System Shields

[Undertakr]

We're currently playing in a game where one of the players cut off all warps to one sector, created a system shield and a massive planet in that one sector and is just stalling. Is there anything that we can build to get into that sector? He has essentially created a stalemate where he can build any tech he wants forever without risk of attack and there's no real way for us to defend against him because he can open a warp whenever he feels like it and come out and get us. Any ideas?

- takr

[dogscoff]

If he's built a shield then all you can do is sit and wait, unless he has planets beyond the shield (and diplomatic contact) in which case you can hit him with intel.

[geoschmo]

Have the game owner take over his empire and scrap the system shield?

Yep, if he is truely "turttled" in there is nothing you can do short of calling him a weenie and booting him from the game. If he has left a planet outside the protected area and you still have contact massive intel attacks can work, but it takes a long time cause you can't direct them agasinst one planet without haveing a view of that planet.

You are talking about one system? I was playing in a game with a guy once that had system shields in all his systems, spread out over about 25 systems. He had left warp points open in a couple of key border systems, which he had heavily defended. He thought he was safe, however he had overlooked the fact that deep in his territory, two systems away from his homewolrd was a black hole system. He had system shields in all the systems around it, but since there were no planets in that system, he couldn't put a system shield there. I opened a warp point there and two turns later glassed his homeworld. His fleets raced in and nuked my fleet, but the damage had been done. And a well coordinated attack by my allies on his border systems which had now been vacated in an effort to destroy my fleet before it did any more damage to his core systems has now set his once mighty empire on a path to ruin.

My point is sometimes the most careful turtle can leave an opening accidentally. Look for one.

Geoschmo

[Puke]

yeah, we took out dragonlord that way. he was pretty hevily fortified with either shields or max warp points. we broke in through some asteroid and nebulae systems.

oh yeah, we toatally gimped him with intel too. intel sucks, dont play with it.

edit:
so yeah, if you have intel on, and you still have contact with him through other systems he holds, you can still nail him. dont bother trying to steal his planets, since you cant target the ones you are after, and it takes so friggin long, and fails half the time anyway. try ship take-overs, and you will eventually capture one in the system you are after. then once you can see in there, you can target other ships and planets in that system. you should be able to completely outproduce him if you have the entire galaxy and he has one system, so you should be able to completley dominate in intel points.

[ August 28, 2002, 20:24: Message edited by: Puke ]

[minipol]

Originally posted by geoschmo:
Have the game owner take over his empire and scrap the system shield?

Yep, if he is truely "turttled" in there is nothing you can do short of calling him a weenie and booting him from the game. If he has left a planet outside the protected area and you still have contact massive intel attacks can work, but it takes a long time cause you can't direct them agasinst one planet without haveing a view of that planet.

You are talking about one system? I was playing in a game with a guy once that had system shields in all his systems, spread out over about 25 systems. He had left warp points open in a couple of key border systems, which he had heavily defended. He thought he was safe, however he had overlooked the fact that deep in his territory, two systems away from his homewolrd was a black hole system. He had system shields in all the systems around it, but since there were no planets in that system, he couldn't put a system shield there. I opened a warp point there and two turns later glassed his homeworld. His fleets raced in and nuked my fleet, but the damage had been done. And a well coordinated attack by my allies on his border systems which had now been vacated in an effort to destroy my fleet before it did any more damage to his core systems has now set his once mighty empire on a path to ruin.

My point is sometimes the most careful turtle can leave an opening accidentally. Look for one.

Geoschmo

Wow, i like that tactic. Haven't invented any such tactics myself (yet, hopefully )

[capnq]

he can open a warp whenever he feels like it and come out

Note that he's going to have to scrap that system shield to open the warp point out; it blocks him as well as you.

[DirectorTsaarx]

Originally posted by capnq:

quote:

---

he can open a warp whenever he feels like it and come out

Note that he's going to have to scrap that system shield to open the warp point out; it blocks him as well as you.

---

Good point capnq... and it's not like those are easy to rebuild; so there should be at least a few turns of vulnerability whenever he opens a warp point out. And if he never opens a warp point out, he can't really win, can he?

[Perrin]

You could try to turn the tables on him. If the other players in the game built system shields in all of the systems around that system and close any warp points that can't be shielded he would not be able to open a warp point out even if he scraps his shield.

Or leave only one place that he can open to and place all of you defences there as a trap.

[geoschmo]

What he can do is be building a new system shield and scrap the old one two turns before it's done to limit his exposure. However, if you are prepared that will be enough time to get him.

You can have a large fleet or two standing by waiting to attack. Have a warp point opener ready and give it the open warp point order every turn. This way your warp opener can open a point going in at the same time his opener is opening a point going out. At the worst the point opening cause him to change his mind about sending his raiding fleet out. At best he still sends them and your fleet has free romp of his no longer protected system. Takes patience, but works great.

Geoschmo

[Arkcon]

Originally posted by geoschmo:
What he can do is be building a new system shield and scrap the old one two turns before it's done to limit his exposure. However, if you are prepared that will be enough time to get him.

You can have a large fleet or two standing by waiting to attack. Have a warp point opener ready and give it the open warp point order every turn. This way your warp opener can open a point going in at the same time his opener is opening a point going out. At the worst the point opening cause him to change his mind about sending his raiding fleet out. At best he still sends them and your fleet has free romp of his no longer protected system. Takes patience, but works great.

Geoschmo

That is the answer to this complete isolationist. You have one or two turns to enter his space. Have several fleets ready. Some ideas for fleet composition:

• Big weapon heavy ships
  
• Smaller ships - with specialized weapons, the null space cannon, engine destroyers
• Plenty of supply ships, not just a few quantum reactor ships, you might lose those
• Space yard ships and repair ships
• troop ships, enough to take on a few large worlds
  
• Colony ships - glass a small planet and setup a resupply/shipyard planet
• Medical bays - level 5 to tend to plague bombs
  
• Drone carriers - glass a dozen tinys and make his people riot.

Basically, his isolationisim could be to you benefit as well. Especially if his big secret plans were anticipated and defeted without you seeing them.
Ohh, I forgot, Aegis Cruisers - point defence heavy ships for defence against his drone stockpile