Standard Starship Scuffle: Difference between revisions

[[File:StarTrekIIBattle 6679.jpg|link=Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan|frame|Yarr! Firin' a broadside of [[Frickin' Laser Beams]], captain!<ref>A scene from ''[[Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan|Star Trek II the Wrath of Khan]]'', as digitally rendered by [https://web.archive.org/web/20090709132248/http://wolf359a.anet-stl.com/jim.html Jim Varner].</ref>]]

{{quote|''Space battles are always [[This Is Reality|a lot more exciting on TV]] than they are in real life...''|'''Col. John Sheppard''', ''[[Stargate Atlantis]]''}}

This is the [[Super-Trope]] for many [[Tropes in Space|tropes]] and clichés concerning ship-to-ship combat... [[Ship-to-Ship Combat|the ''literal'' kind]]. <small>IN SPAAAAACE!!!</small>

[[Space Fighter]]s have [[Old School Dogfighting]]. [[Standard Sci-Fi Fleet|Capital ships]] get this trope instead, and you can think of it as "''[[History of Naval Warfare|''Very]]'' [[History of Naval Warfare|Old School Sea Fighting]]." Founded on the idea that [[Space Is an Ocean]], it harks back to the age of [[Wooden Ships and Iron Men]], when large warships, [[More Dakka|making up in fire-power]] [[Mighty Glacier|what they lacked in manoeuvrability]], pounded each other with cannon fire until one finally took enough damage to be forced to withdraw (or until a [[Attack Its Weak Point|lucky shot]] [[One-Hit Kill|hit a]] [[Stuff Blowing Up|powder magazine]]). The [[The Laws and Customs of War|honour and military tradition]] of those long-gone days will often be evoked as well.

It may be [[The Climax]] of a tense [[Mexican Standoff|standoff]], the conclusion of a [[Stern Chase]], or the outcome of a [[With Catlike Tread|cunning surprise attack]]. Two [[Cool Starship]]s from opposing [[Space Navy|Space Navies]] will park [[See the Whites of Their Eyes|within arm's reach of each other]], and proceed to fire [[Space Is an Ocean|broadsides]] of [[Beam Spam]] and [[Macross Missile Massacre|Macross Missiles]] at each other's [[Attack Its Weak Point|Weak Spots]]. The [[Point DefencelessDefenseless|Close In Weaksauce System]]—if it ''exists''—will valiantly try to intercept enemy attacks, and fail. [[Deflector Shields]] will [[Some Kind of Force Field|flash and crackle]] as they slowly drop [[Hit Points|percentage point by percentage point]]. [[The Engineer]] will rush to prevent [[Phlebotinum Overload]]s while avoiding the inevitable [[Stanley Steamer Spaceship|torrents of burning steam]], providing essential [[Techno Babble]] all the way. On [[The Bridge]], [[Bridge Bunnies|Bunnies]] will shout out [[Subsystem Damage|damage reports]] while [[Explosive Instrumentation]] claims the life of many a [[Red Shirt|Redshirt Ensign]]. Everyone flails about as each enemy hit brings on a [[Star TrekScreen Shake]]. [[The Captain]] will sit stoically at the centre of it all, providing important [[Hollywood Tactics|tactical guidance]], such as "[[Reverse Polarity|Reverse the Polarity]]!" or "[[Tim Taylor Technology|Give me more power]]!"

Once damage has had some time to accumulate, and the [[Crazy Enough to Work|daring plan]] has had a chance to either work impressively or fail spectacularly, one of the ships will usually find it prudent to invoke the [[Know When to Fold'Em|Thirty-Sixth Stratagem]] and attempt a [[Hyperspeed Escape]]. An [[Lawful Good|honourable opponent]] will let them go; a lowly [[Space Pirates|Space Pirate]] may get out the [[Tractor Beam|boarding hooks]] instead, and prepare a [[Boarding Party]]. If the quarry manages to slip away, there may be a [[Stern Chase]].

== Anime &and Manga ==

* ''[[Haruhi Suzumiya]]'': There is a space battle scene fitting this trope. [[Justified]] in that it's a virtual battle in a computer game programmed by Japanese high-school students, who would be expected to have learned everything they know about military combat from movies and TV shows.

** In the 2009 ''[[Star Trek (film)|Star Trek]]'' film, we see some beautiful examples, though aversions of [[Point DefencelessDefenseless]] and a general reduction in the amount of [[Techno Babble]] from previous Trek incarnations make it a less straight example than most.

* ''[httphttps://wwwweb.archive.org/web/20130908153346/http://adastragames.com/products/adastra/av.html Attack Vector: Tactical]'' is a good example of an aversion. Battles between "10,000 ton cruisers plying the pitiless depths of space" is the whole point of the game, but special care is taken to realistically simulate physics. As the name implies, the key is all in "vectors and timing". Even [[2-D Space|2D Space]] is averted!