Description
See if you can destroy the Hammer of Light transports making a run for Antares. There'll be opposition - some you may not have counted onÂ

Storyline:
A little sparse, but enough to give you some idea why the battle exists. The Hammer of Light plans to resupply for a counterstrike after being defeated at Antares. The mission briefing could be improved: the icon view shows a top-down 2D effect, the icons sit very close to the edge of the display, and the Jump Node to Antares is never shown.

Balance:
This mission must be set early in the Great War, since the loadout only contains the Apollo, Valkyrie and Athena. A reasonable weapon choice exists, including Avengers and Flails. If you can survive the initial attack as you enter the mission, these weapons will serve you well in quick strikes and kills.

Design:
The placement of the initial wave is very poor, as the first incoming missile salvo arrives about 2 seconds after entering the mission. It is a very bad idea to start wings less than 1000 m away from Alpha, sometimes leading to very short missions. <p> When the transports leave, the intercept HUD directive will not register as failed. In addition, the next stage of the mission will not begin and the Nebudchadnezzar will not warp in. <p> However, this mission does a good job of highlighting the arrival and departure of capital ships with messages. A pity there are no sounds. Additional messages could be added to cover the possibilities of failure in the mission: the convoy's departure or the destruction of the friendly capital ship.

Gameplay:
The battle is fast-paced and challenging. The weapon loadouts ensure quick kills. Success in this mission depends on surviving the poor initial placement at the start (i.e. evading the inevitable avalanche of missiles about 5 seconds into the game). <p> I believe that the main objective to destroy the convoy can only be completed by the skilled. The battle between capital ships will not slow down your system, but the Terran ship has an edge in the battle. It's fun to watch, but isn't difficult.

Other Thoughts:
The last two months have brought a revolution in our understanding of FRED. For all of its flaws, this was a decent mission at the time of its release.