Avatar
The Chmmr Avatar is a state of the art ship with few real foes, combining the technological prowess of the Mmrnmhrm and the Chenjesu. With medium speed and a fairly good turn-rate the Avatar shouldn't be taken lightly. Its main weapon is a strong and deadly laser and its tractor beam would make even the bravest enemy captain sweat. It is orbited by three Zap-satellites for point defense.
Built specifically for the purpose of defeating Ur-Quan vessels, the Avatar is faster and has a better turn rate than both the Dreadnought and Marauder. It is, however, quite large, and appropriate care should be taken near gravity wells.
Armament
Primary
Chmmr Designers bring in the most devastating laser in the galaxy. Capable of tearing anything to pieces in a few seconds, this laser turns a face-to-face battle with the Avatar into a suicide run. The Laser weapon requires a terawatt-capacity generator, dubbed a "Terawatt Laser", in comparison with the VUX Megawatt Laser.
Secondary
The Avatar is also outfitted with a powerful Tractor Beam, capable of tractoring ships towards the Avatar's laser-jaws. Only fast-and-heavy ships can hope to evade this awesome beam. Slow ships or fast but light weighted ships (such as the Shofixti Scout and especially the Yehat Terminator) cannot evade this powerful tractoring. Lightweight ships can actually be thrown into immense "hyperspacing" speeds. It is quite funny to see a Terminator passing through the galaxy in speeds three and four times higher than those of a Slylandro Probe. The Arilou Skiff, being unaffected by gravity, is not affected by the Tractor beam.
Additional
In addition to its already formidable arsenal, three AI-Controlled laser-turrets orbit around the Avatar, providing it with point-defense against most types of attacks. Each zap-sat has 12 hit-points, and when all three are functional, the Avatar is nearly immune to weapons with 3 or less hit-points.
Tactical Overview
Don't mess with an Avatar. There are clearly few ships that can actually match it.
Strengths
So long as its zap-sats remain in place, the Avatar will have little trouble defeating most ships. Several ships do not have any weaponry that will penetrate the zap-sats.
Weaknesses
The Shofixti Scout's glory device and the Androsynth Guardian in comet form prove very nasty against the Avatar. Another tactic for the Guardian is to launch small groups of bubbles and comet away to safety. This is slower than ramming with the comet, but much safer. A highly skilled Pkunk Fury or Supox Blade pilot can achieve some measure of success, but this is quite difficult. A Yehat Terminator, if hurled into "hyperspacing speed" can rain fire on the Avatar but this is also not an easy thing to do. An Orz Nemesis can evade the tractor beam while patiently firing at the zap-sats. All of these ships are capable of defeating the Avatar, but will be destroyed if their captain makes a single mistake.
Few ships can truly fight the Avatar with impunity. The Druuge Mauler can recoil out of laser range while pummeling the Avatar with its cannon, giving the Mauler an easy victory. The Utwig Jugger can use its shields to defend against zap-sats while firing at the Avatar when out of range, quickly draining the Avatar - unless the zap-sats happen to die first. The Thraddash Torch is surely the Avatar's greatest weakness, as its plasma afterburner acts as both a means for evading the Avatar's attacks, and destroying its satellites.
Interesting Matchups
The Kohr-Ah Marauder's F.R.I.E.D rips the Zap-sats into pieces. Its shuriken mines are also a force to be reckoned with, since each takes 8 shots to destroy(while being fired) — less if stationary. All in all, the Marauder has the best chance of any race at destroying the Avatar with minimal losses. While the Kzer-Za Dreadnought's fighters are pointless versus the zap-sats, the Dreadnought has a better range and its fusion blasts can tear down the Avatar extremely quickly. An AI Dreadnought will not even launch any fighters if the Avatar has at least one Zap-sat remaining. The Chenjesu Broodhome, with its range, can prove a worthy adversary as well. The Chmmr has significantly more firepower than these ships, however, and once the tractor beam pulls them into range of the laser they will quickly be destroyed, but leaving the Avatar without zap-sats for its next fight.
Notes and references
- 1Star Control Writers FAQ - http://starcontrol.classicgaming.gamespy.com/scwc/scw_faq.shtml#2.41