Star Wars Debate: Home One vs. Executor

Thanks again to CP for a fabulous round! I will use this speech to rebut Pro's Core Case (his R1 remarks.) REBUTTALC1: SizeHome One's size also has its disadvantages. It can carry fewer support ships, support smaller arms task forces, etc. For example, Executor can serve as the platform for a massive planetary invasion, whereas Home One's capacities for such a task are a pittance in comparison. Executor was never meant for quick deployment--that was not what it was designed to accomplish. It was designed to smash enemy forces and to sow fear, which it did, as I shall show. Home One's faster response time is offset by the fact that it has less fire power and that it isn't, essentially, a fortress in space, as is the Executor.Let's talk a bit about the Executor's demise. Pro attempts to suggest that Executor was somehow an easy target. Allow me to dissuade everyone of that notion. It took AN ENTIRE FLEET of ships to bring down the Executor. To reiterate: it took an entire fleet to destroy just one ship.This source reviews the circumstances behind the Executor's demise: "the Rebel strike force succeeded in bringing down the Death Star's deflector shield from the moon below, opening the way for the Rebels' starfighters to target the battlestation's reactor core. Several TIEs doggedly pursued the attacking Rebel ships into the Death Star's exposed superstructure, however, prompting Admiral Gial Ackbar at the forefront of the Rebel Fleet to press the attack on the Executor in order to buy his fighters more time by drawing the TIEs away from the Death Star. He ordered the entirety of the Fleet to concentrate all fire on the Executor...The remaining Rebel cruisers and starfighters, led by B-wing starfighter pilot Ten Numb from Blue Squadron, began pummeling the Executor mercilessly...Eventually, concentrated fire against the front of the Executor broke through its powerful forward shields, exposing the Super Star Destroyer's command tower to attack...Watching the Executor's mounting damage inflicted by the pressing starfighter attack from aboard the bridge, Piett ordered his Super Star Destroyer to intensify its forward firepower upon learning that the bridge's shields were down to prevent anything from penetrating the window of opportunity, but it was too late. Already, the A-wing of Green Leader Arvel Crynyd had been irreparably damaged by the Executor's turbolaser fire while making its attack run on the command tower and was sent careening wildly. Crynyd purposely steered his wayward A-wing fighter on a suicidal run directly toward the Executor's bridge." [1] And thus the Executor perished.What this passage indicates is that it literally took an entire fleet, single-mindedly bombarding it, to destroy the Executor. This was not an easy victory for the rebels by any means. Moreover, if just one ship requires an entire fleet to destroy it, it speaks volumes for the potency of the ship itself.Yes, the Executor was destroyed first, but not because it was the inferior vessel, but simply because circumstances so aligned that the entire Rebel fleet had little choice but to descend upon it in a vulnerable moment.C2: EffectivenessPro makes a key concession here! He writes: "the Executor was an effective agent of intimidation and firepower." This indicates that Pro agrees that the Executor was a powerful force to be reckoned with, both in terms of psychological force and brute force.In the Battle of Endor, the reason Home One survived was quite simple--firstly, the Emperor ordered the Star Destroyers not to engage for much of the confrontation [1] and, secondly, the loss of the Second Death Star was a massive psychological blow that negatively impacted the rest of the Imperial forces sending them into disarray [1]. I would posit that had either or both of these factors been different, Home One would likely have perished over Endor, vice the Executor.Pro then suggests that the Executor was less effective because its battle history was less impressive. I will point out a few of the battles the Executor participated in to illustrate the inaccuracy of that idea:Ex. 1: Falleen's Fist"the Executor and a giant flotilla of warships prevailed upon a battle between Xizor's navy of StarVipers and X-wing starfighters of the Rebellion's Rogue Squadron. Immediately, Vader ordered the Executor to deploy its TIE...As the Executor neared the Falleen's Fist, Vader opened up direct communication with Xizor to demand his surrender...Several punishing rounds of turbolaser fire smashed into the Falleen's Fist before a single powerful beam from the Executor destroyed the skyhook in a blinding explosion, killing Xizor. Xizor's death crippled Black Sun, throwing the criminal organization into a fragmented internal power struggle from which it would never fully recover." [1]Ex. 2: Invasion of Mygeeto"A Rebel fleet consisting of EF76 Nebulon-B escort frigates, CR90 corvettes, and GR-75 medium transports conducted a counterattack on the Executor and the Imperial fleet...The Executor proceeded to help crush the remaining Rebel forces, leading to a resounding Imperial victory." [1]Ex. 3: Poln Major"The Executor and Death Squadron, including the Star Destroyers Devastator, Accuser, Stalker, Adjudicator, Tyrant, and Avenger, emerged from hyperspace into the Poln system in the middle of an already escalating battle. A small Imperial task force consisting of the Imperial Star Destroyers Admonitor and Chimaera, supported by a handful of cruisers, were opposed by Nuso Esva's Eastern Fleet, totaling twenty-eight Firekiln warships—five of which equaled a Star Destroyer's firepower—and nearly a hundred escort ships, hopeless odds for the Imperials by any measure. But the Executor's intervention...turned the battle into a resounding victory for the Empire, smashing Nuso Esva's fleet and driving the warlord back into the Unknown Regions." [1]A. Design FlawI have already addressed this issue in fullB. Additional ComparisonsIt is a patent mischaracterization to say that "Home One once again...won the battle." In fact, had it not been for the Smugglers Guild's intervention on behalf of the New Republic, Home One would have been destroyed by Grand Admiral Thrawn's fleet. [2] And, when we look at the actually text of the entry for the Battle of Coruscant, Home One is mentioned as barely a footnote--had it played a critical role, surely it would have more of a mention. [3]As for speed, the Executor is not slow by any means. But, it's size and capacity to deploy and carry large forces are a trade-off here. It isn't as fast as Home One, but gains advantages that Home One lacks.SOURCES1 - http://starwars.wikia.com...2 - http://starwars.wikia.com...(Galactic_Civil_War)3 - http://starwars.wikia.com...