Genius - Losing space battles.

There are a few things to keep in mind. One is something you've already touched on - it's not just who gets to battleships first. The aliens may have technologies that boosts repair, hit points, etc. and this can make a frigate more than a match for a battleship. Military resources can be critical as well. The other point to remember is that the alien may have a War Party government, and that means a +50% hit point bonus. That can be a huge plus - take a look at the combat simulator, and pitch a frigate against a battleaxe. Now do it with a frigate against a +50% HP battleaxe.

The other is more general. Why are you at war to begin with? If the alien attacked, usually its because you didn't pay them tribute. You have to ask yourself whether the economic costs of the war are larger than what the alien is asking for in tribute. While paying blackmail sticks in my craw, strategically it's often better to lump it for now, and then to seek revenge later. If you attacked, why? In GC, wars are best fought for a reason - it's good to have a clear objective in mind: a resource that is owned by your enemy, some planets, whatever. In the early game, you won't have enough power to eliminate your opponent, so you should have some other goal in mind, and some assurance that you can end the war when you want to. The aliens won't stop fighting if they think they have the upper hand, so it's best not to attack until you are sure that you do.

That covers the "why" question. Next is "where" - are you fighting on your turf, or the aliens'? I find defense easier than offense. One reason is that letting their fleet slam themselves on your battleaxes and battlehammers is often at least as destructive as going at it directly. Another is that you control the territory, so you can pepper it with military starbases that can make that sector a very tough nut to crack. Most importantly, the only ship that the enemy has that you really have to worry about are transports. You can always build another ship, but taking a planet from you is a serious injury that you may not recover from. In the pre-Combat Transport period, a Corvette or even a Starfighter will have no trouble taking out a transport, and they are fast a cheap. If you're attacking, these all work against you, and your biggest advantage is initiative, so you have to press that.

Finally, a war is over when the enemy looses his ability to fight. Think "Destabilization". Can you cripple his economy? Can you enlist other species to attack your opponent? All of these will tend to reduce or eliminate your opponent's raw military advantage.

Jeff,

I too recently moved up to all-Genius, and am encountering the same problem. The computer AI (especially the Arceans and Torians) are much more effective during war.

Some lessons I have learned:

1) Military resources are critical. A fully-loaded production SB will give a +68% (!) bonus to AF & DF. Beware any computer advantage greater than 16% in either attack or defense. AI's possessing such a superiority will turn bellicose and begin to demand tributes. Use the stats screen to check their progress each turn (requires an espionage penetration of Medium or above).

2) HP's can affect combat outcomes greatly. To boost them, consider building Shipyards on every planet producing capital ships, and acquire Tri-Strontium Steel as well.

3) Most computer AI's will attempt to overwhelm a single target sector, to grab a resource or seize a planet. It is easy to get your fleet reduced to 50% or less HP's fighting off the initial "wave". The AI can then easily kill your vessels, before they have a chance to repair. To counter:

- Defend targeted sectors with multiple vessels. Rotate them out of the front line once extensively damaged.
- If all available ships are reduced to 50% or less HP's, defend in orbit if possible. Your ship will still be destroyed if attacked, but its own counter-strike will be augmented, and it will have a much better chance of eliminating the attacker in return.
- Once the initial "rush" is over, the AI will send new forces in piecemeal. Use this to your advantage.
- Should you be about to lose the targeted planet/resource, attempt to sue for peace. Many AI's will accept the offer for only the cost of the planet/resource, which you are going to lose anyway. Remember that each time you lose a planet, the AI captures a tech - but if you trade it, it doesn't! Use the time to rebuild and continue research.

4)The AI generally prioritizes in the following order: New Ships/AF-DF bonuses/HP's. Conduct your research path appropriately.

5)Repair works best in orbit. For this reason, I now consider a Military resource in the same sector as habitable planets to be the holy grail of the game. Locate such sectors and target them for immediate acquisition. Even be willing to "trade down" in PQ's (when choosing between two colonizable options) if that's what it takes. Remember that, in addition to the (possible) +68% AF/DF bonus, you can add up to 8 modules to increase production at the colony.

Hope this helps.

~SDC~

Thanks guys. Some great advice - especially re: espionage and destabilisation. Never thought of that. Also keep missing out on Tri-Stronium Steel - so I will go for that instead of Aphrodisiacs. (I can't seem to get more than 3 Trade Goods at Genius during this initial phase).

In answer to your question as why I am at war... Haven't attacked anyone, the AIs are coming at me. Probably because my attack rating is too low. I buiuld a few Corvettes near the start to keep them off, but forego Frigates, Battlecruisers etc. to rush to Battleships. Trouble is while I am spending on tech they are building fleets of frigates and cruisers so I am probably a juicy target.
I will try and build a few more defensive SBs on my frontlines. Will also rotate ships more as you suggested.
Thanks again.

One thing that isn't obvious - the attacker in a battle has the advantage. I'll bet those Frigates are faster and more numerous than your BBs, allowing the AI to attack you more often than you're able to attack it. For that reason I use Corvettes quite late in the game - they have a decent punch, but they're faster than anything else. I always use mixed fleets, with the Corvettes locating the enemy and setting up his important ships to be clobbered by my heavies, drawing slower heavies out of the battle (the AI loves to chase), or recognizing concentrations of ships to avoid.

IMO, Battle Cruisers are too expensive for their weak hitting power. Frigates, OTOH, I've not really experimented with.

As for how to keep the AIs off, build Star Fighters early and often until you get Corvette tech.


~SDC~