posted 04-16-06 07:31 PM EDT (US)
But in this game, it allows you to afford station upgrades, ships and technologies.
Obviously, if you can get more of these than your enemy, then you will have a signifigant advantage. But how do you do that? Well, this is where the difference between the Imperials and Rebels comes into play.
The Imperials are like a boulder at the top of the hill. They won't be very fast (powerful) in the beginning, but when they get going they're very difficult to defeat. The rebels are the opposite. In relative comparison to the Empire, they are strongest near the beginning of the game.
The playstyle of the two factions is paramount.
The Rebellion's early units are designed for hit and run. This is defined as "Moving quickly to destroy an enemy mine and then retreating before too many ships can be lost." This is the way the rebellion wins. The rebellion early line-up is perfect for hit and run. Corellian Corvettes are faster, more durable and generally more accurate then their Imperial Counterparts and are capable of moving quickly. The X-Wings are also capable of moving quickly and are superior to Tie-Fighters. The smart rebel player will want to leverage his early game military advantage as early as possible. Early mine building is critical, so the rebel player should move swiftly to strike as soon as possible. Keep Corvettes in your reserve and scout the map with your X-Wings. When you find an enemy mine, bring your Corvettes in from hyperspace. This allows them to arrive extremely quickly and surprise the enemy. Mines are easily destroyed, so focus your fire on them early. After that, you should be able to handle any Imperials around. However, if they bring in more forces then you, or their station is firing on you, don't hesitate to retreat. Your mission has been accomplished. Destroying enemy mines early in the game is a critical blow. In the beginning, after buying their initial corvettes, both players have a low amount of cash left, with their flow very slow. Mines are quite expensive in the early game and a loss is a serious setback. You're at a disadvantage here. But don't worry, that will change if you survive economically long enough. Simply, to avoid just having your mines destroyed, you need to hit the rebels first. Unofrtunately, you arne't likely to be able to keep your forces alive and destroy their mines at the same time. Well, that's your only option at this point. Against a skilled rebel player, there is really no early defense against a rush. Ship for ship in the beginning, the rebels are simply stronger. The answer is quite simply to hit their mines and force them to avoid yours. Although the rebel ships are superior, you can still destroy their mines fairly easily with two Tartans. If you can get through the early stages of the game with your mines mostly intact, you stand an excellent chance of winning. How so? you ask. The devil is in the details. In terms of cost effectiveness, the Imperial vessels are more cost effective then their rebel counterparts. The free fighters each Star Destroyer variant receives (infinitely respawning) tips the scales of lategame to the Imperial side. ----- Basically, to sum it all up; 1. The Rebels best chance of winning is to aggressively establish dominance of the map early to prevent the Empire to utilize their strengthes. 2. The Empire's best chance of winning is to prevent their economy from being destroyed by the rebels early in the game, allowing them to utilize their more cost effective forces.
