It's an extra SEQ (for 4.5 EP net as opposed to scrapping it) with a nice repair cost to damage absorption ratio. If I wan in a situation where I was overbuilding alliance FFs I might convert one of these instead.

By Rob Padilla (Zargan) on Wednesday, July 31, 2019 - 02:28 pm: Edit

It would cost 4 EP to convert and repair it, not 4.5.

And it's worse at taking damage than a 4 Pt FF. A 4/2 FF can take 4 and repairs for 1 EP. The E3 only takes 3 damage and repairs for that same 1 EP. All other odd number uncrippled ships have an even number on the flip side, which is why they repair more cheaply.

I might give it to the Feds though, they have more money than ships in the beginning of the war....

By Richard B. Eitzen (Rbeitzen) on Wednesday, July 31, 2019 - 03:03 pm: Edit

The cost for keeping a cpatured E3 and converting it to your technolgy vs scrapping it is:

3 for converion, 0.5 for repair, and 1 pt for the 1 EP you don't get because you didn't scrap it = 4.5 EP.

An E3 only takes one repair point, it is a 3/2 unit. This
costs 0.5 EP.

By Ted Fay (Catwhoeatsphoto) on Wednesday, July 31, 2019 - 03:07 pm: Edit

You get 0 EPs for scrapping an E3.

By chris upson (Misanthropope) on Wednesday, July 31, 2019 - 03:08 pm: Edit

E3 is 1-2 crippled. I would guess the captured E3s destiny is to hold a supply line for retrograde open at some point, thereby saving a crippled FF. 1.5 EP value... someday

By Ted Fay (Catwhoeatsphoto) on Wednesday, July 31, 2019 - 03:18 pm: Edit

True. More generally, it's destiny is to die in the place of something more valuable.

By Rob Padilla (Zargan) on Thursday, August 01, 2019 - 08:31 am: Edit

AHA! That is the mistake, the Cyberboard representation of the E3 is wrong. The counter in CB is a 3/1 unit, NOT a 3/1-2 unit. That actually makes a big difference!

So it would scrap for 1 EP then. I'm back in the game now baby!

By Rob Padilla (Zargan) on Thursday, August 01, 2019 - 08:33 am: Edit

OH, and something else that has been bugging me. The Hydran Fast ships (LGE and THR). What do those designators stand for? I haven't played SBF in ages, and those two ships didn't exist back in the day when I did. I'm thinking the LGE is "Liege", but I may be wrong. But the THR really throws me. I always want to call it a "Thoroughbred", but that just doesn't feel right given their other ship names.

By Richard B. Eitzen (Rbeitzen) on Thursday, August 01, 2019 - 10:03 am: Edit

Those ARE the names of those classes of ships.

By Rob Padilla (Zargan) on Thursday, August 01, 2019 - 12:40 pm: Edit

Wow, OK. Apparently my acronym-fu is quite mighty then! Thanks Richard!

By Ted Fay (Catwhoeatsphoto) on Monday, August 05, 2019 - 02:30 pm: Edit

C4 is complete.

Builds fairly normal, though use generous CDR to repair/convert some specialty ships on the cheap. Lyrans convert MB to BATS (no fighter) at 1202.

I put enough SEQ onto Duke's SB so that it would take a reserve to save it, and do the same for planet 1502. I take all other planets and send about 150+ SEQ to Kzintai.

Rob saves Duke's SB, but I take planet 1504. The other reserve went to 1401.

In the HTO, I have a relative dearth of ships, and most of them are the rear deployed Klingons. It's obvious I'm committed to a Zin first strategy. I attack all border BATS within range of Klingon BATS. I also attack 1st Fleet SB in 1017.

Rob saves BATS 515 with both of his reserves (one of which is weak) and serves a heaping dose of bad tasting medicine to the BATS busting force there.


Combat:

In the ZTO I attack one planet at a time with a extremely high compot/EW force. I don't think my compot was ever below 120 (maybe 115 towards the end). I devastate all outer planets and strip Kzintai of PDUs. I end killing an FFK, 2*SAD, LAD and about a dozen PDUs. He cripples TGC+AA, FFK, 2*FF, CVL, CLE, EFF, FFG.

Except for directing on a D6M and a C8 I only lost a 2*F5 during the assault. Mostly Rob just let the damage fall.

Coalition cripples are obviously substantially more:

D7C, D7, 7*D5, 2*F5, F5J.
DN, DNL, BC, 2*CC, 4*CA, 9*CW, 2*DW, 4*FF, DWS, SC.

All repairable on C5.

I briefly toyed with taking 1401 on C4. I could have done it, as to have any chance of keeping 1401 he would have had to have crippled the Zin fleet. However, I decided it was better to stay within my repair capacity, stay strong, and not take a risk. The zin capital will be there to take down on C5.

In the HTO SB 1017 was destroyed, as were all BATS east of 515. Only 3 provinces captured.


END OF TURN

At end of turn I have some 150+ SEQ in the HTO, with four reserves, all strong to decent, in 1013 and 1214.

In the ZTO I have some 200+ SEQ, with 3 medium reserves: 2 in 1202 and 1 in 1307.

He has some room to make some hay.

Over to A4.

By Rob Padilla (Zargan) on Monday, August 05, 2019 - 08:52 pm: Edit

A few corrections to the 1401 battle.

I only lost one SAD, and a BC was destroyed in pursuit. As well as the serious damage the Aux CV train took in the Slow Battle. Sadly the Kzinti with a great line rolled utter garbage, thereby being unable to kill either LAV group, nor able to just let the damage fall and kill one. Ted did cripple almost the entire force, and did Field Repair on LAVs! Never thought I'd see that happen!

