Lienzo
Amanuensis
52
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Posted - 2015.03.21 16:48:08 -
[1] - Quote
Two major concerns: Dependency and Environment
Dependency is the other side of the coin when considering power projection.
The main role of structures would seem to be to create occasion and incentive for engagement with other players. Some of them are stepping stones to strategic assets, like capital shipyards. If groups of players already have these end products, they generally are no longer tied to the structures that produced them. Consequently they aren't generally able to be coerced into combat environments not of their choosing. They can attack other groups at will, but can only be attacked if they elect so. Hence, the problem of super blobs isn't so much in themselves, but the lack of.. well presence and importune exigency. To rephrase, they don't need to defend a home port. This makes it difficult or impossible for the other party to retaliate, or to focus on hostile logistical support chains.
Structures need to be important to sourcing or installing vital war materiel, and not just on the replacement ships. Capital ship conflicts are less predicated on the replacement aspect typical of subcap conflicts, so instead should focus on accomplishing the same function between fights. Essentially, capital ship components need more maintenance and capital ship modules should need more charges. Only support structures should have the ability to do this maintenance, or to acquire, construct and install these charges.
Our second concern should be environments. Environments govern ecologies even as they are altered by the governed. We need to think about how players get to these structures, where they are and the environments in which the engagements they stimulate happen. Assuming there aren't going to be limitations on where they can be placed, it would make sense if structures actually influenced the grids on which they are placed. If, for example, they took individual features or aspects of perhaps deadspaces, and then imposed that state on the grid around them, then they could shape how conflicts are prosecuted in their vicinity. These effects could be far ranging, from changing warping rules, to limiting modules, or providing other terrain effects which either party can exploit to their own advantage.
Space and movement is already used in missions to control the amount of time to completion of an objective that is not dependent upon the amount of firepower brought to bear. This same mechanism can be used to achieve the same effect with player structures. It allows for fleet commanders of either side to choose the occasion and timing of commitment to conflicts even while on the battlefield. It also allows them to choose how to array forces. Shared limitations don't really limit any individual player if they expand the range of possibilities of how and where to attack or defend. |