Re: Tenders, among other things

> Micheal,

> Gunboats and Weapons - Mass  Weapons	#per ship
>			  2	 1	18 
Um, these numbers don't look consistent.
>			  3	 1	12
>			  4	 3	 9
>			  5	 4	 7
>			  6	 4	 6
>      If one wishes to follow the carrier rules for the gunboat
>      concept, only 2 per turn can be launched.  This means that 
>      mass 4, 5, and 6 are the most realistic options during
>      a normal game.	(The chart above is only a suggestion and
>      not necessarily what is normally used or preferred.)  

I thought you couldn't have odd massed ships.  Oh well.
I thought that 1.5 mass available for weapons would round
up to two, that was why I thought 2 mass gunboats would
be effective.  Versus a Dreadnought with 3 firecontrol, it
doesn't matter how many weapons he's got, he can only kill
3 per round.  If you can't swamp the fire control you may as
well look for different break points, like a Mass 10 cloaking
gunboat with 3 missiles and a C Battery.
> 
> Light carrier vs Gunboats and tender - I one did something
>     similar, Tender mass 36, 7 mass 5 gunboats, point cost about
>     550 to 600 points, it was a one turn combat.   Tender/cruiser

That is the limitation of most missile-gunboat concepts.  If
they don't completely kill their opponents they let their team
down.  

>     33% damaged, 6 of 7 gunboats destroyed, all in all very 
>     satisfactory result for an experiment.  The Superdreadnought
>     was at almost 50% and the Fleet carrier was Past 25%.
>     I wound up losing one of the two battleships in my following
>     force (to fighters) and finished the Superdreadnought.
>     (I considered the battle a draw.)

I wonder what sorts of initial conditions make a big difference.
I assume the tender drops off the gunboats as soon as it comes
out of hyper, so unless the enemy fleet is right on top of him
this part isn't a problem.  Would you tell us a bit more about
this battle?

If the gunboats are simply part of a larger force, perhaps it
would be better if they had Electromagnetic Pulse Missiles or
Needle Missiles targeting Shields.  A long range AA battery
engagement could be very unpleasant if one side has level 3
shields and you have none!  The larger the ship you are targetting,
the more you want EMP missiles or Needle Missiles instead of
just going for the damage.

>     (My money is on the carrier if it is built at thrust 5.)
>     Victory conditions - The gunboats are not FTL and cannot 
>     claim a victory unless they are in a friendly system.
>     (Those who wish to claim victory, please stand up!)

Why does having the carrier at a high thrust help so much?
> John L.

I wonder how much a difference it makes if the support battleships
are attacking at the same time as the missile gunboats.  The
defense used against fighters use a different fire control, so
if you can time it right so your gunboats hit at the same time
as the rest of the fleet then your opponent has to choose between
letting your battleships get a free shot or swat the gunboats.

Michael Sandy