Been thinking about some gameplay aspects and some holes that need filling up and a space station to either be built by the orbital launcher or by an orbital builder which is itself built by the orbital launcher could solve quite a few of these, with the hope that it doesn't create too many more. I know forum member verybad sort of touched on something similar but I wanted to re-pitch this idea and focus more on a space station as the stepping point for all the other possibilities verybad mentioned. This space station would have either “sockets” or a “terrain” of sorts to build upon. And it could either be stationary above the orbital launcher (tethered to it) or it could be moved about the planet like other orbiting units, though much more slowly. Either approach has pros and cons. Having it stationary would require additional orbital launchers to be built in different locations, but this could also create the need for player to build more structures, which in turn means more destruction. If the station is connected or tethered to the orbital launcher, however, then destroying the launcher would either destroy or power down the station. If the station can be moved and is not attached to the orbital launcher then it could be brought down by enemy orbital fighters or possibly the umbrella defense structure, maybe even a nuke. I see value to both the tethered and un-tethered versions of the station. But curious what others think, if they like any of this at all? The Space Station would be necessary for building orbital defense turrets, orbital units like the fighters that are currently built by the launcher, and planet to planet super weapons like the nuclear missile and anti-nuclear missile launchers. Even a counter for the current end game Halley Engine Weapon could be built at this station, and would prove a needed counter for that end game move. All of these structures would be built into/onto the space station. (Again you either limit the amount of additions by having slots or by space, thus requiring more than one station if defending a larger area of the planet or the whole planet from orbital attacks.) I think it’s important to keep the player grounded for a time, and having these extra steps for the player to reach orbit and then travel to other planets would help create a kind of leveled progression that is more noticeable by other players, and in turn this allows for more counters by enemy players and AI at each stage of this progression. But it also offers a higher risk/reward level for players who want to rush to orbit. The path for the player to reach and establish the space station would be: establish economy, build orbital launcher, build orbital builder, use orbital builder(s) to build space station in orbit, then build additional structures upon this new “base.” Additional structures including: orbital long range radar, solar arrays, nuclear missile launcher, etc., would be built by this orbital builder. This "path" to leaving the planet would create a more pronounced and visual space race which will take longer, require more resources, more player investment, and ultimately allows for more opportunities for opposing armies to counter this progression. This structure and the path to building this structure could solve several problems with the current build: Currently too easy to leave the planet. Curiously it is also tedious to leave the planet, one unit at a time. There are no real counters in play for opposing armies save destroying a players orbital launcher. There is no real counter for orbital units currently in game. The loader is only "attackable" from orbit for a short period as it enters a planet's orbit. Orbital fighters are overlooked and wasted currently as they have very little use and purpose currently. There is no current counter for the Halley Engine "annihilate" attack. There are no current planet to planet attacks that are not end all. There are no current planet to planet attack counters. There are no real counters to having orbital units in play for opposing armies save destroying a players orbital launcher or building your own and then building orbital fighters. The orbit paths currently in-game and the ETA one can plan for with these visual flight paths so having more strategic units and structures designed to help the player who is scrambling to counter an incoming loader, attack, invasion, or super weapon would add much to player’s story with each battle. As with all things please point out any flaws in this idea. I know there are many. Cheers.
At the moment i think the orbit is realy hard balanced. I mean if you have a lot of fighters you can control the whole orbit even with the laser you can control everything on the ground. But to put a new layer in the game with a space station to put the playground space in the battle makes no sense. Also the devs says that there will be no space fight.
This seems almost like a cross between an Orbital Expansion and a Modular Unit mod. Both of which I know are in the process of being designed already. However, I feel it prudent to mention that in terms of your rationale for this proposal, a lot of the bullet points you raise are likely to be addressed when Uber 'revisits' orbital, as they have stated they intend to.
I still think they should get rid of the orbital laser and just ad frigates instead, with multiple turrets and weaker bomboardment cannons. But apparently Uber has said no to this. I really wish they would give us more details, even with the units currently in the gamefiles. :/
I would just like to point out that, yeah it is easy to get into space, but that is the whole point. Keeping the player grounded is just a bad move when there are going to be more planets added in so that there will be multiple battles on multiple planets. Also, there is no "end game" move; we are currently still in beta, which means that not everything is flushed out. When planet collision is completed (from my understanding) asteroids will only take so much of the planet out (not EVERYTHING like it does now). It just seems to me that a lot of threads like this are just people (not saying that you actually are) trying to change a part of the game that they always lose to. Yes it still needs to be balanced a little and the devs are working hard on that aspect, but to limit the players to staying away from space is like having a Mario game without any power-ups until he meets Bowser. Yes it is clear by just reading the forums that orbital units are a little overpowered atm and it is currently tedious to get units to other planets, but the devs have stated that there are going to be fixes to this in future updates.
