GTVA Colossus

File:Colossus320x240.jpg
The GTVA Colossus

The largest space-faring warship ever constructed by the Terrans or Vasudans, the GTVA Colossus was the result of twenty years of joint effort from dozens of contractors from across the Galactic Terran-Vasudan Alliance. Logging in with a length of six kilometers, this behemoth was equipped with over eighty weapon turrets, in addition to over 240 combat spacecraft.

With the offensive power that exceeded most GTVA battlegroups, the Colossus was designed to combat the Shivans upon their return to Allied territory. The prospective target was one or more Lucifer-class super-destroyers, and it was deemed that the Colossus would not only have the firepower not only to destroy such a foe, but also to survive multiple hits from a Lucifer's primary weapon system.

History

The first combat deployment of the Colossus was against the Neo-Terran Front. NTF forces proved to be no match for the Colossus and her battlegroup, and the rebels made every effort to avoid direct combat with the warship. It can be truthfully said that it was the Colossus that was the ultimate factor in the NTF's collapse. With his fleet shattered, and the remnants being actively pursued and destroyed by the Colossus, Admiral Aken Bosch gave the order to flee GTVA space to the relative safety of the nebula beyond Gamma Draconis.

With the NTF defeated, the Colossus was finally to fulfill the role her designers had envisioned for her: the defeat of a second Shivan incursion. However, as it turned out, the challenge was not to be SD Lucifer-class superdestroyers, but rather a SJ Sathanas-class juggernaut. Twenty years of constant struggle finally culminated with the Colossus's destruction of the Sathanas, all at the cost of moderate damage to the Colossus.

All would have been well was it not for the Shivans possessing multiple juggernauts. In the closing stages of the Battle of Capella, the Colossus was deployed to interdict Shivan traffic at the Gamma Draconis jump node in Capella to divert enemy forces and attention away from the Bastion, which was en route to collapse the jump corridor to Epsilon Pegasi. The ploy succeeded, as the Shivans first deployed a SD Ravana, then a SJ Sathanas to engage the Colossus. In her weakened state, it was obvious that the Colossus would not survive an engagement with another Sathanas-class juggernaut, and Allied Command ordered the Colossus to withdraw.

However, with the success of the Bastion's critical mission in doubt, the Colossus disobeyed the direct order from Allied Command, and refused to disengage. Subsequently, the Colossus was destroyed with the loss of all hands. The thirty-thousand officers and crew of the Colossus willingly sacrificed themselves to ensure the continued survival of the billions of individuals making up the Terran and Vasudan species, and ultimately, the Galactic Terran-Vasudan Alliance.

Known victims of the Colossus

• NTCv Hawkwood (Destroyed at Enif Station)
• NTD Repulse (Admiral Koth's flagship. Kamikaze attacked the Colossus)
• NTD Andronicus (Reported destroyed in Command Briefing)
• NTC Camisard (Reported destroyed in Command Briefing)
• NTC Vanguard (Reported destroyed in Endgame)
• NTCv Congreve (Implied destroyed in Endgame)
• NTCv Danton (Endgame)
• SJ Sathanas (First, High Noon mission)
• SD Beast (Destroyed shortly before the second Shivan juggernaut destroyed the Colossus)

Quotes

"This is the GTVA Colossus. Fighters, stand clear of hostile warships. All batteries, fire at will!"

"This is the GTVA Colossus. Admiral Koth, you are ordered to power down your engines immediately and surrender. The Polaris jump node is blockaded, there is no escape."

"You are sacrificing thousands of lives for nothing!"

"If only Koth had surrendered rather than playing Martyr, his crew would still be alive"

"A Shivan juggernaut has jumped within range. What's the status of the Bastion?"

"We'll hold them back here. Just get the Bastion through!"

Colossus cutscene

Narrator: The following is classified level Rho. Unauthorized access is punishable under the GTVA security act, Deneb convention, section 21.3.5. We vanquished the Shivans in the Great War but the hard questions remained. How would we confront the threat of future invasion? The Shivans might return at any time, any place, without warning. How would we fight the next threat to the very existence of our species? In 2345, on the tenth anniversary of the Shivan attack on Ross 128, the Vasudan emperor Khonsu II addressed the newly-formed GTVA General Assembly. The emperor inaugurated an ambitious and unprecedented joint endeavor: The GTVA Colossus.

