Home » Stars! 2.6/7 » The Academy » MM Methodology
| Re: MM Methodology |
Thu, 24 September 2009 17:51   |
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Like most, I guess, may way to approach a Stars turn changes over time. In the first years I read most of the messages, then more and more get checked away. There seem to be an astonishing many different ways to play Stars...
Let's see, at the moment I am playing in sas3, small/normal with 8 players. It is 2432. First enemy HW is conquered and the frontier spans diagonally thru the universe and I am fighting 3 players.
There are 120 messages of which I am actually reading 30:
* 1st message: battle summary (the each-battle-one-message are checked away)
* built docks/stations
* defenses (will be checked away soon)
* terraforming (will be checked away soon)
* all other production results are already checked away, same for fleet messages
* "your troops crush..." - I like those messages
* "your fleets bombed..." - I like those messages
* "Wreckage discovered..." - I like those messages
* tracking messages, mass packets, mines swept from MY minefields are shown, everything else is blanked out
1) Battles: Usually I look at all battles.
2) F5: did I gain a research level?
3) Anything wrong on the map on first glance?
4) Making p-files of my and my ally's m-file and loading them into Stars! Notebook to get a better tactical overview. Every 5 years I take some stats (res, planets, tech, points, pop, minerals mined and on surface) and compare them with the stats of previous games.
5) Focussing on the attack fleets. They get their orders first. This includes auxils and supply ships in the surrounding. I keep in mind or write down what needs special attention: reinforcements, more pop, skirmishers etc.
6) Reading the messages, see above. Updating the tactical map of Stars! Notebook with new gates and other data I find interesting. Comparing the tracking messages with the last turn (especially helpful versus stealthy ones).
7) Fleet orders: Usually I blank out all ships, mine and enemies', with the ship filters and focus on 1 ship type (which might include several slots like
- all freighters
- all skirmishers
- all scouts
The first to do are usually the freighters, the bloodlines of every empire. Some obviously belong to fleets and are already taken care of. Others orbit breeders and are sent out again... quite often I switch to the planet listing with F3. Checking pop, checking minerals. If a freighter is missing, it is put in the prod line at once. Freighters have priority. Logistics rule.
After every type of ship is done or let's call it class since it can consist of several slots, any more needed ships of this class are put into production.
8) Checking and sometimes adjusting the research settings.
9) Last thing: If needed I track enemy fleets with scouts to see where they (really) move to.
10) And now comes the fun part:
I love to stare at the map, trying to form vicious plans and ideas. Switching between Stars and Stars Notebook. Checking enemy planets, distances, calculating what kind of fleet would be needed to conquere it... what all other planets could be conquered with the same fleet afterwards. What tech is needed? Can't it be done earlier, faster, meaner? Is there anything I can do to distract my opponents eyes from the spot where I intend to strike? Shall I make a decoy strike anywhere else? Does it really need to be a decoy, why not a small but true strike?
Are there any other weak spots I can exploit without a full fledged attack fleet? How do I best encircle the enemy, cut him from the space needed to expand? Where are good spots to place, unseen, hunters impatiently waiting for prey: an unescorted freighter or even better colonizer.
Are my warships spread too thin? Has the time of needle strikes come to an end, the right tech and economic maturity reached to strike decisively?
More fleets or back to research the next generation of warships?
I have to admit, step 10) I can do for hours. It's the reason I play Stars and I even don't need the computer for it: I can think about the tactical situation while taking a shower or makin
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