Senior Ship Commanders
V2.7.1 has a Senior CO checkbox on the Class Design window. Checking that box allows you to set a class design to require a commander one rank higher than would normally be the case. That required class rank then determines the required ranks of any junior officers.
For v2.8, I have added a Ship Senior CO checkbox that applies only to a single ship. That ship will be assigned a commander one rank higher than normal for the class, allowing you to designate a flagship for a fleet or sub-fleet. This is addition to any senior CO flag for the class. You can do this for as many ships as desired, although having multiple Ship Senior COs in the same fleet would make it more difficult to ensure a particular ship is the flagship.
The junior officers will still be assigned using the required rank for the class. For example, if you have a ship class with a Captain as the CO, the executive officer will be a Commander. If that ship is selected for a Senior CO, the exec will still be a Commander, even if the CO is now a Commodore. This is to maintain consistency of rank and prevent a lot of changes every time a different ship is assigned as the flagship.
For example, the Formidable class battleship is normally commanded by a Captain. In this case, HMS Victorious will be commanded by a Commodore.
Because the ship is commanded by an officer one rank higher, it will always be the flagship (assuming no higher-ranked ships are present)
Automated assignment will treat the ship accordingly, as will manual commander assignment.
I’ve added a Promote CO button to the Miscellaneous tab, so you can keep the same CO if required.
I’ve also added a Replace CO button, which will unassign the current CO then carry out automated assignment for the ship. It is possible this might result in the previous CO being promoted and reassigned.