To give specific orders, you spend $10 on a microphone and use it. This is the same problem TF2 has faced since release - people try to add game mechanics to cover up for the fact that people are too lazy/socially awkward to use a mic if they want to communicate. Eventually, you get so many indicators flying around on your screen for different things that you can't focus on what you're trying to do and it looks like the GUI from world of warcraft (which, by the way, is the ugliest thing in the world).
I'm as guilty of this as anybody, but NS really shines when people talk to each other and it isn't happening right now in pubs. I would love to see a tooltip that says "use your mic!" in nicer words.
Add "A microphone" to the recommended system requirements. :P
Regardless, the fact remains that voice communication could not replace good indicators (waypoints or markers), because it takes too many words (i.e. one or more) to describe a physical location and an objective - even if every player immediately knew the names of locations around the map, which they don't.
I agree voice should be encouraged, speaking in game is a social practice and should be treated as such. A big contribution in social behavior is imitation, i.e. if some people speaks on a server it will encourage others to speak as well. So what we should do is get a group of people from the community to go on public servers and speak.
Also when you first run the game, the mic configuration panel should pop-up.
<!--quoteo(post=1900443:date=Feb 7 2012, 02:44 AM:name=Harimau)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Harimau @ Feb 7 2012, 02:44 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1900443"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->The proposed method in the design log is close to this objective system. "Need 3 marines here." I just don't like this accept/deny quest thing. And I'm not sure how the commander will give orders so specific (i.e. how many marines, and what are they going to do) - how will he specify that? Waypoints are simple in this respect because you select a group of marines, and you set a location, and it's mostly all context-sensitive. Objectives would be similarly as simple, but would not have fine control such as 'Need <b>this many</b> marines here'. With objectives, though, you're just kind of setting strategic mission objectives, and letting the marines on the ground decide how best to approach them.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Yeah i realized that too later in the evening when i kept thinking. Makes no sense to add random objectives and think all kinds of them up, would be way more usefull if the commander could simply place requests for equipment somewhere.
Kinda like this "5 Marines Move here, with Flamethrower"
That way the commander could easily communicate to his marines "Go here, and take mines with you to mine up" or "Go here, take a GL with you because it's lamed up heavily" because equipment is context sensitive by nature. It would help with team coordination without the commander constantly having to remind people "Uhh drilling is all lamed up, if you go there you need a GL to clear it".
Using voice should be encouraged but one of the big problems of NS1 is thatat the commander has to depend <b>too much</b> on using voice. Using that much voice just to communicate your current strategy all the time to your team distracts from the gameplay, so it would be good in NS2 if the waypoint system would finnaly be somewhat more usefull in telling marines what the commander wants from them.
I think the two most desired feature would be to be able to cancel the waypoints/orders by the commander, and make the Voice chat volume independent from the "main" sound volume so you could hear your teammates' voice (and commander orders) clearly.
I don't recall if they've changed commander chat colors, but it would be good if it was a different color than the rest of the chat. Sometimes you can't hear people clearly enough over mics to get good instructions and you need to get text orders. In fact just highlighting everything about the commander, his "player is talking" bar that shows up, his text, his name on the score board, would be a good idea.
I find that as a commander voice comms to be extremely useful. My only frustration is that a lot of people are not sure where the hell to go :) Even if I could just place up to 2 or 3 "pins" on the map that would show a visual indicator on the screen- with the name of the room- that would be extremely helpful. You could even add attack or defense or move "icons" below the text of the waypoint kinda similar to how you have a little triangle there now. If I want people to defend a room called "Generator" for example- you would see on your screen "Generator" with a little shield icon under it. This will leave things a little more open-ended and user friendly which doesn't require me to select marines and click all over the place when I should be researching those damn shotguns they've been crying for! Then it's just up to me to say on comms- "More people go here.. stop wandering away from the pins...attack that hive...etc.!"
Basically changes Blink to a charging ability with limited flight + invis and invuln; it reminds me of teleportation mechanic but without severely disorienting the Fade player. Once momentum preservation is added to allow further air control, I think it should perform quite well :)
Question: Would the new Blink allow Fade to release hold on Alt-fire to prematurely exit Blink state? I think it would allow for some flexibility for feint tactics and more control over bumping into geometry since you cannot change direction in Blink.
The new blink mechanics are interesting, it does require skill to use and has some depth build into it. While it's not to spammable it could it work very well. Even though I would miss the mobility :).
Would like to see it in action, from both marine and alien perspective. I think it would give us better view how it really feels.
