Official SE5 release date announced - September 12

[Karibu]

On MOO2 there was a nice (though imperfect) way to simulate realtime combat. Ships had initiative, which then gave you the turn to move. Though, for some reason human players had every time the first move. I think initiative should be calculated by many things like:
- level of engine
- engine capacity divided by ship size class
- experience of the crew
- experience of the fleet
- level of battle computer

Also, there should be different initiative for guns and movement (you may have superior engines but lousy battle computer or vice versa), and also - very difficult to implement - if two ships are have almost identical initiative but one has slightly better, the better ship should not be able to do everything before another ship gets the change.

My logic would say that high engine initiative gives you some movements (perhaps 1 or 2 squares) before another ship gets to move his one square. An example:

Ship A: total movement 7 squares, battle computer level 1
Ship B: total movement 5 squares, battle computer level 2

Battle:
Ship A moves 1 square
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship A moves 2 squares
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship A moves 1 square
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship A moves 2 squares
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship A moves 1 square
Ship B moves 1 square

Firing: If guns itself have no initiative and both ships would have same weapons, firing order depends only of battle computer. the ship B would fire first when in range (even if ship A would move inside the gun range and still have movement to go, but at this point Ship B gets his firing turn).

Example continued:

Ship A moves 1 square
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship A moves 2 squares
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship A moves 1 square
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship A moves 1 squares (ship A have 1 more square to move)
Ship B fires at ship A
Ship A moves 1 squares
Ship A fires at ship B
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship B fires at ship A
Ship A moves 1 square
Ship A fires at ship B
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship B fires at ship A

etc.

Of course, this is a crude combat model but similar what I hope to see in SEV. You get the point. Well, can SEV betatesters give any preliminary information about this or does NDA prevent you from comment?