[Pyldrvr]

What about a panic button that teleports you to a random location somewhere else in the universe?

Maybe it has an hour cooldown on it, takes up two modx slots, and is somewhat unreliable

[alphabet]

Originally Posted by Pyldrvr

What about a panic button that teleports you to a random location somewhere else in the universe?

Maybe it has an hour cooldown on it, takes up two modx slots, and is somewhat unreliable

Yeah it could look just like this...






Pirates and scum need their RP too. The pirating tools just have to be better than they currently are. Also, haulers and miners should be able to equip NPC drones, sorta like the station bots. They will fire on anything that attacks them. Once used they are gone and must be repurchased and they take up a Modx spot and a 5 or 10 cargo spaces. The higher end models being much more lethal and much more expensive. This would at least give the hauler/miner time to escape an attack by a rouge pirate.

[EDIT] The NPC drones cannot be equipped on HG/MIL tagged ships or ships that have a bounty or neg pol rating in any faction. The NPC drones are not capable of jumping with the owner. The are launched as a last measure sort of thing. Sorta like a panic button that you describe, but instead of whisking away the hauler/miner to who knows where, it increases the defense capability.

[GrimGriz]

I'm not opposed to the idea alphabet, by why would that be preferable to turrets?

[alphabet]

Originally Posted by GrimGriz

I'm not opposed to the idea alphabet, by why would that be preferable to turrets?

If you mean an AI turrent, then it would be preferable because a gun only shoots so far, a pit bull will chase you down no matter where you run. Meaning, I want the ability to escape and make the baddie have to move and juke or run away to shake the NPC drone.

If you mean a turrent that I can man, I think I should have the ability to have that and my drones.

On the same token tho, pirating tools need to be improved. The thief is just a little too weak imo.

[Smaggler]

Give me an example of any other genre or mmo that has one class completely a resource gatherer and completely at the mercy of either other helpers or hinderers.

Priests in WoW have shadow form and enough tools to run/put up some kind of a fight against any other class.

Any support class in any other genre in any other MMO has the ability to defend/run/survive an attack, with varying degrees of success depending on the attacker. Why can't a Space MMO learn from that lesson?

-S

[vorlon31]

because these guys want the game like it was before they stopped playing, refusing to see that that style of gameplay just doesnt cut it for a MMO that wants numbers. They fail to understand or respect that others have interests other than fighting them and so refuse to limit their sphere of influence to players who DO like to fight them. They see themselves as the dangers of Jumpgate, not the galaxy itself, they see themselves as the orchestrator's of bad luck in a galaxy gone awry.

They don't see themselves as just another player and therefore they can freely put their game needs over others. Psychologists are going to have a field day when they discover the online gaming combat addicted massive I swear.

[xerout]

I think the issue we're really trying to get at is griefing. Griefing and civ ripping are two very different animals imho. We need to protect the ability of anyone to kill or be killed any time anywhere because it just adds so much excitement and intrigue to the game. Griefing on the other hand.....someone who makes a carreer of killing civilian pilots in reg space because he doesn't like someone or some group does need to be dealt with. I hear the penalties in the current game have gone up substantially for civ ripping....no more staying logged in to let negative RP decay, no kill stat for a civ rip and a few other things I'm missing. In PS if you get too many grief points you will suffer from weapons lock...possibly something like that could happen to a pilot who kills a few civs in reg space. I'm not a fan of sheep with teeth unless we're talking about having a manned gun position on a tow or something. It would be kind of cool to post for escort fighters and a gunner for a shipment you are making on a faction job board....for instance:

Job: Fighter escort for Pilot GrimGriz going from QC to EE. Two heavy fighters needed for this mission. Pay is xxxxx with Quantar offering xxx XP for taking the mission.
Job: Tow tail gunner (you choose the guns and ammo you want) for Pilot GrimGriz going from QC to EE. Pay is.......etc.

Xerout

[xerout]

Originally Posted by vorlon31

because these guys want the game like it was before they stopped playing, refusing to see that that style of gameplay just doesnt cut it for a MMO that wants numbers. They fail to understand or respect that others have interests other than fighting them and so refuse to limit their sphere of influence to players who DO like to fight them. They see themselves as the dangers of Jumpgate, not the galaxy itself, they see themselves as the orchestrator's of bad luck in a galaxy gone awry.

They don't see themselves as just another player and therefore they can freely put their game needs over others. Psychologists are going to have a field day when they discover the online gaming combat addicted massive I swear.

I really think you are talking about griefers Vorlon.....not regular combat pilots. The vast majority of combat pilots I fought with or against had few if any civ kills. There were a small percentage of elite combat pilots that RPed in the style you're talking about but fixing grief penalties will help protect against the abuses that some people suffered imho.

Xerout

[Hurricane]

Maybe we can convince the powers to be that some of the new AI could be TRI ships that dispatch after pirates that develop a -100+ PR developed in a short period of time. Someone saying goodbye Jumpgate Evolution with a 2 hour civ ripping spree might be stopped might quicker if the AI filled in when the server numbers were not high enough.

If there are times that we are unable to devote time and ships to hunting someone that is complete out of line, ie: policing ourselves, then a fleet of AI will hunt down and destroy the pirates moments after launch from any station. Let the AI be the campers.....

I don't like deaths on my stats sheet, but as low as they are it wouldn't be at all realistic to explore space and never loose a ship.

[GrimGriz]

Originally Posted by xerout

I'm not a fan of sheep with teeth unless we're talking about having a manned gun position on a tow or something.

Why not? Personally, I'm talking for the heavier ships (tow and HM) turrets that the AI controls unless you switch from cockpit view to turret view and man them yourself.

Originally Posted by xerout

We need to protect the ability of anyone to kill or be killed any time anywhere because it just adds so much excitement and intrigue to the game.

You don't believe that. If you did, you'd include the miner and hauler in the group of anyone. They should be able to kill as well. You should have to think twice about getting your little blue fighter too close to that big turretted freighter. Whatsa matter, don't want space to be dangerous?

[Dedsquirrl]

How safe do you want space?

Should it require a pack of HF's to take out an HM?
Sounds like poor fighter design to me if it can't take out a dang miner.

You don't get into a pontoon boat to go skiing.

A HM should be able to prolong the inevitable with some good piloting. Sure.

But a HM that can actually win a fight against a combat craft? I ain't buying it.

I am starting to understand where my disagreement comes in.
A griefer that rips a lvl5 shuttle should have a fist come out of his computer and hit him in the lip.

But I shouldn't be able to win a fight if I am in a miner or tow and a combat craft gets a hair in its butt to rip me.
Maybe some way to turtle and scream for my mommy, but not win a fight.
Maybe a way to dump and flee, but not knuckle up and take down a ship designed for ripping other ships.

When I went after my shards, you know how scared I was?
I was wearin SN tags, loaded to the gills with ore, with a few cutties for squid defense.
I probably would have cried if Yokom or Xerout showed up.
And it was fun as heck.
How awesome is a game that gives you the shakes because you are mining in one sector and you see RazorX getting bountied just one sector away.

I wouldn't want to deny that kind of anxious excitement from anyone.

[Dedsquirrl]

Doing away with "Fighters" "Miners" & "Traders"

This kind of thinking by Karash is one of the things I think would be a better avenue towards the goal of miners defending themselves.
But under this you wouldn't really get a miner that can defend himself.
You would get a miner that is harder to kill.
To defend yourself unaided by real combat pilots you would have to go with a pretty good fighter that can do some slow mining.
Or a miner with outstanding shields and big time flee ability.