Complete Fleet Design & Doctrine Guide 1.16 [WIP]

Intro

this guide is a work in progress. vast changes should be expected

this guide assumes you are using a infinite money save file, are not speedruning, and just want to enjoy the game you bought.

we will discuss

doctrine

how to use your ships

how to build your ships

how to fight with your ships

Table of contents

1. intro

fleetcomp

each role in detail

general ship building tips

how to use your fleet

Fleet Composition

1x [flagship]

2x [carrier]

2x [scout]

3x [fast fueler]

2x [heavy fighter]

6x [intercepter]

5x [heavy fueler]

1x [AA]

1x [module transport]

this is the fleet comp I used last time I beat the game. you can change as you please, but I want to give you an idea what a good fleet comp looks like.

What each thing does

flagship is YOUR ship! while theoretically it should be as small and fast as possible. that's boring. your flagship should also be able to use planes and missiles to strike and a full suite of sensors. but never forget, it should first of all be able to keep up with the fleet.

Carrier a dedicated carrier. has planes, sensors and little else

Scout made to find the enemy. must have all the sensors and long range. it should be able to park in front of the fleet and have enough range and speed to avoid the enemy if caught

later sections will define each ship class later

General Ship Building Tips

Fuel Smuggling

my favorite ship building tip.

created by: newageofpower

cons: cannot be repaired, you cannot modify or repair the designs after they are built.

1. update to 1.12 or older

2. build your design with fuel smuggling.

3. save the design

4. move the ship save file to you steam ship save file.

overlapping WIP

engine choice

static engines are the most strategic in the game. and should be used as often as possible. but which should you use?

engine stats (1.16)

RD-51 fuel efficency= 65/7=9.285| 789t

D-30S fuel efficency= 21/4=5.25 | 45t

RD-59 fuel efficency= 45/7=6.43 | 875t

RD-51 vs D-40S

big ship vs small ship

RD-51s are for big ships larger than about 3000t (untested claim). because of thrust to weight ratio,

fighter layers

keep sensitve systems (like explosive ammo) closer to the inside than the outside. in practice, a fighter core should have the bridge and ammo, around that is a layer of fuel, and on the outer most layer should be generators or other non-essential parts. fuel should never be exposed because any shot will burn the fuel.

Systemless

power and crew are useless. Power only matters for guns and rotating engines. most ships don't have guns and gimbaled engines are still land-able even with XX% power. and good ship designs minimize gimbaled engines anyway. and crew (as far as I know), does nothing.

Legs

spring theory.

little legs

Overlapping

measuring compression

overlapping means two pieces will occupy the same space, meaning that space is saved. this can be counted by counting how many 1x1 spaces are overlapped/saved.

one half-piece and one corner-less piece overlaped lead to a compresion of two. but two corner-less pieces compressing the same subsystems only has a compression of 1.

leg smuggling

D-30s rockets can be smuggled with leg blocks but they must be "pointed down" compared to the leg

D-30s overlapping

you can overlap over a D-30s, you just need to ensure the rocket is unobstructed. each triangle or cornerless piece has 2 sides that are "open". you have to be sure that the D-30s is pointed in an open direction.

usually when overlapping with D-30s, you're overlapping landing legs and engines. this is good because D-30s's need to point down (usually) and legs should be as close to the ground as possible to lower weight cost and maximize spring-ability

fuel smuggling? maybe use the one in previous section

Flagship

how to build

desired stats:

cruise speed: 290-300 (not strict)

range: greater than 2500km

consumption: minimize. maximum 1000 t/Mm

weapons: none

planes: maximize. minimum 6

missiles: 2-4 (2 recommended)

sensors: all of them

legs: optional

recommended building methods:

fuel smuggling: this is massive! this will easily raise your range to much more than what you need. 4 smuggle boxes is enough. 6 smuggle boxes is for especially large flagships that are both big and multi purpose

missiles are not meta. they are faaaaaar worse than planes in 1.16. because planes don't miss, and they (usually) come back. missiles should theoretically never be included, but they're fun so we keep them.

how to use

carrier doctrine

whether you have 8 planes or 28. your are going to want to use them at some point.

