Fractal Softworks Forum

Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  

News:

Starsector 0.97a is out! (02/02/24); New blog post: Simulator Enhancements (03/13/24)

Pages: 1 ... 22 23 [24] 25 26 ... 107

Author Topic: [0.95a] Shadowyards Reconstruction Authority 0.9.5-rc4(4/12/21)  (Read 1115367 times)

Taverius

  • Captain
  • ****
  • Posts: 471
  • Mistake not ...
    • View Profile
Re: (0.6a) Shadowyards Heavy Industries v0.4.1b
« Reply #345 on: September 16, 2013, 01:39:46 AM »

Right, I'll give it a try when I unlock Augmented Engines, but that's a fairly late-game unlock, so it shouldn't be a requirement for a ship. That goes double for the unstable :)

Its also quite an expensive profile, since you need the thrusters too or you can't turn fast enough to /keep/ hitting things.

I've tried it with a Scatter and while my hit % goes up, the RoF is so low I might as well not be hitting them.

@MShadowy, the Morningstar's drones never go anywhere - they hang out over the 0,0,0 point of the ship no matter what. They shoot things fine, but it does look weird :)
« Last Edit: September 16, 2013, 02:44:29 AM by Taverius »
Logged
No faction is truly established without a themed Buffalo (TAG) variant.

CopperCoyote

  • Captain
  • ****
  • Posts: 451
    • View Profile
Re: (0.6a) Shadowyards Heavy Industries v0.4.1b
« Reply #346 on: September 16, 2013, 05:31:54 AM »

Right, I'll give it a try when I unlock Augmented Engines, but that's a fairly late-game unlock, so it shouldn't be a requirement for a ship. That goes double for the unstable :)

Its also quite an expensive profile, since you need the thrusters too or you can't turn fast enough to /keep/ hitting things.

I've tried it with a Scatter and while my hit % goes up, the RoF is so low I might as well not be hitting them.

@MShadowy, the Morningstar's drones never go anywhere - they hang out over the 0,0,0 point of the ship no matter what. They shoot things fine, but it does look weird :)

I nearly alway use the mouse-turn for frigates (and most other ships really), and i don't like using the aux-thrusters on frigates because the added maneuverability is wasted because i don't move my mouse around as fast as the max turn rate. For me the most important aspect of aiming hardpoints is target leading (arguably important for hitting anything with anything else too). I spend a goodly amount of time lining up shots so most of  the CEPC burst hits. Another important factor is the CEPC family of weapons have really good range so other than gravitons and the 1000 SU ballistic weapons you can keep the pressure on all the vanilla frigates while they have to catch up to you. Finally if they are in range the Enlil has a fairly sturdy shield so you can take a few shots and not sweat it too much. Non-HE missiles are your biggest concern.

I'm a huge fan of augmented unstably injected ships. Especially frigates. For me it is a priority to get those ASAP (so by level 8 i think). Fighting on your terms is super handy, and the AI does a fairly good job using it to it's advantage too. While the Enlil is a bit slow for a Shadowyards ship it is by no means slow. Merely average. Let your seskies handle the fast ships like hounds or (gang up on) tempests and you can fight most other ships as you please.

The scatter CEPC is a fantastic point blank weapon. I like to pair it with two annihilator racks for lots of in your face mayhem.

I think what makes the Enlil shine is being such a good helper. Optimize your other ships for something and have your load-out fill in the gaps. Because it has 3 omni-hardpoints you're only limited by weapon sizes. For example: load up all your other ship's medium turrets with graviton beams and smalls with CEPCs. This will crush the foe's shields but do little to their armor. So you load up a heavy mauler and your range is long enough to not need to turn too much. For the centerish small omni use an ion cannon so it really hurts their ability to fight back for a while, and for the right have a shrike rack for when you need their shields to over load for longer. Solo you're going to have issues with most things, but with even one other ship you've made it so overwhelming against each individual defense that you merely have to focus fire to win. Also because you're an excellent-at-recognizing-patterns-human you'll know when you should ion them or not.

