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Messages - PCCL

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1
Suggestions / Re: [wall of text] A proposal for ambush mechanics
« on: June 04, 2023, 08:42:49 AM »
I do like the idea of ambushes, but I think an easier way to implement them would be to give the player more weight for dp calculations, ie. you ambush an ordo and start with 240 dp while they start with 160 instead of the reverse. A lot less mechanically interesting but would also run into far fewer potential issues, and alternative engagement options could be added on later once the basics of the mechanic are rock solid.

That is fair, but makes ambushes a lot less impactful when applied to battles under the battle size limit - dp weight wouldn't matter at all for the first example, for example, since both fleets weigh in under 160 dp anyhow.

The code determining what is or isn't an ambush needs to be airtight or else there's gonna be a lot of player frustration.

Agreed - or at least it needs to be extremely well communicated to the player. An indicator on the fleet circle is probably the best way, maybe even a small bar counting down to the time before the fleet enters high readiness.

2
Suggestions / [wall of text] A proposal for ambush mechanics
« on: June 04, 2023, 08:15:54 AM »
Introduction

I’d like to discuss 3 issues (in my opinion) with the game as it stands which can be remedied with one proposed mechanic. These issues are:
  • Strategic (campaign level) maneuvering has very little bearing on the tactical situation. As it stands, the best you can do is put the battle in a nebula, or in an asteroid belt, etc., none of which have a large effect on how the tactical battle is fought;
  • There are very few options on how to build your fleet to challenge a superior foe than “more bigger ships”. In other words, all else being equal, it is very difficult for a smaller fleet to damage or defeat a larger fleet.
  • Phase ships (somewhat) lacking strategic impact.

What can be done to tie all these together into a potentially satisfying mechanic that address all of these issues? Introducing:

Ambushes

I suggest a mechanic being implemented for a small fleet to catch a larger fleet unawares via strategic maneuvering. Once a larger fleet is caught unaware, the small fleet can choose to engage elements of the larger fleet, either disrupting its logistic capability (and therefore its ability to carry out its mission) or defeating it in detail. This can be done by a small, maneuverable fleet running dark in a nearby piece of space terrain, or by a small (or even medium sized) phase armada, which will be the experts in ambush tactics.

The particulars

While this mechanic can be implemented in any number of ways, here’s one possible version that highlight some of its benefits:

  • When a fleet engages an enemy it did not detect until shortly before engaging (say a day, or half a day), and when the enemy has detected that fleet before that time, that fleet is “Ambushed”.
    • Two fleets who stumble upon each other, neither having detected one another before engaging, engage normally and the ambush mechanic is not triggered.
  • When engaging an Ambushed fleet, the attacker can choose to proceed with battle normally (move in to engage, attempt to disengage, etc.), but can also choose to “Isolate and attack the enemy fleet in parts” – this would be an additional dialogue option.
    • In addition, an Ambushed fleet can never pursue – giving the ambusher some degree of safety after a successful ambush or in case an attack goes badly.
  • If the Isolate and Attack option is chosen, both fleets are divided into smaller “elements” by the ambusher. Conceptually, this represents the ambusher dividing up its own forces and isolating smaller elements of the enemy force as it sees fit.
    • A dialogue screen (similar, perhaps, to nexerelin’s special task group screen or vanilla’s ship collector sale screen) can be used for this. Each element would be approximately the max disengage size, and the number of elements should be limited so that each element is not much smaller that.
      • For example, default max disengage size is 150dp, so each element can contain up to 150dp. An Ambushed fleet of 350dpcan be divided into up to 3 elements, an Ambushed fleet of 500dp into 4 elements, etc.
      • However, no matter how small the Ambushed fleet is, the number of elements it can be divided into will never be less than 2.
    • After the elements are chosen by the ambusher, the Ambushed fleet chooses an element to protect. This element cannot be targeted by the ambusher. Conceptually, this represents the core of the ambushed fleet, containing its most important/vulnerable ships, which the ambushed fleet takes greatest care to avoid putting into danger.
    • The ambusher then chooses one of its elements to attack an enemy element, resulting in a disengage style battle. If the ambusher is victorious, it may conduct salvage operations. This process repeats itself until either fleet runs out of elements to attack/be attacked, or terminates when the ambusher chooses.
  • After the Ambush, the ambushing fleet may choose to fight the Ambushed fleet normally, or perform salvage operations and withdraw. Again, if the ambusher withdraws, the Ambushed fleet cannot pursue.

