Constructing Alien Techtree

posted on September 20th, 2010, 10:51 pm

Okay, but how about building a research facility with a captured construction vessel to research the alien technology of the captured vessel, then allowing some vessels to be fitted with the alien technology.  Actually decreasing the number of ODFs used.

EG:

The Defiant could now be outfitted with both Klingon and Romulan technology plus Federation technology.  Each respective technology would become available to the Defiant class vessel after that technology was analyzed at the research facility.  You would now only need the set of Defiant ODF files for the ship that is built at the stock Armada equivalent of the Advanced shipyard.  This would eliminate 12 Defiant ODF files.

If there are ODF files added, the removed ODF files would far out-weigh the added ODF files.

posted on September 26th, 2010, 7:05 am

At the risk of repeating everyone, even as a Borg player, I would not want to build another race's entire tech tree for two reasons:
1. Way too much space needed for this, not to mention resources
2. Not efficient to do this when I could just integrate the Tech.

That being said, I like the idea of being able to integrate the Tech into ships, like in the normal A2 where the Cubes could gain the abilities of other ships after capturing them.. just imagine, a cloaked sphere or a tactical cube with the ability to summon fighters... it would be fun for the Borg players out there to customize their ships even further.. I have not played with the mixed tech much in game so far so if this already happens then please excuse my ignorance.  I have noticed however that the mixed tech gives the Borg a fairly useless station, that builds nothing. Although I suppose it is good for allies or those ships I capture. 

posted on September 26th, 2010, 7:13 am

If it's good for repairing allies and assimilated ships, in addition to giving mixed-tech modules, it's not exactly 'faily useless' is it?

posted on September 26th, 2010, 8:31 am

I suddenly have a nightmare image of a Vor'cha with Romulan cloak, Federation shields, and Borg weapons and engines.  I do not like this concept.

posted on September 26th, 2010, 9:04 am

Well, I agree, that the feds wont build enemy ships, but I also agree, that they would adapt and integrate enemy tech into their own (that represents Mixed tech).

BUT we dont have a module-system, where you can put in everything you want until a certain loadout is reached. We dont play Battletech, where you can capture enemy weapons and integrate them into your own mechs. We play fleet ops, where the design of a ship needs years.

So, you wont build enemy ships, but you might adapt to them. The only race with modules are the borg, and the system behind it is pretty simple. (But nevertheless good)

I CAN imagine, that after you build a defiant and capture an enemy constructor, you would be able to REFIT it, so that it may become a mixed tech version.

And this brings me to an idea:

Why building extra yards for mixed tech? Just integrate the tech into you normal yards. Just "add" an additional "mixed tech" section to it, (like the klingons do with their field yard sections) and build there your bonus ships and be able to refit all "standard" ships, that may come up with additional boons.

Example: I've captured a dom worker ship. Now I bring it to the yard, an option (expand) will be given and you may build an additional section. In this section, you can research and build additional ships.

You build you Miranda II in the additional section, and your normal ships in the main section.

If you captured a rommie constructor, the defiant you want to build will be automaticly refitted, if build or you can refit existing defiants by sending them back to the yard in order to refit (or in field).

Question: What about the costs, build time, avatar boons and double ships, that came from other mixed tech approaches? Can you combine klingon and romulan technology for a federation ship? Sure, why not? Build a defiant with all the mixed tech boons you have got until now. So you get a defiant with cloaking device, avatar boons and mines. Why is that not overpowered?

1.) You only have a certain special energy, so special abilities might be more able for a ship, but you can only use one or two at all. Not every ability at the same time. So if you lay a mine, you might not be able to do a critical shot right after

2.) You have to capture enemy tech and build an additional section. This will cost ressources and you have to do research. Instead of free research, let it cost something in order to bring in a new ability.

3) The costs of ships might not increase, but you have invested time, ressources and you had to capture an enemy constructor, bring it into your base, let it build a section and so on. It may be balanced with a certain amount of research points (ressources)

4) Not only you, but everyone else also got this ability

Maybe, this works?

posted on September 26th, 2010, 1:07 pm

That about sums-up what I want.  Except for a few things.

I would like a research center to be built to research only the alien technology from the captured vessel.  That way, you don't gain everything just by capturing a ship, doing research, then capturing another ship.  You have to research the technology from the alien vessel that you capture.

Once the alien tech is researched, the ships should be outfitted with the technology individually.  Not all at once.  Any new ships that become available should be built at the advanced shipyard.  Not at a mixed-tech yard.

