Tonight I introduce another ship mod that I kinda ended up making on the spur of the moment when the thought came to me. Here is...
...the Omniscience! Followed by...
...the Rejuvenation! And finally...
...the Anaelisk!
If anyone's ever played the original Homeworld, you'll remember that the Kushan had a unique frigate-class vessel that could deploy a field of drones which were incredibly proficient against strike craft (read: fighters and corvettes) but barely able to scratch capital and super-capital ships. So, essentially, I decided to embody a similar concept in this ship as its drones are great for dealing with projectiles and strike craft (drones, in this case) but the ship is poorly armed initially (and even later on, it only has two weapon slots).
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LORE - SKIP IF YOU WANT TECHNICAL DETAILS AND DOWNLOAD
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The Lanius have existed as a space-faring species for centuries and, in order to sustain themselves on scarce metal, have pursued a myriad of both peaceful and aggressive tactics alongside impressive technological adaption and advancement. Hacking and mind control were the latest of their achievements after awakening from a long hibernation in a war-torn quadrant of galaxy, whereupon they set themselves on acquiring the plentiful, resource-rich ruins of battles long since fought between the Federation and Rebellion.
Modern Lanius vessels are well-known for their brutally effective boarding and disruptive tactics which appear to have superseded the use of drones of any kind. Before their hibernation however, the Lanius obeyed a similar philosophy to the Engi's - a good defense is a good offense. Powerful point-defense drones were the key to victory in rendering enemy offenses utterly useless. Even with the development of cloaking technology, drones reigned supreme.
At the forefront of utilizing this technology were the Lanius's drone frigates. These were the mainstay of their fleet, ensuring many successful harvests, and only came into disuse when tensions cooled between the Lanius and other races with the former going into hibernation. The exact number of years is unknown, but decades are believed to have passed since the frigates were either dismantled for salvage or decommissioned. Computer simulations led to the commencement of new systems and the installation of bombers as the new mainstay of their fleet, and the frigates were all but forgotten.
But some Lanius, in hindsight through observations of Engi tactics, began to revitalize the frigates for use once more. The Omniscience is the first retrofit of this relic and she has been equipped with enhanced variants of the most advanced defense drones currently in the market. Her computer systems are not able to recognize the most modern Lanius tech, but this is overlooked for the simple prospect of seeing whether or not she is capable of making a name for herself in battle like in her glory days. What better way to test the legends of old than setting them against seemingly impossible odds?
The Rejuvenation was the result of a rare partnership between the Lanius and Zoltan who refitted this frigate with a regenerative super shield drone offered by the Engi. This frigate was designed to win battles of attrition where opponent's attacks could not only be countered or evaded, but rendered totally ineffectual. This gift of technology was offered for the opportunity of sharing Zoltan philosophy with the Lanius. In time, the hope is that the Zoltan's message of peace and diplomacy will encourage peaceful relations in which no one will live in fear of the "metal monsters".
Drastic times call for drastic measures, and select individuals go against the doctrines of their cultures to fight for what they believe in. Thus, an even rarer alliance later occurred between the Lanius and Crystals, ancient enemies whose natural abilities and powerful technology combine in the form of the Anaelisk. Unlike other Lanius frigates, this refit is more about an aggressive, overwhelming offense with a prototype drone that can continually crystallize and breach any room it fires at. This opens the doors for many devastating tactics to be utilized, including the mythical Lanius-Crystal boarding party. With sworn enemies united for the first time, the Rebels have trifled with galactic affairs for the last time.
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GENERAL
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- Hacking, Mind Control, and Batteries cannot be bought or installed on this ship. Everything else can, except Artillery (for those playing CE).
- Being the precursor to the Lanius Bomber, the Lanius Drone Frigate has only 20 hull.
- Drone power can be upgraded to a maximum of 10 and upgrades past level 4 have been made cheaper, allowing the player to field some additional advanced drones to augment either their offense or defense.
- Weapon power can only be upgraded to a maximum of 6.
