HW:C – Total Multiplayer Guide By [7th]CultHero CultHero@Zombieworld.com Ver.1.00 Wow, what a monster. I have attempted to cover every major facet of Homeworld: Cataclysm, and I think I have largely succeeded, though I know I have missed stuff. If you can think of anything that isn't covered here in anyway and is a worthy strategy/tactic, feel free to E-mail me and I will add it and your name to the list of contributors below. Effective Somtaaw openings and strategies are particularly in need, and not of the "dive for MBF's d00d!" variety. I haven't been able to come up with a good Somtaaw opening other than getting mimics and acolytes ASAP. I also do not desire newbie info, such as a tech tree, or something really mathematical, such as exact build times and research times. Special thanks to [7th]Athexx for editing and contributions. Version History: 9/16/2000 Ver. 1.00 – Version 1.00 is completed. Index 1. Beast: Fighters 2. Beast: Corvettes 3. Beast: Frigates and Capital Ships 4. Beast: Non-Combat and Resource 5. Somtaaw: Fighters 6. Somtaaw: Corvettes 7. Somtaaw: Frigates and Capital Ships 8. Somtaaw: Non-Combat and Resource 9. Beast: Game Theory 10. Somtaaw: Game Theory 11. Beast: Strategies and Openings 12. Somtaaw: Strategies and Openings 13. Team Play: Strategy 14. General: Strategy Beast: Fighters 1. Recon: The recon has the longest scan range of any ship. Once upgraded, it is the only way for the Beast to see cloaked ion array frigates, and they can also see mimics and leeches. However, the easiest way to detect mimics and leeches is to use the tactical overlay, so it's up to you if you want to use recons in this way. The best way to use recons is to form a semi-circle in the area around your opponents command ship so you can keep tabs on anything he does. This is the most effective way to keep your opponent from launching any surprise attacks. Also, recons in number can be used to kamikaze enemy fighter craft in the early game if you don't have enough ships to counter a rush on your workers. Finally, keep in mind that the recons do so little damage with a kamikaze that it takes 2 to kill an interceptor or an acolyte. Beast/Somtaaw Counters: Anything that can get in range of a recon to fire can destroy it easily. However, given the speed of the recon an alert player can always have it retreat to safety. 2. Interceptor: The interceptor is the first fighter type the beast has available, and they can get it very quickly. Interceptors are destroyed quickly by anything above an acolyte, so it's best to use them as a kamikaze, against other fighters, or against workers. Interceptors are also the most effective way the beast has of dealing with MCV's and cruise missiles. One thing to keep in mind: when engaging acolytes with interceptors it is best to just kamikaze right away, since acolytes are more valuable (with their missiles and all) and generally have superior agility. Beast/Somtaaw Counters: The interceptor is easily destroyed by anything above itself except for the ion array frigate. Don't worry too much about interceptors unless they are closing in on an unprotected resource patch. 3. Attack Bombers: Attack bombers are a menace. They can do a lot of damage with a kamikaze, and can rip up anything they can connect with. Attack Bombers kill all beast ships above themselves quite well, including all of the corvettes. They are likewise effective against the Somtaaw. They also do a great deal of kamikaze damage – 5 are at most all you will need against a worker. In addition to all of these advantages, the attack bomber can be researched quickly, allowing it to be deployed in the early game. Attack bombers are best supported by interceptors. The interceptors have to keep the attack bombers alive in order for them to reach their targets. Since your opponent is likely to kamikaze the attack bombers if he is outmatched, it is best to keep the interceptors fairly far ahead and to be ready to kamikaze into your enemies fighters yourself. Building attack bombers without interceptor support is only viable if your opponent is clearly sticking with corvette or larger class ships. Beast Counters: The attack bomber is pretty helpless against fast moving targets, and this is all you need to keep in mind. Don't be afraid to kamikaze either if the attack bombers are well supported or time is an issue. Beast corvettes are useless against attack bombers; interceptors are your best bet. Somtaaw Counters: Acolytes are very effective, ACV's are less effective, and mimics are fairly effective as well. Sentinels are also very effective, but they are very slow moving and come later in the game then the attack bombers do. Don't send anything larger unless you want to lose it or the bombers don't have good numbers. 4. Cloaked Fighters: Cloaked fighters are expensive and weak. They're only advantage is their ability to surprise. They can not fire and recloak, so the cloaking only works for the journey to enemy units, and to escape. Cloaked fighters are poor shots, as they are rarely able to connect with other strike craft. This basically limits them to anti-worker roles. In addition, due to the nature of the way they make attack runs it is best to have them attack in an aggressive sphere. Generally, it is unwise to rely on a unit like this. You are better off going with a mixed force of interceptors and attack bombers. Beast Counters: Interceptors really rip up cloaked fighters, as does anything with any kind of anti- strikecraft capability. Somtaaw Counters: Basically all Somtaaw attack ships are effective against the cloaked fighter. Just don't let yourself get surprised. Beast: Corvettes 1. Multigun Corvettes: The multigun corvette is, simply put, expensive for what you get. You are better off with attack bombers or heavy corvettes, as the multigun is not an effective weapon, especially since the heavy corvette is both tougher, costs less to build, and takes less time to research. Beast Counters: Attack bombers are very, very effective against beast corvettes. Otherwise, use the heavy corvettes or frigates. Somtaaw Counters: ACV's, acolyte missiles, and mimics are all effective against the multigun. All frigates can swat aside the multigun as well. 2. Missile Corvette: The missile corvette is a good all around unit. It's primary drawback, against strike craft at least, is that it does not fire very quickly, and that it tends to have several missiles flying through space when a strike craft is destroyed, leading to wasted time and firepower. Beast Counters: Attack bombers really spank these guys, or kamikaze interceptors if attack bombers are not available. Heavy Corvettes of course will take these guys out, and they're also very vulnerable to cruise missiles due to the slow speed of their missiles. Somtaaw Counters: Mimics can be really effective against these guys, as well as acolyte missiles (in this case, about 3 acolytes per missile vette). Multibeam frigates are unusually weak against these, so even though the MBFs are good against fighters and corvettes in general, don't pit them against Missile Corvettes. 3. Heavy Corvettes: The heavy corvette is an over-armored scourge on the battlefield. Able to take an enormous amount of punishment, the heavy vette is capable of burning down everything in its path and lending excellent fire support to a main fleet. Beast Counters: The infection beam, other heavy corvettes, or attack bombers are your best bet here. Cruise missiles will do in a pinch too, provided you can use them without getting fired on. Somtaaw Counters: There are several counters of varying effectiveness. The most effective I have seen is to micromanage MCV's so that each one targets a single corvette. This is a big savings, since MCV's cost much less than heavy vettes, but it requires that they are not fired on, given their tissue-paper armor. Another good method is acolyte missiles. Split your acolytes into groups of 5, and have each group launch their missiles on a different heavy corvette. The missiles have a very long life span, so they will eventually hit anything that moves slower then they do. After this, send the acolytes back to reload. 4. Cruise Missiles: Cruise missiles can devastate an opponent. The most effective use of them is either in numbers to infect a main fleet (You must get rid of strike craft protection for this to work well) of frigates, slow/distracted corvettes (coming from behind will help this), and to infect an unguarded or semi- guarded collection fleet. The ability to convert rather than destroy is a powerful one. In addition, cruise missiles do a decent amount of damage to targets that are immune to infection. Beast Counters: The interceptor and similar strike craft are key here. If time is an issue or the missiles have a good defense, do not be afraid to kamikaze into the missiles. Otherwise, engaging with any ship that can be infected is just asking for trouble. Corvettes will also do pretty well, but because of their size and power they are infection targets themselves. Somtaaw Counters: The acolyte is the best choice here, due to its speed and agility. Just like with beast, don't be afraid to kamikaze if it looks like you need to. Mimics and MCV's also work really well, provided they can get past whatever support the cruise missiles have. Don't even think about engaging with frigs, except with the hive's long range swarm ability. Another note on cruise missiles: Whenever dealing with cruise missiles be prepared to scuttle your own ships as you see them being infected. Better gone then in the hands of your opponent. The only time when you would not want to scuttle infected ships is if you know you can re- claim it (as Beast) with your own infection beam/missiles. Beast: Frigates and Capital Ships 1. Defense Field Frigate: The defense field frigate has two main uses: Detonating and absorbing siege blasts, and protecting various craft from projectile and energy