What's going on in your empire/planet/battlefield?

[Aloriel]

Last night's efforts have taken a sour turn.  While I haven't lost any more ships, I am running very short of AMMs.  My carrier is out.  My escorts are down to just about 75 each.  They sent another huge wave of ships at me, and a good 10 of those ships were missile laden.  Fortunately, these missiles are even slower.  They clock in at just 700 km/s faster than my carrier.  If I take a parallel course, I might be able to out run their range.  Sadly, if I sacrifice the carrier, I will outrun the missiles.  My next slowest ship is above 5000 km/s, which is faster than the missiles.

The problem with that is that the carrier is my flagship.  I do not think the admiralty would be happy about being left behind as bait.

For reference, here's a few of my designs:

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B-1 Tiger class Bomber    220 tons     1 Crew     36 BP      TCS 4.4  TH 40  EM 0
9090 km/s     Armour 1-3     Shields 0-0     Sensors 1/1/0/0     Damage Control Rating 0     PPV 1.5
Maint Life 10.37 Years     MSP 10    AFR 3%    IFR 0.1%    1YR 0    5YR 3    Max Repair 10 MSP
Intended Deployment Time: 0.1 months    Spare Berths 9   
Magazine 10   

20 EP Magneto-plasma Drive (2)    Power 20    Fuel Use 69.18%    Signature 20    Exp 12%
Fuel Capacity 5,000 Litres    Range 5.9 billion km   (7 days at full power)

Size 5 Box Launcher (2)    Missile Size 5    Hangar Reload 37.5 minutes    MF Reload 6.2 hours
Missile Fire Control FC5-R100 (50%) (1)     Range 5.0m km    Resolution 100
Tomahawk ASM Mk 2 (2)  Speed: 22,400 km/s   End: 121.2m    Range: 163m km   WH: 8    Size: 5    TH: 74/44/22

Code: [Select]

CG Blake class Missile Cruiser    27,450 tons     891 Crew     4932 BP      TCS 549  TH 3000  EM 600
5464 km/s     Armour 4-81     Shields 20-400     Sensors 1/1/0/0     Damage Control Rating 78     PPV 40
Maint Life 8.14 Years     MSP 8760    AFR 77%    IFR 1.1%    1YR 235    5YR 3523    Max Repair 800 MSP
Intended Deployment Time: 12 months    Spare Berths 0   
Magazine 1000   

1000 EP Magneto-plasma Drive (3)    Power 1000    Fuel Use 34.94%    Signature 1000    Exp 12%
Fuel Capacity 2,000,000 Litres    Range 37.5 billion km   (79 days at full power)
Gamma R400/192 Shields (10)   Total Fuel Cost  80 Litres per hour  (1,920 per day)

Size 5 Missile Launcher (8)    Missile Size 5    Rate of Fire 75
Missile Fire Control FC720-R100 6/16 (1)     Range 720.0m km    Resolution 100
Tomahawk ASM Mk 2 (200)  Speed: 22,400 km/s   End: 121.2m    Range: 163m km   WH: 8    Size: 5    TH: 74/44/22

Active Search Sensor MR480-R100 6/16 (1)     GPS 80000     Range 480.0m km    Resolution 100

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CV Argus class Carrier    84,000 tons     2239 Crew     14833.4 BP      TCS 1680  TH 7000  EM 1200
4166 km/s     Armour 6-170     Shields 40-400     Sensors 300/1/0/0     Damage Control Rating 132     PPV 54.87
Maint Life 5.44 Years     MSP 24568    AFR 427%    IFR 5.9%    1YR 1391    5YR 20869    Max Repair 800 MSP
Intended Deployment Time: 12 months    Flight Crew Berths 97   
Flag Bridge    Hangar Deck Capacity 10000 tons     Magazine 2420    Cryogenic Berths 200   