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BEGINNING STRATEGIES
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Omniscience
The Omniscience is armed similarly to the Kestrel-A (especially its CE variant) so it is easy to get straight into. Competing zealously for your first 50 scrap is an upgraded variant of the Scatter Defense Drone from CE, a drone that fires several shots at incoming projectiles. It is capable of shooting all projectiles, but you'll mainly appreciate it (as is the case with all defense drones) as missile defense. The Effector Drone+ is an underrated gem that will likely not see nearly as much action as the SDD, but that does not detract from the fact that the Effector essentially makes enemy drones irrelevant. Yes, that includes the drone swarms summoned by the Flagship's power surges. It is something that must be seen to be believed.
Important to note is that the Drone Frigate is very much a drone ship. Your weapon customization is limited as a trade-off for a powerful and easier-to-upgrade Drone system that comes with four slots for all kinds of goodies. Aside from that, all three ships can only install pre-AE systems (nevermind the Clone Bay), though this still provides you with additional offense in Teleporter and defense in Cloak. Needless to say, you must make the most out of your drones to ensure survival.
Rejuvenation
The Rejuvenation is a homage to the Stealth-C, a ship with an infamous reputation for being among the most difficult and underpowered ships to fly. It is a reputation unjustly earned I must say, as the weapons get the job done, but its the Shield Overcharger+ that makes its star shine in the abyss of space. Therein lies a world of limitless defensive potential that mirrors the Federation-C's unrivaled offensive potential.
So, the Rejuvenation utilizes a Shield Overcharger+ and Cloaking as its only line of defense initially. Unlike the Omniscience however, you have more systems at your disposal and, once you have Shields, you will be sitting very pretty defensively. Cloaking is excellent for stalling and giving your drone the time it needs for missile-proof shielding, and that isn't mentioning that a Defense Drone will increase your odds immensely down the line.
Like the Stealth-C, the Rejuvenation comes into its own late-game as a tanky little ship. The Charge Ion and Small Beam are excellent starting weapons that can hold up for the first few sectors and synergize well with your stalling tactics. Also, with only Shields and Teleporter to (optionally) worry about, you can focus more funds in kitting yourself out. Keep in mind, however, that the ship comes with a Med-Bay; do not get careless, especially with your Lanius and Zoltan likely to pass by one another.
Anaelisk
The Anaelisk grants you the opportunity of combining the powers of the two rarest beings in FTL and comes equipped with the perfect drone to highlight their beneficial relationship. Unlike the other two ships, the Anaelisk has an offensive drone that continually pelts the enemy ship with shield-piercing crystals. What's special about it is that the crystals cause breaches and lockdowns at a regular interval and, allowed to run amuck, will cause havoc amongst the enemy crew. By itself, the drone is capable of venting an enemy ship in due time while potentially causing massive delays for the enemy to repair its damaged systems. Supported well, its usefulness can last all the way to the Flagship and, since it does no damage, can easily benefit Lanius and Crystal boarders. As an added side-note, it is able to ignore Zoltan Shields entirely due to its lack of damage of any kind.
Your Burst Crystal I should suit you well enough, though its longer-than-average charge time can leave you vulnerable to opening volleys. The layout may make getting around in a hurry fairly tricky, but there are handy airlocks throughout the ship that can keep fires and boarders under control (especially in tandem with the Crystal's Lockdown ability).
Overall, some might say that a Teleporter is a given purchase for this ship in order to experience the Crystal-Lanius boarding party. In my opinion, it is not as world-shattering as many might hope. However, if you are fortunate enough to get Ruwen from his stasis pod or find access to the Crystal Homeworlds in the Rock Homeworlds sector using your Crystal crewman, then a Teleporter is heavily recommended. A two-Crystal, two-Lanius tag team is perhaps the most powerful, unsupported (meaning no weapons to take out recovery rooms and what not) boarding team in FTL. The choice is yours.
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Only ship I haven't played a full game with so far is the Rejuvenation; the other two can beat the game just fine on Normal mode.
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DOWNLOAD
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http://www.mediafire.com/download/9fvei ... esV2.2.ftl
Recommended for these ships, Kierany9's excellent Alternate hull strength HUDs (more specifically, the 20 hull strength variant):
viewtopic.php?t=21578
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SHOWCASES
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ResidentEvil063's TF: FTL Mods 3: Lanius Frigates
Part 1: Omniscience
Part 2: Rejuvenation
Part 3: Anaelisk
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* Effector Drone, Scatter Defense Drone, and Crystal Anti-Ship Drone images and sounds are all from Captain's Edition
