If you’ve spent any time dodging missiles in the Skies of Strangereal, you know the name. It’s a monster. The Alicorn nuclear submersible missile aircraft carrier isn't just a boss fight in Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown; it’s a masterclass in speculative military engineering that actually makes some sense if you squint hard enough at Cold War history.
Let's get one thing straight. This thing is massive. We are talking about a vessel that’s 495 meters long. To put that in perspective, a real-world Gerald R. Ford-class supercarrier is about 333 meters. The Alicorn is basically a floating, sinking city designed specifically to ruin a pilot's day. It’s the centerpiece of the "Unexpected Visitor," "Anchorhead Raid," and "Ten Million Relief Plan" DLC missions, and honestly, it’s one of the few times a fictional weapon felt genuinely overwhelming.
What the Alicorn Actually Is
Basically, the Alicorn is what happens when you take a Scinfaxi-class submarine and give it a massive dose of steroids. It was originally built by Yuktobania as a "Super-Scinfaxi" class named the Cevat. But, because the world of Ace Combat is perpetually in some state of collapse or shady arms dealing, it ended up in the hands of the Erusean Navy after being sold as scrap.
Captain Matias Torres, the "Hero of Comberth Harbor," took command and turned it into a rogue state within a state. This isn't just a boat. It's a platform for "Elegant Mass Destruction." It carries an aircraft wing of Su-47 Berkuts and Rafale Ms, but that's not even the scary part. The scary part is the railgun.
The main armament is a twin-barrel 60cm railgun capable of firing nuclear-tipped shells over 3,000 kilometers. That is insane. It's designed to stay submerged, pop up, erase a capital city from the map, and vanish back into the crushing depths before anyone can retaliate. It uses two liquid-metal cooled nuclear reactors to power the whole mess. Imagine the heat signature on that.
Why the Design Isn't Total Fantasy
Project Aces, the developers behind the game, clearly did their homework on Cold War-era "Submersible Landing Cruiser" concepts. The Soviet Union actually toyed with the idea of the Project 941 Akula (Typhoon class) being used for more than just SLBMs.
The Alicorn utilizes a "trimaran" hull design when surfaced. It’s got these huge outriggers that provide stability for the flight deck. In the real world, trimarans are great for speed and deck space, but making one that can withstand the pressure of the deep ocean is a logistical nightmare. The game hand-waves some of this with "advanced materials," but the core logic of needing a wide base to launch aircraft while maintaining a hydrodynamic shape for underwater travel is surprisingly sound.
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The Problem With Stealth
You'd think a 500-meter submarine would be easy to find. Well, yeah. Even with an anechoic tile coating, the sheer displacement of water by a vessel that size would create a massive wake. In the missions, the Alicorn uses a "Sintered Fiber Acoustic Tile" system to dampen noise. It's a real-world concept taken to its logical (and terrifying) extreme.
But honestly? Its best stealth is just the ocean. The ocean is loud, deep, and full of places for a giant metal whale to hide. Captain Torres uses this perfectly, staying silent until the exact moment he needs to surface and deploy his drones or aircraft.
The Railgun: The Alicorn's Real Teeth
Forget the planes. The aircraft are just a screen. The real threat of the Alicorn nuclear submersible missile aircraft carrier is that folding railgun.
Railguns use electromagnetic force to launch projectiles at hypersonic speeds. No gunpowder. No chemical propellant. Just raw electricity. The Alicorn’s railgun can hit a target with such precision and force that a conventional explosive isn't even necessary, though Torres prefers the nuclear option for his "salvation" plan.
The gameplay mechanics reflect the difficulty of dealing with this. You aren't just dogfighting; you’re performing high-speed surgery on a moving fortress. You have to take out the ballast tanks to force it to surface, then dodge the CIWS (Close-In Weapon Systems) and SLUAVs (Submersible Launch Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) just to get a shot at the core.
A Masterclass in Boss Design
What makes the Alicorn stand out compared to the Gleipnir or the Aigaion is the personality attached to it. Captain Torres isn't just a pilot; he’s a cult leader. His dialogue about "Ten Million Relief" and "Salvation" adds a layer of psychological horror to the fight. You aren't just fighting a machine; you're fighting a man who has spent two years at the bottom of the ocean and come back... different.
The ship reflects him. It’s grand, arrogant, and incredibly dangerous.
Common Misconceptions About the Ship
A lot of players think the Alicorn is just a bigger Scinfaxi. It's not. The Scinfaxi relied on "Burst Missiles" to clear the sky. The Alicorn is a surgical instrument. It’s an offensive platform meant to decapitate a nation's leadership from half a world away.
Another thing: people often ask if it could actually fly. No. That’s the P-1112 Aigaion. The Alicorn is strictly sea-to-sea and sea-to-land. If it leaves the water, something has gone horribly wrong.
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Strategic Impact in Ace Combat Lore
When the Alicorn was finally neutralized in the Spring of 2020 (in the game's timeline), it marked the end of an era for "Super-Submarines." The Osean Federation realized that no matter how good your satellite network is, a rogue actor with enough displacement and a big enough gun can still hold the world hostage.
It also highlighted the danger of the "Singularity" pilots like Trigger. Without a pilot capable of maneuvering in the "dead zone" of the railgun’s tracking, the Alicorn would have successfully nuked Oured. It was a close call. Probably too close for the Osean brass's liking.
Actionable Insights for Players
If you're going up against the Alicorn in the DLC missions, keep these things in mind. They might save your virtual life.
- Bring the PLSL or LACM: The Pulse Laser (PLSL) shreds the Alicorn’s surface components like paper. If you prefer standoff distance, the Long-Range Air-to-Ground Missile (LACM) lets you hit the CIWS and AA guns without getting shredded by the ship's point defense.
- Focus the Ballast Tanks: Don't waste time on the flight deck early on. You need that ship to stay on the surface. Hit the four main ballast tanks as soon as they're targeted.
- Listen to the Audio Cues: Torres will literally tell you when he's about to fire the railgun. When you hear "Don't you see? It's a massacre!" or mentions of the "Elegant" shot, start pulling high-G turns.
- Kill the SLUAVs: The drones are there to paint you for the railgun. If you ignore them, the railgun's accuracy increases dramatically. Clean the air before you commit to a run on the main hull.
The Alicorn remains one of the most iconic "Super Weapons" in gaming history. It bridges the gap between "that looks cool" and "that’s actually terrifying." Whether you love it for the lore or hate it for the difficulty spike, there's no denying that the Alicorn nuclear submersible missile aircraft carrier changed the way we think about naval warfare in Ace Combat. It’s a 500-meter reminder that in Strangereal, the biggest threat is always lurking just below the surface.
Next time you’re flying over the Artiglio Port, look down. The water is deep. And who knows what else Yuktobania left behind in the scrap heaps of history.
To master the Alicorn missions, players should focus on aircraft with high stability and multi-role capabilities. The F-15E Strike Eagle or the CFA-44 Nosferatu (if you have the DLC) are top-tier choices for managing both the Su-47 escorts and the ship's massive defensive grid. Prioritizing the destruction of the JAMM (Jammer) units on the deck should be your first move once the ship surfaces to ensure your missiles actually track.