An expensive chess set

[martinuzz (OP)]

Having met some unfriendly neighbors, I thought it time to try and design a battle fleet. These ships were designed to play a match of chess with my opponent's ships.

The King. In itself a weak piece, as it carries no weaponry of it's own. It does provide hangar space for the 8 Pawns, and provides jump capability for the entire fleet. It's size 10 passive sensors provide the first eyes for the fleet. Huge amounts of maintenance supplies make sure it's able to repair it's jump drive when it fails, and provide some emergency backup supplies for the fleet. A flag bridge makes it possible for task force command to join the ride.

Code: [Select]

King MkI class Command Ship    27,500 tons     2015 Crew     7121 BP      TCS 550  TH 2750  EM 360
5000 km/s    JR 7-100     Armour 5-81     Shields 12-300     Sensors 140/180/0/0     Damage Control Rating 59     PPV 0
Annual Failure Rate: 154%    IFR: 2.1%    Maint Capacity 6352 MSP    Max Repair 3025 MSP    Est Time: 1.18 Years
Flag Bridge    Hangar Deck Capacity 10000 tons    

J30000(7-100) Military Jump Drive     Max Ship Size 30000 tons    Distance 100k km     Squadron Size 7
Naval Engine MkV (22)    Power 125    Fuel Use 50%    Signature 125    Armour 0    Exp 5%
Fuel Capacity 655,000 Litres    Range 85.7 billion km   (198 days at full power)
Delta R300/12.5 Shields (5)   Total Fuel Cost  63 Litres per day

Thermal Sensor TH10-140 (1)     Sensitivity 140     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  140m km
EM Detection Sensor EM10-180 (1)     Sensitivity 180     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  180m km

ECM 60
The Pawn. A small, fast Gunboat, equipped with 'the crippler gun', a combination of meson and microwave, intended to cripple the enemy.

Code: [Select]

Pawn MkI class Corvette    1,250 tons     162 Crew     786.7 BP      TCS 25  TH 109.2  EM 0
12480 km/s     Armour 5-10     Shields 0-0     Sensors 1/1/0/0     Damage Control Rating 0     PPV 8
Annual Failure Rate: 25%    IFR: 0.3%    Maint Capacity 197 MSP    Max Repair 225 MSP    Est Time: 2.17 Years

Gunboat Magnetic Drive E75 (1)    Power 312.5    Fuel Use 750%    Signature 109.375    Armour 0    Exp 60%
Fuel Capacity 30,000 Litres    Range 5.8 billion km   (5 days at full power)

R12/C5 Meson Cannon (1)    Range 120,000km     TS: 12480 km/s     Power 6-5     RM 12    ROF 10        1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
R12/C5 High Power Microwave (1)    Range 120,000km     TS: 12480 km/s     Power 6-5     RM 12    ROF 10        1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Gunboat FC S02.5 120-12500 (1)    Max Range: 240,000 km   TS: 12500 km/s     96 92 88 83 79 75 71 67 62 58
Magnetic Gunboat Reactor S0.2 P2.5 (4)     Total Power Output 10    Armour 0    Exp 20%

Small AMM Sensor MR3-R1 (1)     GPS 18     Range 3.2m km    Resolution 1
Small Anti-Fighter Sensor MR7-R5 (1)     GPS 90     Range 7.2m km    Resolution 5

Compact ECCM-3 (1)         ECM 50
The Queen. This is the largest ship of the fleet, somewhat larger even than the King, hoping to draw fire away from the fleet's only jump-capable vessel.
She can fire 8 full salvos of 40 size 5, strenght 4 active sensor-equipped missiles. Her 10 twin Gauss turrets will make short work of any missiles that pass through the net.
She is equipped with a full set of active sensors, and can spot 4000 ton ships at 289m km.
With a thick layer of armor and shields, and improved damage control, she is made to stand her ground on the battlefield.

