Posted by: Michael Sandy
« on: October 05, 2017, 04:14:43 AM »
Also, I suggest that before you send your survey fleet into any system, build single ship jump engines for scout pinnaces.
If you have efficiency 5 jump tech, a 1 HS jump engine on a 250 ton scout pinnace is practical. You will also want the half sized engineering section tech as well.
Or go slightly larger, with a 2 HS jump engine, on a 500 ton scout pinnace, which can generally allow for 3 HS for a sensor. I suggest an EM sensor, to give your scout the best chance of detecting enemy ships without being spotted.
Make your scout pinnaces have a minimum of 30 billion km range, because you will want them to visit every planet in a system before sending in your survey fleet.
You will lose scout pinnaces that way, but their transit is unlikely to be detected, and therefore the enemy is unlikely to follow you back.
By developing a good scouting doctrine, you will be able to expand relatively safely on some jump point lines, as well as gain information about what level of tech and type you will need to overwhelm the forces you discover.