I'm pretty sure the Enlil is my favorite frigate, and i've spent lots of time using it. I love being able to fit it to however i'd like to fight today. If you don't like it then you don't like it, but if you want to like it i'll be glad to help you figure out how it fits you.

Alright, it's finally working.  This should be the last of the compatibility releases.

0.4.1a and 0.4.1b Changelog:
Fixed an identification error with the Shadowyards SDF fleet.
Shadowyards fleets now sometimes launch raids on Corvus.
Shadowyards Supply fleet now correctly delivers supplies.
Removed the Hegemony and Pirate Supply Convoys delivering goods to the temporary/temporarily occupied stations.
Shamash:
Cargo capacity increased to 40 from 20.
Fuel capacity decreased to 70 from 90.
Flux dissipation increased to 300 f/s from 200 f/s.
Scylla:
Flux dissipation increased to 1000 f/s from 700 f/s.
Added a hull mod, Enhanced Ejection Systems, to SHI fighters; this system reduces pilot casualties by ~66%.


Alright, with compatibility fixes now in place, I can now start planning out future changes.  In the near term this should be a new AI type for the Elysium (currently the AI is completely terribad at handling the vessel), adding a couple more civilian craft, and maybe some fun cosmetic things -- by which I mean adding an onHit effect to the Nidhoggr Lance (more explosions!) and maybe starting the alternate color scheme ancillary mod.

Longer term is going to be making the planets in Anar more important to the player, making new station graphics for SHI, and trying to get some semblance of an economy and mission system going.  These things in are likely to require some fairly careful thought about the UI's design, but I think it'll give a lot of opportunity to include faction flavor and game functionality, as well as hopefully add things for the player to do beyond blowing things up.

I'm not sure if this even helps now but in .4.1a the supply notifications pop-ups would happen in hyper space. I don't know if that had anything to do with any thing else, but it seemed strange.

I haven't gotten my hands on a Tartarus since 0.6 came out, but on the most recent .54 SHI build the ship ability would make the shield increase to 360 degrees. Was that intentional? Otherwise the ability was awesome and seemed to work great. There was a weird thing with it dropping my shields when i manually deactivated it though.
Logged
Itches are scratched. Back-rubs are savored.

Dayshine

  • Ensign
  • *
  • Posts: 28
    • View Profile
Re: (0.6a) Shadowyards Heavy Industries v0.4.1b
« Reply #347 on: September 16, 2013, 09:37:54 AM »

A question about the fighter wings. They seem to have an unusually low number of replacement chassis compared to vanilla.

For example the Thunder Multirole Fighter Wing comes with 9 replacements chassis and a wing size of 2.
All three Shadowyards fighter wings come with 2 replacement chassis, which isn't even a full wing for the Neriad!

I know they are powerful fighters, but that much? :P
Logged

MShadowy

  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 911
    • View Profile
Re: (0.6a) Shadowyards Heavy Industries v0.4.1b
« Reply #348 on: September 16, 2013, 10:26:29 AM »

I'm not code-savvy enough to really suggest an answer but there are other weapons that fire shots simultaneously in the same fashion as the Scatter... In fact if I recall correctly it was displayed correctly in previous versions and at least as far as I can tell the mechanic hasn't changed?

I am aware, and actually it is still functioning correctly on weapons without regenerating ammo; thats why I suspect it has something to do with the ammo regeneration.  This was also present in the previous version of Starsector as well, so I should probably submit a bug report on it.

Quote
Enlil talk.

Man, what a fun conversation to wake up to.  I'm really glad that my ships can inspire this level of interest.

Like Copper, I too tend to install at least unstable injectors on an Enlil as it allows her a lot more mobility, which is tremendously useful in battle for pretty much the reasons he stated.  When I first start off with an Enlil I personally like using a pair of regular CEPCs in the light mounts to take out shields or overload my target, and use a medium missile launcher (preferably the harpoon) for that killing punch while they're vulnerable.

