This is the first of a series of posts I will write to help newcomers to BFG understand the mod's very different gameplay. It focuses on the Imperial Navy, the only race playable as of now, and will talk about their use of the main weapons and discuss each ship.

This and all subsequent posts on this blog will be focused on the Battlefleet Gothic mod I helped make for Sins of a Solar Empire, which can be found here.

The Imperial Navy is the Imperium of Man's first line of defense against the many threats which lie outside the empire. If not for the ships of the Navy, the Imperium would shatter as Chaos renegades, Eldar and Ork pirates and many others descend on the unprotected worlds of men and break the vital links of trade and communication that hold the empire together. Although their ships are not the fastest, and they do not posess the longest ranged weapons, their ability to engage in a point blank slugging match is excellent, and they have a very versatile array of weapons.

First the weapons:

Weapons batteries (WB)/lances: these are the main guns of your ships, and differ only in relatively small ways (as long as you remember that 3 points of WB damage = 1 of Lances). Lances are more accurate and can damage escorts more easily, and ignore armor. They just punch right through. Weapons Batteries on the other hand are best against Battleships and defenses where their devastating payload is more likely to hit home.

Attack Craft (AC): Imperial fighters and bombers are very basic. They are in many ways the standard by which those of all other races are judged. The bomber is a highly destructive weapon, but as attrition takes a toll and fighters take longer to scramble, their destructive potential falls. Fighters are very good at killing enemy bombers, so if your enemy outmatches you in AC, it is best to focus on building fighters to help your ships' defensive turrets defend your fleet from bombers. For more info, I will be writing a post discussing the more complicated game mechanics, and all the info there will apply to the Imperium.

Torpedoes: The great strength of the Imperial Navy. All cruisers but two carry a devastating 6 torpedo tubes, while the cheapest escort, the cobra class carries two on an incredibly cheap and agile frame, and the Retribution battleship carries an astounding 9 (actually fewer, but they are bigger and hit as hard as 9 from a cruiser). They ignore shields and when massed are astoundingly dangerous. Turrets can slow them down quite well, so avoid firing them at battleships, and stick to hitting cruisers and escorts where their damage potential is its greatest.

Nova cannon: This devastating weapon is not present in the mod at this moment. They are an excellent support weapon unique to the Imperial Navy, and do area of effect damage at very long range. So far, the Dominator class cruiser and Mars class mount them, and they will be very interesting support ships when they get the nova cannon.


The ships:


Battleships: Battleships combine defensive strength and long ranged firepower, and as such make excellent support ships, and are quite survivable by BFG standards.

Emperor class battleship: The premier support ship of the Imperial Navy, the Emperor carries a massive 8 squadrons of AC and can fire a very respectable salvo of WB fire off its nose, however its armor is slightly weaker than most Imperial capital ships (cruisers and battleships in this mod) and it is relatively slow and its broadsides are weakly armed for its size. Keep it at range where it is safe from most fire and can maintain its fire into the enemy and keep launching bombers.

Retribution class Battleship: Although nominally a support ship, this ship is an excellent linebreaker as well, and maintains strong broadsides to go with its amazingly potent forward firepower. It is the same speed as the Imperial cruisers, and can be used quite effectively as a stronger, more durable cruiser.


Battlecruisers: Battlecruisers are cruisers modified to serve in a support role with longer ranged firepower to keep them safe, as they are more valuable targets than cruisers but have the same defensive ability. They are somewhat glass cannons, but can be very useful if used properly.

Mars class battlecruiser: Mounting a Nova Cannon and AC bays, the Mars will be an excellent, if very pricey and fragile support ship when the NC is implemented.

Overlord class battlecruiser: Mounting weapons with the range of a battleship, this battlecruiser can add its fire to any point in the enemy fleet, and as such is useful for ensuring the destruction of severely damaged enemies, but otherwise its damage output is too limited to be a first-class ship.


Cruisers: Cruisers are the main ships of war in BFG, and the Imperial cruisers epitomize the fleet's tough brawling style. Get them in close and try to fire all their weapons and you should be able to defeat your enemies.

Lunar/Gothic class cruiser: Nearly identical in the mod, these ships form the backbone of the Imperial fleet and are the basis of all comparisons. Both mount the traditional prow torpedoes of the imperial fleet and carry similar broadside weapons. The gothic's heavy lance decks are excellent against armor and escorts, while the lunar's mixed armament ensures it is able to do well against any foe, but it doesn't excel against any.

Tyrant class cruiser: This ship sacrifices a small amount of firepower for added range on its all WB broadsides, making it a good inexpensive support ship, able to hang back from the battle line or ensure all its weapons are in range.

Dominator class cruiser: This ship, like the Tyrant is a mid level support ship. It mounts full strength broadsides of WBs and a nova cannon, allowing it to hang back and attack clustered enemies with the support elements of the fleet and surge forward in the later stages of the battle to attack the enemy with its broadsides.

Dictator class cruiser: This ship carries only a half strength WB broadside, but more than makes up for it by carrying 4 squadrons of AC in an inobtrusive cruiser package that allows it to provide fighter support from the middle of the line, where it is much more likely to intercept enemy bombers, without being too expensive to place in the line. Unfortunately, it is rather expensive by cruiser standards, but it is very good at its role.

Dauntless class light cruiser: Is not in the mod yet, I'm sorry. This excellent scouting cruiser will be added soon, and until then I'm heartbroken, I absolutely love the things. They mount an astonishingly powerful frontal lance in a cheap and maneuverable platform, but unfortunately are rather fragile with only 200 points of shields. As such, they make excellent companions for escorts.

Escorts: Escorts finally get to take their rightful place as fleet scouts, and can serve admirably as flankers (or counterflankers) in a battle using their speed and maneuverability. Cheap and surprisingly powerfully armed (for their price), their fragility is their main shortcoming.

Sword class escort: The sword is the backbone of imperial escort squadrons, and for good reason. It mounts quite strong armament for a very affordable price.

Firestorm class escort: This ship mounts a lance in addition to a reduced version of the Sword's WBs, and makes an excellent escort hunter in addition to having more overall firepower than the Sword, but it generally only justifies the higher price tag as an escort hunter, as in other roles its fragility and cost outweigh the enhanced firepower.

Cobra class destroyer: The fastest and most fragile escort of them all, the cobra is the quintessential scout in addition to providing a valuable hit and run capability in a battle, as its torpedoes can hit the enemy's hull directly, so a squadron of cobras can whittle down an enemy over time without worrying about shields. They are also surprisingly dangerous in numbers.