1. get in range. depending on the situation. you should be well fueled and go to to a point just in range of the target

2. send

All Doctrine advice

missiles: missiles are important for early game anti missile/plane systems (untested), and for nuclear weapons in the late game. in the early game, carry A-100 missiles because they are fast and they don't miss. If you see a strike coming for your flagship, and your planes have already failed you, A-100 missiles are your last option before missiles (which you should also have). in late game, if you have nuke, use nuke >:)

Carriers

intro

how to build

to preface, there are escort carriers, carriers, and heavy carriers. there is a lot of variety in carriers

how to use

strikes with 1, 2, or 3 planes. the easiest thing to do is to send 6 planes at once, but in practice planes like to attack targets in groups of 3s so really you're only going to hit two ships with 3 planes. should use 3 plane squadrons for the heavily armored strike groups and late game garrisons, while using 1-2 planes squadrons against less armored ships

defending against planes and rockets: if you see planes or rockets coming at you. you can kill either with planes loaded with anti ship missiles. (note: anti-missile defense claim is untested)

Doctrine

same as flagship, minus the missiles

Scout

How To build

Ideal stats:

speed: 400-500km/h (ideal 500 km/h)

range: maximize (minimum about 2500km)

consumption: minimize

sensors: All 100% strength

how to use

generally

1. go to strike group

2. passive spy

3. active spy

where to be:

Guns Guns Guns

before talking about fighters, let me tell you about guns.

Each gun explained

starting from the left

2A37- AA use only. while the best AA gun in-game, it is still not as reliable as dodging. you can hit a rocket 5 times and still get hit. I rage quit on these failed AA

AK-725- a trash inbetween of AA and damage. not enough shots to be AA, not enough damage compared to other 1 ammo guns

AK-100 - it has a legacy of being the best gun of 1.15, but that's in the past, now it is merely good.

good rate of fire, clip size

poor accuracy, poor damage

proxy rounds are now bad for damage. don't use proxy rounds against armor.

it's now weak armor pen means 100mm can't punch armor like you want. but it's high rate of fire means it is good against unarmored targets. the high rate of fire means it also utilizes special ammo very well. it is the best at using proxy rounds as AA, it's AP rounds are acceptable.

130mm - the best 1 ammo gun in 1.16. it has the clip, the power, accuracy, and the ammo variants, to make this a MEAN gun in 1.16.

it's ammo piercing ammo is really good, it can piece armor like butter, and just 2 guns is enough to one-shot if used properly. and the story get's better, it's lazer guided rounds are so powerful, they can make even my 2 130mm interceptor viable against even strike groups.

keep in mind armor piercing and especially guided ammo are both rare enough that you need to conserve ammo. guided should only be used against strike groups or in emergencies where your ship is hopelessly outnumbered. proxy, like other calibers, is mostly for AA. and incendiary is a waste of the 130's potential.

MK-1-180- This is my problem solver. this will break any armor and melt any ship, 180mm is the best. this is the optimal 180mm gun and arguably the best gun in the game. With a good RoF and no clip, just remember to always keep shooting.

actual RoF: 20RPM (rounds per minute)

MK-2-180- over rated. for the twice the ammo cost of the MK-1-180. this gun has a slower rate of fire. the only benefit of this gun is a clip of 2 instead of 1, while two MK-1-180s also shoot two shots (2x1). this gun is very over-rated.

MK-6-180- the trophy gun. if you have the design skills to integrate it into a ship, and to use it. it is worth the cost. it's basically 6 180mm guns for the price of 4. a full clip of 6 180mm is enough to devastate or kill even the largest ships in the game. guided rounds are strongly recommended, letting you guarantee hits while safely afar.

#2 the toy: it's basically 6 180mm guns for the price of 4. it's the most powerful gun in-game but not worth the cost. it's only good if you can hit with it, and most people can't. better off with 2 MK-1's than a squall. that said, it's a fun toy.

actual RoF: 120RPM

A-220- sounds good doesn't work. for the price of 2 MK-1-180s, you lose a lot of accuracy and rockets aren't that much stronger than 180mm. not worth it

ideal set ups

while more guns is always better. I believe in ideal gun set ups

2x 180mm HE/homing

1x 130mm AP/ proxy

HE/AP for strike fleets, Homing/Proxy for smaller ships (you shouldn't try to kill garrisons with heavy fighters)

Heavy Fighter

ideal stats

thrust/weight: 3.5-4.0

range: 1000-1200km

consumption: minimize. max 750t

Sensors: None

legs: required

guns- ideally 2 180mm and 1 130mm. more guns is better but I like this right now

fighter layers

keep sensitve systems (like explosive ammo) closer to the inside than the outside. in practice, a fighter core should have the bridge and ammo, around that is a layer of fuel, and on the outer most layer should be generators or other non-essential parts. fuel should never be exposed because any shot will burn the fuel.

