"Sacrifice for Knowledge" by Bob Crosswell 1997 v2.6/7
Sacrafice for Knowlege
by: Bob Crosswell
There will be times in the game of stars when you face unknown ships(unless you are WM). Whether you are about to fight a group of Battleships or a single fighter. Not knowing what you face can be deadly; for you. It is an ugly surprize to learn, that that single scout entering your space has warp 10 engines and DISRUPTORS.
And you learn this after you lose several high value ships.
Do you send colonists to colonize unknown worlds and hope you can live there. NO!! So why would you send your prize warships into battle without knowing what you face. The answer is to use scouts. They are cheap, remember. And sooner or later you want to get rid of these old ships anyway.Send the scouts/old ships to checkout every ship or fleet. Any battle , even if no ships are lost will gain information about enemy ships. So use them , even if they are unarmed.
Sacrafice those scouts or older ships to give you the knowledge. You may learn that the attackers have doomsday missiles, and maybe its time to run and fight another day. Or you may learn those 10 cruisers only have beta missiles. Eighter way , it is always better to know. So sacrafice those scouts, let them count for something.