@MShadowy, the Morningstar's drones never go anywhere - they hang out over the 0,0,0 point of the ship no matter what. They shoot things fine, but it does look weird :)

Those're the default sensor drones and they're doing what they do, hiding out over their parent ship while boosting sensor and weapons range.  Well, if I replace them with different sensor drones (which I have been intending to do) I'll probably give them different loitering positions so they don't stack on top of each other, though I will leave their position close enough that that should at least be covered by the shield.

I'm pretty sure the Enlil is my favorite frigate, and i've spent lots of time using it. I love being able to fit it to however i'd like to fight today. If you don't like it then you don't like it, but if you want to like it i'll be glad to help you figure out how it fits you.

 ;D

I haven't gotten my hands on a Tartarus since 0.6 came out, but on the most recent .54 SHI build the ship ability would make the shield increase to 360 degrees. Was that intentional? Otherwise the ability was awesome and seemed to work great. There was a weird thing with it dropping my shields when i manually deactivated it though.

Yeah, the ships siege system is supposed to provide the ship with complete shield coverage; it's quite defensively oriented.

A question about the fighter wings. They seem to have an unusually low number of replacement chassis compared to vanilla.

For example the Thunder Multirole Fighter Wing comes with 9 replacements chassis and a wing size of 2.
All three Shadowyards fighter wings come with 2 replacement chassis, which isn't even a full wing for the Neriad!

I know they are powerful fighters, but that much? :P

Um, that's strange and not supposed to be happening?  In the last game I played where I had gotten to having a carrier, the Skinwalkers wing was 10 strong, Neriads 15 and Raksashas 8 so something strange seems to be up.  I better check and see if everything is in order.

Oh, and CC, I will try and include the Solidarity class transport ship in the next release.  Also!

Sort of brainstorming planetary interactions for Euripides and Anar in general:

Spoiler
Provisional Euripides Dialogue Tree:

/root

    Trade Goods
    --Outfitter
      Normal trade menu: Ship equipment and supplies offered here
    --Cargo Exchange
      Sells trade goods
    --Bazaar
      Nonstandard dialogue - offers rare or unusual items, sometimes at discount.
    Trade Ships
    --Sells atmosphere capable craft (mostly shadowyards stuff)
    Services
    --Bar
      Mostly flavor text here; offers a variety of descriptive text and virtual booze.
      May ocassionally offer you a special mission that may be an isolated or recurring event. These events, if successful, may improve or reduce relations with a given faction.
      --Mission Board
        Offers the player contracts to do a thing for money.
        --Mission types: ferry cargo, escort ship(s) [temporarily added to fleet?], seek and destroy a particular target, explore a system, mine minerals, more as I think of them.
    --Mission Board
      Same board as above, just accessible without going to the bar.
    --Grey Market
      Probably not initially present; will offer items which are legal on Euripides but less so elsewhere.
    --Identity Services
      --Change Name
      --Body Sculpting
        Allows the player to change their identity; i.e. select a new portrait and/or change name.
    --Industrial Services
      Allows the player to custom order ships or equipment (provided the blueprints are available) for a nominal service charge.  May also be used to produce trade goods which are 'equipment' (farm combines, fuel pumps, drills, etc.)
      Probably will have it set up so that manufacturing takes a certain number of days to complete, varying based on the job.
    --Refinery
      Converts raw ore from mining into refined metals (take a cue from eVe?) - costs reduced for better relations with SHI.
    Take Off (flagship is destroyer or below)/Leave Orbit (flagship is cruiser or above) (some exceptions to both; Sargasso, Charybdis, some vanilla craft)
    --Leaves the planet

/exit
[close]
« Last Edit: September 16, 2013, 10:28:34 AM by MShadowy »
Logged

Wyvern

  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 3786
    • View Profile
Re: (0.6a) Shadowyards Heavy Industries v0.4.1b
« Reply #349 on: September 16, 2013, 10:49:40 AM »

I haven't gotten my hands on a Tartarus since 0.6 came out, but on the most recent .54 SHI build the ship ability would make the shield increase to 360 degrees. Was that intentional? Otherwise the ability was awesome and seemed to work great. There was a weird thing with it dropping my shields when i manually deactivated it though.
Yup, it does that - I've been working on the game script for it, and the shield arc increase is very much on purpose.  (For amusement value: try it with an omni shield emitter.  Still goes to 360!)  The shield deactivating when the system turns off is also - for now - on purpose; prior to .6 of Starsector, that was the only way to reduce the current shield arc.  I'll probably have an updated script that doesn't deactivate shields in a day or two.

