On laser stuff missing, that is due to the slow rate of turrets being able to swivel, not a shortcoming of the laser itself, targeting lasers should to have seriously small and fast-track turrets, as the "weapon" is alot smaller and more self contained.
Well, actually that would depend on the ranges involved. Up to 1 light-sec., yes, lasers would be good for "shooting straight". On longer distances however, accuracy lessens, as the target might change it's vector between aiming and hitting (say a distance of 3 ls, meaning 3 sec. for the targeting data coming from the target to the sensors, maybe another sec. or two for the targeting calculations and two more for the swivelling of turret-mounted guns, and three more sec for the beam to arrive on target. Ten sec. can be a long time... but non-lighspeed attacks would have even worse problems... unless they were self-correcting, which is why missiles would be the most realistic long-range weapon; their range is limited only by their onboard fuel reserves, and in SF that can be "assumed" to any value the author wants...)
TC tend to be one-shot investments, when the cavalry turns up. And you can gun down a freighter crew just the same with two plasma cannons mounted on your own freight carrier. Delta Vs are just firework against a Hyperion.
True. Which is why they're not supposed to go against the navy. Fighters are used by raiders because they can outrun ANY fleeing target, from the slow freighters to fast couriers (unlike many other raider ships, which, often being converted freighters themselves, or old warships with obsolete engines have a low speed). With fighters in the mix, a freighter cannot run, it cannot hide, and it is usually outgunned so fighting is not a good choice either - what's left is surrender, which is exactly what a raider likes most (as it is the least work, danger and loss of profit even if only in damaged merchandise or cost of painting over scratches).
Of course, privateers are quite another matter. Which is why I think they ought to get their own fleet list, BtW. They have old refitted warships, and usually go after freighters of one particular power (usually the one their patron nation is hostile against - Narn privateers will prey on centauri shipping, centauri "rouges" will go after narn ships, drazi hunters will capture freighters from both, etc.)
EA has enough power to take on raiders, but the problem of force deployment applies. Want to defend every single convoy, say goodbye to your defense force who normally protect you against big bad aliens. EA cant be everywhere, Raiders only need to strike one convoy.
Actually Raiders usually won't attack convois - they'll look for the lone freighter trying to make a profit without paying convoi fees (which is profitable unless/until you get caught by a raider... more traders then expected will take this gamble, as we saw on the show). And of course Earthforce does not have enogh ships to patrol every AU of every trade route, something the raiders know and cherish. And of course, if a earthforce patrol shows up, the raider groups leave the vincinity for less hazardous hunting grounds (and often have informants in place that leak patrol schedules to them - not neccessarily in earthforce, but often in the civilian support structure - spaceport supply clerks are just as good, as they can extrapolate incoming ships from the supply orders...)
And yes Raiders should be redesigned from the ground up. Some freighters can just run away. Raiders should be good with one thing if nothing else. SPEED. Yet i dont see anything for that at all.....
Amen to the redesign. As for the running... see above; that's why raiders have fighters. Hard to outrun a Zephyr... and they have the teeth to stop a freighters running too, if they have to. AND they have the legs to outrun earthforce, with a bit of luck. And if not, they are easier to replace then big ships... so standard Raider MO would be a carrier which hides somewhere and lets his fighters do the job of catching the freighter, then comes to pick up the cargo (or send over a prize crew by shuttle, depending on condition of caught freighter). And if a patrol shows up, the carrier will run loong before earthforce can spot it... unless of course the carrier is well-armed AND the prize is worth a fight... like a freighter full of Q-40 (of course, if the raiders are too successful, such a tempting target might be a mousetrap as in "Thirdspace" - especially when older races like the Minabri, Vree or Hyach are involved who have the tech to routinely pull off such precise jumps...)