Engines

like with any small ship, D-30S engines are the best. However, because only the bottom of the ship should be used for engines rather than be armored, you should use gimbal engines

D-30 vs NK-25

thrust vs consumption

Ideally you should never use NK-25's. consumption is king and D-30's are better. But if your agility (thrust/weight) is too low, you can use NK-25s to fix that if you can tolerate the consumption. if that isn't enough, you need to redesign the ship

Systems

you actually need more than one generator :( because power controls the rotation speed of guns and gimbal engines, you should have a power supply of 80-100%.

note: there is no evidence to suggest crew% helps in combat so you can still ignore crew requirements

How many fighters

in 1.15, I used to have only one heavy fighter. but after the heavy nerf of fighters, I now have to use two. you have to test your designs in the ship builder against medium/large ships until you can reliably defeat enemy fleets. you may need 1-3 heavy fighters

Interceptor

intro

this ship is not meant to kill strike groups, it's meant to kill garrisons, and do it fast.

ideal stats

thrust/weight: maximize. X.X min

speed: 500-520

range: maximize. +1200-2200

consumption: minimize

fuel: 600 max

why these stats?

THRUST/WEIGHT: is the primary defense of any intercepter, not armor, and should be very maneuverable in combat

SPEED: speed is soft capped in 1.16 to roughly 600km/h, I don't know the exact math but any more than 600 and you are wasting fuel. just over 500 is likely ideal. 600 speed is not that important because you'll be conquering so fast, you'll seldom get the opportunity for a silent strike. high speed is mostly a by-product of high thrust/weight

RANGE: this is the most important stat. the ability to move independently without a fueler is vital, and the more range the better

CONSUMPTION: time spent refueling is time not spent conquering. you should be able to take a city, refuel, and move on very quickly. best efficient is subjective, but it is

fuel: this stat can be found in the mass stat in parenthesis (fuel:500)

design questions to ask:

1. how many guns? 1 gun is weak, 2 is moderate, +3 is more like a light/medium fighter than an interceptor

2. how many D-30's? gimbal engines are both necessary for maneuvering but bad for efficiency. 0 gimbals is theoretically ideal, but is usually impractically unmaneuverable. 1 is poor maneuverability but great efficiency. 2 is the ideal, good manuverability, good conumption. +2 gimbals is needlessly maneuverable. any gas-guzzler gimbal engines are generally a bad idea.

3. flares, what do you like? so do you like dodging or flares. some like flares only in the down direction, all directions is very reliable. some are just good at dodging and

4. palash? [WIP] currently researching/experimenting the real effectiveness of palash

---spacer-----

Doctrine

Doctrine is the overall strategy of your fleet. what are you trying to do with your fleet? Are you trying to kill of your enemies, or avoid all of your enemies. I like blowing things up, so this Guide will focus on explosions. So how do you want to kill? big guns, big planes or big missiles?

Fighter carrier doctrine

Basic frame work

1. find the enemy

2. big carrier strike

3. send in the fighters

About other doctrines

update 1.16 nerfed fighters hard, that's why I needed planes to compensate. but fighter carrier doctrine is not the only possible doctrine.

missile doctrine is only worth it if you're using nukes. missiles are heavy, harder to find in-game, and unlike planes they never come back. missiles are for late game or for a nuclear run.

jumper doctrine. this is where you get a fuel ship with HUGE range and fly far to a nice city, ignoring everything else in your way. refuel, then keep jumping until you reach Khiva. this is an interesting strat and is preferred in speed runs.

independent or dependent ships

you'll notice I like my ships with +1100 range, but if you had separate fuelers this wouldn't matter. dependant ships must have a fueler to travel, Independent ships can (optionally) travel without a fueler.

the real pros and cons lie with fighters. independent fighters are bigger and more flammable, but have the strategic flexibility to move anytime.

