Starbase Strategery? (Full Version)

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James009 -> Starbase Strategery? (1/8/2011 7:10:25 AM)

I'm rather new to this game and was wondering if anyone had any tips about Starbases? From what I've gathered it's smart to build one small space port for each colony to encourage trade.

I'm wondering, what components should go on these planetary starbases? Obviously, I need ample weapons, armor, and shielding... should I increase cargo capacity, place passenger facilities, more docking, what kind of fuel storage, how many reactors?

I've been experimenting with arming my mining facilities and it certainly helps.

Do defensive starbases help? Where do you place them? Can they also have commercial, research, or productive capabilities? Is that a good strategy?

Building general research bases that don't specialize in any particular research field? Is this smart or useful?

Monitoring stations seem VERY helpful in detecting potential attacks... such as an impending World Destroyer. What else are they good at doing?

What do bases need for ships to auto-refuel and auto-repair?

Is there any way to refit or redesign an already completed and non-colony starbase, mining base, defensive base, or monitoring station?

Thanks.



elanaahova -> RE: Starbase Strategery? (1/8/2011 6:12:20 PM)

There are as many strategies as there are players.

james 009 > I tend to redesign and build small trading space bases at every colony. These SB have very little def, wep, etc. instead, I increase the docking bays, supplies (fuel cells), and cargo bays. occasionally I will add constructing facilities to the base. I'm trying to maximize trade, and increase turnaround time for commercial ships.

i then redesign the defense bases, and depending on borders, etc., build one in each system, and definitely one at every non-interior colony. later, when i have long range scanners, i add them to the def base design, and refit all my old def bases.

research bases? I tried a new thing this past game. I redesigned the med space base, and included many research labs. i then at start, refitted the med base that started around my initial colony to the research lab design. My research was way faster then in games where I wait to build research at "research bonus' sites. This will be my preferred tactic from now on...

need for Auto refuel of ships> fuel (fuel cells), docking bays.
need for auto repair / refit of ships> construction yards, and the construction mods, and docking bays.

BTW: resources need to be in storage at the base, missing supplies, materials will automatically ordered and then delivered by the private sector to the base, so repair, refit can proceed. IF a strategic resource is missing, AND your empire has none, private sector will 'buy' it from empires with whom you are trading. i don't know if this requires a 'free trading' treaty, or not. If there is No galaxy supply of the strategic resource your bases is needing to refit the ship - then find a place to mine that resource, and re-task a constructor ship to mine it.

Since i put extra fuel cells on all my def and colony bases, refit, repair, and refueling ships are done at same base - no reason for specialized bases (one to refuel, one to repair).

redesign, and then refit an existing non-colony base? I haven't figured out how to, so, i suppose its, "no, we can't." If someone does, PLEASE post it here!



caerr -> RE: Starbase Strategery? (1/8/2011 9:31:04 PM)

quote:

I've been experimenting with arming my mining facilities and it certainly helps.


This is kind of a double edged sword. To meaningfully equip the mining facilities with weapons drives the upkeep cost quite high, so instead of occasional replacement cost you will be paying a steady amount of creds in upkeep, all the time.

quote:

Do defensive starbases help? Where do you place them? Can they also have commercial, research, or productive capabilities? Is that a good strategy?


If it's just a single defensive starbase, you'll want it as close to the planet as possible. If you plan to build more however, it might be better to form a ring as far from the planet as you can (so that they still stay inside the gravity well).

Only starbases built on the colony will make use of colony enhancement modules, and only one of each is necessary.

quote:


Building general research bases that don't specialize in any particular research field? Is this smart or useful?


What I usually do is design a unique homeworld spaceport which handles all my research needs. That way I can up- or downscale my research capacity at will by retrofitting the design. Naturally this spaceport can grow quite large, the size of the planet in fact. [8D] You should still however build research bases at scientific locations since the bonus will take your research capacity beyond the limit of your empire.

quote:

redesign, and then refit an existing non-colony base? I haven't figured out how to, so, i suppose its, "no, we can't."


That is correct, unfortunately. You'll have to scrap and rebuild manually.



