[grumbler]

Val:

What I don't like about the current Version of the mod:

1. There are too many obsolete options presented in shipbuilding: old engine types, weapons so obviously inferior you would never use them, etc.

2. The whole engine/reactor concept is a nice idea, but breaks down in practice because the engine sizes are so small. B5 ships in the series tended to have a few large engines, not dozens of small ones. Dozens of engines times variable supplies used per move times number of moves per turn creates a bit calculation nightmare, and it is hard to make any tradeoffs between speed, armor, and weapons when the cost of speed is so hard to calculate.

3. Some of the research payoff versus cost seem unreasonable (especially in reactive armor). You can literally pay millions of RP to get a 10% improvement.

4. The high space cost of cargo holds means that you really only have a few options for cargo hulls. Small transports make no sense, given that they can only hold 1 cargo hold (and get any speed) while the Fast Courier can hold as much cargo while being faster and cheaper. Curiously, engines are highly configurable while cargo holds are not.

What I like about the mod:

1. The mix of defensive options in the face of the lack of shields. One would expect this to be a sticking point (especially as shields seemed kind of integral to the combat system of the basic game) but the different kinds of ECM makes for some interesting tradeoffs. I still think the Proportions mix of hull minuses to defense plus engine plusses to defense (to simulate the effect of speed on defensive ability) is worth emulating, especially if the engine system is changed.

2. The overall feel is excellent, especially for the major "playable" races (EA, Minbari, Narns, and Centauri). Their ships do look and fight differently.