RE: Capital Ships in Campeign Games

After hearing much debate about this question I think I can (or maybe
should)
offer some thoughts on the problem (situation)

1) If this is just a one off battle hey let them power game unless you
want 
to limit the scope.
2) I thought the idea from the Full thrust book for the Lafayette
Incident
was a good idea.  State that no more than half the ships can be of a
single
type.  This still leads to lots of heavies.

If you are doing a campagin game let the guy have lots of heavies.  I
can 
build two to three times the number of cruisers (and alot more
destroyers).
this allows me to do two things.  A) When he has his ships off attacking

one of my planets I will be able to take two (or more) of his because he

does not have that heavy of a guard up on the planets.	I can also take 
two to three times the number of planets at the start of the game and
also
get alot more resource points and shipyards built.  The population of
the 
planet has to do something (ie build ships for me)>  B) I can always get

behind him and blast away with impunity.  The other advantage is I can
come
in from several directions (more ships) and hit him from behind.  C)  I
will
always have more ships and if he loses one of his (even if I loose two
or 
three) I can have at least two (probably more) rebuilt before he does. 
A
ship being built in a dock is worthless in an engagement.

Does this mean that capital ships should not be built.	NO.
It does mean that a balanced force is of much better use.  Again to 
look at the statistics from WWII.  We built 141 Carriers (most of them 
escort carriers, but about twenty were larger), ten (10) battleships.
48 cruisers, 349 destroyers, 498 escorts (DE, DDE, corvets) and 203
submarines.

A couple suggestions for those that want to limit the number and type of
vessels.
1) Follow the idea in the Lafayette Incident.
2) Put a percent limitation like only 40 (50) percent points can be
capital
   ships.
3) Limit the amount of points that can be constructed in a given period.
(this should encouragea more balanced fleet)

Cheers...John