[Grandpa Kim]

Fyron, I have used some of the strategies in the mod and they work both better and worse than expected.

Personally I have had good luck moving from point blank to max range as the situation dictates.

In one game I was getting creamed while using point blank. A quick analysis showed I was hitting almost every shot, but my opponent was hitting well too. Not as often as me, but because of the designs we were using he was winning the battles. By moving to max range, I was still hitting about half the time, but he was hardly hitting at all! This turned the tide in future battles.

One strategy I am not happy with is "Avoid". I designed this one so I won't be stepping on any toes when I criticize it. This strat is designed to let an unarmed ship flee battle unless it is cornered and has no choice. It should head to the corner and stay there until the enemy closes in and it has nowhere to go. It should then attempt to ram.

It doesn't work! If a ship with avoid orders is at a disadvantage-- alone, or with other ships but outgunned--, it will not attack. If it has the advantage-- with a strong fleet-- it will stay in the battle and attempt to ram.

This could be a perfect order for a repair ship or minesweeper. A ship you want to keep, but no good in battle. It should stay out of the battle and only ram in desperation. But like I said, it doesn't work that way.

One strat I do like is "Satellite". This was designed to get satellites to optimize their shots, by shooting at the nearest target. Since satellites can't move, it behooves them to get their shots in while they can since ships often move into range, then out of range and usually the most dangerous ship to the stack (and easiest to hit) is the nearest ship! Serendipidously this strat works well with any stationary weaponry: weapon platforms and bases.

Recently I have revamped all my strats with a few ideas from USM but mostly my own ideas. The general theme is giving several different strats at each range so the various designs are choosing different targets instead of all shooting at the same ship.

I have also designed a new formation called "Perimiter". It is simply a large circle of ships empty in the center. I designed it for warp point defense. I've only had a few chances to use it but so far the formation is placed so far off center, its purpose is defeated. I will continue trying it to get a better statistical sample.