By Rob Padilla (Zargan) on Tuesday, August 06, 2019 - 08:27 am: Edit

AT4 Econ Phase:

Kzinti Econ:
Starting EPs: 17.425
Income Generated: 50
Total: 68.425

Ship Builds: 51 EP (DN,TGC, CM, 3xMEC, FKE)
Repairs: 7 EP(TGC, FFK, 2xEFF, 2xFF)
Other Production: 4 EP (Heal PT,PT,POL, PRD offmap, FF SY w/ENG)
Conversions: 6 EP and 6 FFF
BC to CVS
FFK to FKE

Remaining EPs: 0.425

Hydran Econ:
Starting EPs: 14.75
Income Generated: 69
Total: 83.75

Ship Builds: 43.5 EP and 4.5 FFF (PAL, TG, 3xHR, 2xFFT, SAR, 3xCU)
Repairs: 3 EP (SAR, CU, HN)
Other Production: 24 EP (3xPDU,PGB,PT,POL, Major CF (ENG))
Conversions: 9 EP and 0.5 FFF
2xDG to LB
3xHN to AH
LN to DE
HN to SAR

Remaining EPs: 4.25

By Paul Howard (Raven) on Tuesday, August 06, 2019 - 11:28 am: Edit

I assume the Hydran Eng is building a Major Conversion Facility in the Old Colonies?

I can't think of any Hydran hull which you would want to build which is a Major conversion?

(or is it to get lots of smaller conversions?)

By Ted Fay (Catwhoeatsphoto) on Tuesday, August 06, 2019 - 12:18 pm: Edit

@Paul: Yes to Major CF. Only Rob can answer your second and third questions.

By Richard B. Eitzen (Rbeitzen) on Tuesday, August 06, 2019 - 01:25 pm: Edit

Without an extra conversion facility, the offmap area (after 0617 falls) if it converts a PAL to a CVA cannot also do any escort or other conversions, which the Hydrans may want to do on existing ships at the time.

Later in the war one might want to do an SCS or X conversion as well as a PFT conversion in one turn.

By Paul Howard (Raven) on Tuesday, August 06, 2019 - 03:12 pm: Edit

Haven't really read into - but can't the SB do conversions as normal and the New Major Shipyard do the Major Conversion?

By Rob Padilla (Zargan) on Tuesday, August 06, 2019 - 03:27 pm: Edit

Yes, the MCF is in the Old Colonies.

Ted is going Kzinti first, which means unless I do something really really stupid, the Hydrans will be keeping their Original capital. Which means the OC is not as critical as it usually would be. So I can take the time and build the Major CF right away. Odds are I'll almost always use it to do smaller conversions, but now I'll have the flexibility to do a Major Off-Map if I need it. I really see no need for the Hydrans to ever build the FF, DW or CW shipyards, as they have a build schedule they cannot afford anyways. So that leaves the Major and Minor CFs. Took me a while to settle on the Major, but after much thought that was me decision. If he was going Hydran first, it would be a Minor (or a PRD if I anticipated taking any cripples during the fight to hold 617).

There are not a lot of things that Hydrans need more than a 3pt conversion for, but those things they do have are worth it (survey ships, CVAs, IC, TG, etc).

By Thomas Mathews (Turtle) on Tuesday, August 06, 2019 - 06:38 pm: Edit

Rob, I would suggest building the FF MSYs if for no other reason to have them if you need some pin count ships and downsub some larger ships to smaller ships, and still have cash left over.

You are correct in that the Hydrans never have enough cash to do half of what they really want to do.

By Rob Padilla (Zargan) on Tuesday, August 06, 2019 - 07:55 pm: Edit

Thomas, I can see the merit in that but not right now. FF SYs build quickly, so I can wait until I need them.

By Thomas Mathews (Turtle) on Tuesday, August 06, 2019 - 09:36 pm: Edit

I can see the advantage of building PRDs and Conversion Facilities ahead of the MSY-FFs if you don't need the ship yards first. Even then, it can be a toss up as to which ones you need sooner. I'm just suggesting that having them under construction when you don't need them is better than not having them at all.

By Rob Padilla (Zargan) on Wednesday, August 07, 2019 - 08:09 am: Edit

Not a bad plan, but right now the Hydrans have to spend EPs on lots of other things, they need to bulk up the navy, get carrier groups going, get at least one more DN, and so on. Even if I got the SYs for free right now, they'd just sit idle for a few turns as I'd not be able to afford to build those extra ships. Once I can start the downshift like you say, things change.

By Rob Padilla (Zargan) on Wednesday, August 07, 2019 - 08:12 am: Edit

AT4 was a quick combat turn. The Kzinti could not reach either of the real prizes in the area (FRD park or the MB being upgraded to a BATS), so settles for kicking the Klingons off of 1502, 1504 and destroying BATS 1807.

The Hydrans did not want to draw the Coalition reserves into striking range of their backfield, so focused on southern Lyran space again, attacking a small picket force on the border, capturing two Lyran provinces and disrupting two others. Hydran raids denied the Klingons all but one of their captured Hydran provinces for the upcoming turn.

By Paul Howard (Raven) on Wednesday, August 07, 2019 - 09:19 am: Edit

Isn't 1807 in the Eastern Fleet deployment area?

(!707 is fair game....)

By Ted Fay (Catwhoeatsphoto) on Wednesday, August 07, 2019 - 10:41 am: Edit

Yes, East fleet is released. Not that that makes much difference to Rob. However, it does create an interesting possibility for me that I had not considered as part of my game plan when I started this game.

For maybe a second time, Rob's actions combined with circumstances might cause me to shift my initial game plan.