Actually, this inspired an idea I wanted to post here.
(01-14-2013, 02:53 PM)AeternusDoleo Wrote: [Edit] One thing I do wish to push for though - adding a fixed amount of weight to armor, if it's possible (not sure if it is). Doubling the weight of a VHF on an AU8 one would give pilots a choice. Heavy armor or top dancing capability. This would also promote the use of heavy armor on ships that typically need it and are already heavy: Bombers, SHFs and freighters, while it would cause lighter ships to favor less armor so it won't impact their movement as much. Should also shorten most snub fights a bit, and make the LFs more lethal relative to the VHFs that dominate right now.
This same principle could be applied to shields as well. We could have shields differ not only in raw strength but also in regenerative capability and regen-power-drain.
An example with the class 10 VHF/bomber shield.
Low regen/Low regen-power-drain - 11038hp, 245 regen, 10 regen-power-drain (<- this is our current shield)
Medium regen/Medium regen-power-drain - 11038, 450 regen, 110 regen-power-drain
High regen/High regen-power-drain - 11038, 730 regen, 230 regen-power-drain
(do not mind the numbers please, I randomly made them up <.<)
The strength of the shield remains the same but the regen rate varies as well as the regen power drain. That would allow some interesting options for varying pilot styles.
I am not sure if this is a good idea or not, but I wanted to share it regardless. If it is a bad idea, please feel free to nevermind it.
most devs have been working on the general storyline lately - nothing shiney to report ( or spoil ) - so everyone took a region and wrote something nice thats now the lore.
Update from my end: I've been sorting out the MBases file. Roughly 3.5 MB of plain text that governs the base population and mission availability strengths from those bases. I've sorted the file by system now, so that it's easier for other devs to make changes and added comments indicating which entry means what base. (Not everyone knows li01_01 means Manhattan for instance). I've fixed bugs and set mission difficulties as I went. Barring a few exceptions, expect the following:
House capitols and home systems (such as Omicron Alpha and Gamma): Very easy missions, mainly meant for new players who want to rep up.
House systems that aren't the capitol: Mid range missions for lawfuls, hard range missions for unlawfuls.
Borderworlds (systems bordering the house systems): Midrange missions for unlawfuls, hard missions for lawfuls.
Edge worlds and warzones: Hard missions. Aim for this is to get people who enjoy conflict to go to the various warzones to enjoy that - shoot some NPCs, then shoot eachother, then shoot some more NPCs. Good fun.
Payout will be in line with the mission difficulty. The aim is to have the mission reward be a general indication of the enemies you can expect. <500K: Fighters, <2M: Fighters/gunboats. <5M: Gunboats/Destroyers/Cruisers. >5M: Destroyers/Cruisers/Battleships. Naturally, the faction you fight will need to have these kinds of ships, so don't expect a Bowex Battlecruiser or DSE Destroyer.
Next task: Redefine NPC ships to bring them up to speed and equalise their power between the houses. Will probably mean dropping most MK1 ships. Crashfest last time I tried messing with this so I'm not looking forward to it.
Wide awake in a world that sleeps, enduring thoughts, enduring scenes. The knowledge of what is yet to come.
From a time when all seems lost, from a dead man to a world, without restraint, unafraid and free.
Mostly retired Discovery member. May still visit from time to time.
(03-05-2013, 08:04 PM)AeternusDoleo Wrote: House capitols and home systems (such as Omicron Alpha and Gamma): Very easy missions, mainly meant for new players who want to rep up.
House systems that aren't the capitol: Mid range missions for lawfuls, hard range missions for unlawfuls.
Borderworlds (systems bordering the house systems): Midrange missions for unlawfuls, hard missions for lawfuls.
Edge worlds and warzones: Hard missions. Aim for this is to get people who enjoy conflict to go to the various warzones to enjoy that - shoot some NPCs, then shoot eachother, then shoot some more NPCs. Good fun.
Payout will be in line with the mission difficulty. The aim is to have the mission reward be a general indication of the enemies you can expect. <500K: Fighters, <2M: Fighters/gunboats. <5M: Gunboats/Destroyers/Cruisers. >5M: Destroyers/Cruisers/Battleships. Naturally, the faction you fight will need to have these kinds of ships, so don't expect a Bowex Battlecruiser or DSE Destroyer.
So, no more random Battleships when I try to rep a Fighter? Thats awesome news!
EDIT: Does that mean that unlawfuls get the very easy missions in capitol systems as well? What about factions that dont have bases in these systems (The Hessians or Unioners for example) ?
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Lawfuls and unlawfuls are on an inverse scale - the easier it is for lawfuls, the harder it is for unlawfuls and vice versa.
Lawfuls have it easiest in house capitals with it getting more difficult as they head away. Unlawfuls have it easiest in the house border systems, getting more difficult as they head inward.
That's the gist of things, so far as I understand it.
Gods, 3,5 mb!... You are maintaining an entire word out there, you are epic.
Such an effort... You create a space for people's dreams and fantasies, and it is what makes Discovery so beloved among us.
(03-05-2013, 08:12 PM)Jansen Wrote: So, no more random Battleships when I try to rep a Fighter? Thats awesome news!
EDIT: Does that mean that unlawfuls get the very easy missions in capitol systems as well? What about factions that dont have bases in these systems (The Hessians or Unioners for example) ?
Yes, unlawfuls get them as well in the capitol system. Hessians can either visit the Junker base or the LWB depot to get access to missions for their own faction. Unioners and Bundies can use the Junker base as well. Some factions that don't have access to something like this will have another base with easy missions, usually in a house system, or a base with special significance to the faction.
Thought behind putting the missions in inverse is that it'd be easier for unlawfuls to intervene in the borderworlds, and for lawfuls inside their own house. Might stimulate some player interaction by a couple of player hostiles crashing a mission from time to time. But there's so many places you can take missions from that you'll never really be locked out of the ability to do them.
Update: Started work on the NPC templates. It's proving easier then I thought thus far. I'll also be standardising a bit - meaning if Bretonia gets 2 class 7 and 2 class 8 guns on their LF, all other houses get the same. Naturally, weapons and ships will vary based on the tech used by the faction. Still, should be quite interesting... I watched NPCs slug it out a while with their new, slowly regenerating shields (only the very weak NPCs don't get a charging shield, the rest gets class 6 to class 9 fighter shields, and a class 10 for the strongest NPCs - the guard system ones and the ones escorting capital patrols). I've also added a bit of variety by declaring 2 types of NPCs - one wielding gun type 1 and shield type a, the other gun type 2 and shield type b.
Completed BAF and BPA templates, continuing with the civvy Bret factions next.
[Edit] Rechecked that MBases file - appears I was exhagerrating just a little. It's 2.6MB in size. Still a crapload considering it's plaintext.
Wide awake in a world that sleeps, enduring thoughts, enduring scenes. The knowledge of what is yet to come.
From a time when all seems lost, from a dead man to a world, without restraint, unafraid and free.
Mostly retired Discovery member. May still visit from time to time.