Khonsu II: Together we built a civilization on the ruins of the Great War, and now we stand on the threshold of a new era of prosperity and harmony. With Project Colossus, the Vasudan people celebrate our shared covenant of peaceful co-existence and mutual defense of our Terran allies.

Narrator: The Colossus is the most powerful space faring warship ever constructed. Spanning six kilometers from bow to stern, the Colossus has taken over twenty years to complete. Twelve Lucifer-class destroyers can fit within its massive hull. Its state-of-the-art weaponry includes forty-five laser turrets, fifteen flak guns, twelve missile batteries, and twelve beam cannons. The Colossus wields more firepower than five Orion-class destroyers combined. Sixty fighter and bomber wings are housed in its vast hangar and its crew numbers over thirty thousand. Among its major contractors are industry giants Triton Dynamics, Subach-Innes, and the Akheton Corporation. The alliance now wages war on multiple fronts: in Deneb, Alpha Centuri, Epsilon Pegasi, and the mysterious nebula beyond Gamma Draconis. Once deployed the Colossus will end these conflicts swiftly and decisively. If ever the Shivans return to threaten our worlds we will be ready to face the challenge, securing peace for today and for generations to come.

---

FreeSpace 1 Ships Terran ships Fighters Bombers Transports and freighters Cruisers Capital ships Installations Misc Ships Sentry Guns Cargo Containers Vasudan ships Fighters Bombers Transports and freighters Cruisers Capital ships Misc Ships Sentry Guns Cargo Containers Shivan ships Fighters Bombers Transports and freighters Cruisers Capital ships Sentry Guns Cargo Containers Notable ships of FreeSpace 1

FreeSpace 2 Ships Terran ships Fighters Bombers Transports and freighters Cruisers and corvettes Capital ships Installations Misc ships Sentry Guns Cargo Containers Vasudan ships Fighters Bombers Transports and freighters Cruisers and corvettes Capital ships Misc ships Sentry Guns Cargo Containers Shivan ships Fighters Bombers Transports and freighters Cruisers and corvettes Capital ships Misc ships Sentry Guns Cargo Containers Notable ships of FreeSpace 2

Description:

FS2 Tech Room Description

The GTVA Colossus resulted from an endeavor unprecedented in Terran or Vasudan history. This 6-kilometer-long behemoth is the result of 20 years of joint effort from dozens of contractors of both races. The Colossus is the most powerful space-faring warship ever made, bristling with over 80 weapon turrets. It also houses 60 fighter and bomber wings and requires a crew of over 30,000. The firepower of the Colossus is greater than that of most GTVA battle groups.

Developer Notes

None

Name origin

In Latin, colossus meant "large statue". Nowadays in English, a colossus (lower case, as this is a common name) may refer to anything of giant sizes. Colossal is a related word.

One of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World was the Colossus of Rhodes, a giant bronze statue that was constructed over the entrance of the harbour to the city of Rhodes.

Performance:

Statistics

Type	Not explicitly specified
Manufacturer	Colossus manufacturers
Maneuverability	N/A
Yaw, Pitch, Roll	25.0 s
Max Velocity	N/A ms-1
Max Afterburner Velocity	N/A ms-1
Armor	1 000 000
Hitpoints	N/A
Shields	6166
Length	{{{10}}} m

Fighter Complement

240 fightercraft (organized as 60 wings or 20 squads)

Armaments

• Turrets

FreeSpace 2
Turret Type	Amount
Terran Turret	8
Terran Huge Turret	10
Standard Flak	12
MX-52	8
Piranha	2
Anti-Fighter Beam	10
Terran Slashing Beam	7
Big Green Beam	6

Veteran Comments

Please read the Veteran Comments policy before editing this section.

The GTVA Colossus was an excellent warship, equipped perfectly for the job it was designed for. While engaging the NTF hordes, we always knew the battle was over when the Colossus entered the fray. The Colossus' demise was one of the bravest sacrifices ever made by a ship in the GTVA. It remained in front of a Sathanas juggernaut, even though it had no chance of surviving, so that the Bastion might reach the Epsilon Pegasi node.

The Colossus is really out of its league against the Sathanas, but it was never designed for killing juggernauts. The Colossus' proper role is hunting and killing destroyers, a task at which it excels. It would take a very large number of smaller ships to threaten the Colossus; witness its single-handed destruction of the NTF.

