I saw the code before long time ago when it was proposed in the programming thread. It looks very elementry and it doens't seem the algorithm will be flexible enough to support "go around" techs or mods without significant alteration of a pretty fundamental lvl of the program. Unless the code has been changed, it will not support any off-road, techs, nor any sophiscated military targeting AI. To use moo3 term and like moo3, we are hardwire into this problem.Aquitaine wrote:At the moment there is no offroading. We will not implement it until we have assurances from the AI team (like, later on, when we have a bigger AI team) that it won't benefit the player unfairly.
That isn't to say we can't have some tech to 'go around' starlanes, but right now, offroading is out.
I think some generic number is fine, but a nicer graphical display will be better. I think you can press a key on the keyboard and it will display different properties of each system kinda like a filter system. On default, you just see the basic more pertinant information like fleet dots thing that we have already and then you can press a key to display detail about resources/industry, another key on military/defense... Toggling is good too to help trim down the number of layers of windows down to main and a additional window.noelte wrote:But if we do so, this shouldn't be displayed by default. As we already have to display the fleets, if would realy be messed up this way.Elethiomel wrote:If the level of defense is displayed on the galactic map, say as 1-5 dots beneath/above/beside a star, star name, or whatever, you wouldn't have to "drill down" and check all these planets for what defense level they have. Planets should start with level 1 defense by default, so you'd have to change it to build anything. I believe that would fix these issues.
new suggestion on managing defences:
say we have different kind of defences
1 - (max 5) missle base
2 - (max 5) beam defence
3 - (max 1) shield
4 - (max 10) ground forces
and by design we allow which amount can be build, say max one shield, 5 missle base and so on. If you discover a new shield tech you can update your already build shield. same to the others. maybe the amount of missle bases depends on your techs and other things.
I think as you have to maintain your defence installations you should be able you decide which defences you need.
That's way too much. Make it simple and say lvl 7 shields have the same cost as lvl 5 but just stronger. We had debates over cost-benefit trade-off of techs and it's too complicated. Either make cost constant and have benefits increase over higher techs or other way around, but don't have the ratio where both variables are increasing or have it change .In some cases you might use your lvl 5 shield even if you have the knowledge of lvl 7 shield just because of the lower maintain costs
I dont have a photographic memory so I don't remember where Mola is. You end up double clicking the the name to open up the window to find more info on it to remind you what you were planning so it isn't that much different than doing it from the main screen. I think we gonna have planet list anyway for organization, but it won't really save that much headache.So I think asighning every planet a defensive level and having them defined globally is quite low on micro.
on the planetscreen ist could show:
Planetname....build defensive level .... target defensive Level
..Matoria................lvl 2.................................lvl 5
..Mola....................lvl 4................................ lvl 7
[...]
Moo3 again, except extended to planetary defense. Most ppl don't understand it and end up hating the system. I don't like moo3's system because too much player intervention is required so it kinda defeats the point because while the concept sounds very simple, unless very carefully done, the AI is horrendous and a ton more complicated than ppl imagine.lvl 0 : nothing
basic lvl 1 : lvl 0 + Missle Base (MAX)
basic lvl 2 : basic lvl 2 + Schield (IV)
basic lvl 3 : basic lvl 3 + Fighter + Shield (IV) -> Shield (MAX) // this could be an upgrade
border lvl 1 : basic lvl 1 + Beam Base(MAX) + Shield(MAX)
border lvl 2 : border lvl 2 + Fighter (MAX) + Missle base (MAX)
so ah planet assighned "border lvl 2" would start with "basic lvl 1" and build the things in there than go to "border lvl 1" build those. Maybe now update the Misslebase because of tech advancement and then build everything in "border lvl 2".
All these buildings would take time to build but you woud not have to bother with it and would update to watever you change in the "tech level tree". You also have a prety good idea of the actual defence since it tells you which sevels were already completly build
I rather try making building so simple that we don't necessary need category or other management aids. But I'm good with "borders," which programming team shot it down unfortunately, or category management aids, which must be done very clean and unambiguous.