On another note regarding 'D' ships:That is what the D stands for! "Destroy me" or "Destroy on sight"
- I blow them up on sight
I'll post my fleet in a bit, but thought this might be a nice place to say this:
Has anyone ever fitted a Vigilance Frigate with a Reaper Torpedo Launcher? That thing is downright deadly when in the hands of the AI - they will hunt down destroyers and cruisers mercilessly and throw 4 or 5 torpedoes down your throat without a second thought.
Cash in hand: 3,017,642
Fleet:
- 1xOnslaught
- 1xDominator
- 2xEnforcer
- 2xMedua
- 1xHammerhead
- 1xGemini
- 1xWolf
- 4xAssorted fighter/bomber
...
Is highly profitable: Check
...
Cash in hand: 3,017,642
Fleet:
- 1xOnslaught
- 1xDominator
- 2xEnforcer
- 2xMedua
- 1xHammerhead
- 1xGemini
- 1xWolf
- 4xAssorted fighter/bomber
...
Is highly profitable: Check
...
How in pluperfect hell is a fleet that big "highly profitable"? In fact, how is it not just one gigantic neverending money sink?
How are there enough supplies and fuel in the universe to support a fleet that big?
Do you just stay in one system all the time? If so, how do you turn a profit when there aren't any bounties (most of the time)? Do you just wait around at one port or another, speeding up time, waiting for bounties? Is one of the systems capable of producing half enough supplies to keep a fleet that big afloat?
I can't find out how to make it worth having a single cruiser class ship, even just by itself, due to a combination of the expense and lack of availability of supplies and fuel, and lack of constant , decent money source within a single system.
well there are a few things needed to make this fleet profitable. First of all as your fleet grows the enemy pirate bounty fleets grow as well, as the enemy pirate fleets grow as does the price on their head.
I'm currently looking at bounties of around 260,000 before additional in-system faction bounties on any enemies. You can easily earn about 350,000 for a single target fleet - this more than covers loss of a few frigates and destroyer etc. that you incur during the fight and need to replace. It also covers fuel, supples, repairs and tarrifs. It still stings when I get pinged by a patrol, but I can absorb that loss as well.
The other thing is to keep on moving from system to system, lawn mowing the profitable bounties. You don't stop to dawdle or take in the sights, you are an industrial scale murder machine - production cannot stop for long. You repair, refuel then head off to another system.
To maintain a high CR for repeated deployments you need to retain highly trained crew, in which case I often use hull/armor/bulkhead mods to reduce loss of well trained crew.
well there are a few things needed to make this fleet profitable. First of all as your fleet grows the enemy pirate bounty fleets grow as well, as the enemy pirate fleets grow as does the price on their head.
Aren't the bounty fleet sizes tied to your character level?
well there are a few things needed to make this fleet profitable. First of all as your fleet grows the enemy pirate bounty fleets grow as well, as the enemy pirate fleets grow as does the price on their head.
Aren't the bounty fleet sizes tied to your character level?
Neither! Bounties for specific pirates (or deserters) go up after you complete some. The amount paid also depends on the stability of the market offering the bounty, higher stability = higher bounty.
I'd love to see some single-ship bounties in the future where the enemy is just one dude in a big heavily customized ship being a menace that must be stopped.
Imagine getting that big fat 250k payoff only if you can manage to defeat some legendary captain of an overclocked paragon.
Will there be opportunities to 'turn' named characters (perhaps even bounties, if you stage their death and get them a fake ID) to your side? Or to bring them in, even, rather than the Wild West 'Wanted: Dead' situation we have now? The astounding intelligence network every faction seems to have that can verify a kill are nice and all, but it feels kind of flat at the moment.
Oh, it's hardly ideal, but for a while I was using an Onslaught/Eagle/Enforcer/Vigilance/Wolf, all acquired in exactly the reverse order they're listed in. Might've had a few shuttles thrown in as well. I'm a big fan of putting 4 Harpoon racks on the Enforcer, with or without points in missile spec - it really packs a punch! It might be my favorite first destroyer to upgrade to.Or three harpoon pods on a Dominator! Those things on enemy Doms are EVIL! Those Missiles LOVE to Massacre you Macross style when you have very high flux
As far as the fleet composition, though, it was more about "what works and is available" rather than "what's ideal" :)
Ah yes, harpoon spam... That has damn near killed me more times than I can count...Spoiler(http://i.imgur.com/J2Xis3g.jpg)[close]
I used to have an Onslaught, but it took a pair of Reapers in the face while fighting another Onslaught. And before that, I had a Dominator and a Falcon, but I somehow managed to underestimate the enemy's Harpoon spam twice in a single battle and they both died (I also lost a Heron in that battle, but it was under AI control).
