1. Will tracking speed and fire control range for ground units automatically update or do you have to make new units to get the bonuses?
Pretty sure it does not upgrade, since the STOs are modeled as a weapon + BFC + sensor + reactor so it doesn't make sense for any of those components to upgrade magically.
2. what is the 'optimal' size for a Deep Space Scanner? I understand that they get less efficient the bigger they are.
It is a trick question. The
area of space scanned by a DSTS group is proportional to the number, which means the range varies as the square root. If you need maximum range then building more DSTS is probably not the best approach, and you want to place passive buoys/traffic monitors/patrol routes along that line. If you want to know about threats from any direction then just build as many DSTS as you can justify in the annual budget meeting.
3. What governs automatic promotions? It seems my officer corp eventually balances out to the point anyone above the lowest level of officer is only promoted to fill a specific role that needs a high ranked officer, meaning I have hundreds of lowest level officers and maybe 20 guys above that before I seriously start fleshing out my navy with flag bridges. Is it supposed to work like this?
Automatic promotions are on-demand as of v2.0, which means that low-level officers will only promote if there is an opening at the next-highest rank.
Part of the way to handle this is to be more liberal with your use of naval admin commands (maybe roleplaying 2-3 commands where you might otherwise just have 1 in some cases) and using the auxiliary command stations in your larger ships (AUX, CIC, ENG, SCI, etc.) to give more jobs for low-ranking officers. I also tend to make liberal use of the "Require Senior C.O." checkbox in class designs so that larger/more-prestigious ship types have higher-ranking officers, which also helps to stagger out the promotions a little bit.
Note also that the rate of generating naval and ground commanders has approximately doubled, in large part to help motivate the use of the auxiliary command modules.
In short this means in v2.0+ we have to actually craft a promotions structure that facilitates development of a robust officer corps instead of the game just auto-promoting people out of a job. The nice thing is we are no longer tied to rigid rank ratios so force structure is much more flexible and natural.
3.5 Also, what governs retirements? I recently when through a 'death wave' of my scientists which left my research crippled and I think my guys are retiring too fast in general to have interesting careers. If possible, I'd like to raise the minimum retirement age far above where it is gradually over the course of the game to account for new medical technology keeping people in top shape longer.
Since scientists don't have ranks I think there is a minimum of 30 or 40 years and then a 20% chance each year thereafter, which is halved(?) if they have an active project. This assumes that they follow the same mechanics as military commanders, which is presumed from Steve's post on the topic but it's a bit ambiguous.
4. Can I automate Sector Governors and Academy Commandants?
No.