Base Training

[Dragon of the void]

Why not just keep the system as it is, with a simple addition ?

The way things are shown in Star Trek etc are the way we like things most. Not an anonymus piece of military hardware with exchangeable crew, but "a lucky few, a band of brothers", fighting far from home for their race. And if you want reality: If you keep your ships on duty (as I do in SE4), you will really not get much opportunity to exchange crew. ("Captain, a new and competent ensign has warped in from the homeworld. I just wished they could transfer energy and supplies just as easy, for THAT we have to go back to starbase ...")

Why not allow the upgrade to another size of ships instead, and keep your crew ?

Yes, a missile boat has some other jobs when compared to a transport. But it also has some very similar jobs, like piloting a spacecraft, or bringing a crosshair in the right position.
Just make it so that you loose 10% of the experience (you had 30%, now you have 27%) when you upgrade. The real difference between ships is in engineering imho, and that would even apply if you upgrade a missile ship to another missile ship design (if it is not different, why have another design ?).

If you upgrade to another size of ship, just have another modifier: you go up one size, you loose 33% of the experience (lot of "green" crew to fill the gaps), so you had 30%, and now you have 20%. You go down one size, you win (because you can pick the best) 33% experience: you had 30%, now you have 40%. (For all who try to abuse this, by switching back and forth, you loose experience that way.)

I think that would make an easy to understand, easy to use, and easy to program sollution.

Oppinions anybody ?