Yes, I have mentioned this before as well. Its a capacity that can easily be abused IMO. 900 is NOTHING compared to what it CAN be.
I think there should definately be some sort of small upkeep on Fighters/Sats/Mines...maybe 4%/2%/2% or somesuch. Best case scenario is that it is an adjustable number like Ship maintenance.
Groundbased units I'm not as concerned with as they are limited by the Cargo capacity of the planets as well as being generally helpless vs a Fleet. A 1% upkeep couldnt hurt IMO, but I dont think its really necessary.
As others have stated, Fighters are easily dealt with if you build LARGE numbers of PD ships, but then again, THOSE ships DO cost upkeep. So in any equal resource fight (over time, including upkeep), the Fighter player will always have the advantage IMO. His 'Ships of the Line (or Wall
) will be better equipped or more numerous as his opponent is force to deal with the maintenance free fighters as well. Any way you look at it, Fighters are quite a bargain.
Now if you could only BUILD them at Shipyards or specialized facilities, they might be less attractive, but as it is now, any old planet can crank them out in obscene numbers without really burdening your econ.
So, here's another vote (again) for a user definable upkeep cost for Fighters (and any other units). It cant hurt if its an option. People who dont want it just switch it off.
Thanx,
Talenn