(AP) Acceptable losses when boarding I-J-K-Q?

[Allan F]

I've just started on the "big four", and got a Q with 7 dead marines, and a J also with 7 dead. What are your losses like? I use of course 4x100 marines.

[AleksMain]

I've just started on the "big four", and got a Q with 7 dead marines, and a J also with 7 dead. What are your losses like? I use of course 4x100 marines.

I had boarded 2 Xenon ships only (Xenon I).

For each of them I had sacrificed about 10-15 marines of 25-30 available for boarding operations.

Now I have 24 5* (fully trained marines) and 105 in training.

As soon as 30 5* marines will be ready, next boarding of Xenon I will be started.

I have HQ where "Xenon I" is reverse engineered right now, but it is too long (3 days and 3 days to build new Xenon I).

[Jimmy C]

For boarding Xenon M7 and up, I will not accept more than 4 losses. Anything else can be taken with zero losses with some reloading.

[UnknownObject]

I've just started on the "big four", and got a Q with 7 dead marines, and a J also with 7 dead. What are your losses like? I use of course 4x100 marines.

My losses are 0 dead 4x100 marines and not more than 16 (for Q - 19) noobs. See http://forum.egosoft.com/viewtopic.php? ... t=#4549302

[AleksMain]

For boarding Xenon M7 and up, I will not accept more than 4 losses. Anything else can be taken with zero losses with some reloading.

Sometimes reloading can't help.

I had 26 4* marines once for boarding of Xenon I.
In the last(fifth) desk I had about 16-17 marines left.

Then ... boom ... all are dead.

Reloading after reloading and nothing.

For Xenon I ships my marines are like potato chips.

[Jimmy C]

I see your problem. You can't use 4* marines to board Xenon ships. You must use maxed marines (all values at 100) Even worse, if you don't have enough marines with Hacking at 100 when you reach the core, they will all die.

Full maxed marines is the only way to minimize your casualties.

It's why I capture ships for their marines all the time.

[UnknownObject]

Sometimes reloading can't help.

I had 26 4* marines once for boarding of Xenon I.
In the last(fifth) desk I had about 16-17 marines left.

Then ... boom ... all are dead.

Reloading after reloading and nothing. .

You should reload from a savegame before entering the ship. As your marines enter, the result is pre-calculated. Only names of dying marines may vary.

[AleksMain]

I see your problem. You can't use 4* marines to board Xenon ships. You must use maxed marines (all values at 100) Even worse, if you don't have enough marines with Hacking at 100 when you reach the core, they will all die.

Full maxed marines is the only way to minimize your casualties.

It's why I capture ships for their marines all the time.

I am agree. This is why for next (3rd) Xenon I wait for 30 5* marines to be ready (see my first post in this thread).

[AleksMain]

For boarding Xenon M7 and up, I will not accept more than 4 losses. Anything else can be taken with zero losses with some reloading.

Sometimes reloading can't help.

I had 26 4* marines once for boarding of Xenon I.
In the last(fifth) desk I had about 16-17 marines left.

Then ... boom ... all are dead.

Reloading after reloading and nothing. .

You should reload from a savegame before entering the ship. As your first marines enter, the result is pre-calculated.

May be.
I am not big fan of reloading.
After first try, when Xenon was boarded, I stop any further reloading.

In those special case were so many different "tries" ...

Few M7 Q were nearby, my second Cobra had been damaged few times by Xenon capital ships, my own Cobra had been damaged by Xenon I ...

[pref]

Depends on your priorities... for me a fluent operation with acceptable losses (which depends on how many mariens i have right there, and in general) is much better then one where i spend half an hour reloading to grab every opportunity to minimize marine cost.

Though there is a nice trick to get a xenon ship without loosing any trained marines. It just needs very accurate timing which probably means many reloads.

And for xenon always use Sirokos as it can launch 21 marines at once (the max marine capacity during boarding of a capital ship). That single marine elevates your chances to succeed to an acceptable level.

[Allan F]

I am using the Sirokos in tandem with my Kraken (118 m/s and 10700 cargo - yes, it is vanilla). I have 700+ successfull boardings behind me. The pirates can't launch a M1/M2/M7 without a few of my guys taking a little trip, adding to my collection. I'm still looking for a K and an I - are there anywhere they poke out into corporate space? Hate to have to fight the entire sector when capturing.

[Sirrobert]

I am using the Sirokos in tandem with my Kraken (118 m/s and 10700 cargo - yes, it is vanilla). I have 700+ successfull boardings behind me. The pirates can't launch a M1/M2/M7 without a few of my guys taking a little trip, adding to my collection. I'm still looking for a K and an I - are there anywhere they poke out into corporate space? Hate to have to fight the entire sector when capturing.

