Humanity First Comments Thread

[nuclearslurpee]

Some time later the apparent mass of the Delta class changed from 734 tons to 1468.  The Alphas and Bravos continued showing their mass as 733 tons, an apparent affect of their cloaking devices.  The battlecruiser’s tactical department had no theories for why the Delta was behaving in such a manner. 

This one seems like it might be a bug...

Kurt, I wonder from the player perspective how you are finding the Archers? My observation from other AARs is that they can feel repetitive after a while, especially with poor exploration luck meaning no systems with other spoilers or NPRs. Of course when playing it may not feel so repetitive and they are an excellent foil for making players defend their colonies.

Overall I'm happy with the way the campaign is going, and even though the Terrans have had really bad exploration luck so far, that just means they have hardships to overcome. 

I usually set Sol to start with an above-average number of JPs, both to improve early exploration and to get a more interesting galactic map as more branches seems to increase the chance for early loops in the JP network. 4 is my usual setting but I've done a few test runs with 6 JPs in Sol and that can be fun as well.

That being said, it's not really a Kurt AAR if Sol doesn't have only one JP! 

[Garfunkel]

I'm kinda bummed that I've spoiled "Archers" for me since I have yet to encounter them in my own games but it's not like I can prevent myself from reading Aurora fiction. Oh well, hopefully some surprises await the Democratic People's Republic of Earth once they venture outside of Sol.

I'm little surprised how often your STO guns miss at medium-long range. Is your BFC range still in the early tech levels?

[nuclearslurpee]

I'm kinda bummed that I've spoiled "Archers" for me since I have yet to encounter them in my own games but it's not like I can prevent myself from reading Aurora fiction. Oh well, hopefully some surprises await the Democratic People's Republic of Earth once they venture outside of Sol.

I'm little surprised how often your STO guns miss at medium-long range. Is your BFC range still in the early tech levels?

In all honesty, my experience is that reading about the spoiler races in AARs doesn't prepare one to meet them in a game as much as one would think. Steve is continually tweaking their AI and builds, and there's always a few surprises in store either way. Even encounters with everyone's favorite overly-territorial robots have been fresh for me lately due to the missile warfare and ship design changes.

[Kurt (OP)]

Some time later the apparent mass of the Delta class changed from 734 tons to 1468.  The Alphas and Bravos continued showing their mass as 733 tons, an apparent affect of their cloaking devices.  The battlecruiser’s tactical department had no theories for why the Delta was behaving in such a manner. 

This one seems like it might be a bug...

Kurt, I wonder from the player perspective how you are finding the Archers? My observation from other AARs is that they can feel repetitive after a while, especially with poor exploration luck meaning no systems with other spoilers or NPRs. Of course when playing it may not feel so repetitive and they are an excellent foil for making players defend their colonies.

Overall I'm happy with the way the campaign is going, and even though the Terrans have had really bad exploration luck so far, that just means they have hardships to overcome. 

I usually set Sol to start with an above-average number of JPs, both to improve early exploration and to get a more interesting galactic map as more branches seems to increase the chance for early loops in the JP network. 4 is my usual setting but I've done a few test runs with 6 JPs in Sol and that can be fun as well.

That being said, it's not really a Kurt AAR if Sol doesn't have only one JP! 

Hah!  In my next campaign I will ensure that Sol has multiple jump points.  The player race exploration luck (or lack thereof) has been a significant factor in this campaign. 

As for the Archers, they can be a bit repetitive, especially as the campaign goes on, but I find that they provide an excellent incentive to garrison outer bases and colonies.  That is what would happen in real life, but in games we tend to want to concentrate our forces, both for strategic advantage and increased ease of play. 

[Kurt (OP)]

I'm kinda bummed that I've spoiled "Archers" for me since I have yet to encounter them in my own games but it's not like I can prevent myself from reading Aurora fiction. Oh well, hopefully some surprises await the Democratic People's Republic of Earth once they venture outside of Sol.

I'm little surprised how often your STO guns miss at medium-long range. Is your BFC range still in the early tech levels?

Ugh, I apologize for that.  I keep meaning to put spoiler tags on my fiction as I don't want to ruin it for people that haven't encountered them.  Honestly I kind of figured that it would be obvious at this point 

My earlier ground batteries have poor fire controls and no ECCM, so they will miss a fair amount and depend on numbers to be effective.  Later generations have better fire controls, but every once in a while I forget to check the "ECCM" button on the unit creation screen.  I usually don't notice right away, so when I do notice I figure that's the Imperial bureaucrats trying to cut costs when I'm not looking. 

