How does the RNG play defense in ships?

YouSpendCash

I'm very perplexed by how ships play defense. I have experienced situation where I get beaten by teams with much weaker ships( including the starting 5) and I have beaten teams with 30-50,000 higher power ratings. I have witness on my friend's game he was beaten by someone who has close to 80,000 power rating difference, only to turn around and beat them in literally 2 minutes.

I mean, if there is a setup that negates upgrades and power ratings then what's the purpose of upgrading your fleet and characters? Or does the RNG not play defense? Can someone please explain the mechanics of fleet battle?

crzydroid

Because power has nothing to do with what team will win.

Yes, the defense AI for both arenas sucks. They target random enemies, it seems, and they spam specials first, usually. Some ships never use specials. Ackbar will "heal" a ship that doesn't need it. I think it is well beyond the scope of the game to try and craft an AI that uses abilities prudently. It's probably just as well, too.

YouSpendCash

So didn't they try to change the power rating system not too long ago to better reflect the abilities of your team? If the power rating means nothing, then why even bother having it?! It seems like it's just being used to count territorial battle points more than anything else, and very misleading.

That said, it really degrades the gaming experience from a playability perspective. My coworker basically echos your sentiments about the way RNG plays, although the issue magnifies for him because he has a fully decked fleet and maxed out toons, and he still gets beat by teams with 6 star ships and non zeta toons. I am not there yet so I can't feel his pain, but I share his fraustration just the same.