Warp Nexii

[Sakarissa]

Some of the things in Draco got me thinking about how to get more use or make nexii more interesting. Right now, no one really likes them. There's no orbits to take advantage of. That means no pop groups, no gas giants, no industry, and the only way to defend a nexus is with starships (no orbitals). And if you get a lot in a small area you get a modern day sargasso sea that you can get stuck in if you don't know the full scope of the sargasso. Now, they can fit in your defensive posture. But, they are still uninteresting and mostly useless.

Now, the biggest stumbling block is the lack of orbits. Without an orbit, you can't drop a colony beacon. Which means no pop group. And the pop group is what is needed. The idea I have is to give each nexus a set amount of "orbits" which would be discrete areas of space around the star(s) in the nexus itself. For sake of argument, let's say we code 10 orbits for each nexus. Since there is an orbit, we can drop a colony beacon to put a pop group there. Then, since shipyards and shipyard slips are already space-based (close planetary orbit but still in space) they can then be CON'd in that nexus pop group. What about power? Orbital Solar Power Stations. They are already placed in space (close planetary orbit again) and could be used in this situation. You could then bring things in via cargo ship (Andro and Draco) or by WHG or UG (Andro only) to build a deep space station and defensive orbitals. You could also tow orbitals to the warp points for defensive purposes. Or provide repair for damaged ships. And there are areas of space where a nexus would be a better place for a set of trade pop groups between empires.

I'm not saying to code this into the current games but something to think about for the future. And this is the result of not getting my turn results yet.......

[hobknob]

What we need, that is already in the game, is access to the orbital shipyards the DMX forces use,  then we could move the mobile fleet into position and build orbitals, planets or not.  As it stands it is a dead giveaway that a colony exists if you have an orbital at a WP.  That single fact pretty much makes them a last ditch item instead of something useful.  So, how about just implementing what is already there?

 

 

[Jemanari Public Relations]

Maybe a use for Battle Moons?

[rfouasnon]

Only problem with that is that there is a step missing in the battle moon research process . The line is not able to research to the end without that one step . Battle moon would be the ultimate warp point assault instrument . 

[Sakarissa]

I haven't uncovered Battle Moons yet so I can't speak to them. I do agree with Hobknob in that I would love to get my hands on the DMX tech to be able to construct a mobile shipyard. Kinda reminds me of the Seltorian Hive Ship from Star Fleet Battles.