Napoleon Bonaparte possessed the mind of a genius of war. He gained his prowess by studying the traditions and theories of the military leaders who came before him. He was inspired by them and harnessed their wisdom to become one of the most ruthless, offensive-minded generals of his time. There is no other role model as perfect for this study on deadliness in VGA Planets.

“With speed, surprise, maneuver, thorough planning, dictatorial power over military affairs, and a boldness unmatched by any soldier of his generation, Napoleon wrecked army after army that the European powers hurled against him.”

(Teters, 2004, p. 14)

This second volume on prowess evaluates each empire’s fleet on its ability to kill, as measured by combat mass, warship armaments, and the class of ships in each fleet.

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Combat Mass

A ship’s capacity for resisting damage is based on its hull mass and other bonuses. Each empire’s combat mass rating is the total of all its battleships and carriers with more than two hundred hull mass. This rating gives an indication of how deadly each empire’s fleet can be, as it takes more firepower to destroy more mass.

RACE	RELEVANT WARSHIPS	TOTAL COMBAT MASS	RATING
Federation	Nova + Missouri + Kittyhawk	1,368*	B
Lizards	T-Rex + Madonzilla	752*	C
Birds	Dark Wing	451	C
Fury (Fascists)	Victorious + Ill Wind	726	C
Privateers	Bloodfang	220	D
Cyborg	Annihilation + Biocide	1,820	A
Crystals	Diamond + Crystal Thunder	771	C
Empire	Gorbie + three medium carriers	1,750	A
Robots	Golem + Automa + three medium carriers	2,360	A
Rebels	Rush	645	C
Colonies	Virgo + Scorpius	940	B

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Warship Armaments

Each warship has its own unique set of armaments, of which many are affected by hull size, the ship’s technology level, and the resources available to the fleet. The most deadly warships have the most beam weapons, torpedo launchers, fighter launch bays, and space in the cargo hold.

RACE	RELEVANT WARSHIPS	ARMAMENT VALUE	RATING
Federation	Missouri, Nova, Arkham, Thor, Kittyhawk, Diplomacy	87*	A
Lizards	T-Rex, Madonzilla, Lizard Class Cruiser	38	C
Birds	Dark Wing, Resolute	34	D
Fury (Fascists)	Victorious, Ill Wind	53*	B
Privateers	Bloodfang, Meteor	22	D
Cyborg	Annihilation, Biocide, Firecloud	59	A
Crystals	Diamond, Crystal Thunder, Emerald	49	B
Empire	Gorbie, SS Cruiser, SS Carrier, SS Destroyer	61	A
Robots	Golem, Automa, Instrumentatility	44	C
Rebels	Rush, Iron Lady	30	D
Colonies	Virgo, Iron Lady	33	D

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Ship Class

The types of combat vessels in each fleet can shift the evaluation of deadliness, as a fleet with a larger number of heavy class warships can be deemed more deadly than a fleet with lighter warships. A ship’s class is based on its design and role: frigates, destroyers, light carriers, medium carriers, battleships, and heavy carriers.

RACE	RELEVANT WARSHIPS	CLASS POINTS	RATING
Federation	3 frigates, 5 destroyers, 1 medium carrier, 2 battleships	16	A
Lizards	1 frigate, 3 destroyers, 1 medium carrier, 1 battleship	9	C
Birds	3 frigates, 3 destroyers, 1 light carrier, 1 medium carrier, 1 battleship	12	B
Fury (Fascists)	1 frigate, 3 destroyers, 1 medium carrier, 1 battleship	9	C
Privateers	3 frigates, 2 destroyers, 1 light carrier, 1 medium carrier	8	D
Cyborg	1 frigate, 1 destroyer, 1 light carrier, 1 battleship, 1 heavy carrier	15	A
Crystals	3 frigates, 1 destroyer, 1 medium carrier, 1 battleship	9	C
Empire	1 frigate, 2 light carriers, 3 medium carriers, 1 heavy carrier	18	A
Robots	2 frigates, 2 light carriers, 3 medium carriers, 1 heavy carrier	19	A
Rebels	3 frigates, 2 destroyers, 3 light carriers, 1 heavy carrier	17	A
Colonies	4 frigates, 1 destroyer, 3 light carriers, 1 medium carrier, 1 heavy carrier	19	A

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Deadliness Grades

When it came to raw killing potential, it was not surprising that carrier races filled the top ranks. The Cyborg, as always, proved to be one of the most deadly races in the game. Among those which made the A list was the Solar Federation, whose special combat bonuses boosted their firepower. The Evil Empire scored straight A’s, but this might be deceiving as they were frequently hindered by a lack of fighter bays and a documented quirk in the fighter-launch Random Number Generator.

Due to a lack of armaments and variety, the Robotic Imperium, Rebel Confederation, and Missing Colonies of Man earned only B grades. If not for their heavy carriers, these races would be in trouble. With more beam weapons and battleships, these races could move from the slow-moving black cloud on the horizon to the explosive lightning storm above your roof.

The majority of the torpedo races landed at the rank of C. The Lizard Alliance, Hordes of Fury, and Crystalline Confederation had significant armaments, but their ships lacked the combat mass to compete toe-to-toe with the heavier battleships and carriers. The Empire of the Birds also received a deceiving grade of C. It was arguable that the Dark Wing was one of the most deadly battleships in the entire game, but since it was the only true combat vessel in the Bird fleet, their grade dropped drastically.

Lastly, there were the poor, helpless Privateer Bands. Their killing power was abysmal and deserved a lowly D. On second thought, perhaps feigning weakness was a part of their plan from the start.

FED	LIZ	BIR	FUR	PRI	CYB	CRY	EE	ROB	REB	COL
A	C	C	C	D	A	C	A	B	B	B

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In summary, the killing power of an empire is determined by the combat mass and armaments of the fleet, as well as the class of ships in the navy. Deadliness scores are a tool for players to measure the strengths of each empire’s military, and these values can be combined with other Making the Grade evaluations to determine an empire’s overall combat prowess.

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Thanks for reading. – TS

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References

Teters, K. A. (2004). Dissecting the mind of a genius of war: an examination of the strategy and tactics of napoleon bonaparte. Perspectives in History, 11.