1914. Spark (10)
"It's Geth!! They're coming!!" the radar soldier shouted.
"Impossible! Why are they so close?!" Adjutant Sandars exclaimed.
No wonder he was surprised, because the location where Geth appeared this time was really close! Want to know where their fleet is? It's in planetary synchronous orbit! In other words, they are now within the range of Planetary Gravity Well!
And what is common sense now?
What absolutely needs to be avoided in a hyperspace jump is gravity. Whether it is the need to escape from the gravity well when starting, or the mass projection needs to be avoided during the process, and it cannot be within the range of the gravity well when it is separated. Otherwise, gravity will cause chaos in hyperspace, causing the battleship to be damaged or torn apart.
But Geth fleet's appearance this time is almost completely out of character! They appeared directly within the gravity well, and they were less than 1,000 kilometers away from Imperial fleet!
For space operations, 1,000 kilometers is basically a face-to-face fight!
Geth warship's plasma cannon's original problem of insufficient range did not exist at all. They opened fire immediately after they appeared, and countless plasma balls were fired at high speed!
"Quick! Adjust the shield output quickly! Face forward!!" Captain Chimeara Star Destroyer on the side Parker has also begun to issue tactical instructions.
At this time, the voice of the radar soldier came again, "Confirm the number of enemy ships! Geth cruiser one! Geth destroyer 4! Geth frigate 12!"
"Sir!" Sandars looked at Thrawn with expectant eyes.
The strength of Geth battlegroup is already very terrifying compared to their patrol fleet! The combat capability of the 600-meter Geth cruiser can directly compete with the thousand-meter-class battleships! The 300-meter Geth destroyer and the 100-meter Geth frigate have much more powerful combat capabilities than the the Empire battleships of the same model!
Sandars looked over, but his eyes met Thrawn's still extremely calm expression, and he couldn't help but feel shocked. Even if the enemy jumps directly in front of him with superior strength, Thrawn remains calm!
That's right! Seeing Colonel Thrawn's firm and indifferent eyes, Sandars suddenly felt full of strength in his heart!
It suddenly occurred to him that Colonel Thrawn had already made preparations in advance! He laid mines in this airspace in advance, selected the battlefield, and took off the fighter jets in advance!
So now even if there is a head-on battle, fighting in this minefield, and there are fighter formations raiding the rear, Geth fleet can't help but fight!
No wonder it's Thrawn! He thought of it all!
"Retreat." Colonel Thrawn said calmly.
"Uh... ah?" Adjutant Sandars, who had just raised his morale and wanted to fight Geth to the death, almost fainted without taking a breath, "Retreat?"
"Retreat and enter the planet's atmosphere." Colonel Thrawn said calmly.
"Why retreat? Now that we have the right time, right place and right people, we can definitely defeat Geth battlegroup!" Lieutenant Sandars said loudly.
"Oh? Are you sure?" Thrawn responded with a cold smile, "All the troops, withdraw into the atmosphere. Regroup above the planet's capital. Those air mines will buy us enough time. Execute the order!"
"Yes..." Sandars had no choice but to do as he was told, and he gave the order for the entire army to retreat.
Imperial fleet began to increase speed and flew towards the interior of the planet's atmosphere. Deflector Shield A raging fire soon broke out due to the friction of the air. Imperial-class Star Destroyer The huge hull entered the atmosphere and brought a sea of fire, as if it were a demon wrapped in flames!
Geth fleet immediately accelerated to catch up, but Colonel Thrawn directly ordered to detonate air mines in batches!
A violent explosion suddenly exploded in the synchronous orbit, and the power was so powerful that Geth warship had to stop and was blocked in place. They also opened fire immediately, firing countless plasma cannons forward and detonating many air mines.
After all the air mines were detonated, Imperial fleet had entered the atmosphere.
Geth fleet didn't stop at all and immediately chased after him!
At this time, Thrawn has led Galactic Empire Sixth Patrol Fleet to an altitude of more than 20,000 meters above the planet's capital, ready to fight!
Without any pause at all, Geth warship immediately fired a dense rain of plasma cannons at Imperial fleet!
At the same time, Thrawn also issued an order, "All troops! Fight in a defensive formation!"
