How many missile launchers can a single FC manage?

[blue emu (OP)]

Is there any limit to the number of ship-borne missile launchers that a single Fire Control can coordinate?

[areyoua]

No, at least I don't think so as I have only gone up to around 40 to one Fire Control. The only real reason multiple Fire Controls are necessary are to be able to target multiple hostiles with one salvo of missiles.

[Brian Neumann]

No, at least I don't think so as I have only gone up to around 40 to one Fire Control. The only real reason multiple Fire Controls are necessary are to be able to target multiple hostiles with one salvo of missiles.

The other reason is redundancy.  Fire control's are usually a 1 htk system so it is fairly easy for them to be taken out with a lucky meson hit.  If you have extra fire controls then this does not leave your ship helpless untill it is repaired.

Brian

[chrislocke2000]

When designing anti missile missle ships its also a good idea to have one FC per 4-5 launchers or so. This allows you to target and fire on multiple incomming salvos at once, which you will need given the often limited time you will have available to engage them

[Charlie Beeler]

No, at least I don't think so as I have only gone up to around 40 to one Fire Control. The only real reason multiple Fire Controls are necessary are to be able to target multiple hostiles with one salvo of missiles.

Not the only reason, as Brian points out battle damage redundency is a big one, and there are more.

Another one is to swamp defenses.  If you provide multiple small salvos it is possible to overwhelm the number of defensive fire controls. This is especially true with fighters.

[jseah]

Don't missile defence launchers cycle through their targets?  I've seen my AMM firecons fire counter-missiles at more than one batch at a time. 

[Charlie Beeler]

Don't missile defence launchers cycle through their targets?  I've seen my AMM firecons fire counter-missiles at more than one batch at a time. 

Yes and no.  As long as the targeted salvo has missiles that have not been targeted and the firing ship has unallocated launchers assigned to the fire control that are ready to fire then they will be launched.  A single fire control can only target missiles within a single salvo per firing cycle. 

The counter point is this.  If there are multiple incoming salvos with low numbers of missiles, the fire control with an excess of assigned launchers will likely have unfired launchers each cycle and may not have enough firing cycles available before the untargeted salvos find thier targets.

[blue emu (OP)]

Perhaps some context would help:

It's quite early in the game... 2036 from a 2025 start. I am still at Ion-tech level. I somehow managed to destroy eight Precursor warships in a very confused battle, without losing anything larger than a Fighter. I was able to return and salvage all eight wrecks, recovering several advanced components. Among them, I got one very long range search sensor, and one Missile Fire Control with a range of nearly a quarter of a billion km. I was planning to install it in a long-range planetary bombardment ship. Since I've only got one, I was going to tie it to as many bombardment tubes as possible.

... or does the capture of an alien ship component allow you to build multiple copies of that component?

[Charlie Beeler]

Perhaps some context would help:

It's quite early in the game... 2036 from a 2025 start. I am still at Ion-tech level. I somehow managed to destroy eight Precursor warships in a very confused battle, without losing anything larger than a Fighter. I was able to return and salvage all eight wrecks, recovering several advanced components. Among them, I got one very long range search sensor, and one Missile Fire Control with a range of nearly a quarter of a billion km. I was planning to install it in a long-range planetary bombardment ship. Since I've only got one, I was going to tie it to as many bombardment tubes as possible.

... or does the capture of an alien ship component allow you to build multiple copies of that component?

Your better off dismantling the salvaged alien components for the research points.  You can't make copies of salvaged components.

[blue emu (OP)]

I've dismantled nearly all of them... fourteen out of sixteen components... but there's a Precursor-held world with PDCs that I want to crush so that I can sieze the ruins, and by keeping the Active Sensor and the Missile Fire Control, both of which have enormous ranges, I can build a stand-off bombardment vessel to sit back and pound on them. That, plus a few purpose-built Ammunition Tenders, should allow me to run them out of PD defense and eventually smash them without ever coming within their range.

I have already designed some long-range homing missiles so that the rest of my fleet can assist in using up the PDC's PD missiles.

[Charlie Beeler]

What does your fleet currently look like?

[blue emu (OP)]

All missile-based, all Ion-tech, with a uniform fleet speed of 4000 kps.

Six Mountain class Carriers, each holding twenty minimalist Fighters (one size-4 missile each, 9200 kps) plus an unarmed, active sensor equipped strike leader Fighter, also 9200 kps. That's twenty-one Fighters per Carrier, total 126. Not jump-capable unless assisted.

One (with three more building) Battle class Heavy Cruisers, six size-4 offensive and six size-1 PD missile tubes each, one offensive and two PD FCs, CIWS, Armor-3, jump-capable.

Six Attitude class Light Cruisers, four size-4 offensive and six size-1 PD missile tubes each, one offensive and two PD FCs, CIWS, Armor-2, jump-capable.

Six Star class Destroyers, four size-4 offensive and six size-1 PD missile tubes each, one offensive and two PD FCs, CIWS, Armor-1, jump-capable.

Two Admiral class Command ships. twelve PD tubes, four PD FCs, CIWS, three over-sized sensors (vs ships, vs missiles, and passive). Jump capable.

Two Rock class Decoy vessels. Small active sensor to draw attention, 16 layers of armor. Commercial design.

Currently building a Peeping Tom class Surveillance Frigate, to hold that captured active sensor.

[jseah]

If you can guess the tech level of the sensor and FC, I would suggest that you wait until you are exactly one level behind on Active Sensor Strength and EM sensitivity before dismantling them. 

This gives you maximum tech points from the dismantle as well as gives you a chance to use some shiny alien toys.  =P


I say bombard away!

[Charlie Beeler]

If your only seeing 4 bases defending you have more than enough fleet too deal with the defenders without need any shiny new toys.    Find the edge of the range envelope that they will fire on your ships and dance in and out.  

This is just my opinion, your mileage may vary.