Encounter with the First Great AI Smack Down Fleet

from Sins Forums
So I was minding my own business, rapidly expanding in the Fire and Ice scenario. The AI was on hard and I had just taken one of the 3 AI's home world, leaving them with just a asteriod. I found an ice planet one jump from my home world and was feeling pretty good. Then the two remaining ai attacked me with significant fleets at the opposite ends of my 10 planet empire. By the time I had driven one off and had fortified my position to the south, I was down to 4 planets.

The ai to the south had the following fleet.
1 Dunnov
3 Akkan
3 Sova
2 Kol
10 Bomber
12 Fighter
and a few miscellaneous ships. The cap ships ranged from level 4 to level 7.

Finally I conquered the enemy to the north with his 12 planets and could turn again to the south.

I attacked them with a mixed fleet including cap ships and 25 light carriers and an equal number of Gardas and didn't make a scratch. It seemed they could reproduce their fighters shortly after I destroyed them and all the while the cap ships were shooting up my ships. Their fighters were tearing up my bombers. My fleet escaped with about 7 light carriers.
I sent in my victorious northern fleet of 44 light carriers, 30 Gardas, 35 Bombers 9 fighters and a few support craft. My fleet was annialated only taking out 1 of his Sovas and an Akkan.

I threw in my rebuilt southern fleet of 1 Mazda, 1 Akkan, 2 Kol, 10 Carriers, 5 Kodiak and 5 Garda and that finally finished off his fleet.

The ai had more coins most of the game and spent plenty on bounty so I had to constantly deal with pirates and then maurders.

It ws the best Sins game so far and I would recommend Fire and Ice on hard with the ai in teams against you if you want a competitive experience.
25,043 views 11 replies
Reply #1 from Sins Forums Top
That Mazda was probably a Marza but I'm sure it worked just as flawlessly.

I've encountered a few such AI fleets as well. The luckiest encounter was when the AI attacked my heavily fortified planet where I just finalized the advance fleet (adding cruisers and frigates to the already experienced capitals)... After shredding the AI ueberfleet with combined efforts of the fleet and planet defences the rest was easy.

Interesting - I don't build light carriers at all. You seem to rely heavily on them.
Reply #2 from Sins Forums Top
Light carriers are not at all useless. As long as you have good support for them. Like lots of Flaks, and a good mixed fleet.

If you have the replay of this fight id like to see it.
Elemental: Reforged
Reply #3 from Sins Forums Top

Interesting - I don't build light carriers at all. You seem to rely heavily on them.


Fighters are powerful units.
Reply #4 from Sins Forums Top
[/quote] Interesting - I don't build light carriers at all. You seem to rely heavily on them. [/quote]

IMO they make the best attack fleets. The carrier's bombers go after the enemy hangars first, then gauss cannons, which can not shoot back at them. You also don't have to worry about them getting close to the gauss cannons. Matched with a large number of cheap Gardas to knock out the enemy bombers and fighters they can quickly mop up the planetary structures so you can quickly move on to the next world. They also are fast and can track down fleeing fleets.

I usually don't use a fleet made up almost entirely of light carriers but it was my best hope of turning the tide in the desperate situation I found myself in. I usually use 2/3rd bombers to 1/3rd fighters, but the ai's strategy may be better. They used the fighters as air cover for their cap ships, keeping my air power off their fleet while they pounded my ships.
Reply #5 from Sins Forums Top
Light carriers are very useful, and very scary when massed and with support. Having said that, I don't use them very often, I start hitting early and keeping the pressure up, not letting my opponent(s) breathe long enough to research and build up a fleet of them. That of course requires me to keep mainly to Cobalts/LRMs since they're cheaper and cost fewer fleet supplies.

Only in games where either my planets are safe (squished between 2 allies where they are the ones being attacked) or there's a long break in fighting do I start building carriers
Reply #6 from Sins Forums Top
Light Carriers are the core of my fleet, I usually use about 25-35 in fleet and just hold them back, letting my high level caps soak up damage. (I usually use 2-4 Kol's, and 2-3 Sova's). Carriers are the best strike force I have seen.

Funny glitch though one time I sent an enormous fleet to an AI homeworld, and my Sova's got there literally like ten minutes before the Light Carriers, (no idea why the carriers were so lost), but they took all the fighters/bombers with them, both Sova's carried 15 units each. Kinda funny. They were unstoppable at that point.
Reply #7 from Sins Forums Top
I keep a small force of light carriers in my fleets (around 10 per fleet half/half fighters, and bombers). Backed up by and equal number of Garda's, and LRM's. Vs. the AI i let my cap ships go in 1st to take all the initial agro then send in the rest of the fleet. It works very well with few losses. I still have yet to develop a vs human player strat.
Reply #8 from Sins Forums Top
I <3 Light Carriers.
Reply #9 from Sins Forums Top
I still have yet to develop a vs human player strat.


Keep them covered A good human player will know what you're bringing into the fight before it happens, and will usually be able to find a way to catch them off-guard sitting at the edge of the grav well defenseless
Reply #10 from Sins Forums Top
I use light carriers also, they are really effective at being annoying lol!
Reply #11 from Sins Forums Top
And keep humans occupied as much as you can with random task forces. Unlike the AI they won't sit around and droll while you build your mega fleet.