Hoi Folks,
Thanks for the replies, Gook and Lepton. You are both ok in my books, your seemingly polar positions really help us express ourselves. Indeed this idea came to me while reading the "11 & 12 none contentious" thread.
My problem with the rule is when I must leave a hex due to being outgunned or outskilled, I put a call for help from my fleet mates, and then hold the door open for the reinforcements to go through, but I must wait outside the hex while they fight the battle without me. Worse than that, is when there is only one small ship in the area who can respond in time, but has to go in alone because I am banned. Where there is the chance for a great "two small ships vs. a larger ship/ better captain battle" the other small ship has to go in alone, in an attempt to better the larger force. Why can I not go back into the hex, if the stakes are increased?
What if I could go back into the hex with my reinforcement(s)? ( My opponent has every chance to call for support as well, of course.)
1) We might form a fleet faster and take the hex, fine, our side upped the stakes and it paid off. For the next hour I (the ship that disengaged first) still cannot enter the hex alone. This still allows the disengagement rule to remain just as effective as it has been.
2)We might win, but to do so we had to put one of our ships at risk. One ship, out of the fleet of two in this example, either is destroyed or disengages crippled, but the fleet won, the surviving ship gathers up the life pods, bz's all around, get another ship from the shipyards, bring the fleet back up to strength, and continue to work on the hex together, or the support ship alone. (Again, the rule is still in effect for the first ship that disengaged)
3)We might form a fleet faster than the other team, but it still is not enough to take out the greater force, both of us, as a fleet, are banned; my wing would still be able to go alone at that point, up until winning the hex or being banned. (Again the original ban is in effect.)
We have limitations on the size of the fleets we can bring to a battle so eventually the hex will be won, by one team or the other, and most likely the team that wants that hex the most.
The next post will address a banned ship going into the hex with a wing, but the whole fleet is not drafted.
The post after that will deal with servers that allows players to fly more than one ship, as well as looking at "the slot" concept in the context of this paradigm shift.
Please feel free to add your views about this. I feel as Lepton does, this must be worked out if we want the disengagement rule and fleet battles.
Take care
drb