tons
Strengths: It repairs your ships. It's also pretty useful to kamikaze.
Weaknesses: Very weak. Support Frigates are usually a better choice.
002.4 - Salvage Corvette
Cost: 220 RUs
Firepower: 0
Maneuverability: Low
Max Velocity: 425 m/s
Coverage: 0%
Armor: 1500
Mass: 400 tons
Strengths: They steal enemy ships. Not only does this eliminate one ship that
you'd have to destroy anyway, but now you can use it against your enemy.
Salvage Corvettes are the key to winning any game in Homeworld; in the single
player game, you gain ships that you normally wouldn't be able to until later
at a bargain. Do the math: four Salvage Corvettes steal an enemy's Missile
Destroyer (it takes three, but we'll assume one is destroyed). That means you
score a 1500 RU ship for 880 RUs. And remember, Salvage Corvettes can be
reused, so that's the low estimate.
Weaknesses: They're fairly slow, which makes them an easy target to knock out
if they come at a ship head-on. And any intelligent player will attack your
group of Salvage Corvettes before you get the chance to steal anything.
002.5 - Minelayer Corvette
Cost: 295 RUs
Firepower: 183
Maneuverability: High
Max Velocity: 425 m/s
Coverage: 100%
Armor: 1800
Mass: 150 tons
Strengths: The mines are small, which makes picking them out if you aren't
really looking a chore. The mines are also pack a punch, and even a capital
ship will go down if it gets caught in a field.
Weaknesses: Space contains a lot of wide, open space, so there's a good
chance no one will ever stumble upon your group of mines unless they're
placed in a heavily trafficked area (directly in front of the other
Mothership or in patches of resources).
002.6 - Multi-Gun Corvette
Cost: 225 RUs
Firepower: 19
Maneuverability: High
Max Velocity: 695 m/s
Coverage: 74%
Armor: 1400
Mass: 150 tons
Strengths: Multiple guns with high armor and coverage. Multi-Gun Corvettes
will annihilate any Strike Craft. Good for escorts.
Weaknesses: Technology-wise, don't expect to see these for a while. And
Multigun Corvettes won't make a dent against frigates or capital ships.
003.0 - Resource Class
003.1 - Resource Collector
Cost: 650 RUs
Firepower: 0
Maneuverability: Low
Max Velocity: 325 m/s
Coverage: 0%
Armor: 10800
Mass: 400 tons
Strengths: It collects resources for you, isn't that enough? It's also the
largest ship that you can kamikaze.
Weaknesses: It can't protect itself and it doesn't automatically repair.
Collectors also attract enemies looking to interrupt your flow of resources,
so make sure to send an escort with them or risk having to replace it.
003.2 - Resource Controller
Cost: 680 RUs
Firepower: 0
Maneuverability: Very Low
Max Velocity: 300 m/s
Coverage: 0%
Armor: 13600
Mass: 600 tons
Strengths: If you order a Controller to guard your Collectors, it'll follow
them around, drastically decreasing the time it takes for a Collector to drop
off its resources and begin harvesting again. They can also repair and refuel
fighters and corvettes, which means they won't have to leave the Collectors
that they're protecting to refuel.
Weaknesses: Like the Collector, without any weapons, the Controller won't be
able to defend against the enemies that will surely come after it.
004.0 - Frigate Class
004.1 - Assault Frigate
Cost: 575 RUs
Firepower: 82
Maneuverability: Low
Max Velocity: 325 m/s
Coverage: 33%
Armor: 16000
Mass: 400 tons
Strengths: The Frigate's turrets allow it to fire in multiple directions,
unlike the Ion Cannon Frigate. It's one of the few non-Strike Craft ships
that can take on Strike Craft.
Weaknesses: It doesn't really serve any distinct purpose. If there's a
specific job you need done, there's always a better ship to use than the
Assault Frigate.
004.2 - Support Frigate
Cost: 425 RUs
Firepower: 28
Maneuverability: Very Low
Max Velocity: 450 m/s
Coverage: 1%
Armor: 12000
Mass: 400 tons
Strengths: Repairs and refuels Strike Craft, and can repair capital ships at
200 points per second. Great for using as a secondary base that's closer to
your target.
Weaknesses: None, really. Its firepower and coverage are laughable, but you
aren't building a Support Frigate with the intentions of using it to fight.
004.3 - Drone Frigate (Kushan only)
Cost: 800 RUs
Firepower: 0
Maneuverability: Very Low
Max Velocity: 325 m/s
Coverage: 0%
Armor: 16000
Mass: 400 tons
Strengths: Good for protecting other ships.
Weaknesses: The drones don't provide a lot of firepower; it's useless against
anything stronger than a corvette.
004.4 - Defense Field Frigate
Cost: 800 RUs
Firepower: 0
Maneuverability: Very Low
Max Velocity: 325 m/s
Coverage: 100%
Armor: 17600
Mass: 400 tons
Strengths: Same as the Drone Frigate. It has different abilities, but it gets
the same job done: protecting larger ships that are vulnerable to Strike
Craft.
Weaknesses: Same as the Drone Frigate. Missiles, ions, and mines aren't
affected by it.
004.5 - Ion Cannon Frigate
Cost: 650 RUs
Firepower: 138
Maneuverability: Low
Max Velocity: 300 m/s
Coverage: 3%
Armor: 15000
Mass: 400 tons
Strengths: With its highly concentrated ion beam, you'll be able to begin
considering taking on super capital ships and Motherships.
Weaknesses: Low maneuverability and coverage; because of the single ion beam,
the Ion Cannon Frigate has to completely shift its position before aiming and
shooting. You'll be fine against the slow-moving capital ships, but they
don't stand a chance against Strike Craft.
