URGENT - please help in fleet recommendation - PSI Corp

[Greg Smith]

Yes.

However we don't know if there were any uncompleted in shipyards, or that didn't make it to the battle in time.

ACTA has to stretch the boundaries of possibility as far as ships go. It has to assume there are more than two Victories, even though one was destroyed and the shipyard obliterated. It has to assume the Shadow Hybrid wasn't a one off ship, that the Narn have more than two types of ship, that the Avioki has guns*, that Psi Corps motherships engage in battle and so on.

*yes, I know we see it fire once if you look really closely in A Call to Arms.

 

[EDFDarkAngel1]

If you play by fluff and strict rules, you can only use them in one year. Otherwise, you're welcome to use them as you will.

There are only 7 MotherShips in the universe, but the rules don't prohibit you from using more than 1, or more than 7. They are a very good ship for, I think, a Raid level ship.

Dark Angel

 

[Da Boss]

ISD is the answer - there is a system in ACTA that allows you play games using In Service Dates to limit ships that should not meet each other. Nice idea

However - virtually no-one plays using it - its often a problem if players have incompatable fleets. Eg: A ISA fleet and Dilgar fleet - can't play each other. Even if they do - often there is not enough ships to form a full list of restricted to play with...............

so usually everyone just chooses ships from their list - hence the Shadow Omegas appearing in the fleets................

 

[locarno24]

Try a fleet with more than one mothership among gamers who care about the background and you will not be taken that seriously.

The problem is that it's the only raid-priority ship they've got!

Much the same with the shadow omega. Effectively there's two seperate fleets there; the Psi-Corps and the Black Ops forces the Psi-Corps survivors amalgamated themselves into, but are not telepath units.

That's why the crusade-era units don't have psychic crew.

In theory the numbers should be the other way around; one or two points of psi-corps attached to the EA. But that makes it a bit awkward.

for a simple fleet you can throw at any game size:

1) Fleet Box (£40)
2) 1 pack Thunderbolts (£4.80) - carried on the Shadow Omega
3) Nemesis advanced destroyer (£9)
4) Shadowfuries x 2 (£9.60) - carried on the Hunter and Nemesis

just shy of £65

 

[Greg Smith]

However that goes totally against the 'fluff', according to which the Motherships are very rare and would almost never appear together, too many eggs in one basket.

Mongoose fluff has 7 motherships in existence. However we don't know any of the details of what happened in the Telepath Crisis and whether there were more or they saw combat.

Psi Corps is one area where ACTA stretches credibility of what might of happened as far as it is stretched for the game. Along with multiple Victories in the ISA fleet and so on. And sincematch-up between players feature the ISA fighting the Dilgar and other unlikely match-ups, the majority of players aren't too bothered about keeping games absolutely credible in terms of the show.

 

[Foxmeister]

I agree. In many ways, the Psi-Corp "fleet" is the fleet that should never have been. Making them an option for EA lists would probably have been a better bet. They really don't have enough options on their own to be both competitive and to fit with the fluff (i.e. loads of carriers and perhaps, just maybe, a single mothership).

All that being said, I'm putting together a Psi-Corp list, and if I choose to field more than one mothership I will do so, regardless of fluff. However, I would add that the mothership is probably a little too good for a Raid level ship and given its supposed rarity, would've probably been better served being a battle level choice (with a slight upgrade). I'd have then liked to have seen a couple more choices at raid and skirmish level - for example, perhaps a Psi-Corp "branded" Hyperion for example.

Regards,

Dave

 

[Greg Smith]

In many respects the mothership is very good. However it falls down in two crucial respects - speed and hull.

And I agree with Foxmaister, it is a tricky fleet because it is lacking in options.

 

[Tolwyn]

The Mothership is even superior to a Hyperion Heavy Cruiser. Same Lasers but better Range. Stealth, more fighters and Anti Fighter defense.

 

[locarno24]

The Mothership is even superior to a Hyperion Heavy Cruiser. Same Lasers but better Range. Stealth, more fighters and Anti Fighter defense.

It's a good ship. It has, as the Speaker of All Things Llort mentions, two key weaknesses in its speed and armour. It needs the range to counteract its lack of manouvrability.

A hyperion is a bit closer to it when you consider 'strike distance' (move + range) and with that second turn can actually bring the laser to bear in a knife fight, where a mothership or omega can't.


The biggest problem with the mothership is that its defences - stealth and interceptors - are both 'degradable', meaning that whilst they keep a mothership all but immune to long-range pot-shots with supporting weapons, they fail rapidly if someone makes a determined and co-ordinated attempt to kill the thing. As a result they're a fantastic support ship but can't form a line of battle by themselves; they need shadow omegas or allied regular fleet units to hide behind....

 

[Da Boss]

Also IIRC it has no rear guns - very nice for my agile Centauri ships

 

[Triggy]

I'm with Greg and Locarno on the fleet choices:

1 Fleet box plus a Warlock, Omega and Hyperion for the EA allies, and another Mothership, Hunter and four Shadowcloaks. This would give you a 5 FAP fleet at Priority Level War and should be enough to take on most fleets.

If you want to fill out your fighters, you'd need three blisters of Starfurys (Aurora/Badger/Thunderbolt), one blister of Shadowfurys and two more blisters of Auroras for the Black Omega Starfurys.

If you really want to get it as a showpiece (and to get every ship in the fleet), you could also get the Nemesis and a few more Shadowfurys

 

[Shadow Queen]

Yes.

However we don't know if there were any uncompleted in shipyards, or that didn't make it to the battle in time.

I thought they were striped down and were then parts for the Warlock

 

[Shadow Queen]

However that goes totally against the 'fluff', according to which the Motherships are very rare and would almost never appear together, too many eggs in one basket.

Mongoose fluff has 7 motherships in existence. However we don't know any of the details of what happened in the Telepath Crisis and whether there were more or they saw combat.

one picks up Bester in the last script in the Crusade book

 

[nekomata fuyu]

If you find anyone selling the old crusade era fleet box, that goes well alongside the Psi Corps fleet box. As well as a load of crusade era ships which you can use for your requisitions, it also contains 2(!) Nemesis destroyers

 

[Greg Smith]

Yes.

However we don't know if there were any uncompleted in shipyards, or that didn't make it to the battle in time.

I thought they were striped down and were then parts for the Warlock

That is entirely possible. We know for sure that there were Shadow components in the Warlock, bacause it was in a JMS short story.

 

[Whatdoyouwant?]

Thanks for the good advice,

Went for:
Nemesis 2
Shadow Omega 5
Hunter 8
Mothership 1
Carriers 2
Cloaks 2

 

[Shadow Queen]

Thanks for the good advice,

Went for:
Nemesis 2
Shadow Omega 5
Hunter 8
Mothership 1
Carriers 2
Cloaks 2

want another shadow omega?

 

[Whatdoyouwant?]

Why don't you think 5 is enough?

 

[Shadow Queen]

I have one that needs a good home, that also means feeding(JK).

 

[Triggy]

I have one that needs a good home, that also means feeding(JK).

I could go for a Shadow Omega if you're getting rid of it...PM me if you're interested.