Ambush in practice

Below are two examples of how the ambush mechanic may work in practice. The first is a basic scenario, where the player uses it to isolate important elements of a superior enemy fleet. The second is a larger application, where we demonstrate the use of multiple ambusher groups, and the cutting off of elements of the enemy fleet from supports needed to synergize with it.

Example 1 – underground bounty

A bounty hunter fleet (the player) is tasked with an underworld bounty – a Hegemony patrol. The disposition of the forces are as follows:

Player:
  • Medusa (Flagship)
  • Medusa
  • Wolf
  • Wolf
  • Buffalo

Hegemony Patrol:
  • Eagle (Flagship)
  • Dominator
  • Hammerhead
  • Hammerhead
  • Lasher
  • Buffalo (A)
  • Buffalo (A)
  • Dram

A more confident player than I may decide to take the patrol on directly, but let’s presume for this exercise that the player cannot win that fight straight up. However, he observes that:

  • There is an asteroid belt near the area the Patrol is stationed, allowing for an ambush
  • The patrol is far enough from any Hegemony market that destroying its logistic train could cause it to run out of supplies before making port.

The player lays in wait, running dark in the asteroid belt until the Patrol comes in close, then attacks. The ambush is successful, and he chooses to isolate the elements of the patrol for defeat in detail. He isolates the Patrol as follows:

Element 1:
  • Eagle (Flagship)
  • Hammerhead
  • Lasher

Element 2:
  • Dominator
  • Hammerhead
  • Buffalo (A)
  • Buffalo (A)
  • Dram

Each element is individually weaker than the player’s full fleet, and each element, if attacked, can achieve the player’s objective. (Of course, the flagship is the bounty – if the player destroys the Eagle, he can leave the rest of the fleet and the bounty would complete). The player is not obliged to and does not divide his own fleet into elements. It would be a meaningless exercise since there would only be one ambushing attack.

Let’s say the Hegemon commander, unwilling to risk his flagship (and his life), Protects the first element. The player attacks the second element. While the Dominator is a hard target to engage, the player’s superior maneuverability allows him to attack the logistic ships (which are forced to deploy in a disengage battle) directly. The battle resolves as follows:

Player:
  • Medusa – Undamaged
  • Medusa – Undamaged
  • Wolf – Moderate Damage
  • Wolf – Disabled

Hegemony Patrol:
  • Dominator – Light Damage
  • Hammerhead – Light Damage
  • Buffalo (A) – Disabled
  • Buffalo (A) – Destroyed
  • Dram – Destroyed

The ambush is over and, still finding himself weaker than the Patrol, the player disengages after some quick salvaging and stalks the slower patrol from a distance.
Over the coming days, the Hegemon Patrol limps back to home. However, due to the sheer distance between it and the closest market, it runs out of supplies and is forced to scuttle its Dominator and Hammerheads.

The player once again engages and his two Medusa and Wolf makes short work of the Eagle and Lasher remaining in the patrol. Mission accomplished.