005.0 - Super-Capital Ship Class
005.1 - Destroyer
Cost: 1350 RUs
Firepower: 347
Maneuverability: Very Low
Max Velocity: 315 m/s
Coverage: 41%
Armor: 44000
Mass: 1800 tons
Strengths: The addition of turrets along with ion cannons means that, unlike
the Ion Cannon Frigate, Destroyers can fend off Strike Craft, just not very
well. Regardless, Destroyers are the backbone of your Battle Group, and will
wreck havoc against almost any ship it encounters. Probably the most
satisfying ship to steal with a group of Salvage Corvettes.
Weaknesses: Expensive, and they take a while to build.
005.2 - Missile Destroyer
Cost: 1500 RUs
Firepower: 450
Maneuverability: Very Low
Max Velocity: 295 m/s
Coverage: 100%
Armor: 42000
Mass: 1000 tons
Strengths: It fires powerful homing missiles that will utterly decimate
Strike Craft. Always have at least two of these with your Battle Group and
you'll never have to worry about being picked apart by formations of fighters
ever again.
Weaknesses: Its missiles aren't as effective against other capital ships. In
a one-on-one battle, the other ships will usually win. And after the initial
volley of missiles, Missile Destroyers can only fire one or two missiles at a
time without recharging.
005.3 - Heavy Cruiser
Cost: 3700 RUs
Firepower: 921
Maneuverability: Very Low
Max Velocity: 250 m/s
Coverage: 100%
Armor: 90000
Mass: 10000 tons
Strengths: Incredibly high firepower and armor, the Heavy Cruiser will
obliterate any capital ship it targets. It has turrets all around it as well,
which makes salvaging one a real chore.
Weaknesses: Very slow, very expensive, and it takes forever to build one.
Anyone with half a brain will send their entire Battle Group after the Heavy
Cruiser first, so without an escort of other capital ships it's a sitting
duck. Unless you know how to use it, don't waste the resources building a
Heavy Cruiser - you can get three Destroyers for almost the same price.
005.4 - Carrier
Cost: 2000 RUs
Firepower: 109
Maneuverability: Very Low
Max Velocity: 300 m/s
Coverage: 100%
Armor: 72000
Mass: 10000 tons
Strengths: It's a miniature version of your Mothership that can build Strike
Craft and Frigates. A great strategy in multiplayer is to build one of these
with a heavy escort and send it to hide in a dust cloud, leaving your
Mothership defenseless. When the other player destroys it, hyperspace your
Carrier to their own Mothership and take them out.
Weaknesses: Without the ability to build capital ships, using one as a last
resort to survive won't get you very far. It also won't be able to defend
itself.
006.0 - Non-Combat Class
006.1 - Probe
Cost: 30 RUs
Firepower: 0
Maneuverability: Very High
Max Velocity: 4000 m/s
Coverage: 0%
Armor: 800
Mass: 25 tons
Strengths: Four times as fast as a Scout, and it's cheap. It's a good tool to
use when you want to get an idea of what your fleet is getting into. But be
ready to survey the area, because people hate being spied on and will
immediately go after a probe if they find it.
Weaknesses: Its engine can only be used once, so make sure you're on target
when you send it off.
006.2 - Proximity Sensor
Cost: 50 RUs
Firepower: 0
Maneuverability: Very High
Max Velocity: 1000 m/s
Coverage: 0%
Armor: 800
Mass: 25 tons
Strengths: Let's you know when cloaked enemies are in the area. They're also
fast, cheap, and quick to build. Keep them around your Mothership and main
Battle Groups to avoid be caught by surprise.
Weaknesses: They have almost no defenses, so you'll have to build a few of
them if you plan on attacking groups of cloaked ships, particularly fighters.
006.3 - Sensors Array
Cost: 800 RUs
Firepower: 0
Maneuverability: Very Low
Max Velocity: 280 m/s
Coverage: 0%
Armor: 4500
Mass: 300 tons
Strengths: It let's you see every ship on the map, and Heavy Cruisers,
Carriers, and Motherships actually appear on the sensors manager. Everything
else is still a red dot, but now there's a red dot for every ship instead of
one dot representing an entire group. It's good to have one to get an idea of
what's going on.
Weaknesses: It takes a lot of researching to get one, it's slow, and it
doesn't have any defenses.
006.4 - Research Ship
Cost: 700 RUs
Firepower: 0
Maneuverability: Low
Max Velocity: 280 m/s
Coverage: 0%
Armor: 7500
Mass: 300 tons
Strengths: Probably the most important ship in your fleet, next to the
Mothership. Without one, you can't research new technology and build newer,
better ships.
Weaknesses: Defenseless.
006.5 - Gravity Well Generator
Cost: 800 RUs
Firepower: 0
Maneuverability: Very Low
Max Velocity: 325 m/s
Coverage: 0%
Armor: 8000
Mass: 400 tons
Strengths: Immobilizes Strike Craft and prevents anyone from hyperspacing
into your area.
Weaknesses: Strike Craft can still attack it even if they can't move. And
since capital ships aren't affected by it, you know the first thing they'll
do is target your Gravity Well Generator to rescue their Strike Craft.
006.6 - Cloak Generator
Cost: 500 RUs
Firepower: 0
Maneuverability: Very Low
Max Velocity: 325 m/s
Coverage: 0%
Armor: 6000
Mass: 400 tons
Strengths: Can cloak small groups of ships for a limited amount of time. If
you combine a few Cloak Generators working at different times (while one is
cloaking, the others are recharging), you can keep ships cloaked
indefinitely.