Eh. The majority of your bullet points are already being worked on by Uber without the need for a complex space station. The biggest issue with the space station is simple, first one to build one pretty much wins. And if you lose your space station, it'd be practically impossible to get one back up since your opponent would control space.
I would like to see a space station or factory of sorts in orbit. But instead of it building more stuff for use in orbit, we could give it a specialised task. This could be invading other planets. I could imagine large structures or vehicles being build in orbit. (normally to large to sent into orbit) These new units would then be sent to the surface of a planet and staying there using disposable retro rockets. It could build droppods containing a few bots/tanks, larger interplanetary tansports, factories that upon landing start producing units.
Yeah you would have to have ways to drop stations out of the sky which means more units and changes, which means more balancing, etc. I didn't think it was a perfect idea but my want for it blinded me to its flaws. I appreciate the input. You are definitely right there. I guess it depends on how the game progresses, as I think having the option to have armies start on different planets as the way i would like the game to go. A station works more in a situation where players start on their own planets and have to crack their enemies defenses before invading. But i don't have a bead on UBER's plans, still new to the forum. I know having units and ways to attack from planet to planet, say nukes and the like, would add so much though. *Where do you find all the info on what UBER has planned? You're a veteran here, and I a noob so your wisdom would be most appreciated. Cheers,
Yeah having more invasion options, regardless of how it is done, would be stellar. I am sure UBER is aware of this but i am still so new to this i dont know where to look to find out. Maybe the answer, going with your idea here is a giant loader that can pick up large amounts of units at one time or maybe even structures. Although, imagine being able to pick up a loaded nuke silo, dropping it on another world and launching, there would have to be limits. A single loader to drop off a builder is not really quite the invasion that makes you panic. However, if it's done on the sly it can be rather entertaining to suddenly see an army pop up and attack. Cheers,
Check out the FAQ thread: https://forums.uberent.com/threads/frequently-asked-questions.54326/ And the confirmed features list: https://forums.uberent.com/threads/confirmed-features-list-2-0.44950/
I definitely don't want to keep the player ground, I apologize, I should have stated this more clearly. I think it would add to each game if the player was grounded for longer, that's all. There are various ways that UBER could look at this. (I am sure they already have, have the fixes in ready to play, and are on to other things by now.) But you really want to have more opportunities for armies to counter each other before they can reach that "tech level." Maybe having it so only the advanced air builder can build the orbital launcher may be a better way to handle it and make the race to orbit more work, and thus more rewarding. Yeah I know it's a beta, right now the Halley’s are an end game unless everyone jumps off world before it hits. I hope nothing I posted implies that I think the game is broken or flawed, or that I don't think UBER knows what they are doing. My bullet points were simply to give some merit to the idea of a space station. But I respect you for checking me on this. You're right, a lot of these ideas can be to change a part of the game the player is struggling with, and while that may not be the right motive for pitching a change, the idea still could have merit. Here I am just sound boarding an idea about ways to supplement the game, and yeah I likely posted this in the wrong area. (I've never really played in a forum before. I should have probably posted this in the Modding thread, if there is one.) I tend to jump planet as fast as possible, and I think having more obstacles in my path jump off world would make it that much more interesting.
I wasn't trying to sound like I was accusing you of anything, I was just trying to flush out your thought process out a little Jester, and I do agree a little that it is easy to get into space (though I like that). What I actually believe is that it should be harder to gain control of space (I also think that this is what you are talking about as well). I am an original Total Annihilation player, and because of that, I have the mentality that the entire map should be mine (rapid, stable expansion). With that thought in mind, I have the belief that when I encounter the enemy on at least two fronts that I have gone as far as I "freely" can. Then I remember that there is a completely other planet to control, so I don't even think about using space to collapse their base, but to get more mex from the other planet and use that to dominate economy. There has been only one time (out of many successes and epic failures) that my strategy has come to a standstill. That was when each player controlled a different planet and neither of us could attack the other (which happens to be what Brian is concerned about). So to fully state my opinion I shall say, no we don't need to make it harder to get into space, but, maybe with the addition of ground units that can attack orbital, it should be harder to control the orbital layer.
