The Powerplay discussion thread.

[Raf von Thorn]

Yes, I kind of agree.

For me the worst vice of Powerplay is complete ignorance of backgroud simulation. and PP and completely separate layers, leaving the most ingenious (buggy as hell, but improving) Elite mechanics almost completely irrelevant.

 

[CaptainKremmen]

Great approach. Why was it not built like this in the first place?

 

[Vincent Starson]

Sounds pretty good, +1.

 

[Raf von Thorn]

Great approach. Why was it not built like this in the first place?

Three things:

Background simulation is still too buggy to incorporate it in a larger scale- there are maybe 1-3k players still interested and testing it- imagine 10s of thousands breaking it and the whinning on reddit and the forums.

People want simple and evident effects. Background simulation is anything but that.

FD felt like they need something to counter "nothing to do in the game!" whines, AND draw new players in.

In my opinion they should be implementing those elements in the game gradually. Remember, the only hint they have given away, regarding creating "new power" is to do it via background simulation. My hope is thats the start of connecting those two layers.

 

[Balfuset790]

Repping this, because while I'm not dissatisfied with Powerplay on the face of it as it stands, I really do like the sound of this idea.

Especially because the missions could (probably) be tailored to the Power's relevant ethos.

 

[wstephenson]

Great approach. Why was it not built like this in the first place?

I don't know, I asked during the first PP announcement discussion specifically whether PP was implemented in terms of the existing factions and was told "yes". Instead it's a loosely coupled parallel layer.

--

I like the OPs suggestion. I would keep the existing PP control systems as interesting hubs of Power activity and a way to define which neighboring systems fall in their sphere of influence, but express it as minor faction dominance in that system.

I Am pretty sure that the turn based approach is dictated by the way that the back end arbitrates the sheer mass of millions of simultaneous player actions as the game as a whole is played. Detecting an overall state change in real time in these conditions is challenging.

 

[Snarfbuckle]

Add another point I have in a thread I made.

Change rank progression to something slow and long-term so you are dedicated for a long time with a faction.

Like 100 ranks or so.

Change monetary rewards to be based on time and rank affiliated.

And for the love of god just dump the faction modules on the market.

Right now it's all a short term hunt the carrot on a stick game.

 

[Ben Ryder]

How about we give power play a couple of months before trying to fix it? Well be in a better position to know what we are talking about rather than just a few people.

 

[Xzanron]

Not a bad suggestion, OP.

 

[FuzzySpider]

How about we give power play a couple of months before trying to fix it? Well be in a better position to know what we are talking about rather than just a few people.

It'll still be a board game in a few months. By its very nature it isn't going to change what it is.

Answer me these questions:

How does a board game, with actual "turns", fit into a supposedly organic sandbox universe? By what organic logic does the success or failure of an invading force to secure territory get decided every Friday and reset every Saturday?

 

[Frop]

I agree, if they fixed the bugs in the background system they could've just the flipping-systems bit to achieve desired changes in the universe. Tie that to the "overhauled" mission system and the whole Powerplay shell wouldn't have even been necessary, apart maybe from some more in-game information about influence/reputation/overall progress, etc.

 

[CaptainKremmen]

It'll still be a board game in a few months. By its very nature it isn't going to change what it is.

Answer me these questions:

How does a board game, with actual "turns", fit into a supposedly organic sandbox universe? By what organic logic does the success or failure of an invading force to secure territory get decided every Friday and reset every Saturday?

That's when all the PowerPlay "personalities" meet up at their weekly poker and beer night, and play cards to see who gets what planets for a week.

 

[Ben Ryder]

It'll still be a board game in a few months. By its very nature it isn't going to change what it is.

Answer me these questions:

How does a board game, with actual "turns", fit into a supposedly organic sandbox universe? By what organic logic does the success or failure of an invading force to secure territory get decided every Friday and reset every Saturday?

