Re: RE-[FT]Command firecon

>Why not allow the ships to fire at the same time?, as long as the
target is
>within the range of  the firing ships. This would have advantages if
you do
>not use simutaneous firing, but would also, if firing most or all of
your
>weapons, leave you vulnerable to any counter fire from other ships and
>unable to respond.

First: having ships fire at the same time would make the system 
virtually impossible to balance. Having more than one ship fire out 
of sequence is a major advantage, as you can destroy smaller ships 
and/or cause threshold checks that will leave the opposing ship 
unable to respond.

Take the example of a strikeboat squadron loaded with submunitions 
packs. In a normal "I go/U go" sequence, some of the small ships are 
going to be killed before they can unload their ordnance; with CFC, 
all of them would be able to fire "first" (assuming the CFC ship is 
not eliminated by the first shot IF you lost the initiative). At that 
point, destroying them is a empty victory.

Second: with the exception of Class 1 batteries, which can be used as 
PDS in a pinch, I'm not sure how firing first leaves you vulnerable 
to return fire. SMLs, Plasma Bolts, and fighters are the only things 
that allow defensive fire, and they all make their attacks before the 
Ships Fire Phase of the turn.

Being "unable to respond" is actually a good thing. It means that all 
your weapons have had a chance to do their damage. The specter of a 
looming threshold check taking out that important Class 3 or FireCon 
is gone (for this turn at least). This is why choosing the order in 
which your ships exchange fire is an important part of the game.