weapons. The defense field frigate is both expensive and weak, but the functions it serves are very important. Keeping several protecting your CS and several on your main fleet is the way to go, as it will be able to protect your ships from energy/projectile cannons in addition to detonating siege cannon blasts. Beast Counters: The cruise missile is the quickest way to deal with a field frigate. All other counters against it involve simply focusing fire on it. The Ion Array and the missile corvette is well suited to this role since the field frigate has no effect on it. Somtaaw Counters: MCV's work very well against field frigates. Acolyte missiles are very effective as well. 2. Ion Array Frigate: The ion array frigate is well suited to its role as capship killer. It has a very slow turning rate, making it almost useless against strike craft, and this occasionally gives it trouble against other frigates as well. However, it is an excellent choice for concentrating damage. Beast Counters: The cruise missile and infection beams work very well against ion array frigates. Most strike craft work very well against the frigates as well, since the ion array turns so slowly. Somtaaw Counters: The MCV and the acolyte's missiles are the most effective counter against the ion array. Other strike craft work as well. 4. Heavy Cruisers: The heavy cruiser is a monster. They are capable of cleaning the floor with any other 1 unit in the game. Able to infect as well as dish out and receive major damage, the heavy cruiser is the most powerful ship in the game that can be fielded. Only a coordinated effort from a mixed group of units can bring down a heavy cruiser. Beast Counters: The best counter is other heavy cruisers. Cruise missiles won't infect it of course, but they also won't do much damage. Ion array frigates work as well, but you must be ready to reclaim your frigates with infection weapons of your own. Somtaaw Counter: The best (and pretty much only) counter is a very well supported fleet of destroyers and dreadnoughts. MCV's and acolyte missiles are also very effective at softening up a heavy cruiser so the larger ships can make the kill. Beast: Non-Combat and Resource 1. The Command Ship: This isn't your father's command ship. The command ships in HW:C are both fast moving and capable of dealing out a good amount of damage. They are the core of the game, and losing it often spells the doom of a player. The Beast command ship has two advantages: The command ship has an infection beam, which is incredibly useful, and it can allocate emergency power to various systems, which will speed up that system at the price of command ship health. This function will cease working at or below half health. The three most effective choices for emergency power are Research, which will help you get the important techs earlier (especially important at the beginning), Building, to either rebuild ships after or during a battle rapidly or just for raising up your worker numbers quickly at the beginning (and interceptors once they are researched), and Infection Beam, which can really help dominate when you have constant encounters with nearby enemy ships. Beast Counters: Firepower, and lots of it. Heavy cruisers and ion array frigates are your only real options, since anything else will not be able to do much damage and therefore will eventually get infected. Just be sure to bring along enough infection of your own to reclaim whatever you use. Somtaaw Counters: Don't go near the beast MS except at the very beginning of the game and late-game when you have a good force. Destroyers and dreadnoughts are the only major ships that you should allow within shooting range of the beast CS. MCV's are an excellent choice for supporting such a fleet since they can soften up the beast CS and are immune to the infection beam. 2. Processor: This isn't your father's resource controller either. The processor can serve as effective worker protection, having fairly good guns lining both of its sides. One thing to keep in mind is that if you order one to attack, they will go at it front side forward, which is a disadvantage since the guns are on the sides. Beast Counters: It's best to just ignore the processor and go after the workers until you have some major firepower or a cruise missile around. Cruise missiles are the most effective way to get rid of a processor, since it only takes 1 and an unguarded processor doesn't have the firepower to stop a group of them from connecting with it. Somtaaw Counters: The processor can take a good beating, so you may actually need to make more than 1 strike force, the first to wound it and the second to destroy it. Acolyte missiles and MCV's are effective, as usual. You should seriously consider ignoring the processor until the workers are taken care of considering how tough the processors can be. 3. Workers: The workers are salvagers, repair craft, and collectors in HW:C. The last one is about the only function used however. They are too easily destroyed to serve as repair craft in combat, so they can only be used outside of it to any effect. The salvage function is rarely used, especially with beast (since they can just infect with the beam and missiles), as the workers can't salvage until a unit is at half health. Once you have captured and researched repair, another very useful ability to keep in mind is that if you have 10 spare workers handy they can repair the Beast CS faster than emergency power will drain it. This will allow you to keep your production at max non-stop, be able to infect every few seconds, or use any of the other abilities with impunity. Beast/Somtaaw Counters: Just about anything can be effective against a worker, the hard part is getting past the defense. Somtaaw: Fighters 1. Recon: The recon has the longest scan range of any ships. Once upgraded, it is the only way besides the sentinel of seeing cloaked ion array frigates, and like the sentinel they can also see mimics and leeches. However, the easiest way to detect mimics and leeches is to use the tactical overlay, so it's up to you if you want to use recons in this way. The best way to use recons is to form a semi-circle in the area around your opponents command ship so you can keep tabs on anything he does. This is the best way to keep your opponent from launching any surprise attacks. Also, recons in number can be used to kamikaze enemy fighter craft in the early game if you don't have enough ships to counter a rush on your workers. Also, recons in number can be used to kamikaze enemy fighter craft in the early game if you don't have enough ships to counter a rush on your workers, just don't try to dog fight, they will get pasted. Finally, keep in mind that the recons do so little damage with a kamikaze that it takes 2 to kill an interceptor or an acolyte. Beast/Somtaaw Counters: Anything that can get in range of a recon to fire can destroy it easily. However, given the speed of the recon an alert player can always have it retreat to safety. 2. Acolytes: Acolytes are a great unit. A menace to strike craft, workers, and frigates, the acolyte is a unit that a good Somtaaw player should never stop building. The missiles are one of the most versatile weapons there are, given their huge damage and long lifespan. If you are going to engage frigates and other capital ships with acolytes, it's best to hit and fade to go get another pair of missiles. All in all, acolytes are a major threat, since they are able to move quickly and can hit hard with their missiles. Beast Counters: Infection beam, kamikazing interceptors, and corvettes are the most effective way of getting rid of acolytes. Acolytes are a major threat with their missiles and they have to be stopped as soon as possible. Somtaaw Counters: Using ACV's and acolytes are the best counter. Sentinels also work very well, but they come much later in the research tree and they can't move fast enough to catch up to the acolytes. Failing that, the other frigs you have around after the first one goes up in flames are pretty effective, provided the acolytes don't run away. ? (Yes, yes, hive frigate swarmers can chase down the acolytes, I know. ) 3. Mimics: Mimics are the other highly effective unit that the Somtaaw get. The mimic ability is primary useful in causing the mimics to not appear on radar, since most alert players will know it's not theirs right away. Their only disadvantage is their tissue-paper armor, but considering their stealthy nature and huge damage potential it is a worthy trade-off. If you even think about using Mimics (and you ought to in almost every game you play), make research of the Quantum upgrade for them a high priority, since it greatly increases the damage they deal. The most effective way to use mimics is to use other ships to divert attention so that the optimum number of mimics can connect with a target. Mimics are also a great way of quickly taking out a crystal that happens to be near some enemy ships without them noticing. Beast Counters: Be alert is the first thing you have to do, having strike craft around is the other. The key to mimics is to attack without being noticed. If they are noticed, they will have a hell of a time, which is what you want them to have. Somtaaw Counters: Same as the beast counters, except that multibeams and hive frigs can be effective if there aren't too many and they are detected early. 