That aside, I'm quite curious how (or if?) you're using the Tartarus' ship system in combat; that information would help quite a bit in trying to write a good ship system AI.  (If you can't get at one in the campaign, keep in mind that there are missions with the Tartarus, and you can refit & test it in the simulator.  Though I also find that - like the Conquest - the power & usage of the Tartarus changes a lot based on character skills; a Conquest on a level one character is a highly vulnerable flying brick; a Conquest on a level 40 is a quick death to anything in its path - and the Tartarus feels a lot like half a Conquest, rotated 90 degrees.)
Logged
Wyvern is 100% correct about the math.

Taverius

  • Captain
  • ****
  • Posts: 471
  • Mistake not ...
    • View Profile
Re: (0.6a) Shadowyards Heavy Industries v0.4.1b
« Reply #350 on: September 16, 2013, 11:35:24 AM »

Oh, and CC, I will try and include the Solidarity class transport ship in the next release.  Also!

I like loyalty games, so ideally I'd want cargo ships and construction rig and tug too :)

The more I play 0.6, the more I'm convinced a frigate-sized cargo ship is the way to go for the combat fleet.

Like many others, I'm using a blob of Hounds with just the PD weapons on to carry loot, its more efficient than using actual cargo transports unless I'm resupplying the base.

That aside, I'm quite curious how (or if?) you're using the Tartarus' ship system in combat; that information would help quite a bit in trying to write a good ship system AI.  (If you can't get at one in the campaign, keep in mind that there are missions with the Tartarus, and you can refit & test it in the simulator.  Though I also find that - like the Conquest - the power & usage of the Tartarus changes a lot based on character skills; a Conquest on a level one character is a highly vulnerable flying brick; a Conquest on a level 40 is a quick death to anything in its path - and the Tartarus feels a lot like half a Conquest, rotated 90 degrees.)
That's how I felt like too. My SHI game is lvl 19 right now, I'm 2-3 levels from being able to use it effectively. Although I'm not sure against what, I'm already having issues finding stand-up fights as it is.

P.S. MShadowy, Ship System descriptions plox? :3
Logged
No faction is truly established without a themed Buffalo (TAG) variant.

Wyvern

  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 3786
    • View Profile
Re: (0.6a) Shadowyards Heavy Industries v0.4.1b
« Reply #351 on: September 16, 2013, 11:38:24 AM »

My SHI game is lvl 19 right now, I'm 2-3 levels from being able to use it effectively.
Out of curiosity, what's your definition of "effective use"?  What sorts of variants are you using with your Tartarus?
Logged
Wyvern is 100% correct about the math.

Taverius

  • Captain
  • ****
  • Posts: 471
  • Mistake not ...
    • View Profile
Re: (0.6a) Shadowyards Heavy Industries v0.4.1b
« Reply #352 on: September 16, 2013, 01:12:58 PM »

That depends on the ship, but for the Tartarus:

  • Augmented Engines, because the maps in 0.6 are HUGE, also pursuits.
  • Blast Doors, in 0.6 they go on EVERYTHING because crew ability is so important because CR.
  • Expanded Magazines, for the extra charges for longer bursts.

Wave and Medium CEPCs up front, MCEPCs in the side-spine mounts, Chaingangs and Lights in the rest.

Enough flux dissipation and capacity to ride that 50-75% flux level for the dps boost.

I would have been there already, but I took a tangent skill-wise and I haven't got Augmented Engines yet.
Logged
No faction is truly established without a themed Buffalo (TAG) variant.