It's a choice, do you want to deal with lots of dedicated fuelers and the possibility your ships can't travel without help. or add a fuel requirement to your ships. there are pros and cons to both,the choice is yours.

Routing

early game

1. you have to decide in advance what cities your fleet will take beforehand. mark them on the map and route your fleet to that that and only that path. after reading the short and long term benefits of each city you might be tempted to take every city.

SHORT-TERM

repair by far the most important type of city in the short term. repairing interceptors is time wasted

fuel important when starting the game and as needed. these both sell cheap fuel and more importantly, fuel faster! heavy fuelers and heavy ships take forever to fuel and fuel cities do it 3-10x time faster.

LONG-TERM

rare modules planes and missiles are rare and useful. If you intend on using either, you will need to capture module cities to collect their parts

intel

2. make sacrifices for speed

while you could take every city given the pace of this fleet, play-ability is an issue when you're fighting endless garrisons. try to minimize the number of cities you take while having the resources you need to succeed.

3. endgame: spoiler filled!

only read just before you arrive at khiva (80-90% completion)

speed is no longer the goal, territorial control is. you must surround Khiva. draw a 2000km circle around khiva and plan to take everything in that circle. such that you can travel freely throughout the target area

surround the capitol

2000km

Defending Against SG Missiles

scout decoys

scouts (or anything with a jammer/radar) can reveal itself like a decoy from a safe distance to the missile group and get missiles sent to them. because of the safe distance, the radar warning, scout speed, and the jammer, getting hit by a missile is unlikely. once they run out off missiles you can reveal your real fleet. and attack without worrying about a missile strike from a missile group

missile interception: planes

more reliable than missiles. you can send planes equipped with preferably AA missiles, or even machine guns. if you don't stop the missile the first time, you can try again. the planes will still be near the missile and can strike again immediately if you tell them to (you have to tell them to). because of this, even the less reliable MG loadout has a fair chance to stop a missile. if you are defending against nukes, expect to lose all of your planes when it explodes so send a small AA force (2planes).

missile interception: missiles

none of this has been tested so this options is just probably true. you could intercept a missile with either another missile (preferable A-100) or an airstrike of AA missile equipped planes

tactical defense

the missile has now intercepted you and you now need to brace for impact. take the following steps in this order.

1. pause the game immediately. use this time to understand where the missile is and where it's going, where your ship is and what it can do.

2. fire all anti ship rockets you have by spamming C

3. shoot at the rocket if you can

4. wait to dodge. don't accelerate too early, lest the missile compensate.

5. Pray.

Attacking SGs

softening

you are sending smaller attacks to weaken the SG so that even a well played intecepter could kill it or the soft attacks could themselves destroy

2. planes

3. intercepters. assuming

Hard Attack

no softening, kill it now and kill it all!

1. heavy fighters

2. interceptor kiting (save-scumming)- attack a strike group with an interceptor (maybe more than one). save right before you engage. in the battle, kill just one large ship or whatever big fight you can win and then retreat with minimal damage. then right as you leave the battle, save again. fight again and there is your save scum strat. save, fight, save, fight, until you win. high risk but also works well.

General Battle Tactics

never stop firing. Dead ships don't shoot back

aim for weak points

dodge missiles first

accelerate to dodge missiles, not just speed

ranging: keep your distance. even if you can't hit, they can't hit.

missile manipulation

fire maxing: best paired with incindeary ammo. burn your enemies untill they have no more FSS (lissted on the bottom right). if FSS is zero, you only need to burn them to win

isolate your enemies

tap fire to aim guns, then burst fire to kill. when dodging mag dump at targets not tap because you should focus on dodging not aiming.

save the weakest ship for last. don't kill the tiny AA ships so there are less brawlers on screen

My Ships

Link to my ships:

google drive

WIP

Ammo Type GuideW I P

HE

PROXY

AP

INCENDIARY

GUIDED: very overpowered. this makes very long range kiting a viable tactic again.always a good choice

to dev: please stop making the game harder. I had to spend 400 hours trying to over-engineer the game just so I can beat it on easy using infinite money, and every strategy possible.

Source: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3001995618					

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