4. Leech: As I'm sure some of the leech fans have noticed, I haven't mentioned them that much. Simply put, I don't have great faith in the leech, as they are simply too easy to stop. Since they can be destroyed by force attack and detected by putting on the tactical overlay, getting them deployed effectively to begin with is a major hassle. No offense or anything, but since leeches can be stopped so easily and since they require time to be effective, I don't think of them as anything beyond toys or something to beat down unskilled players with. Beast/Somtaaw Counters: Just keep on tactical overlay and force attack any leeches on your units. Research advanced sensors too if you feel the need. 5. Sentinel: The sentinel is a powerful ship. Held back primarily by the slow movement speed and the slow build time, the sentinel is a match for any beast ship below a frigate. It is a testimony to the sentinels endurance and lack of speed that ion cannon weapons are a very effective way of dealing with the sentinel. An excellent choice to guard any kind of ship that does not require a great deal of speed. Sentinels are a poor offensive choice given their rate of movement, but they really shine on defense. The shield effect is secondary, since it will only stop undetermined attacks, and more importantly the sentinel cannot fire while the shield is up. Another thing to keep in mind is that sentinels do get advanced sensors, so they can detect disguised and invisible ships once upgraded. Just because they are slow, don't rule out building an offensive with them. Provided you have the resources, loading them in a carrier and then jumping to key locations can be devastating, especially with frigate support, since even infection missiles will generally die too fast to do anything to such a force. Just keep in mind that you shouldn't try this against ships with infection beams. Beast Counters: Infection beams are the most efficient way of dealing with sentinels. Failing that, the quickest way to get rid of them is by kamikazing interceptors. The sentinels are the defenders of HW:C, and they are just as vulnerable to kamikaze by nimble strike craft. Groups of ion array frigates or a heavy cruiser can also be very effective. Don't use strike craft or corvettes against the sentinel except the interceptor kamikaze; they will get eaten alive. Somtaaw Counter: ACV's EMP effect will be useful here. Just be ready to run when it wears out. Probably the best method is to engage the sentinels with the long-range drones of the hive frig. Multibeams will also be effective, but they need numbers or they will be overwhelmed quickly. Somtaaw: Corvettes 1. ACV: The ACV is very effective against all fighters and some corvettes, but it's usefulness drops off rapidly against anything bigger. ACV's aren't that effective against the beast corvettes, given their superior firepower and hitpoints. However, with EMP the ACV is very effective against smaller strike craft, being able to paralyze them for several seconds (several precious seconds, since strike craft count on agility to keep themselves alive) and can generally take them out even without the EMP. Keep in mind that EMP is most effective when supported by other ships, notably acolytes, since the ACV's themselves will take a few seconds to recover after issuing an EMP blast. Beast Counters: Corvettes are your best bet against ACV's. Anything else is simply too slow or too ineffective. Since it is almost guaranteed that anything you attack with will be EMP'ed, don't use anything that will be vulnerable in one place without being able to dodge. Somtaaw Counters: Hive Frigates and multibeam frigates are the best counters against ACV's since they are virtually immune to the EMP effect and can really dish it out against strike craft. 2. MCV: Same as mimic, only can mimic bigger ships, moves slower, and has more hitpoints. Beast Counters: See Mimics Somtaaw Counters: See Mimics Somtaaw: Frigates and Capital Ships 1. Ramming Frigate: Ramming frigates can be very nice, just remember that if you attack a beast ship larger than a frigate and you don't have vaccine researched, the ramming frig will be auto-infected. Otherwise, a ramming frig can turn around a battle by removing the big ships, like dreadnoughts (watch out for repulse though) and heavy cruisers from a conflict long enough to turn the tide. Beast Counters: The usual means of infection work well, in the case of cruise missiles especially since the ramming frig has no long-range weapon. Otherwise, any strike craft or corvette can work wonders (Using them in an aggressive sphere will keep the ramming frig from ramming any of them). Somtaaw Counters: The acolyte missiles and MCV's, always the weapon of choice against frigs, are effective here as well. Failing that, strike craft can make short work of a ramming frig. 2. Multibeam Frigate: Multibeam frigates are effective against fast moving targets and little else. Their inability to focus fire is a disadvantage against any larger ships and besides their anti-strike craft abilities they really don't have anything going for them. Beast Counters: Cruise missiles can be effective, if they are in big enough numbers that they don't get destroyed right away. Other than that, pounding on a multibeam with anything above an interceptor will do the trick. Somtaaw Counters: Acolyte missiles and MCV's as always against frigs. Failing that, destroyers, 'noughts, and hive frigs are effective. 3. Hive Frigate: Hive frigates are notable for their ability to deploy their swarmers over very long ranges. This requires good recon and that you don't let enemy ships get too close. Because of their high support cost it's not a very good idea to build a fleet solely of these guys, although they can definitely make a significant contribution to any fleet and have many tactical uses. With good recon, the hive frigates are among the best ways to deal with cruise missiles (although if you are not alert, the hive frigate is just as susceptible to the missiles as any other frigate. The hive frigate is still powerful against other frigates, since they can concentrate firepower with their main attack as well as swarming everything in the area. You must have good recon with the hive frigates, if you are going to put yourself at risk of losing them to infection you are better off not building them. Beast Counters: Any kind of infection will work well, though cruise missiles are susceptible to the swarmers if they are detected from too far away. Otherwise, corvettes work fairly well and the bigger beast ships will work wonders, once they get close enough. Somtaaw Counters: Acolyte missiles and MCV's (notice a pattern yet? Naw, me neither.) are very effective, once they get in range. Otherwise, hive frigates and the bigger capital ships can swat a hive frigate pretty well. 4. Destroyer: The destroyer is a powerful ship. Not having any abilities of note, you will just have to be satisfied with a missile launcher, multiple guns, and a pair of ion cannons. The destroyer is noted for being able to dish it out, being able to take it, and being immune to infection. Beast Counters: This is a toughie. Your best bet is heavy cruisers. The other option is basically mobbing it with ion array frigates until you light it up. Somtaaw Counters: For Somtaaw, you should try something a little different and use acolyte missiles and MCV's. 5. Dreadnought: The dreadnought is basically a destroyer, only more so. The dreadnought also has a repulse field weapon, which does no damage but helps keep those pesky enemy ships at arms length. The repulse field will deflect siege cannon blasts, which is the only defense the Somtaaw have against it (and can provide a fun lesson in geometry). Keep in mind that in dreadnought vs. heavy cruiser one on one, the heavy cruiser will come out on top with about half of it's hitpoints, provided it hits the dreadnought with it's infection beam twice. This is because the dreadnought, while it has two ion cannons, cannot focus its fire and hit a target with both of them. The end result of this is that they always get pasted going 1 on 1 against a heavy cruiser. Do not try to use the Dreadnought as the heaviest gun in your fleet, because even though that's true, it is much more effective used as the heaviest armored ship in you fleet, to try to distract firepower away from your more vulnerable ships (especially mimics). Beast Counters: The heavy cruiser is about your only option. The other option, less satisfying, is to mob the dreadnought with ion array frigates and a support fleet (to protect from MCV's and other peskies). A large wing of attack bombers can also be effective if they are ignored and allowed to do damage. Somtaaw Counters: Well, I know this will sound strange, but acolyte missiles and MCV's can be very effective against dreadnoughts. This is especially true when the dreadnought is engaged with other ships, in particular destroyers and other dreadnoughts, since they can take a great deal of punishment. Somtaaw: Non-Combat and Resource 1. The Command Ship: The Somtaaw command ship has the unique advantage/disadvantage of having to build numerous modules to conduct research. This allows you to conduct 5 research items once all the pods are built, but this also tends to hurt just a little money wise, which really hurts at the beginning of the game. The special ability of the system manager is to assign repair priorities to the pods (Yippee!). The Somtaaw CS also has the siege cannon, which can win and lose games when used. It's a big enough topic that I'll go into that in strategies. Like the beast CS the Somtaaw mothership can dish out some serious damage to the smaller units. This also means that you are more heavily armored than the Beast Command Ship (since your modules can take damage) but simultaneously means that the modules can die and cripple you significantly. To use to your advantage, only use your command ship in a battle situation if you can run away from it without consequence, and if you do, always run away as soon as any of your modules go into the yellow. Beast Counters: You can attack the CS with just about anything, just be mindful of the damage output of the Somtaaw CS, and be careful of sending your fleets into battle against it late game without field frigates for siege cannon protection. Also be sure to use all of your infection beams on the Somtaaw CS right at the beginning, since the Somtaaw CS has a ton of hitpoints, meaning the infection beam will do a ton of damage. Somtaaw Counters: Like the Beast, you must be mindful of the siege cannon late game, but even more so since the only defense you have is the dreadnought's repulse weapon. Also like the beast, you can attack any time you like, just as long as you are mindful of the Somtaaw CS's weapons. 