View source for The Lost Colonies of Man

= The Lost Colonies of Man =
[[File:Colonial_picture1.jpg]]
== Race Characteristics ==
The Lost Colonies of Man are patterned after the Colonial Warriors in the Television series of the late 70s, Battlestar Galactica. Tim Wisseman used them as the background for this race, and as such the Colonies are considered what is commonly called, a "carrier race" in VGA Planets. They are a race who fight primarily with carriers.

The Colonies main abilities revolve around two of the most valuable commodities in the galaxy, [[neutronium]] and the [[fighter]].  Many races value the Colonies friendship for this reason. 

The main race characteristics that distinguish the Colonies from other races are:
* Build [[fighters]] in space:
With 3 kt Tri, 2 kt Mol and 5 kt Supply units for one fighter any Colonial carrier ship will convert this to a new fighter.
You don't need 100 megacredits like other races which makes building fighters cheap. 
You share this ability with the [[Rebels]] and the [[Robots]].
* 60 clans can be supported on [[desert]] planets.
* [[Mine Sweeping]]:
[[Mines]] are virtually useless against the Colonies.  One Colonial fighter can destroy 20 enemy mines as long as the mines are within 100ly's of the ship.
* Money:
The [[Lady Royale Class Cruiser]] is a Gambling ship that produces 1 mc for every clan on board each turn.  These ships can be used in a pinch to help produce money early in the game and can be used to produce while on the move later in the game.
* Fuel Production:
The Colonies can produce [[neutronium]] fuel while on the go.  The [[Cobol Class Research Cruiser]] makes 2kt / ly travelled.  The [[Aries Class Transport]] is an [[Advanced Alchemy]] ship that will convert minerals directly into [[neutronium]].
* The [[Virgo Class Battlestar]]:
The Virgo is not the biggest carrier in the universe. But coupled with a Cobol and enough fighters it is virtually unstoppable. Only very few ships (like most other heavy carriers [[Gorbie Class Carrier]]) can cope with it.

One drawback can be that Colonial ships have few beam weapons.  Due to your fighter mine sweeping ability, this is not a huge disadvantage.  Except against the [[Crystals]] you will need lots of beam weapons. As a Colonial Player this means your Virgo's will probably double as your main web mine sweepers.

== Ships ==
Only the most useful ships will be mentioned here.

* [[Cygnus Class Destroyer]]:
[[File:Cygnus.jpg]]

This is a small and cheap torpedo ship. It is useful as a minelayer for laying [[small overlapping minefields]] to thwart cloakers.  When used in conjunction with a Patriot it is a strong weapon.

* [[Cobol Class Research Cruiser]]:
[[File:Cobol.gif]]

This is the Colonial ace-in-the-hole.  This ship gives the Colonies the ability to create fuel out of thin air, or rather the vacuum of space.  They are also good cargo transports and mine layers.  They also have a [[Bioscanner]].

*  [[Lady Royale Class Cruiser]]:
[[File:LadyRoyale.jpg]]

This ships is extremely useful in Privateer hands, less so in Colonial hands, but it does serve its purpose.  The Lady Royale doesn't have a big cargo bay, but that cargo bay can be used to generate money provided it is filled with clans.  For every 1 clan on board a Lady Royale, 1 mc is generated per turn.  So a Lady Royale can build 160 mc/turn.  This is not a whole lot of money, but if you have a Large task Force that needs to move across the map, and you are transporting clans, you might want to consider bringing a few of these guys along.  5 Lady Royales moving 10 turns with 160 clans = 8000mc when you would have generated 0mc if those clans were onboard other ships.  That's enough for 222 [[MkVII Photon Torpedos]].  Build these ships when you have the hull tech, but can't seem to produce anything else useful from a planet.  The additional money will make it worthwhile.

* [[Aries Class Transport]]:
[[File:Aries.gif]]

The Aries is an improved [[Neutronic Refinery Ship]]. It turns minerals into fuel on a unit-for-unit basis--but doesn't need supplies. It's also very cheap. Stick a [[Transwarp]] engine on it and send it wherever you would normally need a refinery ship. Send an Aries to the front lines if your warships are short on fuel. As you capture enemy planets, use the Aries to convert captured minerals into more fuel for your fleets--or simply use the Aries to "burn up" the minerals so your enemy can't use them if they recapture the planet. Be sure to protect the Aries so it doesn't get captured.

* [[Tranquility Class Cruiser]]:
[[File:Tranquillity.gif]]

At first you may look at the Tranquility and say, The Cobol is a better ship with [[Ramscoop]] and [[Bioscanner]]s.  The Tranquility has its uses with 380 kt of Cargo space it can lay huge mine fields, as well as carry nearly as much Cargo into a warzone as a Gemini.  You won't build a ton of these guys, but a few dedicated mine layers are useful to consider.

