23,000 LY And A Mistake: Would Fully Functional AFMU's Be Overpowered?

[zdaar]

I must admit, when I did crack my canopy last night even though I'm now in danger of losing a weeks progress with one more mistake it did make me laugh. It added some excitement and danger.

I now have to try and get back without it blowing out. If I manage that there will be an added sense of achievement

Exactly. Yesterday I was trading out in Open play in my t6, it was late and I had ONE last back and forth run to finally get my asp. In a hurry, I boost out to the letterbox "I have shields I am safe let's do this." and proceed to smash just under it at full speed, knocking off my shields and leaving me at 5% hull. I decided screw it, I'm going anyway. On the way to the next station, can you guess what happens according to murphy's law ?
That's right, interdicted. Granted I did use the (pretty ridiculous) Submit boost boost jump away, and it was only a NPC interdiction but man, the thrill ? I docked feeling so pumped up of adrenaline on arrival, only to realize my destination outpost had no repair of course. Reloaded a full cargo, did it again...

 

[Phosfurious]

Actually clicked yes on the poll on accident because I misread "overpowered" as "actually of use." Currently, I can't think of a good enough reason to install an AFMU even ignoring exploration. The ideas floating around here are really solid, and I hope that some of them get implemented sooner rather than later. Some may be easier to implement than others, so I can't expect all of them. To add just a bit to the route planner ideas, how about this?

Manual route planning system
-To start, suggest all jumps within 2 or so jumps of the current system.
-After selecting an initial course, position the manual planner at the last system along the line and repeat the above ad nauseum. (Less waiting for everything within x radius before you can plot the way you want to go.)
-Manual routes can have orders of magnitude more range . (No need for calculating all the side jumps)
-Allow manual selection of which routes to take. (Think dragging route line on google maps to avoid known t-tauri)
-Retain one or more manual routes upon restart.
-This system can be its own item, hell make it a utility slot if you like (those are useless to explorers anyway).

As for the AFMU, can someone breakdown what it is actually useful for?

 

[Hawkmoon]

I would say yes to repairing all systems but no to repairing the hull, there has to be some risk to exploration, even people that use shield cells can still be one shotted. I like the idea of coming back from deep space with the hull only my grim determination holding the hull together. With the thrusters it just seems wrong that they cannot be repaired to me, if all the othere systems can be the they can as well.

 

[Lodorenos]

Actually clicked yes on the poll on accident because I misread "overpowered" as "actually of use." Currently, I can't think of a good enough reason to install an AFMU even ignoring exploration. The ideas floating around here are really solid, and I hope that some of them get implemented sooner rather than later. Some may be easier to implement than others, so I can't expect all of them. To add just a bit to the route planner ideas, how about this?

Manual route planning system
-To start, suggest all jumps within 2 or so jumps of the current system.
-After selecting an initial course, position the manual planner at the last system along the line and repeat the above ad nauseum. (Less waiting for everything within x radius before you can plot the way you want to go.)
-Manual routes can have orders of magnitude more range . (No need for calculating all the side jumps)
-Allow manual selection of which routes to take. (Think dragging route line on google maps to avoid known t-tauri)
-Retain one or more manual routes upon restart.
-This system can be its own item, hell make it a utility slot if you like (those are useless to explorers anyway).

As for the AFMU, can someone breakdown what it is actually useful for?

Imagine being stuck in a submarine. It is beaten, broken, water is flowing in fast and the engines have failed. You have a special high tech drone that can carry out repairs, all you have to do is select which part of the sub you want to repair. "Great! I'm SAVED!", you think as you boot it up.

"Greetings, I am RepairBot, please select the option you wish:"

"Aw yis, let me just select the hull and engines and I'll be golden!"

"Options listing...
1. Toaster
2. Shower head
3. Wobbly table
4. Deck of cards
...end of options".

It repairs the useless stuff for you, but your hull will fail before any non-critical modules reach 0%. The AFMU is completely useless.

 

[Suxamethonium]

I agree it should be made fully functional but perhaps slow. Thus it would be useless in combat, and unlikely to be put on ships that would see combat, but could help repair your ship a long way from home.