Weaknesses: Slow, and far down the technology tree. The only time I've ever
used Cloak Generators was in the Bridge of Sighs level.
007.0 - Mothership Class
007.1 - Mothership
Cost: N/A
Firepower: 7500
Maneuverability: N/A
Max Velocity: 50 m/s
Coverage: 60%
Armor: 160000
Mass: 5000000 tons
Strengths: It stores your ships, builds new ones, and can take a beating.
Without it, you can't play the game.
Weaknesses: Motherships can't defend themselves, and they can only move by
making hyperspace jumps.
III - General Strategies
001.0 - Offense
001.1 - Strike Craft
- Strength in numbers
This one's a no-brainer. With a few exceptions, Strike Craft are similar
enough that in an even match, you're bound to lose as many fighters as the
enemy will. Besides sending a Scout to spy on someone, always keep multiple
wings on hand.
- Different Strike Craft are better in different situations
Again, this should be obvious. As a blanket statement, it's always good to
have about twenty Interceptors, twenty Defenders, and fifteen Scouts as your
Strike Craft's foundation. An extra group of fifteen Heavy Corvettes can
knock out any escorts the enemy capital ships, and later on a group of twenty
Multi-Gun Corvettes will plow through any formation of fighters like it's
nothing. On the other hand, Attack Bombers are pretty much the only Strike
worth using against capital ships, along with Heavy Corvettes.
- Sphere formation is the best way to attack lone capital ships.
Strike Craft suffer from a lack of firepower, so you'll want your attacks to
be highly concentrated. In Sphere, all of your shots become a constant stream
of fire, quickly knocking down the ship's armor. This only works if the
capital ship is left unguarded, though, because having your ships that close
together makes them easy to target and destroy by other Strike Craft.
- Claw formation is the best formation to use against opposing Strike Craft
When fighting groups of Strike Craft or Missile Destroyers, Sphere formation
is suicide. With Claw, your ships remain mobile while only sacrificing a
small part of that constant stream of fire.
- Attack enemy Resource Collectors
If they can't harvest resources, then they can't build more ships, right?
Early on, if you see a Collector far enough from the main Battle Group, send
your Strike Craft to pick away at them while your own Battle Group deals with
the enemy's. Besides, Collectors are quick enough and take irregular paths
that they'll be able to escape from your slower Battle Group.
Obviously, Attack Bombers will work the best, but make sure to have a group
of Multi-Gun Corvettes with them to take care of the Collector's own escort.
Of course, if you're looking to do this early on, Heavy Corvettes and
Interceptors will get the job done as well.
Likewise, this strategy can also be applied to Research Ships in multiplayer
games.
- Use Salvage Corvettes to capture enemy ships
I don't think I can say this enough: Salvage Corvettes are the key to being
successful in Homeworld. It's the easiest and most cost-efficient way to
build your fleet, and at the same time it takes a ship from your enemy to use
against you.
One of the better ways to capture ships is by having a small group of Ion
Cannon Frigates coax a Destroyer or two to chase after it. While your
Frigates return to the Mothership, send in your group of Salvage Corvettes at
an angle to capture as many ships as you want. By the time they realize
what's going on, it'll be too late to shift around and attack.
Another great strategy to use involves Cloak Generators. By keeping a small
group of Salvage Corvettes, along with an escort of Multi-Gun Corvettes or
Interceptors, invisible until the last moment, you can sneak out with a nice
prize without even being noticed.
Here's a list of how many Salvage Corvettes you need to capture a particular
ship:
Strike Craft - 1 Salvage Corvette
Frigates - 2 Salvage Corvettes
Destroyers - 3 Salvage Corvettes
Heavy Cruisers - 5 Salvage Corvettes
Carriers - 5 Salvage Corvettes
Keep in mind that Strike Craft can only be salvaged if they're immobile,
either from a Gravity Well Generator or a lack of fuel. It's also a good idea
to send one extra Salvage Corvette than needed, just in case one is
destroyed. This way, you can still capture it, instead of leaving it swinging
in circles until another ship comes by and targets the other Corvettes. And
if you don't need it, simply send it to steal something else or follow after
the others back to the Mothership.
- Missile Destroyers spell disaster for Strike Craft
For the most part, capital ships aren't able to seriously defend against
Strike Craft, but Missile Destroyers almost make using them obsolete. The
best strategy to use is to distract it with a small group of Scouts flying in
evasive tactics at first to draw the initial volley of missiles. Afterwards,
send your Attack Bombers in on evasive and simply continue pounding it.
On the other hand, not having a Missile Destroyer in your own fleet is an
entirely new level of foolishness.
- When all else fails, kamikaze
Sure, it's a cheap shot, but it's actually pretty effective, particularly
late in the game when your enemy has multiple Missile Destroyers protecting
its fleet. It's always worth keeping Attack Bombers and Heavy Corvettes, but
your weaker ships like Interceptors and Scouts will do more damage this way
than trying to survive and attack. This also applies to Resource Collectors,
which are the biggest ship you can kamikaze. Once you reach the point where
you've built your fleet, consider sending them headlong into your enemy's
Mothership.
001.2 - Capital Ships and your Battle Group
- Keep your Battle Group in Wall formation
Wall formation isn't just the best, but probably the only formation worth
using with your big, lumbering capital ships. It prevents your ships from
getting tangled together, and it allows you to align them and attack a single
target.
- Have at least two Missile Destroyers in your Battle Group
It was mentioned before, but it's worth repeating. With a pair of Missile
Destroyers around, Strike Craft have almost no chance of making a dent in
your powerful capital ships' armor before being shot down.
