Ya, it's kinda disturbing that troop carriers disappear when they're used. I guess that keeps you building them as an invasion cost v. just using a couple everywhere.

Anyway, I too just use cargo hulls. I tend to make 'lightening' transports that are designed to be launched and invade on the same turn. I use a single troop module and the rest engines.

I've moved up to 3 modules per transport (based on a cargo hull) and the rest engines, with a life support module or two thrown in to fill out the space. But be ready: in Dark Avatar engines are already bigger and more expensive in the first Beta and looking to stay that way or get even more so. It seems like 90+ move transports (like I had once in a game I played as the Yor) are too hard for the AI to defend against and the developers are trying to make engines a premium to calm things down a bit. It's true that it's a little more of a hassle to actually have to move your transports around and advance them with your fleets, but I can understand that it's hard for the AI to plan for transports that can basically be anywhere on the map in one turn.

Depends on the game for me, my typical transport has 2 Advanced troop modules. I tend to heavy them up late in the game for maximum effect. I never arm them and always run interference for them with my attack fleets.

i use heavy hull and gigantic hull that way i don't need to escort them 2 modules as heavily armed and shielded as i can get

gigantic hull is double sixe heavy hull

I'm to impatient to get all the way to HyperWarp, so my transports never get past 15 parsecs/week. But generally I put two Adv. Troops, one or two of my best life support and fill it up with engines. If theres enough room for another life support at the end but not another engine I'll do that.

I usually leave them on my planets till I'm ready to position for attack, as to not lose the tax money from all those citizens just sitting in space.

Just a thought DethAdder. If you have a sound economy you can launch them and the population will be able to grow again so that when you are ready for war you don't take the tax hit on your economy then.

I didn't want them freeloaders wriggling out of paying me , but I can get all new people to shake down .

   

Any use all those freeloaders to max populate a newly conqueored planet immediatley for maximum taxiation efficiency.

Something to add:

A fleet of 2 ships with 1 troop module each is SUPERIOR to 1 ship with 2 troop modules, and the main reason why is this:

If after the invasion there are still enough troops to fill a transport, one will still be in orbit and STILL HAVE MOVEMENT POINTS!

This works especialy well with large fleets .. a fleet of 10 troop carriers can take many planets on the same turn .. leveraging billions of troops multiple times!

I have been building fleets of 7 transports built on huge hulls. Each has a single adv crew carrier, and a speed of something like 107.

But huge hulls are more expensive than cargo hulls, and they don't hold that much more. Plus, all those engines aren't free either. And with only one advanced troop module on each ship, it will probably take several ships to conquer each enemy planet. It's cheaper to put several advanced troop modules on each ship, and lose only one troop ship per enemy planet.

I have been building fleets of 7 transports built on huge hulls. Each has a single adv crew carrier, and a speed of something like 107.

Egads. I thought a move of 30-40+ was alot.

I think I might switch to a Huge Hull with 2 or 3 Advanced Troop modules and the rest engines for those really big or well defended planets. I'll still retain my cargo transports to do it on the cheap.

It really is too bad that transports get eaten in the process of the invasion. I designed this super-bling ship, lots of weapons and defenses, long range, reasonably fast, ungodly expensive and with an Advanced Troop module. Eventually I noticed that I was losing those ships but it wasn't in combat...oops it was in invasions (n00b alert!).

Doh!

This works especialy well with large fleets .. a fleet of 10 troop carriers can take many planets on the same turn .. leveraging billions of troops multiple times!

You'd get the same results sending one ship to each planet as the total number of soldiers does not alter the combat.
Say you hit 18:3 on the invasion screen,,which equals 6:1.
The net effect of that is that for each troop you lose,,the defender loses six.
Then both sides are lowered accordingly until only one side has troops left and is declared the victor.

A fleet of 2 ships with 1 troop module each is SUPERIOR to 1 ship with 2 troop modules, and the main reason why is this: If after the invasion there are still enough troops to fill a transport, one will still be in orbit and STILL HAVE MOVEMENT POINTS!

Those two ships will also cost more to both produce and maintain than the single ship.
Also,,your newly conquered planet will have very few citizens,,and hence pay less in taxes than the colony maintence costs you.


I ususally prioritize Soldiering techs,,so early on I dont need that many troops to invade and still have a population over 1B.

Late game,,when the others start to catch up,,I deploy two types:

Commando: Single troop module on Cargo hull, enough Lifesupport to give the desired range with some margins and the rest engines.
These little rascals hit first with the most destructive tactics that would lower the planet's PQ if they win,,but since there are only 500 troops in the ship,,they just take a big chunk out of the defenders.

When the odds are below 1:2,,my Invaders fly in with 4k troops (Adv troop modules,,Cargo hull,,sufficent life support and a move around 60) which is enough to give me a decent population base once the planet is captured with Minisoldiers.

I usually leave them on my planets till I'm ready to position for attack, as to not lose the tax money from all those citizens just sitting in space.

I have a Space port on all planets to build a troop transport as soon as the planet hits maximum population.
The reason I take the hit in efficiency compared to build something useful on those squares is that I simply can't be bothered micromanaging transports from my ship building planets to those with max. pop. lol

For a long time now, I've been building transports using a cargo hull, three advanced troop modules, and as much engine as I could fit.

I've seen in other threads that Brad is almost certainly going to change the game so that the maximum ship speed is going to be about 8.

If this happens, I will probably fall back on my old Assault Transport; it had a small hull (they stack much better in your fleets than cargo hulls), one or two advanced troop modules (depending on my miniaturization level) and some engines.

If we won't be able to keep transports out of range of enemy interception fleets, we'll have to fleet them with warships, and a few hit points will be better than the cargo hull's one hp.