Infestation Spikes
Cee Colon Slash
Join Date: 2012-05-25 Member: 152581Members
Join Date: 2012-05-25 Member: 152581Members
<div class="IPBDescription">Love them! Now, make them work better! :)</div>They are an interesting addition to the game and I'd love for them to work well - right now there are some frustrating problems with them.
1. If you "use" them on a marine or other structure, they don't plant successfully, but the cooldown is triggered, so you are quite penalized. (Update - you don't lose the Tres.)
2. The placement user interface is awful. I have seen many instances where a marine will happily walk around them because they have been placed north-south in an north-south corridor, if you get what I mean (you would want them to be placed east-west). This could be an easy fix - just use the same interface as you get when placing a turret, phase gate or robot factory.
Updated - it seems (by watching rwryne's excellent stream) that the infestation spikes rotate in context to a nearby marine. As in - they seem to rotate based on where the marine is. It's not intuitive at all.
3. The time limit is a bit of an odd choice, in my opinion - you don't see that dynamic in any other structure or unit. How about you can only place the infestation spikes once, and they have armor and health? If you want to place them somewhere else, you have to cancel them (takes time), or wait for enemy units to destroy them.
1. If you "use" them on a marine or other structure, they don't plant successfully, but the cooldown is triggered, so you are quite penalized. (Update - you don't lose the Tres.)
2. The placement user interface is awful. I have seen many instances where a marine will happily walk around them because they have been placed north-south in an north-south corridor, if you get what I mean (you would want them to be placed east-west). This could be an easy fix - just use the same interface as you get when placing a turret, phase gate or robot factory.
Updated - it seems (by watching rwryne's excellent stream) that the infestation spikes rotate in context to a nearby marine. As in - they seem to rotate based on where the marine is. It's not intuitive at all.
3. The time limit is a bit of an odd choice, in my opinion - you don't see that dynamic in any other structure or unit. How about you can only place the infestation spikes once, and they have armor and health? If you want to place them somewhere else, you have to cancel them (takes time), or wait for enemy units to destroy them.
Comments
too add to that, you can use this as alien commander to find marines anywhere on the map, whether you have LOS or not. IE I can pinpoint marines in their base.
Also, as marine comm, you can see Spores regardless of LOS
I would suggest replacing them with a web AOE ability that the khammander can cast.
it would be a 3D AOE so that it could entangle jetpackers also.
but it could have maybe 0.5-1.0 second fade in time before the full slowing affect is applied so that marines could have a chance to get out of the webbed area - so it doesn't feel cheap (since if they are fast enough can get away, but you are still effectively slowling their push forward., edit: or slowling their retreat)
and also it would look cool seeing web shoot out of the infestation :)
ps gorge needs a web grapple :P<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<!--quoteo(post=1947845:date=Jun 30 2012, 08:15 AM:name=TimMc)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (TimMc @ Jun 30 2012, 08:15 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1947845"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Yeah spikes seem a bit weird. I would have prefered vines, or similar. Vines shoot out of the infestation and pull marines down. Slow them down if already on the floor.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Oh dear. :(
Put ya self in the enemy's shoes. Would you like to respawn. Be locked in a bladed bone prison. Shoot ya way out die to fade. Or don't shoot ya way out die to fade or don't but die to skulk and still be trapped.
Or be in a 1v1 or team based Engadgment were your skill vs the enemy's skill depends on the success of the out come. Did you just back into that fade vortex. Or was the fade skilled enough to drop it on you. Now that your vortexed where can you position your self as you come out of vortex to get revenge or survive.
E.g gorge web. Are your bringing the right tools to counter it. Did you know it w there step or fly into it any way. Or was the gorge clever enough to place it and conceal it in a good manner.
Yes your stuck for a moment yes you lose your weapon for a moment. But you chose to go that way. Chase the gorge. You didn't have a all powerful invisible force come out of no we're and take away your control leading to your demise.
Hard but visually detectable. Maybe even audible. Can be shaded. Placed. Once steeped on snap. Shut bladed damage, hold for fraction of second still allow gun usage, then release.
Even if he didn't see it or hear it first time, he knows it's there now if he steps in it again. Or doesn't report it get the right tool for the job. It's his own fault or lack of skill.
Gorges skill is based on placement. Behind clog wall. On a sharp corner. Set up on a short cut. His accuracy of spit to hinder the marines vision.
Lerk fade kharaamander can also assist. With spores hinder vision. Fade vortex not seein them moving while vortexed coming out on top of one. Comm shade disorient.
Marine jumping them evading them. Is he firing and running crazily is gun flash blocking his view. Is motion blur going to hinder his view of seeing that one defining glowie that says this is a gorge Venus fly trap don't step here. His knowelege skill. Equipment. Maybe they don't like direct beam flash light and shrill at the idea.
I like the idea of bone spike. Wish it wasn't. In coms hands. But I do feel kharaamander needs a little something more active.
Rines have sheild spam nannites building. Kharaa have mist upgrading ____________. Now it's spikes.
Marines have com weapon drop, resupply. Kharaa have egg spawn, chamber activation.
Marines have passive and active structure interaction e.garmor. Arms lab, sentrys. Obst.
Kharaa have active passive chamber interaction.
Both coms have a peon that can assist in battle. One drains energy. Other temp blinds another player control denying ability but not as punishing or lack of skill based as the bone prison idea.
And there should be a limit how often the khamm can use it. A khamm "caged" a marine at the computer lab rt for about 40sec. Maybe the Cooldown (and/or cost) should increase with each use by a second. When you didn't use if for some time the increased cost should decrease.
I don't know if you can jump out but there are other areas where the enemies cant get out. And it's problematic that the marines can't counter it and it just can kept spaming.