Kortul Devastator
From Sins of a Solar Empire
 Vasari
Kortul Devastator
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Manual Description: Like many ships in the Vasari fleet, the Kortul doubles as both a warship and a home for the remnants of the empire. As the lead assault class vessel, the Kortul has a number of defensive system that grant it impressive survivability in battle, which combined with a full complement of heavy weapons make it a force to be reckoned with. In the days of the Empire, Kortuls formed the backbone of every Wing of the Dark Fleet, and while the Exodus Fleet pales in comparison, the Kortuls perform much the same function with one exception: they no longer carry Variments of shock troopers.
Overview: The Kortul is very powerful when it comes to combat. It is in fact the most combat oriented battleship in the game. It is able to beat a TEC Marza by a landslide. However, it is only able to effectively fight when it has its abilites active such as Power Surge. Without this ability it will fail in most major capital ship battles.
| Ship Type: | Capital |
|---|---|
| Primary Role: | Combat |
| Shield Power: | High |
| Hull Points: | Very High |
| Armor Level: | Very High |
| Armor Type: | Capital |
| Antimatter: | Low |
| Weapons (Fore): | 2 x Plasma Wave Cannons / 2 x Pulse Beam Projectors / 4 x Phase Missile Launchers |
| Weapons (Side): | 2 x Pulse Beam Projectors (Starboard / Port) |
| Squadrons Supported: | 1 - 2 |
| Compliment: | 9,000 |
 Power Surge | Jam Weapons | Disruptive Strikes | Volatile Nanites | Ability Management |
 Attack |  Stop |  Move |  Tactics Management | Squadron Management |
[edit] Tactics
- The Kortul Devastator is a blunt instrument, efficiently deploying large quantities of firepower, but not offering any major strategic choices other than a full frontal assault. The Devastator can be effectively compared and contrasted to the Kol Battleship: both ships offer offensive and defensive abilities; both vessels have dedicated anti-fighter abilities; and both vessels have some degree of active shield regeneration. Here the resemblance ends: due to the Devastator's possession of a passive ability, ability choices as the unit levels up become more complicated, but inclusion of a passive ability in the Devastator's arsenal helps compensate for the fact that Power Surge is both an offensive and a defensive ability simultaneously (resulting in a major conflict of interest, as opposed to the Kol Battleship, which has its offensive and defensive abilities neatly compartmentalized): by choosing a passive ability as the Devastator levels up, Vasari players can effectively free up anti-matter to use Power Surge more frequently. Power Surge itself is an excellent ability, increasing overall damage output on a level that surpasses Gauss Rail Gun (due to the fact that increased attack speed benefits from weapon upgrades).
- The Devastator's anti-fighter ability, Jam Weapons is a short-term shutdown rather than an out-and-out damage ability like Flak Burst. The practical results of this difference are as follows:
- Jam Weapons immediately removes a fighter threat for a short period of time; this window of opportunity can be all a Vasari player needs.
- Jam Weapons can be used to buy time in a way that Flak Burst cannot.
- Since Flak Burst's damage is ultimately not enough to destroy a fighter immediately, this ability often either deprives the Kol of anti-matter or forces TEC players to deploy the Kol in pairs. The Kortul Devastator does not suffer from this problem, since it is equally effective alone or in groups.
- Conversely, since Jam Weapons does not destroy its targets, a Vasari fleet unprepared to sweep the disabled fighters from the sky while they are disabled can suffer grievously when these fighters come back on-line, particularly in the post-1.1 environment in which Light Carriers are employed with much greater frequency.
- Volatile Nanites allows the Vasari fleet do distribute large quantities of damage amongst an enemy fleet in the late game, particularly when combined with Power Surge, which increases the rate at which damage is spread. When combined with the Jarrasul Evacuator's Gravity Warhead, the Vasari can both keep a retreating fleet in range and simultaneously rip them to pieces. Of course, this is hardly a central strategy, since level 6 capital ships are somewhat difficult to acquire in small games. Nevertheless, the synergy between these two capital ships bears consideration, particularly combined with the acceleration effect of the Antorak Marauder's Distort Gravity ability.