The GTVA Colossus is not that great at killing ships of equal size to it as the above veterans have said. The placement of its main beam turrets are all over the ship, meaning that maximum firepower cannot be directed against heavier ships. However, this does also have its advantages. It means that no capital ship can be in a safe spot from it. It is also loaded with massive amounts of anti-fighter and bomber weaponry, making it a nightmare to attack. These anti-fighter weapons are also located around the main beams of the warship, making it more difficult to disable.

The GTVA Colossus...just saying that makes you get shivers down your spine. When you are fighting out on the "field" and you see the 6-kilometre behemoth, you can't help but to stop and stare at it. The Colossus in my terms means blond and majestic.

The Colossus is a superb ship in my opinion. Its weapon placement ensures no capship or fighter can attack it and stay safe. While not designed to confront ships like the Sathanas, if properly positioned it can take them on and emerge victorious. Its real strength lies in its anti-fighter weaponry and is a killer machine when confronting smaller warships.

It seems odd that it is the largest endeavour in Terran-Vasudan history with so many contractors, and with construction beginning well before the NTF Rebellion, and apparently the NTF and/or the average GTVA pilots didn't recognize or know about it. I don't buy it.

According to FRED-made simulations, it takes approximately 25 Nephilims to kill this thing, multiply that by two or three if you involve fighters escorting both the bombers and the Colossus. The Colossus better hope that it can make use of its 200+ plus fighters, because if not, this thing can get owned by bomber attack; most destroyers carry at least 40 fighters and bombers. Only an idiot would attack the Colossus with another capital ship, however; in general, it takes at least 6 destroyers to defeat one Colly.

The Colossus is to destroyers what a corvette is to a cruiser, bigger and armed well enough to make mince meat out of them, though well positioned destroyers can inflict notable damage to it they will die in the end. For example, if you do nothing to the NTF cruisers in Feint! Parry! Riposte!, they will maneuver into the Colossus' upper-rear blindspot and will beam the Colossus to death over the course of an hour while she is unable to return fire, as all of her beams are mounted on the front or sides.

I think that the weak spots of the Colossus are it's rear and top although its rear is defended by four TerSlashes and its top is defended by two. In a custom-made mission, I made the Colossus travel 10 clicks, while being attacked on all sides by destroyers of different variations. I placed a Hecate on the left side, and it was the first to be destroyed. The last warship that got destroyed was the Demon, which I placed in front of and somewhat above it. The only two surviving warships (which took down the Colossus) were the Hades and Hatshepsut, both of which I had placed at the rear-left and rear-right of the juggernaut respectively.

The Colly model is infamous for its low moment-of-inertia value, which causes it to swing around like a baseball bat during tight turns. Humans at the far end of the Colossus would experience over 20 G's during one of these swings. It's possible that the crew is kept close to the center-of-mass of the ship to ease this problem. Considering that the Colossus is stated to have a crew of 30,000 while an American supercarrier has less than 1/20th the volume of the juggernaut and has a crew of 5,000, it's possible that crew quarters are relatively small and are only found near the center of mass. Alternatively the GTVA apparently posses artificial gravity technology and could use this to cancel out the inertia.

This thing needs more firepower to justify its size. A lot more. The "more firepower than 5 Orions" boast from the cutscene would mean 15 BGreens and 5 TerSlashes. Replace all the BGreens with BFGreens and the TerSlashes with BGreens and maybe it will be adequately armed. More fighters too--at least 1,000. This thing is bigger than 10 Orions, for God's sake.

Unfortunately, the GTVA Colossus is somewhat weak against the SJ Sathanas. If the Colossus attacks from the Sathanas' flanks, seeing how all four of the Shivan ship's main beam cannons are positioned at the front, the Colossus will have an advantage. In a head-to-head engagement, with neither ship being weakened beforehand the Sathanas will win easily.

While doing some FRED sims with the modifications suggested two comments above (BGreens -> BFGreens and TerSlashes -> BGreens) I've found this thing to be a tank. I spread a dozen destroyers in a circular arrangement and cranked up the timescale. 35 seconds later, the battlefield was littered with corpses of Shivan, Vasudan, and Terran destroyers. I also did a test with a juggernaut and found that if you place it just behind the juggernaut it'll take it down without any problems. Then again, the single rear beam cannon protection issue of the Sathanas has been documented already...

Strangely enough, the Colossus is never mentioned as either a destroyer, superdestroyer or a juggernaut in the game, instead being ambiguously called a warship. This sparked a debate, as every other canon ship was given a ship type excluding the Colossus. Further details on this debate may be found here.