CopperCoyote

  • Captain
  • ****
  • Posts: 451
    • View Profile
Re: (0.6a) Shadowyards Heavy Industries v0.4.1b
« Reply #353 on: September 16, 2013, 02:58:48 PM »

I haven't gotten my hands on a Tartarus since 0.6 came out, but on the most recent .54 SHI build the ship ability would make the shield increase to 360 degrees. Was that intentional? Otherwise the ability was awesome and seemed to work great. There was a weird thing with it dropping my shields when i manually deactivated it though.
Yup, it does that - I've been working on the game script for it, and the shield arc increase is very much on purpose.  (For amusement value: try it with an omni shield emitter.  Still goes to 360!)  The shield deactivating when the system turns off is also - for now - on purpose; prior to .6 of Starsector, that was the only way to reduce the current shield arc.  I'll probably have an updated script that doesn't deactivate shields in a day or two.

That aside, I'm quite curious how (or if?) you're using the Tartarus' ship system in combat; that information would help quite a bit in trying to write a good ship system AI.  (If you can't get at one in the campaign, keep in mind that there are missions with the Tartarus, and you can refit & test it in the simulator.  Though I also find that - like the Conquest - the power & usage of the Tartarus changes a lot based on character skills; a Conquest on a level one character is a highly vulnerable flying brick; a Conquest on a level 40 is a quick death to anything in its path - and the Tartarus feels a lot like half a Conquest, rotated 90 degrees.)

After I got a feel for it's system i'd use x to hold fire as i barreled down on my target. I'd nearly always choose a target for my turrets to focus on. Once I was definitely in range of the front turrets i'd raise my shields hit f then hit x. It was usually an overwhelming amount of fire power. When fighting ships of equal or greater size i'd usually enter siege mode earlier with my shields up and let my medium CEPCs start firing once they were in range.

Because siege mode made it so slow i frequently used both the engine upgrades. Another thing i'd do was use the ITU to make the reach just that much further. (side note: I don't think the siege mode doubled the bonus from ITU) I would also sometimes forgo using shields and just act like a skirmisher popping into siege mode firing off all my medium CEPC shots, and the hopping out and staying outside of their reach the whole time.

The loadout isn't likely to work now because you only get up to 130% OP instead of 150%
Spoiler

1X Hurricane reaper (large omni)
2X Shrike pod (medium Omni)
3X Medium CEPC (front turrets)
1X Heavy burst laser (rear turret)
4X Mining laser (smalls (in a lot of ways these were only there to give me a visual hint when a salamander was trying to ruin my engines))

ITU
Aug Engine
Unstable injector or Aux thrusters (depending on whether i was going to bu hunting low tech or high tech ships)
Expanded magazines
Enlarged missile racks

The rest in venting and if any left over after that in to capacity

[close]

On the visual side of things I can't believe i didn't notice the active venting color change! I love the way it looks. I also like how the shields and engines kind of match too.
Logged
Itches are scratched. Back-rubs are savored.

Wyvern

  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 3786
    • View Profile
Re: (0.6a) Shadowyards Heavy Industries v0.4.1b
« Reply #354 on: September 16, 2013, 03:30:56 PM »

(side note: I don't think the siege mode doubled the bonus from ITU).
It doesn't - siege mode (or at least the last version I put together; I haven't checked to see if MShadowy did any fine-tuning of it) grants just a flat +200 range to energy weapons.  Even if it was a percentage modifier, it'd still go off the base range of the weapon.

For example, say you've got a range 700 plasma cannon.
With siege mode active, that goes to 900.
With an ITU for +35% range, 700 * .35 = 245, so you'd get a range of 945 normally or 1145 in siege mode.
With an ITU and the +50% range perk from the targeting skill in tech, you'd get 700 + 245 + 350 = 1295 range normally, or a whopping 1495 range in siege mode.