[nuclearslurpee]

Ugh, I apologize for that.  I keep meaning to put spoiler tags on my fiction as I don't want to ruin it for people that haven't encountered them.  Honestly I kind of figured that it would be obvious at this point 

I assume that any fiction or AAR is "marked for spoilers" by default. It's really impossible to have a story that doesn't involve the spoilers unless you turn them all off, which would be a boring campaign unless you set it up with a lot of detail and probably multiple player races.

[DrBladeSTEEL]

NIDS! NIDS! NIDS! NIDS! NIDS! NIDS! NIDS! NIDS!

I'm really excited to see if/how imperial fleet doctrine adapts to the swarm.

[Kurt (OP)]

NIDS! NIDS! NIDS! NIDS! NIDS! NIDS! NIDS! NIDS!

I'm really excited to see if/how imperial fleet doctrine adapts to the swarm.

Hah!  The swarm's speed is terrifying.  The current standard fleet speed for Imperial ships is 6,000 km/s, way slower than the swarm, and even with next generation engines there is no way the Imperial's can boost their fleet speed to match the swarm without unsustainable and impractical levels of fuel use.  That means specialized ships, which means fighters and 1-2,000 ton interceptors.  The trial and error phase is going to be nerve-wracking.

[nuclearslurpee]

April 19, 2134:
Even as the battle raged in the Lacaille system, the courier from Shield Base arrived in the solar system with the news that aliens had been detected on the frontier.  This news galvanized the Navy and accelerated plans to enlarge Shield Base.  Instead of waiting for the civilian population of Shield Base to be large enough to support a ground-based maintenance facility, the Navy rushed an orbital maintenance base into production, along with a rest and recreation facility.  Once complete these would be towed to Shield Base so that major fleet units could be staged at the system.  In addition, two fleet scouts were dispatched to probe the system where the alien ships had been discovered. 

That's got to be a pretty big maintenance base if you can station "major fleet units" in a system with just one base! Though I suppose it does depend on the definition of "major"...

Suddenly, the attack ended when the alien attackers inflicted so much damage on the ship that it exploded, killing the crew and boarders alike. 

Lucky! Probably the best outcome, short of cheesing it with the Abandon Ship command. Perhaps even better here, as the exploded wreck is probably less valuable.

In light of the numbers, and the way the animalistic aliens attacked the scout, they immediately became known to the Imperial Navy as The Swarm.

Sticking with the classics I see.

Code: [Select]

[\code]
FYI, slight typo in the code block for the Planet Flight III class which obscures some narrative text.

The Flight II upgrade for the DDE adds the new IC fusion engines, improved maintenance capability, increased range, improved shielding, sensors, and EW systems.
[...]
the “b” variant removes the shield generators to add troop bays, and slightly increases the ship’s tankage.

I'd be concerned about removing the shields, which I think would be helpful against certain weapons of this new Swarm threat, but the shields on the original Flight II are frankly terrible so it is probably for the best.

Interceptor Flt V class Interceptor

15cmFUV Laser (1)    Range 300,000km     TS: 10,002 km/s     Power 6-6     RM 50,000 km    ROF 5       
Main Battery Fire Control MK III (1)     Max Range: 320,000 km   TS: 6,250 km/s    ECCM-2     97 94 91 88 84 81 78 75 72 69
Fighter Plasma IC Fusion Reactor (2)     Total Power Output 12    Exp 10%

I'm sure I mus be misreading this. A 2,000-ton ship with only one 15cm weapon but 2 reactors that each provide twice as much power as needed? Is there a typo here and the (1) after the laser name should be a (4)? 

