SD Ravana

The SD Ravana class of destroyers was first spotted in the nebula beyond Gamma Draconis, discovered by the GTCv Lysander and the GTCv Actium.

This class is probably the most powerful Shivan capital vessel, second only to the SJ Sathanas and maybe the SD Lucifer. In possesion of 4 forward-facing beam cannons, it can rip through the hull of a GTD Hecate or an Orion-class destroyer in under a minute, and take out smaller vessels within seconds. Its anti-capital ship weaponry make it a threat to any vessel, even one the size of the GTVA Colossus.

But the anti-capital beams come at a price. The Ravana-class is more vulnerable to fighter and bomber attacks than its brother, the Demon-class. Still, it would take a large number of squadrons to take out such a target.

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The SD Ravana

Description:

FS2 Tech Room Description

The SD Ravana is a destroyer class GTVA forces have only recently encountered. It appears to be tasked with clearing out smaller foes, a mission for which it is well suited. It eagerly wipes out wings of fighters and bombers and also overwhelms cruisers and corvettes.

Developer Notes

None

Name origin

In Hindu tradition, Ravana is the antagonist of Rama, legendary king of ancient India. According to the epic poem Ramayana, Ravana is the king of the rakshasas.

Ravana is a Hindu deity famous in the Ramayana for his legendary angers. His name means "he with the mighty roar".

Performance:

Statistics

Type	Destroyer
Manufacturer	Unknown
Maneuverability	N/A
Max Velocity	20.0 mps
Max Afterburner Velocity	N/A
Armor	N/A
Hitpoints	100 000
Shields	N/A
Length	2346 m

Armaments

• Turrets

FreeSpace 2
Turret Type	Amount
Shivan Turret Laser	17
Standard Flak	5
FighterKiller	1
Shivan Cluster	1
Anti-Fighter Beam	2
Small Red Beam	2
Large Red Beam	2

Veteran Comments

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The Ravana is scary-looking, but it's not tough. Weaker in terms of hull strength, and MUCH weaker in terms of turret strength then the Demon, the Ravana pays for its attack-oriented design with weak defenses. Indeed, fighters and bombers can range over the front three-quarters of Ravana's upper surfaces with near-impunity, and the lower-spine-mounted SAAA beam is placed too far back to defend the Ravana's main guns. It has a flak turret and another SAAA for anyone who comes up behind it, however. A capital ship behind a Ravana, on the other hand, is the Shivan destroyer's death sentence, as its engine subsystems are not strong and cover nearly the whole rear surface of the destroyer. Paired Trebuchets to the main beams the moment one of these enters the mission, then ignore it unless directed otherwise.

In The Great Hunt I was actually able to destroy the Ravana's main beam cannons before it fired on the Deimos corvettes, that's how weak they are. (Didn't make a difference, the corvette is destroyed by a SEXP). However, the Ravana, if used in its intended offensive role, can easily decimate a destroyer before being destroyed.

In a nutshell, the Ravana is useless if it is engaged from behind, and a light threat if side to side with another destroyer. This destroyer's saving grace is in its raw firepower facing foward. When deployed in a strategic position, or jumping in behind another destroyer, this beast will be your worst nightmare. Since most destroyers have their main beams facing forward and the odd ligher beam mounted aft (in the Hecate's case, two), it can dish out enough firepower to level the destroyer, and only take moderate damage. but this is only the case when the Hecate is alone. Roughly two wings of fighters, of any class, can knock out any anti-cap beam the Ravana wields and keep fighter cover on a friendly vessel. Just keep an eye on its beam cannons and you should get out all right. As stated before, the Ravana is no Demon, so it can't take as much punishment.

Ah yes, the Ravana is a fearsome sight, and it does have some fearsome weapons to suit... only that they're all pointing forwards. That single SAAA on its rear may be an annoyance to bombers, but that's all it has for rear fighter-bomber cover. Destroy it and get a corvette to jump in behind it, and the Ravana's finished.

The Ravana is one of the most powerful destroyers in FS2 (in terms of anti-warship firepower), and can beat out even an Orion in a duel. Its anti-fighter defenses are somewhat mediocre, however, and its main beams have weak armor in addition to its anti-fighter defenses being positioned poorly to defend them. You should be able to take out its main beams in a matter of seconds with your primaries without being bothered by any of its defenses.

We see three warships of this class in the main FS2 campaign and we don't know if they're widely present in the Shivan fleet. In custom campaigns, the Ravana is without any doubt the most common Shivan capital ship. The player is usually tasked to destroy its main beam cannons in deja-vu missions which are an outrage to this warship. If you consider the presence of a Ravana in your custom campaign, try to avoid typos like the one mentioned above and don't make it a sitting duck easy to defeat. Don't forget that the first Ravana encountered by GTVA forces easily destroyed a corvette and a destroyer and damaged many other ships: it really is a considerable threat and the using the fire-beam SEXP to maximize firepower isn't forbidden.

One thing worth noting about the Ravana's model is that it is glitched. The destroyer's turrets can actually shoot THROUGH it and hit you, so unless you're flanking it, there isn't much of a safe spot anywhere else.

On the above comment, not only does the HTL Ravana shoot through by its turrets, it's almost impossible to hit anything, as half its subsystems are out in space. And on the comment above that one, Warzone is one of the few campaigns that does this ship justice. It truly inspires fear the first time the Revial jumps in. Even on the defensive, she took out a decent number of ships. Destroyers, contrary to how many campaigns play out, aren't meant to be killed in groups every mission. They're massive, valuable assets, whose commanders are the most skilled their side has to offer. How is it that the Aquitaine survives the whole campaign, yet an uncountable number of other destroyers die?