[jim]

Thanks all!

As I noted in my original post, I am familiar with how to do the same turn open-and-through if I have been to the target system or am Ancient. It was the chance that there had been found a work-around that I was hoping for.

I am not interested in making new planets, just killing the ones the AI has. Thus, I have not put any creator ships into the queues. Those are full of Star Destroyers and a few open/close ships.

I cannot use mines or satellites. Sadly, I had to go up to and over the limit and slightly beyond (I know that work around) earlier in defensive strategies.

Now, a new Q! I seem to recall that if a part of one's empire is not warp-connected to the rest, then there is a penalty of some sort. Is that a mis-recollection? One that has been patched out? Or was it only if it separated one from one's profitable allies (lose contact)? If only the latter, that would be of no help, as the enemy has no allies.

I ask because one dirty trick would be for me to avoid all the fortress worlds and simply lock the doors behind me as I make an excursion through his systems!

That is, as long as I beat the revenge fleets through a warp point, I could close it behind me and hurt the empire as I progressed. The value here is that I would not have to risk a Star Destroyer being killed or captured in the middle of the turn as I leave it to do the deed. Or, conversely, sacrifice its escort cover force in each heavily defended system.

Instead, I could keep the fleet together, and drop off Star Destroyers only if there was no poised fleet, threatening to pounce on it.

[ January 28, 2004, 22:42: Message edited by: jim ]