Abwehran Commander
Inactive Member
Ok, we've all seen how powered armor design and importance as caused the nearly total downfall of strike craft as seen in many science fiction shows and in real life. What do I mean by strike craft? I mean aerospace fighters and the such, small craft meant for fast attack operations.
I'm sure many are thinking, "With the speed Corvettes, Destroyers, and Gunships have, who needs small craft with smaller payloads?" But this question just points fault into powered armor being used for space combat just like it points fault in strike craft.
Another thing is the usefulness of high speed bombers like the Uriko (that has rarely been seen anyway). With the capability of delivering torpedoes to an enemy craft at a much shorter range the a capital ship can as well as an ability to increase the accuracy of such dangerous weapons going up against anti-missile defenses.
But in the case of the Star Army of Yamatai, Star Army of Nepleslia, and the SMX, strike craft no longer seem worthy of notice except for a close air support and high speed bomber role.
Going by this line of thought, one would think this is the end of the Age of Strike Craft. Thinking this however would be sorely misplaced.
There are new species being developed for SARP everyday, though most can't seem to make it to roleplaying status and are left to rot. Some new species are mainly created to join one of the more powerful nations, while the rare few strive to at least have their creation strike even a relatively small impression upon the SARP universe. To this end, less technological races will probably still strive to create strike craft.
Of course, this maybe brutally hard due to most technologically-inclined species heading the same route as Yamatai and the other major powers. But considering the major powers technology to the developing races, powered armor for space combat is pretty much pointless and is not truely cost-effective for those without the necessary technology.
This is when strike craft truely shine. Though less effective again the military might of major powers, and what minor civilization would want to bring the Hammer of God down upon them anyway, strike craft are the most cost effective solution for a variety of reasons.
First, the evolution from Aircraft to Aerospacecraft is relatively simple. The basic foundation of the design is already there and all that needs to be applied is the right technology and a few minor modifications for it to be effective.
Second, a strike craft doesn't need to be purely a one-man, missile-delivery system. Sure, high-speed interceptors are chicken feed to power armor, but they are gold against high-speed bombers. High-speed bombers are cakewalk for both armor and interceptors, but against larger ships they truely shine. Even small gunships, much like the Modified Huey's and AC-130U's of Vietnam, are great inclusions into the Strike Craft description.
A final reason would absolutely have to lead back to the technology issues of powered armor space combat. Minaturization of the technology necessary for a minor power to create even weaker powered armor than the major powers requires a vast amount of resources and time to research and implement, even with help from the major powers. During this time, resources could be spent creating vast fleets of strike craft that take relatively little time and effort to research and create. Thus leading to an effective fighting force to defend against pirates and other minor civilizations, since no minor power would dream of taking on a major power anyway.
There you have it, strike craft can never truely die from SARP. Though they are hardly effective for use by major powers, the up and coming minor powers of the SARP universe could efficiently build up a sizable policing and defense force necessary for any interstellar civilization to have. Though this doesn't remove the fact that capital ships are also important to the equation, a squadron of strike craft can definitely be helpful in a pinch.
I'm sure many are thinking, "With the speed Corvettes, Destroyers, and Gunships have, who needs small craft with smaller payloads?" But this question just points fault into powered armor being used for space combat just like it points fault in strike craft.
Another thing is the usefulness of high speed bombers like the Uriko (that has rarely been seen anyway). With the capability of delivering torpedoes to an enemy craft at a much shorter range the a capital ship can as well as an ability to increase the accuracy of such dangerous weapons going up against anti-missile defenses.
But in the case of the Star Army of Yamatai, Star Army of Nepleslia, and the SMX, strike craft no longer seem worthy of notice except for a close air support and high speed bomber role.
Going by this line of thought, one would think this is the end of the Age of Strike Craft. Thinking this however would be sorely misplaced.
There are new species being developed for SARP everyday, though most can't seem to make it to roleplaying status and are left to rot. Some new species are mainly created to join one of the more powerful nations, while the rare few strive to at least have their creation strike even a relatively small impression upon the SARP universe. To this end, less technological races will probably still strive to create strike craft.
Of course, this maybe brutally hard due to most technologically-inclined species heading the same route as Yamatai and the other major powers. But considering the major powers technology to the developing races, powered armor for space combat is pretty much pointless and is not truely cost-effective for those without the necessary technology.
This is when strike craft truely shine. Though less effective again the military might of major powers, and what minor civilization would want to bring the Hammer of God down upon them anyway, strike craft are the most cost effective solution for a variety of reasons.
First, the evolution from Aircraft to Aerospacecraft is relatively simple. The basic foundation of the design is already there and all that needs to be applied is the right technology and a few minor modifications for it to be effective.
Second, a strike craft doesn't need to be purely a one-man, missile-delivery system. Sure, high-speed interceptors are chicken feed to power armor, but they are gold against high-speed bombers. High-speed bombers are cakewalk for both armor and interceptors, but against larger ships they truely shine. Even small gunships, much like the Modified Huey's and AC-130U's of Vietnam, are great inclusions into the Strike Craft description.
A final reason would absolutely have to lead back to the technology issues of powered armor space combat. Minaturization of the technology necessary for a minor power to create even weaker powered armor than the major powers requires a vast amount of resources and time to research and implement, even with help from the major powers. During this time, resources could be spent creating vast fleets of strike craft that take relatively little time and effort to research and create. Thus leading to an effective fighting force to defend against pirates and other minor civilizations, since no minor power would dream of taking on a major power anyway.
There you have it, strike craft can never truely die from SARP. Though they are hardly effective for use by major powers, the up and coming minor powers of the SARP universe could efficiently build up a sizable policing and defense force necessary for any interstellar civilization to have. Though this doesn't remove the fact that capital ships are also important to the equation, a squadron of strike craft can definitely be helpful in a pinch.
