The Empire of Birds

Empire of the Birds race icon from VGA Planets Nu

History

The Empire of Birds also known as Birdmen are based on the Romulan Empire, from the "Star Trek" universe.

Good Players

There are some players who played the Birds pretty well. Timo Kreike and Merlyn were pretty strong, so if you find guides from those two, you should read them.

Racial Abilities

• Super Spy
• cloaking device on most ships
• 2 Ships with advanced cloaking device

Ship List

Name	Tc	Bm	T/F	En	MC	Dur	Tri	Mol	Mass	Car	Fuel	Crew
Small Deep Space Freighter	1	0	0/0	1	10	2	2	3	30	70	200	2
Swift Heart Class Scout (cloaks)	1	2	0/0	1	60	6	20	5	45	20	170	126
Medium Deep Space Freighter	3	0	0/0	1	65	4	4	6	60	200	250	6
Neutronic Fuel Carrier	3	0	0/0	2	20	10	2	20	10	2	900	2
White Falcon Class Cruiser (cloaks)	3	4	1/0	2	110	32	61	33	120	140	430	150
Bright Heart Class Destroyer (cloaks)	3	2	4/0	2	140	22	43	15	80	40	90	122
Small Transport	4	2	0/0	1	25	2	2	20	30	50	180	15
Fearless Wing Cruiser (cloaks)	5	6	1/0	2	180	52	81	63	150	240	360	300
Skyfire Class Cruiser	5	4	2/0	2	250	52	61	83	150	250	370	270
Large Deep Space Freighter	6	0	0/0	2	160	85	7	8	130	1200	600	102
Valiant Wind Class Carrier	6	7	0/3	2	380	52	61	123	180	80	190	322
Deth Specula Class Frigate (cloaks)	6	6	4/0	2	280	25	45	89	113	35	140	240
Resolute Class Battlecruiser (adv. cloaking)	7	8	3/0	2	380	52	71	93	180	280	480	348
Red Wind Class Carrier (cloaks)	8	2	0/2	2	150	22	37	15	70	60	85	40
Neutronic Refinery Ship	9	6	0/0	10	970	125	150	527	712	1050	800	190
Super Transport Freighter	10	0	0/0	4	220	125	13	18	160	2600	1200	202
Merlin Class Alchemy Ship	10	8	0/0	10	840	625	250	134	920	2700	450	120
Dark Wing Class Battleship (adv. cloaking)	10	10	8/0	2	450	170	183	110	491	150	290	910

Notable Ships

Swift Heart Class Scout: This ship will be your primary scout. Quite a large fuel tank and really lightweight. Perfect for changing friendly codes with Super Spy and for capturing freighters. Build them with Transwarp drives and X-Rays/Disruptor.

Neutronic Fuel Carrier: Useful for transporting Neutronium and as MC transport. With Transwarp drives it can move its max range without consuming any Neutronium.

Large Deep Space Freighter: Best hullmass/cargo ratio of all ships. So, if you want to save on Neutronium, this is the best ship. Useful for colonizing and moving minerals. Always use Transwarp drives on this ship.

Resolute Class Battlecruiser: Really good mid class ship. Its cargo is enough to use it as freighter, if you're running short on freighters, or lay large minefields. Its fuel tank is large enough to refuel your battleships, which have a really small tank. Mine sweeping with 8 beams works pretty well, too. It's one of the strongest mid class ships. Best of all, it has an advanced cloaking device, so cloaking won't consume any Neutronium. Decloaking doesn't work on this ship. Transwarp drives are a must here. For beams, you should choose between Disruptor, Heavy Blaster, Heavy Disruptor and Heavy Phaser (both Disruptors would be the best choice, cause you can capture ships with them). Mark 4 or Mark 7 as torpedoes is a must.

Neutronic Refinery Ship: Later on you will run short on Neutronium, so its good to have these ships. Don't use any expensive engines on this ship, you won't move it much. For defense, you should use some better beams. Because of its hull mass, it can take some ships down.

Merlin Class Alchemy Ship: With a Merlin over Bovinoid worlds, you won't run short on minerals. Don't use any expensive engines on this ship, you won't move it much. For defense you should use some better beams, cause of its hullmass, it can take some ships down.

Dark Wing Class Battleship: Your big ship. It has the best strength/cost ratio of all ships. It also has an advanced cloaking device. Its stronger then the main battleships of the Federation (only few players use Novas), Lizards, Fascists, Privateers and Crystals. Versus Cyborg, Empire, Robotic, Rebel and Colonial you need 2-3 to destroy their capital ship, but your ship is significantly more favourable and after the 500 shiplimit, it needs much less Priority Build Points. Transwarps, X-Rays(just if you wanna throw it at a carrier and it won't survive)/Disruptor/Heavy Blaster/Heavy Disruptor/Heavy Phaser and Mark4(only in the very beginning)/Mark7/Mark8 should be used.

Alliances

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

A Bird is a really good ally. It's easy for them to locate starbases, enemy planets and to distinguish bad planets from good ones. And best of all, nobody will know what informations he has. Birds are more like a support in a war. Destroying minefields, laying minefields and attacking unprotected planets/ships will help every race and no other race is as good in it, as the Birds. They offer some pretty interesting ships for other races. Nearly everyone should be interested in your Resolute and Dark Wing.

