Taming the Tiger
By Dennis "SFCShadow" Greene

This article originally appeared in Hailing Frequencies issue 2. It has been recreated here from the original material.

When most players look at the Tiger, they scratch their heads in confusion. Many discount it as a viable combatant when they face the other races Heavy Cruisers, calling forth all it's faults and non of it's strengths. Or they see it as only one dimensional and never use it to it's full potential. 

Most cruisers of it's class have anywhere from 2-3 weapons systems and are geared for either long distance fighting or close in fighting. The Tiger, by comparison, has 4 weapon systems and can do either long and/or short range engagements. This is both it's weakness and it's strength, since by comparison it typically can't function as well as it's opponents who tend to specialize. Unless it's captain can function equally well in either theater he is typically doomed to misuse his ship, which leads to frustration and despise for what they see as a failing in the ship. A look at it's weapons shows:

4 Phaser I's

6 Phaser III's

4 Disruptors type 3

2 Expanding Sphere Generators

The first thing that most people notice, when it comes to pure weapons potential, is that the Lyran Tiger seems to be split down the middle. It has roughly half it's weapons capability geared for medium to long range and the other half for extremely short range engagements. This tends to lend the Tiger to a schizoid personality, which some captains have a hard time translating to effective use when facing an opponent. 

The Tiger though is unique in that like the animal it is named after, it is truly a frightening and dangerous cruiser in a knife fight. Unfortunately this aspect of it's nature is what most captains see and so attempt to use only that strength, neglecting it's other strength, it's reach. The Tiger like it's name sake can hunt, stalking it's prey, wounding and tiring it so that when it does (and should) go in for the kill, it's opponent offers it little resistance. The Phaser I's and Disruptor suites give it a respectable reach that can harry an opponent at distance, especially those opponents who know and fear it's ability to get in close and claw their eyes out.

The Tiger is the second most nimble Cruiser of it's class, only surpassed by it's Klingon cousin, the D series or the Romulan conversion of the D series. It is matched by it's Hydran equivalent and late model Romulan Cruisers, but surpassing all other Cruisers of it's class in maneuverability. As can be seen in the above diagram, it's firepower is extremely potent like most CA's, in the forward arc, but also has a good broadside and even a respectable defense to the rear. When combined with it's ESG's 360° "fire" arc and auto hit ability, the Tiger can engage an opponent from all quarters. A smart captain takes advantage of this, both when engaging an opponent at range (Saber Dancing), or when you get in close.

One of the common things I hear all the time about Lyran ships is that until the late era they are underpowered! Anyone familiar with the Federation is also familiar with this "complaint". The best captains know it's not true if you manage your ship well, it's only true if you want to do it ALL at one time. Very much like the Federation Captain, a Lyran player must be able to manage his power with great skill to get the most out of his ship. The Lyran Captain has almost as many problems with his energy management as a Federation Captain does. If he wishes to be a very successful Lyran Captain he needs to learn how to manage his power with skill. The Tiger has 37 power and 4 batteries for reserve. For an Early and Middle era cruiser this is actually superior to many of its cousins in total output. The problem stems from the fact that it has 4 weapon systems to manage in combat. These weapons systems are divergent enough to make the average Captain frustrated with his power allotments. Especially for those players who assume it will manage itself.

Something most captains fail to take notice of is that the ESG capacitor holds 7 units of power per generator, but can only use 5 units within one "firing". A wise captain knows to reduce the capacitor by 50-60% to bring his capacitor charge rate down to a level where it doesn't rape his energy pool. This can free up 7-8 points of power during arming cycle which can be used for other system. Although you can fire your ESG at any time, once it's available to fire and there is energy in the capacitor, letting it charge fully to the 7 points for each generator is somewhat wasteful. In fact while your waiting for the full charge it is robbing you of power for other essential systems. So once the capacitor is about 70% filled you have the needed 5 units needed per ESG. Once it's at that level, set the recharge rate to 0, it will stop charging and no longer drain power from your ship. That's what it is there for! Also I hear many players complain that they only want one ESG to be powered up and they come in pairs so they both get charged. The power bar makes this possible. After you've charged the power bar up to about 35%, set it to 0 for charge rate. Then fire (double tap) both ESG's at once. Presto, you now did the same damage and only powered up the equivalent of one ESG. Once the ESG is powered up fully, or you set the slider to 0 once it reaches the level you want it to be, it no longer pulls power from you ship, as it's free to hold that energy till you are ready to use it.