Code: [Select]

Queen MkI class Heavy Cruiser    30,000 tons     2200 Crew     9223.1 BP      TCS 600  TH 1093.75  EM 750
5208 km/s     Armour 10-86     Shields 25-300     Sensors 1/1/0/0     Damage Control Rating 50     PPV 220
Annual Failure Rate: 234%    IFR: 3.3%    Maint Capacity 5908 MSP    Max Repair 240 MSP    Est Time: 4.1 Years
Magazine 1700    

Reinforced Naval Engine MkV (20)    Power 156.25    Fuel Use 75%    Signature 54.6875    Armour 1    Exp 20%
Fuel Capacity 1,100,000 Litres    Range 88.0 billion km   (195 days at full power)
Delta R300/12.5 Shields (10)   Total Fuel Cost  125 Litres per day

Twin Gauss Cannon R2-67 Turret (10x8)    Range 20,000km     TS: 40000 km/s     Power 0-0     RM 2    ROF 5        1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
AMBFC S04 40-40000 (5)    Max Range: 80,000 km   TS: 40000 km/s     88 75 62 50 38 25 12 0 0 0

Size 5 Missile Launcher R7(50% Reduction) (40)    Missile Size 5    Rate of Fire 110
Missile Fire Control FC192-R50 (4)     Range 192.4m km    Resolution 50
ASM S5 "Seeker" (340)  Speed: 40,000 km/s   End: 31.5m    Range: 75.6m km   WH: 4    Size: 5    TH: 213 / 128 / 64

Ship Sensor MkIII (1)     GPS 7200     Range 183.3m km    Resolution 50
Missile Sensor MkIII (1)     GPS 108     Range 19.4m km    Resolution 1
Tactical Sensor MkI (1)     GPS 14400     Range 289.8m km    Resolution 80

ECCM-4 (4)         ECM 60

Missile to hit chances are vs targets moving at 3000 km/s, 5000 km/s and 10,000 km/s
The Rook. Equipped with 20 AMM launchers, and 4 gauss turrets, the Rooks form a strong fleet defense. They each also add 10 anti-ship missiles to the Queen's salvos, bringing the fleet's total salvo size up to 60. They have their own ship and missile sensors, as a backup. They lack the huge Tactical sensor though.

Code: [Select]

Rook MkI class Cruiser    17,500 tons     1377 Crew     4740.2 BP      TCS 350  TH 1750  EM 750
5000 km/s     Armour 10-60     Shields 25-300     Sensors 1/1/0/0     Damage Control Rating 34     PPV 93
Annual Failure Rate: 181%    IFR: 2.5%    Maint Capacity 2286 MSP    Max Repair 240 MSP    Est Time: 2.75 Years
Magazine 1320    

Naval Engine MkV (14)    Power 125    Fuel Use 50%    Signature 125    Armour 0    Exp 5%
Fuel Capacity 405,000 Litres    Range 83.3 billion km   (192 days at full power)
Delta R300/12.5 Shields (10)   Total Fuel Cost  125 Litres per day

Twin Gauss Cannon R2-67 Turret (4x8)    Range 20,000km     TS: 40000 km/s     Power 0-0     RM 2    ROF 5        1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
AMBFC S04 40-40000 (2)    Max Range: 80,000 km   TS: 40000 km/s     88 75 62 50 38 25 12 0 0 0

Size 5 Missile Launcher R7(50% Reduction) (10)    Missile Size 5    Rate of Fire 110
AMM Launcher MkI (R6) (20)    Missile Size 1    Rate of Fire 5
Missile Fire Control FC192-R50 (1)     Range 192.4m km    Resolution 50
AMM FC38-R1 (10)     Range 38.9m km    Resolution 1
ASM S5 "Seeker" (80)  Speed: 40,000 km/s   End: 31.5m    Range: 75.6m km   WH: 4    Size: 5    TH: 213 / 128 / 64
AMM MkII (920)  Speed: 101,000 km/s   End: 0.9m    Range: 5.5m km   WH: 1    Size: 1    TH: 370 / 222 / 111