2. Processor: This isn't your father's resource controller either. The processor can serve as effective worker protection, having fairly good guns lining both of its sides. One thing to keep in mind is that if you order one to attack, they will go at it front side forward, which is a disadvantage since the guns are on the sides. As a result, processors are most effective while being swarmed by fighters and are much less effective against frigates. Beast Counters: It's best to just ignore the processor and go after the workers until you have some major firepower or a cruise missile around. Cruise missiles are the most effective way to get rid of a processor, since it only takes 1 and an unguarded processor doesn't have the firepower to stop a group of them from connecting with it. Somtaaw Counters: The processor can take a good beating, so you may actually need to make more than 1 strike force, the first to wound it and the second to destroy it. Acolyte missiles and MCV's are effective, as usual. You should seriously consider ignoring the processor until the workers are taken care of considering how tough the processors can be. 3. Worker: The workers are salvagers, repair craft, and collectors in HW:C. The last one is about the only function used however. They are too easily destroyed to serve as repair craft in combat, so they can only be used after battle to any effect. Since salvaging enemy ships requires that you take their health down to half first, the salvage function is mainly only useful to salvage crystals, provided you have Crystal Processing available as well. Crystals will give you a huge RU boost, almost as if you were playing a game with large injections, although make sure your enemy doesn't plan on attacking the crystal - its explosion is as large as a siege cannon blast. You can find the fate of your game being sealed in a neon purple circle. In the late game, the Somtaaw will never run short of resources because they can easily harvest crystals for money, while a beast player will typically be unable to spend the time to research the required technologies. Beast/Somtaaw Counters: Just about anything can be effective against a worker, the hard part is getting past the defense. Beast Game Theory: Beast vs. Somtaaw The beast has a major advantage here, given the slow start of the Somtaaw and that they can only attack at the very beginning (which is virtually impossible since they start so slowly) and then they cannot approach your CS until the endgame. One of the major keys to playing Beast vs. Somtaaw is luring your opponent's ships within range of an infection beam. Failing that, you should focus on destroying whatever strike craft he has around. This will allow your cruise missiles to be used much more easily, since frigates and processors cannot easily stop them before they get in range of infection. You really need to go with what feels right. If you are afraid of your opponent getting a siege cannon, be sure to make quite a few field frigates, since a good Somtaaw player will destroy them before firing his siege cannon. If you have destroyed your opponent's resource fleet and are moving in for the kill, use ion array frigates backed up by strike craft for mimic protection. The two things you should be most afraid of are mimics and acolyte missiles. Keeping a lot of fighters and corvettes around are the best way to deal with them. Beast vs. Beast This can be interesting. Except for a few initial strike craft attacks, you cannot approach you opponent's CS until you are ready to destroy it, and only then when you have enough infection of your own to reclaim whatever he takes with an infection beam or cruise missiles. Keeping a sharp eye for cruise missiles and destroying/infecting whatever resource fleet he has away from a ship with infection should be your primary goals. Avoid using frigates as much as possible, since FF's generally aren't worth the cost of research and money when there is no threat of a siege cannon, and ion arrays are very vulnerable to cruise missiles and infection beams. If you are going to use frigates, always keep them with strike craft so they can't be infected by cruise missiles (and because ion arrays are worthless against fast moving targets) and it's also a good idea to have a few cruise missiles follow them so you can reclaim them should they get infected. Heavy cruisers can also give you major problems, since they are both powerful, can infect, and are immune to infection. Counters for them are discussed under their description. Important Beast Attributes: 1. Infection: Infecting units with cruise missiles and infection beams are one of your primary goals as the Beast. Generally, you should try to lure enemy units within range of a ship that can infect, and when using cruise missiles give them an escort so you can get rid of whatever strike craft that might threaten them. Be sure to retire anything that you don't have an emergency need for, like a single ACV or acolyte from a wing you just infected. As for infecting Somtaaw frigs, it's best to retire them as soon as they are out of combat, unless you have no need of that unit type and would prefer to keep them on the front lines. To infect the most possible vessels with the cruise missiles you have, engage the targeted enemy ships with some offensive units first and as soon as the enemy starts returning fire, send the cruise missiles in. This is especially effective against ships that have a hard time turning or alternating targets. Also try to send in the cruise missiles from the side or from behind. Beast Counters: Use strike craft to kill cruise missiles, and don't go near any ships that can infect unless you are ready to lose some of your fleet. Having more infection than your opponent does is also key, so you can reclaim whatever your opponent steals from you. Somtaaw Counters: Don't go near the Beast CS or anything else that can infect, and use strike craft to kill cruise missiles. Don't engage the Beast CS directly with anything but dreadnoughts and destroyers, since you can't reclaim whatever you lose without going through the pain- in-the-ass process of salvaging. MCV's work wonders against ships with infection since they can't be infected and do a ton of damage. 2. Beast Workers: Beast workers have slower harvesting than their Somtaaw equivalents (it takes longer for a beast player to collect one load of RUs) but this is easily offset by the fact that the Beast has very little to build in the beginning of the game, even when they get their first offensive ships. Continuously build workers to take advantage of this and protect those workers well. Make sure that units coming out of your mothership have quick access to defend any of your harvesting operations and check often to make sure that there are no leeches on your processors or workers (if playing against Somtaaw) or cruise missiles/mimics heading towards them. If you maintain this superior amount of workers until the end game, you should have no problem keeping up with any opponent. Beast Counters: Of course as a beast player you will also be able to take advantage of this fact, but taking advantage of it more than your opponent will be a key factor in the game, especially if you can whittle down his worker population without losing yours, thus nullifying his innate advantage while keeping yours. Somtaaw Counters: It is integral to any Somtaaw versus Beast game to destroy the Beast's initial production advantage, because your faster harvesting won't make up for the fact that the Beast can have a lot more workers than you. This is discussed more in the Somtaaw: Game Theory section.(Information of Beast workers and Counters contributed by [7th]Athexx) 3. Emergency Power Allocation is a tool that should definitely be used whenever your CS is above half health. You can double the speed of either your production, your research, your movement, your infection beam recharge rate, or double the firepower of your defensive weapons at the cost of damage to the command ship, which is well worth the price. Even when about to be under attack, it is more useful to have used your emergency power to build more defensive ships to kill any attacking fleet faster than to have more hit points on the CS but less ships to defend it with. The direst situation where you would need hit points is if facing an incoming Siege Cannon without any Field Frigates nearby, and still, Emergency Power to Thrust (one of the few uses of putting power to speed) comes through by doubling the speed at which you can move upward to evade the shockwave. Specific uses of Emergency Power can be found in either the unit section, under the Beast Mothership, or in individual Beast openings below. Beast/Somtaaw Counters: Although this is an innate ability of the command ship, you can prevent your opponent from taking maximum advantage of his emergency power by providing a constant threat to his mothership and either forcing him to use Emergency Power in a way that you dictate or by not allowing him to use emergency power at all by reducing the hit points of the CS to below half its health. Unfortunately this can be quite a task, especially for Somtaaw players, since there is the constant threat of infection, so deliberately attacking the Mothership just to deprive your opponent of Emergency Power is out of the question. On the other hand, if you have recently been attacking the CS and took down a chunk of its health, constantly bombarding it with Mimics or Cruise Missiles is a great way to effectively cut