James009 -> RE: Starbase Strategery? (1/9/2011 10:19:18 PM)

What do I need for a starbase to successfully function as a refueling station and for repairs? I assume more cargo holds and possibly fuel? What is fuel used for in stations? Lastly, what are the Energy Collectors for? I assume they provide passive power to the station?



Data -> RE: Starbase Strategery? (1/9/2011 10:45:20 PM)

you need docking bays so that ships can dock and transfer fuel, cargo bays to store the fuel and supply it...but most importantly, you need it supplied with enough fuel to cover your needs in a time of war and increased demand

i found that in the end the space ports at colonies are the best option as they share the colony's cargo and have lots of fuel stored.....for more remote locations ressuply ships as you can control them and not depend on freighters

energy collectors do indeed cover the static energy requirements as long as you're in a star system (proximity to the star itself is not relevant but outside the star system they have no solar radiation to use) and can power the weapons too if you have enough for the energy demand of weapons



caerr -> RE: Starbase Strategery? (1/9/2011 10:45:40 PM)

For a starbase to function as a refueling station you would ideally want to build it at a gas cloud or somewhere where it can mine for gas used for ship fuel.

You might wanna add large number of docking ports so that large fleets can refuel quickly, without waiting for other ships to undock.

Lots of cargo space is useful too*. Fuel tanks not so much**, provided you have enough energy collection capacity to offset static energy requirements. And that's where the energy collectors come in. You can see how much your design uses static energy in the ship design screen.

* except when the station is built at a colony, in that case the starbase can use colony cargo space which is pretty much infinite.

** unless the station is somewhere in deep space where it can't use energy collectors due to lack of energy source.



caerr -> RE: Starbase Strategery? (1/9/2011 10:52:40 PM)

Data beat me by 20 seconds. [:'(]



elanaahova -> RE: Starbase Strategery? (1/10/2011 4:17:27 AM)

So fuel cells DONT supply fuel to other ships that dock with it? Its the cargo bays that hold fuel to be transferred to other ships that have docked with it? I think I misunderstood what fuel cells do - are they ONLY for ship board use?



Data -> RE: Starbase Strategery? (1/10/2011 6:53:30 AM)

you are correct elanaahova, only for that....fuell cells for ship board use, carbo bays for storage and doking bays for transfer



James009 -> RE: Starbase Strategery? (1/11/2011 8:17:06 AM)

Question: Do fuel tanks power stations when they aren't collecting energy or have run out? Is there any way to power an isolated station without Energy Collectors? Should I use Hydrogen as their fuel? On that note, what is Hydrogen, as a fuel, used for?

My distant half-way point stations keep running out of energy... Yuck.



elanaahova -> RE: Starbase Strategery? (1/11/2011 2:09:29 PM)

hi james>
fuel tanks are a storage device for any excess energy the ship/base may have. Once the ship/ deep space base runs out of fuel (cason / H2) the reactors will stop making energy. When the reactors stop making energy, ship and base systems will draw on the reserves in the fuel cells. If new fuel does not 'arrive' the fuel cells will eventually drain dry - and the deep space base will go dark. i think the ships get the really slow movement under 'emergency' reserves (forget what its called) and they can limp to a refueling point.

About hydrogen. it is an alternate fuel source that is used by FUSION (not fission) reactor technology. However, beginning tech for most civs restricts that civ to using cason(sp) gas/fuel, that feeds fission reactors. Fission tech uses cason as fuel.

Research FUSION tech, and then design / build 'some' ships using fusion components. H2 feeds fusion reactors. You will then have two fuel sources available to your fleets, ships, bases. The older ships/bases will continue using cason, the newer ones will use H2.

also remember supply and demand. Cason and H2 are different commodidites on the market.

One observation: i have built ships having both fission and fusion reactors on board each ship, hoping to be able to use whichever fuel is closer - but the ship readout indicates this dual-reactor ship uses hydrogen fuel. I have never tested if it will actually fuel up at a cason station. I just stopped building dual-reactor ships.




Data -> RE: Starbase Strategery? (1/11/2011 6:40:19 PM)


quote:

i think the ships get the really slow movement under 'emergency' reserves (forget what its called) and they can limp to a refueling point.


impulse....the other two being cruise and sprint
every time i see impulse drive in a game that game gets free points in my rating



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