Exchangable module idea for future race

[mimesot]

posted on June 27th, 2009, 12:01 pm

Last edited by mimesot on June 27th, 2009, 12:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Latly I had an idea for a new race, which could form a new type of gameplay: Various exchangable modules for one ship.

Some ships of that race would be built in a unspecialized default confoguration, like a romulan unrefitted vessel. There is not only a yard, but also a module facility, which can build up modules (for supply and resource costs), store them (i'm not sure how to do that yet) and give them to units in a dogfight range via a special weaon, which simply replaces the ship by the refitted version. The shipitself can give the module over to the storage too. So it is different to the borg system and to the romulan system.

This makes the fleet have variable configurations, does not urge you to dertirmine the kind of refit from the beginning and is thus ideal for a very economical race. A race that has only a few ships at hand and has to adept to new situations very quickly. Such a race should feature cheap vessels that rely on these modules, some that don't use modules and expensive ones, that are just buffed by these modules.

Ther should be destroyer, cruiser and bttleship modules which are not interchangable.

Modules i think of:

* mining module
* building module
* repair module
* weapon modules
* fleet support special module
* hangar module
* marines module
* cloaking module
* energy capacitor module

If there is gonna be only one exchangable module only it will be not more complicated to implement than the borg modules.

What do you think of it?

posted on June 27th, 2009, 12:08 pm

interesting idea. noted down

posted on June 27th, 2009, 3:07 pm

Nicely thought out Mimesot 

Hmm... do I smell something for Ciadan? 

posted on June 27th, 2009, 3:57 pm

I like this idea. I think that the Module station should function kind of like a shipyard. So instead of using a special weapon and individually targeting each ship for upgrades (which could get a bit frustrating for large fleets), I think that you should send basic ships to this yard, where they are stored in dock to wait for you to select and upgrade them.

The yard itself could have say 5 docking ports so it can upgrade 5 ships at a time. when you hit the repair button from you fleet, then the ship immediately go to the nearest Upgrade Dock (instead of a shipyard). Ships will then be automatically repaired and you will be given the option to upgrade or change their configuration just prior to letting them leave dock.

The 5 docking ports could be extensions off the main station and you could have options to save particular configurations and apply them to multiple ships or individual ships, as you see fit. (Ships that cannot comply with certain upgrades could remain in dock whilst others move through.


To fit in with the economic and modular nature of this game-play model, you could even make the Module Yard into an extension of the main Ship Yard, so you have one station split up into smaller sub-stations that govern different aspects of game-play.

posted on June 27th, 2009, 11:28 pm

Thanks a lot. I really like your extensions to my ideas aswell ... hopefully we find some economical = sneaky or longrange rave that can make use of that universality.

[RCIX]

posted on June 28th, 2009, 6:58 am

Last edited by RCIX on June 28th, 2009, 7:56 am, edited 1 time in total.

Cool idea! i see this as going on a race that wants to conserve as many resources as possible sothey use modules to cusomize their ships as (oops! ) necessary.

posted on June 28th, 2009, 7:44 am

Awesome idea! It works really well with the Klingons actually. We know the forward module on the Vor'cha is removable, we've just never seen anything besides the big forward disrupter cannon. In non-cannon sources though there are carrier modules, torpedo decks, etc. This could be just the thing to give the klingons some extra uniqueness.

posted on June 28th, 2009, 12:06 pm

I rather thought of this as an overall concept, thus assigned for a compete new race. If we apply it partly to an existing race only we waste an option of completly new gameplay.

Neverthelles i wouldn't mind if the vocha used that concept too.

posted on June 28th, 2009, 12:14 pm

The yard itself could have say 5 docking ports so it can upgrade 5 ships at a time. when you hit the repair button from you fleet, then the ship immediately go to the nearest Upgrade Dock (instead of a shipyard). Ships will then be automatically repaired and you will be given the option to upgrade or change their configuration just prior to letting them leave dock.

so you want to click 16 times "leave config as is" cause you sent a damaged fleet of ships to repair?

posted on June 28th, 2009, 6:56 pm

The biggest issue is indeed to make that system handy. I'm currently thinking about a useful approach.

posted on June 28th, 2009, 7:23 pm

so you want to click 16 times "leave config as is" cause you sent a damaged fleet of ships to repair?

Yes, yes I do

For those that don't, we could separate the two functions; A button for repairs and a button for upgrades.

Click "repair" and your fleet/ship will repair and then go straight through.

Click "upgrade" and your fleet/ship docks or queues to dock for upgrades. Once they a ship docks, it awaits your input.

posted on June 29th, 2009, 10:49 am

I thought about tha too, but it would neeed an hardcoded additional button with a new function ... i don't know if that is possible.

posted on June 29th, 2009, 12:58 pm

What about that it decommisions the original vessel and rebuilds it with mixed tech mods. 

posted on June 29th, 2009, 1:47 pm

Then you would need a different decommission and buildtime parameter, since we don't want to see the whole ship destucted and rebuilt slowly. We wanna have the module inserted and tats it. Your suggestion would need a temporary exchange of those parameters or a temporary exchange of the odf.

posted on June 29th, 2009, 3:00 pm

This seems like a good time for Optec, Doca or someone on the team to perhaps comment on how this could be achieved.

I think that adapting the function of the decommissioning button would be easier than adding in a new one but I'm not sure what goes on behind the scenes in this case so can't really comment on how to achieve the change.