Lizard

Since the Dark Wing is better then the Lizard Tc10 ship, Lizards are usually interested in it. Eros Class Research Vessels are quiet interesting. And sometimes the Bird could need aLoki Class Destroyer aswell.
The Lizard could support the economy of the Birds with Hiss-ships, especially an Eros Class Research Vessel could be interesting for it. Because of the Super Spy mission, Birds can inform the Lzard, how many defense posts there are on a planet, which helps at Ground attacks.
Summarized: Not a good Alliance

Fascists

Since the Dark Wing is better then the Fascist Tc10 ship, Fascists are usually interested in it. Since Fascist cloakers have little cargo, a Resolute is quiet interesting for ground attacks. On the other side there aren't many intersting ships. Saber Class Frigate and D19b Nefarious Class Destroyer are just a little bit interesting.
The Fascist could support the economy of the Birds with Pillaging and the Birds could help with their intelligence collection.
Summarized: Not a good Alliance

Privateers

Privateers would love your White Falcon Class Cruiser and especially your Resolute Class Battlecruiser. On the other side, a Meteor Class Blockade Runner is a ship everyone wants to have.
They are pretty good allies. Privateers together with Birds should know almost everything about their opponents. Birds take out planets, starbases and every ship besides big hitter (Virgo, Rush, Biocide, ...) and the Privateer captures those big ships (together, they should know where every big hitter of a single opponent is located).
Birds are able to take out Privateers biggest threat: minefields. They are pretty fast at it through Super Spy or with their cloakable Resolute Class Battlecruisers or Dark Wing Class Battleships.
Summarized: Very good Alliance

Crystals

The chance to get a White Falcon Class Cruiser, Fearless Wing Cruiser or Resolute Class Battlecruiser should be enough, so that every Crystal player wants an alliance with the Bird. The only ship thats interesting for the Bird is the Onyx Class Frigate.
Birds are master of attack. Sneak in, destroy unprotected small/midsized ships, planets, starbases or even homeworlds and get out without losing any ships. But if a Carrier race decides to rush into the Birds empire, it gets really difficult. Crystals are masters of defending, so they can help Birds and neutralize their weaknesses. Knowing where your enemy is and the possibility to sneak cloaked into someones empire and lay big webmine fields is really powerful. On the other side, Crystals are a really tough opponent, especially for Birds. So why fight against them, if you can have a strong alliance partner.
Summarized: Very good Alliance

Robots

The chance to get a White Falcon Class Cruiser, Fearless Wing Cruiser or Resolute Class Battlecruiser should be enough, so that every Robot player wants an alliance with the Bird too.
Pawn Class Baseship, Automa Class Baseship and a Golem Class Baseship are really interesting for Birds.

Birds get informations about planets and fleet movement. They could destroy small/midsized ships, planets and starbases. The Robot is good at destroying big ships. Since Birds have their weakness in defense, Robots can help them with large minefields.
Birds get a big carrier, Robots one of the best cloakable minefield layers.
Summarized: Very Good Alliance

Rebels

Rebels should be interested in a cloaker. It could be quiet interesting for RGA and scouting.
A Falcon Class Escort could be interesting, if you wanna build a starbase in each others empire, so you can produce ships for your ally (Rebels could live with a 0 degree world with good natives).
A Rush Class Heavy Carrier is better at fighting big ships, but a Dark Wing Class Battleship is just a little bit weaker and invisible. Nevertheless, a Dark Wing and a Rush are able to destroy every other ship. Even a Resolute and a Rush are pretty strong. And because of their cloaking device, you can fight other big ships 1on1.
Rebels could fill your Starbases with fighters and attack big hitters. And if the Bird and the Rebel work close together, they're pretty strong. They should combine their forces, to destroy big ships.
Summarized: Good Alliance

Colonials

A Cobol Class Research Cruiser or Aries Class Transport Advanced Alchemy is always interesting, since everyone will run short on Neutronium. Dark Wings and Resolutes are interesting for everyone aswell.
A Virgo Class Battlestar is better at fighting big ships, but a Dark Wing Class Battleship is just a little bit weaker and invisible. Nevertheless, a Dark Wing and a Virgo are able to destroy every other ship (Rush+Dark Wing are better, nevertheless). Even a Resolute and a Virgo are pretty strong. And because of their cloaking device, you can fight other big ships 1on1.
Colonials could fill your Starbases with fighters and attack big hitters. And if the Bird and the Colonial work close together, they're pretty strong. They should combine their forces, to destroy big ships.
Summarized: Ok Alliance

Other races as enemies

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Strategy

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Quickstart

Turn 1-5

Increase the factories on your homeworld to the max and build about 250 mines.
Build 2 Swift Hearts at the beginning, so you can explore your neighbour planets. Put 20 Clans on each and drop a clan on every planet, so a later ship can transfer money to the planet and beam up Neutronium.
Next build 2 or 3 LDSF's and colonise those planets, the good ones as fast as possible. Try to bring 100 clans to every planet (if the climate doesn't support as much, get the max clans to that planet; 100 is optimal, because you can build 100 factories with them). Good planets should probably get more clans.
On the new planets you should build 15 factories first (15 factories aren't detectable). Next try to increase to 15 defense posts (so the planets can't be detected anymore) and after that raise the factories to the max.

Turn 5-11

Try to expand and find your neighbours unseen. Your LDSF's should bring minerals and money back, if they're empty. And you should build a ship each round. Communicate at least with one neighbour and try to get an alliance or a non-aggression pact. Use one of your LDSF's as mineral transporter and a Swift Heart (for example) as money transport.

Turn 12-14

You have to decide what to do next. Build your 2nd starbase? Engage your neighbour (you should know where their homeworld is, if you wanna do this; If yes, build at least 2 Dark Wings)? Build a Merlin (you should only do this if you found a real good Bovinoid planet)?