1000 EP Magneto-plasma Drive (7)    Power 1000    Fuel Use 34.94%    Signature 1000    Exp 12%
Fuel Capacity 3,000,000 Litres    Range 18.4 billion km   (51 days at full power)
Gamma R400/192 Shields (20)   Total Fuel Cost  160 Litres per hour  (3,840 per day)

Quad 15cm C2 Near Ultraviolet Laser Turret (1x4)    Range 128,000km     TS: 16000 km/s     Power 24-8     RM 3    ROF 15        6 6 6 4 3 3 2 2 2 1
Fire Control S16 64-12000 (1)    Max Range: 128,000 km   TS: 12000 km/s     92 84 77 69 61 53 45 37 30 22
Stellarator Fusion Reactor Technology 0.1 (15)     Total Power Output 9    Armour 0    Exp 5%

PD Missile Launcher (20)    Missile Size 1    Rate of Fire 15
PD Missile Fire Control FC144-R1 6/16 (4)     Range 144.0m km    Resolution 1
Tomahawk ASM Mk 2 (400)  Speed: 22,400 km/s   End: 121.2m    Range: 163m km   WH: 8    Size: 5    TH: 74/44/22
Ares AMM Mk 2 (420)  Speed: 28,000 km/s   End: 48.5m    Range: 81.5m km   WH: 1    Size: 1    TH: 140/84/42

Active Search Sensor MR480-R100 6/16 (1)     GPS 80000     Range 480.0m km    Resolution 100
Active Search Sensor MR48-R1 (1)     GPS 800     Range 48.0m km    Resolution 1
Thermal Sensor TH50-300 (1)     Sensitivity 300     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  300m km

Strike Group
45x B-1 Tiger Bomber   Speed: 9090 km/s    Size: 4.4Note that the carrier has no size 5 launcher.  It relies on it's bombers for that.

Yes, I am aware that my AS range is a bit absurd.  And that my PD and ASM fire controls are waaay too big.  I have a new Edgar class Missile Cruiser designed, but I haven't had the time to update the ships currently engaged.

I have also adjusted my reactor designs to have more HTK.

I am also aware that my shields are paper thin (that became abundantly clear when the FF Westminster was destroyed).  What level of shields would you all recommend for a system that is only on when combat comes?

[joeclark77]

I can't comment on shields, because I've never used them, but I would suggest that your armor is a little thin.  That carrier has 170 armor "panels" that are 6 hits deep.  That means it can take a *lot* of missile hits, but if it were 8 or 10 layers deep it'd be able to take massively more.  I think your carrier is safe regardless.

One thing you might want to consider is setting a standard speed for your fleet (excluding fighters, FACs, etc).  The way you do this is figure out what % of your ship's mass you want devoted to engines.  If it's 25%, then design a 5HS engine and fit one for every 1000T of the ship's intended size (or a 10HS for every 2000T, etc, you get the idea).  If your ship comes in heavier than expected, add engines.  If lighter, add armor or fuel tanks or something.  If you keep the ratio the same for all your main line ships, they will have the same speed.

[Aloriel]

That's actually what I was doing more or less. Only the supercarrier is slower than expected. All ships were designed within 5000-6000 km/s speed. I do the same with range and maint. life (unless something is designed as a long range craft). The problem with the carrier was that it's so huge that I couldn't reasonably make it faster without massively more fuel storage and engineering spaces to keep range and maint. life - which in turn slowed it down - which required more engines - which required more fuel and engineering spaces... LOOP! I think I actually got it balanced in all categories at about 130,000 tons... which I couldn't hope to build or maintain. I could barely build it at 84,000

So, I resolved at 4166 km/s for just the carrier. Most fleets won't have one of those, and the Edgar class missile cruiser has a flag bridge unlike the older Blake class.

I also tend to make the frigates a bit faster. While traveling, they're grouped together, so no problem. When in combat, I will sometimes break them off as a detachment for flanking or baiting. They run about 6600 km/s, so they are actually faster than everything (including missiles) that this race has been throwing at me. I will probably have to rely on that for future engagements if they bring more missiles to bear. Bait with a frigate, and outrun the missiles.

