Scythian (Skif) – Born of Heaven
The hero, of course, is both a fighter and a technician, and simply has knowledge of many of life’s tricks. But it cannot be said that he got all the skills just like that. It’s just that throughout his entire adult life he has been trying not to go with the flow, but to find any loophole for his development. In the end, he not only gets out of the orphanage, but receives an army education (and completely legally), assembles his own ship and forms a team of mercenaries. Gradually, one-on-one battles are replaced by global space battles. Moreover, battles are by no means reduced to traditional one-on-one shootouts. Here, space battles are described from the point of view of a general strategy, when one or two fighters or fighters decide practically nothing. There are hundreds and thousands of lost or destroyed gun platforms. Here it is difficult to find an “accurate shot” or “miss”; here they operate on the percentage of damage and the effectiveness of the fire. Well, to liven up the picture, of course, first-person action and participation in boarding other people’s ships will not go away. Such a description may not please everyone, since battles are described in the dry language of numbers. But that doesn't stop these battles from being exciting and intense. And in particular, one can highlight the author’s attention to detail, because in addition to the battle itself, there is also preparation for it, and here the issues of equipment interchangeability, its effectiveness, price, availability and much more come to the fore.
A very well-developed giant world in which space states fight for their interests, including with the help of mercenaries. At the same time, thousands of independent planetary systems live in free space, with their own governments, independent corporations, etc. One of the few books that clearly shows the impossibility of using one common currency when located far from the state. And if “hard” currency is successfully used within civilized countries, then in free space most transactions are carried out on a barter basis. After all, why does a merchant need a currency that is recognized only in one system, if he flies to another and may not return there at all?
Definitely read as a very high quality piece of space science fiction. Not finished yet.