Thanks for breaking it down into bite-sized chunks.

This is a complicated problem because it has arisen from complicated interactions (low cost, relay, new aces, etc.).

We need to make sure that whatever fix is implemented doesn't create more issues than it resolves.

Analyzing it in depth helps avoid these missteps.

9 hours ago, Darth Veggie said:

Great article! I would like to add another problem to those described by you:

Flotilla spams are not merely activation padding. Flotilla spams are also activations that way more often than other ships lack a specific timing and are therefore very, very easy (in fact boring) to play. I think we can agree that the activation game of armada contributes a lot to its tactical depth . Especially in the early game quite often all normal ships like to be activated as late as possible. And here we see hard decisions in the activation order. Hard decisions that contribute so much to the depth and fun of the game.

Flotilla spams on the other hand are sooooo easy! You simply postpone the one (sometimes two) activations that really matter by flotilla activation padding. Then the big hit comes. In late game, the big bang comes first, the unimportant flotts last. An universal recipe for flott spam use. However, the existence of a viable universal recipe is in itself a flaw! In this aspect of the game, there are no more real decisions to make that are specific to the match you are playing at the moment. The activation part of the game which is meant to be a core contributer to its tactical depth has (to some extent) de facto been neutralized .

Tempo!

There are high burst ships which want to go first or last.

There are also low burst ships which dont have a preference. Flotillas fall into this category, but are they more potent than cr90s, arquittens, vsds and assault frigates?

They are easier and as tempo isnt understood by many as a concept it isnt a suprise that players are concentrating their list building efforts on the burst ships, with prolonged threat a secondary thought.