docking escorts

[Spoo]

Is there a way to make ships dockable like fighters? I don't mean making a gigantic fighter that just looks like an escort or frigate, cause then it could be loaded with fighter components and be shot down w/ PDC, and basically be not good.

I'm thinking a baseship that holds a small fleet of escorts and/or frigates.

I imagine this would need a code change, but I figured I'd bring it up in case it could be moded.

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Assume you have a 1kg squirrel
E=mc^2
E=1kg(3x10^8m/s)^2=9x10^16J
which, if I'm not mistaken, is equivilent to roughly a 50 megaton nuclear bomb.
Fear the squirrel.

[jc173]

Not that I know currently, although you could make a huge fighter as you suggested it wouldn't require any maintenance, or be upgradable for that matter. The idea is pretty interesting though, reminds of the Battlerider and Tender setup in Traveller.

[Mark Walton]

The advantage of this would be, other than "roleplay" reasons, that the ships don't need their own warp capability and so gain extra space within the hull for other gear, or reduced build/maintenance costs and also reduced supply usage. Finally of course the mothership can offer protection.

At the moment for roleplay reasons you could simply move all the ships in a fleet, a bit naff though

I haven't played around with the modding, but I see an ability for extra combat move, so perhaps this could be used to create an engine component which only allows combat movement not map movement, but there is currently no way to dock the ships with a mothership - is this right?

Personally I feel that the division between ship and unit (and world) needs to be blurred a bit more.
Too much artificial division between a large fighter and an escort, in the real world analogy of naval fleets this makes some sense as ships are very different to fighter planes, but space combat is very different.
Also at the other end of the scale, make all world abilities usable on massive ships / let them carry active population!

[Coal]

Sounds like the gunboats from In Death Ground. It would be an interesting addition. Mabye give them a speacial one shot super-missile that does ultra massive damage. To keep them from looking like fighters, they should only launch one at a time, and not fly in Groups.


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Rules? What Rules?

[Deathstalker]

This sounds like the role Drones will fill when they are finally implimented.

Hopefully in a patch or two....

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"The Empress took your name away," said Chance.
Owen smiled coldly. "It wasn't hers to take. I'm a Deathstalker until I die. And we never forget a slight or an enemy." -Owen Deathstalker.

[rdouglass]

Might be a good idea for the 'Pirates and Nomads' (see other Posts). Although, I wouldn't have the first idea as to how to make it work......

[DirectorTsaarx]

This also sounds like the Andromedans from Star Fleet Battles. And one of the Starfire expansion packs had a similar concept as well.

You could even expand this to use "Fast Patrol" boats (PFs) and PF Tenders as an interim step. PFs in Star Fleet Battles were between fighters and escorts, and needed to be "carried" (actually attached via mech-links) to larger ships, which then deployed them for battle. For SEIV, PFs should be able to operate like fighters, (no warp capability, etc.) only with more supply storage and "medium" weapons (again, somewhere between "small" weapons and ship weapons). Of course, PF's are something that could possibly be modded in (except that I'm not certain they should be susceptible to Point-Defense).

[Marty Ward]

Maybe you could create a hull and give it the "Launched from ship" line in the vehicle file and then create a launcher. You probably couldn't prevent the launcher from being used for fighters but you may be able to launch your ship.

[Mark Walton]

Can you give "Launched from Ship" to a ship? I suppose I could try. If you can, then how do you specify that they can be launched? I thought "Launch/Recover Fighters" etc was hard coded
There doesn't seem to be an ability to allow drones to be launched

So, you would probably have to make them Satellites, or Mines, and use that lauch ability... worth a try I suppose

[Devnullicus]

I think the Pirates & Nomads Mod already does this, though currently you have to take a racial tech to get it. But he's also added a lot of fighter tech to make the "big" fighters more like ships. You should check it out -- you'll be pleasantly surprised at how good this mod is.