Example 2 – pitched battle

Let’s consider a larger application of this mechanic, and how multiple combat elements can be used by the ambusher. In this scenario, the player is tasked with stopping a large pirate force en route to raid his fledgling colony of Ilium. Disposition of forces are as follows:

Player:
  • 2x Aurora                  (30dp x 2 = 60dp)
  • 2x Fury                     (20dp x 2 = 40dp)
  • 2x Doom                   (35dp x 2 = 70dp)
  • 4x Harbinger             (18dp x 4 = 72dp)
  • 1x Medusa                   (12dp x 1 = 12dp)
  • 4x Wolf                     (5dp x 4 = 20dp)
  • 2x Buffalo (TT)           (3dp x 2 = 6dp)
  • 3x Phantom               (10dp x 3 = 30dp)
  • Total            310dp

Pirate:
  • 5x Atlas MkII             (24dp x 5 = 120dp)
  • 5x Eradicator(P)         (22dp x 5 = 110dp)
  • 3x Venture MkII         (14dp x 3 = 42dp)
  • 3x Colossus MkIII      (8dp x 3 = 24dp)
  • 8x Buffalo MkII          (4dp x 8 = 32dp)
  • 5x Manticore(P)         (12dp x 5 = 60dp)
  • 3x Shrike(P)              (8dp x 3 = 24dp)
  • 2x Mule(P)                 (7dp x 2 = 14dp)
  • 8x Wolf(P)                 (5dp x 8 = 40dp)
  • 8x Kite(P)                  (2dp x 8 = 16dp)
  • 6x Hound(P)              (3dp x 6 = 18dp)
  • 10x Buffalo(P)           (3dp x 10 = 30dp)
  • 4x Phaeton                (4dp x 4 = 16dp)
  • Total         546dp

Once again, a better player than I may take this on directly. However, for the purpose of this example, let’s say the player is of such a skill level that a head-on attack is inadvisable. Instead, he lays in wait near the magnetic field of an irradiated planet between his colony and the nearest jump point. The pirate force stumbles by, and the Player’s fleet moves in to ambush. The battle is joined.

The max disengage size is 150, so the player has to divide his fleet into 3 (310/150, rounded up). The pirate fleet, being 546dp in size, is divided into 4. Each element can contain at most 150dp worth of ships.

The player divides his fleet into a conventional assault element, a phase assault element, and a logistic element as follows:

Element 1:
  • 2x Aurora          (30dp x 2 = 60dp)
  • 2x Fury              (20dp x 2 = 40dp)
  • 1x Medusa         (12dp x 1 = 12dp)
  • 4x Wolf              (5dp x 4 = 20dp)
  • Total         132dp

Element 2:
  • 2x Doom           (35dp x 2 = 70dp)
  • 4x Harbinger      (18dp x 4 = 72dp)
  • Total         142dp

Element 3:
  • 2x Buffalo (TT)          (3dp x 2 = 6dp)
  • 3x Phantom              (10dp x 3 = 30dp)
  • Total         36dp

Of course, in practice, nothing stops the player from dividing ships of the same class among multiple elements (2 wolves in 1, 2 wolves in 2, for example). However, here for ease of illustration, let’s say he doesn’t.

Note that element 3 is completely unfit for combat. That’s okay. The ambusher is not obliged to deploy every single element, so a spare element can be reserved for non-combat ships. Even when a non-combat ship is forced into a combat element, the nature of a disengage style battle is such that it does not necessarily need to be deployed. As such, the ambushing fleet enjoys much greater safety for its logistics train.

As to the pirate fleet, the player observes that it contains high damage, but squishy Atlas MkII’s, somewhat lower damage but more survivable cruisers, many smaller ships, and a sizeable logistics train. In a conventional battle, all these elements work to support each other and is difficult to deal with. However, if cut off from each other, they can be made much more manageable.
The player divides the pirate fleet as follows:

Element 1:
  • 5x Atlas MkII             (24dp x 5 = 120dp)
  • 4x Buffalo MkII          (4dp x 4 = 16dp)
  • Total         136dp

Element 2:
  • 5x Eradicator(P)         (22dp x 5 = 110dp)
  • 2x Venture MkII         (14dp x 2 = 28dp)
  • Total         138dp