Fleet Command was not happy with the resulting range, but was forced to accept it in exchange for the speed, which was faster than all known Swarm designs.
Code: [Select]

Interceptor Flt Vb class Interceptor      2,065 tons       45 Crew       743.2 BP       TCS 41    TH 575    EM 0
13929 km/s      Armour 6-14       Shields 0-0       HTK 13      Sensors 0/0/0/0      DCR 1-4      PPV 5
Maint Life 4.90 Years     MSP 337    AFR 23%    IFR 0.3%    1YR 23    5YR 348    Max Repair 287.5 MSP
Commander    Control Rating 1   BRG   
Intended Deployment Time: 1 months    Morale Check Required   

Hi Performance Inertial Fusion Drive Mk II (1)    Power 575.0    Fuel Use 320.91%    Signature 575.00    Explosion 23%
Fuel Capacity 500,000 Litres    Range 13.6 billion km (11 days at full power)

Fleet command is right to be unhappy here, with a size-10 engine and 10 HS of fuel this class is needlessly fuel-consuming and pricier than necessary to boot. You could get slightly better speed and more range with a size-15 engine at the same old 160% boost factor and 5 HS (250,000 L) of fuel, which is the "optimal" 3:1 engine-to-fuel ratio for Aurora. While usually you want to lean more to engines than this, for such a high-performance design I think the 3:1 ratio works well - but any less engine size in that ratio and it is only wasteful for worse performance. With the exception of carriers of course.

The Aegis class has a similar issue as well, I suspect once the shipbuilding bureau or department works this out they will have a much easier time reaching the high speeds they dream of fleet-wide.

Optional link to the math involved available on request. 

The Breaker class is intended to act in the same role as the Forward class, as a fleet-defense unit.  Unfortunately, fitting a gauss cannon into the small frame made the design larger than the other proposed designs, meaning fewer could be fit into a carrier. 

Angry Railgun Supremacist noises

Looking forward to seeing how this new fleet design holds up against this startling new threat! Hopefully well... but not too well! 

[Kurt (OP)]

April 19, 2134:
Even as the battle raged in the Lacaille system, the courier from Shield Base arrived in the solar system with the news that aliens had been detected on the frontier.  This news galvanized the Navy and accelerated plans to enlarge Shield Base.  Instead of waiting for the civilian population of Shield Base to be large enough to support a ground-based maintenance facility, the Navy rushed an orbital maintenance base into production, along with a rest and recreation facility.  Once complete these would be towed to Shield Base so that major fleet units could be staged at the system.  In addition, two fleet scouts were dispatched to probe the system where the alien ships had been discovered. 

That's got to be a pretty big maintenance base if you can station "major fleet units" in a system with just one base! Though I suppose it does depend on the definition of "major"...

It is currently big enough to handle two interceptor squadrons (~24,000t), a DD squadron (20,000t).  It will expand over the next several years to support a detachment of missile bases, but it will take some time before it is large enough to handle a major fleet deployment.   

Suddenly, the attack ended when the alien attackers inflicted so much damage on the ship that it exploded, killing the crew and boarders alike. 

Lucky! Probably the best outcome, short of cheesing it with the Abandon Ship command. Perhaps even better here, as the exploded wreck is probably less valuable.

In light of the numbers, and the way the animalistic aliens attacked the scout, they immediately became known to the Imperial Navy as The Swarm.

Sticking with the classics I see.

Code: [Select]

[\code]
FYI, slight typo in the code block for the Planet Flight III class which obscures some narrative text.

Ugh, thanks for pointing it out, that one slipped by me.  Fixed.

The Flight II upgrade for the DDE adds the new IC fusion engines, improved maintenance capability, increased range, improved shielding, sensors, and EW systems.
[...]
the “b” variant removes the shield generators to add troop bays, and slightly increases the ship’s tankage.

I'd be concerned about removing the shields, which I think would be helpful against certain weapons of this new Swarm threat, but the shields on the original Flight II are frankly terrible so it is probably for the best.

That was my feeling as well.  Eventually the fleet will probably decide to remove a weapon or two, and reduce the armor a bit, to make room for shields on all ships, but hasn't got there yet. 

Interceptor Flt V class Interceptor

15cmFUV Laser (1)    Range 300,000km     TS: 10,002 km/s     Power 6-6     RM 50,000 km    ROF 5       
Main Battery Fire Control MK III (1)     Max Range: 320,000 km   TS: 6,250 km/s    ECCM-2     97 94 91 88 84 81 78 75 72 69
Fighter Plasma IC Fusion Reactor (2)     Total Power Output 12    Exp 10%

I'm sure I mus be misreading this. A 2,000-ton ship with only one 15cm weapon but 2 reactors that each provide twice as much power as needed? Is there a typo here and the (1) after the laser name should be a (4)? 

I'm not sure why I did that.  Probably upgraded from an earlier design that required two reactors without paying attention to the total power required.  For story purposes I would call that redundancy. 

