SF Dragon
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| The SF Dragon |
The SF Dragon is one of the most rarely seen of Shivan fighters. The Dragon is armed with five primary cannons, as well as a low-capacity secondary bank. Despite the small number of missiles it can carry it is very fast and maneuverable, as well as small, making it a very powerful adversary of any GTVA fighter. However the Shivans make limited use of the Dragon, deploying them in small numbers in most cases. But even one wing can cause serious trouble for any GTVA force.
The first Shivan fighter to have ever been captured by the Terrans and the Vasudans was a Dragon class designated Arjuna 1. Through the capture of this Shivan fighter, the joint Terran-Vasudan forces learned much about Shivan technology, especially fighter systems. Arjuna 1 was later used in a high-risk reconnaissance mission, shortly before the Destruction of Vasuda Prime.
Contents
Description:
FS1 Tech Room Description
The Shivan Dragon is easily the most impressive fightercraft we have yet seen. Its maneuverability is unmatched, and it has quite a few other advantages, including a good top speed, powerful afterburners, and strong shields. It is the only Shivan fighter we have been able to study up close, and we have learned a great deal about Shivan engineering from it.
It seems that the Shivan shield systems are extremely strong, but their hulls are far weaker than our own. They also rely on primary weapons far more then secondaries, as evidenced by the Dragon's small capacity.
The GTA considers the Dragon as a Class A threat.
FS2 Tech Room Description
The Shivan fighter class SF Dragon is a fast, extremely agile craft. Its twin lasers pack a deadly punch. The Dragon's weakness seems to be a thin hull. The trouble is that their speed and maneuverability make them extremely difficult to hit.
Developer Notes
None
Name origin
The Dragon's name derives from the mythical reptilian creature depicted in tales throughout the world.
Performance:
Statistics
| Type | Space Superiority (?) |
| Manufacturer | Unknown |
| Maneuverability | N/A |
| Max Velocity | 75.0 - 90.0 mps |
| Max Afterburner Velocity | 150.0 mps |
| Armor | N/A |
| Hitpoints | 100 |
| Shields | 700 |
| Length | 12.6 m |
Armaments
| Freespace 1 | Freespace 2 | ||
| Bank | Guns | Standard Loadout | Standard Loadout |
| 1st | 2 | Shivan Heavy Laser | Shivan Heavy Laser |
| 2nd | 3 | Shivan Heavy Laser | Shivan Heavy Laser |
| Freespace 1 | Freespace 2 | ||
| Bank | Capacity | Standard Loadout | Standard Loadout |
| 1st | 20 | Interceptor | Harpoon |
Veteran Comments
It is to be noted that the version of the Dragon you fly in FS1's Playing Judas is much, much weaker then the genuine article.
Hell in space. A wing of them show up in the last mission of the main FS2 campaign. If you're flying an Ares, you're screwed.
A nasty piece of work, to be sure, that'll rip you to ribbons if you're not careful. Best policy? Harpoon 'em at range and try and keep your distance(!) as much as possible. Once in close contact, do not succumb to target fixation; the Dragon can keep you distracted from other dangers. The only real way to take one down at close range is to make exactly the right counter-turn at exactly the right time, then open fire. Try and get all your wingmates on one at a time; isolate and obliterate.
Extremely maneuverable. Target profile is extremely small and speed is rather high as well. Gunpoints for the second primary bank are oddly placed, but still manages to hit the target with little adjustment. The only real flaws are that Shivan primaries suck and that the sole secondary bank is miniscule.
There is no other fighter that I dread encountering more than the Dragon. It's fast, agile, and packs a rather nasty punch for a fighter that moves as quickly as it does. Unfortunately, the one you get to pilot in FS1 is not anything like the ones you have to fight, which is a pity, considering how much effort you put into capturing it.
The Dragon is, to be completely honest, that hard-to-reach itch. In a Herc II on Very Easy difficulty, even a single Dragon can be insanely difficult to hit. The Dragon would be pretty much like what the tech description of the Loki says; very little firepower, but with immense speed and maneuverability to dissuade pursuers. You could get all your wingmen to try and destroy it, but that would be impossible unless they're flying ships with very good maneuverability and speed like the Horus or Serapis.
And this itch is best scratched by a friendly capship, such as a Deimos in the final mission and you are flying an Ares. Even if you are in a more maneuverable fighter like the Perseus, it can still be somewhat a waste of time to do so (even if you can kill it) so it may not be a bad idea to stay near the Lemnos
Given that it is one of the few ships you fight that carries Heavy Lasers, I would hardly describe these as an "itch". Unless it's one of those really, really painful itches that feel like something sharp and hot is pinching your skin. . .
The SF Dragon is the fighter that would have ended the war the minute it started had the Shivans deployed it from the start. It has strong shields, yet it has relatively weak armor. The Dragon makes up for this by being crazy hard to hit and infuriating to disable in Enter the Dragon. I've always dealt with Dragons by hanging back and shooting them with Interceptors or Phoenix Vs.
This fighter is hell in space. My advice, don't bother dealing with them, your wingmen can do it better. Even in the best fighter you can fly, the dragon is still faster and more maneuverable. It's a shame Terran Intelligence couldn't let us use its full extent in Playing Judas. As was said before, don't succumb to target fixation, especially in A Failure to Communicate. They're kinda like little gnats flying around your head biting you all the time.
"I've noticed in the campaign that the AI in the Dragon will actually shift energy between systems depending on what they're doing. For example, on Mystery of the Trinity, if you hang around to shoot some down (on very-easy), the fighter you start shooting at and/or chasing will put extra power on shields and engines. The other fighters will put energy on guns and engines. If, in the middle of a chase, you quickly double back toward the main group, you can catch a couple of them with hardly any shields at all."
