Battlestations

[Urban Ranger]

Originally posted by Skanky Burns
While they can easily be captured, at least they can't be used against you that battle.

Don't they get destroyed if they are captured, if you win the battle?

[Urban Ranger]

Originally posted by moominparatrooper
Yeah, but by then you should be sporting auto-fire disruptors anyway.

Nah, auto-fire shield-piercing phasors.

[vmxa1]

Yes captured star bases or BS are lost after the battle regardless of who wins.

[Garth Vader]

I prefer AF Disruptors, although unless you have the High energy focus they won't penetrate a fully shielded planet.

[moomin]

One of the more irritating trait of the game. Capturing would be worthwhile if you could keep'em.

[Skanky Burns]

At least you can keep ships that you capture (although you can't refit them)

[moomin]

Yes, but ten AI ships are mostly worthless. You can always scrap them and hope for tech, I suppose.

Capturing SB/BS/SFs would make the boarding game worthwhile. These things give insta-CP after all.

[Skanky Burns]

Capturing Antaran ships is always fun (when you can)

But yes, otherwise they are just a source of funds, and sometimes tech.

[ravagon]

Captured ships also seem to act as a meat shield. AI ships target these first over almost all else. Have one in your fleet, run it to the rear and you can absorb the entirety of a couple of fire phases worth of enemy beams and missiles if you're lucky.
Meanwhile your ships are targetting the enemy from point blank.
This sorta seems a bit cheesy though.

Antaran ships are great. If you manage to reverse-engineer their shield damper and combine it with auto-repair and one or both of heavy armour/hull you have ships that can absorb an unbelievable ammount of damage. Displacement devices - although a bit late in the game - would make this combo even better.

[vmxa1]

I should try a few of he different combos for ships. Normally I only put Heavy Armor, Battle Scanner and Battle Pods in ships smaller than titan class. In titans I will add one or two items, but not always. I will go to Orion and get the X-armor (most of the time)so I do not need much else. Anyway since I am only making BB class, I can afford to lose one once in awhile.

[moomin]

Originally posted by ravagon
Captured ships also seem to act as a meat shield. AI ships target these first over almost all else. Have one in your fleet, run it to the rear and you can absorb the entirety of a couple of fire phases worth of enemy beams and missiles if you're lucky.
Meanwhile your ships are targetting the enemy from point blank.
This sorta seems a bit cheesy though.

Hey, I didn't think of that, although now that you've said it I rather think it works that way from wht limited experience I have of using captures.

I suppose I'll have to try it as a strategy tonight. You're to blame for me breaking this self-enforce MOO abstinence, you know!

[ravagon]

Originally posted by moominparatrooper
You're to blame for me breaking this self-enforce MOO abstinence, you know!

I will take that as the compliment it is.

Just don't tell Vel!

[The Mad Monk]

It looks to me as if the AI will always target the ships with the lowest hull point / size ratio (that is, they will target titans without superior armor and HA/RH before destroyers with those items, even if the titans have more overall HPs); I think captured ships are targeted by AI because the HP/S ratio on those ships is usually pretty stinky. OTOH, the AI will target ships captured in that battle with absolute preference.

[moomin]

That actually makes some sense, since they may have juicy tech tha AI would rather not share with you. A competent AI decision, albeit a exploitable one...

[ravagon]

I'd tend to think the targetting of new captures is more likely a result of the no armour/hull thing and the closer proximity to AI forces, rather than a concerted effort on the AI's part to deny tech ...
ie: I don't think its that smart.