I typically take a hard look at my designs and intentions every couple of refits to make sure they still make sense, or if they can be optimized or re-tasked.  I probably should do that with the interceptors.  They were an emergency design early on, just to get an armed ship into space, and have been upgraded since then, but not really examined at a basic level.  In most of my other games, ships filling the interceptor role were usually 1,000 tons, but I couldn't really fit in what I wanted into a 1,000 ton hull this time around, so this is the result.  A 1,000 ton interceptor with a 10cm laser would probably be a better bet, or maybe a small plasma cannon.  I'll look at it next round of refits.   

Fleet Command was not happy with the resulting range, but was forced to accept it in exchange for the speed, which was faster than all known Swarm designs.
Code: [Select]

Interceptor Flt Vb class Interceptor      2,065 tons       45 Crew       743.2 BP       TCS 41    TH 575    EM 0
13929 km/s      Armour 6-14       Shields 0-0       HTK 13      Sensors 0/0/0/0      DCR 1-4      PPV 5
Maint Life 4.90 Years     MSP 337    AFR 23%    IFR 0.3%    1YR 23    5YR 348    Max Repair 287.5 MSP
Commander    Control Rating 1   BRG   
Intended Deployment Time: 1 months    Morale Check Required   

Hi Performance Inertial Fusion Drive Mk II (1)    Power 575.0    Fuel Use 320.91%    Signature 575.00    Explosion 23%
Fuel Capacity 500,000 Litres    Range 13.6 billion km (11 days at full power)

Fleet command is right to be unhappy here, with a size-10 engine and 10 HS of fuel this class is needlessly fuel-consuming and pricier than necessary to boot. You could get slightly better speed and more range with a size-15 engine at the same old 160% boost factor and 5 HS (250,000 L) of fuel, which is the "optimal" 3:1 engine-to-fuel ratio for Aurora. While usually you want to lean more to engines than this, for such a high-performance design I think the 3:1 ratio works well - but any less engine size in that ratio and it is only wasteful for worse performance. With the exception of carriers of course.

The Aegis class has a similar issue as well, I suspect once the shipbuilding bureau or department works this out they will have a much easier time reaching the high speeds they dream of fleet-wide.

Optional link to the math involved available on request. 

The Breaker class is intended to act in the same role as the Forward class, as a fleet-defense unit.  Unfortunately, fitting a gauss cannon into the small frame made the design larger than the other proposed designs, meaning fewer could be fit into a carrier. 

Angry Railgun Supremacist noises

Looking forward to seeing how this new fleet design holds up against this startling new threat! Hopefully well... but not too well! 

I am feeling my way through introducing carrier stuff into the campaign, and the missile rules are completely new to me.  Currently the Terrans are using really basic missile designs, without decoys or embellishments.  That will change in the coming years, of course, as the dreaded Xenos teach them new lessons. 

[Garfunkel]

Great battle!

[Kurt (OP)]

Great battle!

Thanks!  That battle was interesting for me.  I realized I had become very risk-adverse when the long-range missiles first started arriving and I immediately ordered the fleet to turn back.  The first time I did that a couple of game years ago it made sense.  The empire was in the midst of a critical resource shortage and likely wouldn't have been able to replace any major losses any time soon.  And the Empire had little experience with missile defense. 

Now, though, its different.  The resource shortage was mostly alleviated although always a concern, and the Imperial's have way more experience with missile defense.  I still screwed up.  One of the reasons for building and deploying the Forward class attack fighters was to boost fleet point defense capability, and I forgot to deploy them with the fleet because I decided to hold the carriers back from the battle. 

It worked though, once I found my courage and ordered the advance!

[Garfunkel]

Easy victory on the ground, though naturally the casualties asking the oldest formations were pretty heavy.

[Kurt (OP)]

Easy victory on the ground, though naturally the casualties asking the oldest formations were pretty heavy.

Yeah, it went better than I expected.  It was also the first time I felt even a little like I knew what I was doing in a ground assault.  It helps that it wasn't a home world attack, I guess, and also that 70 Ophiuchi II has no remarkable ground terrain. 

[KriegsMeister]

Finally caught up on your wonderful story, loved most of it but did find myself confused at times trying to remember who you were fighting with the repetitive naming alien ships with the NATO phonetic alphabet. While a logical and practical manner, did have me confused at times. So I compiled a collection of other phonetic spelling alphabets, both alternate English and several other languages. You could use these to keep the same pattern but better differentiate between various alien races.