A higher proportion of fortresses means that there will be a greater willingness to use all or most of the mobile forces available. A lot of stories have comments about having to leave the home fleet behind.
I really enjoyed the tensions the Chosen had between Fortress Command, the home system fleet, and the three factions. I imagine that the different services would develop very different attitude unless officers were somehow rotated between them.
Sorry about that Kurt - I jumped to the message from the digest that is e-mail out, and I didn't notice that I wasn't logged in under a username.....
Quote from: "Kurt"You are correct, there are some advantages. The Empire will gain defense in depth as well. Typically, though, my preferred style of play involves minimal fixed defenses and a large fleet. While fleet units are more expensive to maintain, they are mobile and can mount an attack, which defenses cannot. All the defenses in the world aren't going to do anything for you if the enemy is rampaging through systems A to E, if the defenses are in system X.
Having said that, defenses aren't a total waste. What that will mean, though, is that the Empire's fleet size will be frozen at its current size for some time, which will tend to reduce its willingness to become involved in external ventures. A smaller relative fleet may also be perceived as a weakness by others as well.
Kurt
Agreed. But my point was that the defenses aren't a total waste, as they can be used to support the active fleet - even when the fleet is (quite) a few systems away.....
Quote from: "Matthew Wadwell"Quote from: "Kurt"The Empire is going to have a hard time of it for a while. I've finished their construction for month 142 and they spent all of their available funds on building Skywatch bases for just nine of their most heavily populated planets. That's eighty-one BS3's that will take six months to build, using planetary industry. That also means in six months time a huge bill will come due for the fighters and magazine loadouts for the eighty-one BS3's built this month. This program is going to be sucking up their free income for some time yet, especially since a review of their existing fortifications have found them to be woefully inadequate. I'm afraid the Empire's fleet size will be frozen for quite a while.
It isn't quite as bad as you'd think - as the BS3(V)'s can be used to support the fleets closer to the frontline by acting as sources for fighters when the fleets takes losses in their fighters.
I mentioned this to Steve a while ago a a tactic for the Rigellian campaign - having 72+ hangars/fighters in SS's in a lot of the nodal systems. That way, when carriers are being sent back for re-supply of thier lost fighters, instead of waiting around for the new fighters to be buiult, instead they simply transfer the _existing_ fighters and head back to front line straight away.
In fact, this tactic can be modified even more, by using the IFN/CFN to _ship_ the _un_crated fighters from the nodal systems to the carriers - this way fighters can be transported to carriers up to _7_ STMP within a month, and the carriers can be back at the front lines within 2 months (even though the nodal systems are up to 7 STMP away).
I.E. Month 1: Spare fighters in a nodal system are transported using the IFN/CFN for 4 STMP (at a cost of 3 MCr/squadron), while the carrier moves back 3 STMP. At the end of Month 1, the transported fighters meet up with the empty carriers.
Month 2: The now fully loaded carriers travel 3 STMP back to the front line.
BTW: When logged into the board in guest mode please attach your name to the post so I know who I'm talking to. Thanks.
You are correct, there are some advantages. The Empire will gain defense in depth as well. Typically, though, my preferred style of play involves minimal fixed defenses and a large fleet. While fleet units are more expensive to maintain, they are mobile and can mount an attack, which defenses cannot. All the defenses in the world aren't going to do anything for you if the enemy is rampaging through systems A to E, if the defenses are in system X.
Having said that, defenses aren't a total waste. What that will mean, though, is that the Empire's fleet size will be frozen at its current size for some time, which will tend to reduce its willingness to become involved in external ventures. A smaller relative fleet may also be perceived as a weakness by others as well.
Kurt
Quote from: "Kurt"The Empire is going to have a hard time of it for a while. I've finished their construction for month 142 and they spent all of their available funds on building Skywatch bases for just nine of their most heavily populated planets. That's eighty-one BS3's that will take six months to build, using planetary industry. That also means in six months time a huge bill will come due for the fighters and magazine loadouts for the eighty-one BS3's built this month. This program is going to be sucking up their free income for some time yet, especially since a review of their existing fortifications have found them to be woefully inadequate. I'm afraid the Empire's fleet size will be frozen for quite a while.
It isn't quite as bad as you'd think - as the BS3(V)'s can be used to support the fleets closer to the frontline by acting as sources for fighters when the fleets takes losses in their fighters.
I mentioned this to Steve a while ago a a tactic for the Rigellian campaign - having 72+ hangars/fighters in SS's in a lot of the nodal systems. That way, when carriers are being sent back for re-supply of thier lost fighters, instead of waiting around for the new fighters to be buiult, instead they simply transfer the _existing_ fighters and head back to front line straight away.
In fact, this tactic can be modified even more, by using the IFN/CFN to _ship_ the _un_crated fighters from the nodal systems to the carriers - this way fighters can be transported to carriers up to _7_ STMP within a month, and the carriers can be back at the front lines within 2 months (even though the nodal systems are up to 7 STMP away).
I.E. Month 1: Spare fighters in a nodal system are transported using the IFN/CFN for 4 STMP (at a cost of 3 MCr/squadron), while the carrier moves back 3 STMP. At the end of Month 1, the transported fighters meet up with the empty carriers.
Month 2: The now fully loaded carriers travel 3 STMP back to the front line.
The Empire is going to have a hard time of it for a while. I've finished their construction for month 142 and they spent all of their available funds on building Skywatch bases for just nine of their most heavily populated planets. That's eighty-one BS3's that will take six months to build, using planetary industry. That also means in six months time a huge bill will come due for the fighters and magazine loadouts for the eighty-one BS3's built this month. This program is going to be sucking up their free income for some time yet, especially since a review of their existing fortifications have found them to be woefully inadequate. I'm afraid the Empire's fleet size will be frozen for quite a while.
And be the first to die, sure. If there is anything that would ensure their extinction BY THE GORANDANS, that would be it.
Quote from: "Kurt"[Oh, and when I started thinking about this month's events I had a particularly nasty thought for the Axons
Kurt
[Oh, and when I started thinking about this month's events I had a particularly nasty thought for the Axons
Kurt
Fine story Kurt, as always.
The Axons are wonderful bad guys - and rather look to share the porperties of steves bugs in the SA campaign of coming back for more after apparent disasters.
Long may they continue...
Mike
It's generally a bad idea to spend everything. One should always maintain a reserve, however small. If things go wrong, you have something to fall back on, and if they don't go wrong, you can have a pizza. If your reserve was large enough, you can have beer with the pizza.