One thing that really pisses me off with blink at the moment is clipping. This may be just me but every time I blink i feel like i always clip some stupid object (Railing, some support strut or something equally as dumb) then suddenly im stopped run out of energy and a marine just pops me. That was the advantage of the teleportation method (which i prefer and wish would return) that this issue didnt occur.
IronHorseDeveloper, QA Manager, Technical Support & contributorJoin Date: 2010-05-08Member: 71669Members, Super Administrators, Forum Admins, Forum Moderators, NS2 Developer, NS2 Playtester, Squad Five Blue, Subnautica Playtester, Subnautica PT Lead, Pistachionauts
edited February 2012
^ this. omg this. i get so frustrated sometimes that one small object or crates just ends me because my legs were too long or something. irl if i were a fade (heh..) i would know my own body's dimension and would not make such mistakes. cant we use some sort of crude bounding box geometry thats used for the map in general to be our only collision? think of a greybox when mapping. props should really not get in the way, and if you're worried about blinking <b><i>into </i></b>them, then just write an exception that says to push the player X amount away from being inside the object before unblinking. (i know i know it sounds so easy in laymen's terms)
I think adding an artificial maximum blink time is a bad idea, because there is already one which is given by the energy drain and the total energy. Use that instead.
About the "free swipe" problem I think the only way to solve it cleanly is to remove invulnerability. The maximum blink time only reduce the range where you can do it.
About the rest you can refer to this thread : <a href="http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/forums/index.php?showtopic=115653" target="_blank">http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/forums/in...howtopic=115653</a> in which we have discussed, implemented and tested these ideas.
<!--quoteo(post=1905871:date=Feb 22 2012, 09:13 AM:name=Floodinator)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Floodinator @ Feb 22 2012, 09:13 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1905871"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->They arent really invisible, you can see the fade moving around in a black cloud or sometimes with umbra or the JP particles.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
qft... if u're in a large room and notice a fade getting shot, run to the exit and eventually u'll see his little black cloud travelin by u and when their blink wears off just end 'em.
Basically changes Blink to a charging ability with limited flight + invis and invuln; it reminds me of teleportation mechanic but without severely disorienting the Fade player. Once momentum preservation is added to allow further air control, I think it should perform quite well :)
Question: Would the new Blink allow Fade to release hold on Alt-fire to prematurely exit Blink state? I think it would allow for some flexibility for feint tactics and more control over bumping into geometry since you cannot change direction in Blink.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
the current implementation works like this: you are in blink mode for 0.4 seconds (not more, not less to allow other clients to predict your visibible/invincible state better) and you keep some momentum. During blink you have full control of your move direction. when you blink in one direction and turn 180° quickly you will fly in the other direction (feinting?)
here is a short video of the fade blink with momentum added, in the end also some skulk testing using similar code as for the fade.
IeptBarakatThe most difficult name to speak ingame.Join Date: 2009-07-10Member: 68107Members, Constellation, NS2 Playtester, Squad Five Blue, NS2 Map Tester, Reinforced - Diamond, Reinforced - Shadow
Are the new blinks still under full movement with the wasd keys? Regarding to sideblinking and reverse blinking.
There was a tweet and mention a long while back about the fade getting a 'double tap' dash where the fade would do a short distance quick blink to any direction the player tapped twice.
just add Yuuki fade mod, it looks far better, its not perfect but looks better.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd--> this...
every time I play public I get annoyed with the fade cuz it works sooo much better in yuuki's fademod which I play almost daily in the gathers. The momentum is easy to understand for everyone, but can be mastered to the effect of being able to counter jp'ing marines, while also making the fade more vulnerable to good teamplay
There are other implementations already that seem better.
I think a static blink duration would be pretty awful.
Come on guys, movement skill visceral experience is key.
You should design movement skill with the highest possible level of skill in mind, even if you can't perform it yourself, and then see how it works at lower levels of ability.
The current mindset seems to be generating ideas from the opposite approach.
Won't a fixed distance blink mean there is an effective deadzone around the fade that a marine will be safe in? I envisage a lot of overshot blinks when attempting to swipe at jetpack wielding marines.
<!--quoteo(post=1905952:date=Feb 22 2012, 08:46 PM:name=MuYeah)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (MuYeah @ Feb 22 2012, 08:46 PM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1905952"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Won't a fixed distance blink mean there is an effective deadzone around the fade that a marine will be safe in? I envisage a lot of overshot blinks when attempting to swipe at jetpack wielding marines.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd--> Yeah, that sounds pretty bad. I guess you can do some very rapid 180 turns to kind of dodge that, but it still sounds quite nasty and definitely not intuitive. Also, it's really difficult to refine any deeper acceleration mechanics or dodging capability to the blink later on if your blink time is static.
