JP Assault Fleet Feedback

[dr125 (OP)]

So on my new game I have discovered an NPR 4 jumps from Sol that rudely decided to blow my survey ship (never mind that it ignored their hails). Since then I have been guarding the JP from the system 1 jump from Sol, wolf 359, which unfortunately has no planets suitable for bases. I am pretty sure the guarded JP is heavily held by the NPR on their side and I would like to figure out a way to blast them when practical. I am at roughly INP tech and from the few salvaged wrecks they are at NP, though that was a few years ago so it is quite possible they are at similar tech levels.

The backbone of my starting fleet:

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Charger class Destroyer      8,000 tons       271 Crew       1,165.6 BP       TCS 160    TH 500    EM 0
3125 km/s      Armour 5-35       Shields 0-0       HTK 63      Sensors 6/6/0/0      DCR 5      PPV 46
Maint Life 3.42 Years     MSP 455    AFR 102%    IFR 1.4%    1YR 59    5YR 887    Max Repair 125 MSP
Commander    Control Rating 2   BRG   AUX   
Intended Deployment Time: 12 months    Morale Check Required   

Lockheed-Boeing LB-250/25 Pulse Drive (2)    Power 500    Fuel Use 77.34%    Signature 250    Explosion 12%
Fuel Capacity 565,000 Litres    Range 16.4 billion km (60 days at full power)

BAE Systems MKI 20cm Heavy Railgun (4x4)    Range 120,000km     TS: 3,125 km/s     Power 12-4     RM 30,000 km    ROF 15       
BAE Systems MKI 10cm Light Railgun (6x4)    Range 30,000km     TS: 3,125 km/s     Power 3-4     RM 30,000 km    ROF 5       
Staehle Sensor Systems SPG-1 Long Range Fire Control (1)     Max Range: 144,000 km   TS: 3,150 km/s     73 68 62 57 51 46 40 35 30 24
Staehle Sensor Systems SPG-2 Short Range Fire Control (2)     Max Range: 48,000 km   TS: 3,150 km/s     62 46 30 13 0 0 0 0 0 0
General Atomics GA-16 Pebble Bed Reactor (2)     Total Power Output 32.4    Exp 5%
General Atomics GA-8 Pebble Bed Reactor (1)     Total Power Output 8.1    Exp 5%

BAE Systems SPS-5M Narrow Band LADAR Array (1)     GPS 16     Range 5.5m km    MCR 497.5k km    Resolution 1
Raytheon SPS-13M Medium Band LADAR Array (1)     GPS 240     Range 13.6m km    Resolution 15
Raytheon SPS-29M Wide Band LADAR Array (1)     GPS 2400     Range 29.4m km    Resolution 150
Raytheon SDR-1 EM Scanner (1)     Sensitivity 6     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  19.4m km
Raytheon SAR-1 IR Scanner (1)     Sensitivity 6     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  19.4m km

This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes

I have made a few new designs, though I have so far only just begun construction on the Vengeance Class. Any feedback on these before I start construction?

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Vengeance class Destroyer      10,000 tons       336 Crew       1,475.4 BP       TCS 200    TH 900    EM 0
4500 km/s      Armour 4-41       Shields 0-0       HTK 67      Sensors 0/0/0/0      DCR 4      PPV 54
Maint Life 1.72 Years     MSP 368    AFR 200%    IFR 2.8%    1YR 151    5YR 2,258    Max Repair 150.00 MSP
Commander    Control Rating 2   BRG   AUX   
Intended Deployment Time: 9 months    Morale Check Required   

SpaceX SX-300/25 Pulse Drive (3)    Power 900.0    Fuel Use 69.84%    Signature 300.00    Explosion 12%
Fuel Capacity 755,000 Litres    Range 19.5 billion km (50 days at full power)

BAE Systems MKI 120mm Laser (2)    Range 120,000km     TS: 4,500 km/s     Power 4-4     RM 30,000 km    ROF 5        4 4 4 3 2 2 1 1 1 1
BAE Systems MKI 20cm Heavy Railgun (4x4)    Range 120,000km     TS: 4,500 km/s     Power 12-4     RM 30,000 km    ROF 15        4 4 4 3 2 2 1 1 1 1
BAE Systems MKI 10cm Light Railgun (6x4)    Range 30,000km     TS: 4,500 km/s     Power 3-4     RM 30,000 km    ROF 5        1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Raytheon SPG-4 Short Range Fire Control (2)     Max Range: 48,000 km   TS: 4,500 km/s     79 58 38 17 0 0 0 0 0 0
Raytheon SPG-3 Long Range Fire Control (2)     Max Range: 192,000 km   TS: 4,500 km/s     95 90 84 79 74 69 64 58 53 48
General Atomics GA-16 Pebble Bed Reactor (3)     Total Power Output 48.6    Exp 5%

