Ok... I know we have had discussions about adding merchant ships to the game MANY times... but here is a twist on it:
1) Convoys don't belong to any country and don't show up on the arena map.
2) Made up of several merchant ships of differing sizes and types (tankers, liberty ships, troop transports)
3) Escorted by 2 or 3 DE's
4) The convoy would follow one of several preplanned routes, which would be selected when it spawns.
5) The convoy would go into "zig zag" maneuvers as soon as any plane comes within a certain range. (might need a longer range for a task group)
6) Merchants would have limited auto ack capability, and the DE's would have both auto ack and flak.
7) If the convoy is completely destroyed, it respawns randomly at one of several hidden spots on the map, and gets a new route.
8) If convoy ships are sunk, but the whole convoy is not sunk, ships have the same respawn time as the ones we have now.
Options:
1) Each country gets one convoy per port but cannot plan its route. However, manned guns could be available.
2) By assigning convoys to countries, they could have on impact on supply if destroyed... or perhaps a few perks are awarded to all players on a country that sinks a convoy? It would make them worth protecting, and worth going after.
3) Convoy size is randomly determined when it spawns, so it is never the same.
Think about the impact of having an unexpected convoy sail into the middle of an ongoing battle. May be lots of possibility here. Or I may be way off base... Comments?
