Suggestion

[1FSTCAT]

How about adding an order that would direct one fleet to merge with another, before an attack? It's kind of a hassle, at the moment, having to spend an entire turn to get all of your ships together before an attack. It would definitely be more convienant if there were a merge order.

Also, a general question. How come you can build multiple mines, fighters, troops and platforms in a turn, at a single shipyard, but you can't build multiple ships or facilities?

Thanks!
--Ed

[Val]

I think the reason you don't build multiple ships in a shot is that ships generally take more than one turn to complete. They are also seen more as consumables (I imagine) and are built in bulk.

A merge command would be nice.

[Suicide Junkie]

Re: Fleet merge order.
That would be quite useful.

Re: Multi-ship build
Technically, its only because they are units (and quite small) that you can build in batches, and ships aren't units.

For a mental image of why, think of Earth today: mines, tanks, and (commercial) sattelites are all built in bulk.
Ship construction ties up a major facility for quite a while.

I'd also imagine that the one-ship-per-turn constraint helps to avoid certain unsavory tricks.
Imagine if you will; in the late stages of a game, a player prepares for war... on his planets, he orders construction of 1000 dreadnaughts, holding the queues at 1 turn from completion.
The fateful day arrives, he unholds his queues, and unleashes 1000's of massive ships without:
1) having to pay maintenance
2) having to pay unmothball costs
3) having ANY indication of his strength appear in score or intel reports.

After a few quick 1000 vs 50 skirmishes, he wipes out his opponent's resistance, and then scraps some ships to pay maintenance.
The odds drop to 200 vs 20 or so, while he walks through his opponent's homeworlds.

[Val]

That is quite the unsavory trick!

[tesco samoa]

and a big ship yard.....

I could see it on a sphere world.

[Skulky]

i liked how SE3 handled it with each space yard component (1 per planet but more in orbit in space) coudl produce ships individually, anyway you could still acheive this effect with orbiting SS shipyards. I usually have 3 over my starting worlds (thanks Imperator Fyron for the idea). Gives a great boost at the start

I like the new P&N multiple Space yard expansion, not more ships, but more capacity, think a ringworld that produces battlemoons in one turn ahhhhhhhh, kinda expensive though.