Single HotFix to Power Play Could Change the Entire Distribution of Player Contribution - Preparation Focus
Please Stop Awarding Merits and Credits for Preparation Supplies
I know FDev is working on a lot of Power Play balance issues, and a few design issues to make it more enjoyable, more varied, and more fun.
I realise that Horizons is likely to open up a whole new world of possibilities to add to that variety.
This is not about standard complaints, but hopefully a solution to help FDev bring Power Play to what they appear to have intended it as. The list of Preparation systems, the Top 10, feels like a vote. This hot-fix should actually turn it into a vote, rather than an apparent trade route mapper.
Those of us pledged to Powers with massive player support usually also has massive player support wasted in things like over-Fortification. I understand that this is working as intended. I actually quite like that Commanders are allowed to do massively inefficient and stupid things with little reward.
I remember reading in one of the recent Dev open discussions on possible fixes to Power Play, that the intention is for Preparation Top 10 List to behave like a vote. You do not want highly organised players to be able to over-rule those who are simply grinding away. I appreciate this, and I believe my proposed fix will help turn Preparation into an actual user vote.
In both Aisling and Arissa space, we've consistently seen well over 20,000 tonnes delivered to the Top 1 and 2 of the list. Essentially, we have been 'fighting preparation civil wars'. I understand that this should be an option when it comes to tough voting decisions. However, what both of our Powers have seen week after week is getting fairly absurd. Systems that have a solid trade route with a Control System, but no other benefit to the Power are shooting up to #1 with leads of 10,000 tonnes over #2. It's as if players are simply taking their 20 or 50 allotment of Corruption Reports and a load of trade goods, and grinding the trip non-stop.
Only in a few of these cases has a player come forward about why they think the system should be part of the Power's space, and most of those reasons ignore any Power Play mechanics.
Right now, delivering a Corruption report rewards the player 1 merit and 1000 credits per tonne. The game mechanics are essentially rewarding players for either grind-trading without thinking, or for actively sabotaging their Power's efforts.* I understand that FDev wants to allow players to grind away merit points beyond any beneficial outcome, and over fortification should always exist for that. I'd go so far as to suggest massive over fortification should have averse affects on the local minor factions, but that's not what this is about.
TL;DR: Over Preparation along trade routes doesn't feel like a 'vote' from the player base, it feels like a mindless runaway merit train that can never be stopped. By removing the merit and credit gain from Preparation, you return 99% of pilots to putting systems on the list using their nominations. That is explicitly a vote, and what it feels like FDev has always wanted. Please, take us to that system.
*I don't believe there is a lot of active sabotaging, but I have no concept of why a system like Peraesii makes the Top 10 in 5 our of 10 weeks. No player group has ever come forward about that one.
EDIT: With contribution and discussion on this post, I have a compromise proposal between the current system as implemented, and a system where player votes actually matter.
The Top 10 list is created by tonnage of preparation materials, as now. But preparation materials can only be delivered for 6 days.
On the seventh day, starting from 0700 on Wednesday until 0700 on Thursday, preparation materials no longer count towards the system's placement on the list. Players would have 24 hours to vote with our nominations.
Thus, we will have a list of 10 candidates, and then a popular vote to determine which systems proceed to Expansion. Rating awards currently grant more nominations/votes based on participation in gameplay and contribution to the Power. That is a fair system by which to allow more votes to some Commanders over others.
Additionally, FDev could keep the vote tally secret until the end of the election. That way there would be no reason to 'hold nominations' for later.
Please Stop Awarding Merits and Credits for Preparation Supplies
I know FDev is working on a lot of Power Play balance issues, and a few design issues to make it more enjoyable, more varied, and more fun.
I realise that Horizons is likely to open up a whole new world of possibilities to add to that variety.
This is not about standard complaints, but hopefully a solution to help FDev bring Power Play to what they appear to have intended it as. The list of Preparation systems, the Top 10, feels like a vote. This hot-fix should actually turn it into a vote, rather than an apparent trade route mapper.
Those of us pledged to Powers with massive player support usually also has massive player support wasted in things like over-Fortification. I understand that this is working as intended. I actually quite like that Commanders are allowed to do massively inefficient and stupid things with little reward.
I remember reading in one of the recent Dev open discussions on possible fixes to Power Play, that the intention is for Preparation Top 10 List to behave like a vote. You do not want highly organised players to be able to over-rule those who are simply grinding away. I appreciate this, and I believe my proposed fix will help turn Preparation into an actual user vote.
In both Aisling and Arissa space, we've consistently seen well over 20,000 tonnes delivered to the Top 1 and 2 of the list. Essentially, we have been 'fighting preparation civil wars'. I understand that this should be an option when it comes to tough voting decisions. However, what both of our Powers have seen week after week is getting fairly absurd. Systems that have a solid trade route with a Control System, but no other benefit to the Power are shooting up to #1 with leads of 10,000 tonnes over #2. It's as if players are simply taking their 20 or 50 allotment of Corruption Reports and a load of trade goods, and grinding the trip non-stop.
Only in a few of these cases has a player come forward about why they think the system should be part of the Power's space, and most of those reasons ignore any Power Play mechanics.
Right now, delivering a Corruption report rewards the player 1 merit and 1000 credits per tonne. The game mechanics are essentially rewarding players for either grind-trading without thinking, or for actively sabotaging their Power's efforts.* I understand that FDev wants to allow players to grind away merit points beyond any beneficial outcome, and over fortification should always exist for that. I'd go so far as to suggest massive over fortification should have averse affects on the local minor factions, but that's not what this is about.
TL;DR: Over Preparation along trade routes doesn't feel like a 'vote' from the player base, it feels like a mindless runaway merit train that can never be stopped. By removing the merit and credit gain from Preparation, you return 99% of pilots to putting systems on the list using their nominations. That is explicitly a vote, and what it feels like FDev has always wanted. Please, take us to that system.
*I don't believe there is a lot of active sabotaging, but I have no concept of why a system like Peraesii makes the Top 10 in 5 our of 10 weeks. No player group has ever come forward about that one.
EDIT: With contribution and discussion on this post, I have a compromise proposal between the current system as implemented, and a system where player votes actually matter.
The Top 10 list is created by tonnage of preparation materials, as now. But preparation materials can only be delivered for 6 days.
On the seventh day, starting from 0700 on Wednesday until 0700 on Thursday, preparation materials no longer count towards the system's placement on the list. Players would have 24 hours to vote with our nominations.
Thus, we will have a list of 10 candidates, and then a popular vote to determine which systems proceed to Expansion. Rating awards currently grant more nominations/votes based on participation in gameplay and contribution to the Power. That is a fair system by which to allow more votes to some Commanders over others.
Additionally, FDev could keep the vote tally secret until the end of the election. That way there would be no reason to 'hold nominations' for later.
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