You forgot to mention the tech level you wanted DO we have kodiaks? Cielos? Hoshikos? Carriers?

Pre-Kodiak, but you've got everything else. (Hoshikos, Cielos, Perchiriens with all upgrades)

In the early game you cant go wrong using your flagship plus about 10 colbalts, and 8 javalis LRM's. I just add (and replace) to it as the game goes along. At 380 points you should be able to field a nice fleet of at least 3 cap ships (i would chose the akkan, and dunov as my next 2 caps). Plus 5 light carriers i would bring the colbalt fleet to 12 and LRM's to 10. That is usually more than enough to do some comp stomping untill you get more ship slots.

You also forgot to add, is this an offensive fleet, or a defensive fleet. Both have very different requirements. An offensive fleet needs to be very mobile, able to dodge or neutralize in some way planetary defenses, whereas a defensive fleet needs to be somewhat mobile, able to respond quickly to a threat, but it needs to hold it's ground and supplement your own planetary defenses.

Major Stress, so I'm guessing 22 Cobalts, 10 Javelis, 10 Gardas, 5 Perchiriens, 2 Kols, an Akkan and a Dunov should be about right. Or do you think I need to increase the number of flak frigates?

Ron Lugge, I like the Sova as well especially once it levels up enough to carry four squadrons. I've had the Hoshikos and a single Cielo before, but I must've been using the Hoshikos wrong.

Advalary, it's for an offensive fleet. I usually leave a single Sova plus six light carriers (2x fighter, 8x bomber squadrons) in more important planets. So far, they're usually enough to bolster the planetary defenses against pirates and the small raiding groups that the AI insists on sending.

Psyleck, I'll give Hard AI a try. As it is, my 440 supply fleet of 11 cap ships has been rolling over everything it encounters from the Medium AI.

My current fleet composition was the result of one of my mixed fleets getting eliminated when I tried to take over one of the AI's planets. That fleet consisted of the following:

26x Cobalt Light Frigates
14x Javelis LRM Frigates
8x Garda Flak Frigates
4x Perchirien Light Carriers
12x Hoshiko Robotics Cruisers
1x Cielo Command Cruiser
2x Kol Battleships (TDN Karamazov and TDN Proteus, levels 7 and 5 respectively)

Supply cost: 378
Credits: 26,475
Metal: 3,605
Crystal: 1,950

I realize now, that a big failure in this particular fleet composition was the over-abundance of Hoshiko Robotics Cruisers and the lack of supporting Battlecruisers such as the Akkan and Dunov, but I had thought that the AI knew what it was doing when it built 28 of those Hoshikos.

After this force got wiped out, I reloaded a saved game and scuttled most of my frigates save for the Javelis LRM frigates. My new fleet consisted of the following:

14x Javelis LRM Frigates
8x Kol Battleships (TDN Karamazov, TDN Proteus, TDN Krosus, TDN Logonis, TDN Kinesia, TDN Vigilus, TDN Krasev and TDN Achronus - Karamazov at level 7 and all her sister ships at level 5)

Supply cost: 376
Credits: 27,150
Metal: 3,550
Crystal: 2,350

I'd taken five planets while losing at most 1 Javelis, until I finally lost them all and decided to replace with the TDN Lazarus (Marza-class). The current fleet, augmented by TDN Aceron (Akkan-class) and TDN Numenia (Dunov-class), has taken over nine planets without a single loss and now carries 14 fighter squadrons and 7 bomber squadrons.

The only micro-management I do with my current fleet is to focus fire on the greatest threat and angle my fleet to points of least resistance. Previously I had to make sure that the Javelis were safe from getting killed --- not an easy proposition when the AI's bombers start going after them and you have to micro your fighters to intercept. The mixed fleet I had above was even worse, with the Flak frigates seeming to be ineffective.

I would really like to use a mixed fleet, but against the current AI (Medium), I don't see the point. I'm sure this will change when up against a human player, or possibly against the Hard AI. I'm curious though, how much micro-management is involved with your mixed fleets? How do you ensure that the Gardas actually do protect your fleet from the enemy's bombers and fighters without having to switch your attention from attacking the enemy with the rest of your ships?

Major Stress, it sounds to me from your post that you don't have your fleet specifically attack a target but instead move them to a certain point where they will engage all enemy forces within range. Did I understand this correctly?

Its best to keep your Flack Frigs on a seperate hot key. If you have everything under one key the flacks will be useless. You want them going after bombers and fighters so let them auto target while you use everything else on condenced fire.

Thanks for the responses, all very much appreciated. I'm guessing that something will be done in Beta 3 to increase the costs or required supply for capital ships. I'm curious, how many ships do you guys normally lose when attacking a heavily defended planet with your mixed fleets?

On a somewhat unrelated note, is anyone else bothered by the misuse of the term "Squad" when referring to the fighter and bomber squadrons? Hope this is just a typo they overlooked and not something that will be in the final game.

I've been a long time lurker here. Browsing during downtime at work   

Anyways, this Fleet Composition issue is killing me. An entire fleet of Capital Ships would be uttlerly useless in a real game - versus either a human or a tough AI. The key factor is their movement speed. You can easily out manouver a capital ship fleet with frigates and cruisers to counter attack the undefended systems that the fleet has left behind. Taking into account ship supply costs, you could still have a good defensive fleet to give the cap ships a rough time.

Major Stress - to deal with your losses jump your ships in at different times. If you know what defenses a planet has, adjust your attack to maximize against it. For example, if you know they have a lot of strike craft, jump in your flaks first - perhaps with carrier type ships using fighters. This will occupy the enemy strike craft. Following this jump in long range attack craft (LRMs) and then short range/Capital ships. Finally, jump in your support craft as they are the most vulnerable and of little use at the very start of a skirmish. You basically want to time your short range attack craft to arrive as an enemy's defenders approach you. Generally, you have the element of surprise - take advantage of that

I really look forward to Beta 3, and hope that the AI has learned how to effectively combat a human.

I'll jump my caps if they get in trouble which so far has been very rare if ever, but frigates are expendable attrition units. They are supposed to die to make me more money....errrrr... My cause

Only the cool kind