Ship Sensor MkIII (1)     GPS 7200     Range 183.3m km    Resolution 50
Missile Sensor MkIII (1)     GPS 108     Range 19.4m km    Resolution 1

ECCM-4 (1)         ECM 60

Missile to hit chances are vs targets moving at 3000 km/s, 5000 km/s and 10,000 km/s
The Knight.At first glance, the Knight seems a purely defensive vessel. However, closer inspection reveals it carries a supply of size 1, strenght 4 anti-ship missiles. It's higher speed allows it to close in on targets, and release their "surprise" at them. It's also equipped with a small anti-fighter sensor.

Code: [Select]

Knight MkI class Missile Destroyer    7,500 tons     579 Crew     2670.4 BP      TCS 150  TH 437.5  EM 240
8333 km/s     Armour 5-34     Shields 8-300     Sensors 1/1/0/0     Damage Control Rating 6     PPV 33
Annual Failure Rate: 75%    IFR: 1%    Maint Capacity 1335 MSP    Max Repair 240 MSP    Est Time: 3.35 Years
Magazine 512    

Reinforced Naval Engine MkV (8)    Power 156.25    Fuel Use 75%    Signature 54.6875    Armour 1    Exp 20%
Fuel Capacity 280,000 Litres    Range 89.6 billion km   (124 days at full power)
Delta R300/12.5 Shields (3)   Total Fuel Cost  38 Litres per day

Twin Gauss Cannon R2-67 Turret (2x8)    Range 20,000km     TS: 40000 km/s     Power 0-0     RM 2    ROF 5        1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
AMBFC S04 40-40000 (1)    Max Range: 80,000 km   TS: 40000 km/s     88 75 62 50 38 25 12 0 0 0

Size 1 Missile Launcher R6(75% Reduction) (12)    Missile Size 1    Rate of Fire 10
AMM FC38-R1 (4)     Range 38.9m km    Resolution 1
AMM MkII (362)  Speed: 101,000 km/s   End: 0.9m    Range: 5.5m km   WH: 1    Size: 1    TH: 370 / 222 / 111
ASM S1 "Surprise" (150)  Speed: 40,900 km/s   End: 0.9m    Range: 2.2m km   WH: 4    Size: 1    TH: 136 / 81 / 40

Small Anti-Fighter Sensor MR7-R5 (1)     GPS 90     Range 7.2m km    Resolution 5

ECM 50

Missile to hit chances are vs targets moving at 3000 km/s, 5000 km/s and 10,000 km/s
The Bishop. This ship is meant to pair up with the Knight class, and advance on enemies together, possibly flanked by Pawns. The Bishop provides AM sensor for the knight, and the knight provides defense and Anti-Fighter Sensor for the Bishop.

Code: [Select]

Bishop MkI class Hunter    7,500 tons     733 Crew     2891 BP      TCS 150  TH 437.5  EM 750
8333 km/s     Armour 5-34     Shields 25-300     Sensors 1/1/0/0     Damage Control Rating 25     PPV 48
Annual Failure Rate: 81%    IFR: 1.1%    Maint Capacity 1325 MSP    Max Repair 240 MSP    Est Time: 3.19 Years

Reinforced Naval Engine MkV (8)    Power 156.25    Fuel Use 75%    Signature 54.6875    Armour 1    Exp 20%
Fuel Capacity 275,000 Litres    Range 88.0 billion km   (122 days at full power)
Delta R300/12.5 Shields (10)   Total Fuel Cost  125 Litres per day

20cm C5 Far Ultraviolet Laser (4)    Range 240,000km     TS: 10000 km/s     Power 10-5     RM 5    ROF 10        10 10 10 10 10 8 7 6 5 5
Twin Gauss Cannon R2-67 Turret (2x8)    Range 20,000km     TS: 40000 km/s     Power 0-0     RM 2    ROF 5        1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ASB FC S02 120-10000 (1)    Max Range: 240,000 km   TS: 10000 km/s     96 92 88 83 79 75 71 67 62 58
AMBFC S04 40-40000 (1)    Max Range: 80,000 km   TS: 40000 km/s     88 75 62 50 38 25 12 0 0 0
Magnetic Reactor Technology P10 AR-1 (2)     Total Power Output 20    Armour 1    Exp 5%

