Experiences with NPR carriers and fighters so far?

[Zeebie (OP)]

What sort of experiences have people had with NPR carriers and fighters so far?  I did a shared Sol start and my neighbor built over 200 fighters in the first two years.  I have no idea how to counter those at nuclear engine tech without a horde of my own...

[gpt3]

Fighters, due to their engines, will always have less firepower than turrets or missiles of the same tonnage and tech level. The main strengths of fighters are their strategic versatility and their sheer numbers (which can overwhelm fire control systems).

When fighting NPRs, your main concern will be the latter, so you will need lots of independently-targeting fire controls so that you can target dozens of fighters at the exact same time. So your options are:

• Dozens of rapid-fire single-laser turrets, each one with its own beam fire control.
• Dozens of AMM launchers. Each missile fire control should have only 1-2 launchers assigned to it.
• Lots of STO ground units. Make sure that your ASAT weapons are spread out among your formations instead of being clumped together.
• An even bigger fighter swarm of your own.

[Zeebie (OP)]

Anyone know why this got moved to spoilers?  NPR carriers aren't a secret, are they?

In any case, my NPR failed to launch any of its fighters during battle - they were definitely on board (their wrecks appeared after the carrier was destroyed), and they definitely had the speed and range to reach me if they wanted.  I feel like I should post this in the bugs thread, but if they're spoilers...?

[Black]

It is okay to post any issues with carriers in bug thread. But some players want to experience NPR carriers for the first time without knowing what exactly NPRs can do with them. That would be reason to move the thread to Spoilers section.

[Steve Walmsley]

It's useful information for me too. Please report on it - as fighters staying in hangars sounds like a bug - but keep it in spoilers in case anyway wants to avoid.