Ship design: power requirements

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paShadoWn
Posts: 70
Joined: Mon Jun 10, 2013 8:07 am

Ship design: power requirements

Post by paShadoWn »

After experimenting with loadouts i had found another flaw in autodesigns besides lack of shields: they lack weapons too.

When putting weapons on ships you should look not on the remaining power produced, but on power capacity. Power capacity is what defines the size of your opening salvo aka alphastrike. So if your reactors give say 62 free power and 360 capacity, you can load up to 360 max power used weapons.
It is especially viable on slow reload weapons like rockets. If they reload 3 seconds you get 3 times free power for your next salvo. In our case it is 186. So you will have all your rockets fire in alphastrike and half of them in consecutive salvoes. Minus some 20 drain of cruise engines which makes it a third. Thats a lot more rockets than if you will put only 62 max power of them.
Practice shows that alphastrike of such proportions devastates the target unless you face looted dred.
Another factor to consider is the delay when switching targets which often makes for repeated alphastrikes.
You should observe your designs in combat, and if power gauge isnt always empty you have too little weapons.
Do not hesitate to flee.
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Plant
Posts: 418
Joined: Tue Apr 23, 2013 11:57 am

RE: Ship design: power requirements

Post by Plant »

Are you talking about the energy storage? Generally speaking, the energy storage is about double the energy output so this only applies to weapons with a fire rate of more than 2 seconds. But designing for energy storage instead of energy output for those weapons will mean that those weapons will only have a good first strike capability, but there will be less of those weapons for damage over time, as you have taken up space with more reactors.

So I guess what you mean is that for certain weapons, if you want to be able to shoot with all the weapons in one go, you must design with more reactors. Only that space is limited, so there will be less weapons. So, they don't lack weapons, they lack reactors. Well autodesign makes no sense in general, since some designs will not have enough energy for continuous fire of all the weapon, so they lack reactors, not weapons.

If you design your won ships anyways, you'll find that your designs should have less space for weapons, unless you are aiming for more range rather than more shields.
paShadoWn
Posts: 70
Joined: Mon Jun 10, 2013 8:07 am

RE: Ship design: power requirements

Post by paShadoWn »

My usual designs are railguns which have 1 or 2 second recharge. Thing is you cant fill to cap already 3 reactors on early sizes so you do not need more reactors design. And railguns are capable of taking out average ships in one salvo because of dope shield bypass. With heavy railguns you will be able to fire about 2/3 of them in consecutive volleys. Space is limited because naff designs are a) not ackdarian b) have junk in there like 18 thrusters or god save you troop modules.
Do not hesitate to flee.
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