Boarding

[Gabethebaldandbold (OP)]

Do units in boarding combat use ground supply points? if yes, is it at the same rate per rounds of regular ground combat?

[Froggiest1982]

Do units in boarding combat use ground supply points? if yes, is it at the same rate per rounds of regular ground combat?

They do at the same rate and as boarding combat doesn't last that long I don't think you never actually reach the 8 hours click. This last bit of info is based on personal experience and hasn't been addressed either by Steve or by the post below.

more info here http://aurora2.pentarch.org/index.php?topic=8495.msg111751#msg111751

However, in saying that to boarding the same rules of ground combat apply it is reasonable to assume the above statement I made to be true.

[Garfunkel]

Note that since writing that post, Steve changed boarding combat to take place every 30 seconds instead of the original 60 seconds. I've never run out of supply during boarding combat so the usual "10 rounds of combat for 8 hours per round" isn't changed to "10 rounds of combat for 30 seconds per round" - it's probably still the same 10x8 hours.

[DFNewb]

After 20+ boarding combats I have yet to see any of them drop under 100 percent supply.

[Froggiest1982]

Note that since writing that post, Steve changed boarding combat to take place every 30 seconds instead of the original 60 seconds. I've never run out of supply during boarding combat so the usual "10 rounds of combat for 8 hours per round" isn't changed to "10 rounds of combat for 30 seconds per round" - it's probably still the same 10x8 hours.

I didn't know that, so thanks for telling me so I can change my notes :-)

After 20+ boarding combats I have yet to see any of them drop under 100 percent supply.

Same here, even with the above I haven't seen any boarding combat to last more than 10 to 15 minutes.

[Borealis4x]

I wonder in what situation you'd actually want to board an enemy. Its very risky, both for the ship that has to get close and the boarding party which is probably very expensive for its size.

[DFNewb]

I wonder in what situation you'd actually want to board an enemy. Its very risky, both for the ship that has to get close and the boarding party which is probably very expensive for its size.

Works out a lot better than you expect...

[xenoscepter]

Because no matter how crunchy they are on the outside, they're full of ooey, gooey, nougat-y crew members goodness inside.

...Security teams notwithstanding of course...

[sneer]

If you can knock out spoilers ships in early-mid game captured ships can provide nice boost

[Zincat]

Every captured fleet is good minerals. Plus potentially tech.
Works only if you can avoid losing your ships in the process 

And yes, early game or in a very close war, seizing up the enemy ships can be a boost. Building ships takes time and minerals.

[AlStar]

Because no matter how crunchy they are on the outside, they're full of ooey, gooey, nougat-y crew members goodness inside.

...Security teams notwithstanding of course...

I haven't played with boarding yet - do some of the AI ships and/or spoilers come with troop contingents on board?
Are NPCs smart enough to start equipping their ships with troops if you're actively stealing their ships?

[DFNewb]

Because no matter how crunchy they are on the outside, they're full of ooey, gooey, nougat-y crew members goodness inside.

...Security teams notwithstanding of course...

I haven't played with boarding yet - do some of the AI ships and/or spoilers come with troop contingents on board?
Are NPCs smart enough to start equipping their ships with troops if you're actively stealing their ships?

I don't think the NPR's put any troops on their ships even after seeing you capture them. I have not boarded any spoilers yet.

[Gabethebaldandbold (OP)]

also it provides you with very important inteligence about the exact capabilities of your enemies, and their technology, and allows you to plan acordingly, in acordance to the capabilities of your enemy. you can get important data such as their armour tech, and sensor tech, much faster than you would with salvage, letting you get away with more bullsmeg. you can then have a better expectation for what you are going to fae on ground combat, allowing for adjustments in ground troops long long before you even find their home planet.

[Gabethebaldandbold (OP)]

also, if you do boarding, you can capture even the toughest of ships, and depending on how fast they/you are and how many casualties you are ok with, you could capture even the toughest of ships basically intact, using only microwave cannons to make them defenseless

[liveware]

In addition to the above reasons given for why one would be interesting in boarding hostile ships (intel, tech, minerals, etc...) boarding has a place as part of a larger combined-arms approach to fleet composition. You might not want to build ONLY boarding craft, but having a few mixed in with your more conventional combat ships adds a lot of depth to the game.