Guardian

Starship Databank Entry

When the Androsynth departed Earth en masse in 2085 during the Clone Revolt, no Human knew of the means to initiate faster-than-light travel. Cunning, imaginative and resourceful, the Androsynth outwitted their human creators by keeping a low profile until their means of escape came to fruition. In retrospect, it should have been no surprise that the pride of their space fleet, the dumpy little blue pod known as the Guardian would hide something more sinister inside its modest packaging, the sight of one quickly becoming the the greatest fear among Human military personnel. Near the the end of the Ur-Quan Slave War, the Androsynth Hit-and-Run squadrons along the Coreward Front occasionally used modified Guardians capable of extended Blazer modes, giving them greater range, mobility and destructive potential.

Propulsion

The Guardian is quite slow in its normal configuration, though it can still outrun an Intruder even with its low maximum speed. The ship's acceleration is quick, while its turning rate is poor.

Blazer form is entirely different. That is to say, it's blindingly fast. Blazer movement is non-inertial, meaning the ship will instantly surge forward at full speed upon transformation and maintain this speed as it turns. Turning rate also improves significantly in this state, though it remains a bit restrictive while moving at Blazer speed. Instant acceleration yet delayed turning gives the Blazer an odd, jagged feel during maneuver.

Armament

Primary

The Guardian's main weapon is a molecular acid sphere launcher. Although chemical in nature, the spheres can track a predesignated target from a respectable distance. The spheres can also distinguish friend from foe and will not damage the Guardian that launched them. Acid spheres are slow compared to other projectiles, but their duration is quite long and a Guardian can launch them in numbers significant enough to cover a wide area around itself. This weapon's erratic homing pattern makes it difficult for enemies to maneuver around. Each sphere will inflict two damage upon contact.

Secondary

The Guardian can compact into a ball and launch itself like a battering ram at enemy craft. This "Blazer" boasts incredible speed and attack power. Each collision kills three enemy crew, though a Blazer will often crash against its target's hull multiple times in a short period before bouncing off in another direction. Once initiated, Blazer mode will slowly drain the Guardian's energy reserves until they are empty, then the ship will revert back to its normal state and come to a dead stop.

Tactical Overview

• Blazer mode is powerful enough for the Guardian to charge right in and bash most other ships to death. When the Guardian's battery gets low during a Blazer attack, it's best to use that last bit of energy to retreat to a safe distance so as to recover energy in relative safely. Blazer charges are best initiated with a full battery to get as much time to attack as possible.

• The Blazer has no wind-up time to speak of, making it quite useful even when low on energy. Low energy blazer hops can be used to hit a nearby assailant by surprise when the Guardian appears vulnerable or to perform a quick leap away from imminent danger.

• If a Blazer manages to wedge itself into an enemy ship, that ship will disintegrate almost immediately. Some craft have obvious structural weaknesses which a blazer can wedge into consistently. The back fins of an Orz Nemesis or the many gaps between Spathi Eluder prongs make for excellent wedge points, for example. Blazer wedging has been known to occur during seemingly normal collisions as well.

• A few ships are mobile enough to consistently evade the Blazer. Against these ships, acid bubbles make for a good defensive weapon. When spamming bubbles, it's easier to cover a wide area by activating the weapon in short, separated bursts as opposed to dumping the Guardian's entire battery all at once.

Minutiae

• The Guardian's victory tune is the song 'Mongoloid' by the band Devo. Its crew portrait also resembles the band. Furthermore, the captain will sometimes be named Booji, a reference to the character "Booji Boy" from Devo's mythology.

• There was a bug which consisted of the following: When an Androsynth Guardian in Blazer mode is drained of its last energy by a DOGI, the Blazer mode isn't fully turned off; the ship retains it ability to do damage by impact. (bug #283).

3DO Androsynth Guardian Basic stats Crew: 20 Value: 15 pts Battery: 24 Batt. Regeneration: 0.111 units/frame Armament Primary: Molecular Acid Bubbles Secondary: Blazer form Refire delay: 0 frames Refire delay: 0 frames Energy use: 3 units Energy use: 2 units Propulsion Max speed: 24 (60) world units/frame Turn rate: 0.2 (0.5) facings/frame Acceleration: 3 units/frame Mass: 6