Warp points

Jeb · #1 August 23rd, 2000, 08:44 PM

Does anybody know what defenses (if any) work against those warp points that damage ships moving through them? Shields? Armor? I haven't had my homeworld blocked off from the rest of the universe by a black hole yet, but I have seen it happen to the AI. Actually, I'm playing a game right now where the only way to get to my Terran enemies without going all the way around Robin Hood's barn is through a nasty black hole system. My best workaround so far is to send in fleets that include a couple of repair ships, so ships that do get damaged can be fixed before they fall into the singularity.

Paladin · #2 August 23rd, 2000, 08:48 PM

That seems almost the only way, and the AI don't seem to react to it very well...

It does add variety in strategy, though...
;-))

Lerchey · #3 August 23rd, 2000, 09:55 PM

I've found that armor does help, though you lose the armor (like battle damage). Even so, I still send through fleets of well armored ships AND repair ships. I played a game where the only way out of my three system "peninsula" was through a system that was a black hole with a 'causes damage' warp point on both sides. I had to make sure that every ship had a minimum of two armor components to make it through.

John

Taqwus · #4 August 23rd, 2000, 11:34 PM

Hm. There are references to creating warp points (a 'Stellar Manipulation' menu appeared in a preview's screen shot).

Anybody know if you'll be able to create one without controlling both sides? Something like that might reduce the chances for stalemates via heavily fortifying choke points -- in a mid-life, sometimes cutting 2-4 edges can suffice to defend a third or more of the map...

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-- The thing that goes bump in the night

Baron Munchausen · #5 August 24th, 2000, 12:41 AM

Shields don't help with damaging warp-points, but armor does. In fact, organic armor seems to make ships immune to these warp-points. I guess this is because it regenerates. Seems kinda 'illogical' to me. Isn't the "spacial compression" or whatever it is in a warp-point going to affect all parts of a ship equally? So, this type of damage should ignore shields and armor both, I'd think. Maybe you could have a special technology to make you immune to gravity-type damage. "Graviton nullifier" or something like that. This could nullify tractor/pressor beams, graviton hellbores, and warp-point damage.

Jeb · #6 August 24th, 2000, 02:15 PM

Hmm. I distinctly remember having some ships with organic armor III getting damaged in a game I played in the 0.51 demo, but maybe they changed it. I haven't used organic tech recently, because it's just too powerful. Anyway, if you think of armor not as somthing slapped onto the side of a ship, but as general structural reinforcement and strong hull construction, then it makes a bit more sense that it should help against warp point damage.

Paladin · #7 August 24th, 2000, 04:00 PM

I agree with Jeb, and I might just add that stellar manipulation is unfortunately not available for the demo yet ;-(

This makes it interesting for longer run games with the complete Version though...
Imagine how you might feel if a clever oponent opens a rift in your defenses this way...

Lerchey · #8 August 25th, 2000, 03:10 AM

Stellar Manipulation. You only have to HAVE a ship on one side to create a warp point - you do not have to "control" either system. However, you cannot have multiple warp points between the same two systems, so you cannot use stellar manipulation to "fix" a damage causing warp point unless you first use a different component to destroy it.

Note that this is not really different than SE III.

John