his rebuilding speed in half by not allowing him to heal to the one-half health he will need for more Emergency Power. (Emergency power allocation and counters contributed by [7th]Athexx) Somtaaw Game Theory Somtaaw vs. Beast This is a tough one. You can't go near the Beast CS without running the very high risk of infection, which makes it difficult to end a game against a beast player early and it also makes it very dangerous to try and destroy ships in the area of the beast CS. Your best bet is to try to get to your opponent's resource fleet without getting in range of infection beams. Generally, building frigs against the Beast is a bad idea, especially as Somtaaw. All Somtaaw frigate types are easily infected and cannot be reclaimed except by salvaging. You are forced to either use them defensively or, more commonly, to not use them at all. The key to winning this game (like it is with the other race combinations) is keeping your production fleet safe while destroying your opponents. With this in mind, acolyte missiles and MCV's are your best bet against resource fleets, since they can strike fast and hard. Generally, you should try to get the MCV's in striking range in a sneaky way (Like moving a wing of acolytes within scanning range of a different part of his fleet, so you know he isn't paying attention to his workers). Keeping a lot of strike craft around is also important, since they are the most effective way of stopping cruise missiles. When you are ready to win, you need to be very ready. Engaging the Beast CS is a major undertaking, and is best done with destroyers, dreadnoughts, and MCV's. Somtaaw vs. Somtaaw This can be an interesting game, with a great many different strategies. First of all, you can use all of the Somtaaw unit types with impunity since you don't have to worry about infection. Generally, your best bet is to try to get more acolytes and MCV's out than your opponent and then try to destroy his resource fleet. For this game, you need to keep a sharp eye out for leeches and mimics, and you need to have the strike craft around to deal with them. Siege cannons are something else you need to look out for, since the dreadnought's repulse weapon is the Somtaaw's only defense against it. Important Somtaaw Attributes: 1. Acolyte Missiles: The acolyte upgraded with missiles is a great weapon. They are effective against beast corvettes when the acolytes split into groups of 5 and each launch against a different target. Using small groups is also very effective against workers. Missiles are very effective at detonating crystals, which can also be fun (losing a melee? Launch your missiles at the nearest crystal and be a poor loser. :p ). Acolyte missiles are also extremely effective against frigates, as they are able to devastate frigs and can put a big dent in the bigger capital ships. Just be sure that the acolytes don't stick around and get into fights with anything that can't chase them. It's best to fire the missiles and to return to the CS for a reload. Beast Counters: The beast don't have much of a choice here – all they can do is preemptively strike the acolytes with interceptors so they can't reach their targets. The other choice is to try to infect with and infection beam before they can launch their missiles. The acolyte missile is a real boon to the Somtaaw, being both powerful and rather difficult to stop. Somtaaw Counters: The Somtaaw don't have a great deal of counters here either – either preemptively engage with your own acolytes, or use ACV's and their EMP. Any other reasonable choice is likely to go up in flames. 2. Using the Siege Cannon: The siege cannon can win or lose the game, but it is a weapon that must be used carefully. One thing to remember is to never shoot it at a downward angle. It is likely to crash into the side of your CS on it's way, which is about the only way you can get a CS to kill itself. If you wish to shoot the siege cannon at an opponent who is below you, you must either change your altitude or cause your CS to angle downward so the siege cannon projectile fires forward instead of down. Another thing to keep in mind is to not fire the Siege cannon while field frigates are around, allied or otherwise. They will detonate the siege cannon blast as soon as it is released, destroying your CS. Once the threat of self- destruction is removed, there are still a few things to keep in mind. One is that when targeting the blast, the percentage number by the cursor measures the power the siege cannon's blast will have when it goes off. Against Beast, you must remove their field frigates before you can fire safely. MCV's are the most efficient way of doing this, followed by acolyte missiles. Against Somtaaw, the dreadnought's repulse field is the only protection your opponent has. Getting rid of a dreadnought is a much more complicated proposition, one that is discussed under its counters. You may want to try to get your opponent to fire his repulse field and then fire the siege cannon right away. One final thing to remember about the siege cannon: it can destroy any ship in the game with a direct or near direct hit. Beast Counters: Field frigates, and lots of them. You need to keep a ton of them around, and you need to keep them guarded so MCV's or whatever can't kill them. Keep field frigates on any likely target. The other alternative is to do a short-range hyperjump of your ships so that they aren't present when the siege blast goes off. Somtaaw Counters: The dreadnought's repulse is the only counter to a launched siege blast. Using it well is not easy; you will just have to learn by experience. The other option is to do a short-range hyperjump so that your ships simply aren't there when the siege blast detonates. 3. Double Pumping: Double pumping is simply the act of manufacturing ACV's and acolytes at the same time, or mimics and MCV's at the same time. This has the effect of doubling your production of those units. This is a big boon to the Somtaaw war machine, and a good Somtaaw player will use it to full effect. Using it with carriers to up your production is also a great boon. Beast Counters: The beast must use many strike craft to counter the extra production, if that is what the Somtaaw player is focusing on. Corvettes will also do well against the Somtaaw fighters. Somtaaw Counters: There really isn't any need for a counter, since a Somtaaw player can do it as well. Beast: Strategies and Openings Beast players have a variety of options available to them at the beginning of the game for this is where they truly shine. It is critical that they take advantage of their vital technologies (that is: infection beams, support systems, and either fighter or corvette technologies) and use it against their opponents immediately. 1. Interceptor Rushing: This is done by first allocating emergency power to researching fighter drive. Do the usual scouting and collector building in the meantime. Make sure you know where your opponent is. Once that is finished, queue up at least 10 interceptors and switch emergency power to build. When the interceptors are finished, send them to the enemy resource collectors, going around the command ship if it can be done easily. Once there, engage the workers and ignore all other targets (aggressive sphere works well). If you get under heavy fire (processor + CS) don't be afraid to kamikaze into the workers, the interceptors do excellent kamikaze damage. Kamikaze the remaining interceptors into the nearest remaining worker. You should be able to get 1 worker, and if you do well you will be able to kill 2. Beast Counters: The best beast counter is to do it yourself. Failing that, using recon kamikaze to weaken the force or using emergency power allocation on defensive weapons can be effective. Somtaaw Counters: This is a bit complicated, but you have several options. The first is to keep your command ship and processor really close to your workers. This will maximize the fire the interceptors have to endure. You will also probably have 1 or 2 acolytes available when the interceptors arrive – kamikaze them into the interceptors to reduce the damage they can inflict. Another method is to build recons and engage the interceptors with them – you won't be able to do much if any damage to them, but it will slow down the interceptors. Finally, you can dock your workers with your command ship and not relaunch them until the threat has passed, but this has obvious drawbacks. 2. Command Ship Rushing: With the infection beam, the Beast command ship can basically have its way with your enemies. This is primarily a Beast vs. Somtaaw strategy, since having your opponent do it to you will not only put a damper on it, but if a beast player keeps his CS on his ships he can just reinfect whatever it is you try to claim. This strategy consists of exactly what it sounds like: rushing your opponent with your command ship. To do this requires only that you have infection researched before you arrive at your opponent's resource fleet. What you do is send out recons to determine where your opponent is, and then start moving your CS there as soon as you finish building a processor. You should then use 
the interceptor rushing strategy described above to throw 
your opponent off balance and to make him play 
defensively. What a smart player will do at this point is 
retreat his collection fleet rather than face having it 
infected. This comes close to basically conceding the 
game to the Beast player. If he doesn't run, infect as 
much of his ships as possible and destroy the rest. If he 
runs, make sure your collection fleet has adequate 
protection and give chase, assured in the knowledge that 
his collection abilities have been broken, perhaps 
terminally. Keeping your opponent off balance is the key 
to winning. Be certain to use the collection fleet 
protection techniques described elsewhere to keep him 
from turning the tide.

