| Rudimentary Plasma Torpedo Targeting |
There are two basic tactics revolving around the
use of Plasma Torpedoes: The Gorn Anchor and The
Plasma Ballet. However, with the addition of the
Cloaking Device, a few other tactics can be executed
effectively as well.
| The Gorn Anchor |
In this tactic, you attempt to close on your
opponent and apply a stiff tractor beam. The idea
behind the attack is to prevent your opponent from
running away from the torpedoes or launching a wild
weasel.
There is a reason why this is called the "Gorn
Anchor" and not the "Romulan Anchor." It is usually
less effective. Remember, the Cloaking Device on
your ship represents 15% of your combat BPV. That
means that when you go toe to toe with an opponent
you are outgunned by one to three phasers average.
Attempting to do this while coming out of cloak is a
very bad idea, since the energy used for the cloak
takes away from your ability to apply adequate energy
into tractors, as well as allowing your opponent an
oppurtunity to dump all of his weapons onto you for
five impulses before fade in. The anchor can work,
but should almost never be used on a turn where you
put energy into the Cloaking Device. It is best
employed when ending a turn cloaked within five hexes
of your opponent on his rearming turn and with all or
most of your torpedoes and phasers armed.
| The Plasma Ballet |
A tactic far better suited to the Romulans is
the Plasma Ballet. This method calls for you to
launch some of your plasma torpedoes at ranges 12-15
and turn, often performing a "lazy S" maneuver. It
can be used to keep your opponent at a distance and
herd your opponent on a fixed map. It is often
employed by The Gorns, however, many Romulan ships
are better suited to this tactic, since they often
have a better turn mode and can operate at lower
speeds due to the Cloaking Device. As a option, you
can launch pseudo plasma torpedoes to string this out
for a long time. If you can bait your opponent into
firing all or most of his weapons at long range, it
is often possible to turn in suddenly, diving toward
your opponent to perform an over-run or an
anchor.
| The Glory Zone Plasma Bolt Attack |
While as a general rule, you should only bolt your
Plasma Torpedoes if it is absolutely necessary
or if it is going to win you the game, in combination
with the Cloaking Device, this is not always a bad
idea. If a TFH bolts all of its plasma torpedoes at
range nine to 10 against a ship, you have the
possibility of doing 44 points of damage before you
cloak. While the cloaking device will not insure
that you will not be hit by overloads it does provide
some defense from phasers, and of course you can put
that power into speed instead, or erratic maneuvers.
Statistically, you are probably going to only do
about 22 points of damage, but backed up with four
phaser Is and two phaser IIIs, the average is closer
to 28. This is usually best employed when
psuedo-plasmas herd your opponent to expose a side
where his weapons arcs are disadvantageous.
| The Fade in and Over-Run |
Similar to the Gorn Anchor, this is the
consumate close and hose tactic. You come out of
cloak withing five hexes of your opponent, dump your
plasmas and phasers into him, turn, and run or cloak.
Careful attention to firing arcs can make this
technique very effective. As a general rule, you
should always save a couple of phasers and put at
least a couple points into tractor in case of any
nasty surprises. Invariably, you are going to get
shot at first, but by launching a wild weasel and/or
using erratic maneuvers during the fade period this
can be mitigated somewhat. This tactic can be useful
for getting underneath the minimum range of some
weapons, such as the Plasmatic Pulsar Device, and the
Standard or Proximity Photon Torpedo as well.
| The Retrograde |
In this tactic, you fly in reverse and try to
maintain medium range with your Plasma Torpedoes and
Phasers, while reinforcing your forward shields. The
idea is to maintain medium range for your opponents
heavy weapons and phasers to get him to close on your
incoming plasma torpedoes, effectively making them
impact at short range. By going medium speeds, you
can also use the threat of the Cloaking Device on
reloading turns as an optional defensive measure
instead of reinforcing shields. This tactic also
allows you to throw suicide shuttles and transporters
bombs and mines in the way of incoming drones and
ships. This system can be augmented by the
occaisional turn, for the purpse of using a bakwards
"Plasma Ballet" and you could even, athough risky,
turn around while cloaked and perform an over-run in
reverse. This is a strong overall tactic that is the
most complimentary to the defensive nature of the
Cloaking Device, however, it is often not as useful
against races that have many medium range torpedoes
and phasers, who may just slow down and snipe at you
from long range. It also can be very limited by a
fixed map scenario.
(discuss plasma and drone defense here as well as rearming cycles for plasma torpedoes with the merits of when to fire, also discuss the contradiction between end of turn cycle with the cloaking device and the impact of the 4-14 weasel.)
To see more information about the Cloaking Device,
go here.