Something else Captains of disruptor bearing ships fail to understand, as their disruptors are charging they have more energy then if they have them fully charged. They find sometimes that they can't maintain the speed they want once disruptors are fully charged. This is actually an illusion because of how the energy is managed on ships. The cause for this phenomena, is because when disruptors (or most heavy weapons) charge they pull energy from the Warp drive (it is after all your largest pool of energy). Typically it will pull the full amount needed over a period of time (20-30 seconds depending on the average speed setting of 5-7). As they're are charging, after all expenses (most especially movement), whatever is left is put to weapons. The Tiger has 4 disruptors, requiring 8 units of power for standard loads or 16 power for overloads to arm. If all are to arm at the same time, the maximum speeds allowed, assuming no other energy expenses, are 23 or 15, depending on the choice made. This is typically not true, as you have to power life support shields and perhaps other weapon systems. While they are charging, you have some flexibility and can move faster. For example: I want my four disruptors to arm, but I move 27. I can do this, and arm only 1 of those disruptors with left over power, assuming no other drains on my ship from other weapons. Which means at that speed, one will load and the other three will wait. Once it is loaded though, it requires either 2 power or 4 power per armed disruptor to maintain them (basically once charged fully, they constantly recharge at that level to stay armed). Now the game will wait for me to reduce my speed to 25 and it will begin to charge the other disruptor. Once that charges, it will again "lock" the disruptor charge and I have to repeat the process so the last disruptors will now charge. Once it is fully loaded it to will "lock" the energy to that weapon, forcing me to reduce my speed farther and eventually assuming all are charged and no other drains, I'm only moving in the high teens or very low 20's. Even if I set my speed higher, it will "tap" out from maintaining those disruptor charges until I fire them and the process begins all over again. This gives the illusion to the player, who does not fire his disruptors constantly, that he gets bogged or slowed down.

Next comes management of phasers. The Tiger has 10 phasers, requiring 7 units of energy to arm them fully. All phaser armed ships have a phaser capacitor, this allows you to set how "fast" that capacitor recharges, not the amount of the charge. That capacitor can be used for any phaser that can legally fire. The same phaser can pull from a fully charged capacitor (assuming a phaser 1), 7 times before that capacitor needs to be recharged, or all the phasers can be fired at once and it needs to be recharged or any combination in between. Now consider what that means. I can drain the capacitor by firing all my phasers and wait the 20-30 seconds for it to recharge and for the phasers to reset. Or I can use what power is in the capacitor and fire the same phasers over and over (for the most part) once they reset and there is power in the capacitor. By reducing my recharge rate I can still have more power available then I need for those particular set phasers. It is very rare to be able to fire all your phasers at once, it can be done, but this can sometimes be wasteful. Most times (unless you face drones or fighters -- which on a Lyran ship isn't as problematic as other races because of the ESG defense), setting this down to 50-75%, you'll free up some energy when needed for other things. Like those disruptors, ECM, EM, or any number of options available to a savvy ships captain.

Now that some of the more obvious ships systems utilized in combat are outlined, let's examine a few others. Lyran ships typically are 2nd only to the Klingons of equivalent class for transporters. The Tiger has 4 transporters available to it, this is four opportunities to hit specific systems on your opponents ship. Also the Tiger, unlike their Klingon and Romulan allies, are a bit more robust, with better shielding and tougher internals. They are not as tough as their Gorn counterparts for shields and internals, or Hydrans for internals, but do approach the Federation as far as general toughness is concerned.  