These poor poor aliens... They really should have just made peace with me!

Anyway, thanks for the input. I will consider more armor. It's pretty cheap size wise.

[James Patten]

Where's your CIWS?  A good CIWS (rather, many good CIWS) make a huge difference in shooting down missiles at the last second.

[Aloriel]

My CIWS is barely researched. Probably an oversight on my part. However, my PD launchers have a 100% success rate, and I never let the missiles get close enough for CIWS to engage. Of course, this is really only applicable in the current engagement where I have a seriously underpowered opponent.

I will probably start researching CIWS soon, and start adding it when it's fairly reasonable quality.

News from the front:
I have run out of PD missiles. My tactics have shifted completely from what they were to missile hunting. Since my frigates and destroyers are faster than the missiles, I am using them to shoot down the missiles. They've broken off from the main group, and with the assistance of resolution 1 sensors on an escort, they are attracting the attention of the enemy missile ships. Then, matching speed and shooting down all the missiles. I goofed once, clicking the wrong time increment while I was letting a missile catch up. This resulted in minor damage to the Arsenal (Banterer class Escort) when a missile barrage of 8 missiles impacted it. Otherwise, all missiles have been shot down by the combined weaponry available on my frigates and destroyers (and target painting by the escort).

Fortunately, my turrets have a tracking speed of 12,000 km/s, so they are absolutely useful against missiles that move at 4800 km/s. The primary problem is that they are blind to missiles. That's where the escort comes in. Since it was a PD only ship, it has those fine resolution sensors necessary to target missiles.

The general strategy is to find a parallel course with the missiles and let them come to the ships. Once in range, I match speed and lay waste to them.

So many missiles....

I think I have learned a thing or two about my shields now. They are definitely too weak. My frigates and escorts only have 10 points of shielding. My destroyers have 20. My cruisers and carriers have 40. These numbers are clearly too low. I will probably put no less than 80 on any given ship in the future. This would give it a full regen of 1 each tick. I don't leave them on all the time anyway, so it won't burn my fuel terribly.

[Khanti]

Hi,
i just noticed my ace pilot has 915% Fighter Combat Bonus!

Is it normal in Aurora games, or I am very lucky with this guy?

A few others have 420, 320, 300%.
Rest still mere 50%.

PS: there were still no fights, no contacts with enemy.  He just sit in a fighter and his bonus rises from time to time.

[clement]

The crazy fighter combat bonus error was reported in 6.2 and I believe I saw a comment from Steve saying it has been fixed in 6.3.

[Aloriel]

Yeah, the best thing to do with fighters is to set them to R8. That way you don't accidentally assign someone to one. If you do, their promotion score jumps too high (80,000+) and so they'll be the one you have promoted, every time.

Of course, if they do get into a fight, you have a master fighter ace.

[Khanti]

I just found out that having selected some planet and creating a team (geo, diplo, etc) in Academy (eg Earth Academy) is possible to relocate those officers instantly on those selected planet (magic, teleportation, etc).

Is it bug or feature?

[Erik L]

I just found out that having selected some planet and creating a team (geo, diplo, etc) in Academy (eg Earth Academy) is possible to relocate those officers instantly on those selected planet (magic, teleportation, etc).

Is it bug or feature?

That is a feature.

[Khanti]

OK. Let it be.

Anyway I just got my first fight. Lost a ship really fast, destroyed a few ships later.
And where is a hall of my dead heroes? My brave captain just passed away? No one will salute him anymore

I was just curious if there is some place like Heroes Of Empire Hall, where memorable officers could have some place.
Highly rated dead officers?

Some casualty table should be also welcome: lost 2345 soldiers\sailors vs 334434 alien soldiers

[Aloriel]

I absolutely agree Khanti. I'd love to see a memorial hall to fallen heroes. There are several officers who should receive post-humus medals as well.