---
One of the biggest reasons why NS1 movement can be as natural as it is at best, is that it doesn't have any big binary moves. Everything is either controlled by mouse motion (air curve) or in small portions of trigger time that you can easily adjust (blink, lerk flapping).
I think the only notable exception is leap and it usually gets away because as a 2nd hive skulk you're usually headbutting something nearby or flying around big distances. The skulk also has the bhop related stuff for finesse whenever leap feels too big. Meanwhile as a NS2 fade you can't really headbutt anything due to the blink nature and you've got no alternative when finesse is needed.
IronHorseDeveloper, QA Manager, Technical Support & contributorJoin Date: 2010-05-08Member: 71669Members, Super Administrators, Forum Admins, Forum Moderators, NS2 Developer, NS2 Playtester, Squad Five Blue, Subnautica Playtester, Subnautica PT Lead, Pistachionauts
edited February 2012
<!--quoteo(post=1905921:date=Feb 22 2012, 09:42 AM:name=kingmob)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (kingmob @ Feb 22 2012, 09:42 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1905921"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->I don't feel helpless against a fade. I feel it is incredibly hard. I feel like i need other people.
I am fine with trying to limit the "free-swipe" when coming out of a blink.
But be careful...the Fade is an EVENT Don't loose that magic.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd--> ^ i am in this mindset. its the only thing making him too good, not his invisibility as i can see the cloud! i can literally unblink and swipe at the same time. i don't know if that mentioned 0.4 was the timing until the fade is allowed to swipe out of a blink, but man it sure doesnt feel like its enough time, thats for sure - it feels instant, every time.
and any argument that this is needed currently to get JPers is neutralized if more momentum is put in, which in turn increases skill level in regards to timing etc. :)
edit: like i've said previously, if the time being extended for swiping out of blink concerns someone that the player will just be confused or click furiously, just have an animation/sound showing the fade unfurl his crossed arms for when its ready?
I like the idea of preserving momentum when coming out of a blink. This will make it much easier for us fades to actually stand a chance against jetpackers. Perhaps I'm just a newb, but as a fade if I run across a decent jetpacker I'm going to lose 1 on 1 almost every time unless I catch the bugger in a hallway or something.
Have you thought about adding a minor charge time for entering blink? Currently blink is instantaneous, it might make it more fair to the marines if it would take a half second for fades to enter blink mode. This would also cause the people playing as the fade to be more cautious during their hit and run attacks. The only downside to adding a charge time to getting in to blink mode (and again the charge time should be very small, a quarter second or so) would be land mines. I currently love to use the fade to destroy mine fields dropped by marines. If I see that my skulk buddies can't get down a hallway because there are a bunch of mines, I'll blink on top of them and blink away super quick so that they explode.
I'm very against setting a fixed blink time as shown in the video. One of the nicest things about fades is that they can be treated as fast response units. When a hive is being attacked on the complete other side of the map and it's practically defenseless, being able to get there as the fade in the period of 30-40 seconds is damn nice. I feel like adding a fixed time will make people use blink like people use rolling in zelda games.
swalkSay hello to my little friend.Join Date: 2011-01-20Member: 78384Members, Squad Five Blue
<!--quoteo(post=1905901:date=Feb 22 2012, 05:28 PM:name=Schimmel)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Schimmel @ Feb 22 2012, 05:28 PM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1905901"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->the current implementation works like this: you are in blink mode for 0.4 seconds (not more, not less to allow other clients to predict your visibible/invincible state better) and you keep some momentum. During blink you have full control of your move direction. when you blink in one direction and turn 180° quickly you will fly in the other direction (feinting?)
here is a short video of the fade blink with momentum added, in the end also some skulk testing using similar code as for the fade.
<center><object width="450" height="356"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/IPenMr9odTA"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/IPenMr9odTA" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="450" height="356"></embed></object></center><!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd--> That both looks and sounds very restricting. The fixed blink distance is not a great idea, it limits possibilities for fade movement. And it is overly complicated and unintuitive. The adrenaline drain seems incredibly low. If you just remove the fixed blink distance and keep the momentum, you still end up with fades being able to be in blink for too long distances. Try looking at Yuuki's fade momentum mod again, that is definitly a better solution than this. The mod greatly limits the distances fades can be in blink, due to the increased drain, and increasing drain the more you stay in blink. It works as a great balance for fade vs rifle, and fade vs jetpack. Rifle are now able to put more bullets into the fade instead of instantly dieing, and fades can catch the jetpackers.