Something many Lyran Captains fail to utilize is the ECM ability of their ships or the use of Erratic Maneuvering. Getting or denying an ECM shift is a very important and often neglected arsenal available to the Tiger Captain. This is somewhat do to the nature of the ESG, which is not affected by ECM and hit's 100% of the time when in range. Unfortunately ECM/ECCM is just as important to the Tiger Captain as it is for any other ship out there. Failure to manage your ECM/ECCM hands your opponent an advantage easily denied. So don't forget to monitor what your opponent is doing for ECM/ECCM and depending on your attack status/stance, counter or use as needed to give yourself the edge and deny it from your enemies.

For tactics, the Tiger is nearly as effective at saber dancing as their Klingon cousins. Disruptors, unlike most heavy weapons, allow you to fire every 20-30 seconds, just as quickly as phasers. Saber dancing is the art of standing at range, typically 9-22k, with the sweet range of 9-15k. Using the ability to fire it's heavy weapon repeatedly at that range with a reasonable chance to hit, (67%) delivering 2 to 3 damage per disruptor that hits. It's a time consuming and patient form of combat, often referred to as death by a thousand cuts, hence the reference to the saber. Typically the saber dance is performed until one or two shields are weakened to a point that when you move in close for a "slashing" attack, it will breach that shield and cause disproportionate damage in an exchange. Something that makes it easier for the Tiger to perform the saber dance is that the ESG has a disproportionate fear attached to it for your enemy. They loath to see a Lyran getting close and would like to stay out of range of the ESG as long as possible. Show them that doing so is just as dangerous.

Now since the Tiger is already seen to be very nasty up close, combining the Saber Dance with the Lyran Slashing attack, using phasers and ESG, an opponent can be overwhelmed and like most prey, powerless to stop it. The ESG during the saber dance can (and should) be used strictly for defense and withheld for killing or crippling your opponent during the middle or end game. Also with the abundance of phaser 3's combined with the ESG defense, drones and even fighters shouldn't be much of a problem for a smart Lyran captain. Once the saber dance is complete, a tactic sometimes referred to as the HAMMER can be used. The HAMMER is where you close on your opponent where their shield is down, and tractor them, wait till they rotate that damaged shield away from you, release the tractor overrun and use your ESG's to hit that down shield, causing massive damage as you pull away from them.  

Another option, once you have saber danced with your opponent and damaged or even dropped a shield at range, is to close with your attacker hit him with your ESG's set to range 3 (they will hit at 3.99k). Then when you get close (hopefully within the .99k myopic zone if facing a drone ship) anchor him with a tractor beam and use your ESG's (which automatically hit and cannot be stopped or deflected by ECM) and hit him regardless of your shield facing because of it's 360° firing arc. How do you ensure you can tractor someone at a specific range you ask? Easy. :) Power up your tractor and then use EM until you are near or at the range you want to "latch" on, then drop EM and presto, grabbed at specific range. Not only is this useful to help reduce the damage you might take as you close, but as can be seen it's a way you can tractor at specific ranges. Also, don't use your ESG's on the approach, wait till you overrun him and hit him from behind. Many opponents will try to favor the shield(s) you've been whittling away, trying to present only strong sheilds to you. This is similar to the HAMMER, you just don't anchor first with the tractor.

Except when facing plasma armed ships, the Lyran can take standard shuttles or even Suicide Shuttles with greater ease then other races, due to their outstanding defensive capability. As always unless you are a very skilled combatant against plasma, it's best to take a Wild Weasel or two.  Fighting a plasma armed ship can be touchy for a Lyran because they are just as good (when their plasma's are armed and ready) at close range fighting. The rub is, their Plasma's can be dealt with, where your ESG can't (unless they are taken by enemy Hit and run teams). A dance with a plasma armed ship is a series of close in slashes and longer ranged saber dances. This approach is an attempt to get them to fire at you from range. Especially if you can get them to fire plasmas from behind you. Those 6 phaser III's combined can deliver 24-18 points of damage which will reduce even the mighty R by 9-12 points of damage. After distance traveled to chase you down, unless you were unfortunate enough to be at point blank range, and being hit with that amount of damage, it's not as big a threat. Now you have 40-60 seconds to go in and pound him for his effort.