- Concentrate your attacks on one ship at a time
Sure, it's easier to simply drag a box around the enemy fleet and let your
Battle Group take care of them, but unless you have an incredibly stronger
fleet you won't be as successful. Think of it this way, you each have five
ships that do the same amount of damage, and you order you ships to attack
one at a time while they attack all five at once. Yeah, more of your ships
are taking damage, but you're destroying theirs five times faster. And as
each ship goes down, you decrease their overall firepower while yours remains
the same. By the end of the battle, you'll have a few damaged ships, but
their ships are now space junk.
- Always make sure to have enough firepower - and then some
Never go into a battle without at least having an idea of what you're up
against. Before deciding to attack, send a probe out to see how many ships
are waiting for you. You should have enough firepower to wipe out an enemy's
Battle Group, with a large escort of Multi-Gun Corvettes and Attack Bombers
to keep smaller capital ships and Strike Craft at bay. In multiplayer games,
you also have to worry about Salvage Corvettes stealing your ships and being
able to do enough damage to drain 160,000 points from the opposition's
Mothership.
002.0 - Defense
002.1 - Escorts
- Strike Craft are the best ships for escorts
This is important for several reasons. For one, if you have capital ships
guard other capital ships, it means you're dividing your fleet. And as I
mentioned above, you really don't want to unnecessarily divide your fleet.
Second, Strike are quick enough to move from one place to another in case
they get separated from what they're protecting. And just to top it off,
Strike Craft are quick and cheap to build, so you don't have to worry about
losing and replacing them.
- Sphere formation is the only formation to use with an escort
The idea behind surrounding a ship in a large sphere is that any incoming
fire will hit the escort, not the ship that they're protecting. Of course,
Sphere isn't the best offensive formation, so you'll want to make sure you
have enough firepower to at least hold off anything that's going to attack
you. If you need that extra punch, stick with Claw.
- They're called "Defenders" for a reason
Early on when your fleet consists mainly of Strike Craft, you'll want to
protect any capital ships you already have. While some of the more expensive
ships like the Heavy Corvette are great to use, the Defender - as the name
implies - is designed to defend stuff. For its price, the Defender has good
coverage and armor.
- Mutli-Gun Corvettes are the best anti-Strike Craft ship
Once you finish researching the technology, Multi-Gun Corvettes are the best
ships to use for escorts. A strong Battle Group to attack enemy capital ships
with an escort of Multi-Gun Corvettes to deal with other Strike is almost
unstoppable.
002.2 - Defending the Mothership
- Have a diverse fleet defending your Mothership
Don't try to guess what the enemy will throw at you. With a strong fleet of
quite a few different types of ships, you'll be prepared for anything. For
example, you can have as many Destroyers and Ion Cannon Frigates as you want,
but without a Missile Destroyer or Strike Craft to defend against enemy
Strike, you're in trouble.
That being said, don't build ships for the sake of wasting resources. To
effectively defend the Mothership, you should have a strong group of frigates
and maybe a spare Destroyer or two as your main defensive Battle Group with a
large wing of Multi-Gun Corvettes, Attack Bombers, and Heavy Corvettes. You
may want to include a few Gravity Well Generators to immobilize Strike Craft
and Proximity Sensors to reveal any cloaked ships. If you have the spare
resources, consider building an extra Missile Destroyer to keep at home.
- Make sure your Battle Group is prepared for an attack
This means setting them up in a formation and positioning them correctly.
Frequently check the sensors manager for any red dots moving towards your
position, and have your Battle Group facing in that direction. There's
nothing worse than watching the enemy blast away at your Destroyers while
your capital ships slowly spin around to counter-attack.
003.0 - Resource Collecting
003.1 - Using and defending Resource Collectors
- Your Collectors should always be harvesting
This is common sense. If you don't use them, your Collectors end up being a
waste of resources. For best results, send them to the largest pack of
resources first and then order them to harvest. That way, you'll be getting
more resources in a shorter amount of time.
- Send Resource Controllers to guard your Collectors
Perhaps the most annoying part of collecting resources is when you need RUs
immediately and have to wait for your Collector on the other side of the map
to reach a Controller or the Mothership. Ordering your Controller to guard
the Collectors ensures that the Controller will be as close as possible to
your harvesters at all times. Ideally, you'd want the Controller/Collector
ratio to be 1:1, but this is probably unrealistic. Still, two or three
Collectors to a Controller is fine.
- Never send out an unprotected Collector
Unless you have the entire map to yourself (after one of the single-player
levels, for example), an unprotected Resource Collector is a dead Resource
Collector. An escort of Heavy Corvettes, Attack Bombers, and Multi-Gun
Corvettes will keep them safe.
Likewise, make sure your Controllers are protected even more, since they'll
be the main targets for your opponent. Another positive is that Controllers
can refuel Strike Craft, and you can send the extra ships out to one of your
Collectors if it's attacked.
Later in the game when you have the extra resources, send out a small group
of Ion Cannon Frigates near the main resource areas in case your Collectors
come across anything bigger than an Assault Frigate.
003.2 - Attacking enemy Resource Collectors
- Attack enemy resource teams early and continuously
In multiplayer games, the first thing you should do is create a wing of
Interceptors to go out and hunt the enemy Collectors. As the game progresses,
add Attack Bombers and Multi-Gun Corvettes to deal with the Collectors and
Strike Craft escorts, respectively.
- Don't attack Collectors unless you can win
The one time you shouldn't be aggressive against enemy Resource Collectors is
when they stay close to their Motherships. In this case, it's better to leave
them alone rather than risk losing your ships. In multiplayer games, more
often than not you'll find that you and the other player set unspoken
boundaries where it's safe to harvest without having to worry about being
attacked. Of course, if they cross into your territory, feel free to let them
know.
