[GZG] Microcarriers (was: NewCampaign)

Well, I've got a long and storied history of carrier tactics in this game
before my old gaming group broke up, so I figure I'll give my $0.05 (adjusted
for inflation over the years) on this...

[quoted original message omitted]

In our rules Heavy is a modification to a fighter type and just provides

extra defences for a specific type of fighter. Fast is also a modification in
this case it gives the attack fighters a primary move of 36 MU.

So a heavy attack fighter is an attack fighter that has a -1 drm against
it when shot at by PDS weapons.

Torpedo fighters are more effective (and out own created MKP fighters) are
nasty against enemy capital ships but not so against multiple smaller ships.
Attack fighters are better against 3 frigates and effective enough against a
light cruiser over multiple turns.

The mass 13 carriers carry 1 squadron each and about 75% of their cost is
their fighter squadron.

We wanted to play games more than worry about repair / rearm logistics
so ships that suffer hull damage or need to replenish expendable munitions can
do so with a penalty to their strategic movement.

I had about 9 squadrons of normal fighters defending my ships ad was attacked
by 29 squadrons of attack fighters. Assuming my defending fighters got average
kills, so 21 fighters and some from scatter packs on my ships that left about
140 fighters to attack me. Against my unshielded ships each attack fighter
does about 1 point of damage per fighter so thats about 140 points of damage
to absorb at about 30% mass on hull and armour thats about 500 mass dead then
and there.

Next turn thats aboout 120 fighters and so on. It's pretty brutal really.

We do treat fighter pilots as expendable munitions, Carriers regularly dump
and run. I fact quite a popular tactic is to drop out of hyper space, launch
fighters and then warm up the FTL and then jump. It's pretty effective against
fortifications as is a similar attack by missile equipped fleets.

It's perfectly viable so you need to work out a way to counter it, there are a
number of them.

We did a simlar campaign. One big difference is we paid for expendables. It
makes a huge balance difference. I play FSE with fighters. I initially was top
dog, but supply issues were my bane.
The book-keeping was no worse than the non-fighter fleets had.

Roger

> On 10/2/07, john tailby <John_Tailby@xtra.co.nz> wrote:
are
> nasty against enemy capital ships but not so against multiple smaller

[quoted original message omitted]

Hi

We play scatter packs against ordinance does D3 hits and against heavy
fighters is D3-1.

We do have multirole fighter technology.

Unfortunately I didn't chose that technology so I don't have that capability.

My fighters are robots and don't even get the luxury of internal hanger bays
so I can't refuel them in a tactical battle.However racks only take up 6

mass so I get 50% more

I am not convinced that people should "pay" for expenable munitions in a

campaign. In order for that to balance out they would have to be significantly
better on the tactical map or they would just become marginalised.

Its often difficult to take a tactical combat game and try and translate it
into a campaing game when the points are balanced for the tactical game. I
think the points are ballanced for the tactical game so we don't need to

handicap players further. Also what is the cost of the expendible munition?
For fighters it's a bit visible but for missiles and MKPs its not.

In this campaign we have 10 players each with their own fleet, there are

some similarities but plenty of variation.

There have been some fun battles so far.

> Hi

Well, at the end of the day that last sentence is the one that REALLY
matters....   :-)

> There have been some fun battles so far.
it's also inspired people to get new fleets of models.

The new NSL ships look really good painted up. The new FSE ones look fine too.

Nothing beats a nicely presented wargame.

> >>There have been some fun battles so far.

That's great to hear - I'd love to see some photos if you get the
chance.....

> Nothing beats a nicely presented wargame.

Absolutely, that's why we push toys around instead of squares of
cardboard!  ;-)