Leviathan

With one of these, you'll have the power to shift the entire economy of a Skyland with your cargo hold. Of course, to move goods any slower, you'd have to buy a glacier, but those aren't as much fun to pilot.

The Leviathan is a huge, powerful zeppelin that has the largest cargo capacity of any aircraft in Skytopia. It is also, however, the slowest craft ever built, with a top speed of only 132 kph, and is almost able to stop completely in mid-air and hover in place. The Leviathan was designed before the Principality Wars, and the design was sold after the Second War to Midgard Air Yards (a division of Hoover Heavy Industries), where all existing Leviathans were constructed. It should be noted that the Leviathan is one of the few planes where upgrading it's cargo in any way will reduce it's CKPH, due to the extreme harm to trading ability caused by the speed cuts.

The use of Unobtainium in the Leviathan's frame to provide extra bouyancy has long been a point of contention between traders and safety specialists - whilst the addition allows the Leviathan to carry it's vast amount of cargo with ease, safety specialists continue to argue that Leviathans are dangerous not only to their pilot and crew, but everyone who comes into contact with their cargo, due to the long-term effects of radiation as well as potential toxic or chemical hazards -- ignoring the fact Unobtainium only emits alpha radiation which is short lived and does not penetrate very far, and the fact the Leviathan has sophisticated atmospheric seals to prevent toxic and chemical leaks. Little to no solid evidence of these claims has surfaced, and thus they are treated as superstition and paranoia.

Fighting the Leviathan
Planes with rear arcs should have little trouble finishing a Leviathan. Position yourself just in front (you may have to weave around or use Airbrake if your stall speed is higher) and keep it in your back arc. For planes that do not have the luxury of rear arcs and low stall speed, come at them from the diagonal. Wait and see if it is turning with you or against you; if they turn with you, keep turning until you are facing forward, then zip on ahead and repeat the process. If they turn against you, perform a Wingover through them and try again. Keep in mind this requires high enough Maneuver to out-turn the Leviathan.

An alternate strategy for planes with a lack of rear arcs and moderate front arcs and moderate to good maneuverability is to exploit the Levi's long nose by getting far in front of it and making looping passes at its nose, avoiding its front arcs. Due to its low speed, it will not be able to advance in time to make an attack as you swoop off for another run.

Another strategy is possible for planes with small sprites and high maneuverability. Fly in front of the Leviathan until the Leviathan is more or less chasing you, then perform an Immelman. If your plane is small enough, you can fly between both rows of guns, shooting it all the while. Dash off if the Leviathan stalls and starts to turn. Repeat as necessary.

Long forward arcs also make it possible to exploit the relative blind spot between the Leviathan's rear guns, although it's risky as you'll have to drop to minimum speed or even airbrake to be able to do some real damage. The Leviathan also has a tendency to stop and begin spinning (in an effort to get you into its side arcs) when you do manage to get behind it.

Small and Medium Machineguns are useless due to the Levi's currently high Damage Reduction of 50 - likewise all Autocannons are rendered ineffective. Howitzers are advisable thanks to their long range and high firepower. The only exception are crits whose damage exceeds 50, but for obvious reasons it's not a good idea to rely on having to use crits to kill a Leviathan. They're tough as it is.

Leviathan Gun Setups
As the aircraft with the most guns, the selection of guns is critical to success in combat. Listed below are some common gun setups.

The Viking Longblimp
Named after the Viking Longships and their long oars, this setup features Longarms on every gun, with Extended Barrels, Swivel Mounts, and Armor Piercing or Explosive rounds (substituting grease for either round if prefered).

Pros:

Huge range.

High (almost 100%) accuracy on almost every type of aircraft.

Great for swatting down Performance planes

Cons:

Low damage output.

Very little damage per shot against highly armored ships.

Longarms are thinner, making them a bit harder to overlap.

The Variety Bucket
Not really though. This setup features a Longarm, Howitzer, Flak, Howitzer, Longarm setup on both sides. Extended Barrels recommended on every gun, Recoil Suppressors on the Howitzers, Grease on the Longarms, and a ISM on the flak. APs on the LAs and flak, ER are better for the howtizers.

Pros:

Potential for every gun to overlap, creating ~3000 DPS.

Can handle every type of plane.

Cons:

Must catch plane at the center of the Leviathan to ensure maximum damage.

Not as much range as full LAs.