---

I think the Borg are underpowered in this area.  The adapters are nice and provide some diversion when bringing in a larger, more powerful force, but when capturing an alien constructor, the Borg should be able to upgrade their vessels with the new tech.  And add mixed-tech modules to more than just the adapters.  And the mixed tech modules should make the Borg weapons more powerful, not just make them more resistant to weapons.  Plus the technology assimilator beam should be placed back into the game to allow the Borg to assimilate the vessels technology.  With the exception of any technology that would hide the Borg vessels.

---

I have an idea for making mission-specific items that can be build only during missions, but would allow the player to build from both techtrees.  Like the last few Borg A2 missions where the player built both the Borg and Federation techtrees.  Except, the mixed-tech of the two factions you are playing as would automatically be available, but you would have to research the other technologies.

[Anonymous]

posted on September 26th, 2010, 9:09 pm

Last edited by Anonymous on September 26th, 2010, 9:20 pm, edited 1 time in total.

If it's good for repairing allies and assimilated ships, in addition to giving mixed-tech modules, it's not exactly 'faily useless' is it?

Oh but it is, it is just a repair yard that only my assimilated ships can use and allies if I so choose. As for the mixed-tech modules, there are none for the Borg save for the adapters who gain resistances, even though the Borg should have the most capable abilities as far as mixed tech is concerned. It is sort of their thing with the "your uniqueness and technology will be added to our own" bit  .  If we modified the useless construction yard (that again, constructs nothing) to include a technology assimilation ability, then several ships could gain the resistances or special abilities of the ship that was harvested.  This could even be considered balanced due to the fact that a ship has to be captured and then sacrificed to achieve this and a construction ship would have to be sacrificed to give the Borg species resistances.  It is just a thought however... 

What Sheva and TCR said is very much what I have in mind for the most part

[Tyler]

posted on September 26th, 2010, 9:13 pm

Last edited by Tyler on September 26th, 2010, 9:20 pm, edited 1 time in total.

The adaption modules are the assimilated mixed-tech; they assimilate the tech, then the adaptor becomes resistent to weapons of the race in question.

It isn't useless and isn't a construction yard, it's a repair dock. The tooltip even says that.

Getting bonuses for assimilation weapons has been suggested several times and I am for it, but not the stock method.

posted on September 26th, 2010, 9:16 pm

adaptors are far from useless. 2 adaption modules make adaptors like spheres for tanking. but they can be spammed a lot more.

[Anonymous]

posted on September 26th, 2010, 9:33 pm

Last edited by Anonymous on September 26th, 2010, 10:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.

I never said the adapters themselves where useless, those I enjoy, and if I did say they were it was not what I intended. 

I stand corrected however, I am not above admitting I am wrong. It is a repair dock.  I just perceive them as being useless as I tend to use my captured ships as fodder for the most part and rarely spend the time to repair them (not all the time granted as some I spend a lot of time and energy to capture).
It is just a little disappointing for the most part when you spend time to capture a construction ship and carefully transport it to have it produce a repair yard that your Borg ships can't use and only have a single ship benefit from it when the other species gain multiple ship benefits.  That is where the Tech-Assimilation could come in to save the day, whether by stock options or paying out the wazoo for them after the construction ship is captured.

posted on September 26th, 2010, 9:58 pm

Well... A Borg can assimilate everything and can construct assimilated D'Deridex, Talon, Sabre, Vor'cha, Galor, all the ships designs they want and mix techs.

But only the Borg can do it.

To the other races, will be a little strange a Klingon construct a Galor or a Sabre for example. So new ships including mixed-tech will come, mixed designs and mixed weapons.

I can't imagine a Klingon or any race except Borg constructing ships with design from other races.

Imagine a Federation constructing a Borg Cube after a Borg construction ship captured, will be illogical.

posted on September 26th, 2010, 10:01 pm

Building other races ships are just as unlikely for the Borg as anyone else.

posted on September 26th, 2010, 10:15 pm

Their ships are inferior.  Forward prow is irrelevant.  Saucer section is irrelevant.  Extended nacelles is irrelevant.  Redundancy rates below 80x redundancy are irrelevant.  Centralized systems are irrelevant.

The alloys will be deconstructed to serve the collective.

posted on September 26th, 2010, 10:16 pm

I agree with Silent of Borg.

posted on September 26th, 2010, 10:32 pm

I too agree with Silent