Small AMM Sensor MR3-R1 (1)     GPS 18     Range 3.2m km    Resolution 1

ECCM-4 (1)         ECM 60
This fleet's tactic would be, to stay together as a group and use it's combined defensive strenght against enemy salvos, while pummeling them with 8 salvos of 60 missiles. It's Bishops, Knights, and Pawns can provide a combined anti-gunboat / beam destroyer defense if nescessary.
Depending on the situation the Bishops, Knights, and Pawns can also use their higher speed to pursue the enemy fleet.

[martinuzz (OP)]

Hmm, found a design flaw in my King design. It's jump engine was too small.
Corrected:

Code: [Select]

King MkI class Command Ship    27,500 tons     1987 Crew     7477 BP      TCS 550  TH 2750  EM 360
5000 km/s    JR 8-100     Armour 5-81     Shields 12-300     Sensors 140/180/0/0     Damage Control Rating 35     PPV 0
Annual Failure Rate: 171%    IFR: 2.4%    Maint Capacity 5990 MSP    Max Repair 3481 MSP    Est Time: 1 Years
Flag Bridge    Hangar Deck Capacity 10000 tons    

J30000(8-100) Military Jump Drive     Max Ship Size 30000 tons    Distance 100k km     Squadron Size 8
Naval Engine MkV (22)    Power 125    Fuel Use 50%    Signature 125    Armour 0    Exp 5%
Fuel Capacity 605,000 Litres    Range 79.2 billion km   (183 days at full power)
Delta R300/12.5 Shields (5)   Total Fuel Cost  63 Litres per day

Thermal Sensor TH10-140 (1)     Sensitivity 140     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  140m km
EM Detection Sensor EM10-180 (1)     Sensitivity 180     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  180m km

ECM 60

[UnLimiTeD]

The Jump Ship can only carry ships the same size or smaller than it self through a jump point.
You have to increase the King size to 30k.

But you got a strong theme right there.

[martinuzz (OP)]

Guess the King will gain some magazine capacity to replenish the fleet's AMM then

[martinuzz (OP)]

And done. Good thing I didn't start retooling my shipyard yet. It's slipways still need to be expanded by 2000 tons.
My Knights could theoretically dock in the King's hangars and reload there now

Code: [Select]

King MkI class Command Ship    30,000 tons     2118 Crew     7866.2 BP      TCS 600  TH 3000  EM 360
5000 km/s    JR 8-100     Armour 5-86     Shields 12-300     Sensors 140/180/0/0     Damage Control Rating 37     PPV 0
Annual Failure Rate: 192%    IFR: 2.7%    Maint Capacity 6145 MSP    Max Repair 3481 MSP    Est Time: 0.92 Years
Flag Bridge    Hangar Deck Capacity 10000 tons     Magazine 625    

J30000(8-100) Military Jump Drive     Max Ship Size 30000 tons    Distance 100k km     Squadron Size 8
Naval Engine MkV (24)    Power 125    Fuel Use 50%    Signature 125    Armour 0    Exp 5%
Fuel Capacity 610,000 Litres    Range 73.2 billion km   (169 days at full power)
Delta R300/12.5 Shields (5)   Total Fuel Cost  63 Litres per day

AMM MkII (505)  Speed: 101,000 km/s   End: 0.9m    Range: 5.5m km   WH: 1    Size: 1    TH: 370 / 222 / 111
ASM S1 "Surprise" (120)  Speed: 40,900 km/s   End: 0.9m    Range: 2.2m km   WH: 4    Size: 1    TH: 136 / 81 / 40

