[Rampage]

What is the single most important invention used to destroy the Lucifer in Freespace 1?

[Ulundel]

Shields, with no doubt, shields. Without those, they wouldn't have made it so far.

[aldo_14]

fighter subspace drives..... at the end of the day, these were what saved (in a sense) Sol.

come the last mission, I was on my own, with no shields, or harbringers in me Herc.  But I was there

[Shrike]

Subspace tracking.  Duh.

[CP5670]

Subspace tracking.  Duh.

[Ryx]

Fighters? :devilidea

Subspace tracking then.

[Liberator]

With intersystem drives we would have had nothing capable of intercepting the Lucifer during it's vulnerable period while in subspace.  So all the other things would have been for naught.

[Stunaep]

It's been said before, but I don't feel like quoting right now, so
Subspace tracking. Duh!

[HeX]

Fighter drives.
Woo hoo...we can track them. Without those drives it would have been "oh look! We can see it's half-way through the tunnel now! Too bad we have no way of intercepting it before it reaches Earth! Whoops too late! Our bad."

[HotSnoJ]

I think all of them played an important role in destroying it so thats my view.

[Styxx]

Subspace tracking. One weird thing is why didn't Sol send in a destroyer from the other side... it's not possible that there wasn't a fleet guarding Earth at that time.

[karajorma]

They knew how long a destroyer would last against the lucifer. Far better to send ships that can't be shot down with the lucifers beams.

[Rampage]

Originally posted by Styxx
Subspace tracking. One weird thing is why didn't Sol send in a destroyer from the other side... it's not possible that there wasn't a fleet guarding Earth at that time.

That destroyer would have got right in front of the Lucifer's beam cannons.

[Skippy]

Originally posted by HeX
Fighter drives.
Woo hoo...we can track them. Without those drives it would have been "oh look! We can see it's half-way through the tunnel now! Too bad we have no way of intercepting it before it reaches Earth! Whoops too late! Our bad."

[LtNarol]

there were destroyers stationed at earth, in fact, all of the 1st Fleet was, but as said before, it would just get blown away by the lucy's beams.  What i dont understand is why they didnt send fighters from earth to help out, because at the end we really could have used some more fighter help.

[Shrike]

Originally posted by HeX
Fighter drives.
Woo hoo...we can track them. Without those drives it would have been "oh look! We can see it's half-way through the tunnel now! Too bad we have no way of intercepting it before it reaches Earth! Whoops too late! Our bad."

Except that intersystem drives were simply extensions of available technology.

Subspace tracking was completely new.

[HeX]

That wasn't the question now was it?

[Shrike]

You would still have been able to use a cruiser (or a dozen) to attack the Lucy, even without fighter drives.

Sure you'd have to make changes, but really, everything needed to blow up a ship in subspace save subspace tracking itself was already in the GTA arsenal.

[HeX]

Except that:

1) Entering from the Earth direction would line you up with the flux beams

2) If you didn't notice, you had to CATCH UP WITH the Lucifer in time first (you were a long ways off) and then be able to actually do damage. Freespace 1 ships weren't much in the weapons department for anti-cap, especially for taking out reactors located in various places on the hull. I don't think you would be able to launch fighters in subspace unless they carried those drives.

[Galemp]

It has been said: the only thing that was an absolute necessety to destroy the Lucifer was subspace tracking. It was stated that intersystem drives for fighters HAD been avaliable but far too inefficient and expensive. Subspace tracking was the legacy of the Ancients.