Orbital: The tech 3 layer

f uck that, can't you guys leave things the way it is for once?

Pantsburgh, and what happens when they start on totally different planets?

They are forced to wait 15 minutes to 'tech up' enough to engage in anything more than smack-talk with their opponent?

this is not TA or SupCom anymore
battlefields and startlocations can vary a lot
and also are a factor to what strategy to go first
not just what terain it is you start on but what planet too ..

pretty much this .. i also imagine it very boring to watch AND play when nothing is happening for 15 minutes in a 1v1v1v1 on 4 different planets

.. so no we can´t ..

15 minutes is totally bad, whatever the cost I'd be rushing that asteroid.

(and different planet start points holds the implicit message that it'll be a game of above 15mins)

someone there who wants to test how long it would take to rush orbital platform ?

Um, well, yeah. They are kind of starting on totally different planets. If they want to engage their opponent faster maybe they should start on the same solar body? If they are rushing orbital without any regard for base defense I'm sure that cuts down to less than 10. That sounds very reasonable to me.

Additionally, you need to have some sort of economy and stuff going to be able to build things like asteroid engines or unit launchers, which I imagine are going to be fairly expensive. Having asteroids crash into you 10 minutes into the game would be lame in my opinion.

One is reminded of a classic joke:

Patient: "Help me, Doctor! It really, really hurts when I do this."
Doctor: "Well, then don't do that."​

In other words, it's an entirely self-inflicted problem.

Not when random spawn points are a thing.

Would it not then make more sense to solve this by creating an option to restrict random spawns to the same planet instead of modifying a large chunk of the game balance?

If you have more than one planet for a 1 v 1...then it's your own fault. I reckon everyone should start on one planet and then expand into the solar system.

I'm really glad this thread wasn't a justification for Orbital being a third tier.

Anyways, I think the idea is that you won't need to heavily modify game balance to compensate for widely separated spawn points. Ideally, you will be able to attack your enemy within the first 10 minutes of a game (mind you, with a super-preemptive rush that is very well-scouted). If players have to wait 20-30 minutes before even being able to engage their enemy, the game as a whole will end up very similar to SupCom's Seton's Clutch (which was the best example of a WORST MAP EVER IN EVER).

Players just sit on their spawn point/spawn continent/spawn planet and build up their economy until they have an entire base consisting of nuclear missile silos and assisting engineers, and a standing army + base defenses significant enough to defend the entire planet from any incursions ever. Or they rush an Asteroid to obliterate the enemy planets. Or something else stupid and involving more economical management than actual gameplay and strategy.

I think that things like the cost of orbital are placeholders and can easily be tested and balanced in Beta.

also:

So the game is allowed to be strategically bankrupt for the first twenty minutes of the game... because it's 'you're own fault' for wanting to play a match on more than just a single planet... which is kind of the whole point of Planetary Annihilation; multiple planets.

Your solution is to force people into playing on one planet. In a 20v20 player mega battle... you want them all to start on one planet? Because you're adverse to giving the players more strategic options in the early game?

... m'kay. I'm glad you're not a game designer.

... LOL WOOT ? are you seriuos ?

so you want a restriction that forces players to start on one planet in a game that is actualy about
to start and/or play on multiple planets?

well how would you go about it? stick them all on 1 planet or make them start on different? either way at the moment you will be bankrupt...or need to spend ALOT of time on getting your teirs up before you can attack

Make (some) Orbital Units Cheap.

It's really that simple.

Seconded.