Firing drones from any direction to hit the shield you want

Mike · Post by **Mike** » Sun Mar 08, 2009 4:09 am

I just want to know if anyone else has actually tried this tactic. If so, what were your results?

Here is the rule:

From (4F5c): "...seeking weapon A is targeted on seeking weapon B... If A and B both reach the target of B on the same subpulse (or if B hits A, which previously impacted and was stopped by a tractor beam), BOTH impact that shield of the target and BOTH cause damage"

Here is the generic form of the tactic:

An enemy ship no phasers that can fire at a drone coming from a particular direction and no tractor beams that can operate. A friendly ship with only one drone launcher (or one remaining that can launch that turn) launches a drone (let's call it Drone-A) from a few hexes away so that it will impact in, say, 2 impulses. Your ship is on the opposite side of the target ship. If you launch drones, the target ship will be able to shoot at them with phasers. On the next impulse, you launch drones targeted on the Drone-A of your friendly ship. Your drones arrive in the target hex in the same sub-pulse as Drone-A. The target ship has no ability to stop them, so they all impact the same shield: the shield that is on the far side facing away from the direction your drones came from.

Note that your ship was able to launch multiple drones and avoid the target ship's ability to shoot at them after impact according to the direction they were coming from. They will impact and explode on a shield on the opposite side of the target ship along with their target, Drone-A.

Granted, this would have to be a rare opportunity. Many factors would have to occur "just right" for this event to take place (speed of target, turn mode of target, whether target has done a HET and wants to risk another, your ships' distances from the target, timing the arrival of the drones, etc.).

I've been pondering a post worthy of this promotion for the past few days and this is it.

Unlikely? Yes.

Possible? Yes.

Has anyone else actually accomplished it or even tried it?

Scoutdad · Post by **Scoutdad** » Sun Mar 08, 2009 6:46 am

Mike, this was (in a nutshell) the Command Note I had in CL # 38.

Volley Vous: Part Duex.

Yes, I have used it...
Yes, it is a rare occasion wher it comes into play...
Yes, much like Mr. Miyagi's "Crane Technique" - when do right, no can defend.

Wolverin61 · Post by **Wolverin61** » Tue Mar 10, 2009 12:07 am

I don't think I've ever even targeted a drone with another drone.

junior · Post by **junior** » Tue Mar 10, 2009 12:36 am

It was mentioned in another thread a while back.

The primary issue with it as a tactic is how difficult it is to set things up "just right".

Scoutdad · Post by **Scoutdad** » Tue Mar 10, 2009 12:15 pm

Wolverin61 wrote:I don't think I've ever even targeted a drone with another drone.

It's really not all that comon.

In what's probably more than 1000 games, I've had the opportunity to use the tactic a total of two times.
The first was a total surprise and I managed to score 24 points of damage.
The second time, my erstwhile opponent had read the Command Note in CL 38 and as soon as the second drones target was announced, he dropped the tractor holding the first drone. He took 12 points on a down shield, but that's all he took...

Mike · Post by **Mike** » Tue Mar 10, 2009 5:35 pm

Yeah, that's about the amount that I thought.