The Shadows are an interesting fleet. Though not quite as devastating as they appear on TV (otherwise nobody would want to play against them!) they do have some special tricks.
Manoeuvre
All Shadow ships are super maneouvrable - they practically disregard the usual movement rules, and their almost complete lack of allowed special actions is offset by the fact that what other races need special actions to do, Shadows just do anyway. Who needs "All Stop and Pivot" or "Come About" when you can turn as many times as you like? Who needs "All Power to Engines" when you can start with a 90 degree turn and then go double speed? Shadows have shorter range weapons than many races, plus they really don't want to be hit by big beams, so close in quickly and hit the enemy from sides and rear.
Weapons
Shadows can only fire one way - forward. Big ships have powerful beams, small ships have powerful pulse cannons. Make best use of the full forward arc because the enemy will probably have more ships and will use init sinks to make your big ships move before his. Useful trick: a speed 8, lumbering ship has to be somewhere on a line between 0" and 8" straight ahead unless it goes "All Power to Engines". Measure 4.5" straight ahead, then 5" out at a right angle, and even a Scout will guarantee to have that ship in its sights. A speed 6, lumbering ship will be in arc even if it does "All Power to Engines". In theory you could measure 5" ahead and 5" at a right angle, but measuring 4.5" ahead gives you a margin for error when positioning the ship.
Endurance
Shadow ships have shields to stop the first few hits, and self-repair plus automatic repair of criticals to reduce the effect of what does get through. But beware of beams - a heavy beam hit will pin the ship, making it useless for the next turn unless one of its friends can kill whatever pinned it.
Ships
Fighter:
Originally next to useless, the Shadow fighter is now a bit tougher as its shields work in dogfights and against antifighter. However, with a dogfight rating of +0, the shields usually just delay the inevitable, and a shield capable of stopping one antifighter hit is less effective than a weapon which outranges antifighter entirely. Don't waste FAP's on fighters unless it's a Patrol or Skirmish level game and you have a point or two which can't be spent on anything else.
Scout:
One of the most vicious Raid level ships in existence, and the Shadows' best defence against fighters because of its accurate gun. Two Scouts facing each other, 4"-6" apart, can cover each other against fighters. Moreover, because the enemy will probably concentrate his fire against your big ships, the Scouts will probably do most of the work in the battle.
Stalker:
Basically an overgrown Scout, with a tougher hull, better initial shields and a small version of the big ship's beam. Although P&P has given the Stalker the same stealth as the Scout, it's still of limited use unless the enemy has interceptors, although the longer reach of the beam may sometimes help.
Young Ship:
A diluted version of the infamous battlecrab, this mounts a beam with a respectable range, plus enough self-repair to actually make a difference. What it doesn't have is stealth. Expect the enemy to do his utmost to destroy this ship - get a few shots off while you can, but make full use of the distraction to get your smaller ships into position.
Ancient Ship:
This is the ship you've seen on TV. This is what sliced up G'Quans at Gorash 7. Due to the increase in the G'Quan's damage rating, you'll have a hard job slicing one in half in a single shot, but the Ancient Ship is still a formidable beast. For one thing, with its own damage rating of 150, it's harder to pin. Add in a shield twice the strength of its younger sibling and even more self-repair, and the Ancient Ship is one tough ship. But not invincible, so don't get too over-confident. The Ancient Ship comes with 6 free fighter flights plus a dispersal tube to send them most of the way across the table, which can be useful, especially if you're up against someone who has no fighters. And if the enemy decides that discretion is the better part of valour and tries to jump out, the Ancient Ship is the one with the jump point disruptor.
Final thoughts
If there is any cover on the table, use it. Hide behind it, use your longer range weapons to take pot shots, and be ready to charge out at double speed to get behind the enemy. The ability of beams to switch to a low power, all-round antifighter weapon, introduced in P&P, can also be used during this charge; you probably won't have anything in your forward arc, but at least you can do something. Next turn you're in position to use the beam to full effect. Let the slicing begin...
