[Tenryu]

raynor,
Your observation is right on target. It has implications to the SE4 'economic' model that have bothered and annoyed me since I first started playing the game.
( This should no way be misunderstood as a general condemnation of the game. I love it, but...)

Baron M's post represents one reasonable improvement to the issue.

I approached it from another angle and have commented several times in this forum regarding what I believe would represent one possible improvement.

I have suggested that we have the ability to set the percentage maintenance cost for EACH component, ship or unit hull, facility, and even enhancements. ( By percentage cost I mean percent of the resource build cost of that item. )

For example, lets build an Escort.
( All costs are hypothetical )

**** (Grumble, grumble ... things won't line up in columns, go figure. Sorry ) ****

Item Mins Orgs Rads
ES Hull 500 100
Ship Bridge 50 100 150
Ship Crew Qtrs 50 150
Ship Life Suprt 50 250 50
Engs ( x 3 ) 50 50 250
DUC 100 50

Total build cost 800 550 600

Item maintenance cost for the ship, each turn, would be as follows:
Item Percent Min Org Rad
1. Hull 1% 5 0 1
2. Bridge 2% 1 2 3
3. Crew Q 2% 1 3 0
3. Life Sp 10% 5 25 5
4. Eng 2% ( 1 1 5 )
( x3 ) 3 3 15
5. DUC 10% 10 5

Total cost per turn 25 34 34
Per year 250 340 340

Under this scheme of things I think we would have some real control over the 'economy'.

We already have pretty fine control over our resource 'income' each turn.

We now need FINER control over our resource 'expenses' each turn.

I think it would be great. We could make stuff that is cheap to produce but expensive to maintain or the opposite.

I will keep advocating this and a few other refinements to the basic idea( player setting for frequency of maintenance charge and racial modifiers to 'basic costs )until we get it, something else that works, or MM says "Shut up and for-geda-boudit!"