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->1. The alien commander needs more ways to buff and protect aliens. Pheromones will help guide and coordinate aliens, but I think he needs another way to make his teammates more effective (like nano-shield and health/ammo packs for Marine Commander).<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Now that's what we're talking about! More interaction between lifeforms and Khamm, I think something like Phantasm (the +use concept) would be great.
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->2. NS1 started out by linking lifeforms to hives and then moved away from it. I really like the theme of new lifeforms showing up with new hives, but it does result in a massive power differential. A Hive 1 Fade could blink, but couldn’t Metabolize. A Hive 1 Onor could Devour, but not Stomp. Now that new abilities are planned for each alien at each hive (this is only recent), then perhaps unchaining lifeforms from hives would be a great first step. This is especially true now that the Fade has his Shadow Step always (kind of a mini-blink).<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I'd like to try Fading w/o Blink for Hive 1, and with Shadow Step it should help with mobility earlier on. It could still be a heck of a tanking unit, at least until shotguns come about :P
Isn't it more the gorges job to support aliens? I think the alien commander should really be more occupied with the grander scheme of things rather than turning him into an exact copy of the marine commander who requires more micro-management. Though they should definitely look at the interaction between gorges and the kham in relation to map control, since that is really an area still in need of a lot of improvement. (P.res on cysts is a good step in this process)
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->This would add more dynamics to the game and still give either team a chance to pull out a win. It would also put a higher priority to having resources and map control rather than "2 hives".â€<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd--> I greatly welcome this, though for this to succeed alien map control REALLY needs to be looked at: - Hydras are far too lacklustre in their ability to 'hold up' marines trying to enter an area, unlike for example a simple sentry in a hallway for marines. (They need to be viable at 1-hive level, without goo) - Alien commander needs to be able to place infestation on walls and celings, at ground level cysts are far too vulnerable. In addition, it could be interesting to have upgrades for infestation, i.e crag hive could allow for stronger cysts, shade hive could allow for cloaked cysts.
Currently alien 'map control' consists primarily out of aliens continuously putting pressure on marines from that point onward, requiring all or most aliens to be present in a given area if it is being overrun by marines. At just 1-hive, with the current poor map control mechanisms in place, aliens will easily find them out of the game if they decide to stick with just 1 hive and focus on resources.
Also, I'm not convinced just taking blink away,, keeping sidestep, from 1-hive fades is going to be enough to keep them from dominating the game like they would with a fast 2-hive scheme currently. Though it definitely sounds like a good thing to try out.
Comments
I'm as guilty of this as anybody, but NS really shines when people talk to each other and it isn't happening right now in pubs. I would love to see a tooltip that says "use your mic!" in nicer words.
Regardless, the fact remains that voice communication could not replace good indicators (waypoints or markers), because it takes too many words (i.e. one or more) to describe a physical location and an objective - even if every player immediately knew the names of locations around the map, which they don't.
Also when you first run the game, the mic configuration panel should pop-up.
"Need 3 marines here."
I just don't like this accept/deny quest thing.
And I'm not sure how the commander will give orders so specific (i.e. how many marines, and what are they going to do) - how will he specify that? Waypoints are simple in this respect because you select a group of marines, and you set a location, and it's mostly all context-sensitive. Objectives would be similarly as simple, but would not have fine control such as 'Need <b>this many</b> marines here'. With objectives, though, you're just kind of setting strategic mission objectives, and letting the marines on the ground decide how best to approach them.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Yeah i realized that too later in the evening when i kept thinking.
Makes no sense to add random objectives and think all kinds of them up, would be way more usefull if the commander could simply place requests for equipment somewhere.
Kinda like this "5 Marines Move here, with Flamethrower"
That way the commander could easily communicate to his marines "Go here, and take mines with you to mine up" or "Go here, take a GL with you because it's lamed up heavily" because equipment is context sensitive by nature.
It would help with team coordination without the commander constantly having to remind people "Uhh drilling is all lamed up, if you go there you need a GL to clear it".
Using voice should be encouraged but one of the big problems of NS1 is thatat the commander has to depend <b>too much</b> on using voice.
