Images like this one were created to help maintain the momentum of that landmark victory, cited by many historians as the turning point in the war. After the Battle of Idris IV, Retaliators became common in recruitment messages for the First Tevarin War. The Retaliator was at the center of many controversies during the later Messer years, when the Navy decided to use Cluster Missiles against a political activist group hiding in what is now Haven, sparking debate throughout the UEE. Although the Retaliator was almost synonymous with the reign of Messers and began to see decreased usage as the military distanced itself from that era, the ship began a surprising resurgence in the private sector. This pilot-centric approach drove the design decisions of what became the Retaliator a heavy ordnance weapons platform capable of handling both fighters and ground targets. Before they started designing the bomber, researchers performed extensive interviews with military pilots to understand what was lacking in the contemporary bombers of the time.
Since its introduction in the 26th century, Aegis Dynamics' Retaliator has had a distinguished, if conflicted, history.
