Astyanax and the last Hydran Starbase

From https://www.scottbieser.com/HydranSB.htm

As expected, the Coalition mounts a massive assault against our Starbase. Standing between the capital and the Old Colonies, this was an extra installation built in the early stages of what is now being called the General War before the enemy took over our territories. We may not be able to weather the storm, but at the very least we will start to bleed the Coalition dry. The Lyrans are fighting on two fronts, and the Klingons on three (!); we have the strategic advantage of short lines of supply. I am heavily involved at the outset.

Our first battle is an easy victory - we exchange fighters for the crippling or outright destruction of five Lyran Frigates. The enemy is leading with the Lyrans because the Klingons are the ones occupying our capital and other major planets; they obviously want our damage to be deflected from the Boneheads for as long as possible. The second engagement, however, goes against us. My Traveller Cruiser the Entangler is leading a squadron with two Horsemen Cruisers when we come up against a Lyran heavy contingent: a Battle Cruiser, Heavy Cruiser and New Heavy Cruiser. This last one is a new design with full cruiser power on a more economical hull than the older Heavy Cruiser designs familiar from before the war began. Needless to say, we lose on this occasion, with both Horsemen being destroyed. We are ordered to fall back on the Starbase itself.

There are now so few of our Light Cruiser class left that the Entangler sits out the rest of what may well be the turning point in the war for us. I watch the remainder of the campaign as our logistically-minded admirals judiciously feed in massive numbers of fighters and mixed ship formations to wear down the enemy. The Lyrans are effectively shattered as an offensive force and the Klingons lose huge numbers of their own fighters and supporting vessels. Scanners show that they still have a reasonable number of cruisers left, but they retire after taking a severe beating. We are rather battered ourselves, with two Paladin Dreadnoughts and a Cavalier Carrier all crippled, along with many other ships destroyed or crippled. The list of ships needing repairs is a very long one. Still, it looks as though the Coalition has finally shot their bolt, as the Terrans say.

 




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