Thermal Sensor TH10-140 (1)     Sensitivity 140     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  140m km
EM Detection Sensor EM10-180 (1)     Sensitivity 180     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  180m km

ECM 60

Missile to hit chances are vs targets moving at 3000 km/s, 5000 km/s and 10,000 km/s

[Vanigo]

Why are you using reduced size launchers on your countermissile tubes? That's hardly ever a good idea. Also, what's up with your missile designs? Those hit chances are pathetic at your tech level. Are you just not using missile agility at all? You really should, for the countermissiles at the very least - you could probably triple their performance. Countermissiles don't need speed, they need accuracy. Use whatever ratio of drive space to agility space gives you the best chance to hit. And I don't know what's up with your anti-ship missiles, but they're barely any more effective than the size 3 missiles I use in my current game, and I'm at least two tech levels behind you. They dragging a huge sensor around or something? Also, if I were you I'd shrink the warhead a bit on the ASMS1s to increase the range; that way you could use them as a devastating anti-fighter weapon

[martinuzz (OP)]

Well.  thought, with my Roks as main AMM launchers, I'd put some reduced size launchers, with 10 sec reload time, on the Knights, to give them a bit of a bigger surprise salvo.
The size 5 ASM carry around 0.25 points of resolution 40 active sensor, and a full point of missile ECM 3.
Perhaps increasing the range on the surprise missiles a bit is not a bad idea indeed. I like their strenght 4 warheads though.
You're right about the AMM. I didn't know that agility could boost accuracy that much. I mostly saw agility drag my accuracy down. I fiddled a bit more with it, and since I researched better missile agility tech already, made new missile designs.

ASM S5 "Seeker II" (with somewhat less sensors and somewhat more range)

Code: [Select]

Missile Size: 5 MSP  (0.25 HS)     Warhead: 4    Armour: 0     Manoeuvre Rating: 15
Speed: 41900 km/s    Endurance: 34 minutes   Range: 86.4m km
Active Sensor Strength: 0.18    Resolution: 40    Maximum Range: 72,000 km    
ECM Level: 3
Cost Per Missile: 6.2946
Chance to Hit: 1k km/s 628.5%   3k km/s 195%   5k km/s 125.7%   10k km/s 62.8%
AMM MkIII

Code: [Select]

Missile Size: 1 MSP  (0.05 HS)     Warhead: 1    Armour: 0     Manoeuvre Rating: 31
Speed: 62500 km/s    Endurance: 1 minutes   Range: 4.3m km
Cost Per Missile: 1.8167
Chance to Hit: 1k km/s 1937.5%   3k km/s 620%   5k km/s 387.5%   10k km/s 193.7%
ASM S1 "Surprise II" (with more range)

Code: [Select]

Missile Size: 1 MSP  (0.05 HS)     Warhead: 4    Armour: 0     Manoeuvre Rating: 13
Speed: 34400 km/s    Endurance: 3 minutes   Range: 6.5m km
Cost Per Missile: 1.6479
Chance to Hit: 1k km/s 447.2%   3k km/s 143%   5k km/s 89.4%   10k km/s 44.7%

[Vanigo]

I was thinking more like a 30mkm range, actually. Most fighters and FACs are armed with missiles and will never approach much beyond their maximum range, so you need to outrange them. Your ECM will make this a lot easier, of course, but 5mkm still won't do it. The pawns give you some interception capability, but they're a bit outsized; most fighters will be able to outrun them. And reducing the warhead by one won't really cost you much against fighters. You lose the penetration on the first hit, of course, but one strength-four warhead won't kill a fighter unless the engine blows up, so you'll need at least two missiles per target anyway, and six damage is plenty to smash small fighters. It will, of course, reduce performance against larger targets by 25%.