I'll get back to you in a couple of months

 

[Frop]

I'll get back to you in a couple of months

Please do. Bye!

 

[Andromalius]

Oh dear, watch the ad hominem please?

If you don't, you must have low IQ.

See what I did there?

Uh, yes, you misread my statement.
If english isn't your primary language it's fine, but read it and understand it first.

If they function as they are intended and don't get nerfed to the ground, think about how much of an edge a player gets with these weapons combined.

None, since everybody will have everything anyway ? what it does do, however, is to force PP on everyone playing in open in order just to survive, which I'm pretty sure isn't the game design either.

 

[Armour]

I like it from an pure simulation perspective, and suggested something extremely similar prior to Powerplay. One thing that might be tricky for the player, however, is keeping track of the various states of play of all the minor factions in all the systems you might want to visit. At least the "board game" bit lets you see at a glance who is in charge of what and how likely a system is to be flipped. Also, I wonder how intensive in terms of processing and DB queries it would be to generate a real-time faction influence map.

 

[Colonel Kenney]

Powerplay is Brilliant and Stupid at the same time.

I am loving/hating it much like everything from the start. Its always two steps forward 1 step back IMHO. But this was needed to TRY and simplify the galaxy for people to get involved.

Brilliant

• It gives us a home area to come back to. The pill/the bubble is back.
• It give us an area to protect and feel responsible for.
• It give us a community of people to befriend or hate.
• It brings sandbox diplomacy and role playing.
• It brings some meaning to your actions.
• It is minimally rewarding, but rewarding none the less to pick up a weekly paycheck.
• Gives you an area to build up your local faction statuses.
• News is easier to follow and acquire.
• Can pick a power that suits your play style.

Stupid

• Makes no sense in a galaxy with the alignments spread out the way they are.
• A power should not be able to have control over alliance, federation, alliance, independent at the same time. It would incite civil war.
• Confusing with all the factions and alliances and powers.
• People with money are really the only people who can make an impact on anything.
• Climbing the ranks without spending a lot of money is slow and tedious.
• Rewards are minimal and pointless. A good start by adding special outfitting items but much more is needed
• There is no diplomacy involved other than player made. Like we wanted to form an alliance with a power but there is no mechanism for its power constituents to vote or nominate for any action involving diplomacy. For example if we voted for peace vs a power and one of our people was actively attacking and undermining that power he would get a reduction in merit. I'm actively seeing this issue in sub forms on reddit where agreements are made but none of the members will abide by them and there is no penalty.
• People with the most money should not have the most power. Merit earned based on pure time /effort spent in the game should reflect actual Nomination points and merits. Purchases to speed up allotments should not count toward nomination quanity.

I could go on and on about the cons of powerplay. But as a whole I enjoy it and will continue to be a part of it.

 

[Colonel Kenney]

Graphing the PowerPlay Statistics - Need Help

Has anyone kept any of the data of all the powers stats from week to week yet?

I neglected to do so.

If anyone could be so kind as to pass on the numbers for us we could set up a nice graph or two showing the ratios of growth and expansion / prep compared to all the powers.

Example would be to graph the "STATS" Page week for week on a spreadsheet for each power.

Example would be to graph the control systems for each leader across 4 weeks. Or graph Exploited systems across the 4 weeks. Or the "standing value" %.

Anyone keep track of the numbers for each power so I can enter them into my spreadsheet?

Better yet if someone made a quick website for this so we can check and see from week to week the standings.

 

[Lunchmoney]

I guess I should have put in some rant about haxx0rs, l0gg3rs, open v solo,or some other re-hashed subject. Oh well, back to trying to work it out

 

[Toe Cutter77]

Powerplay is a bit confusing

I'm having trouble with the powerplay section of the game. I've watched 1.5 hours on explanations and still I'm kinda lost. I travel 70+ light years with my factions cargo and when I arrive, the station that needs it doesn't. It's really frustrating