Fighters should pay support!

[Elwood Bluze]

Thanks for your replies so far. A few more points I'd like to make:

1) Platforms don't pay maintenance either.

2) A single Light Cruiser with polarons 4s, Shield 4s, contra-terrenes, etc, in my game has to pay 2112, 25, and 465 in upkeep.
A group of 15 fighters with the firepower that can easily take it out pays: 0

3) My point is that it's not realistic to have massive Groups of fighters for free. There has to be maintenance paid to reflect fuel, etc.

Maybe this could be implemented by a toggle switch during game setup? That way those who insist on getting fighters for free can do so...?

------------------
Know what a wish sandwich is? That's two pieces of bread....and you WISH you had some meat!

[Talenn]

Yes, I have mentioned this before as well. Its a capacity that can easily be abused IMO. 900 is NOTHING compared to what it CAN be.

I think there should definately be some sort of small upkeep on Fighters/Sats/Mines...maybe 4%/2%/2% or somesuch. Best case scenario is that it is an adjustable number like Ship maintenance.

Groundbased units I'm not as concerned with as they are limited by the Cargo capacity of the planets as well as being generally helpless vs a Fleet. A 1% upkeep couldnt hurt IMO, but I dont think its really necessary.

As others have stated, Fighters are easily dealt with if you build LARGE numbers of PD ships, but then again, THOSE ships DO cost upkeep. So in any equal resource fight (over time, including upkeep), the Fighter player will always have the advantage IMO. His 'Ships of the Line (or Wall ) will be better equipped or more numerous as his opponent is force to deal with the maintenance free fighters as well. Any way you look at it, Fighters are quite a bargain.

Now if you could only BUILD them at Shipyards or specialized facilities, they might be less attractive, but as it is now, any old planet can crank them out in obscene numbers without really burdening your econ.

So, here's another vote (again) for a user definable upkeep cost for Fighters (and any other units). It cant hurt if its an option. People who dont want it just switch it off.

Thanx,
Talenn

[Tomgs]

I wouldn't mind if fighters needed to pay upkeep I just think they are so vunerable to PD as to be not as big a factor as you think. In a human vs human game yes fighters would be more valuable and maybe when the TCP/IP patch gets here I will change my mind. Vs the AI I have never been that bothered by them. Sure its an annoyance to lose that first ship to them if I don't expect them to be around a planet but thats all it is. And I would rather not be bothered to build a lot them vs the AI (I have used them extensively before and the micromanagement in tactical and logistics really isn't worth the free maintaince to me).

I usually win the games more by economics and research than by anything else. Sure I fight the battles but I am usually raking in a lot more resources than the AI so maintaince isn't a factor.

[Atrocities]

Excuse me, but unless I mis-read the title to this thread wrong, I do not think that fighters should "pay" support.

On behalf of the fighters, I would like to point out that they already are tapped to the maximum, and another fee would break them finacially as well as morally.

Please vote NO on the Fighter Tax. Thank you.

[Q]

I prefer the way it is with no maintenance cost for fighters because:
- To use fighters really efficiantly you need carriers, which cost maintenance.
- In a combat with fighters you will almost always loose some units, which have to be replaced and will therefore cost you resources. Not to mention the effort to bring them from the colonies to the front line. With ships it is very well possible to win a battle without losses, or even if you get damaged ships, you can repair them for free.
However as usual the best solution to this debate would be as proposed to have values in the settings file for all units separately, where you may choose the maintenance cost from 0% to whatever you like.

[Blue Lord]

Besides, "ships can't take out fighters" Then why are you building ships? You respond with fighters, and lot's of fiighters. I've go fighter squads protecting almost everyone of my systems, but that's all I can do with them. If the AI was smart enough to send in all at once instead of 1 ship each 2 turn, my fighters wouldn't pickle them

I vote NO

[thorfrog]

I also agree. Fighters are not capital ships. Carriers are used to fuel and maintain these vehicles. Reference any WWII movie or the history channel. I have yet to see a fighter stay in the air for more then 5 days let alone a year or two. I think fighters are fine the way they are.