Beast Counters: If your opponent is doing this, you can 
either do it to him or stay on defense and reinfect 
whatever he tries to claim ( I don't recommend the 
latter, since he will eventually start scuttling whatever 
you try to take back).
Somtaaw Counters: The Somtaaw have a few interesting 
options. They can send their CS after the Beast CS, but 
this will leave their collection fleet largely 
unprotected. However, if you do this, they just might be 
able to take out the Beast CS, since it will be at half 
health after using emergency power allocation for 
research and building. The trick to that is keeping your 
CS trained on your enemies CS long enough to destroy it, 
a difficult task for a ship that turns and moves so 
slowly. You would be forced to mimic the Beast CS's 
movements almost exactly, and also to get into a position 
where as many guns as possible on your CS are firing. The 
other option is to rush your enemy's collection fleet 
yourself. If you order your collection fleet to run from 
your opponent's CS and then force his to do the same by 
rushing them with your CS, you might just succeed in 
starting a sort of poor man's cat and mouse (poor because 
both of you will be bankrupt).

3.	Corvette Power Builds: The Beast corvettes are effective 
weapons and can be researched just as quick as any 
fighter can, plus they carry the bonus of having one less 
tech to research for cruise missiles. To start, put 
emergency power into building and pump out a processor 
and as many workers as you can queue. Start researching 
support systems immediately since by the time you are 
even able to build offensive ships you will already be 
low on supply, and corvettes can eat up supply very 
quickly. Once the processor is out, you don't need to 
rush so fast to get more workers so divert emergency 
power to research and start researching corvette drive 
while building your first supply pod. The use of 
emergency power on building at the beginning will give 
you a very fast growing economy, and if you continue 
building workers throughout the game until it starts 
draining your maximum supply, you will ALWAYS have a 
superior economy to any opponent who does not start that 
way.  Unfortunately you may be vulnerable to an 
interceptor rush, so keep recons handy if you think your 
opponent might try that, until you can produce your first 
corvettes. Which corvette you research and build first is 
entirely up to you. The heavy corvette seems to be the 
corvette of choice but since many players feel it is 
"cheap" for being such an overpowered unit, your in game 
ethics may dictate that you choose another corvette. See 
the unit section for comparisons between the three 
offensive corvettes.  Once you start building one, you 
may want to research one other corvette as well, 
especially if your opponent is going heavy on fighters. 
At any rate, do not research more than two corvettes or 
you'll fall behind in technology. Go for infection beam 
next, and then cruise missiles (unless your opponent is 
STILL bent on fighters and only fighters, in which case 
you should consider that third corvette). Continuously 
pump out your offensive corvettes and cruise missiles, 
and use them wisely! Also, never let your opponent wreak 
havoc on your harvesting operations, because that will 
spell defeat for you quickly and effectively. What you do 
from that point will depend on your opponent's race and 
playing style, but you will have many possibilities open 
to you no matter what happens. 