- Destroy the Controllers first, and then the Collectors
Just like you want to attack the ship with the most firepower in a major
battle, it's a good idea your ships on the most important part of the
resource team - the Controller. Once it's destroyed, the Collectors will have
to retreat all the way back to the Mothership, giving you enough time to
chase them down and destroy (or salvage) them.
IV - Multiplayer Strategies
001.0 - Starting Out
Your first goal is to build a few Resource Collectors and Research Ships:
three or four of each is good. You'll want to build the Collectors first,
though, since technology is useless without the resources to put them to use.
As each ship is built, immediately begin using it. The multiplayer games
start out as a race to see who can harvest and research the fastest and most
effectively, so an idle Collector or Research Ship is a waste.
Early on, one question that you'll probably be asking is, "What should I be
researching?" You have so much technology available to you and you'll
eventually want all of it, but where to start? While it may seem logical to
start with fighters and work your way up to capital ships, it's actually
better to research Capital Ship Drive first. For one, you'll be able to build
a Resource Controller, which means you'll be getting resources more
frequently. After you have Capital Ship Drive, begin researching Capital Ship
Chassis and Ion Cannons, it'll allow you to build Ion Cannon Frigates and
it's a step towards Destroyers. Also consider building a few Assault Frigates
in the meantime.
But you do still need Strike. Decide at the beginning which Strike class
you'll be using more and use them exclusively, at least in the beginning. On
one hand, Defenders are good for protecting your frigates early on, but
Multi-Gun Corvettes wipe out any Strike Craft foolish enough to attack you.
Whichever you decide doesn't really matter, but the fact that you only
advance one class at the moment gives you an advantage over someone who tries
to get both at the same time.
But besides building ships, is there anything in terms of offense you should
be doing? Well, nothing much, but there's always ways to harass the other
player regardless of how far along you are. In the very beginning, send out a
group of Scouts to attack the enemy's Research Ships. Remember that they're
trying to research as quickly as possible, and if you manage to destroy their
Research Ship before they can add a second one to it (which double its armor)
they'll just have to spend that much more time building a replacement. If
it's burning up and about to explode, you can always kamikaze into it to
finish it off.
But if a suicide mission isn't your thing, there's always the option to go
after Resource Collectors. At this point, it's unlikely that they're very
well protected, which is the perfect opportunity to attack. Max out your
Scouts and hunt them down. Like destroying a Research Ship, it hurts to
replace it.
002.0 - Developing Your Fleet
Alright, so you have a large harvesting operation going on and enough new
technology to play with - it's time to get serious about building a fleet.
The first step towards this is to build a group of Ion Cannon Frigates.
They're the best ship you have at the moment, and they'll more or less hold
their ground for the rest of the game. From here, it depends on how your
opponent is playing. If you find that they're attacking you and your Resource
Collectors, focus on researching and building more advanced Strike Craft,
either Attack Bombers and Interceptors or Heavy Corvettes and Multi-Gun
Corvettes. If you've been relatively left alone, it probably means they're
planning an attack, so you'll want the extra firepower to survive it.
Super-Capital Ship Drive is the important one, since it'll allow you to build
Destroyers. Don't jump at Heavy Guns just yet, it takes forever to research
and there are better technologies to have right now - Guided Missiles, for
example. A Missile Destroyer would be a significant addition to your fleet,
but I'm getting ahead of myself. After Super Capital Ship Drive, return to
researching Strike Craft technology. If you using fighters, you want to go at
least as far Plasma Bomb Launcher tech for Attack Bombers. For corvettes,
Fast-Tracking Turrets, and the Multi-Gun Corvettes that result, are a must.
You'll want to make sure you have enough protection around you Collectors and
Controllers so that you won't have to worry about them while you build up
your fleet. A group of Heavy Corvettes and Multi-Gun Corvettes or Defenders
and Interceptors for each ship is enough, although you may want to consider
adding a few Assault or Ion Cannon Frigates later on.
Attacking enemy Resource Collectors becomes extremely important at this
point, because the resources that are gained now are probably going to be
used to build the capital ships that will be attacking your Mothership. A
group of Ion Cannon Frigates, along with Multi-Gun Corvettes or Defenders
will be powerful enough to quickly wipe it out, along with its escort.
But the most important part of this stage of the game is building your Battle
Group. The Ion Cannon Frigates you hopefully have are a good start, but
you'll need more - a dozen if possible. Besides that, three or four
Destroyers and a pair of Missile Destroyers will serve as the extra firepower
you'll need to take out the Mothership and its capital ship escort.
Note: Heavy Cruisers are nice to have, but more than likely you won't have
time to build one. They take forever to build, and it's probably not worth
sitting around while it's being built.
003.0 - Finishing On Top
Before heading out to your opponent's Mothership, take the time to build a
Probe and send it out to spy on the other player. There's a good chance it'll
be spotted pretty quickly, but you'll still have enough time to get a glance
at where they stand. Obviously, if you don't think you have enough firepower
to eliminate their own fleet and then the Mothership, start building more Ion
Cannon Frigates and Destroyers immediately. Conversely, make sure you aren't
being probed either; they're relatively easy to spot if you're looking for
them, and the less your opponent knows about you the better off you are.
