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xttz
GoonWaffe Goonswarm Federation
4
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Posted - 2012.09.04 21:32:00 -
[1] - Quote
Some of you may have noticed these remarks in the last CSM notes regarding the project to revamp starbases:
Quote:The current state of the starbase redesign is GÇ£in conceptingGÇ¥ - It has not had its initial direction pinned down - ItGÇÖs not had any kind of formal design assessment - ItGÇÖs not had any kind of formal technical assessment - ItGÇÖs not had any kind of formal art assessment - ItGÇÖs not had any kind of formal QA assessment - Nothing has been signed off by anybody at any stage of the decision-making process, beyond the initial instruction to begin concept work
Quote:The team that will be doing the work will be working on the new Crimewatch system for the winter release, so new starbases would be a 2013 project.
So our huge revamp originally slated for this winter has slipped to sometime in 2013. Now keep in mind this is from the same company who announced Walking in Stations in 2006, named the release 'Incarna' in 2009 then followed up with release in 2011. I'm sure those alliance logos on ships from 2008 are coming along nicely guys!
So in the same manner as the Supercap rebalances earlier this year, I'm asking for a 'sticking plaster' patch to help relieve some issues with starbases until CCP can realise their final vision for them. This would be solely using statistics tweaks and an absolute minimum of coding work.
Problems
A) The increase in general ship EHP and proliferation of Logistics since 2007. Even if you're manually controlling all the guns on the tower, it takes far too many medium guns to damage typical fleet ships of 100k+ EHP. Large guns typically need over a minute to lock and cycle to the next target. And that's assuming any of them track the target and that the target isn't immediately locked up by 50 Logistics cruisers. Oh wait you wanted to ewar those cruisers to hamper repping? Sorry that'll be a whole minute to lock it with that there single ECM.
B) No risk to supercaps. At all. Even if a tower could tackle one, most modules melt in seconds. Resistance, as they say, is futile. You used to be able to kill dreads with these things if you used them properly. Now, everyone is sporting enough DPS to level a tower in moments and the only real risk during a siege is if you forget the bring a support fleet AND the enemy reacts within 2 minutes flat. Towers stats were last balanced over 6 years ago and were meant to be hit by a dozen dreads at most, who would sit in siege for 10mins in order to do anything of note. Now everyone rolls around with 5min siege cycles and supercaps that the tower cannot possibly hurt unless the pilot happens to suffer a stroke mid-op while thrashing his hands into the keys that turn off his hardeners and accidently saying "go on guys I'll catch up later" into comms.
C) Useless mods. Hands up if you've ever used hybrid weapons (or god forbid, missiles) on a serious tower. If you raised your hand there, get out of this thread. You're dumb and I don't want your support. Everyone knows that even vaguely effective towers use laser or projectile guns (or more likely just lots of hardeners). Why not make starbase Citadel Torps an actual anti-supercap weapon like their ship-mounted counterparts? Let's make Hybrids capable of blowing up things larger than passing jetcans.
D) Stagnation. With the exception of various tweaks to jump bridges or fueling, Starbases have been unchanged for over 5 years now. Sure they can tip the balance in small scale fights as Low Sec Corp A sieges Low Sec Corp B with both of their dreadnoughts, but anywhere else they're not even an issue. Sieging towers in null-sec is another dull structure shoot that no longer encourages real traps or surprises because the tower can't do ****. Because everyone just puts hardeners on them.
Please bring back the risk, the drama, and dare I say excitement of putting your **** out in space and hoping someone won't chop it off.
Possible solutions:
1) Make starbases even a slight risk to supercaps - such as letting Warp Scramblers (not Disruptors) tackle just like a HIC focused point, or buffing Energy Neuts with more cap drain and HP. Thanks to the huge sig on supercaps, any such module could be balanced around its scan resolution very easily.
2) General increase in weapon damage, especially for medium guns.
3) Give people with Starbase Defense Management trained the ability to use more modules at the same time (such as 2 per level). Right now the only reliable way to get enough pos gunners to a tower in time to man everything is if your opponent is nice enough to send a written invitation in advance. 3b) A couple of UI fixes to starbase gunning would be sweet too. WHY CAN'T I GRAB OR DROP MULTIPLE MODS AT ONCE :(((((((( I swear one of you devs is making money off a cure for RSI.
4) Tweak tower bonuses with appropriate racial ewar. Caldari already get ECM bonuses, but why don't we get neut bonuses on Amarr, damps for Gallente or webbing boosts for Minmatar?
5) Varied size ewar mods with stats suited to their appropriate target. We already have small medium and large guns. Why not the same for ECM, damps, neuts and webs? Medium webs able to lock battleships but not slow them quite as effectively as their larger counterparts. Small ECM with a quick locking timer to counter small threats like bombers, but with a suitably small jamming strength. Small/Medium damps intended to counter Logistics cruisers in a way the current ECM mods can't.
Oh, and are you worried about balance in wormholes? I'm sure that crazy space can be convinced to do all sorts of zany things to starbase systems just like ships. Scan resolution tweaks anyone? |
Kismeteer
GoonWaffe Goonswarm Federation
182
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Posted - 2012.09.04 21:35:00 -
[2] - Quote
Small changes could make POS's more livable for everyone if we had even small tweaks now, instead of waiting a few years for massive changes. Fix the small things, like cleaning up the way moon miners and silos interact, making it clear things are linked. |
DaiTengu
GoonWaffe Goonswarm Federation
116
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Posted - 2012.09.04 21:49:00 -
[3] - Quote
I have Starbase Defense Management trained to V on multiple characters, but haven't controlled POS guns in at least 2 years. There' s very little point to it anymore other than being a tiny nuisance to an enemy sub-cap fleet. Buffing POS gunning would be a good "stopgap" while we await a long promised overhaul of the POS system. |
RDevz
GoonWaffe Goonswarm Federation
105
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Posted - 2012.09.04 21:51:00 -
[4] - Quote
I'd dearly love siloes to have the option to send mails when they're full or empty, much like towers scream to give you warning that they're going to go offline. ~ |
Javafanatic
GoonWaffe Goonswarm Federation
0
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Posted - 2012.09.04 21:58:00 -
[5] - Quote
+1
I would be willing to have a CCP Dev's man baby if they would change the Rorq hold to an industrial hold that allows either Ore or Fuel Blocks.... just sayin... |
xttz
GoonWaffe Goonswarm Federation
8
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Posted - 2012.09.04 22:03:00 -
[6] - Quote
Oh yeah some realtalk.
Based on the previous track record with other features and major changes, a '2013' date for this project means we should start seeing solid info around Fanfest. Then CCP will throw out some foundation work for the main summer patch to help get things lined up, but we won't see the new starbases themselves. That will follow with a lengthy handover plan coming in the winter patch intended to get things ready and swapped over in time for Christmas.
But wait! Something went wrong. They found a bug and now the handover gets extended to New Year. Our new starbases are now live in early 2014, but with some indicated features (like docking in them) still on the drawing board and 'coming soon'.
Prove me wrong Stoffer :) |
Powers Sa
GoonWaffe Goonswarm Federation
289
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Posted - 2012.09.05 01:49:00 -
[7] - Quote
But wait, poses need to cloak and have a jump drive.
:V |
Feligast
GoonWaffe Goonswarm Federation
1290
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Posted - 2012.09.05 09:33:00 -
[8] - Quote
Hell, put a range marker on the green box so we know how far away it is for minimum distance. That would make life a bunch easier.
I'm not even going to try and ask to get rid of that damn box, that would be a pipe dream. |
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