Manoeuvre
All Shadow ships are super maneouvrable - they practically disregard the usual movement rules, and their almost complete lack of allowed special actions is offset by the fact that what other races need special actions to do, Shadows just do anyway. Who needs "All Stop and Pivot" or "Come About" when you can turn as many times as you like? Who needs "All Power to Engines" when you can start with a 90 degree turn and then go double speed? Shadows have shorter range weapons than many races, plus they really don't want to be hit by big beams, so close in quickly and hit the enemy from sides and rear.
Weapons
Shadows can only fire one way - forward. Big ships have powerful beams, small ships have powerful pulse cannons. Make best use of the full forward arc because the enemy will probably have more ships and will use init sinks to make your big ships move before his. Useful trick: a speed 8, lumbering ship has to be somewhere on a line between 0" and 8" straight ahead unless it goes "All Power to Engines". Measure 4.5" straight ahead, then 5" out at a right angle, and even a Scout will guarantee to have that ship in its sights. A speed 6, lumbering ship will be in arc even if it does "All Power to Engines". In theory you could measure 5" ahead and 5" at a right angle, but measuring 4.5" ahead gives you a margin for error when positioning the ship.
Endurance
Shadow ships have shields to stop the first few hits, and self-repair plus automatic repair of criticals to reduce the effect of what does get through. But beware of beams - a heavy beam hit will pin the ship, making it useless for the next turn unless one of its friends can kill whatever pinned it.
Ships
Fighter:
Originally next to useless, the Shadow fighter is now a bit tougher as its shields work in dogfights and against antifighter. However, with a dogfight rating of +0, the shields usually just delay the inevitable, and a shield capable of stopping one antifighter hit is less effective than a weapon which outranges antifighter entirely. Don't waste FAP's on fighters unless it's a Patrol or Skirmish level game and you have a point or two which can't be spent on anything else.
Scout:
One of the most vicious Raid level ships in existence, and the Shadows' best defence against fighters because of its accurate gun. Two Scouts facing each other, 4"-6" apart, can cover each other against fighters. Moreover, because the enemy will probably concentrate his fire against your big ships, the Scouts will probably do most of the work in the battle.
Stalker:
Basically an overgrown Scout, with a tougher hull, better initial shields and a small version of the big ship's beam. Although P&P has given the Stalker the same stealth as the Scout, it's still of limited use unless the enemy has interceptors, although the longer reach of the beam may sometimes help.
Young Ship:
A diluted version of the infamous battlecrab, this mounts a beam with a respectable range, plus enough self-repair to actually make a difference. What it doesn't have is stealth. Expect the enemy to do his utmost to destroy this ship - get a few shots off while you can, but make full use of the distraction to get your smaller ships into position.
Ancient Ship:
This is the ship you've seen on TV. This is what sliced up G'Quans at Gorash 7. Due to the increase in the G'Quan's damage rating, you'll have a hard job slicing one in half in a single shot, but the Ancient Ship is still a formidable beast. For one thing, with its own damage rating of 150, it's harder to pin. Add in a shield twice the strength of its younger sibling and even more self-repair, and the Ancient Ship is one tough ship. But not invincible, so don't get too over-confident. The Ancient Ship comes with 6 free fighter flights plus a dispersal tube to send them most of the way across the table, which can be useful, especially if you're up against someone who has no fighters. And if the enemy decides that discretion is the better part of valour and tries to jump out, the Ancient Ship is the one with the jump point disruptor.
Final thoughts
If there is any cover on the table, use it. Hide behind it, use your longer range weapons to take pot shots, and be ready to charge out at double speed to get behind the enemy. The ability of beams to switch to a low power, all-round antifighter weapon, introduced in P&P, can also be used during this charge; you probably won't have anything in your forward arc, but at least you can do something. Next turn you're in position to use the beam to full effect. Let the slicing begin...
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