Raytheon SPS-13M Medium Band LADAR Array (1)     GPS 240     Range 13.6m km    Resolution 15
BAE Systems SPS-5M Narrow Band LADAR Array (1)     GPS 16     Range 5.5m km    MCR 497.5k km    Resolution 1
Raytheon SPS-29M Wide Band LADAR Array (1)     GPS 2400     Range 29.4m km    Resolution 150

This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes
Basically an upgraded Charger, meant for general duties and to be flexible.

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Dunkirk class Escort Cruiser      16,667 tons       403 Crew       2,177.6 BP       TCS 333    TH 1,500    EM 1,350
4500 km/s      Armour 6-58       Shields 45-225       HTK 112      Sensors 6/6/0/0      DCR 7      PPV 44
Maint Life 1.67 Years     MSP 571    AFR 317%    IFR 4.4%    1YR 243    5YR 3,648    Max Repair 150.00 MSP
Magazine 660   
Commander    Control Rating 1   BRG   
Intended Deployment Time: 12 months    Morale Check Required   

SpaceX SX-300/25 Pulse Drive (5)    Power 1500.0    Fuel Use 69.84%    Signature 300.00    Explosion 12%
Fuel Capacity 955,000 Litres    Range 14.8 billion km (37 days at full power)
General Dynamics Beta S15 / R225 Shields (3)     Recharge Time 225 seconds (0.2 per second)

BAE Systems MKI 10cm Light Railgun (8x4)    Range 30,000km     TS: 4,500 km/s     Power 3-4     RM 30,000 km    ROF 5       
Raytheon SPG-4 Short Range Fire Control (1)     Max Range: 48,000 km   TS: 4,500 km/s     79 58 38 17 0 0 0 0 0 0
General Atomics GA-16 Pebble Bed Reactor (2)     Total Power Output 32.4    Exp 5%

Zieg Ordnance S1/15 Missile Interceptor Launch System (20)     Missile Size: 1    Rate of Fire 15
Raytheon SPG-6 Narrow Band LADAR/MFC (4)     Range 11.4m km    Resolution 1
RII-1 'Dart' Missile Interceptor (492)    Speed: 22,000 km/s    End: 3m     Range: 4m km    WH: 1    Size: 1.00    TH: 73/44/22

BAE Systems SPS-5M Narrow Band LADAR Array (1)     GPS 16     Range 5.5m km    MCR 497.5k km    Resolution 1
Raytheon SPS-13M Medium Band LADAR Array (1)     GPS 240     Range 13.6m km    Resolution 15
Raytheon SDR-1 EM Scanner (1)     Sensitivity 6     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  19.4m km
Raytheon SAR-1 IR Scanner (1)     Sensitivity 6     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  19.4m km

Missile to hit chances are vs targets moving at 3000 km/s, 5000 km/s and 10,000 km/s

This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposesEscort Cruiser, I know missiles are present and while I'm not happy with my AMM's, the opposing missiles can't be much better.

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Trafalgar class Missile Destroyer      16,667 tons       430 Crew       2,109.6 BP       TCS 333    TH 1,500    EM 1,800
4500 km/s      Armour 6-58       Shields 60-225       HTK 104      Sensors 0/6/0/0      DCR 7      PPV 52
Maint Life 3.15 Years     MSP 1,421    AFR 283%    IFR 3.9%    1YR 215    5YR 3,227    Max Repair 150.00 MSP
Magazine 360   
Commander    Control Rating 2   BRG   AUX   
Intended Deployment Time: 12 months    Morale Check Required   

SpaceX SX-300/25 Pulse Drive (5)    Power 1500.0    Fuel Use 69.84%    Signature 300.00    Explosion 12%
Fuel Capacity 1,010,000 Litres    Range 15.6 billion km (40 days at full power)
General Dynamics Beta S15 / R225 Shields (4)     Recharge Time 225 seconds (0.3 per second)

