Since this is all going to change with second edition, I figure I might as well post this now while it still applies.
The Vorlons have serious firepower in the form of their weapons, at the cost of having only a single arc of fire. Their ships are expensive as well, with the Vorlon Transport at Raid Priority. As a result, the fleet requires more forethought in ship selection, deployment, and maneuvering.
The lowest priority selection for the Vorlons is their fighters; while these are quite nasty as fighters go, they lack the durability of a proper Vorlon warship. What this means for Vorlon commanders is that the workhorse of your fleet is the Vorlon Transport, a Raid-priority selection. Vorlon fleets are typically outnumbered as a result.
Vorlon ships can take a severe beating, attributing this durability to several factors. The first of which is their Adaptive Armor, which effectively doubles the amount of damage they can take- even Triple Damage weapons only do 1.5x damage to a Vorlon warship! The second reason Vorlons can take such a pounding is their Self-Repair trait, which can negate an entire turn's worth of damage if your opponent rolled poorly. Surprisingly, the damage table that the Vorlons use also contributes to their durability, as only Precise weapons can ever get a critical hit on a Vorlon ship. The last reason for the durability of the Vorlon fleet is that they fight at full capacity until they’re destroyed; they have no crew or ship systems to weaken their fighting capability.
Due to their lack of firing arcs, the Vorlon fleet will rely on the more maneuverable Vorlon Transport and Vorlon Destroyer to come around and shoot ships trying to blindside your fleet. A well-timed Come About! special action with a Vorlon Transport or Vorlon Destroyer can give ships in your weak firing arcs a great deal of trouble, since you can use that extra 90 degree turn to flip a 180. A Vorlon commander should remember that his smaller ships help compensate for the lack of firing arcs and slow speed of his larger ships.
However, that is not to say that the Light Cruiser and Heavy Cruiser are worthless. Quite the contrary; the heavy punch and relatively long range on their Lightning Cannons means that you can soften up enemy ships and disable them with Critical hits before your smaller ships close range. This can mean picking off the enemy’s assault ships or tearing a chunk out of the big guns.
Another method of compensating for the lack of firing arcs on the Vorlon ships is to come at the enemy fleet from multiple directions so that the firing arcs of your ships get the widest possible area of coverage. If you’re fortunate enough to make your opponent deploy first, then deploy your heavy hitters furthest away from your opponent’s fleet and put the smaller ships like Transports and Destroyers closer to the enemy at an angle. If you aren’t so lucky, split your fleet into two roughly equal groups for redundancy and to force your opponent to either split his fleet or go after one or the other. The more you can force your opponent into moves you can predict, the better.
Prioritization of targets is a must for Vorlon fleets. There are certain ships you must take out first in order to minimize the risk to your own fleet. Any ship with five or more Attack Dice of Precise weapons has to be crushed ruthlessly to avoid the critical hits they can inflict. Of secondary concern are AP and Super AP weapons, since they will hit hard due to the Hull 5 that all Vorlon ships have.
Additional notes, comments, and criticisms from other Vorlon players are quite welcome.
The Vorlons have serious firepower in the form of their weapons, at the cost of having only a single arc of fire. Their ships are expensive as well, with the Vorlon Transport at Raid Priority. As a result, the fleet requires more forethought in ship selection, deployment, and maneuvering.
The lowest priority selection for the Vorlons is their fighters; while these are quite nasty as fighters go, they lack the durability of a proper Vorlon warship. What this means for Vorlon commanders is that the workhorse of your fleet is the Vorlon Transport, a Raid-priority selection. Vorlon fleets are typically outnumbered as a result.
Vorlon ships can take a severe beating, attributing this durability to several factors. The first of which is their Adaptive Armor, which effectively doubles the amount of damage they can take- even Triple Damage weapons only do 1.5x damage to a Vorlon warship! The second reason Vorlons can take such a pounding is their Self-Repair trait, which can negate an entire turn's worth of damage if your opponent rolled poorly. Surprisingly, the damage table that the Vorlons use also contributes to their durability, as only Precise weapons can ever get a critical hit on a Vorlon ship. The last reason for the durability of the Vorlon fleet is that they fight at full capacity until they’re destroyed; they have no crew or ship systems to weaken their fighting capability.
Due to their lack of firing arcs, the Vorlon fleet will rely on the more maneuverable Vorlon Transport and Vorlon Destroyer to come around and shoot ships trying to blindside your fleet. A well-timed Come About! special action with a Vorlon Transport or Vorlon Destroyer can give ships in your weak firing arcs a great deal of trouble, since you can use that extra 90 degree turn to flip a 180. A Vorlon commander should remember that his smaller ships help compensate for the lack of firing arcs and slow speed of his larger ships.
However, that is not to say that the Light Cruiser and Heavy Cruiser are worthless. Quite the contrary; the heavy punch and relatively long range on their Lightning Cannons means that you can soften up enemy ships and disable them with Critical hits before your smaller ships close range. This can mean picking off the enemy’s assault ships or tearing a chunk out of the big guns.
Another method of compensating for the lack of firing arcs on the Vorlon ships is to come at the enemy fleet from multiple directions so that the firing arcs of your ships get the widest possible area of coverage. If you’re fortunate enough to make your opponent deploy first, then deploy your heavy hitters furthest away from your opponent’s fleet and put the smaller ships like Transports and Destroyers closer to the enemy at an angle. If you aren’t so lucky, split your fleet into two roughly equal groups for redundancy and to force your opponent to either split his fleet or go after one or the other. The more you can force your opponent into moves you can predict, the better.
Prioritization of targets is a must for Vorlon fleets. There are certain ships you must take out first in order to minimize the risk to your own fleet. Any ship with five or more Attack Dice of Precise weapons has to be crushed ruthlessly to avoid the critical hits they can inflict. Of secondary concern are AP and Super AP weapons, since they will hit hard due to the Hull 5 that all Vorlon ships have.
Additional notes, comments, and criticisms from other Vorlon players are quite welcome.
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