With the Golem built, the Backyard secured, and the economy back on its way up, I prepare the setlement of Arkmir and the taking of Raepoko. Zileare has already had its teeth pulled, but since the last assault on Arkmir, a vast number of defenders and threat ships have accumulated in the system. I open the Tiger cage to solve this little problem. Gathering them above the Wormhole to Arkmir, I wait for their numbers to approach a comfortable hundred before sending in the first Shock Wave. After the entrance wormhole has been cleared, the Starships, Spawners and the Golem follow. I witness its curious powers in the shape of a double stream of tigers - the newly-built from Babil and its own ressurections - swarming out to do unspeakable things to our foes. Unfortunately, the health cost to the Golem is also rather high, I resolve to retreat it until I truly have need of it.
The command station falls, a MCS is built, and the system is renamed to St. Helena, for the long duration it spent in irrelevance. At the same time, a CPA hits, and I notice that the fortress I completed long ago is suspiciously absent from the KADESHi defence array. An invisible pink fortress killer, great. As if Raid Starships weren't expensive enough. Over dozen hybrids join the fray, and I curse ever having thought of so much as the notion of "defence". What a sucker's game. I pour the entire economy into Tigers, load the fleet into transports, and get everything to KADESH in the greatest hurry ever. The shields looking like no more than shrivelled grapes, we nonetheless succeed in beating back the hybrids.
Edit: I still build a new fortress, but this time I put it RIGHT BLOODY NEXT to the other defensive structures to give to cover against bombers.