Using that much voice just to communicate your current strategy all the time to your team distracts from the gameplay, so it would be good in NS2 if the waypoint system would finnaly be somewhat more usefull in telling marines what the commander wants from them.
Basically changes Blink to a charging ability with limited flight + invis and invuln; it reminds me of teleportation mechanic but without severely disorienting the Fade player. Once momentum preservation is added to allow further air control, I think it should perform quite well :)
Question: Would the new Blink allow Fade to release hold on Alt-fire to prematurely exit Blink state? I think it would allow for some flexibility for feint tactics and more control over bumping into geometry since you cannot change direction in Blink.
Would like to see it in action, from both marine and alien perspective. I think it would give us better view how it really feels.
i get so frustrated sometimes that one small object or crates just ends me because my legs were too long or something. irl if i were a fade (heh..) i would know my own body's dimension and would not make such mistakes. cant we use some sort of crude bounding box geometry thats used for the map in general to be our only collision? think of a greybox when mapping. props should really not get in the way, and if you're worried about blinking <b><i>into </i></b>them, then just write an exception that says to push the player X amount away from being inside the object before unblinking. (i know i know it sounds so easy in laymen's terms)
About the "free swipe" problem I think the only way to solve it cleanly is to remove invulnerability. The maximum blink time only reduce the range where you can do it.
About the rest you can refer to this thread : <a href="http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/forums/index.php?showtopic=115653" target="_blank">http://www.unknownworlds.com/ns2/forums/in...howtopic=115653</a> in which we have discussed, implemented and tested these ideas.
qft... if u're in a large room and notice a fade getting shot, run to the exit and eventually u'll see his little black cloud travelin by u and when their blink wears off just end 'em.
Basically changes Blink to a charging ability with limited flight + invis and invuln; it reminds me of teleportation mechanic but without severely disorienting the Fade player. Once momentum preservation is added to allow further air control, I think it should perform quite well :)
Question: Would the new Blink allow Fade to release hold on Alt-fire to prematurely exit Blink state? I think it would allow for some flexibility for feint tactics and more control over bumping into geometry since you cannot change direction in Blink.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
the current implementation works like this: you are in blink mode for 0.4 seconds (not more, not less to allow other clients to predict your visibible/invincible state better) and you keep some momentum. During blink you have full control of your move direction. when you blink in one direction and turn 180° quickly you will fly in the other direction (feinting?)
here is a short video of the fade blink with momentum added, in the end also some skulk testing using similar code as for the fade.
<center><object width="450" height="356"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/IPenMr9odTA"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/IPenMr9odTA" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="450" height="356"></embed></object></center>
There was a tweet and mention a long while back about the fade getting a 'double tap' dash where the fade would do a short distance quick blink to any direction the player tapped twice.
I feel it is incredibly hard.
I feel like i need other people.
I am fine with trying to limit the "free-swipe" when coming out of a blink.
But be careful...the Fade is an EVENT
Don't loose that magic.
just add Yuuki fade mod, it looks far better, its not perfect but looks better.
just add Yuuki fade mod, it looks far better, its not perfect but looks better.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
this...
every time I play public I get annoyed with the fade cuz it works sooo much better in yuuki's fademod which I play almost daily in the gathers. The momentum is easy to understand for everyone, but can be mastered to the effect of being able to counter jp'ing marines, while also making the fade more vulnerable to good teamplay
I think a static blink duration would be pretty awful.
Come on guys, movement skill visceral experience is key.
You should design movement skill with the highest possible level of skill in mind, even if you can't perform it yourself, and then see how it works at lower levels of ability.
The current mindset seems to be generating ideas from the opposite approach.
Yeah, that sounds pretty bad. I guess you can do some very rapid 180 turns to kind of dodge that, but it still sounds quite nasty and definitely not intuitive. Also, it's really difficult to refine any deeper acceleration mechanics or dodging capability to the blink later on if your blink time is static.
---
One of the biggest reasons why NS1 movement can be as natural as it is at best, is that it doesn't have any big binary moves. Everything is either controlled by mouse motion (air curve) or in small portions of trigger time that you can easily adjust (blink, lerk flapping).
I think the only notable exception is leap and it usually gets away because as a 2nd hive skulk you're usually headbutting something nearby or flying around big distances. The skulk also has the bhop related stuff for finesse whenever leap feels too big. Meanwhile as a NS2 fade you can't really headbutt anything due to the blink nature and you've got no alternative when finesse is needed.
--Cory
I feel it is incredibly hard.
I feel like i need other people.
