Shogun Battleship

"The day of the Shogun has arrived!"
 * Captain of the Battleship

Rivalling the Allied Aircraft Carrier and the Soviet Dreadnought in terms of firepower, the Shogun Battleship is the crown jewel of the Imperial Navy. Similar to the old Cruiser fielded by the Allies in the Great World War II, the Shogun is equipped with powerful cannons. However, instead of high-explosive shells, the Shogun fires powerful plasma discs. Naomi is often commanding these vessels.

History
"Victory is our destiny!"
 * Shogun Battleship

There is a grim irony in how destructive a vessel as majestic as the Empire of the Rising Sun's Shogun-class battleship can be. While it is the standard-bearer of the Imperial navy, its decorative and symbolic nature is merely an embellishment of its role as a ship designed purely for coastal bombardment and long-range anti-naval combat. Forces of the Soviet Union, unfortunately for them, were only made aware of these details recently when the Empire launched its unexpected assault against the northern coast of Russia, decimating most of the defenses there easily. The rest of the world is now all the wiser for their sacrifice.

Shogun battleships are the largest, most expensive, and in many ways most powerful weapons in the Emperor's entire military, and never saw mass production. However, because they tend to be the most heavily defended and supported elements in an Imperial strike group, rarely have these sturdy ships been known to require even minor repair. Their weaponry is limited to six main guns, mounted in two rows of three along the fore and aft, allowing Shoguns to compensate for their slow turning speed by having 360-degree firing coverage. As expected, however, they must turn broadsides in order to attack a target with the full force of their guns. While the guns are unmistakably shaped like those of battleships from years past, they turn out to have been modified to launch an energised projectile of some sort. The ensuing blast-impact must measure some unknown thousands of degrees Celcius at ground zero judging from the destruction they cause, and the guns themselves offer a remarkable rate of fire for such powerful weapons.

While Shogun battleships naturally are kept to the rear ranks of Imperial armadas, some of the most dramatic first moments of this war happened when the Soviets initially managed to break Imperial ranks and engage a fleet of Shoguns directly. Once threatened, the battleships turned to face a defiant and emboldened Soviet fleet of dreadnoughts and stingrays, rather than turn broadsides. The Shoguns then all supercharged their engines in unison while engaging a fore-mounted point-defence shield system of some sort, rushing forward with appalling speed, smashing straight through the Soviet remnants, shattering them to pieces. Only an escort wolfpack of Akula subs survived, their captains shaken and near-maddened by the experience. The video evidence they returned is now being studied intently in order to gain more insight into Imperial strategy.

If anything is predictable about Shogun battleships, it's that the command of such ships is reserved only for the most decorated, most honourable, and often eldest members of the Imperial navy. These are men who have given practically a lifetime of service to their Emperor, and are prepared and motivated to complete that service by fighting for the Empire to their last breath. It is said that to die in the captain's chair of a Shogun battleship is the highest honour achievable by a man born to modern Japanese society.

Usage
"They must not be underestimated."
 * Shogun Battleship

In the Soviet Campaign, during the Imperial Invasion of Russia, Commander Kenji Tenzai used Battleships to lay siege to the Leningrad Peter and Paul Fortress, but they were either sunk by Natasha or pulled into space by the Magnetic Satellite. They were also used in the defense of Mt. Fuji, particularly by Commander Naomi, who had access to the sea.

In the Imperial Campaign, Naomi was the notable user of these infamous Battleships - she often asks her enemy commanders to come into the water and play with her. Crown Prince Tatsu summoned the Shogun Battleships into battle in an attempt to defend Hawaii and later stop Giles' assault on the Black Tortoise. The first use of the Battleship granted to the Imperial Commander was in the mission to successfully defend Pearl Harbour from an Allied Invasion.

In the Allied Campaign, Shogun Battleships were used in an attempt to stop the Allied invasion of Tokyo. A group of 3 Elite Battleships were sent in as part of Prince Tatsu's Fleet, but were subsequently destroyed.

Advantages/Disadvantages
The Shogun Battleship has very few weaknesses: it is a heavily armoured vessel and has superb firepower coupled with excellent range. Also, any unit that closes to within the minimum range of the Shogun's cannons can be destroyed using the ramming ability. However, the Shogun Battleship is not perfect and it is vulnerable to air attacks. Twinblade, Centuries and Vindicators are an especially big threat. Cryocopters are also useful in helping to take them out. Asides that, 'wolf packs' of well-handled Akulas can effectively sink them too, as can Terror Drones, who are too fast to be tracked by the cannons.

Notes from the Field
"They will soon bow down to our flag!!"
 * Shogun

Battlefield reconnaissance has revealed at least these facts about the Shogun Battleship:

• Shirada cannons -- The Shogun battleships are armed with six guns a piece; three barrels on each of two mounts, one in the fore and one in the aft. While functionally similar to traditional 400 mm battleship cannons, the superheated slugs of the Shirada cannons are even more destructive yet more precise.

• Ramming speed -- Although the guns on a Shogun battleship are unable to track nearby targets, these vessels are far from defenceless up close. Their captains stand ready to supercharge their engines and crash straight through any enemy vessels that dare to close the distance.

• The highest standard -- There exist two types of Shogun battleships, one of which is rarer and reserved for the most-venerable captains and commanders. These fortified Shoguns can be identified by their ornamental flags, and are altogether more powerful than their counterparts.

• In support of the armada -- The strict code of the Imperial navy dictates a symbiotic relationship between various fleet elements, linking their survival to their cooperation. As a result, the Shogun battleship eschews any anti-aircraft weaponry, lending it a purity of purpose as well as a perceived weakness.

Behind the scenes
The Shogun-class is like the old Allied Cruiser, the only difference is it has superheated slugs instead of shells and can ram into powerful units like Assault Destroyers.

The Battleship invasion is similar to the Dreadnought invasion.