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1

General Discussion / Pet Peeves

« on: March 31, 2021, 04:06:17 PM »

Okay, really enjoying 0.95 but I have a few nagging issues. Hopefully, Alex can address them sooner than another 2-year cycle or there's a solution I'm missing.

1. New bar quest. Would it possible to hyperlink the system in question onto the galactic map? Just a name and distance isn't good enough if I just want to pick up a bounty or something on the way to a real job. Is there a search function for a particular sector?

2. Can we update the galactic map with better Ion storm location as we explore the further? I get at the beginning astrograph/fog of war is bad and you are playing magellan but once you've found a nice safe route to one side of the map tucked away among wild storms, I really don't want to keep remembering where the entrance is. I know the mini-map is somewhat more accurate but its distance coverage is too small. Oh, apparently the new 'going slow' can mitigate storm damage. Need to confirm that later.

3. Are the factions able to colonize beyond their starting planets yet? I know some mods have coded in expansions so I was hoping 0.95 would change up the map a bit in late game. Or is it a mistake to sell all the class-V data to pirates rather than my own faction? 

4. Is it possible to check the price of items on another planet within the system you are in? I mean, you can see max/min prices of certain items from across the galaxy if you right click it but it can't show me the price of food on a planet next door?

5. Neutrino scanner. AARGH!

2

General Discussion / Quick question

« on: March 29, 2021, 04:29:05 PM »

Hi all! Just need some clarification on the new? mechanics.

1. Is the goal of developing a contact just to get better contracts? Do you have to manually click the button to say you intend to develop a particular contact? That part feels less...organic.

2. Is there any way to see if your black market trading has actually tipped off the authority or it's still just a guessing game trying to hide it among legit transactions?

3. I got a notification saying someone among the crew performed well enough to captain a ship but I don't see anyone new pilots in the crew/fleet management. Do I have to click on the notification icon right away? Is there any way to find an promote that crew afterwards? 

Thanks!

3

General Discussion / 0.95 mechanic question

« on: March 28, 2021, 07:36:38 PM »

Is there a in-game codex or a wiki somewhere that has an update on all the new/updated mechanics? I can figure out most by reading the descriptions but there doesn't seem to be any info regarding raiding (is ship boarding still a thing with marines?).

4

General Discussion / New update during xmas, release 2020?

« on: December 22, 2019, 05:38:11 PM »

2019 has been a particular slow year for Starsector. We've had, what, 1 iteration and 4 blog posts? Will we have a new update to sink our teeth into this holiday or should I just check back every 4 months or so in 2020?

5

General Discussion / Issue with ship AI and economy

« on: November 26, 2018, 04:22:01 PM »

There's something really buggy with the ship AI behavior in 0.9.

My ships have tendency to either be overly cautions or suicidal. Yes, I'm talking about the same ships in the same battle. Sometimes they hang back even when out numbering the enemy but more often, the frigates/destroyers will charge to touching distance to the target for no reason while blocking shots from the 3 battleships that have been happily pulverizing that enemy for the last 30sec. During star base assault, practically every ship will try to close in the minimum distance like a mosh pit instead of keeping max distance so more guns can be put to bear.

Is this because I give most ships mixed ranged load out? It's seriously getting hard not to shoot my guns up the tail pipe of the idiot frigates that's always aggressive enough to block my LOS but too timid to actually engage.

Finally, if I have 3 fast frigates against a slow lumbering cruiser/battleship that only has frontal shield, the ship AI seems to still favor frontal assault (all the while blocking each other occasionally) instead of trying to circle around. I KNOW earlier version didn't have this issue. In fact, I remember the AI for being far more deadly at finding my backside gap in the shields years ago. What changed?   

Economic wise, does the AI base/planet have a resource pool when spawning ships or is it on a timer? I know the trading side of things has supply/demand factors but the amount of ships and satellite spawning out of even a basic pirate base seems infinite. If there's a mod out there than 'fixes' or balances the economy/industry side of things, please drop a link. Thanks! 

6

General Discussion / Combat blobing

« on: November 20, 2018, 02:27:23 AM »

I remember ships bunching up in the center during large fleet action being more noticeable in the last iteration and I must say it's still there.

Maybe my memory is playing tricks on me, it's been years since earlier versions after all, but I remember older ship AI were less pron to blob up. The frigates are still quite maneuverable but even they often choose to stay stuck between bigger vessels in the middle rather than back out and swing around the flank.

I think the AI picks the shortest path between it and its objective and doesn't really take into account the obstacles in the way.

7

General Discussion / AI behavior in fleet engagement

« on: April 30, 2017, 06:22:53 AM »

It may be my memory playing tricks on me but is it me or does AI ships tend to 'blob' up more in 0.80 during engagement?

When my fleet has numerical superiority when engaging an enemy fleet, my frigates tend to mill around in one area (usually around the south) along heavier vessels when facing a slower enemy. Most of the time, they end up getting in the way of each other instead of taking advantage of their maneuverability and hit the unprotected rear of the enemy fleet. When they do flank, it usually occurs after a LONG time of shuffling around instead of pursuing the eventual attack pattern from the very start.

No command points were issued to escort anything so each vessels should be following its own routine. Why doesn't the AI use the pincer/flank tactic more often when it has an obvious numerical advantage? Faster ships seems to move around a lot more in previous iterations (I skipped the 0.7x updates).

8

General Discussion / Carrier Control Query

« on: April 26, 2017, 11:13:26 PM »

Okay, I haven't updated the last several Starsector patches so a bit of learning curve for me.

