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[NikolaiLev]

Another interesting read, Alex.  One thing I noticed is that you're very concerned about "gameing" the system.  Exploiting the mechanics in an artificial way.  This is a very good philosophy regarding game mechanics.  But, I have one concern:

Is it going to be possible to use hit-and-run tactics with a smaller fleet to grind down a large opposing fleet?  This is something I was very much looking forward to when strategic aspects like this came into play, but from what I'm seeing this might not be at all possible or feasible.

Eventually, if played carefully, a smaller fleet should be able to carefully whittle down an opposing fleet, but it shouldn't have to be ship-by-ship.  Maybe CR should be deducted according to damage taken (or is this already the case?)

[Alex]

Another interesting read, Alex.  One thing I noticed is that you're very concerned about "gameing" the system.  Exploiting the mechanics in an artificial way.  This is a very good philosophy regarding game mechanics.  But, I have one concern:

Is it going to be possible to use hit-and-run tactics with a smaller fleet to grind down a large opposing fleet?  This is something I was very much looking forward to when strategic aspects like this came into play, but from what I'm seeing this might not be at all possible or feasible.

Eventually, if played carefully, a smaller fleet should be able to carefully whittle down an opposing fleet, but it shouldn't have to be ship-by-ship.  Maybe CR should be deducted according to damage taken (or is this already the case?)

Fun question

For a smaller fleet trying to whittle down a large one, I think the most viable way would be indirect, by disrupting its lines of supply - supposing that's an option and the large fleet isn't operating in home territory within easy reach of friendly bases.

There is some CR deduction for having weapons/engines disabled in combat (applied afterwards), so that could be a way to do what you're describing. Really, though, if you're at a point where you're dealing significant enough damage to achieve that, you're probably also at a point where you could take down the whole ship.

On the whole, being able to grind down a fleet without facing its ships in battle is something to be very careful of. If the design allows that, then it might also allow bypassing battle altogether if whatever strategies explicitly allow for that are taken far enough. If they're longer term and take time to play out in the campaign, that's one thing. If they consist of just carefully selecting options in the encounter dialog, that's another thing entirely.

I've also got some vague ideas about encounter options (perhaps unlocked by skills) that would allow a smaller fleet to isolate a portion of a larger one to fight against. It's not something I want to start out with, though, but something I'm going to keep in mind in case the campaign shapes up in a way that makes adding something like that desirable.

[CrashToDesktop]

Well, if you've got a lot of small ships, then I'm sure you could afford to use hit-and-run tactics.  Like it said, smaller ships regain CR faster than larger ones, so I'd say it's viable.

EDIT:
Travel drives, escape scenarios, and boarding, eh? Sounds interestings, and I'm sure we're all looking forward to the boarding part!

[Alex]

A large ship that's being so harassed can "stand down" after the engagement ends and regain CR. Unless the harassing side is losing enough ships or dealing enough damage to ensure that the CR recovery from "stand down" isn't complete.

[harperrb]

Alex, you hit a high note each update.

Can't wait.

[Gothars]

Well, we knew the rough outline from the patchnotes but the details sound good, too  The choice between acquiring additional supplies and getting back CR sounds interesting. Is there anything to make sure that I get more supplies with "salvage" than restoring the CR with "stand down" would save me? Or at least, is there some kind of indicator that shows me when that would be the case? I can imagine that "salvage" could easily have the higher supply loss if I over-deployed against a weak enemy, and that would be kinda false advertising.


On a side note: Maybe use some other word than "harry", I had to look it up, too. "Hamper" the retreating fleet? Or just use harass again, the two options (harass and harry) seem to do the exact same thing.

Sounds interesting, and I'm sure we're all looking forward to the boarding part!

Ay, fingers crossed

[PCCL]

well, I imagine salvage nets you weapons, which are worth so much more than supplies that CR cost shouldn't be a problem there

[Gothars]

Depends, say I just attacked a empty cargo convoy armed with few weapons, or I am traveling alone in a cruiser and fought a frigate. Then there will likely be situations where I am far away from any station and need supplies badly, in that case some weapon drops would not help me.
It's something to consider.

[PCCL]

that's a fair point...

speaking of which, will there be a way to stop CR regeneration to conserve supplies for accident aversion and such?

[BillyRueben]

Since there is a way to stop repairs to conserve supplies, I would imagine a way to stop CR regeneration would also be an option.

[sdmike1]

Can I just say that I love the amount of blog posts as of late

Can I also just say that this is a stroke of genius, but like I think you said, the UI could use a little polish

[mostmodest]

harry

Harrying is very similar to Edding, yet slightly different to Steveing.
I hope I clarified things for you.


OT:
I quite like the new combat mechanism, and I can't wait to play it.
It seems every time I see a new blog post, my anticipation for the next update increases tenfold.
Anywho, I can't wait for v0.6a, and I wish you the best of luck with your production of this game.

[sdmike1]

For a smaller fleet trying to whittle down a large one, I think the most viable way would be indirect, by disrupting its lines of supply - supposing that's an option and the large fleet isn't operating in home territory within easy reach of friendly bases.

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Does this mean that there is a chance of multiple fleets or being able to have convoys that can drop off supplies directly to different fleets, because that would be very cool!

Totally expecting a lol

[DelicateTask]

One thing about engagements that has always bothered me. When you attack another fleet, they become your destination on the campaign map. After the battle, you have to accelerate again from a stop. What if there were other fleets chasing you? You'll likely get caught by them before you can get up to full speed. I think that a fleet that successfully escapes from a battle should receive a large boost to acceleration and maybe even top speed for several seconds after a battle. If you've escaped, you're already running away at top speed and already have momentum. To go from that to nearly stationary on the campaign screen is both stupid and has the potential to compound your problems by immediately encountering another fleet. At the very least, perhaps an escape could increase the period of invincibility where you can't engage another fleet.

[Decer304]

So i can technically defeat a big fleet with one ship by just retreating and challenging every time now?