* [[Patriot Class Light Carrier]]:
[[File:Patriot.gif]]

The Patriot is a very interesting ship.  At first glance it appears to be useless, with few beams, almost no cargo space and no weight behind it.  However a Patriots strengths come in how they are deployed.  For the price a Patriot is very good.  For the cost 8 of these little buggers you can build 1 Virgo, however properly utilized a Patriot can do more damage over w ider area than a single Virgo.  These are fire and forget weapons.  However, if teamed with a Cygnus they are also pretty fearsome ship busters and can destroy many of the lower tech ships in the game.  Some strategies involve the use of patriots in swarms.  And appropriately enough these are referred to as [[Patriot Swarms]].

The Patriot is cheap and effective. With its six fighter bays, it can get its entire cargo of fighters out very quickly, and that makes it very deadly. A single Patriot can take out almost any other medium-sized ship (as well as planets that don't have starbases) with little trouble. However, beam-heavy battle cruisers such as the Emerald or Iron Lady will give a Patriot problems, and against battleships, a Patriot has no chance.

Tactical advantage, however, is what really makes the Patriot the vicious little bastard that it is. A large battleship or carrier is expensive; your opponent won't have many of them, and they can't be everywhere at once. Four battleships can only protect four planets. When twelve Patriots are on the attack, hitting twelve planets at once, they are very difficult to stop. This will be discussed in more detail later.

Combine this with a cheap torpedo ship (e.g. the Cygnus) that takes down the shields of your enemy first.

* [[Gemini Class Transport]]:
[[File:Gemini.gif]]

The Gemini is one of the best Colonial starships available.  This ships power is derived, not by is ability in combat, but for its ability to make large amounts of fighters very quickly.  The Gemini can be built cheaply and generate a huge fighter stockpile.  A Gemini tied with a [[Merlin Class Alchemy Ship]] over a [[Bovinoid]] world can be your primary fighter production facility.  A Gemini can produce a maximum of 40 fighters/turn.  With this ship, there is no reason why the Colonies should ever need to spend a single MC on a fighter.  Build some of these to fill your bases with fighters and to arm your Virgos.

* [[Virgo Class Batlestar]]:
[[File:Colony1.jpg]]

The backbone of your offensive fleet! With 10 beams and 8 fighterbays and 290 holds it can carry most of what you need into combat without batting an eye.  Build these enmasse.

== Strategies ==
=== Expand fast ===
Cobol's are excellent early exploration and expansion ships.  They can drop fuel on planets ahead of your large freighters which can get your clans off of your [[Homeworld]] quicker than most of your opponents aside from the [[Rebels]] and the [[Cyborg|Borg]].

=== Go on Offense ===
With nearly unlimited fuel, the ability to keep the space 100 ly's from your carrier free of mines, and the ability to build fighters in space the Colonial fleet can survive with nearly no support from home.  Use this to your advantage.

=== Ally with cloaking races ===
A good tactic to use when you get your hands on a cloaking ship is to move the ship in advance of your main offensive fleet and then start separating out your enemies' main defenders.  A common tactic used by [[Crystals]], [[Feds]], and [[Cyborg|Borg]] is to lead a carrier in battle with a [[torpedo]] ship.  If you separate his fleets by [[towing]] them apart and taking them out individually you can lose fewer Virgos while decimating his heavy ships.

=== Build Task Forces ===
Task forces are important for the Colonies.  Not task forces of destroyers, cruisers, and carriers. Rather, task forces consisting of Cobols and Virgos.  This is the Colonial backbone.  Each Virgo built should have one to two corresponding Cobols.  These Cobols stay with the Virgos everywhere they go.  It also won't hurt to rotate in a Gemini.  Because your Virgo's should be fighting not building fighters.  Have one of the Virgos tow the Gemini if necessary.

This task force has an unlimited fuel supply and a big, steady supply of fighters.  These task forces can run independently and be used to harass an enemy's rear areas and supply lines without you worrying about having fueling locations.  Usually a group of two or three Virgos is good to have.  It isn't a bad idea to have one of your Cobols loaded with torpedos too.  That way as they travel they can lay mines behind them.  This discourages any following cloaked ships from performing a [[cloaked intercept]].  The main strengths of the Colonies is their ability to load a bunch of clans, supplies, minerals, fighters, and torpedos onto their ships and then bring destruction to the enemies doorstep, and to continue operating after it has sped through the enemies main battle lines.

=== Patriot Swarm ===
Build a bunch of Patriots and unleash them on your enemy.  They are not meant to actually harm hard targets, they are meant to overwhelm your enemies defensive capabilities.  Do not expect many patriots to survive.  Do expect your enemy to be thrown into confusion and then take advantage of the holes opened in the enemies defense.