Beast Counters: Either do it yourself, or go heavy on 
fighters, particularly attack bombers. Keep an equal or 
greater amount of cruise missiles at all times and play 
as you would any beast opponent, although concentrate on 
eliminating his workers and/or processors. If you infect 
anything with a cruise missile, scuttle it yourself if 
your opponent tries to reclaim it.
Somtaaw Counters: Mimics, mimics, and mimics. You're 
going to be building a LOT of these guys so get used to 
them for a while. Mimics/MCV's will cost effectively kill 
any of the beast corvettes, and you will also be using 
mimics to target workers, since killing your enemy's 
worker population will be integral in defeating this 
opponent. Of course, the hard part is getting the mimics 
to the corvettes and past the firepower of those 
corvettes, which will involve some heavy diversionary 
tactics through your game. Acolytes with missiles are 
great for this purpose of course, as well as catching and 
quickly killing incoming cruise missiles. (Corvette Power 
Build strategy and counters contributed by [7th]Athexx)


Somtaaw Strategy and Openings

This section remains painfully open – given the slow start 
of the Somtaaw they are forced to basically react to a 
Beast opponent until they have put together the appropriate 
research and funds. The Somtaaw can either go for frigates 
ASAP or go for fighters instead.

1.	Acolytes and Mimics: The acolyte and the mimic are two 
the most effective weapons the Somtaaw have. To do this, 
first build a hanger and a weapons module. When they are 
complete, queue up a engineering module. Research 
fighters drives and then either missiles or energy 
cannons. Energy cannons if you expect fighters and to be 
fighting defensively, or missiles if you expect corvettes 
and also expect an offensive opening. When you are 
finished researching fighter drive start on either 
linking systems or advanced fighter drive, and then start 
making acolytes and do not stop, ever. Research support 
systems as soon as the engineering module is finished and 
when that is finished researching start on holographic 
projectors. Around the time you start researching the 
projectors you should start on the quantum charge in the 
weapons module. When holographic projectors are finished 
begin producing mimics and do not stop. Use the mimics 
and acolytes in all the different ways described 
elsewhere.

Beast Counters: Since the Somtaaw have such a slow start, 
you have an opening to put together a force and be able 
to hurt the Somtaaw resource collection fleet, perhaps 
terminally. If you opponent is going heavy fighters like 
this, use large numbers of interceptors and corvettes. 
And watch out for the mimics, they are your biggest 
threat.
Somtaaw Counters: You really don't have anything to worry 
about from a Somtaaw opponent for quite a while. Go for 
this yourself or use frigates.

2.	Frigates: Queue up a weapons (or a adv. engineering 
module if you want hive frigs instead) module and a 
hanger. When they are finished, queue up and engineering 
module, and start researching advanced ion cannons (or 
microship construction if you built a adv. engineering 
module) and fighter drive, respectively. Queue up and 
engineering module and wait. You have the option of 
building acolytes soon after this point, which is 
probably a wise decision if your opponent is fighter 
happy. Research support systems as soon as the 
engineering module is complete and start building a frig 
as soon as the research is done. Proceed in the normal 
way after this. (Note: If you are planning on using a lot 
of fighters you may want to build an engineering module 
for the support systems before a weapons/adv. engineering 
module, as frigates use up a lot of support.)

Beast Counters: Ignore the frigates until you can infect 
them. If the frigates are hive, then try to stay clear 
and engage it's drones only if you have to, or if you are 
going after workers try to get there fast and kill one by 
kamikaze.
Somtaaw Counters: MCV's and acolyte missiles destroy 
frigates easily.


Team Play: Strategy
(Contributed by [7th]Athexx)

Since a large amount of the games on WON, especially armada 
games, compose of 2on2s, every player needs to know the 
basics of team play. Playing with an ally can be very 
different from playing solo since there are a number of 
different points to keep in mind, based on what race you 
and your ally choose, who you are going against, and the 
positions that everyone starts in.

1.	Beast and Beast: If both you and your ally are beast, you 
can take advantage of the numerous openings available to 
the beast at the start of the game and each pick one. For 
instance, have one of you interceptor rush and the other 
go power corvettes. This works out really well since the 
power corvette player can give away some of his extra 
resources to the interceptor player, and where the 
interceptor player provides mobility, speed, and 
protection from cruise missiles/mimics, the corvette 
player can provide heavy firepower and quicker access to 
the cruise missile. That's not to say one person with 
cruise missiles is enough… both of you ought to get the 
missiles ASAP, since with both of you producing, you can 
bombard the enemies at an insane rate.

Counters: Use LOTS of strike craft to take down the 
overflow of cruise missiles and pick one enemy to raid 
workers from. Concentrate all your effort on that enemy 
until he is really weak, then instead of finishing him 
off, start weakening the other opponent. Your goal 
against two beasts is for both you and your ally to 
survive until cap ships enter the fray, and to ensure 
that your opponents will not be able to produce cap ships 
as fast as you and your ally can. To accomplish this, use 
as many cruise missiles of your own or mimics, and of 
course, never approach your enemies' motherships, and 
NEVER build any frigates, or you are just asking to be 
infected, no matter how well defended from missiles you 
think it may be.

2.	Somtaaw and Somtaaw: Going up against any beast opponents 
means fighting an upscale battle in this game, but hey, 
what's wrong with a little challenge?  Diversify, defend, 
destroy… but only destroy if you can get away with it. 
Make sure both of you get acolytes and mimics, but split 
it so that one concentrates on one of them first… i.e. 
Quantum and Engineering starts for one of you, although 
building up on acolytes as well, and flat out acolytes 
for the other with Missiles and then Energy Weapons ASAP, 
although picking up on mimics soon too. After those, it's 
the rush to destroyers and dreadnoughts, although don't 
be afraid to experiment. Try to keep your motherships 
close together for maximum defense,  although not so 
close that a successful Siege Cannon will do damage to 
both of you. Since both of you are Somtaaw, you will 
REALLY need to work to evade and prevent any Somtaaw 
opponents from getting Siege Cannon before you can 
repulse it away with Dreadnoughts.

Counters: Corvettes and kamikaze fighters will do 
wonders, especially if one of you is beast and you need 
to get rid of all the fighters to get you or your ally's 
Cruise Missiles through. If one of you is Somtaaw then 
make your goal getting Siege Cannon out ASAP without 
losing economic ground while your ally and your acolytes 
do whatever they can meanwhile. Defend your resources 
well, because you can be almost sure they will target 
your workers.