That being said, when you think you're ready, send you Battle Group out to
attack, but make sure to leave a group of capital ships back at the
Mothership in case she's attacked. After all, by this point in the game,
it'll be the most vulnerable with the majority of your Battle Group out, and
the last thing you need is to get to the Mothership just to have the other
player's Battle Group hyperspace in and find your Mothership defenseless. A
good defense for the Mothership is a large wing of Ion Cannon Frigates with
plenty of Attack Bombers. Besides that, any Strike Craft that are good
against other Strike (Multi-Gun Corvettes, Heavy Corvettes, Defenders) should
hang around as well to deal with enemy Strike.
Also, consider building a Heavy Cruiser for an added boost of firepower. It's
a tough choice whether to leave it at home or send it out with the rest of
your Battle Group, and both have their pros and cons.
Keep in mind that your Battle Group, even with Missile Destroyers, still need
Strike Craft to protect it. Build a large wing of fighters or corvettes to
tag along and attack those pesky Attack Bombers that are thrown your way.
As for actual capital ship combat, do only as much fighting as you need to.
Concentrate your attacks on the more powerful ships (Heavy Cruisers and
Destroyers) first. Getting the big guns out of the way early makes it easier
to plow through the rest of their fleet and reach the Mothership relatively
intact.
And once you do reach the Mothership, hit it with everything you have. Even
if there are a few straggling Ion Cannon Frigates, you should have more than
enough firepower to destroy their Mothership before the remaining fleet can
wipe out your Battle Group. Of course, if you're playing with multiple
players you obviously can't do this, but hopefully that's a given.
004.0 - Adapting
004.1 - Specific Game Options
004.11 - Carrier-Only or Low Resource Games
In both situations, the games move much quicker that the standard one.
Because of this, you may have to rely solely on fighters or frigates. While
your opponent is busy researching Heavy Guns for that Heavy Cruiser, you'll
have a strong fleet of Assault Frigates and Ion Cannon Frigates that can take
out their Mothership. The key here is to only build ships that are quick and
cheap, the limited resources make the more advanced ships a waste of RUs.
As for Carrier-Only games, you might even want to forget about capital ships
all together. If you've played the single player missions then you know how
well Strike Craft can be against a Carrier. Again, the key here is speed. If
you can throw together a powerful fleet of Strike Craft while the other
player is wasting time building Ion Cannon Frigates, nine times out of ten
you'll come out on top.
004.12 - High Resource Games
On the other hand, those long, high resource games are just about the
opposite to the previous style of gameplay. With enough extra resources, by
all means invest in that Heavy Cruiser and extra Destroyer. Another
interesting note is that the extra time you have gives you the option to
bring Salvage Corvettes into play. It's a little more difficult to pull off
than it is against the game's AI, but the rewards are that much more
beneficial.
Cloak Generators are also used more often, since you now have the time to
research for them. In fact, combining Cloak Generators with Salvage Corvettes
can be a great way to increase your fleet or gain an extra Resource
Collector. Of course, your opponent might be thinking the same thing, so make
sure to have a handful of Proximity Sensors on hand.
004.2 - Multiple Opponents
Multiple players are unique for the obvious reasons. You now face the
possibility of fighting on multiple fronts, as well as having to quickly
regroup after eliminating a player.
For the most, the first two parts are the same, since you'll need to get to
the point where you're powerful enough to fend off and hunt down enemy Battle
Groups. However, beyond that point things get tricky. The most important rule
to keep in mind is that you can't get into all-out wars with a single player.
Anyone with a brain will stand on the sidelines while you and your target
duke it out, and then attack you both with a full fleet when you're at your
most vulnerable.
So how do you prevent this from happening? The best answer is alliances. If
you can team up with another player, you not only gain their firepower for
the time being, but that also eliminates them as a threat. Sure, you'll have
to fight later, but worry about that when it comes up.
With or without an alliance, always go for the weakest players first. It
might seem a bit dirty, but it means one less enemy that'll eventually attack
you. If you see some action on your sensors manager, send a Probe out to see
what's going on and who's winning. Players who have been weakened by recent
battles are perfect targets, as are the ones who have lost their Resource
Collectors.
Conversely, it might be better to team up with the weakest players and go
after the strongest player first. If you notice one player is particularly
powerful, it probably means that the other players have noticed it as well,
in which case forming an alliance to get rid of the greater threat is the
only way to stay alive long enough to make it to the end of the game. After
all, even an incredibly strong fleet will have trouble fighting up to three
different opponents at the same time.
V - Single Player Walkthrough
001.0 - Kharak System
Primary Objectives:
- Harvest asteroids
- Construct a Research Ship
- Destroy the target drones using a formation
- Destroy the target drones using tactics
- Capture a drone using a Salvage Corvette
Secondary Objectives:
- Research Fighter Chassis
New Technology:
- Fighter Chassis
- Corvette Drive
Overview: It's taken many years and a lot of work, but the Mothership is
finally ready. Before making your first hyperspace jump, though, a few trials
need to be completed.
Fleet Construction: You begin with a small group of Scouts and a Resource
Collector, but you'll need to build a Research Ship and a Salvage Corvette.
This is basically an introduction level for anyone who skipped over the
training session, so don't expect much out of this level.
You can knock out the first two objectives almost immediately. Begin
constructing a research ship with the RUs you have already and send your
Resource Collector out to harvest the area. When the Research Ship is
completed, don't forget to research Fighter Chassis technology and Corvette
Drive after that.
When Fleet Intelligence prompts you, assign your Scouts to a group and set
them up in a formation - any formation - and attack the drones. When they've
been destroyed, head over to the second group of drones and attack them in
either aggressive or evasive tactics. When they're finished, send the group
back to the Mothership for refueling and repairs.
Afterwards, Fleet Intelligence announces, "The next trial will test the
performance of the Salvage Corvette. Build one and capture the Target
Drone here."