I also think exploration should be better developed and better rewarded. I just returned to habited space after a shortish exploration flight (only out to the Coalsack), however as I spent a fair bit of time getting detailed scans of possible terraforming or other interesting spots it was several hours of gametime. In return I made maybe half a mil (not even covering the costs of the scanners yet!) At present it seems that exploration is really underdeveloped (amongst other things). As I have no interest in the only profession which is developed and profitable (space truck simulator) it makes for a long way to the top!

 

[Commander Dave]

It would be handy to have some equipment specifically designed for explorers.
I'm thinking that there could be an explorer's organisation in-game that you'd have to join in order to purchase such equipment. Perhaps by gaining rep, minimum systems already explored to get better stuff, performance of missions, purchase of a license, qualification parameters etc... etc...
Dunno.
I floated a similar idea for player news feeds in the DDF a while back. It would work for explorers too.

 

[777Driver]

I don't see any point to the damn thing if it can't actually repair anything important.

It defintely helped me whilst on a trip to the California Nebula. If your FSD takes moderate damage it will start cutting out when you try to charge it, managed to get it repaired with my AFMU, think I would have self destructed if I had to do 400+ jumps with a faulty FSD.

 

[Gibbonici]

I would say yes to repairing all systems but no to repairing the hull, there has to be some risk to exploration, even people that use shield cells can still be one shotted. I like the idea of coming back from deep space with the hull only my grim determination holding the hull together. With the thrusters it just seems wrong that they cannot be repaired to me, if all the othere systems can be the they can as well.

I'm with you on that. What I'd like to see is some kind of manufactory module that takes mined resources and uses them to produce hull plates.

Ideally, the module chain required for this wouldn't be practical for one ship to carry while still being an effective explorer (or gunship or whatever), and would require a few ships working cooperatively to use. This way, exploration is still doable for very careful solo explorers (as it is now), but would give an opportunity for groups to do longer-range deep, deep space journeys.

There could even be a welding module that fits in a weapon hardpoint that you load up with produced hull plates like ammo, and which you then use to repair team-mates' hulls.

This would obviously be ace for explorers, but it'd also be a cool thing for pirate gangs and other groups who would benefit from a bit of self-sufficiency away from stations.

 

[zdaar]

I'm with you on that. What I'd like to see is some kind of manufactory module that takes mined resources and uses them to produce hull plates.

Ideally, the module chain required for this wouldn't be practical for one ship to carry while still being an effective explorer (or gunship or whatever), and would require a few ships working cooperatively to use. This way, exploration is still doable for very careful solo explorers (as it is now), but would give an opportunity for groups to do longer-range deep, deep space journeys.

There could even be a welding module that fits in a weapon hardpoint that you load up with produced hull plates like ammo, and which you then use to repair team-mates' hulls.

This would obviously be ace for explorers, but it'd also be a cool thing for pirate gangs and other groups who would benefit from a bit of self-sufficiency away from stations.

Sounds an awful lot like a mmo healer to me :/

 

[Gibbonici]

Sounds an awful lot like a mmo healer to me :/

Apart from the fact that the "healing" would take several players and a good bit of time to do. I'm not talking about pressing a button and your ship's fixed, I'm talking about a procedure that requires a coordinated, hands-on effort to achieve.

 

[Nyito]

Only read the first two pages, so I'm unsure if this was mentioned, but my only concern with it would actually be ammo cost. Many of the later ships cost many many thousands of credits if you scratch the paint, so ammo would have to take that into account, lest people just use it to avoid repair costs. But, with incredibly expensive ammo, and a healing over time effect(maybe applying it's repair over 30 seconds or somesuch) I could actually see it being balanced even in combat. Sure, maybe you win the fight, but did the reward for that fight cover ammo expenses? And of course it's use in exploration would always be well worth the cost. So I voted Other, since I don't think it would be overpowered, but there are other concerns to address.

 

[Morbad]

No, I don't particularly think an AFM unit that could repair everything would be overpowered.

It makes sense that it cannot repair hull damage, at least by itself, as a significant portion of hull mass was probably blasted off or ablated away, but it sorta needs to be able to repair thrusters for it to really be useful.

