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The original was posted on /r/starcraft by /u/Simply__Jake on 2024-05-29 20:58:52+00:00.
Hello everyone! A while back, I saw the GiantGrantGames video about the Zerg vs The Empire from Star Wars and it gave me the idea for this post. The idea for my lore theory is simple. Could the Terran Dominion beat the Covenant from Halo?
The only rule I am using for this post is that I will refrain from using any numbers presented in either game. I will only use information that can be found on various Wiki pages, forums, or Reddit threads that appear legitimate. I have linked to many of these sources throughout the post.
I will be presenting this post from the point of view of the Dominion and if they are capable of fighting the Covenant, instead of comparing their capabilities against each other. Therefore, I will make many comparisons between the Dominion and the UNSC to help gauge the power of the Terrans. Lastly, this will be presented in three different sections to determine who has what advantages across different fields of battle. I hope that discussions will happen in the comments to help create an even better and more accurate lore theory.
Ground Forces
The most basic soldier of the Terran Dominion is the Marine. The armor used by Marines is the CMC Powered Combat Suit. This armor provides an enclosed shell which allows Marines to fight in any environment. The suit provides NBC (Nuclear, Chemical, Biological) protection as well. In addition, Marines stand at roughly 7 feet tall, with some suits being 2.13 meters (6.9 feet) in height and other suits “adds a foot to the wearer’s height.” The number given for weight is “1,090 kilograms” meaning these suits weigh about 2,400 pounds.
Looking at these stats, that means that a Marine has armor equivalent to or greater than a Halo Spartan. Master Chief stands at 7 feet tall and weighs 1,000 pounds. This means that a Marine is about the same height as Master Chief and weighs over twice as much! The biggest difference between the suits (which is the hardest to determine) is their respective durability. Spartan Mjolnir armor is equipped with energy shield technology, something that Marines don’t have. In addition, it’s hard to compare the durability of the suit’s metals. At best, the armor is most likely as durable as unshielded Mjolnir armor or perhaps more so.
Marines are equipped with C-14 Gauss Rifles and these rifles are insane. I’m using the data presented in this Reddit post for my analysis. (The calculations aren’t perfect, but it seems mostly correct. In fact, corrections offered in the replies state that the rifles may be more powerful.) These rifles fire rounds that should be able to apply over 140KJ of kinetic energy into their target when striking. In comparison, the kinetic energy of 7.62x51mm NATO rounds (the ammunition used in Halo assault rifles) is roughly 3.5KJ. This means that a single round from a Gauss Rifle applies 40+ times more energy than a round from a Halo assault rifle.
Exact numbers are difficult to find due to inconsistencies, but it could take anywhere from a few rounds to an entire magazine to kill a Covenant elite with a Halo assault rifle. This means that a single shot from a Terran Marine should be enough to kill an elite! These Gauss Rifles could most likely destroy Covenant Ghosts/Choppers in single bursts and perhaps Wraiths with several bursts. Also, the Rifle can fire at 30 rounds per second, but it is limited to burst fire. This means that a single Marine could wipe out entire dropships full of covenant forces in seconds. Now realize that the Dominion has millions of Marines and once you consider other Terran ground units I believe there is not a chance that the Covenant can win on the ground.
Conclusion: ~Decisive victory by the Terran Dominion~. I believe they would be winning most if not all ground engagements.
Air Forces
While there’s much information and speculation on the power of Marines, there’s far less info on the air forces of the Dominion. The only example we have is from the HoTS trailer. In this trailer, we see Vikings cause substantial damage to a Zerg Leviathan. At this point, we’re having to get more subjective with our assumptions. As Leviathans are very powerful and can take on multiple capital ships, I would assume that their skin is very resilient. Thus, this means that a Viking can cause significant damage to durable targets, but how effective a Viking is against Covenant air/spacecraft we can only speculate.
From what we see in Halo media, it doesn’t appear that the UNSC particularly struggles in air combat. While Covenant vessels are stronger, the UNSC can still win air engagements. As the Dominion is far more powerful than the UNSC on the ground, Vikings and other vessels are likely at least equal to UNSC craft but are probably stronger.
While not aircraft, you must consider the anti-air capabilities of Terran ground forces when determining how aerial engagements will go. Cyclones, goliaths, and Thors can all fire upwards. While there is little info about cyclone and goliath armaments, there is one significant number that sticks out for Thors.
Thors are all equipped with FOUR Punisher anti-air cannons that fire 250mm depleted uranium shells. In comparison, real-world anti-aircraft shells are only 20mm. A Thor can fire four massive artillery rounds at flying targets with a moderate fire rate. This means that a Thor may be able to one-shot covenant aircraft or destroy them in a single volley utilizing all four guns.
Finally, we must consider Marines again. If a Marine can take down Ghosts and Choppers with ease (and potentially Wraiths as well with extended fire) then a Marine should be able to easily shoot down Banshees if they can hit the target. Combined fire from Marines could create walls of lead that bring down scores of Banshees as well as Covenant Dropships and Phantoms.
Conclusion: Without significant data, it is hard to claim a definite answer. However, from the speculation above I believe that the ~Terran Dominion is favored~ in aerial battles, but I am unsure if their victories will be as decisive as seen in ground engagements.
Space Forces
Thankfully, there is a considerable amount of info on Battlecruisers. The most common class of Battlecruiser is the Behemoth-class cruiser. These cruisers are 960 meters long and have crews of 6000-8000. This makes them similar to the USNC Halcyon-class cruisers which are almost 1.2 kilometers long and have a crew size of a couple thousand. A standard Covenant Cruiser (a CCS-class battlecruiser) is almost 1.8 kilometers long with a crew of thousands.
Battlecruisers are clad in Neosteel armor. While we don’t know exactly how durable this material is, I will give them the benefit of the doubt and assume this is stronger than the Titanium-A that UNSC ships are made of (this is because we see how much more advanced the Terrans are with ground-based technology). Thus, Battlecruisers should be able to take a greater beating from Covenant vessels than UNSC ships could. Yet, UNSC ships could often be destroyed in single volleys. Therefore, while Battlecruisers are more durable, this means they can only take one or two additional volleys.
Determining in-system speeds for Battlecruisers and Halo vessels is difficult so I will place their in-system speeds as equal. In FTL speeds, the Covenant can go 1,368 light years per day. For Terrans, the UED traveled 60,000 light years in less than a year. This means that Battlecruisers can travel at 200-300 light years per day, depending on how many months we believe “less than a year” to be.
The firepower of Battlecruisers is less than that of UNSC ships. A standard UNSC frigate can fire MAC rounds with a destructive output of ~64 kilotons. In comparison, a Battlecruiser’s Yamato Cannon is stated to have an explosive force equal to a low-yield nuclear explosion which is equal to 1 – 50 kilotons. I will place the Yamato’s power at 32 kilotons. This is a mid-range estimate, and it allows for easy conversion from Yamato Cannon blasts into MAC rounds. Therefore, it takes 2 Battlecruisers to match the power of 1 UNSC frigate.
Unfortunately for the Terrans, it takes three shots from a UNSC frigate to bring down the shields of a single CSS-class cruiser. This means that Terrans would need to outnumber Covenant warships by six-to-one to reliably win the fight. We don’t know how long a Yamato Cannon takes to recharge so I’ll place them at a similar recharge time as MACs at one to several minutes.
Battlecruiser...
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