Exactly. My argument all along. A role specific hull should be specific/obvious by design, but not necessarily by size(which can vary)."Guess what this ship does" should not be a major part of the battle.
Edit: Just noticed Geoff's lastest response during reply session. Adding response to it hereafter.
Geoff the Medio
Regardless of what it's called, does anyone have any objections with a system where:
* Ship hulls are one of a small set of sizes
Depends which way we go, generic hulls, we only need about 5 sizes; role specific(or mix) at least double that.
* Hull sizes are visually distinct, and can be easily seen on the battle map and in other visual representations of a ship in the UI
Agreed (although roles shouldn't necessarily be limited to one size)
* Hull sizes have various characteristics that alter how ships can be designed on those hulls, and/or directly alter how ships designed on those hulls function
Agreed, no arguments here, in general.
* Hull sizes are not specific to any particular "ship role", though some hull sizes are more suitable for some roles than others. What role or roles a particular ship is good at is a function of its design and it hull size
Agreed. While I think a carrier should be a specific, dedicated designed hull, it can vary in size, e.g. Escort Carrier, Carrier, Supercarrier.
* The concept of "ship role" may be built into the game mechanics or UI. Some indication of the role of a ship, as a summary of its design, may be generated and displayed to players and/or used by AI to determine how a ship "should" be used tactically or considered strategically
Agreed, if I'm understanding you correctly.
* Even without this "role" detailed information, many important or basic characteristics of a ship should be clear from just its size, regardless of the details of its design
(again)Agreed, if I'm understanding you correctly.
* Hull size characteristics may or may not change with technology (in absolute or relative terms, to be determined)
Yes, they may, or may not; to be determined.
* Larger hulls are not better than smaller hulls. All hull sizes have different characteristics and different uses, and the "best" possible fleet contains ships with multiple different hull sizes doing different roles.
It depends, in general I would presume the opposite. But I can see a smaller hull of equal tech, having superior designed offensive firepower to defeat a larger hull. I agree on a various hull/size fleet to be a best case scanario.