Element 3:
  • 1x Venture MkII         (14dp x 1 = 14dp)
  • 3x Colossus MkIII      (8dp x 3 = 24dp)
  • 4x Buffalo MkII          (4dp x 4 = 16dp)
  • 5x Manticore(P)         (12dp x 5 = 60dp)
  • 3x Shrike(P)              (8dp x 3 = 24dp)
  • Total         138dp

Element 4:
  • 2x Mule(P)                 (7dp x 2 = 14dp)
  • 8x Wolf(P)                 (5dp x 8 = 40dp)
  • 8x Kite(P)                  (2dp x 8 = 16dp)
  • 6x Hound(P)              (3dp x 6 = 18dp)
  • 10x Buffalo(P)            (3dp x 10 = 30dp)
  • 4x Phaeton                (4dp x 4 = 16dp)
  • Total         134dp

Element 1, then, is a large group of unsupported Atlas MkII’s, easy pickings for a well-organized strike force; element 2 is a cruiser croup that may present the biggest challenge for the player fleet, but doesn’t necessarily have to be engaged right now; element 3 consist of weak cruisers and pirate destroyers that the player can defeat in a conventional brawl; and element 4 contains weak pirate escorts and the entirety of the pirates’ logistic train.

Let’s say the pirate warlord decides to protect element 1. He thinks it’s important to preserve his most valuable warships for the raid ahead, logistic train be damned. After all, his Ventures (which are tough enough to maybe withdraw, especially grouped with Eradicators) and Hounds (which are fast enough to be all but completely safe in a disengage style battle) still carry significant amount of supplies and, hey, if there’s not enough supplies to make it home, he’d just have to take some from the poor citizens of Ilium.

The player proceeds to attack. He deploys his element 1 against the pirate’s element 2. His faster, better organized fleet route the pirate cruiser force, let’s say the battle resolves as follows:

Player element 1:
  • 2x Aurora          2x Light damage
  • 2x Fury             Light damage, Moderate damage
  • 1x Medusa           Light damage
  • 4x Wolf             2x Disabled, 2x light damage

Pirate element 2:
  • 5x Eradicator(P)         4x Disabled, 1x Moderate damage
  • 2x Venture MkII         2x Disabled

A good start – the enemy cruiser line is severely damaged and the player’s front line is more-or-less still ready for further action. The player still has its elements 2 and 3 to deploy against the pirate’s elements 3 and 4. He deploys his element 2 against pirate element 3.

While not as competent in a straight up fight, the player’s phase ships use their time acceleration in phase space to catch up with the pirates’ retreating ships and inflict heavy damage on the slower cruisers. However, some of the faster destroyers get away. Let’s say the battle resolves as follows:

Player Element 2:
  • 2x Doom           2x Light damage
  • 4x Harbinger     2x Light damage, 2x moderate damage

Pirate Element 3:
  • 1x Venture MkII         Disabled
  • 3x Colossus MkIII      3x Disabled
  • 4x Buffalo MkII          4x Disabled
  • 5x Manticore(P)         2x Light damage, 2x Moderate damage, 1x Disabled
  • 3x Shrike(P)              1x Light damage, 2x Disabled

Satisfactory result – the pirate’s cruiser force is further eroded, but 4 manticores still pose something of a threat. The player now only has its element 3 remaining against the pirate’s element 4. Obviously, Element 3 was never meant to enter battle. The player chooses not to deploy and ends the ambush.
Disposition of forces after ambush is as follows:

Player:
  • 2x Aurora          (30dp x 2 = 60dp)    Light damage
  • 2x Fury             (20dp x 2 = 40dp)    Light damage, Moderate damage
  • 2x Doom           (35dp x 2 = 70dp)    Light damage
  • 4x Harbinger     (18dp x 4 = 72dp)   2x Light damage, 2x Moderate damage
  • 1x Medusa        (12dp x 1 = 12dp)   Light damage
  • 2x Wolf             (5dp x 2 = 10dp)   Light damage
  • 2x Buffalo (TT)  (3dp x 2 = 6dp)
  • 3x Phantom      (10dp x 3 = 30dp)
  • Total         300dp (10dp lost)