BAE Systems MKI 10cm Light Railgun (4x4)    Range 30,000km     TS: 4,500 km/s     Power 3-4     RM 30,000 km    ROF 5       
Raytheon SPG-4 Short Range Fire Control (1)     Max Range: 48,000 km   TS: 4,500 km/s     79 58 38 17 0 0 0 0 0 0
General Atomics GA-16 Pebble Bed Reactor (1)     Total Power Output 16.2    Exp 5%

Federated Arms S5/35 Missile Launch System (8)     Missile Size: 5    Rate of Fire 35
Raytheon SPG-5 Wide Band LADAR/MFC (2)     Range 48m km    Resolution 150
RSI-1 'Trident' Missile (74)    Speed: 18,000 km/s    End: 17.6m     Range: 19m km    WH: 4    Size: 5.0    TH: 78/46/23

Raytheon SPS-29M Wide Band LADAR Array (2)     GPS 2400     Range 29.4m km    Resolution 150
Raytheon SPS-13M Medium Band LADAR Array (1)     GPS 240     Range 13.6m km    Resolution 15
BAE Systems SPS-5M Narrow Band LADAR Array (1)     GPS 16     Range 5.5m km    MCR 497.5k km    Resolution 1
Raytheon SDR-1 EM Scanner (1)     Sensitivity 6     Detect Sig Strength 1000:  19.4m km

Missile to hit chances are vs targets moving at 3000 km/s, 5000 km/s and 10,000 km/s

This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposesMissile Cruiser, I'm planning on building some, though I'm not sure how useful they will be be in a JP assault.

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Napolean class Assault Ship      20,000 tons       558 Crew       2,669.2 BP       TCS 400    TH 1,800    EM 2,700
4500 km/s      Armour 7-65       Shields 90-225       HTK 137      Sensors 0/0/0/0      DCR 12      PPV 66
Maint Life 2.64 Years     MSP 1,021    AFR 261%    IFR 3.6%    1YR 207    5YR 3,107    Max Repair 150.00 MSP
Captain    Control Rating 2   BRG   AUX   
Intended Deployment Time: 9 months    Morale Check Required   

SpaceX SX-300/25 Pulse Drive (6)    Power 1800.0    Fuel Use 69.84%    Signature 300.00    Explosion 12%
Fuel Capacity 1,132,000 Litres    Range 14.6 billion km (37 days at full power)
General Dynamics Beta S15 / R225 Shields (6)     Recharge Time 225 seconds (0.4 per second)

BAE Systems MKI 150mm Laser (2)    Range 180,000km     TS: 4,500 km/s     Power 6-4     RM 30,000 km    ROF 10       
BAE Systems MKI 20cm Heavy Railgun (8x4)    Range 120,000km     TS: 4,500 km/s     Power 12-4     RM 30,000 km    ROF 15       
Raytheon SPG-3 Long Range Fire Control (2)     Max Range: 192,000 km   TS: 4,500 km/s     95 90 84 79 74 69 64 58 53 48
General Atomics GA-16 Pebble Bed Reactor (3)     Total Power Output 48.6    Exp 5%

BAE Systems SPS-5M Narrow Band LADAR Array (1)     GPS 16     Range 5.5m km    MCR 497.5k km    Resolution 1
Raytheon SPS-13M Medium Band LADAR Array (1)     GPS 240     Range 13.6m km    Resolution 15
Raytheon SPS-29M Wide Band LADAR Array (1)     GPS 2400     Range 29.4m km    Resolution 150

This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposesFinally the assault ship, little PD ability so it will have to be escorted, but meant for going, killing something up close and that's about it.

Any feedback would be appreciated!

[nuclearslurpee]

I don't see which of these ships has your jump drives? For a JP assault having ships with good jump drives is essential to perform squadron jumps instead of standard ones. I believe this means your ships recover from jump shock sooner, but more importantly they will appear at the jump gate scattered around instead of clustered in one place as an easy target. With a sufficient investment in the squadron jump radius this can get some of your ships outside of the enemy beam weapon range giving you time to recover from jump shock before they close in. Big help to survivability and counterattacking.

A general suggestion would be to send a very small, cheap "ship" (fighter-size) that's just some cheap sensors and an engine through the JP and see if the enemy is actually camping it. If they don't think you're that much of a threat, they might not actually be guarding the JP very closely.

I haven't tried this, but I've seen some people suggest that you can jump in with a ship loaded with box launchers and orders to immediately "Launch Ready Ordnance" after the jump, allowing you to deploy a large number of missiles with active sensors that can target enemies immediately in spite of the jump shock. I don't know if this works (the ship may or may not be unable to execute the order after the jump, I'm not sure on this point) but its worth trying out in a test game.

