Okay, here's my final (read as "most recent") word on the subject of capital ship armor.

Ideally, capital ship armor would be what I call "directed armor"- IE: it affected different weapons types differently. Here's what I see the basic armor doing:

Blocks: 1000e, 800x, 100p

Read that is "Blocks 1000 damage/shot from energy weapons, 800 damage/shot from explosives and 100 damage a shot from piercing weapons." This means that any energy weapon that does <= 1000 damage/shot is useless, any explosive that does <= 800 damage/shot is useless, and rails are barely affected. Now, most of you will react with outrage. I can hear you already, "No! Waht will we do if we can't use our Neutron blasters on da friggy!?!?!?!?eleventyone!" The fact of the matter is, I don't think you should be able to. Does one use a 9mm to take out a tank? How about a battleship?

What this opens the door for is, of course, bombers. With things like the Avalons and the Beam Cannons, we could have heavy hitting weaponry that is useless against fighters, but capable of shooting down a capital ship.

If you combine these suggestions with my thread about the escorts, we might be in business!

Also, add an addendum to block 99% of the damage from collisions. :D

I always thought it was cheap to have a quad tach hornet annihilate the frigate.

*Secret Ballot Marked: YES*

Although this won't matter much until the cap ship actually does incursions and there are missions around it. Right now it's basically the old frigate with some bouncing around and mannable turrets. Purpose!

I suppose it's on its way though.

You have my vote.

eh, I dunno about that, then ships could just rail at it from a distance...?

It seems that they would defend most against long distance weps, since close range they have their escort and their turrets to protect them.

I'd like to see bombers (mostly cuz this would let me use the MGC, Mobile Goliath Cannon, for something other than killing everything under the suns)

but, I would also like to see rockets be able to be taken out by energy fire. This way bombers have to come in closer to launch their payload, and can't just turbo flare the cap ship from well outside of wep range. It would be a good reason to have human gunners too.

Yes but how increadibly long would it take to use ammo weaps shape?

I left rails alone in the default armor because of some ideas I have brewing for bomber piercing weapons. Not ready for human consumption yet, though. Besides, there could always be armour upgrades. The whole idea of this is to encourage bombers. Particularly dive-bombers, 'cause I like them best.

Or maybe setting up mines in the caps path :)

yah, Shape... some of tensest moments in, for example, Freespace 2 were when flying bomber-intercept... targetable anti-capital warheads that can be destroyed in-flight by a nimble Centurion pilot would be SOOO COOOOOOL :O~

What, seekers aren't targetable enough for ya?

*recalls blowing an aerna seeker at close range*

0_o