All battleships immediately formed a spherical defense formation with Chimeara Imperial-class Star Destroyer as the core, and the battleships were very close to each other, with almost no gaps! Faced with Geth warship's indiscriminate bombardment, they directly chose to resist!
Only the Vindicator-class heavy cruiser is wandering around the outside of the formation. In fact, this Vindicator-class is the battleship in the best condition among the entire Sixth Patrol Fleet. Because this battleship is brand new and the only brand new battleship in the fleet!
The 600-meter-long Vindicator-class heavy cruiser has precise and fierce firepower, making it the best choice against small and medium-sized warships and fighter jets.
Geth warship quickly followed, and they began to surround Imperial fleet, firing wildly!
The exchange of fire between the two sides was very fierce. There was no dodge at all, and some were just head-on confrontations.
And at this time, the anti-aircraft firepower on the surface of the planet also opened fire! Anti-aircraft missiles and anti-aircraft laser cannons fired wildly, and aircraft such as the outdated V-19 Torrent light fighter and ARC-170 heavy fighter equipped by some planetary ground defense forces also joined the battle.
In fact, it can be seen from this that after several years of baptism by Clone Wars, even these Planetary Defense Forces, which are only equipped with second-line weapons, use weapons such as V-19 and ARC-170 that have been tested in wars, and will not be the crooked melons and crack dates designed more than ten years ago.
The powerful firepower provided on the ground also brought great help to Thrawn's fleet. The more than 70 fighter jets taking off from the ground and the dense air defense firepower put Geth fleet under great pressure!
In the air battlefield, Imperial fleet's formation is completely watertight under the deployment of Colonel Thrawn. No matter which direction Geth warship attacks, he will face the shooting of all Imperial fleet warships!
And in addition to Chimeara Imperial-class Star Destroyer and the Vindicator-class heavy cruiser, the 10 Vigil-class corvette of Sixth Patrol Fleet are also very powerful battleships.
The 255-meter-long Night Watch frigate is equipped with three heavy-duty Turbolaser cannons, which directly provides cruiser-level firepower! Under such an attack, even Geth warships would have a hard time resisting!
Under such an extremely unfavorable situation, Geth fleet was destroyed two 100-meter-class frigates and one 300-meter-class destroyer. Seeing that the situation was not good, the remaining warships immediately turned around and flew out of the atmosphere.
"It... they escaped!!" Sandars was overjoyed.
At the same time, he also heard Colonel Thrawn muttering to himself, "Hehehehe... finally feel uncomfortable? Hehehehehe..."
"Colonel Thrawn! Did we win?" Lieutenant Sandars said loudly.
"Catch up! Let the fighter units prepare to attack immediately!" Colonel Thrawn said sternly, "The real decisive battle will come next!!"
"Yes!" Captain Parker responded immediately.
"Chasing...? Our battleship can't catch up with Geth..." Sandars had just finished speaking, and he was surprised to find that his battleship was actually biting behind Geth warship. It didn't look like the side with insufficient maneuverability at all!
"This is gravity..." A calm smile appeared on Colonel Thrawn's lips. "In a gravitational environment, coupled with air resistance, Geth warships's maneuverability will be greatly affected. Therefore, under normal circumstances, they are not willing to fight with us in such an environment."
Sandars suddenly realized, "That's why you let the fleet stay in synchronous orbit, laid out air mines and set up an ambush, waiting for Geth to take the bait! Only after they come over and return to the atmosphere will Geth fleet catch up! Sir... you actually planned to go to this point? If we had entered the atmosphere from the beginning, Geth fleet would not have appeared..."
He couldn't help but use honorifics when he spoke.
"I've said it before, Geth just thinks that it is an intelligent creature. When faced with a choice, the basis for their judgment is still the robot's program." Colonel Thrawn said lightly, "If we Directly enter the atmosphere, then Geth fleet will not come to attack. At that time, we will give up the initiative to Geth and let Geth choose the time of battle."
"I understand... When we were in synchronous orbit, although there were air mines and fighter formations, Geth fleet was still in full strength. There was no chance of winning in a head-on confrontation with them... Only within the atmosphere, with the help of Planetary Defense Forces and environmental factors that prevented Geth warship from exerting its mobility advantage, could we repel them!" Sandars said.
