i tried searching but didn't see this asked. from the rules Ref guide it states
6 . Deploy Ships: Starting with the first player, the players
take turns deploying their forces into the setup area. A
single deployment turn consists of placing one ship or
two squadrons.
◊◊ Ships must be placed within their player’s deployment
zones. When a player places a ship, he must set its
speed dial to a speed available on its speed chart.
◊◊ Squadrons must be placed within distance 1–2
of a friendly ship and may be placed outside of
deployment zones.
◊◊ If a player only has one squadron remaining when he
must place two, he cannot place it until he has placed
all of his ships.
◊◊ Ships and squadrons can be placed on top of the
setup area markers as long as they remain entirely
within the setup area.
when i first begin my deployment of ships and squadrons, can i place 2 squadrons before i place my first ship, so long as when i DO place my first ship the squadrons are within distance 1- 2 of said ship? or do you have deploy a Ship first? i didn't see that it said i "had" to deploy my ships first so long as when i do the squadrons are within distance 1-2 of all ships. so example, if i had 6 squadrons i could place them all in groups of 2 rotating and place them say 1 inc outside of my deployment zone, then place 3 ships all within distance 1-2 of the squadrons last.
thanks