Delenda Est

The following information has not been confirmed by Volition and is therefore not canon for the FreeSpace universe.

Previous Mission	Campaign Walkthrough	Next Mission

MISSION 15
ACT 2, MISSION 08

Fighter squadron: Not given.

Description: As the backs of the GTD Carthage and her battlegroup are against the gravity well of Saturn, the Wargods move in for the kill.

---

Background

A cunning trap was laid for Admiral Lopez and the GTD Carthage; unfortunately for the UEF, it seems that her preservation instinct overrode the concern for the lives of her crew. She flashed her tactical jump drive, but instead of getting to Jupiter, her trajectory got snagged on Saturn's gravity well. As such, her back is against the wall, and she has 20 minutes before she can jump to safety again. While she has recovered her screening elements, the Wargods, led by the Indus and Yangtze, have tracked them down and are preparing to strike.

The plan is this: The two frigates plus two cruisers will press the attack, the cruisers drawing off some of the warship screen while the frigates concentrate on pounding the destroyer. Meanwhile, the Hanuman will be running interference for the Tevs' beam cannons, and four wings of fighters will be escorting the frigates in, repelling attacks from the 7 remaining fighter wings of the Carthage strikecraft group.

The second phase of the plan -- where the Katana and Altan Orde enter the fray -- depends on Lopez's actions. If she pushes her screen out to attack, then Contingency CARTWHEEL will be implemented, and the two frigates will jump in beyond the Tev screen and blow the hell out of the Carthage. If Lopez keeps her screen close, then Contingency JACKKNIFE will be triggered, and the Katana and Altan Orde will join the other two frigates for a concentrated push through the GTVA defenders and on to the Carthage.

Either way, there will be a lot of fireworks. And casualties. Laporte believes that whatever happens, she will be one of them, as the woman she was when she entered the academy is dead. She may well be right.

Walkthrough

U/C

Notes

• This was the first mission General Battuta created for Blue Planet, as well as the very first mission he ever made for any FreeSpace mod.
• The name of this mission comes from the Latin expression "Carthago delenda est", meaning "Carthage must be destroyed". Phrases similar to this were used by Roman politicians—particularly, Cato the Elder—during the Punic Wars, which indeed ended with the complete destruction of the ancient city-state of Carthage. Today, the same phrase is often used to denote an attitude of total war, which could allude to how the United Earth Federation appears to be losing their Ubuntu philosophy and moving closer towards fanatic militarism.

Total number of forces

Forces involved
Belligerents
UEF	GTVA