Pirate:
  • 5x Atlas MkII             (24dp x 5 = 120dp)
  • 1x Eradicator(P)         (22dp x 1 = 22dp)   Moderate damage
  • 4x Buffalo MkII          (4dp x 4 = 16dp)
  • 4x Manticore(P)         (12dp x 4 = 48dp)   2x Light damage, 2x Moderate damage
  • 1x Shrike(P)              (8dp x 1 = 8dp)      Light damage
  • 2x Mule(P)                (7dp x 2 = 14dp)
  • 8x Wolf(P)                 (5dp x 8 = 40dp)
  • 8x Kite(P)                  (2dp x 8 = 16dp)
  • 6x Hound(P)              (3dp x 6 = 18dp)
  • 10x Buffalo(P)           (3dp x 10 = 30dp)
  • 4x Phaeton                (4dp x 4 = 16dp)
  • Total         348dp (198dp lost)

The pirates are still strong enough to push on to Ilium, so the player decides to engage the remaining forces in a conventional battle. He takes some losses, but at least the colony is safe.

Ambush in the grander scheme of the game

In addition to a fun way to defeat larger fleets, this mechanic opens up new ways for AI to interact with the player, and to interact with other AI. It can also interact with other mechanics like bar missions and officer skills.

Ambush tactic and AI fleets

As a part of the implementation of this mechanic, I propose a new class of AI fleets – the ambusher. These would be separate fleet definitions much like a Fast Picket, Detachment, or Trade fleet. Ambushers go to a predestined area of operations (which, unlike patrols, don’t have to be in its home system) and lays in wait for targets of opportunity. Occasionally, it will change positions to pick up other targets or to avoid detection. Ambushers can be found around markets of a hostile faction to conduct commerce raiding, or deployed near home markets to deter attackers.

Pirates and Tri-Tachyon are masters of ambush tactics, with pirates particularly favoring smaller ships and Tri-Tachyon favoring phase ships.

With ambusher fleets lying around, even a well defended trade fleet ran by the player may have to take care to avoid common ambushing spots such as nebulae and asteroid fields, and players undertaking an attack on pirate bases may have to take different routes or take care to root out ambushers on the way to their target.

Bar missions

A bar mission/contact mission can also interact with this mechanic, in addition to the obvious use of this mechanic in bounty missions. Concerned traders or military officers can ask the player to root out ambushers in a large area. A player may be given information something like:

  • Traders are reporting losses between Volturn and Nortia, we suspect pirate ambushers are responsible.
  • Based on survivor reports and rate of losses, we estimate 2-4 ambusher fleets may be involved.
  • You are asked to destroy these fleets within 60 days, with a bounty for each fleet destroyed.

The player would then go on patrol in the general area, with a focus on ambush-favoring terrain, and hunt down these ambushers.

Officer skills

Officer skills can be added that specifically synergize with ambush warfare, in addition to combat skills favoring fast, smaller attack ships naturally favoring ambush tactics and navigation/sensor skills making ambushes easier. For example, leadership skill can be added to favor ambush tactics by increasing the number of elements involved by 1 or give various combat bonuses in ambush battles.

Personal bounties

One other quick note – certain personal pirate bounties can venture out of their rumored hiding spots and instead hide elsewhere to ambush the player fleet – a bit of a twist to the somewhat monotonous gameplay loop of “go to system, fight fleet, get paid, come back”.

Defense against ambush

Three main ways of defending against ambushers are:

  • Avoiding areas conducive to ambush;
  • Using active sensor burst to scope out suspicious areas before passing through; and
  • Including ships with higher resolution sensors in the fleet to passively pick up ambushers.

