The balance reasons mobile plasma shield ships do not exist in BAR and how naval equilibrium shapes ship design choices across the tech tree.
Tags: beyond all reason, plasma shield, naval, balance, ship design
A mobile plasma shield ship would break naval balance by making missile boats far too powerful. Missile boats already form the backbone of many naval compositions. Adding a dedicated shield carrier to protect them removes their primary weakness and creates an almost unstoppable fleet combination.
Static plasma shields already exist as defensive structures. They force the attacker to commit resources to break through, which is the intended design. Making that protection mobile removes the strategic tension between offense and defense that keeps naval combat interesting.
BAR's naval units follow a rock-paper-scissors design philosophy. Frigates counter other light ships, destroyers handle frigates, cruisers threaten destroyers, and specialized units like subs and torpedo gunships create matchup-specific counters. Every unit has a clear counter, and adding mobile shielding disrupts that equilibrium.
Ship design choices also tie into faction identity. Cortex and Legion each have distinct naval philosophies that reflect their broader unit rosters. Introducing mobile shields would require rebalancing essentially every naval engagement, which carries too much risk for minimal gameplay benefit.
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