So has any one used the Drones Yet?

[oleg]

IMHO, the major problem with drones is a next hell layer of micromanagement:

Usually, my spaceyards are building ships while rest of the planets build units. Drones are rather expensive and hence the build rate is slow. To fill the drone carrier I must move it all around the system picking odd drones here and there. It is much, much more easier with fighters, which can be launched, moved to the pick-up point and recovered by carriers. Drones can not be recovered.

Regardless of their effectiveness, I practically abandom drones in my most current game. No fun at all.

[Grandpa Kim]

I've used drones only on the demo. Haven't got far enough in the full Version to try them there.

In the demo, I found they were great for softening up targets before taking in a fleet and perfect for nailing lone ships or even fleets of two or three ships.
I usually launched from home to a system two systems away. Worked as advertised. One of the targets exited to an "unknown" system and two of my drones stopped. The target returned two or three turns later and the drones took off after him again finally smearing him.

Drones seem to have both pluses and minuses (Hey! What doesn't?):
1. You can build them anywhere
2. But without a spaceyard, they will take two turns to build
3. They cost like a ship
4. But require no maintenance
5. They use 'way too much supplies just standing still
6. Are a ***** to kill
7. Take so much planetary cargo space they make the Cargo Facility look useful.

Anyway, I can see myself using them, if I can steal the tech from another player. As I said, softening up and solo targets seem to be their forte... or at least one of their fortes. Remains to be seen what other good ways there are to use them.

Kim

[Sinapus]

They do seem a bit expensive, but somewhat useful. If there were some way of remembering the locations of planets, the long-range attack aspect would be even greater. You know, show what you saw in a system the Last time you had a ship there and don't update it until you have another ship or other unit in there.

The expense part might be limited by use of component enhancement by creating a mount that reduces the cost of each weapon type (including the catch-all of "none"). And, it'll be something the AI can use (and we mere humans can forget easily.)

[Captain Kwok]

Perhaps you can just mod the drones to have a maintenance bonus of say, -25%, since they don't have any crews and such.

[PsychoTechFreak]

AFAIK they already got a maintenance bonus of 100%.

[dogscoff]

I found a good use for drones: I was up against an enemy that was sending carriers after an isolated outpost. I designed a cheap, slow PD drone and threw a few of them out whenever I saw an enemy carrier approaching. They would engage the carrier and wipe out loads of fighters before the carrier got to my planet.

I think the real advantage of drones will be in games where there is a long peace-time build up. A player can stockpile drones in peace time without paying the maintenence of ships (With none of that low-fat mothballing malarky.) This will prove handy for small empires.

The other advantage is that you can stockpile a huge attack capability and your allies won't be able to see it like they could if you had a mothballed attack fleet sitting in orbit of your homeworld.

[Arak Koba]

Very useful in inter-system bombardment.

I have created a few in a nearby star system to my enemy, and lobbing these drones at him when I see his fleets approach is nice (coupled with LR scanners). Also, I can hit his planets from here without having to send in high maintenance, logistics nightmare fleets.

All in all they look like a balanced addition to the game. Can anyone say SCUD missile?

[ 19 March 2002: Message edited by: Arak Koba ]