Colonel Thrawn said, "It's not to fight back, but to make them feel uncomfortable. When making this decision, it is the mechanical program that judges that it cannot fight in a disadvantageous environment, so it will leave. When leaving the atmosphere, the biggest factor affecting the speed is directly the output of the battleship's reactor, not other comprehensive factors. In this regard, the Empire's battleship is actually stronger than Geth warships."
Only then did Sandars realize the current situation - yes, Imperial fleet was actually biting Geth warship tightly, and was still firing!
At this stage of leaving the atmosphere, Geth warship's maneuverability is also unable to be used!
The reason why Geth warships is very flexible and highly maneuverable is because they have no redundant structure, the overall design is very compact, and there is no excess weight, so the thrust-to-weight ratio is very high, and the acceleration and steering are far superior to the the Empire battleship of the same level.
But in fact, if we talk about straight-line speed, Geth warship has no advantage at all!
Because what determines the speed is the power of the reactor. Under the same technology, the larger the reactor, the more powerful it will naturally be. Take the L-A2B ionization solar reactor of Imperial-class Star Destroyer as an example. Its size is very huge. It can even be said that Imperial-class just puts a shell on the outside of this reactor!
In other words, the reactor on Geth warship cannot have a higher output than the reactor on Imperial-class Star Destroyer!
However, in many previous battles, Imperial military and even officers and soldiers at all levels were so impressed by Geth warship's ferocious firepower and flexible mobility that they forgot that, regardless of flexibility, the absolute speed of the Empire battleship is actually greater than Geth warship!
It's just that in most battles, there is no occasion where the absolute speed advantage can be exerted.
When Colonel Thrawn was explaining tactical ideas to Sandars and others, Geth warship had already left the planet's atmosphere, and immediately took advantage of its flexible steering and quickly turned around to fight Imperial fleet, who was following closely behind.
Thrawn ordered Sixth Patrol Fleet to catch up all the time. Chimeara Imperial-class Star Destroyer's huge body rushed to the front. The powerful firepower of 60 heavy Turbolaser cannons and 60 ion cannons fired crazily at Geth warship!
In the face of such firepower, people as powerful as Geth warship did not dare to deal with it head-on and could only disperse. Then they planned to repeat their old tricks, preparing to use their mobility advantages to intersperse and disrupt Imperial fleet's formation.
At the same time, other battleships from Sixth Patrol Fleet also arrived one after another, followed closely by a formation of fighter jets taking off from the ground! The two sides exchanged fierce fire again!
This time, in space without gravity and atmosphere, there are no bells and whistles, only head-on responses!
At this moment, the fighter formation of Sixth Patrol Fleet, which had taken off in advance, had set off from the satellite direction and inserted directly behind Geth fleet!
Geth warship, who was trying his best to deal with the powerful frontal firepower of Imperial-class Star Destroyer, was completely caught off guard when faced with such a front and rear attack! So much so that they haven't made any changes at all and are still attacking Imperial fleet's formation, hoping to severely damage Chimeara Star Destroyer as soon as possible!
However, as other warships were gradually put into position, under the genius command of Colonel Thrawn, Imperial fleet had once again formed a formation like an iron wall! At least Geth warships will not be able to break through in a short time!
At this time, under the cover of dozens of TIE/LN fighter jets, 6 Y-wing bomber finally stuck to the 600-meter-long Geth cruiser, the largest of the Geth fleets, and fired 12 Proton Torpedos continuously towards the cruiser's engine!
Geth cruiser fired wildly to intercept, and evaded and dodged wildly, but in the end it was hit by two Proton Torpedo! As the light blue proton cloud exploded and collapsed, the Geth cruiser was completely paralyzed in a very short time!
And this also means the complete failure of Geth fleet!
A miraculous victory! But Colonel Thrawn, who created this victory, had returned to his seat at this moment, picked up a glass of wine produced by Dawn Star Planet, took a sip very elegantly, and then closed his eyes to savor it carefully.
"Checkmate." The word Dawn Star Planet came out softly from his mouth.