docking bays on ships

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endoric_MatrixForum
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docking bays on ships

Post by endoric_MatrixForum »

i am confused. i know the more docking bays ion a star base or resupply ship the better, but if i put one on a ship does it help the ship refuel faster? the description can be interpreted as helping ships as well as bases.

thanks
Panpiper
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by Panpiper »

I do not know the answer to your question, but in regard to your comment, "i know the more docking bays ion a star base or resupply ship the better", I am pretty sure there is an upper limit to that utility. I have 30 docking bays on the large starport on my homeworld, and as far as I can tell, it has never been backlogged for docking space. A resupply ship with more docking space than the number of ships in the fleet it intends to refuel has more docking space than it needs.

As for docking space on your ships, that would certainly be useful if we had civilian ships that went around supplying fuel, but as far as I know, there is no mechanic for that. I doubt that gas mining ships would think to drop off part of their load at a ship that needed fuel as opposed to a starport.
endoric_MatrixForum
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by endoric_MatrixForum »

i was thinking that maybe a docking bay enhances the input, the description can be read that way. So in your experience it is pointless to put a docking bay on a ship as it only has to do with output of fuel and supplies not the receiving of it?
Panpiper
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by Panpiper »

I suspect it is pointless as there is no ship that I know of that will automatically dock in order to 'deliver' fuel to another ship. Gas miners and freighters deliver to spaceports. Ships pick up fuel themselves from spaceports, gas mine bases and resupply ships. But it is the ships needing fuel that do the docking on those things and it is therefore the spaceports, gas mine bases and resupply ships that need the docking bays, not the ships who need fuel.
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ehsumrell1
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by ehsumrell1 »

There is no need for the docking bay on a military ship (except as explained for a Resupplyship,
which could be classified as a military ship [or Base even] when armed.

The more docking bays on a base both increases the amount and speed of cargo throughput with
freighters/miners when docked as well as increases the capacity to fuel more vessels simultaneously. [:)]
Shields are useless in "The Briar Patch"...
WarDad
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by WarDad »

I put docking bays on my mining ships. I had an early war with a neighbor. A severe steel shortage. One mining ship had 2k steel on board and was still happly chewing away on an asteroid. No freighter would pick up the steel. The miner still had room in the cargo bay. There was no way to call it back to port.
Now I build them with just one extra bay and 2-3 extra extractors. It's better to have regular deliveries than stall out early game.

Likewise, I tried putting extractors on construction ships. The cargo bays filled up and construction would stall. Freighters would not pick up the excess cargo, and refueling at a space port didn't help. Only refitting the ships fix the issue. So, I'm back to watching out of fuel construction ships being beat up by pirates.
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jpwrunyan
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by jpwrunyan »

I just want to say as an aside that state controlled mining ships are one of this game's best kept secrets.
WarDad
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by WarDad »

How would you do a State Controlled Mining Ship?
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jpwrunyan
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by jpwrunyan »

Simple, put a mining comp on it and some storage bays and the game gives you options for "mine this planet" when you move the cursor over a neutral planet. The design type doesnt matter but I designate them as frigates. In a pinch these ships can be used to overcome resources shortages.
w1p
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by w1p »

Do they automatically return their mined goods to the nearest planet / starport?
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jpwrunyan
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by jpwrunyan »

Yes.
I dont know how to get them to drop off goods until their holds are full though so I currently only give them one hold.
Having at least one of these ships at the start of the game guarantees you wont stall on production. Very nice if you want to rush some research or resort bases first thing. Needless to say colony ships.
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Wild_Bill
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by Wild_Bill »

jp, would you give a from-the-keel-up description of one of your State-Owned mining ship designs please? The concept seems awfully handy.
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Carewolf
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by Carewolf »

ORIGINAL: jpwrunyan

Simple, put a mining comp on it and some storage bays and the game gives you options for "mine this planet" when you move the cursor over a neutral planet. The design type doesnt matter but I designate them as frigates. In a pinch these ships can be used to overcome resources shortages.

Frigate? They are obviously destroyers, Asteroid destroyers!
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Jeeves
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by Jeeves »

I want to hear details about the design of these state owned mining ships, and how to manage them. This idea is new to me, but I want a couple hundred of them if it really works. Has anyone practical experience to detail about them?

Lonnie Courtney Clay
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Bingeling
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by Bingeling »

I had an evil plan of creating a mining destroyer to provide small space port materials, but I can't get it to unload after filling up it holds with the first batch.

I guess one can retire it, but that is kind of hard with no spaceport.
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feelotraveller
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by feelotraveller »

You might be able to do it with a constructor?
 
I think that it won't work without retiring the ship... seems an extreme measure.
 
I'm looking forward to buddying up with some pirates in shadows.  That's a nice solution.  [:)]
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Jeeves
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by Jeeves »

I copied my miner and gas miner designs to two new designs class escort and built some of each. The ship must be told where to mine, but will mine anything regardless of whether mines are already present. You can send more than one to the same location. When cargo bays are full, the mining escort goes to the nearest active spaceport (colony distance zero in the expansion planner) and unloads, the ends its mission near the colony. Give new orders as needed, and notice that it refuels if fuel is available where it drops cargo. No mystery at all, and I already have 40 in operation...

Lonnie Courtney Clay
Live long and prosper!

Lonnie Courtney Clay
Bingeling
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by Bingeling »

So no use for getting materials for the spaceport then. I probably did not leave it automated long enough.

I had no issues getting it loaded, unloading failed, though.
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Gareth_Bryne
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RE: docking bays on ships

Post by Gareth_Bryne »

To Jeeves:

That's not DW, that's TTD!
"Only an idiot fights a war on two fronts. Only the heir to the throne of the Kingdom of Idiots would fight a war on twelve fronts," - Londo Mollari
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