I am totally new to this game (albeit after some really long hours spent in GSB). After trying the demo I found the game highly addicting (just one more fleet configuration and ill quit, oh crap that one failed, now really just one more…). Now i’v bought the Collector’s Edition and now I messing with missions, trying to master my skills and tactics. I am still NOT combat-ready for the endgame of this game (ex. massive fleets full of masterfully designed ships, with edge-cutting orders on).
The most confusing thing about my early game experience was (and STILL is) to remember all those weapon types - that’s for observation what is currently used in battle. And, as a result, preparations should be taken to counter them just by knowing which weaponry enemy has used.
There was also one very low priority complaint just when I have bought GSB and unlocked the race that suited my gameplay the most - The Empire. Their description stated, that their ships have inherent Shield Boosts, and they’re technologically obsessed AND their entire race did not get a single new shield type - getting that would be logical (albeit not really gratuitous ).
Yes, the minimal amount of race specific weaponry in GSB is noticeable. However if you have a Text Editor & Some imagination, you can quickly fix that. Head over to the modding section for a few examples.
Actually my little complaint isnt about weaponry, but it is about shields ;). Empire has cool new weapon option, that one with shield recharge . Is it considered here a good option or waste of slot? Now all of my Empire frigates (well, almost) have it onboard, to help cruisers they’re escorting.
Welcome to the Positech website, blackwell. The forum sheriff says “hi”.
The Empire’s Imperial Shield Support Beam is pretty darn good. I suggest you make use of it. It can act as a serious “force multiplier” in combat, and that’s entirely to your advantage. It’s best to have numerous frigates carrying that gadget; don’t bother with only 1 or 2 such ships, unless you’re on a very tight budget.
It depends on the amount of concentrated fire your cruisers are taking.
If a quick cruiser gets close enough with Cruiser Lasers the shields will go down too quickly for the support beams to make a difference. The same with massive spam of Plasma or Missiles. However, if the opponent is spread out and/or only have a few Plasma or Missile slots (going for the balanced approach) so that not everything strikes the shield at once, having a bunch of frigates with support beams behind them could make your front line impregnable.
Such a cruiser should have both the Reflective Shield and the Fast Recharge Shield, then load up with Multiphasic Shields until you have 8-900 shield strength. An armor plating or two to soak up the penetration damage is also useful for the long battles. Since missiles fire faster than plasma, a Guidance Scrambler Beam is useful unless you know you’re not going to face missiles.
In order to not be subject to the same shield-heavy tactics yourself, make sure you have good fire concentration with shield-breaking weaponry like missiles or plasma. The one who gets to deal hull damage first is likely to win (except with Tribe).
anti-fighter fighters (dat fast laser thingy + battery + engine, just in case of… enemy mosquitoes)
shielder type cruisers (17%, was it Imperial? or whatever he was called) with Scramblers onboard. I change their weaponry frequently and then analyze the results.
laser-DPS type cruisers (hm, i bet it was 10% shield 6% armor type) with some low shield penetration lasers and heavy shield penetration cannon for support. They also have Scramblers, that missing missiles are so lovely…
missile launcher cruiser (just cant get enough of missiles)
EMP support frigates with some spicy guns onboard
general/laser support frigates
missile launcher frigates (weapon station ftw)
all frigates got their shield recharge cannons
some ships have anti-fighter weaponry
and i have squished some MWM’s in there
Planning to make an Support Ship cruiser design with variety of unusual tools aboard.
got nice pwnage from heavy Rebel fleet (80k scenario, 40k spent on ships)
Any improvement advice, need further details?
Btw. I am not generating offtopic… right? If yes, then ill make a separate thread for advices.
well you are derailing your own thread . . . However it is all sort of related as you are new to the forum it is only fitting that you compare notes with other players.
If you have not read it already, i could direct your attention to 123’s Comprehensive GSB Guide - it is well worth the read especially when you tackle the online challenges.
Well, considering the energy requirements and cost of the support beam, I wouldn’t use it with all frigates. That makes all frigates suboptimal. Since they must stay behind the front line and heavy shield cruisers are usually ranged artillery, the support given by those frigates should be protection against quicker, smaller ships that the artillery can’t hit. So use those large frigate hulls with a Support Beam and Ion Cannons/Beam Lasers which are both very good vs assault frigates, while Ion Cannons are also very good vs assault cruisers, as well as a Anti-Fighter Missile launcher or two. Shields, armor and an engine - set to escort a cruiser each, or if you have a tank lure as a formation leader that’s a quicker way of setting up larger armies.
Also, frigate missiles won’t hurt cruisers with Reflective Shields, which makes them pretty useless. Try plasma instead. I have a IWP build with 5 plasma launchers and a EMP launcher. A bunch of those bundled together can hold their own even vs large cruiser fleets.
Despite it not appearing so, shields are very important for anti-fighter frigates, since most fighter shots will harmlessly hit the shield instead of the armor. Also, stick a Ion Cannon on those frigates so that they can have another function than just killing fighters.
And since you appear to be interested in reading threads about how to get good performance out of your ships, you might be interested in some of these:
Fighters viewtopic.php?f=19&t=7864 - general-purpose fighter design, primarily focusing on Parasite fighters viewtopic.php?f=19&t=7591 - mostly dogfighter optimization, some fighter strafing stuff later in the thread
General viewtopic.php?f=19&t=7942 - fighter swarms and anti-fighter defenses on cruisers, mainly on pages 2 and 3 viewtopic.php?f=19&t=7516 - interesting read, not very specific on builds or tactics viewtopic.php?f=19&t=5136 - the helpfully titled thread Threads with Advice for New Players (not an actual advice thread, but one with links to such) viewtopic.php?f=19&t=8214 - a bit about protecting cruisers from fighters, with my analysis of cruiser-based antifighter weapons viewtopic.php?f=19&t=7581 - a bit about frigate tactics and a bit about getting beneath shield bubbles viewtopic.php?f=19&t=7941 - a bit about the campaign and a quick overview of general categories of cruiser weapons viewtopic.php?f=19&t=7842 - fleet formation movement
You might need to read these all the way through to find the useful portions, and as with any good discussion many of these provide differing viewpoints, and some people express views which changed as the thread developed. I would also suggest experimenting with your own designs, rather than going strictly off of what you find on the forums, because in my opinion half the fun of the game is to see if you can make some really oddball designs work (or, at least, meet some really odd design challenges, like designing a cruiser that can hit 0.91 speed).
There are also a couple of threads where people posted ship designs, some of which are really old and some of which are newer, if you’re inclined to see what kinds of designs some people have posted.
).
If yes, then ill make a separate thread for advices.