Of these, 1 and 3 require significant changes in how the player plays, but 2 may be too easy – if all we’re doing is dropping a sensor burst before passing asteroid belts, ambushes may be too easy to avoid. I’d like to add a little more risk into that. To that end, I propose that, in addition to triggering when a fleet is attacked by an opposing force it hasn’t seen in the past day (or so), ambush also triggers when a fleet is attacked in the middle of an active sensor burst. After all, the active sensor burst requires putting ships into a lower state of combat readiness. The duration and effectiveness of active sensor burst should be tuned such that it remains an effective way of rooting out ambushers, but only if the fleet takes some precaution to stay some distance away from the potential ambusher’s hiding spot.

This has the added benefit of giving players a new way to deal with patrols – a patrol that otherwise cannot be defeated straight on can be dealt with by hiding from them and, when they inevitably use a sensor burst to find the player’s fleet, rush them, defeating a portion of it in ambush, and (hopefully) fighting the remainder in a more even battle.

Balance

This mechanic, of course, has many balance levers – element sizes in ambush, time window to trigger an ambush, ability specs of active sensor burst and run dark, sensor ranges of fleets in general, etc. etc., so I think it can be balanced properly one way or another. However, as an initial suggestion, I propose that the mechanic be balanced so that:

  • From a hiding spot (mag field, asteroid belt, nebula), a conventional fleet should be able to ambush an unsuspecting fleet 2-3 times its size.
  • From a hiding spot, a phase fleet should be able to ambush an unsuspecting fleet 4-6 times its size; and
  • A phase fleet running dark should be able to ambush an unsuspecting fleet 2-3 times its size from open space.

This is an initial proposal only, of course, and if this mechanic is implemented, all of the above noted balancing levers should be used in addition to requisite testing to make sure it plays well in the grand scheme of the game.

Conclusion

This proposed mechanic achieves the goal of remedying the issues mentioned at the start of the post, and has a number of other benefits, including:

  • Allows for multiple engagements in a battle (which, while being an existing mechanic, almost never happens – a bit of a shame, I think);
  • Encourages some degree of strategic planning in travel, even in the core worlds;
  • Is entirely optional - a confident pilot/admiral can simply take these fights head on;
  • Interacts well with other mechanics already existing in game;
  • Can be relatively easy to rebalance, considering the number of “balance levers”; and
  • Should be relatively easy to implement (though I’ll admit I’m not a programmer) since many requisite mechanics like battle dialog and escape style battles already exist in game.

Obviously, there’s many things about this proposal I may have thought of but couldn’t put into words, and even more that I haven’t thought of. Nevertheless, I hope this serves as something of a starting point for discussion for the implementation of some form of ambush mechanic, either this incarnation or something different.


3
Not sure if this should be modding bugs since this really only comes up when modding, but when you change combat speed in config/settings particles don’t seem to follow that. Meaning, if you turn combat speed way down, a muzzle flash (for example) will still move at regular speed and fly way off of the ship that’s firing it.

4
What property defines a ship as "disabled"? And is there a method on the API where we can interact with that? Specifically, I'm trying to "revive" a ship that's dead by setting its hull level above zero and removing the "disabled" effect. I tried "setHulk(false)" but that doesn't seem to do the trick.

5
Have a look at starsector-core\data\config\settings.json - there's a lot of things to tinker with in there.

A quick test says if you change "stockpileCostMult":1, to 0, that should solve most of your problem.

6
The best way I can think of is make a small plugin that does it on application load. Whether that's "easy" depends on your familiarity with coding though.

Otherwise, if you're editing with excel and don't have a lot of mods, the "paste special" command on excel can make editing the weapon table pretty painless.

7
What’s the best way to call a function at the very end of a battle? Specifically, I’d like to modify the CR of every single ship left on the field as the battle ends. Is there a simple trigger for that somewhere?

EDIT: a function that checks the boolean "Global.getCombatEngine().isCombatOver()" seems serviceable. However, the script doesn't run when I claim victory via esc instead of letting the battle end naturally... Does anyone have better suggestions?

