Matrix Games Forums

Retrofitting oddness.

I noticed this in my first 1.04.4 game, started this weekend.

I begin games by building 3-4 constructor ships extra. As time progresses, I would later on in older games retrofit them to better designs.

In my first 1.04.4 game, I tried retrofitting two construction ships (bog standard basic come-with-the-game-designs).

1) They moved to a shipyard.
2) They have been sitting there for five years.
3) Their info shows they are retrofitting to design blah-dee-blah - but nothing happens apparently.
4) None of them are automated.

The funniest thing is - all my other construction ships will not retrofit. I can select the order, but they don't do it nor does the order show in their information. Also, the two ships that DO show they are retrofitting, have a completely different R-click menu. they do not have the option 'Stop' (so I cannot tell them to go and do something useful. 'Stop' has been replaced by 'Escape' (from what is unclear - they are at a friendly base).
Nor can I tell the two refitting constructors to scrap - I have the option 'Scrap at nearest shipyard' but Iseloect that and nothing happens. The usual option 'Scrap ship immediately' is not there.

Retrofitting for all my other ships works as advertised.

On a related note:

When I select several bases in the overview screen and want to give all of them the 'refit' order, the popup comes on allowing me to select the design to refit to but there is no design to select from (and I an certain there is one). When I select them one at a time, it works properly.

On repairing:

If I am building a base NOT at a colony and the base gets attacked before it is finished but not detroyed, it will forever sit there. I cannot finish the build (I cannot get a constructor to go and finish the job) nor can I send a constructor to repair the damage (that order is not present in any form or way). Neither can I scrap the base or build a new (mining)base over the planet, because according to the game there is a base already - just not a functioning one.

Something strange also, while I am on the subject:

I seen two times in two different games that when I dicover a graveyard of derelict ships, whn I go and repair them to add to my fleet, upon completing a repair the ship becomes property of a differing empire immediately. Beats me why or how, but I just spent time, resources and a constructor to repair somebody elses ships? Now I am forced to svae game, try and repair, see them change colour/owner, reload. Can I see in advance if they are already claimed?

Maybe a wish for a future version:

I understand that I cannot retrofit a base not at a colony, but shoiuldn't I be able to send a constructor to a remote base and have that constructor retorfit the base? That would seem like a normal way of working?

In my first 1.04.4 game, I tried retrofitting two construction ships (bog standard basic come-with-the-game-designs).

1) They moved to a shipyard.
2) They have been sitting there for five years.
3) Their info shows they are retrofitting to design blah-dee-blah - but nothing happens apparently.
4) None of them are automated.

The funniest thing is - all my other construction ships will not retrofit. I can select the order, but they don't do it nor does the order show in their information. Also, the two ships that DO show they are retrofitting, have a completely different R-click menu. they do not have the option 'Stop' (so I cannot tell them to go and do something useful. 'Stop' has been replaced by 'Escape' (from what is unclear - they are at a friendly base).
Nor can I tell the two refitting constructors to scrap - I have the option 'Scrap at nearest shipyard' but Iseloect that and nothing happens. The usual option 'Scrap ship immediately' is not there.

Retrofitting for all my other ships works as advertised.

This is exactly the behavior several of us have noted. I've uploaded a couple of savegames with ships stuck in retrofit for 5-20yrs to the tech support forums on this. There is a way to scrap them and clear the queue, but you have to scrap/remove them from the planet's construction yard menu.

I've also had a couple of spaceport retrofits get stuck as well. Usually that only happens when I'm retrofitting the spaceport at a planet with construction ships retrofitting in the queue after it. Clearing just the construction ships from the queue does not seem to allow the spaceport to finish though and I have to scrap and rebuild it.

When I select several bases in the overview screen and want to give all of them the 'refit' order, the popup comes on allowing me to select the design to refit to but there is no design to select from (and I an certain there is one). When I select them one at a time, it works properly.

Make sure that you select only spaceports of the same type (S/M/L). It will allow you to mass retrofit within a type, but not let you retrofit across types from that menu. You need to visit each spaceport to do so. I've seen 2-3 spaceport retrofits in the planetary construction queue doing this too fast though and you could end up retrofitting a small to medium manually then go in and mass-select all smalls and tell it would then queue a retrofit to the new small after the retrofit to medium.

If I am building a base NOT at a colony and the base gets attacked before it is finished but not detroyed, it will forever sit there. I cannot finish the build (I cannot get a constructor to go and finish the job) nor can I send a constructor to repair the damage (that order is not present in any form or way). Neither can I scrap the base or build a new (mining)base over the planet, because according to the game there is a base already - just not a functioning one.

I haven't seen this one yet, but I have pulled construction ships off new bases to go salvage derelicts. I'll have to see if the bases ever finished being built. You might want to report this in the tech support thread and upload a savegame. Instructions on uploading to their FTP server are in the sticky.

I seen two times in two different games that when I dicover a graveyard of derelict ships, whn I go and repair them to add to my fleet, upon completing a repair the ship becomes property of a differing empire immediately. Beats me why or how, but I just spent time, resources and a constructor to repair somebody elses ships? Now I am forced to svae game, try and repair, see them change colour/owner, reload. Can I see in advance if they are already claimed?

I lost two world destroyers this way. It's extremely irritating. What happens is that another race's ship happens to be there as well and I'm not sure what triggers who gets the ship when it comes online, but I'm assuming they send an assault shuttle across to the ship when it's about to come online.

There are two defenses for this. Blow up all other race's ships that are there. (Which is hard to tell sometimes when my race is blue and the other is one shade off my blue.) And don't let anyone know you found the derelict/fleet. They find out by getting your territory (if it's in your system) or galaxy map through trade, espionage, or mutual defense treaty. This is how I realized that mutual defense includes constant galaxy map updates and simply don't enter into them anymore.

I understand that I cannot retrofit a base not at a colony, but shoiuldn't I be able to send a constructor to a remote base and have that constructor retorfit the base? That would seem like a normal way of working?

Many of us would love to see this. It's rather silly that it doesn't happen now, as far as I'm concerned and is a good reason NOT to arm your bases with any defense. Let the pirates destroy them so you can build newer models.