The Sovereign's 8 Type XII phaser arrays give the ship more than a 270 degree arc of fire, and with its tight turning ability, it can stay with most enemies and keep them away from its more vulnerable aft section. It carries both standard photon as well as quantum torpedoes, and can fire the forward tubes in spreads of one, two, or four. The two aft torpedo tubes can make an enemy think twice about getting behind the Sovereign. The Sovereign is nearly the fastest ship in the game (though the Vorcha is slightly faster), allowing it to outrun as well as outmanuver most enemies, but it is also nearly 700 meters long, so it doesn't have the manuverability of a smaller attack ship.

The Sovereign Class has regenerative shielding which makes their shields very difficult to batter down quickly. Only multiple direct hits to the same shield grid will have a significant effect. The Sovereign's hull is of medium quality for Federation ships, and though it sports ablative armor, it has a rating of just 12 whereas the older Galaxy Class has a hull strength rating of 15. I think this is justifiable, however, since the Galaxy is 18 decks larger than the Sovereign and would therefore be able to take more damage for the simple fact that it has more area to absorb fire.

My final analysis - the Sovereign Class is a real no-brainer to fly...it is the star of the game, so naturally it will be more powerful than most of the other ships. It was a fantastic ship to use when getting acclimated to the controls, but it doesn't really present any challenge to the player. More experienced gamers will probably branch off and use ships that are more challenging to control in Quick Battle and Multiplayer games. The Sovereign's weakness lies in two small areas between it's dorsal and aft areas and its ventral and aft areas, where it can't lay down any return fire - it should be noted that its shields are stronger in these areas. Also, while its phasers are stronger than most beam weapons, they do not have the devestating effect that disruptor-style weapons can have.

When used correctly, the Sovereign can be a real killer in online games, but it will also be forced to carry the label of the "Newbie Ship" for quite some time.

*When playing as the Sovereign*

As I said in my final analysis, the Sovereign is a no-brainer to fly. When playing as the Sovereign, as with any Federation ship, it is a good idea to make full use of all 8 of your phaser arrays. When used properly, you can get more than 270 degrees of fire out of them.

Normally, you should begin an attack with your most devestating assault - the 4 forward phaser banks coupled with a spread of 4 torpedoes. Because of the speed of the Sovereign, you can make attack runs. I have seen player after player in online games treat the Sovereign like it was an immobile battlestation. That is an unfortunate mistake, because in spite of the Sovereign's lean profile, it is still a large target. When it is at top speed, however, it is very difficult to get a good torpedo or disruptor lock on this ship. After attacking a target with your forward weaponry, strafe by it, firing your port or starboard phaser arrays. If you don't have a lock with both arrays, roll the ship so you do. Before coming about for another pass, utilize your rear torpedoes. By repeatedly making attack runs like this, the Sovereign Class can keep an enemy under almost constant fire.

For best results with engines and weapons, bump up your power settings on both to 125% and do the same for the shields. You can lower the power usage on the sensors, but be careful not to go too low, as they become less and less effective. If an enemy happens to get on your tail, you can either try to outrun and outmanuver him or lower your speed dramatically and make a sharp turn so you can face him and let loose with your forward weapons.

*When playing against the Sovereign*

When fighting a Sovereign Class ship, you will want to break through the shields as soon as possible. The port, starboard, and aft shield grids on the Sovereign are its weakest, but they are also the areas of the ship with the leanest profile, making them very difficult to hit consistently. If you don't want to be that methodical about getting to the hull, aim for the dorsal or ventral shields. It will take longer to wear them down, but the target area is much larger.

Subsystem targets on any ship are just a matter of preference; however, disabling the Sovereign's torpedoes should be a high priority. Though its Type XII phasers are strong, they can't damage you like a spread of quantum torpedoes can. Of course, the warp core is always a prime target, but I prefer to aim for the bridge. The Sovereign is so fast that if you aim for a subsystem on the drive section of the ship, your torpedoes or disruptor weapons may miss entirely. Aiming for the bridge ensures you will almost always nail the Sovereign with your weapons, considering you have a positive lock.

As I stated in the analysis, the Sovereign's vulnerable areas are in it's aft section. Picture a side view of the Sovereign, its saucer section facing left - those defenseless aft areas would be at 2 o'clock and 4 - 5 o'clock. While the shields are stronger on the dorsal and ventral areas of the ship, the Sovereign can't get to you with phasers as long as you stay in either of those blind spots.

All original material, including ship descriptions and analyses on "The House of Martok" copyright Jesse Manning 2002.
All ships, pictures, and Bridge Commander information copyright and courtesy of Paramount Pictures, Activision, and Totally Games.