Hi all.
How do commercial hangers work?
http://aurora2.pentarch.org/index.php?topic=8495.msg103584#msg103584
if I have let's say a ship with a commercial hanger will parasites reload? refuel? resupply? maintain?
reload YES
refuel ? they should but I remember there were a few bugs on commercial hangars. Eventually, if you have the proper module installed in the ship they will be able to refuel as well anyway.
resupply YES (see here
http://aurora2.pentarch.org/index.php?topic=12035.msg144587#msg144587)
maintain YES as long as the proper module is also installed in the ship or the colony where the ship is orbiting has enough maintenance facilities to cover their needs.
Also, all relative Collier, Supply Ship, and Tanker flags must be enabled and the parameters properly set under the Misc Tab.
now if the mothership is in orbit of a maintenance-capable colony do parasites get maintained?
With the Automatic Hangar Resupply from 1.13 onwards the answer is YES as long as you are using Military Hangars and the Mothership has enough MSP to fulfill requests. Commercial Hangars do not provide any maintenance by themselves so as long as the proper module is also installed in the ship or the colony where the ship is orbiting has enough maintenance facilities to cover their needs they will be maintained.
basically what I want to do is to create a space station with no engines. so it orbits my colonies to provide a hanger space for defense fighter squadrons. can I do this with commercial hangers (therefore using a commercial shipyard) or do I have to go the military route?
It is currently not possible in 1.13 to add any Hangar Deck or Boat Bay to Space Stations (No Armor flagged) therefore if you want to have a Space Station with Hangars you MUST use Commercial Hangars. Actually, it's not possible to add any military component to Space Stations in general rules here:
http://aurora2.pentarch.org/index.php?topic=8495.msg106780#msg106780If you want to go with the Military Option you'll have to build a massive carrier which will have to be built by a large enough Military Shipyard but will be effectively a carrier and will be subjected to the standard maintenance rules so that your maintenance capability in the colony must cover the total military tonnage (CV plus Parasites). Commercial Hangar Space Stations will then have the following:
PROsCan be built by Factories
Do not add up on Military Maintenance of the colonies
CONsVery big and hard to relocate
Cannot function by themselves
One missile could blow up all your ships
In conclusion, while the Commercial Hangars have their use in different situations, I mainly use them as Containers to transport Military Fleets and save fuel and possible Maintenance Failures during the trip and especially if such a trip is a long one. I don't find any reasonable motive to keep them anchored at colonies. I may use them as advanced logistic points in combination with maintenance modules when preparing for war and again only as containers to relocate Military Fleets in position. I think CVs are currently offering a much better all-in-one solution if you are thinking to use fighters as your main source of firepower and with the recent changes on automatic hangar resupply, all you need to ensure is that they have enough MPS to fulfill all parasites needs avoiding a lot of micromanagement and adding the necessary mobility if you need to quickly relocate your defences.
DISCLAIMER: All the above answers are based on my personal experience and I can expect to have missed a few points here and there. The purpose of this post was to answer to the best of my knowledge and if something is not correct please feel free to correct me and I apologize in advance.