Posted here are contributions from readers of the USFA:HQ. Each has excellent strategic information to help you cadets manage your way through the dangerous galaxy of SFA.
Worfy
The Miranda class ship has a major weakness. Once its shields are down, target the Photon Torpedoes. If you manage to blow that off, you’ll likely also take out its warp and/or phasers. It will be crippled with no impulse or anything for at least 30 seconds in most cases. Rumor has it that if you target a small red dot on the Ber'taa with manual phasers, it will take the ship out shortly.
William E. Confroy, Jr
If you're fighting a ship with cloaking ability, hold off on your torpedoes (especially in a smaller ship like the Miranda or Klingon Warbird) and try to maneuver close with a good photon lock. When you hear the ship start to cloak, hit it with a burst. Shields drop before full cloak, allowing major damage—even disabling the cloak entirely.
Captain Lyle Draper, USS Nautilus
Target Engineering on any enemy ship. If successful, the ship will be dead in space—no weapons, scanners, impulse, or repair capability.
The Klingon Supercruiser is especially tough. I’ve only destroyed it by attacking from below, above, or beside and disabling engineering. Once I targeted their warp drive, which seemed tied to their weapons—disruptors weakened, though photons remained deadly.
Most of the time when a cloaked Bird of Prey decloaks, it’s either below and astern or above and astern, and always moves in fast. Not always, but often. (These are fun to fly, btw.)