sieges & tactical

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h1. Sieges

Star systems are generally capable of defending themselves. Stationary defense systems are cheap and powerful, and their only weakness is immobility. No fleet can rush the system in one week (except maybe if it's really huge and doesn't mind taking half fleet casualties), so taking a system requires a protracted siege.

toc.

h2. Siege

First stage is the system being bombarded from afar. A hostile fleet opens a warp breach and hurls whatever they can to the system. This is not very effective, but over time exhausts the defense systems. This phase takes the longest time, and patience leads to less casualties.

h2. Space assault

After defense system is weakened, fleet chooses to invade. Depending on the defense system condition, fleet might suffer harsh casualties during the attack. Troops might be deployed to capture defense systems, or they might just be destroyed.

h2. Ground assault

If space assault is successfull and fleet have disabled the defense. ground assault begins. Troops are deployed planetside and begin to fight for the planet control. Fleets must remain in orbit to provide support and counter the planetary defenses. This phase can take various amounts of time, and depending on planet inhabitants' attitude and plans towards them, can be only the first step of actually benefitting from the planet.

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toc.

Combat is fought with space ships, which are valuable and unique. Ships can be lost only in critical circumstances, usually they have ability to retreat and repair (but not for free).

h2. Ship Fleets

Ships are organized in fleets, which are semi-permanent structures. Drilling and especially fighting together raises *fleet cohesion* which gives it very significant combat bonuses. Changing the fleet structure quickly results in cohesion loss and then it has to be recovered, so fleets are intended to stay mostly the same. Fleets include support ships which do not fight, but increase fleet capabilities, such as supply storage or scavenging speed, and support ships are included in fleet cohesion.

Active fleet consumes a lot of resources, so in peace time they can be kept either mothballed (will require resources and time to bring it back up, plus loses cohesion fast) or on standby (crew stationed out of the fleet, moderate upkeep, loses cohesion slowly).

h2. Combat ship parameters

Structure: structural integrity of a ship. When it reaches 0, ship is destroyed.
Speed: Speed at which When structure is lowered, ship can move in hyperlanes (out of combat). has increasing chances to experience a system failure which might impact its performance or force it to escape earlier. No failures prevent escape.
Surface: vulnerable surface of a ship. Larger ships are generally easier to hit.
Maneuverability: ability to evade enemy fire.
Damage Treshold: amount that Decreases effective surface.
Supply storage: how much supplies ship can carry. In-combat resupply is substracted from enemy weapon fire.

h2. Hulls

Ships are based on hulls. Hull determines basic parameters of a generally not possible, so that defines how soon ship and number of available slots.

h2. Slots

Ships might have several slots, in which ship components to retreat.
Weapons: ships can be inserted on design. Examples install various kind of slots:

* External - can equip weapons, armor, scanners or weapons which might be useful either in combat engines.
* Internal - can equip troop pods, supply pods or engine plugins.
* Shielding - can equip shields or stealth units.
* Pilot - can equip pilot pods. An AI is an option, but it's typically way less apt than sentient pilot.
* CSS (combat sensors and subroutines) - can equip combat strategies.

Components can affect ship's supply requirements. If fleet is not in friendly supply zone and it runs out of supplies stored in supply pods, it cannot fire most weapons and will start to suffer attrition.

h3. Weapons siege. Weapons hit enemy ships and drain their Structure. Weapons also have tracking parameter, which can offset effective surface malus.

h3. Armor

Armor increases ship's HP.

h3. Scanners

Scanners are generally not useful for combat ships, but
Warp weavers: defines how intact ship will be after emergency retreat, as well as how effectively fleet can move and siege across starlanes.

h2. Support ship parameters

Supply storage: support ships carry the fleet supply, which is replenished either from friendly supply lines or by other ways like scavenging or trading.
Troops: these can assault planets or space stations. Lower number of pods means invasion will be used going slower annd might need supply line to receive information about adjacent systems.

h3. Combat engines

Combat engines decrease effective surface.

h3. Shields

Shields absorb part replenish troops.
Operational supplies: fleet might include ships capable of incoming damage, increasing ship's DT.

h3. Engine plugins

Engine plugins increase ship's hyperlane speed extending the supply lines.
Warp weavers: support ships can carry dedicated weavers to facilitate fleet movement.

h2. Hulls

Ships are based on hulls. Hull determines basic parameters of a ship and increase chance number of escaping combat. available slots. Hulls have their distinctive advantages and are not direct upgrades.

h3. Pilots

Depending on race, pilot might increase different ship parameters. Using AI for a pilot applies a malus to most of them instead, but makes ships loyal. loyal (except when hacked). Using human pilots makes fleet subject to infiltration, rioting ot unrest.

h3. CSS

@@ -64,4 +44,4 @@ Ship's Surface and Maneuverability add to Effective Surface. When choosing a tar

h2. Ship combat structure

When several fleets of hostile stance meet (either arrive at same system or collide in a hyperlane), a combat starts. Combat consists of three rounds, during which every ship gets a chance to fire their weapons. Targets are picked based on chosen strategy and effective surface, randomly. When round is over, dead ships are removed or escape if they succeed in escape roll. escape. Escaped ships eventually reappear at rally point with 1 low HP.