A Solution for Tech Explosions and Other Ills
Evil.Iguana
Join Date: 2012-11-02 Member: 166120Members
Join Date: 2012-11-02 Member: 166120Members
Idea: After your initial purchase of an upgrade or life form, any future purchase of that upgrade or life form comes at a discount. The discount amount could be set at 50% at first and then adjusted up or down as necessary.
Purpose: Solves the issue of “tech explosions,†wherein a large number of people wait until the late game to make any purchases, by solving the underlying issue of unappealing mid-game units.
Rationale: Life forms like Lerk and Fade, and to a lesser extent many marine upgrades, are underutilized due to the fact that they force the player to forgo early Onos/Exo/etc for something that is easily lost due to bad luck. If it cost half as much to re-buy upgrades you would see more people willing to take the chance to use them, and ultimately more diverse teams even at the endgame.
Side Effects: Applying this to the marine team, which would be necessary for fairness, would necessitate removing the ability to drop weapons for teammates, else you would see people abusing the system to buy their teammates their first weapon at the discounted price. Comm purchased weapons/eggs may also need to be looked at since they will not be a uniform1:1 team:personal resource swap anymore.
Purpose: Solves the issue of “tech explosions,†wherein a large number of people wait until the late game to make any purchases, by solving the underlying issue of unappealing mid-game units.
Rationale: Life forms like Lerk and Fade, and to a lesser extent many marine upgrades, are underutilized due to the fact that they force the player to forgo early Onos/Exo/etc for something that is easily lost due to bad luck. If it cost half as much to re-buy upgrades you would see more people willing to take the chance to use them, and ultimately more diverse teams even at the endgame.
Side Effects: Applying this to the marine team, which would be necessary for fairness, would necessitate removing the ability to drop weapons for teammates, else you would see people abusing the system to buy their teammates their first weapon at the discounted price. Comm purchased weapons/eggs may also need to be looked at since they will not be a uniform1:1 team:personal resource swap anymore.
Comments
My suggestion is this:
The marines need something to spend their res on other than the useless single exo. Yes there is always the old JP+SG combo, but it has its own drawbacks. There are various threads discussing how the current exo could be improved and I think there are many good suggestions(1. you but the suit and guns separately, better guns cost more res, 2. replace it with a more mobile but weaker "heavy" class, etc.)
The aliens mid game is honestly pretty good IMO. I do feel the gorge needs something new to give it something to do during the mid game, but the rest of the classes are perfectly viable with 2 hives.
Purpose: Solves the issue of “tech explosions,†wherein a large number of people wait until the late game to make any purchases, by solving the underlying issue of unappealing mid-game units.
Rationale: Life forms like Lerk and Fade, and to a lesser extent many marine upgrades, are underutilized due to the fact that they force the player to forgo early Onos/Exo/etc for something that is easily lost due to bad luck. If it cost half as much to re-buy upgrades you would see more people willing to take the chance to use them, and ultimately more diverse teams even at the endgame.
Side Effects: Applying this to the marine team, which would be necessary for fairness, would necessitate removing the ability to drop weapons for teammates, else you would see people abusing the system to buy their teammates their first weapon at the discounted price. Comm purchased weapons/eggs may also need to be looked at since they will not be a uniform1:1 team:personal resource swap anymore.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
This is pretty how I always thought hypermutation should work.
When you first go lerk (and upgrade/die with hyper) if you re-evolve to lerk on your next life you get a discount.
Should you not go same lifeform there is no discount same if you die as a skulk or go lerk but die without hyper..the discount is lost.
The % discount should increase with consecutive evolutions....I see this coming in place of marines ability to recycle weapons and a valid/practical use for hypermutation.
My suggestion is this:
The marines need something to spend their res on other than the useless single exo. Yes there is always the old JP+SG combo, but it has its own drawbacks. There are various threads discussing how the current exo could be improved and I think there are many good suggestions(1. you but the suit and guns separately, better guns cost more res, 2. replace it with a more mobile but weaker "heavy" class, etc.)
The aliens mid game is honestly pretty good IMO. I do feel the gorge needs something new to give it something to do during the mid game, but the rest of the classes are perfectly viable with 2 hives.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
My observation, based on extensive public play, is that almost nobody bothers with lerk or fade. They aren't enormous upgrades over the skulk and they can both die very rapidly if you make a small mistake. The best choice is almost always to make due with skulks while saving your resources for the Onos that you will need to finish the game. This lack of variation leads to a shorter lifespan for the game because people will get bored faster.
The point of my change is to make it so that being a dedicated lerk or fade is a viable option, while also lessening the frustration of dying for both teams. The beauty of doing it this way is that there is no change to the timing of the first appearance of any technology. You won't see earlier Lerks, or Fades, or Oni, but you will see more people taking advantage of the lesser life forms in general. It will also enable people to play a bit more aggressively, which is beneficial if you wish to see more variations in strategy.