02-03-YC121

I must be relearning my skills, at least in gauging the likelihood of victory.  Securing tactical locations requires the ability to multitask, and thankfully I do not seem to have lost the skill of keeping a part of my focus on the sensor and scanner readouts.  No doubt the enemy thought he had me, but I was well aware of his location and intentions, and I think I somewhat surprised him when I ended up warping to him from an unexpected angle.

Unfortunately I do not think my Executioner would have quite been able to break his armour tank.  His shields went down quickly enough, but I have never before engaged a Dramiel, though I am aware of their capabilites.  I had to make a split-second decision on whether to continue the engagement or not.  In my favour was the fact I had disabled his warp-drive, I was landing hits on him, and he, due to my ability to dictate speed and distance, could barely scratch me.  Against me, however, was the fact I was alone, with no way to be sure if he had allies close by.  Also, my Executioner, swift though she may be, cannot withstand a prolonged engagement.  Were the Dramiel fitted with an effective armour tank, I would not win in a battle of attrition.

I chose to withdraw.  I hope that my superior officers will not think me guilty of cowardice, but there is little sense in risking a ship for no reason.  Perhaps I could have been successful, perhaps not.  The point is to learn from the experience, and next time I will be able to make the decision much quicker and with much more confidence.


Later - I have just learned that but 30 minutes after my engagement, the Dramiel was destroyed by another Crusade capsuleer.  I like to think that his failure to destroy a lowly Executioner weakened his confidence enough to lead him to mistakes, though that is most unlikely.  Congratulations to that Crusader.  God Willing, soon enough it will be my name against the kill.