I don't know how much ECM-3 on your missiles buys you, but I doubt it's as helpful as tripling the size of your warhead. Probably not as helpful as raising the missile's speed by 50%, either. Actually, come to think of it, it almost has to be less helpful than a 50% speed boost. Speed is any missile's primary defense, and raising it by half will reduce the effectiveness of enemy countermissiles and beam PD by 33%, as well as reducing the number of countermissile salvos by a third. ECM-3 does somewhat better against beam PD if there's no ECCM to deal with, depending on how good enemy fire control is, but will at best reduce the number of countermissile launches by 30% and interception chance not at all. And boosting the speed improves your own hit chance by 50%.

[martinuzz (OP)]

I decided to keep the ASM S1 "Surprise 2".
However, I added a 3d type of missile to the knight, for anti-fighter engagement, and equipped it with a better sensor for that purpose as well.

ASM S1 "Sting"

Code: [Select]

Missile Size: 1 MSP  (0.05 HS)     Warhead: 3    Armour: 0     Manoeuvre Rating: 16
Speed: 37500 km/s    Endurance: 16 minutes   Range: 36.0m km
Cost Per Missile: 1.525
Chance to Hit: 1k km/s 600%   3k km/s 192%   5k km/s 120%   10k km/s 60%
To be able to spot the fighters at long distance, I also created a larger fighter sensor for the Knight.
Enthousiastically upgrading the design, I decided it could be made a bit larger, adding some more firepower and speed.
The same was done to the Bishop.

Code: [Select]

Knight MkI class Missile Destroyer    9,850 tons     758 Crew     3489.55 BP      TCS 197  TH 601.65  EM 300
8725 km/s     Armour 5-40     Shields 10-300     Sensors 1/1/0/0     Damage Control Rating 8     PPV 35.25
Annual Failure Rate: 97%    IFR: 1.3%    Maint Capacity 1771 MSP    Max Repair 240 MSP    Est Time: 3.4 Years
Magazine 765    

Reinforced Naval Engine MkV (11)    Power 156.25    Fuel Use 75%    Signature 54.6875    Armour 1    Exp 20%
Fuel Capacity 410,000 Litres    Range 99.9 billion km   (132 days at full power)
Delta R300/12.5 Shields (4)   Total Fuel Cost  50 Litres per day

Twin Gauss Cannon R2-67 Turret (2x8)    Range 20,000km     TS: 40000 km/s     Power 0-0     RM 2    ROF 5        1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
AMBFC S04 40-40000 (1)    Max Range: 80,000 km   TS: 40000 km/s     88 75 62 50 38 25 12 0 0 0

Size 1 Missile Launcher R6(75% Reduction) (15)    Missile Size 1    Rate of Fire 10
AMM FC38-R1 (5)     Range 38.9m km    Resolution 1
ASM S1 "Surprise II" (150)  Speed: 34,400 km/s   End: 3.1m    Range: 6.5m km   WH: 4    Size: 1    TH: 149 / 89 / 44
AMM MkIII (465)  Speed: 62,500 km/s   End: 1.1m    Range: 4.3m km   WH: 1    Size: 1    TH: 646 / 387 / 193
ASM S1 "Sting" (150)  Speed: 37,500 km/s   End: 16m    Range: 36m km   WH: 3    Size: 1    TH: 200 / 120 / 60

Fighter Sensor MR43-R5 (1)     GPS 540     Range 43.5m km    Resolution 5

ECM 50

Missile to hit chances are vs targets moving at 3000 km/s, 5000 km/s and 10,000 km/s

Code: [Select]

Bishop MkI class Hunter    9,850 tons     1009 Crew     3972.7 BP      TCS 197  TH 601.65  EM 750
8725 km/s     Armour 5-40     Shields 25-300     Sensors 1/1/0/0     Damage Control Rating 27     PPV 60
Annual Failure Rate: 103%    IFR: 1.4%    Maint Capacity 1891 MSP    Max Repair 240 MSP    Est Time: 3.4 Years