I am fine with trying to limit the "free-swipe" when coming out of a blink.
But be careful...the Fade is an EVENT
Don't loose that magic.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
^ i am in this mindset. its the only thing making him too good, not his invisibility as i can see the cloud! i can literally unblink and swipe at the same time. i don't know if that mentioned 0.4 was the timing until the fade is allowed to swipe out of a blink, but man it sure doesnt feel like its enough time, thats for sure - it feels instant, every time.
and any argument that this is needed currently to get JPers is neutralized if more momentum is put in, which in turn increases skill level in regards to timing etc. :)
edit: like i've said previously, if the time being extended for swiping out of blink concerns someone that the player will just be confused or click furiously, just have an animation/sound showing the fade unfurl his crossed arms for when its ready?
Have you thought about adding a minor charge time for entering blink? Currently blink is instantaneous, it might make it more fair to the marines if it would take a half second for fades to enter blink mode. This would also cause the people playing as the fade to be more cautious during their hit and run attacks. The only downside to adding a charge time to getting in to blink mode (and again the charge time should be very small, a quarter second or so) would be land mines. I currently love to use the fade to destroy mine fields dropped by marines. If I see that my skulk buddies can't get down a hallway because there are a bunch of mines, I'll blink on top of them and blink away super quick so that they explode.
I'm very against setting a fixed blink time as shown in the video. One of the nicest things about fades is that they can be treated as fast response units. When a hive is being attacked on the complete other side of the map and it's practically defenseless, being able to get there as the fade in the period of 30-40 seconds is damn nice. I feel like adding a fixed time will make people use blink like people use rolling in zelda games.
here is a short video of the fade blink with momentum added, in the end also some skulk testing using similar code as for the fade.
<center><object width="450" height="356"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/IPenMr9odTA"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/IPenMr9odTA" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="450" height="356"></embed></object></center><!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
That both looks and sounds very restricting.
The fixed blink distance is not a great idea, it limits possibilities for fade movement. And it is overly complicated and unintuitive.
The adrenaline drain seems incredibly low.
If you just remove the fixed blink distance and keep the momentum, you still end up with fades being able to be in blink for too long distances.
Try looking at Yuuki's fade momentum mod again, that is definitly a better solution than this.
The mod greatly limits the distances fades can be in blink, due to the increased drain, and increasing drain the more you stay in blink.
It works as a great balance for fade vs rifle, and fade vs jetpack.
Rifle are now able to put more bullets into the fade instead of instantly dieing, and fades can catch the jetpackers.
Now that's what we're talking about! More interaction between lifeforms and Khamm, I think something like Phantasm (the +use concept) would be great.
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->2. NS1 started out by linking lifeforms to hives and then moved away from it. I really like the theme of new lifeforms showing up with new hives, but it does result in a massive power differential. A Hive 1 Fade could blink, but couldn’t Metabolize. A Hive 1 Onor could Devour, but not Stomp. Now that new abilities are planned for each alien at each hive (this is only recent), then perhaps unchaining lifeforms from hives would be a great first step. This is especially true now that the Fade has his Shadow Step always (kind of a mini-blink).<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I'd like to try Fading w/o Blink for Hive 1, and with Shadow Step it should help with mobility earlier on. It could still be a heck of a tanking unit, at least until shotguns come about :P
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->This would add more dynamics to the game and still give either team a chance to pull out a win. It would also put a higher priority to having resources and map control rather than "2 hives".â€<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd--> I greatly welcome this, though for this to succeed alien map control REALLY needs to be looked at:
- Hydras are far too lacklustre in their ability to 'hold up' marines trying to enter an area, unlike for example a simple sentry in a hallway for marines. (They need to be viable at 1-hive level, without goo)
- Alien commander needs to be able to place infestation on walls and celings, at ground level cysts are far too vulnerable. In addition, it could be interesting to have upgrades for infestation, i.e crag hive could allow for stronger cysts, shade hive could allow for cloaked cysts.
Currently alien 'map control' consists primarily out of aliens continuously putting pressure on marines from that point onward, requiring all or most aliens to be present in a given area if it is being overrun by marines. At just 1-hive, with the current poor map control mechanisms in place, aliens will easily find them out of the game if they decide to stick with just 1 hive and focus on resources.
Also, I'm not convinced just taking blink away,, keeping sidestep, from 1-hive fades is going to be enough to keep them from dominating the game like they would with a fast 2-hive scheme currently. Though it definitely sounds like a good thing to try out.