RE: Small Ships--Why?

<de-lurk, de-work>

On Fri, 22 Jun 2001, Eli Arndt wrote:
> 
> > "David Rodemaker" <dar@horusinc.com> <gzg-l@csua.berkeley.edu> RE:
Small Ships--Why?Date: Fri, 22 Jun 2001 10:00:24 -0500
> >Reply-To: gzg-l@csua.berkeley.edu
> >
[snip!]
> 
> In short, small ships are only useful in the real world or in attempts
to simulate similar situations.

I have to take object with "only" clause. The last time this thread
came up I noted I had recently been in a battle with Noam (an NAC-NI
Exercise). Due to our speeds and Noam's NI designs, the NAC had a very
difficult time of it. However, after Noam killed most of my escorts,
he ignored the remaining (granted, very damaged) ones in favor of
drilling my larger ships. This allowed at least one frigate to get guns
back online and maneuver to a position where it was able to skewer a
couple of Noam's ships (one of the few major Teske Field experiences
I've
had :), waking him up to the frigate's existence and pulling fire away
from the larger ships. I don't recall if the frigate ultimately died or
limped away with a box or two remaining, but it did its job by drawing
fire onto itself (and at the same time, damaged the opposing side).

If you ask a sailor on a real escort, they'll tell you (well, the ones
I spoke with, anyway; my brother serves on a frigate, currently the
Halyburton) that their entire main purpose in life is to draw fire away
from the larger ships. So that's how I play 'em: draw fire from the
larger ships, and if they get into weapons range, damage what they can
before they're smacked aside. 

An alternative tactic to use, if you don't want to lose the escorts
early, is to have them TRAIL the larger ships, not lead them into
battle. This way they can't be picked off early. Then when in range,
dash to the front and start hitting things. Now your opponent has
multiple targets to deal with, and some decisions to make (continue
targetting the larger ships, or start focusing on the small fry?).

Mk