8
What makes a faction generate personal bounties? I'm making a new faction and can't seem to make it give bounties no matter what I try.

Hmm - PersonBountyIntel.pickFaction() is probably the method you want to look at. Basically, it requires that the faction have a market meeting certain criteria, e.g. "not hidden" etc.

Got it! Turns out a plugin needs to be added with methods (I did ongameload and onnewgame) to add the faction id to "SharedData.getData().getPersonBountyEventData().isParticipating"). Thanks Alex!

9
What makes a faction generate personal bounties? I'm making a new faction and can't seem to make it give bounties no matter what I try.


10
Over my last couple of playthroughs, I've found raiding convoys transporting heavy weapons to be by far the most profitable early game way to make money. Each convoy nets something like 100-300 heavy weapons, which can be sold for something like 1000 per weapon (especially since the raids themselves generate local shortages), so that's 100-300k right there, not to mention the hundreds of supplies usually carried with them. I think it should be toned down somewhat.

Perhaps the strength of convoy escorts can be made proportional to the value of the cargo? After all, a shipment of ore probably doesn't deserve the same level of protection than say enough heavy weapons to overthrow a planet. Alternatively, maybe heavy weapons, supplies, and such can be transported in specially designated "military convoys" or "logistic convoys" that have heavier escorts?

Another thing that can be done is maybe fleets simply shouldn't show what they're transporting? After all, it wouldn't make sense that we can tell a fleet is smuggling drugs and organs from sensor range while faction patrols have to get up close for a cargo scan (and even then they'd risk missing something). That way, players can only target high value convoys by receiving intel that a convoy carrying valuable goods is heading a certain way and try to intercept them.

11
General Discussion / Re: Calculating ship size
« on: March 04, 2023, 08:43:35 AM »
I did a rough estimate based on the hound painting many, many years ago.

It's not precise in any way, but maybe it can help fuel your speculation:

https://fractalsoftworks.com/forum/index.php?topic=6046.0

12
Suggestions / Re: Enemy auto-retreat needs some work
« on: October 16, 2022, 11:10:30 AM »
Changed the condition to "nothing within 4000 units, and also nothing in the 90 degree arc facing upwards from the ship, at any range" - hopefully that should cover it.

At the risk of coming across as demanding - could that be made an option in settings.json by chance? I like to mess around with battle ranges and that could throw the 4000 unit number out of wack...

13
Suggestions / uniquifying fleets within factions
« on: August 12, 2022, 07:56:28 PM »
So by next patch, we should have factions that feel relatively distinct to fight, which is great, but I'm wondering if measures can be taken to make fleets within a faction more unique to fight as well?

For example, Hegemony seems to have 2 somewhat distinct "tiers" of forces -- there's the somewhat hodge podge "local" security forces, with Condors, Kite/Hound (A)'s, Moras, etc., and then                  the more "elite", organized parts like the XIV groups. Perhaps different types of fleets can be found in different contexts in the game world, and that way the player has a little more to fight against

The League, likewise, has many different worlds, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. We also know from the missions that they have low-tech ships like dominators (PLS Praxis, for the greater lud) and high-tech ships like Astrals and Auroras (Coral Nebula, PLS Sirocco et al) -- perhaps lower tech, lower quality ships can be found in poorer worlds like Salamanca and Mairaath, while higher quality, mid/high tech ships can be found in richer worlds like Kazeron?


14
In addition to the above, I like to double my ships' supply consumption (both per month and per deployment). This can be done in hull_data.csv and forces you to consider the size of your taskforce as well.

15
General Discussion / Re: 1 Prometheus vs 2 Phaeton Tankers
« on: August 12, 2022, 01:51:22 PM »
A few things come to mind:

If you're already dragging capships around for combat then the slow speed doesn't matter that much.

If you're dragging capships around 4.5k fuel doesn't last as long as you'd think.

Sometimes ya just need that capacity for a trade run or a delivery mission, yenno.

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