Fix for WYSIWYG and Multi-Unit Transport

Discussion in 'Planetary Annihilation General Discussion' started by christer1966, October 2, 2014.

  1. christer1966

    christer1966 Member

    Messages:
    61
    Likes Received:
    55
    Why not make a coloured bar under the transports, like the health, build and reclaim bars, that shows how full the unit is. So if the transport carries 20 units and 10 are loaded in,the bar would be half as long compared to when all 20 units were loaded. This way you could see at a glance how many units are loaded without having to display each unit becoming one with the transport and splitting back to the individual units, which is why we don't have the multi-unit transports already. What do you guys think.
  2. zweistein000

    zweistein000 Post Master General

    Messages:
    1,362
    Likes Received:
    727
    That is only a fix for the strategic icon and really isn't hard to do. What is hard is coding in a MUT so that it works visually with the model and it works with area commands.
  3. Nicb1

    Nicb1 Post Master General

    Messages:
    1,010
    Likes Received:
    1,286
    I'm an advocate for multi unit transport, but I'm afraid that your idea will cause certain people to whine because they can't see what units are in the transport.
  4. CounterFact

    CounterFact Active Member

    Messages:
    131
    Likes Received:
    44
    That's indeed the only argument I can think of that doens't fit WYSIWYG. To fix that I am willing to compromise and make it only carry 1 type unit at the time.
    Nicb1 and christer1966 like this.
  5. Nicb1

    Nicb1 Post Master General

    Messages:
    1,010
    Likes Received:
    1,286
    I quite like that idea. +1 like for you good sir.
  6. brianpurkiss

    brianpurkiss Post Master General

    Messages:
    7,879
    Likes Received:
    7,438
    The issue with multi-unit transports isn't WYSIWYG.

    It's time. Uber only has so much time and there's more important things for them to be working on, since multi-unit transports take a lot of time.
    cptconundrum likes this.
  7. CounterFact

    CounterFact Active Member

    Messages:
    131
    Likes Received:
    44
    Maybe not the best of comparisons, but with orbital as it is now I would've rather seen multi unit transports, then gass giants.
    Maybe you can be swayed by making it multi unit drop pods? :)
  8. MrTBSC

    MrTBSC Post Master General

    Messages:
    4,857
    Likes Received:
    1,823
    how dare people do critisize things they may not like a certain way
  9. squishypon3

    squishypon3 Post Master General

    Messages:
    7,971
    Likes Received:
    4,356
    Not necassarily, it's simple and is even already done in Statera with a transport that holds 10 units. If you make sure to make the cargo hold cover all units within its simple, it's exactly what TA did in fact. The only issue at the moment is that area commands don't make it pick up ten units in succession.
  10. elkanfirst

    elkanfirst Active Member

    Messages:
    216
    Likes Received:
    117
    So, how would you use an empty multiunits transport strategically? Would it make sense in the chaos of the battle to fool your enemy sending against him a bunch of worthless empty transports, while attacking on the other side right after?

    Not seeing what a transport carries along isn't necessarily a bad thing. It can be used for good.
  11. brianpurkiss

    brianpurkiss Post Master General

    Messages:
    7,879
    Likes Received:
    7,438
    But remember all of Uber's talk about "doing it right?" Sure, they could easily make a multi unit transport where units just magically appear in and out of the transport. However, making it "right" where the units move into the right order and right positioning, face the right way, get picked up, and then dropped off... takes a lot of work. They ran into those issues with SupCom transports, and also ran into those things with the Unit Cannon.
    cptconundrum likes this.
  12. tatsujb

    tatsujb Post Master General

    Messages:
    12,902
    Likes Received:
    5,385
    omg, that's it. I'm labelling WYSIWYG as a disease.

    By the way guys.

    [​IMG]
  13. Dementiurge

    Dementiurge Post Master General

    Messages:
    1,094
    Likes Received:
    693
    SupCom used tractor beams to move them into the right place.
    The Astraeus makes units within a certainly radius magically disappear and reappear in its grasp.
    I seriously doubt that a desire to do it 'right' has been the demotivating factor.
  14. brianpurkiss

    brianpurkiss Post Master General

    Messages:
    7,879
    Likes Received:
    7,438
    I'm just telling you what Uber said.

    Uber said SupCom's multi-unit transports were a nightmare to code. And all of those difficulties from SupCom's transports is why we don't have multi-unit transports and the unit cannon in PA.
  15. cptconundrum

    cptconundrum Post Master General

    Messages:
    4,186
    Likes Received:
    4,900
    I have still never encountered a situation where I needed multi-unit transports. The area load command works fine for picking up big armies with lots of transports, so the real reason we don't have it is we don't need it. We just don't see big armies moved around on transports because there are more efficient ways to do it due to the current balance.
    igncom1 likes this.

Share This Page