Lets look at that ESG for a moment, two fully charged ESG's, at range 3.99K, can deliver 30 points of damage and at point blank range do 40. With the exception of two overloaded photon torpedoes or a plasma torpedo, no other heavy weapon can deliver this much damage at range or the Fusion overloaded at point blank range. Also, NO heavy weapon of any race is guaranteed to hit like the 100% chance to hit of the ESG. When engaging a Hydran, a smart Lyran stays outside of 2k range as he out powers the Hydran for brute firepower. The Fusion and Hellbore's require two and three charging cycles to arm, while the ESG requires one as do all the weapon systems on a Tiger. So even if the exchange is equal, the Lyran will still do 3 times the damage in the same amount of time.

If an opponent can be baited into chasing you, there is a tactic I like to call the Lyran claw. What is involved is to bait and stay within the 3.99k range of your opponent and to zig zag in front of him as he chases you. Use your ESG's auto hit and phasers to hit him repeatedly on the front quarter of his ship, while you (because of your weaving zigging/zagging movement spread the damage delivered to you to your side and rear shields. Use your Hit and Run teams to take out his heavy weapons and watch him/her die as you claw him to death.

Lyrans like many hunting cats work well in pairs or even in groups. If managed correctly, a well coordinated Lyran team can take on up to twice their number with more ease then any other race. Some team tactics used for the Tiger (or any Lyran ship for that matter), are what is popularly known as the WHIP, the TUG and the OVERCOAT. Outlined they are:

The WHIP -- Assuming two Tigers working together, one in front and one behind, the lead Tiger tractors his partner. He moves at a sedate speed, say 5. While his partner is moving as fast as possible, say 31. They close on their chosen target and that enemy seems them linked but moving somewhat slow (in this example, speed 15) and as is nature for most players, they base their tactics and reactions on that perception. When the team gets close enough, the lead Tiger releases his tractor and suddenly his partner "pounces" on the target moving at a much greater speed then anticipated, often allowing them to attack without a response, while the lead Tiger suddenly "stops" by comparison. Also if the lead Tiger is targeted, and is using ECCM or no ECM at all, the target may be preset for that. But the second Tiger might want to up his ECM so that if there is an exchange, the advantage is still his. This can result in the Whipped Tiger getting hurt, but the surprise factor gained is well worth it.

The TUG -- This is a variation of the WHIP, but instead of using it to slingshot a teammate at an opponent, it's to allow your teammate to move at a reasonable speed, and arm for overloads or free up energy for shield reinforcement or any other of the other options he may want. Basically the one behind is pushing the one in front providing the momentum, while the other Tiger is putting 90% of his power into offensive/defensive systems.

The OVERCOAT -- Tiger A needs to set ESG to range 1 or 0. & Overload weapons, while Tiger B should follow ontop of A. While Tiger B is using its ESG to defend from fighters drones, etc.. and use its weapons to keep enemies from getting too close. Tiger A needs to make a pass, use weapons to knock out a shield. Then use ESG to hit internals. Tiger A has to rely on Tiger B for Defence. 'B' MUST BE DISCIPLINED. He must Focus on distracting the Enemies form 'A'. If there is an opportunity, help 'A' with some internals. But Keep Defending. B should never fly away, even if you are under attack. Its job to be attacked. Tiger B should not try and charge weapons with the intention of knocking out shields, but just fend of attacks. After a few passes, the Tigers should swap roles, try to use the strongest Tiger to Defend. 

In summary, I always envisioned a well played Tiger to be an almost a musical experience. A good player is one that is constantly adjusting his sliders and turning on and turning off various features on his ship to get the last erg of power out of it at any given moment for the best benefit. The Federation is like the Mad pianist, while the Lyran is the concert pianist who for the most part is graceful as a cat, and at others frantically pounding those keys. A pair or more of well played Tigers can be both a frightening and disturbing experience as you are mesmerized by the ballet performed for the benefit of destroying its prey.