The Space Shark(s) ate my Fleet!

Use a Battleship that does em! hahahahaha

~SDC~

Space sharks can be tough, especially on lower difficulty levels where the AI can't blast them for you. When you first find them at the anomaly they are weaker but they get stronger over time.

If you are getting beat up by sharks at your level, I suggest you don't autosearch (is that the correct term?) your survey ship in the beginning. Use your survey ship on manual and let the aliens find the sharks and fight them for you.

As Lord says, you need a battleship or an improved survery ship or better to consistenly defeat those pests. And some sharks are tougher than others. The good news is that on higher levels you don't have much for the sharks to destroy (especially early) and the AI has so many capital ships, it pretty much handles the sharks for you.

Early on, you don't destroy them. If you can, put a star fighter or such three spaces in front of it, and slowly lead it toward alien space. Lure it toward an AI space station on a resource you want, for example. Now you can destroy it without getting into a war! Don't bother attacking them unless you have several corvettes or a frigate. NEVER let them go on offense against you!

i'V pLAYED 41 gAMES & nEVER sEEN tHEM

Space sharks are generated tougher than your toughest ship. If you discover them at game start this means about +12 attack. If you discover them when you have battleships, this mean about +30 attack. and so on...

Therefore you will never be able to easily defeat them. The best approach is to either lead them away with whatever ship they are focussed on, or to set a trap for them.

Look at their attack and defense values. Early space sharks are usually not powerful enough to defeat a starbase with defense upgrades. This is usually the best way to deal with them. Netx best method is to attack (in the same turn) with the required number of top range ships). Check to see if they are powerful enough before you attack though! Do not keep throwing your ships at them.

paul.

In the newest version of the game you find them more often, just don't do autosearch unless you want the shark to follow you to the AI's, that is what I do, I set my ship as bite for the shark to come after me and then I go to the "Hostile" AI and let the shark have a feats there, they only move like 1 move per time, so your ship should let them behind.

Thanks all, I will try these other strategies. I guess brute force isn't always the answer (darn it!)...

JC

~SDC~

You will find this to be true many times with this game

I also lure the little buggers off towards the AI. Last night they helped out a good deal by clearing a few ships for me before I invaded.

I let the sharks go to my planets where i usually have the maximum amount of ships orbiting my planets [at which time i have planetary defense which protects most of the ships i usually lose maybey 3 or 4 depending on how difficult the shark is]

~SDC~

I hate Space Sharks! There always picking on my poor little frighters and SBs . . .

*laughs* THe space sharks ate my hand and i shall go after moby dick! i shall kill that whale/shark!

~SDC~

It seems to me the spacesharks get tougher everyturn from the moment they are discovered. I mean they appear with a minimum of hitpoints, which goes up everyturn. So if you attack them soon after they've appeared, its easier to kill them.
~SDC~
[Message Edited]

Up above I said "auto-search". I finally looked it up and the correct term is "auto-survey". Hmmm . . . funny thing for a survey ship to do. LOL.

Beware the auto-survey and the green or pointy asteroids. You might get your survey ship gobbled up.

I say use AUTO-RETREAT and auto survey at the same time....that makes it easyier

~SDC~