Spoiler(http://i.imgur.com/J2Xis3g.jpg)[close]
I used to have an Onslaught, but it took a pair of Reapers in the face while fighting another Onslaught
Here's my current fleet. I think I could fit the fleet screen into 3 or 4 screenshots, but it's much easier to do it this way.Ummm, I THINK you have a ship hoarding problem my friend...
That's 3 Cruisers, 6 Destroyers, 15 Frigates, 22 Strikecraft, 1 Shuttle, and 1 Tug.Spoiler(http://i.imgur.com/aGQhMc3.png)[close]
Ummm, I THINK you have a ship hoarding problem my friend...
Also, how many Drams do you burn when traveling in hyperspace?
Edit: Also, SPOILER that image please?
I don't need any Drams, my ships carry plenty of fuel. I burn 77/day or something like that, though, but I travel at burn speed 9. If I did need some Drams it wouldn't be a big deal, I have room to add them in.Interestingly enough, ship range and actual burn speed are independent of one another. The fuel a ship requires to cover a given distance is constant, and so while burn speed affects the rate of fuel consumption, it does not affect ship range. If you were to drop your tug, you'd see your fuel consumption rate change. If you're close enough to a jump point that you don't get the burn speed boost from being in hyperspace, you'll see a different fuel consumption rate than you'll see if you're far enough away from the jump point to get that burn speed boost.
I believe that fuel consumption rate is based on set speed of 1 lightyear (cannot properly recall the translation to Burn Level). True consumption is rate multiplied by lightyear.I don't need any Drams, my ships carry plenty of fuel. I burn 77/day or something like that, though, but I travel at burn speed 9. If I did need some Drams it wouldn't be a big deal, I have room to add them in.Interestingly enough, ship range and actual burn speed are independent of one another. The fuel a ship requires to cover a given distance is constant, and so while burn speed affects the rate of fuel consumption, it does not affect ship range. If you were to drop your tug, you'd see your fuel consumption rate change. If you're close enough to a jump point that you don't get the burn speed boost from being in hyperspace, you'll see a different fuel consumption rate than you'll see if you're far enough away from the jump point to get that burn speed boost.
Interestingly enough, ship range and actual burn speed are independent of one another. The fuel a ship requires to cover a given distance is constant, and so while burn speed affects the rate of fuel consumption, it does not affect ship range. If you were to drop your tug, you'd see your fuel consumption rate change. If you're close enough to a jump point that you don't get the burn speed boost from being in hyperspace, you'll see a different fuel consumption rate than you'll see if you're far enough away from the jump point to get that burn speed boost.
One Hyperion might be able to solo that deserter fleet single-handedly, but barely (due to CR timer). That said, eight Onslaughts is a nice show of force.
One Hyperion might be able to solo that deserter fleet single-handedly, but barely (due to CR timer). That said, eight Onslaughts is a nice show of force.
It's the quick and easy path for me every time; if a battle takes more than 60 seconds, I've failed ;D
Though it's certainly worth mentioning that, due to the flawed 'dribs & drabs' way the AI deploys ships, large fleets are more challenging to defeat if you yourself have a large fleet.
This really needs to be changed. AI should always when fighting a player deploy all his ships, but also cheat a little so he doesnt lose in huge amount CRI cannot really agree with this sentiment. The computer should deploy an appropriate force for each engagement, plus some margin of superiority ideally dependent upon how safe the fleet feels, how much it needs to conserve supplies, faction wealth, faction power, and faction standard response levels. No one in their right mind should be deploying fleets of battleships to engage a handful of light ships that the destroyer screen should be able to deal with. If the screening light ships have trouble dealing with a small group of light ships, that's when the big ships should start coming into play. By the same token, an attack by heavy ships ought to be met by a similarly powerful force of heavy ships and supporting lighter vessels, if available.