So far, I'm doing fine trying to figure out all the new mechanics (Market screen still has one of the most obtuse UI I've ever seen btw) as I play along but there is one thing I'm stuck on: carriers.

In the last version I played, you can spend your command points to form strike wings and sort of coordinate a multi-pronged assault. In 0.8, fighter wings seems to have limited respawn and tend to stick near your carrier except sometimes they run off half a map away. I can hit Z to recall and re-engage but I can't seem to pick targets, hold my bombers for better timing nor could I issue attack orders to enemies further out unlike how the AI seems to be able to.

So, any veterans care to update me on what's happening to carrier/fighter mechanics or point me to the relevant patch note.

Thanks!   

9

General Discussion / Anyone else missing the lore?

« on: November 16, 2014, 08:25:31 AM »

I know writing lore is pretty much at the bottom of the list for an alpha-stage game but I can't help but miss reading the lore of the universe Alex has created.

Years back, I was as eager to read an new entry about the universe as I was in seeing a version update in the BLOG page. For me, a sandbox game will always lack the depth of a well crafted single-player game but a universe full of background history is one way to fill the gap. The context is everything to a sandbox game - otherwise, we'd just be flying from A to B and killing C. 

I think myself and many many others would be eager to read about this universe while we wait between each updates. Heck, maybe Alex can set some ground rules and let the communities submit short entries instead to save time? The best entries can even be 'canonized'.

I imagine having to write up an universe worth of lore would be as unpleasant during the final beta stage as it would be right now. It takes time to build up a believable universe so why not start now when time is plentiful.

10

General Discussion / Where are the exploration and economy?

« on: July 12, 2012, 07:12:10 PM »

While I'm happy to see Alex and team are working hard on the new ship features, I can't help but feel a little disappointed that there is still no news on the non-combat portion of the game.

To be honest, what sold me the game was the "Explore the sector for knowledge and profit; Trade goods, run mining operations, build industries — and defend your interests; Become involved in factional politics" quoted on the homepage. As good as the combat is in Starfarer, it's the prospect of exploring a user-friendly EVE-like universe, where you are just a small cog in a big machine, is what really interests me.

Who else is feeling a little 'combat fatigue' and wish the next update can shed some light for the benefit of the explorers and business men/women among us?  

11

Suggestions / Too many steps to select ships in battle

« on: March 26, 2012, 03:59:44 AM »

I think Alex should remove the need to use the R key for selecting enemy and just revert to a single-click mechanic during both battles and in-battle map screen.

I always find the extra key-press a mild but constant annoyance during intense battles and more than once I swore murder when an accidental press of R deselects my target off-screen and I have to press four different keys just to re-select it again - map, enemy, R, exit map.

Maybe use R to cycle through enemy ships but as of right now, it seems to be a rather obtuse selection mechanic in an otherwise extremely polished UI.

 

12

Suggestions / Should Alex buff Armor ?

« on: March 17, 2012, 02:08:11 AM »

Seems armor is a bit too easy to penetrate in the current version. While the lore sorta indicates how kinetic/frag/energy are far less efficient in dealing with armor than HE, in the reality armor on the largest vessel hardly holds up under non-HE weapons.

I understand shield is suppose to be the ideal counter but even for low-tech factions like Hegemony, I rarely find armor to be any more use than some extra health and hardly pay attention to armor coverage short of the direst circumstances. There's something nagging at me whenever I see a lowly frigate penetrates a cap ship's armor in two passes (no shield of course) - shouldn't getting past the armor be the HARD part?  

Anyway, seriously buffing up the armor resistance to non-HE (or even ships of significant lower class) might make fights more tactical by:
 
1. less emphasis on fighter spam;
2. put more emphasis in maneuvering/positioning;
3  demand more thoughts into weapon load-out;
4. reinstate cap ships' reputation as bad-asses - making head-on fights with a cap ship without one of your own a serious consideration instead of the pushover now.

Of course, balance with the shield/flux will have to be made for factions but currently, I just see no reason to have an 'armor' mechanic. What does the community think?

13

Suggestions / PD weapon auto fire priority

« on: March 10, 2012, 11:06:42 PM »

Starfarer's PD mechanic practically demands auto-fire but I find the AI somewhat lacking when assigning target priority.

It's quite frustrating when my ship's dual-flak happily bangs away at the shield of a paragon whilst completely ignoring the line of Pilum missile bearing down or generate extra flux when the Vulcan PD choose to fire at a fully shielded/armored cruiser.  

Maybe have the AI to prioritize missile and fighters over shielded targets whenever possible or have a separate on/off setting that forces pure PD weapons like flak to ignore anything BUT missiles/fighters - the flux usually isn't worth the damage anyway.

 

14

Suggestions / Categories in the Trading Page

« on: March 04, 2012, 06:28:50 PM »

Ignore if posted previously.

Just a minor gripe here. The current station trading UI is a bit basic. Hopefully Alex can implement some sort of tab/filter interface ( alphabetically, by type, size etc) so we don't have to squint around for a laser amongst dozens of ballistic weapons.

With more weapons and goods being added to the game's inventory, a player has to be able to quickly find what he/she is looking for.

15

Bug Reports & Support / Fighter auto heal

« on: February 25, 2012, 02:08:53 AM »

I've only encountered this 'bug' on very rare occasions and can't reliably reproduce it.

After auto resolving a battle and winning without any losses, the damaged fighter wing I started the battle with ended up with full health.

Anyone else encountered this?