Reinforced Naval Engine MkV (11)    Power 156.25    Fuel Use 75%    Signature 54.6875    Armour 1    Exp 20%
Fuel Capacity 400,000 Litres    Range 97.5 billion km   (129 days at full power)
Delta R300/12.5 Shields (10)   Total Fuel Cost  125 Litres per day

20cm C5 Far Ultraviolet Laser (6)    Range 240,000km     TS: 10000 km/s     Power 10-5     RM 5    ROF 10        10 10 10 10 10 8 7 6 5 5
Twin Gauss Cannon R2-67 Turret (2x8)    Range 20,000km     TS: 40000 km/s     Power 0-0     RM 2    ROF 5        1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ASB FC S02 120-10000 (2)    Max Range: 240,000 km   TS: 10000 km/s     96 92 88 83 79 75 71 67 62 58
AMBFC S04 40-40000 (1)    Max Range: 80,000 km   TS: 40000 km/s     88 75 62 50 38 25 12 0 0 0
Magnetic Reactor Technology P10 AR-1 (3)     Total Power Output 30    Armour 1    Exp 5%

Missile Sensor MkIII (1)     GPS 108     Range 19.4m km    Resolution 1

ECCM-4 (2)         ECM 60


[martinuzz (OP)]

Oh my. Those poor aliens that will face this fleet. I just salvaged the wreck of one of their ships that was silly enough to enter my system.
The poor things are still using gas-cooled reactor tech, and EM and Thermal sensor strenght 6.
I guess starting with 3 player races who share technology has given me a bit of an unfair advantage against generated NPRs.

I don't know exactly how this is determined now, but perhaps, for the creation of NPRs during the game, the player's total research points of all posessed techs (also counting racial tech, and tech acquired from other races) should be used as a main determinant for the NPR's starting strenght.

[Vanigo]

Shouldn't you have ECM 60 on the Knight?

Looking at the Pawn, you could save some BPs and minerals by reducing the capacitor recharge rate on the beams to 3. It takes 10 seconds to recharge either way, and it's cheaper with the lower recharge tech. You can take out one of those reactors for the same reason; you only need 12 power every 10 seconds, anything above that is useless.

As for alien tech levels, I'm pretty sure it's determined by starting population, government type, and how many years it's been since the beginning of the game.

[martinuzz (OP)]

Heh, this game has been running for 54 years. You'd think the aliens would be a bit more advanced then, no?

[UnLimiTeD]

If they were created when the game was created, not necessarily.
Also, sometimes NPRs are generated as non-TN races.

[Father Tim]

Looking at the Pawn, you could save some BPs and minerals by reducing the capacitor recharge rate on the beams to 3. It takes 10 seconds to recharge either way, and it's cheaper with the lower recharge tech. You can take out one of those reactors for the same reason; you only need 12 power every 10 seconds, anything above that is useless.

As for alien tech levels, I'm pretty sure it's determined by starting population, government type, and how many years it's been since the beginning of the game.

You have that backwards.  He needs to increase the size of the reactor to get his 'crippler guns' to fire every 5 seconds.  Currently, due to Aurora's design flaw of not having a size-5 capacitor, the Pawns are mounting size-6s but only supplying them with five power a turn, resulting in them not-quite-fully-recharging the first turn, wasting 80% of the power available on the second turn, and then wasting the remaining 20% when they fire.

So, until Steve implements a design change to make size-5 capacitors possible, you have to overbuild such weapons with size-6 capacitors and feed them 6 points of power each turn.  Hence, the Pawns need to squeeze in a 12-power reactor.

[martinuzz (OP)]

What I understand, the 6/5 means, that they require 6 power for a shot, and their capacitor recharge rate per 5 seconds is 5. This results in 10 seconds reload time. What I need to do is, research capacitor recharge rate 6, an then make sure the Pawn has 24 power, enabling it's guns to fire every 5 seconds.
In the current situation I think Vanigo is right, in that I could design 6/3 guns, and need only 6 power per 5 seconds on the Pawn.
But ah well, the Pawn's are already built. Not gonna bother until I design Pawn MkII