Number of Flagships - something to think about

Because flag 1 and 2 are mutually exclusive it makes flag 1 sort of a points bloat.

It's a shame they weren't more inclusive even if nothing more then tie breaker being the addition of all flags combined.

Some ships were equipped with the extra crew space specifically to operate as a flagship though.

And im still pissed about the duiplex

Just don’t make them French cruisers.

St. Louis
Suffren
Gloire
Pluton

This is the list of cruisers that don’t have an initiative bonus. If you’re playing the Milan Smoke gambit then these are the only ones you can take: a 1944 hypo, a decent cruiser, an overcosted set 1 piece, and a minelayer.

I like the smaller type flagged ships as much as anything, added nice uniqueness to Taney and probably made it more playable. Cruisers are good and even flagship aux landing types could get more in if we had the right types.

Its a good point with options.

This biggest problem I see with producing a lot of additional ships with Flag is the uncomfortable reality is 0 Flag (and seeking to lose initiative), particularly in conjunction with smoke, is a "Thing". My experience is it is best to seek initiative bonus in builds that leverage air, subs, and "rush" SAs that gain quick positional advantage. But if you want to use smoke most effectively, its best to avoid Flag entirely.

Flag 1 just ends up being a "tweener". Without other initiative bonuses to help it along, its disadvantaged vs. Flag 2 initiative-seeking fleets, and its disadvantaged against Flag 0 smoker fleets. It can be made to work, because there are a lot of other factors in building a competitive fleet, but I generally avoid Flag 1 ships if I can, unless they are already in a fleet with Flag 2 ship and I'm seeking initiative.

The unfortunate side of all of this is all of the above isn't really driven by the way fleets would historically operate. Certainly, the presence or absence of a flag ship wouldn't have so dramatic effect on things like laying smoke screens. Its a game mechanic thing that, while not the most historically accurate, is a part of the game we have to live with.

I have no objection to more or less Flag-equipped ships, but I don't think we needed to deliberately rush to add a bunch to the game. Use it where it makes sense, with the recognition that Flag 0 ships have an absolute place in the game as well.

Weeds, don't get my wrong. Some ships genuinely deserve a flag 1 rating. And others probably ought to get it to prevent them from being absolute low-initiative monsters (particularly when it comes to some of the super, pre-war fantasy BBs...its a good way to keep them in check and avoid having them wreck the early war game). My only point really is we have to recognize how the ships get used "in the wild". Zero initiative and high initiative fleets are an unavoidable part of the game, and players that optimize towards those extremes might not use a Flag 1 ship as often as we might like. I occasionally run across a Flag 1 ship I really want to use and take it, regardless of the metagame, but at this point, with 11+ decks, there are enough good ships in the big Navies with Flag 0 or Flag 2 that I can usually avoid a Flag 1 if I really want to. Adding more Flag 1 units to the game wont change that. Just too many other good options out there now.

Again, not opposed. The distribution should be balanced in my view. Can't promise that Flag 1 units will get taken a lot as "the" Flagship of a fleet, but they have there place.

I think so.