Posted by: Michael Sandy
« on: February 02, 2018, 04:12:45 AM »
The low fuel supply makes sense for its deployment, but its range indicates you are using fuel efficient engines instead of boosted engines. At that tech level, jump engines can jump ships in well outside the range of its beam weapon. Beam defenders don't need a lot of range, but they do need to be able to close before the enemy sensors and weapons come on line.
You would probably be better off with boosted engines, and more of them, and switch from a turret to a standard beam.
Because frontloading the damage is important, you might even consider reduced sized lasers, get more round 1 firepower, at the expense of sustained fire.
The problem with it as a jump point defense is that any targets can move out of its range envelope pretty quickly, before it has really done enough damage to justify itself.
In the interests of making its performance a little better, while still being under 500 tons, I would suggest splitting off the active sensor portion to a dedicated scout fighter class. Fortunately, it is very easy to just churn out some fighter scouts without retooling.
If you want a virtually stationary self-deploying jump point defense base, I would suggest using Box launchers with missiles of less than 30 second flight time, (the expected duration of the attacker's sensor blindness, and therefore vulnerability to missiles), possibly with really big warheads for the possibility of shock damage.
You have front loaded offense, and a bit longer range.
Play around with it, see if you can get its speed up to 30,000 and tracking up to that as well. It can also serve as colonial point defense. Because you REALLY want these at point blank range for added damage. As a jump point defense 'base', it won't need to close through missiles, so it doesn't need endurance or armor, but you do want it to have a good bit of speed.