Good luck on your first fight though. That's always rough. You've made all these ship designs and never tested anything in real battle... so you have no idea how it will perform at all. Or even if you missed some critical function (like AS, or something like that).

Unfortunately, no updates on my progress in my war against the horribly underpowered Republic of Cianjur. I haven't had the chance to play for nearly a week now. I was just sitting down to load it up when I thought "Wait! I should check the boards for the 6.3 update!"

I must admit, it'll be sad to see my current game go away, but the 6.3 changes sound very nice.

[Whitecold]

OK. Let it be.

Anyway I just got my first fight. Lost a ship really fast, destroyed a few ships later.
And where is a hall of my dead heroes? My brave captain just passed away? No one will salute him anymore

I was just curious if there is some place like Heroes Of Empire Hall, where memorable officers could have some place.
Highly rated dead officers?

Some casualty table should be also welcome: lost 2345 soldiers\sailors vs 334434 alien soldiers

Once, all dead officers could be seen, but no one was looking because of all the clutter. Maybe show only the last few officers who died, with an option to memorize them as your biggest heroes, and keep those in a separate list.

[Aloriel]

We interrupt our regularly scheduled chat for this update from the front in Mu Cassiopeiae:

You see an image from the news room of ISN. The usual anchorperson, Chloe Almsman is sitting in her chair.

"Our warships have begun to engage planetary defenses of the hostile alien group known as the Republic of Cianjur. After years of hostilities, we may finally be approaching an end to this horrible war. We bring you this live update from our correspondent on the flag ship, the Venerable. Ariana?"

You see an image of correspondent Ariana Westlake standing with the all too familiar figure of Shri Majumdar, a man of Indian descent, who leads the primary task force dealing with the Cianjur threat. He sports his full dress uniform complete with a ream of ribbons across his chest.

"I'm standing here with the admiral of the fleet, Rear Admiral Shri Majumdar. Admiral, can you tell us what you expect to happen here shortly?"

"Sure Ariana. Our forces have been grossly out matching theirs for some time. I don't expect much resistance in the grand scheme of things. Perhaps some PDCs and a few light warships. Nothing the fleet can't handle until we can..."

Alarm klaxons ring out.

The Admiral turns away from the camera for a moment and speaks quietly with one of his officers. His face grows pale, and you think you hear him say, "How many missiles?" Nothing more is heard of the conversation. He eventually turns back to Ariana.

"Ariana, I'm going to have to ask you to terminate the broadcast and leave the bridge." He turns away and yells out "Inform the fleet, we are at Battlestations! Incoming missiles at 12 o'clock!"

----

As I approached their homeworld, I saw that they had perhaps a hundred PDCs. I pondered what manner of weapons those might fire. Instead of safely shooting at them from far afield with my limited supply of 8WH ASMs (400 count), I decided to approach and engage with my unlimited supply of lasers. They opened fire just outside my gun range with a barrage of approximately 1000 missiles. 30 seconds later, another barrage of 1000 missiles. And 30 seconds again... another 1000 missiles. After that, it dwindled down to perhaps a few hundred missiles in each volley. All told, I am probably facing 4000 missiles.

The only saving grace here is that my ships are faster than their missiles. So, I simply match speed and shoot them down, or exceed speed and outrun. My destroyers and frigates are currently engaging the first wave with guns. I simply don't have enough AMMs to take out 4000+ missiles.

Each of these hostile missiles is really an AMM that they've fired off to hit my ships. I suspect that it would take 10 to breach the shields on even my lowest shielded ship, and then even more to breach the armor. However, there are 4000 of them! I am not taking any chances! I'd prefer to keep my fleet intact at the 11th hour of this war LOL.

[boggo2300]

NOOO Don't bring back the "I see dead people"  usability improved so much when that was cleaned up!