The Let's Play Archive

Escape Velocity: Nova

by Decoy Badger

Part 67: Ships Part 10 - Auroran 2

Let's Meet the Auroran Ships!(Part 2 of 2)

Auroran Industries Enterprise

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The Enterprise is the backbone of all Auroran freight movement. About half as wide as a Leviathan is long, the Enterprise carries a fraction of the cargo, and at much higher cost. Nevertheless, the Enterprise has several advantages over the Leviathan and Pegasus, including integrated FPC weaponry (with room for much more), a higher sublight speed, and the ability (in time of strife) to be converted to a passable military ship.
It's a piss-poor warship and a piss-poor freighter, when most players want just one or the other. The wide wings mean a massive turreted weapons blindspot between the mount points, which when combined with the abysmal speed make these almost trivial to take down in a light fighter - just stay on their tail. Grab a Pirate version instead if you want to fight and freight on the cheap.

Aurora Cruiser

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The Auroran people's first attempt to create a large war vessel is still their most successful. The Aurora Cruiser mounts immense firepower in the form of 100mm and 200mm Railguns, a broadside of FPC batteries, and anti-fighter chainguns. It does have somewhat weak artificial gravity, however, which is compensated for by a rotating living section. It also has the most basic of thrust engines, which produce abysmal top speed and acceleration, even for a capital ship.
Cruisers are incredibly deadly in packs. If you let a few bunch up and start shooting at you, it will be very hard to approach any further due to the sheer amount of metal flying your way. However, when alone their turning speed is so slow that most other ships can circle-strafe them. Even a heavy fighter can take one down, given enough time. When taking on packs, dodging railgun fire or simply charging in and scattering them works - their AI makes them try to retreat to a safe distance before commencing fire, and pursuit can really take advantage of this.

Aurora Carrier

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There is an Auroran legend about the creation of the first Carrier. The Auroran lord who first conceived of such a mighty vessel gave these precepts to the shipwright for its creation: "Make me a hand with which I might strike mine enemies!" The keel for the vessel is so large that it has to be laid in a planet-based shipyard. The ship itself is 1.2 km long, mounts deck-guns, and has bays for Firebirds and Phoenixes.
The best carrier in the game, mainly because it can have over 1000 tons of free space. Load whatever you want on it and still have enough fighters to cover the entire screen, it's pretty badass. Carriers are better used as escorts, however, as escorts replenish fighters automatically and for free. They also like to keep themselves out of trouble, supporting you with long-range fire. This is good, because Carriers are a huge, slow and easily-hit target. They come in around 15 variants, but the scale is simple: Moash is the worst, Heraan is the best. AI Carriers are relatively easy to kill from a distance or up close, simply due to their massive profile. Just watch out for the fighters.

Heraan Industries Vell-os Class Aurora Thunderforge

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The Auroran Battlecruiser represents the very latest thinking by the best minds of the Empire. Prompted by Vell-os artisans, the shipwrights of the First Family have created a vehicle with which they hope the Auroran people will wreak their vengeance. The Thunderforge class battlecruiser mounts four heavy FPC batteries, two Storm Chainguns, two radar missile launchers and four 150 mm railguns. Yet even this incredible arsenal pales into insignificance when compared to the Thunderforge's primary weapon system, the TripHammer. The TripHammer is a gattling pattern energy weapon of awesome power. Inspired by the Vell-os, Auroran weaponsmiths attacked the creation of the guns with typical exuberance. With all the Vell-os help, the Battlecruiser can hold its own against any ship in the known universe.
One of the best ships in the game, the Thunderforge isn't particularly fast or well armoured, and has almost zero space for extra outfits. It looks really cool and has Triphammers, a beam weapon which ignores shielding entirely and does ridiculous amounts of damage. The Triphammers also take up zero space and boost the ship's acceleration and speed - so don't sell them. If you like to get stabby, it's the ship for you. Simply outranging a Thunderforge is an easy way to kill it, but it is unlikely you'll ever encounter one in-game.