Do exactly that. Your Research Ship should have already researched
Corvette Drive technology, so you'll be able to build a Salvage Corvette
right away. Capture the drone and bring it back to your Mothership.
Well, that was exciting. Before making the hyperspace jump, let your
Collector finish harvesting the area and build a group of six
Interceptors.
002.0 - Outskirts of Kharak System
Primary Objectives:
- Send a probe to the Khar-Selim
- Defend the Mothership
- Salvage the Khar-Selim
- Defend the salvage team
- Destroy the attacking fleet
Secondary Objectives:
- Investigate the power source
New Technology:
- Corvette Chassis
- Heavy Corvette Upgrade
Overview: You're first hyperspace jump is successful. Well, almost. You've
mis-jumped, but at least you're still in one piece. After failing to make
contact with the Khar-Selim, Fleet Intelligence pinpoints the support ship's
beacon and orders you to send a Probe to investigate.
Fleet Construction: Add about six or seven Interceptors and four Heavy
Corvettes to your Scouts. The enemy isn't very strong, so that should be more
than enough firepower.
Don't go near the Khar-Selim just yet. Instead, have your Collector harvest
the area and begin researching Corvette Chassis technology. When that
finishes, research the Heavy Corvette Upgrade, which will allow you to build
Heavy Corvettes. In fact, it would be a good idea to build four of them as
soon as you can, if you run out of resources your Collector should be
dropping off another batch any time.
Divide your Strike Craft into three groups: one of your Scouts, one of
Interceptors, and another of Heavy Corvettes, and send a probe to the Khar-
Selim. The ship has been destroyed, and the enemies that did the deed appear
and head towards your Mothership. Order your Scouts to attack the two
Fighters that are ahead of the group, and have your Interceptors and Heavy
Corvettes take on the main pack of six Fighters and three Corvettes before
they reach the Mothership.
Your Strike Craft should pass this test with flying colors, so have them
regroup as Fleet Intelligence tells you to retrieve the Khar-Selim's data
recorder. Send a Salvage Corvette out to do so, but make sure to have your
group of Heavy Corvettes guarding it (preferably in a sphere formation). As
the salvage team is returning, more Fighters appear, but they don't stand a
chance against the escort of Heavy Corvettes. After the Salvage Corvette is
safely aboard your Mothership, focus your Interceptors and Corvettes on the
three waves of Fighters thrown at you. Again, thanks to the group of
Corvettes, this shouldn't be a problem. After watching the final recording of
the Khar-Selim, another wing of Fighters and Corvettes will stage a final
strike against you. With your Heavy Corvettes initially focused on their
Corvettes and the Interceptors battling the Fighters, this should be a one-
sided match.
With only a few enemy units left, Fleet Intelligence locates the source of
the fighters - a Carrier. It's tempting to properly punish them for what they
did to the Khar-Selim, but resist the urge to follow after it. Clean up any
remaining crafts that haven't docked with the Carrier, and then return to
your Mothership for repairs.
Like before, don't immediately hyperspace away. Finish harvesting around the
Khar-Selim and build as many Salvage Corvettes as you can for the next
mission. A total of eight would be ideal, but you may only have the RUs for
an additional six to go along with the one you already have. As long as most
of your Strike Craft is still intact, don't worry about building anything
else.
Before making the hyperspace jump, group your Salvage Corvettes into groups
of two.
003.0 - Return to Kharak
Primary Objectives:
- Defend the Cryo trays
- Capture an enemy ship using two Salvage Corvettes
- Salvage the Cryo trays
New Technology:
- Capital Ship Drive
- Capital Ship Chassis
Overview: There's a surprise waiting for you when you return to Kharak. The
entire planet is engulfed in flames, and the Scaffold has been destroyed. And
it just so happens that there's an attack squad arriving to wipe out the Cryo
trays that contain the last of your population.
Fleet Construction: Your Strike Craft should still be intact from the
previous mission, so don't worry about adding anything. However, build as
many Salvage Corvettes as you can before hyperspacing from Level 2. Eight
would be ideal, but seven will still work.
You have almost no time to prepare for this, as the group of Assault Frigates
will be in range of the first Cryo trays within a few seconds. Send your
entire Strike Craft out to intercept them, but keep them on evasive tactics
and don't focus them on a single one. With the Frigates distracted, send your
Salvage Corvettes in to capture all four of them.
Now here's where it becomes tricky, because the Assault Frigates will attempt
to pick off the Salvage Corvettes latching onto the other Frigates. If you
have eight, this shouldn't be a problem as long as you keep them out of the
Frigates' lines of fire for as long as possible. If you have less than that,
you'll have to adapt to how they spread out. They seem to fall into a pattern
of three staying together with one drifting over to the far right, which
works out perfectly.
With seven (or any odd number, really) Salvage Corvettes, order your
Interceptors to harass the three Frigates that are together as cover for the
six Salvage Corvettes. Send the Scouts and Heavy Corvettes to distract the
fourth Assault Frigate until the seventh Salvage Corvette can latch on. He
won't be able to drag it in, but the Frigate will be stuck swinging around in
circles while its partners are hauled into the Mothership. After the first
Frigate is captured, send a second Corvette to bring the final Frigate in.
With an even six Salvage Corvettes, follow the same pattern, except after the
three Assault Frigates are captured, focus all of your energy on the final
Frigate. This is actually a little more difficult to do than capturing all
four of them, because the other Frigate has a tendency to attack your salvage
teams. Just make sure to keep your Heavy Corvettes on it from the beginning
to ensure its destruction as quick as possible.
