This is the article on the ship used by Kiith Somtaaw. For for other similar ships, see Destroyer. |
The Destroyer was the mainstray Super Capital Ship designed to deal with attacks of all types, including those under control of the Beast. It was only used by Kiith Somtaaw in Homeworld: Cataclysm.
Background[]
The design of the Deacon was based on plans of the various heavy freighters developed during the Cataclysm Era. It was never meant to be used in battle, but with the advent of the Beast War, Somtaaw designers modified it into a fighting ship, replacing loading booms with Ion Cannons, point defense weapons with Mass Drivers turrets, and adding a large missile launcher turret on the top of the hull. After converting the ship's ore processors into a proper Destroyer Drive, the ship was finally ready for deployment, and the Deacon-class Destroyer was born. As a result of all these modifications, this new ship was capable of unleashing devastating firepower onto the battlefield against a wide variety of ship classes. Mass Drivers with missile launchers were capable of attacking and successfully destroying multiple fighters in a very short time, while Ion Cannons could easily destroy enemy frigates and inflict heavy damage on anything larger.
This destroyer design proved to be incredibly effective, far superior to classes employed both by other kiiths and the Taiidan, capable of tearing opposing destroyers apart with ease. At one point during the Beast War, the Kuun-Lan was even given full command of two Kushan Destroyers, but they proved to be incompatible with the advanced hull plating technology that the Kuun-Lan engineers had developed. When compared to Deacons this meant they were not only out-gunned but woefully vulnerable to the Beast's anti-capital ship vessels, namely the infected Ion Array Frigates and Heavy Cruisers.
Against cruiser targets it was advisable to pair up destroyers, usually resulting in the Deacons leaving the battlefield victorious, only requiring moderate repair.
However, the most successful point of this design was its survivability during battles with the Beast. During the Battle of Coruc Farr, the captain of the Destroyer Naar-Tal decided to vent plasma into parts of the destroyer hit by infection beams, killing part of the crew but taking the infection with them, allowing the ship to remain unsubverted and fight on to victory. Since then this tactic was known as the Naar Directive for preventing the Beast infection, which made this ship a perfect weapon against infection-capable ships. Because of the high risk of attacking such ships, for some time Deacons accompanied by an escort of fighters and corvettes were sent in groups to engage them. This changed when the Dreadnought was developed, bringing more firepower onto the battlefield and decreasing losses during such battles.
The Destroyer is generally used to engage single hard targets as its two powerful ion cannons, its main source of damage, are forward facing. In the campaign, they will serve as the primary anti-capital ship unit for Kiith Somtaaw. They are best used in groups, particularly against Heavy Cruisers to bring enemies down quickly. Like the Carrier and Dreadnought, the Destroyer will be damaged by infection beams, but not subverted.
Trivia[]
- In the Homeworld: Cataclysm manual, it is referred to as a Deacon-class Destroyer.[1]
Appearances[]
References[]
- ↑ Homeworld: Cataclysm manual