3.	Somtaaw and Beast: This is the fun one, since you can use 
the strengths of the beast to help cover up the primary 
weaknesses of Somtaaw and the Somtaaw can really shine. 
First off, the beast player should always help out his 
ally in resources, especially in the early game, although 
not to the point that he will be lacking in resources 
himself. It is always a good idea to move close together, 
even with threat of Siege Cannon, because if the beast 
gets Field Frigates then staying close together means 
less Field Frigates to cover the area. Which is vital 
when playing against a Somtaaw opponent or two, the beast 
player must provide Siege Cannon protection for his ally. 
While the Somtaaw player can use his fighters, that is 
acolytes and mimics, the beast should concentrate on 
heavier ships such as Corvettes, and both should go for 
super caps after a while. If the Somtaaw player uses 
mimics effectively in battles then the Beast player is 
freed to use cruise missiles solely for infection, like 
they are meant for. The theme in this game is sharing to 
eliminate weaknesses and enhance each other's strengths. 
Important: If you are going to use a siege cannon, be 
sure your Beast ally sends his field frigates away first 
so they don't detonate your blasts!

Counters: Kill the Somtaaw player first. Don't bother 
feeling sorry that the Somtaaw player is always being 
picked on, but the fact is that the Beast player won't be 
as vulnerable until much later in the game, and you 
should always take every advantage you can get. When 
going after workers, go after the beast workers, but when 
making an offensive, target the Somtaaw. You have to try 
to divide the enemy so that they can't cooperate and 
share defenses – divide them and conquer. If you can 
successfully divide them, just use basic 1on1 strategies 
against each.


General: Strategy

1.	Guarding Your Workers/Processors: The most effective way 
I have found is to guard the processor with a recon (to 
see attacks coming, and once upgraded, to see cloaked and 
disguised units) and a wing of 10 interceptors/acolytes. 
The defense fighters will be able to destroy any 
mimics/MCV's or cruise missiles that come in, and they 
will be able to put a dent in any other attack force. 
Just be sure to replace any of your strike craft 
destroyed. The end result of this is that your workers 
will only be destroyed by a really determined assault, 
something difficult to do with a long-range attack. Be 
prepared to make your workers run away; it's better than 
having them destroyed.
 
Beast Counters: The earliest strike force that could 
reasonably destroy a defense group of 
interceptors/acolytes is a group of interceptors and 
attack bombers. You should be able to kamikaze the 
defense fighters fairly easily, but this will generally 
result in you losing all of your interceptors. The 
processor will be able to give your fighters much more 
trouble. The processor is pretty well armed and armored, 
so if that situation arrives you are probably best off 
ignoring the processor and taking as many workers as you 
can. Cruise missiles will also work well, but a good 
beast player will have the interceptors focus entirely on 
killing the missiles before they get in range and ignore 
the defense. If you want to use them, try to keep them 
behind the fighters until the defense has been destroyed. 
A single cruise missile is all it takes to convert a 
processor.
Somtaaw Counters: The best long-range strike force the 
Somtaaw can use against this is a mix of acolytes and 
mimics/MCV's. Use the acolytes to destroy the defense, 
and try to keep the mimics from being noticed. If the 
defense is corvettes, effective micromanagement of 
acolyte missiles works really well. 5 acolytes to a heavy 
corvette are a good example of this. Also, if there is a 
corvette presence try to use the mimics on them, just be 
sure not to approach from the front, where they will be 
easily noticed and destroyed. Once the defense is 
destroyed, send in the mimics and use the acolyte 
missiles to the best effect you can.

2.	Destroying Enemy Workers/Processors: Destroying workers 
and processors consists of first destroying whatever 
defense force is present. After that, you need to make 
the decision of whether or not you have the firepower to 
take on the processor or if you should ignore it and 
destroy the workers. See the counters listed in the 
guarding processors/workers for more suggestions.


3.	Detonating/Avoiding Crystals: Detonating a crystal has a 
very similar effect to a siege cannon blast. It will 
destroy all strike craft in the area, destroy any ships 
in the center of the blast, and it will damage everything 
above a fighter outside of the blast. Crystals can be 
detonated by: kamikaze, ships with energy cannons, all 
missile types, ion cannons, ramming frigates, and siege 
cannon blasts. Do not allow your ships to get near 
crystals if there is any chance the crystals will get 
attacked. The key to that is too keep recons all over 
your opponents so they can't surprise you. If you are 
going to operate near crystals, you might want to guard 
them (the crystals) and react violently to anything red 
that gets near them. On the offensive front, you should 
keep a sharp eye for any enemy ships that get near 
crystals. You might have a chance to kill a collection 
fleet, or to burn all the pods off of a Somtaaw CS.

Beast/Somtaaw Counters: Processing crystals is the most 
cost-efficient way to get rid of them. Failing that, you 
should seriously consider whether or not it would be 
worth the cost to destroy any crystals in an area you 
plan to move into.

4.	Tactics: For any sort of movement, use neutral tactics. 
The AI in Cataclysm seems to have been "improved" so that 
your units now have a mind of their own in the different 
tactical settings, and that is a Bad Thing, provided you 
want to have total control over your units. Aggressive 
tactics will engage any nearby enemy ships – the last 
thing you want your ships to do when retreating from 
battle – and Evasive tactics will make a ship either go 
out of its way to run away from an enemy ship or even 
attempt to return to the nearest dock-capable vessel! 
Since the shortest distance between two points never 
involves docking with your Command Ship every two 
minutes, keep your ships on neutral unless you don't have 
enough attention to spare to that unit or fleet. The 
tactical settings for attacks are quite unchanged from 
Homeworld except that capital ships can't be set to 
evasive tactics, not really a big loss there. As a recap 
to the usefulness of the various tactical settings,  
evasive is useful for fast strike craft that can dodge 
slow projectiles, aggressive is useful for practically 
anything else, and neutral is only useful for movement. 
This is not concrete however, the most effective tactics 
in any given situation will change depending on how you 
approach it and what you want to get out of it. It is 
also deeply correlated to what formation you are using 
(see next section). (Contributed by [7th]Athexx)

5.	Formations: The biggest change between Homeworld's 
formations and Cataclysm's is that you can no longer 
assign units to multiple hotkey groupings, making it 
harder to control microformations or any complex 
formation involving two or more formations grouped 
together. As a result, the "e" key is more useful than 
ever and so is selecting specific types of ships from the 
list on the top right of the screen.  Uses for the 
formations remain more or less the same though. X and 
Claw formations are good general one-fighter formations 
for making passes, wall is decent for slow turrets like 
heavy corvettes or sentinels, sphere is good for both 
defense and attacking targets with short ranges like 
ramming frigates, and no formation at all is useful 
whenever commanding a variety of forces or any frigates. 
(Contributed by [7th]Athexx)




Notes:

Strike Craft – Strike craft refers to all fighters, 
although in some cases it also applies to corvettes. 
Whether or not it applies to fighters only or includes 
corvettes varies depending on whom you ask.

CS – CS is an acronym for command ship.


Contributions: 
[7th]Athexx, for unit info, editing, testing, and major 
contributions to:
Missile Corvette counters
Cruise Missiles
Beast Command Ship
Hive Frigate
Somtaaw Workers
Beast Game Theory: Beast Workers
Beast Game Theory: Emergency Power Allocation
Team Play: Strategy
Tactics
Formations
[7th]RipperT, for editing


Unpublished work Copyright 2000 David Poe
Reprint only with permission