Mod Theory: Ships and Space Combat
Let's get onto this interesting subject. Ships will be a serious investment, their construction expensive and taking quite some time. When you eventually get to the larger Battleships you'll find yourself planning a few years in advance to receive your fully equipped ship. Additionally civilian ships will become more expensive to maintain and possibly eat away at your influence as well as your energy credits.
Below is a basic idea of how fleet size, maintenance and combat strength will all relate. Smaller ships will be maintenance efficient while larger ships will be combat strength efficient. The following is a tentative example:
Corvette
Fleet size 1, Relative Maintenance cost 0.5, Relative damage 1
Destroyer
Fleet size 3, Relative Maintenance cost 2.5, Relative damage 4
Cruiser
Fleet size 5, Relative Maintenance cost 6, Relative damage 8
Battleship
Fleet size 9, Relative Maintenance cost 14.5, Relative damage 18
Before we get onto combat let's look at the weapon types and their defences. Remember this is a realism mod so unfortunately we will not be indulging silly and inaccurate sci-fi tropes about the three weapon types and their defences.
Missiles and Point Defence
Missiles are very slow firing long range weapons however they are also be the kind of weapon that when it hits, it hits hard. Point defence is a nice realistic way of nullifying missiles. So missiles and point defence are energy cost low and mineral cost high. Their maintenance costs mainly minerals.
Projectile Weapons and Armour
Contrary to popular belief projectile weapons are medium to long range weapons that fire very fast but do only a little damage each time. Armour is a nice realistic way of minimising projectile damage. Projectile weapons have a moderate energy cost and a moderate mineral cost. Their maintenance costs half and half mineral and energy.
Energy Weapons and Shields
Energy weapons are immensely damaging, able to punch through feet of metal but are short range and are incredibly energy expensive to maintain and use compared to the other two types. Shields are incredibly unrealistic but we can find ways of creating realistic "shields", these would require energy to maintain just like the energy weapons they shield against.
Space Combat
This is short and sweet. Space combat should really play out quicker than it does currently. Ship to ship combat would occur at best over a few days. While it might look cool to have a battle rage over weeks and even months, that's not realistic. The attrition warfare is on planets, not in the void of space. Ships would probably have to die much quicker therefore.
Additionally Admirals are going to play a big part, with far more effective combat traits than vanilla. Meaning that the right commander could make an un-winnable fight an equal battle or turn a stand-off into a curb stomp.
