Allegiance R4 release

[Dogbones]

QUOTE (MoGas @ Sep 13 2007, 01:18 PM) With #mutiny every newb can and will spam mutiny.

This command is not that easy to find, so really new players won't know it is even there.

However, that said, #mutiny spam will be treated just like #draw and #resign spam, or ANY chat spam, the player can (and am I sure will be) booted for such behavior (after a simple warning from the com if they are a (4) or less).

Right now it is a 'novelty' and people will want to give it a try, whether or not they really want to mutiny or not.

[Dogbones]

QUOTE (Clay_Pigeon @ Sep 13 2007, 06:22 AM) Cons are still dodging friendlies. I had an op con do laps around one side of an asteroid, because my pilots kept flying near it. In fact, it seems to be *more* sensitive.

Hmm, this is quite possibly the case which is why we really need to test this and not just say we like or don't like the proposed change.

After a closer look at YP's changes, the changes are subtle and ONLY kick in during the very last part of docking/planting.

Cons/miners will still dodge friendlies when they are not at the very end of their approach (i.e. they will only ignore friendly as the very end of their approach)
It is also possible, that cons/miners that have just made a 'hard turn' to get lined up may now overshoot. This could make them appear more sensitive in certain situations.

[Dogbones]

4 posts in a row, woo hoo /laugh.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":lol:" border="0" alt="laugh.gif" />

I have a correction. I mis labeled YP's changes to the drones. I have corrected the first post.

Their speed has not been changed. What has been changed is the check to see how slow they have to be turning before proceeding to enter the docking bay or asteroid. We changed the code such that they can now still be turning (or at least more than before) but still proceed to dock or plant on an asteroid.

The calculation is a sum of squares comparison and it is very unclear (to me, other may have a better grasp of this) how big of a change this actually is.

Also the 'not dodging friendly ships' only kicks in at the END of the approach. They will still try and dodge craft (just like they did before) in the early and mid parts of the approach.

[Dogbones]

Hmm, make that 5 in a row (unless someone sneaks one in while I am typing this)

QUOTE (Clay_Pigeon @ Sep 12 2007, 07:12 PM) Sector checking for hostiles -- How often does it check? Does it simply chose a new destination if an he-rich sector is hostile? How is this new destination chosen?

The checking logic is unchanged and I do not know the answer to your specific example off the top of my head.

The change is rather specific.

-Currently any sector that you control (i.e. has one of your bases in it and NO enemy bases (or at least spotted ones) is considered 'not' hostile when miners are doing their route planning (it does not take into account the presence of enemy ships)

-R4 Beta adds an additional check ONLY for sectors you control that takes into account the presence of enemy ships. If there are more enemy ships than friendly the sector is considered hostile where before it would have been considered 'not' hostile.

[Trigger1969]

QUOTE (Dogbones @ Sep 13 2007, 07:25 PM) As it stands, you should always be able to join one side but MAY be barred from joining the side with the higer HELO, but you should ALWAYS be able to join the side with the lower HELO.

Is this true even if the lower HELO side is already up 5 players or so? Say one team has 20 players and helo of 200, other team only has 15 player but a helo of 300. Which side can be joined?

[logsniffer]

Mutiny has been self regulating behavior throughout history and it will be no different in this game. As failed mutineers were often punished with death, I expect that the majority of failed mutinies in this game would (and should) end with a boot. To prevent mutiny spam, mutineers should have amnesty only for the duration of the vote.

Newb mutiny spam will not be an issue. Either:
1. They won't know about the command. or
2. They will be booted. (newb amnesty should not apply here)

[Seymor]

QUOTE (Dogbones @ Sep 14 2007, 11:53 AM) -R4 Beta adds an additional check ONLY for sectors you control that takes into account the presence of enemy ships. If there are more enemy ships than friendly the sector is considered hostile where before it would have been considered 'not' hostile.

Like IC needed any more perks.

[Dogbones]

QUOTE (-Trigger- @ Sep 13 2007, 10:04 PM) Is this true even if the lower HELO side is already up 5 players or so? Say one team has 20 players and helo of 200, other team only has 15 player but a helo of 300. Which side can be joined?

We kept it simple this time, no fancy algorithm, you simply join the side with the lower total. So in the above example, you would be able to join the side with 20 players.

Now, in practice, things should not get so askew as auto balance should have been on the whole time.

There is definitely merit to weighting things such that the mismatch in player totals is taken into account. One way to do that is to add 10 to everyone (as suggested).

Although I sort of like the idea that 20 1's could go up against 2 10's. If you really think about it, 1's really really do not know much at all, unless they are returning vets. Any self respecting 15 could pod 10 1's without breaking a sweat (if they did not run out of ammo first). Now 10 4's would be an entirely different matter.

0's could join any side and not impact the totals and not worry about actually doing anything productive /tongue.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":P" border="0" alt="tongue.gif" /> 0's don't stay 0 for very long anyway, a handful of games at most.

[Your_Persona]

You all need to learn the difference between things that can be ballanced in the core, and those that cant.

Given enough time and motivation, we could make the drones fly very very smartly, near human like.

All that would do would increase the realism and quality of game play.

If you would be concerned that those changes would make the drones to difficult to kill, then there is this amazing piece to the game called the CORE.

See what you do is adjust the attributes of the drone that you are concerned about being overly powerful.

I will refrain from swearing at the few of you who can not grasp anything technical, those who refuse to probe, and expect to be able to eye a con when it is about to build, then have a train of people ram it until enough of your team can respond to kill it.

What you are doing is simply exploiting a bug in the AI! Don't you even try to argue balance, or game play for this!

This game is so much more fun when its a battle of PvP with fleets of ships going at it, and good strategies and attacks planned. Sadly in its current state everyone just exploits some bugs in the AI, and now its Pwn The Drones ftw.

That is all for now... just remember... don't be that jackass.

[apathos]

I like the changes--all of them. If you will consider, YP is exactly right. We are just used to 'tradition'. If the change to drones is allowed, we will adapt, though some will grumble about it frequently.

This is a change that will require teams to probe better, react faster, or else fall behind. I'm for making the game challenging, and it's not like this will make it 'too hard'. It's just different.

There are many things about this game that are the way they are because of limitations ONLY: all the tech limitations of circa 2000, new designers, radical new gameplay, etc. What other space sim/RTS/shooter can you employ ramming as a viable strategy?

'Space drag' is an example of a limitation that has to be there just to make the game playable. But drone behavior doesn't fall into the same category.