Either way, when the threat is eliminated, order your Salvage Corvettes to
bring in the Cryo trays. Don't worry if one or two of them were destroyed,
the only reward for protecting all of them is personal satisfaction. And
don't forget to begin researching Capital Ship Chassis technology; you
automatically gain Capital Ship Drive for capturing the enemy Assault
Frigate.
As always, harvest every last dust ball in the area before hyperspacing. You
should add enough Interceptors and Heavy Corvettes to have fifteen of the
former and eight of the latter, as well as at least two Assault Frigates.
Spend the rest of your RUs on Salvage Corvettes. You need a total of sixteen
for the next level, but you'll have time to build more early on. If you
aren't interested in capturing enemy ships, either save those resources for
later or build a Resource Controller.
004.0 - Great Wastelands Part 1
Primary Objectives:
- Begin collecting resources
- Protect the fleet from Turanic Raiders
- Destroy the retreating Turanic Raider Carrier
Secondary Objectives:
- Build and deploy a Resource Controller
New Technology:
- Ion Cannons
Overview: The previous two missions have made your trip home much more
complicated. Interrogation of the captured captain has revealed that a
powerful empire ordered the destruction of Kharak because you broke a four-
thousand year old treaty preventing you from developing hyperspace
technology. So instead of simply returning to Hiigara, you're going to have
to fight your way through. But first thing's first: Revenge against the fleet
that destroyed Kharak and the Khar-Selim.
Fleet Construction: You'll want to build a Resource Controller early on in
this level, as well as fifteen Interceptors and eight Heavy Corvettes. If you
have at least two Assault Frigates from the previous mission, you'll be set.
Like before, invest the rest of your resources into Salvage Corvettes; by the
middle of the level you'll want sixteen.
Follow Fleet Intelligence's advice and begin harvesting the resources. If you
have a Controller already, order it to guard the Collector. This way, it'll
follow the Collector around, making it easier and quicker for resources to be
dropped off.
If not, don't worry about it. But after one batch of resources, begin
building one. Around this time, Fleet Intelligence reports that another
Mothership is closing in, one with power readings that are off the chart. But
luckily, it's just the Bentusi, and they're more interested in trading than
fighting. They offer you Ion Cannon technology for 300-500 RUs, but don't
accept it just yet. In the time that it took for the cinematic to play out,
your Collector should be full and your Controller - if you began building it
this level - should be just about completed.
If you want to capture a lot of ships, hold off accepting the Bentusi's offer
for now. If not, accept right away and build three or four Ion Cannon
Frigates to make up for the ones you would've captured. Otherwise, wait until
the Bentusi are prepared to leave before accepting; it'll give you Collector
enough time to gather more resources.
Either way, as they leave, they warn you that Turanic Raiders are about to
ambush you; or more specifically, your Resource Collector and Controller.
Send your Strike Craft and Frigates out to protect your resource team and
begin building as many Salvage Corvettes as possible until you reach the
magic number of sixteen. I know it's frustrating to continue pouring
resources into Salvage Corvettes, but this is the last time you'll have to
for a while, and it'll really pay off in the long run.
With your team of Salvage Corvettes, position them around your Mothership in
this fashion: one group of two on each side about seven and a half kilometers
away and four groups of two behind it twelve kilometers away. The remaining
four should be sent out to where your Strike Craft is, except well off to one
side to keep them out of the action.
By now, a dozen Turanic Fighters should be tangling with your Strike Craft,
but with a more powerful fleet than before you should finish them off easily.
A second wave of Fighters and Corvettes will appear afterwards, but they too
will fall to your fleet.
But the Turanic Raiders wise up, and decide to send a group of five Missile
Corvettes into the battle. These things will obliterate your Interceptors if
you let them, but Heavy Corvettes are able to withstand their attacks long
enough to destroy them. After the majority of the units are destroyed,
another wing of Missile Corvettes appear, along with the host Carrier and a
pair of Ion Array Frigates.
Send your Heavy Corvettes to wipe out the new group of Missile Corvettes; and
after your Interceptors finish off the last of the Turanic Strike Craft, send
them to annoy the Carrier and Ion Array Frigates. At the same time, order
your Frigates to go after the Carrier and the four Salvage Corvettes to steal
the two Ion Array Frigates. If you don't eliminate the Carrier's escort,
they'll attack your Frigates, making it impossible to destroy the Carrier in
time. That's right, there's a time limit here; if you let the Carrier escape,
the game is over. To prevent that from happening, switch all of your ships'
tactics to aggressive and hit the Carrier as hard as you can.
A few minutes after the Carrier appears, six Ion Array Frigates hyperspace
directly around your Mothership. But if you positioned your Salvage Corvettes
beforehand, they'll appear directly above your salvage team. Quickly capture
all six of them (remember, you can select ships and move the camera while the
game is paused) and return to the battle with the Carrier.
There really isn't much more you can do at this point. If you gain control of
an Ion Array Frigate before the Carrier is destroyed, send it out to aid your
fleet. As long as you attacked it early, though, they should be able to
handle it by themselves.
With the Carrier destroyed, send your fleet back to the Mothership and wait
for the salvage team to "officially" capture all of the Ion Array Frigates.
Your resource team is probably done harvesting by now, so use the extra
resources to build up your Strike Craft. If you didn't capture at least four
or five Ion Array Frigates, consider building enough Ion Cannon Frigates to
have a total of eight Frigates, regardless of whether they're of the Ion, Ion
Array, or Assault variation.
Besides that, though, have at least twelve Heavy Corvettes and twenty
Interceptors. If you captured all of the Ion Array Frigates, then you have
more than enough Salvage Corvettes already. If not, you'll want at least ten
going into the next level.