You could also just camp the other side of the JP and wait patiently. After a while, the diplomatic relations will go back to neutral and you may be able to jump in again and try to respectfully keep your distance while trying to communicate. More appealing is the possibility to find a jump chain that loops into one of their other systems from the other side, allowing you to launch a sneak attack instead of a costly JP assault.

Your actual ships look reasonable to me, other than the odd spread of weapon techs I don't see any glaring flaws.

[dr125 (OP)]

I don't see which of these ships has your jump drives? For a JP assault having ships with good jump drives is essential to perform squadron jumps instead of standard ones. I believe this means your ships recover from jump shock sooner, but more importantly they will appear at the jump gate scattered around instead of clustered in one place as an easy target. With a sufficient investment in the squadron jump radius this can get some of your ships outside of the enemy beam weapon range giving you time to recover from jump shock before they close in. Big help to survivability and counterattacking.

And that would be in part why I asked for feedback. I forgot to mention that their is a gate system all the way to the enemy home world. I also forgot about the whole "squadron jump" mechanic. It looks like will need to research a 20k ton jump drive.

[nuclearslurpee]

I don't see which of these ships has your jump drives? For a JP assault having ships with good jump drives is essential to perform squadron jumps instead of standard ones. I believe this means your ships recover from jump shock sooner, but more importantly they will appear at the jump gate scattered around instead of clustered in one place as an easy target. With a sufficient investment in the squadron jump radius this can get some of your ships outside of the enemy beam weapon range giving you time to recover from jump shock before they close in. Big help to survivability and counterattacking.

And that would be in part why I asked for feedback. I forgot to mention that their is a gate system all the way to the enemy home world. I also forgot about the whole "squadron jump" mechanic. It looks like will need to research a 20k ton jump drive.

I actually assumed you were going to use a tender that stayed on your side of the JP, but yeah - squadron jump is a big deal here.

[Lord Solar]

Personal strat of JP defense and assaults is a big old armored/shielded base full of boarding pods. Jump the base over, board the enemy ships, then send the base + pods back over. Station a CQB fleet on the otherside incase they counterattack (boarding takes a while).
Also gates recover fastest from Jump Shock, then Squadron Jump, then Standard Jump

[Barkhorn]

Shields are your best friend in jump assaults, because they benefit much more than armor from the ease with which you can retreat.  So you have your missile ships sit on your side of the JP, while your shielded beam ships make the jump.  If the JP is unguarded or your beam ships can win on their own, great.  If you don't think you can win, just jump back.  Once back on your side of the JP, your shields will recharge.  If they follow you, they have to deal with your now-fully-shielded beam ships, your missile ships, and jump shock.  Armored ships can do this too, of course, but armor doesn't recharge on its own.  Further, a single unlucky hit can penetrate your armor and hit your engines, leaving 99% of your armor untouched, while a shield must be completely drained to get through.

[TheTalkingMeowth]

Personal strat of JP defense and assaults is a big old armored/shielded base full of boarding pods. Jump the base over, board the enemy ships, then send the base + pods back over. Station a CQB fleet on the otherside incase they counterattack (boarding takes a while).
Also gates recover fastest from Jump Shock, then Squadron Jump, then Standard Jump

Gates and standard jump suffer identical jump shock duration, which is much longer than squadron jump.

The advantage of gates is that there is no cooldown before you can jump BACK, while if you squadron jump there is a delay before you can use that jump drive to leave the system again. Thus, gates let you poke your nose in for 5 seconds.

[Lord Solar]

Gates and standard jump suffer identical jump shock duration, which is much longer than squadron jump.

The advantage of gates is that there is no cooldown before you can jump BACK, while if you squadron jump there is a delay before you can use that jump drive to leave the system again. Thus, gates let you poke your nose in for 5 seconds.

Ah I though gates had less shock too, knew about the jump back thing

[Shuul]

Can I use squadron jump with gates?

[TheTalkingMeowth]

You can only squadron jump if you have a jump drive (of the appropriate type) in the fleet with sufficient capacity for all the ships in the fleet (i.e. if fleet has 4 ships, all military drives, and the largest is 40k tons, you need at least 1 squadron size 4 capacity 40k military jump drive).

The existence of a stabilized jump point has no impact on the ability to squadron jump.