"How many ships do we have available?"
"Aside from ourselves, there's the Apollo and Sun Tzu."

—Rodney McKay and Steven Caldwell

The Sun Tzu is the fifth in the 304 series of intergalactic battlecruisers built by the Tau'ri which came into service by the year 2009^[1]. It is the first ship to be crewed by the Chinese.^[2]

History

Main article: Battle of the ZPM powered Hive Ship

The Sun Tzu's first known mission occurred in early 2009, when the Sun Tzu and Apollo jointly engaged the ZPM powered hive ship on the edge of the Milky Way galaxy when the Hive ship needed to take a brief hyperspace pause. They were, however, unsuccessful in stopping the invaders due to its nearly impenetrable hull. Both ships suffered major damage, with the Sun Tzu faring less favorably than the Apollo. After the Sun Tzu began venting atmosphere, the crew abandoned the ship and boarded the Apollo, which had severe engine damage and was left a month away from the nearest planet with a Stargate. Colonel Abraham Ellis of the Apollo reported the aftermath of the battle to Stargate Command on Earth via a subspace message. (ATL: "Enemy at the Gate")

After the battle the Sun Tzu remains in space, awaiting to be salvaged, the damage it sustained deemed too great to be able to repair. (ATL: "Legacy: Homecoming")

Major campaigns

• Battle of the ZPM powered Hive Ship

Behind the scenes

• The ship is named after the Chinese General and one of the greatest military strategists of all time, Sun Tzu, author of the Art of War, an ancient book on military strategy.
• Sun Tzu was one of Lord Yu's Royal Guards, and was cloned several times, the last one being his last First Prime Oshu.
• Joseph Mallozzi has confirmed that the Sun Tzu is crewed by the Chinese and is of the 304-class in his blog.

References and notes