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| Re: Minimize Damage To Self and 5th square |
Thu, 15 May 2003 22:18   |
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 zoid |
 | Ensign |
Messages: 348
Registered: December 2002
Location: Murray, KY - USA | |
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| Nexus One wrote on Thu, 15 May 2003 11:49 |
While group B (max. dmg ratio) opened fire to the privs, group A (min. dmg to self) stopped on 5th square from the left and did not move any further. Delta topr has range 4 and the fleeing privs were on 10th square (from the left), so no single torpedo had a chance to be fired.
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When using minimize damage orders, the ships stop short and wait for an aggressor to come into range, to keep them at maximum range. This helps prevent ships with a minimal range advantage from finding themselves too close in the event that they move first into weapons range, followed by the enemy moving into his own weapons range.
The problem with this order is that against non-moving or non-aggressive targets, you might never get a shot. This order can cause you to lose a battle versus a starbase that you would have easily won otherwise, as your ships stop one square outside their weapons range and wait for the starbase to approach.  Of course, since the base has one additional range point and couldn't move if it wanted to, the outcome is predictable (assuming the base is using weapons with the same range as yours).
I always use "minimize damage" orders sparingly, and with much caution. You have to be able to count on your enemy trying to close range with you. Once a human opponent sees a tendency to use this command, he might try to exploit it.
I'M NOT AN EXPERT AND I'M OFTEN PROVEN WRONG. TAKE THAT INTO CONSIDERATION WHEN YOU READ MY POSTS.
Math?  Ummm, sure!  I do FREESTYLE math.Report message to a moderator
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| Re: Minimize Damage To Self and 5th square |
Fri, 16 May 2003 03:13 |
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| Nexus One |
 | Chief Petty Officer |
Messages: 75
Registered: December 2002
Location: Szczecin, Poland | |
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| zoid wrote on Fri, 16 May 2003 04:18 |
When using minimize damage orders, the ships stop short and wait for an aggressor to come into range, to keep them at maximum range. This helps prevent ships with a minimal range advantage from finding themselves too close in the event that they move first into weapons range, followed by the enemy moving into his own weapons range.
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OK. But isn't it a bug in case like mine, when opponent is a group of unarmed vessels?. In that case the safe distance for my min-damage-DDs is any distance. Shouldn't they follow the privateers as they absolutely posed no danger to these DDs? I understand now the min.damage logic when there are armed ships, but in my case it does not make sense at all. 
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This order can cause you to lose a battle versus a starbase that you would have easily won otherwise, as your ships stop one square outside their weapons range and wait for the starbase to approach.
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Right, I found it out already and it really bites!  
Thanks for you help, zoid.
Check out my new program S!RP (test version)!
ftp://library.southern.edu/starsreportsprocessor.zip
More information in the Bar.Report message to a moderator
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| Re: Minimize Damage To Self and 5th square |
Sat, 17 May 2003 03:45 |
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| zoid |
| Ensign |
Messages: 348
Registered: December 2002
Location: Murray, KY - USA | |
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| Nexus One wrote on Fri, 16 May 2003 00:13 |
OK. But isn't it a bug in case like mine, when opponent is a group of unarmed vessels?. In that case the safe distance for my min-damage-DDs is any distance. Shouldn't they follow the privateers as they absolutely posed no danger to these DDs? I understand now the min.damage logic when there are armed ships, but in my case it does not make sense at all.
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True. It's not very sophisticated, and doesn't draw distinctions between a threatening warship and a victim freighter, nor moving ships versus non-moving starbases. On the other hand, maybe it was intentionally designed that way to make the tactical choice of whether or not to use such a command more difficult to make (but I don't believe it).
Stars is a great game, so we just smile, shrug, and accept the inadequacies found in the combat system, which perhaps are a necessary trade-off for a PBEM game that can accomodate 16 players and still generate a turn a day.
Well....SOME of us smile, shrug, and accept, while others sit back and say to themselves "hmmmm, how can I use this to my advantage? There's gotta be a way to exploit this somehow..."
I'M NOT AN EXPERT AND I'M OFTEN PROVEN WRONG. TAKE THAT INTO CONSIDERATION WHEN YOU READ MY POSTS.
Math? Ummm, sure! I do FREESTYLE math.Report message to a moderator
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There were no other ships. Why the group A did not move further to the other side of the battleboards? The game is played on Autohost, and I got same results when simulated the same situation on my computer. Do "Minimize Damage To Self" ordes prevent fleet to move further then 5th square? Any idea? 