By contrast, with the same modifiers on a range 900 SHI Wave Cannon, you'd top out at 1665 range in siege mode.
...Or you could install a Gauss Cannon, that doesn't benefit from siege mode, but with the same bonuses from skills and ITU, reaches out to range 2220.  Good luck hitting anything that far away, though.
Logged
Wyvern is 100% correct about the math.

Borgoid

  • Commander
  • ***
  • Posts: 160
    • View Profile
Re: (0.6a) Shadowyards Heavy Industries v0.4.1b
« Reply #355 on: September 16, 2013, 05:35:40 PM »

Is the +50 top speed bonus while phase cloaked intentional for the Shamash?
It's not listed as a speed bonus to the left like the 0-flux bonus would be and I couldn't find any description based reason..

Have to say really do love the way the Shamash plays, it's the only phase cloak ship I've ever used that doesn't feel weak in 90% of situations and is actually fun to use.
Logged

Wyvern

  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 3786
    • View Profile
Re: (0.6a) Shadowyards Heavy Industries v0.4.1b
« Reply #356 on: September 16, 2013, 06:12:12 PM »

Is the +50 top speed bonus while phase cloaked intentional for the Shamash?
It's not listed as a speed bonus to the left like the 0-flux bonus would be and I couldn't find any description based reason..

Have to say really do love the way the Shamash plays, it's the only phase cloak ship I've ever used that doesn't feel weak in 90% of situations and is actually fun to use.

There were patch notes for 0.6 Starsector saying that all phase ships would get that - I'm not sure if they actually do, though; I think I remember Alex saying something about having reverted that change?
Logged
Wyvern is 100% correct about the math.

Borgoid

  • Commander
  • ***
  • Posts: 160
    • View Profile
Re: (0.6a) Shadowyards Heavy Industries v0.4.1b
« Reply #357 on: September 16, 2013, 06:19:47 PM »

None of the other phase ships I've used seem to have it.
It's pretty awesome though :D
Logged

MShadowy

  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 911
    • View Profile
Re: (0.6a) Shadowyards Heavy Industries v0.4.1b
« Reply #358 on: September 16, 2013, 06:26:26 PM »

There were patch notes for 0.6 Starsector saying that all phase ships would get that - I'm not sure if they actually do, though; I think I remember Alex saying something about having reverted that change?

If he did I totally missed it.  Another thing to double check.
Logged

CopperCoyote

  • Captain
  • ****
  • Posts: 451
    • View Profile
Re: (0.6a) Shadowyards Heavy Industries v0.4.1b
« Reply #359 on: September 16, 2013, 07:43:41 PM »

I've gotten my hands on a Tartarus this build. I forgot how expensive the shield is. I use the stabilized shield on all loadouts too.

An amusing thing happens with the new shield arc listing: It says the arc is 360 all the time. I think it's kind of a bug, but i'm also aware it's arc is something like 280. (or something ... it doesn't close with extended shields at any rate)

I've been misreading the + as a % this whole time. Well at least i was accidentally correct about the ITU interaction. Because the weapons i usually focus my attention on aren't energy weapons i never noticed the discrepancy between what i was expecting and what was happening. The range increase is still quite handy.

I haven't given the focus camera on target feature a try since its been improved, but i don't think hitting things at 2220 with a gauss would be too much more difficult than hitting things with a reaper at just about 1000. Lets see if i can math right tonight: the med. CEPC has a range of 750 * 1.35 + 200 = 1212.5 I don't know how it rounds, but i'm assuming down. I don't know how long the tartarus is, but the rearmost forward facing turret is the one i keep in range, and i feel like i hit with a little under half my reapers at that range.

If you want your AI to be brutal with shrikes have it aim a few degrees to the side. Enough that the engines fire right away and the shrike arcs into your target. If you're too far off the engine won't fire and it'll rotate to the center of mass and fly straight into the PD. Flak and burst pd are the only things that can regularly stop it when you do that. Regular beam pd will hit too, but shrikes are so fast you'd need massed turrets to stop it.
Logged
Itches are scratched. Back-rubs are savored.
Pages: 1 ... 22 23 [24] 25 26 ... 107