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Author Topic: Relief Fleets  (Read 2774 times)

SCC

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Relief Fleets
« on: January 09, 2019, 06:22:45 AM »

Scenario A: a colony is hit with lots of pirate activity and pirate raids, now sits at 0 stability. The clock is ticking and it's risking decivilization.
Scenario B: the same, except it's the player's colony.

Resolution B: the player a) pays to stabilise colony, b) builds and upgrades military buildings, c) fights off pirate raids, d) finds and destroys the base from which pirates are raiding.
Resolution A: the colony inevitably dies.

There are no ways for AI factions to stabilise their colonies. I propose to bring back relief fleets, but with changed purpose: now, whenever a colony hits 0 stability or less, there should be created a relief fleet. It should assembly for some time and show up in the intel, then travel to its destination, stay there for some time and eventually disappear. The fleet composition should be half freighters, half combat ships, by default. The fleet size could scale with colony it's meant to relieve or with other factors, but the important thing is that it should be big and challenging, Redacted-level challenging for the biggest of them. Partially because that's a way to guarantee a good fight, partially because pirate raids at the moment are incredibly strong.
But relief fleet is not all combat ships - its many freighter should haul either "generic" food, supplies, fuel and (maybe) machinery or specifically tailored package, meant to resolve all of the target colony's shortages. The difference is the second would contain things like organics, transplutonics, weaponry and so on. Relief fleets, because of their purpose, should also be less aggressive than normal combat fleets. It should never stray from its course, except to avoid a dangerous fleet. Once the fleet reaches its destination, then it might go into some guard mode or join friendly fleets in the vicinity, but otherwise, it should never engage any other fleets, even those with vengeful reputation.

Major factions should always tend to their own colonies. Maybe there could be a chance of one major faction sending periodically a relief fleet to the other faction, if the relations are good enough, but that's it.
Independent colonies should only have a chance to receive aid, even if high. Something like 25% chance to receive help from Hegemony, 25% for League's help, 10% for Church's help, 5% for TT and another 5% for SD, and finally 25% of not receiving help at all. Unless the colony that requires help is in the same system as another faction's enemy (say, Eldfell in Thule), in which case the "no help" slot goes that faction's enemy (say, Hegemony, which would increase chances for help from them to 50%) and in addition to having better chances, if that faction's enemy is chosen as relief fleet source, that relief fleet will have twice as many combat ships (increasing that fleet's DP, not just changing proportions). It's meant to be a show of power, but it would also help if that fleet really did get engaged by now hostile fleets in that system.
And finally, outlaw colonies, pirate and pather ones... Can go to hell. They receive no help and send no help.

Gwyvern

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Re: Relief Fleets
« Reply #1 on: January 11, 2019, 03:51:15 PM »

This, but let the AI do as much of the tasks the player does as is feasible.
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Nawyria

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Re: Relief Fleets
« Reply #2 on: January 11, 2019, 03:54:44 PM »

Hooking this into the missions system might also be an interesting. World risks destabilization, send out a mega-procurement contract that the player can take on for a big reputation bonus, a decent chunk of credits and perhaps some rare rewards - a blueprint or temporary access to the Military market?
« Last Edit: January 11, 2019, 03:59:20 PM by Nawyria »
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RawCode

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Re: Relief Fleets
« Reply #3 on: January 11, 2019, 10:30:13 PM »

probably grayed out "command" button will change everything.

it's quite immersion breaking that you must do everything yourself and nobody in entire sector going to deal with pathers and pirates self, factions can and should sent expeditions vs pathers and pirates and not trying to bully player exclusively.
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