Combat over planet, do not bomb it away

[Jubala]

How do I get my fleet to kill all ships and weapon platforms but not the facilities and population in strategic combat (sim turn game)? I want my ships to stop shooting at the planet as soon as it can't shoot back so I can invade it when the troops arrive. I can give them orders not to fire at planets in the strategy of the fleet, but that will leave the weapon platforms on the planet (I think).

[pathfinder]

What seems to work for me is to have a troop transport (with a full load of troops) tag along with the fleet to whatever planet. I use shift+ click on the transport and fleet, then click the attack button. Unless the troop transport gets "shot down" it should work.

[This message has been edited by pathfinder (edited 26 November 2000).]

[This message has been edited by pathfinder (edited 26 November 2000).]

[Jubala]

If I had a troop transport full of troops I would invade the planet at once. As I don't have that I just want to kill any and all defenders but not the population so I can invade it later.

[Psitticine]

I've been using tactical combat for situations like that. I don't really trust the strategic AI not to polish that enemy marble clean. It seems to even go for an undefended planet over mobile units like transports which have retreated to the corner of the map.

OTOH, when you do have a transport available, putting it in a fleet with Capture Planet orders works very well. Other ships, even ones in other fleets, will support the effort by going in and clearing out the WPs and other defenses before the transport(s) close.

I tend to put a few napalm bombs on my troop transports. They work *very* well against WPs, especially when you also carry enough point defense and/or shields and armour to make it through the initial wave of missiles.

[Jubala]

Can't use tactical. Simultaneous mode pbem game. I want to be able to give my ships more detalied orders!

[AndonSage]

>> How do I get my fleet to kill all ships and weapon platforms but not the facilities and population in strategic combat (sim turn game)? <<

For what it's worth, I use Strategic combat almost all the time, and I'd say 80% of the time when I order a fleet to Capture Planet that it does (I include Troop Transports in the attacking fleet). I haven't figured out why it doesn't always work, but it may be that the planets it doesn't work on don't have any units to guard it.

AndonSage

[Psitticine]

It may also be that the force used to try and suppress any WPs on the planet was also enough to eliminate the population in the process.

[AndonSage]

>> It may also be that the force used to try and suppress any WPs on the planet was also enough to eliminate the population in the process. <<

Well, I do know that every planet I've taken over with troops has had units (like weapon platforms) left on it.

Edit: Please disregard. I was thinking of when a race surrenders to me. Sorry.

AndonSage


[This message has been edited by AndonSage (edited 29 November 2000).]