You have an M7M. You don't have to fight an entire sector, you just have to blow it up

Most common place I see Xenon poke their toasters out is 18 billion and Grand Exchange

[pref]

In any race space you would have to defend your prize against friendlies possibly - imo its much easier to do this in xenon territories.

[Allan F]

I have blocked most Xenon exit points with 25 Brigantines or 200 lasertowers. In Segaris, I have pulled the Brigantines back to the other side of the sector, so they stop any xenon trying to get to Megnir. But I have never seen an I outside Xenon space.

[AleksMain]

I have blocked most Xenon exit points with 25 Brigantines or 200 lasertowers. In Segaris, I have pulled the Brigantines back to the other side of the sector, so they stop any xenon trying to get to Megnir. But I have never seen an I outside Xenon space.

I had seen them in Xenon sectors only.

"Xenon I" ships are very rare.

I tried to find at least one inside Xenon sectors now, using my Xenon I, but no luck.

There were destroyed: dozens Q, few J and K, but I not saw Xenon I.

Edit: Found it in Xenon sector 627.

Today I will board it.
-----------------------
Boarded it. Used 30 marines. Lost 12 of them.

I will post screenshots later.
---------------------
Here are screenshots (compressed):
1 Found It (view from ship)
http://i.imgur.com/1LFeqWB.jpg

2 Found It (view map with all enemies)
http://i.imgur.com/4BuSm0E.jpg

3 Sector Is Clear
http://i.imgur.com/jQskMEN.jpg

4 Return To Cobra near East gates
http://i.imgur.com/rcJwx10.jpg

5 Waiting For Missile Attack
If there is no attack from Xenon I, then start boarding
http://i.imgur.com/H0emcTJ.jpg

6 Fighting Desk4
http://i.imgur.com/zSwO2yP.jpg

7 Hacking core
http://i.imgur.com/b4m0LgC.jpg

8 Xenon I Captured
http://i.imgur.com/dhYIasg.jpg

[pref]

I have met several in Segaris, iirc even got one there.
Though i saw terran ships there quite often, you might have to kill some to get the I undisturbed.

In xenon space you can lure the I out of radar range of the Qs and get the ship peacefully.

[Cursed Ghost]

I've only ever captured about 2 Xenon I's never bothered with any other Xenon ship didn't see the point since they are simply not useful to me and are outclassed by other ships which are much easier to take

Also contrary to what people will tell you It is quite possible to take Xenon ships with a single wave of 21 5 star Marines that are at 100 in everything however this does requires patients as at least 75% of your attempts will not arrive at the core with enough strength to complete the hacking and that is assuming that they get to the core at all

assuming you get to the core with enough strength you can expect at least 6 or 7 units lost minimum this is the lowest number of losses i have manager to achieve but typically your losses will be much higher probably closer to to about 1/2 to 3/4 of your squad

what makes taking Xenon Ships even harder is that in AP the outcome of the attempt is decide at the start of the operation so saving between levels wont help you reduce your losses so the best thing you can do is to save just as your pods are about impact the hull and then simply activate Seta to speed up the boarding and find out the result if things don't go your way reload and try again until you get a result where you take the ship and you don't suffer excessive casualties

[LTerSlash]

I've only ever captured about 2 Xenon I's never bothered with any other Xenon ship didn't see the point since they are simply not useful to me and are outclassed by other ships which are much easier to take

Xenon K and J are very usefull, since they are cheaper and way faster to build than other M2s at PHQ, they make excelent AI ships.

A J takes just 6 hours to build, a K 13, thats nothing compared to other M1/M2s.

I whould not bother with anything else than that, a I for personal use, a J and K to build a fleet from, and thats it. I dont see the point in Q/PX/P

[Jimmy C]

On the contrary, P and PX are excellent for keeping up your boarding skills when you have 9 maxed marines. They also make a good, regular, source of raw materials for your HQ.
I captured a dozen of each easily, then I decided I would wait until there was more than one in a sector before going after them. A lone M6 was a waste to go after.
I haven't counted, but I have like 40 or more of each just sitting in my main dock. And that's not counting the ones I did put to use.

[RAVEN.myst]

But I have never seen an I outside Xenon space.

Xenon Is (and all other types) can be found aplenty in both Segaris and BHS during the last phase of the last plot (Shady Business, or something like that), though I usually complete that before I'm really ready to be boarding robot ships. Also, I wouldn't bother trying in BHS due to high density of local defenders who are likely to interfere; in Segaris, however, it may be viable - the sector is large and the local Terran military presence even at that time is sporadic. Regardless, though, you will also have to deal with the rest of the invasion waves (as you're using M7Ms, this isn't really difficult - sweep away all the fighters with a couple of Flail/Ghoul barrages, then have fun with the rest.)