It should certainly be more expensive than repair at a station, and it should not be fast enough to be viable in most combat scenarios.

 

[DCello]

No, I don't particularly think an AFM unit that could repair everything would be overpowered.

It makes sense that it cannot repair hull damage, at least by itself, as a significant portion of hull mass was probably blasted off or ablated away, but it sorta needs to be able to repair thrusters for it to really be useful.

It should certainly be more expensive than repair at a station, and it should not be fast enough to be viable in most combat scenarios.

Maybe it's something that you have to activate and it drains power from everything you have except thrusters, sensors and life support. That would make it a sort of diagnostic tool that could only be run in relatively safe conditions.

 

[Rock-Hermit]

Exploring is already too easy. Making it easier by having the ability to fix everything just takes away the last ounce of risk. I guess some people want all the rewards with none if the risks.
When hostile aliens are added, along with dangerous enviromental hazards and proper wear and tear where stuff actually breaks down from time to time, then there will at least be some risk involved.

Really, the last thing exploring needs right now is an afu that removes that last slither of danger when going off on long hauls.

 

[TraviTheRabbi]

I've done that and learned the hard way: Always Scan Before Scooping.

Or even better: make it a habit to check the info tab in the Galaxy map prior to even jumping into the system. I'll opt for a slightly-less-efficient route if I know in advance that I'm avoiding the non-scoopable systems.

 

[graeme.firth]

Why

.......

 

[DCello]

Exploring is already too easy. Making it easier by having the ability to fix everything just takes away the last ounce of risk. I guess some people want all the rewards with none if the risks.
When hostile aliens are added, along with dangerous enviromental hazards and proper wear and tear where stuff actually breaks down from time to time, then there will at least be some risk involved.

Really, the last thing exploring needs right now is an afu that removes that last slither of danger when going off on long hauls.

Some people in this forum really have an ungodly obsession with "hard". They should be playing Super Mario.

Normal, sensible, healthy people don't much care about difficulty that much, the point of the changes proposed here is not about "hard" or "easy". The point is regardless of how difficult it is, it is boring, it is incomplete, and it misses features. This topic is about one proposed solution to one prominent problem that can leave you dead in the water because of bad game design, and it is completely logical -- if you are self sufficient enough to travel 1000 light years without ever docking or refuelling, it makes sense to be able to do minor repairs on your ship.

 

[Rock-Hermit]

You already can do minor repairs. The question is should you be able to do them on everything. I say no. For example you shouldn't be able to repair something as complex and intricate as the frame shift drive. Something like that should need specialists, using specialist equipment, at specialist facilities - and not by some cheap as chips band aid kit. Whichever way you want to wrap this issue up, it boils down to making it easier for the player. Something I can't subscribe to. Games have to offer some semblance of challenge otherwise what's the point of playing them?

 

[DCello]

You already can do minor repairs. The question is should you be able to do them on everything. I say no. For example you shouldn't be able to repair something as complex and intricate as the frame shift drive. Something like that should need specialists, using specialist equipment, at specialist facilities - and not by some cheap as chips band aid kit. Whichever way you want to wrap this issue up, it boils down to making it easier for the player. Something I can't subscribe to. Games have to offer some semblance of challenge otherwise what's the point of playing them?

I agree that you can't restore a FSD to 100% functionality, but the same way you can fix a tear on your engine block with gum or an egg, you can fix a FSD for at least one jump before it gives out completely. A challenge is meant to be difficult and be overcomed, not to be frustrating and to punish you for things that may or may not be your fault. That's the Ubisoft idea of a challenge.

 

[WalterHWhite]

I ticked 'yes'.

Why: because it seems reasonable to. I'd suggest it takes a while and also uses all available ammo, effectively just allowing you do do it once per batch of ammo (the risk/reward is that your jump distance will decrease with tonnage).

Optionally, a backup/secondary frameshift drive could be an option, best/functional one used at any one time.

I get the 'exploring the outer reaches ot the galaxy is supposed to be hard', a bit like JFK's moon speech. If it were easy we'd already be all over it.