Antorak Marauder
From Sins of a Solar Empire
 Vasari
Antorak Marauder
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| Ship Type: | Capital |
|---|---|
| Primary Role: | Support |
| Shield Power: | High |
| Hull Points: | Very High |
| Armor Level: | High |
| Armor Type: | Capital |
| Antimatter: | Low |
| Weapons (Fore): | 2 x Heavy Phase Missile Banks / 2 x Pulse Beam Projectors |
| Weapons (Side): | 2 x Plasma Wave Cannons (Starboard / Port) |
| Squadrons Supported: | 0 - 1 |
| Crew Complement: | 10,000 |
Despite a technological advantage, the Vasari Exodus Fleet strongly favors guerilla warfare tactics to make the most of its relatively few starships. Quickly blitzing unwary targets already softened by sabotage is a cornerstone of this strategy. The Antorak is perfectly suited for assisting in such a strike, boasting abilities to both incapacitate the enemy and swiftly bring in reinforcements.
Extracted from the game manual.
Contents |
[edit] Tactics
The Antorak Marauder is the Support Capital Ship of the Vasari. Its abilities are aimed at assisting other ships in the fleet, so it should not be off on its own.
The first of the Marauder's abilities is Phase Out Hull. It selects a random enemy unit and phases out its hull for 6/8/10 seconds at levels 1/2/3, respectively. While phased out, the target ship cannot attack, nor can it be attacked (it becomes invulnerable). Though it would sound absurd to give an enemy invincibility, think about it - for the time their hull is phased out, they can't assist their allies in any way, shape, or form. Thus, use it to disrupt any channeled abilities. That said, this ability makes the Antorak very useful for destroying hostile scout ships - when assisted by a small group of frigates, it can use this ability to stop the ship while its buddies close the distance and attack when the duration ends.
Distort Gravity, the Marauder's second ability, GREATLY increases the movement and acceleration rates of all friendly ships within a 5000 kilometer radius. In addition, it makes all ships under its influence (including the Marauder itself!) immune to the effects of Phase Jump Inhibition, and allows the ships to jump from deeper within the gravity well. The Max Speed increase is 33%/66%/100% at levels 1/2/3, the acceleration increase is 50%/75%/100% at levels 1/2/3, and its Phase Departure range is -8%/-16%/-25% at levels 1/2/3.
The third ability, Subversion, is aimed at assisting with planetary sieges. Once the Marauder closes within 5000 km of a planet, it sends a strike team down to the surface, where they are free to cause havoc with the planet's infrastructure by increasing ship and structure build times for 5, 7.5, or 10 minutes, at levels 1, 2, and 3, respectively. The ship/structure build time increase is 50%/100%/150% at levels 1/2/3.
Once the Marauder reaches level 6, the ship can learn Stabilize Phase Space, which makes the ship a Phase Jump Stabilizer for the next 75 seconds. However, it MUST remain completely motionless for the duration the ability is activated, or the stabilization effect will be lost.
- Once you're reay to begin your offenseive, the Marauder is an extremely powerful unit. Because it is able to bring ships in from anywhere you have built a phase gate in the solar system, this means that the Marauder can bring your ENTIRE fleet in to smash an enemy's defenses, or simply bring a small portion in to destroy one of the enemy's more vulnerable rear-area worlds (if you can get the Marauder through the initial defenses, that is). This makes up, in part, for the TEC's ability to get free guerilla raids launched on your own worlds later in the game.
[edit] Using the Marauder
Being a support ship, by the time you've decided to get an Antorak, you've managed to accumulate a good-sized fleet. Either that, or you're one of those lunatics who likes to build one first, in which case, expect lots of hate mail. If you find that a particular ship is being particularly annoying (say a Marza with Missile Barrage or a Rapture Battlecruiser with its Concentration Aura), then Phase Out Hull will stop them while they cast their abilities, forcing them to wait until the cooldown passes - if they live that long. Otherwise, Distort Gravity is ALWAYS a good thing to get right away, as having a higher top speed/acceleration always helps, plus it can help you run in the event you have to regroup. Subversion is to be used with caution - if the planet's destroyed while it's still under Subversion's effects, it'll still be active, and YOU will be the victim of its effects! Ideally, you'll want to use this ability for scouting, as it also deploys a remote sensor for you - try using it on planets that you probably won't reach for a while. As stated, while using Stabilize Phase Space, do NOT order the Marauder to move, or it will stop channeling the ability. In addition, it will only work for planets around that star, so don't use it if you're far from your main gate network!
Alternatively, consider using the Marauder on its own--it can probably escape MOST enemy forces, and it is a powerful and effective scouting vessel, one which is more than capable of laying siege to any lightly defended worlds. This presents you with the ability to wreak havoc in more lightly defended rear areas, and forces the Advent in particular to expend priceless time and resources to secure their flanks.
[edit] Fighting the Marauder
If it's by itself, just hammering away at the ship with everything you've got should work just fine. In a fleet, however, watch out, as your Phase Inhibitors become useless with its Distort Gravity. Its buddies become Inhibitor-immune, too. If you've got a massive fleet, Phase Out Hull shouldn't be too big of an issue unless it targets one of your more critical ships, mainly those with channeling abilities. If that happens, you should try and maneuver yourself so the affected ship is within the fleet when the duration ends. Subversion has a varied threat to you - if it's a planet that's either easily defended, or serves as little more than an outpost, just point and laugh. If, however, it serves as the primary location for building ships, the bite to your production will be VERY nasty, indeed. Should you have the misfortune to see one using Stabilize Phase Space, throw EVERYTHING at it, even going so far as using Ultimates - if his reinforcements arrive (and he'll probably have LOTS), you may find yourselves sorely outnumbered. Alternatively, try using an Antorak of your own, or an Akkan's Ion Bolt or Rapture's Reverie to interrupt the casting, so his buddies never make it.
- This is really, really, really risky, and insanely mean--let the phase-gate reinforcements arrive. No, really. If you think you can take them, let them arrive, and then destroy the Marauder, stranding your enemy's main battle fleet in a well-defended gravity well from which they will not easily be able to escape. Again, this is very risky...but if you've got the fleet to do it on hand, this is a game-ender.
[edit] Development
Once Patch 1.1 was implemented, Subversion underwent a few changes. Its antimatter cost was changed from 100/90/80 at levels 1/2/3 to 100 at all levels. In addition, its cooldown period was increased from 50/45/40 seconds at levels 1/2/3 to 75 seconds at all levels. In exchange, however, its ship/structure construction penalty was increased from 15%/30%/45% to 50%/100%/150%. Distort Gravity was also modified, since the Inhibitor Immunity was only working for the Marauder itself, instead of everyone. Additionally, its duration was increased from 20 seconds to 30 seconds at all levels.
 Phase Out Hull | Distort Gravity | Subversion | Stabilize Phase Space | Ability Management |
 Attack |  Stop |  Move |  Tactics Management | Squadron Management |
