Re: Basin Feedback Thread

GamingGlen wrote:

*sigh* my CRAT-25 1-hull strike boats might be the way to go.  But then, AOE weapons would make short work of them.

Not necessarily. As long as you space them out so no more than two can be covered in any given AOE shot, you'll make your opponent waste the CR for the ability.

And if hull-1 ships are too plentiful to space them out, go with hull-2 or hull-3 versions.

Daniel Kast
Majestic Twelve Games
cricket@mj12games.com

Re: Basin Feedback Thread

I can only say how I deal with some RPS issues for -my- fleets... what I didnt upload with the Wyan is the fleet support ships.. read 'Torpedo Resupply Ships'.

I keep a big pile of BV-mostly-neutral 'alternate loads' for the torpedo tubes, some AOE, some inverted range based damage, etc.  Nothing so far as to be customizing a fleet against a given foe, but enough to reflect 'Hey, were on the bugswarm front, so we have AOE ammo' logical mentality.

Granted, fighters and strikers and seekers (though noone much uses seekers) ignore evasive action (why?  We dont know why.  Its like ignoring ECM, or applying to-hit penalties to certain weapons.  Fighters are made of magic in every space battle game they appear in.  But thats a different soap box).  However, one can design anti-fighter weapons to fire through the penalties, or just bring enough interceptor style fighters of your own to deal with it.

And Beowulf.. you don't have to redesign your navy.  I find it can be more rewarding to spend at least -some- time working out a tactical response to a tactical problem, rather than engineering a response to every perceived imperfection.  If you swap out your screens for shields, you'll find your navy better against being swarmed (or AOE over-the-shoulder shots), but much worse at the 'holding range open and keeping shields maxed' game their designed to play.

That said, a more generalist design might be something you find more fun to play.

And yes, One-shot weapons oddly enough work better on large, barrage boat hulls than on small strike boat hulls.  This is (logically) because the idea is that larger hulled boats, lasting longer, would get less relative value out of the ability to throw everything at the foe on the first round in range.

Unfortunately, the impact is to encourage 'refitted cargo ships' full of missiles, rather than the more fluffy missile armed strikeboats.  (though a bunch of CR25 strike boats, armed with a nasty missile AND A POPGUN, can be awesome.  The popgun, IMHO, is vital, as it keeps them a threat even after they shoot, complicating the opponents targeting choices)

Re: Basin Feedback Thread

GamingGlen wrote:

Before you go making assumptions, Beowulf used expendibles quite extensively in S:X and he posted their statistics several times.  They wiped out my fleets more than his big guns did.  I'm the one that asked that we do not play with that option.  Perhaps we should relook at that house rule.

Expendibles/ammo makes the game boil down to Harpoon: fleets make contact, fire all their missiles, and survivors, if any, win.  I played that game once, never again.

Same thing goes with the super big gun with 1 shot.  I know my die rolls.  I cannot trust that the 1 shot will hit.  Even at 2+ accuracy, I expect a 50% success rate.  sad

Wasn't making any accusations, just saying it didn't sound like fun, and that I think throwing out expendables was a bad idea.

Re: Basin Feedback Thread

For me, most of my ships/fleets that I am designing is for campaign play and as such, you want a fairly 'balanced' fleet.  The rules for R&D in the campaign system that I use are fairly slow and if I take a really specialized fleet and find a race with the perfect counter, my empire is in shambles (if there at all) before I can re-tool my ships to fight off the foe.

I guess in the end, if both players 'agree' to building fleets using whatever rules and the like and you are enjoying yourselves in the process, who am I to argue... smile

-Bren

Re: Basin Feedback Thread

Marcus was correct when he noted that my view is: "a more generalist design might be something you find more fun to play".
Absolutely!  This way I can use my ships whenever I get a chance to play Starmada. 
I have redone my capital ships.  The 20 hull BB with Screens is now a 14 hull BB with Shields.  The main armament has not changed, although it now hits on 3+, instead of 2+.  The speed is still 6.   I also plan to design a Mauna Loa class, which will carry a few r=30 weapons with AreaOfEffect.  I want to be able to deal with others who use screens to make powerful ships less expensive...  8)
The only change I would possibly make would be to add Ammo when I play with those who use this SAE version of "expendables".  I prefer Not to use them tho, but when in Rome-space... :shock:

Re: Basin Feedback Thread

I cant wait to see them posted, Beowulf.

Re: Basin Feedback Thread

Marcus Smythe wrote:

I cant wait to see them posted, Beowulf.

I'm in no hurry to play against them, but I suppose I'll be doing so sometime in June.

Beowulf, that is the next time you'll be in town, right?

(Just got my "Battlestar Galactica" and "Viper" fighters in the mail, so I got me some painting and mounting to do.  Although the BG miniature really isn't the BG one, but a smaller version as they were out of stock of BGs.  But it will suffice.)

Re: Basin Feedback Thread

I will be down in South Florida in the middle of June for c10 days.  I guess my leaner, shielded ships will be facing the BattleStar Galactica.  0r perhaps some Cylons. 
I cannot post my ships here in Drake Notation, because the one minor flaw in Gaming Glenn's excellent shipdesigner program is that the Drake Notation dosen't work properly.  But I can accurately describe one of them: 8)

USS Mississippi,  CR=980;  Hull=14, Engines=6, Shields=4
Main Battery is 14 Inch Plasma Guns;
Range=30, ROF=1, Acc=3+, Imp=1, Dmg=2  w/ Piercing;
Battery X = 6x[GHIJK]     
Battery Y = 6x[HIJKL];
Special = Hyperdrive + Armor Plating + AF batteries + etc...

Just like the WW2 Battleship USS Mississippi, but not a complex design
My fleet also has DDGs that carry strikers and will have a ship or two with an Area-Of-Effect weapon. I will call them the volcano class. :shock:

Re: Basin Feedback Thread

Hmm....

I like the paralellism to the WW2 designs.. and leaves room for an up-armored and upgunned Montana (though I might have gone slower, to leave more room for the Iowas.. though I suppose Engines 7 or 8 is always an option)

Something to look at.. if what your going for is paralellism, consider the Hammer and Claw sourcebooks 'dual mode' weapons... the ability to have an actual, dual purpose 5" would seem to fit perfectly with what your trying to do.

Re: Basin Feedback Thread

I have found that if my ships with their range 30 weapons are faster than the opponants, they can have several turns of fire without having to endure return fire.  This also allows me to slow hostile fighters can close, which allows for more AA fire...

Re: Basin Feedback Thread

BeowulfJB wrote:

I have found that if my ships with their range 30 weapons are faster than the opponants, they can have several turns of fire without having to endure return fire.  This also allows me to slow hostile fighters can close, which allows for more AA fire...

*nods*  That definitely can work... especially with the vast aft firing arcs on your ships.

Re: Basin Feedback Thread

GamingGlen wrote:

(Just got my "Battlestar Galactica" and "Viper" fighters in the mail, so I got me some painting and mounting to do.  Although the BG miniature really isn't the BG one, but a smaller version as they were out of stock of BGs.  But it will suffice.)

Where did you get the models from?  I'm very curious to know since I need to add some 'in scale vipers' to my BSG models I got from Walmart.

Thanks!
-Bren

Re: Basin Feedback Thread

BSG stuff:
http://armouryhobbies.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=1


main site:
http://armouryhobbies.com/