Feature Request: Remote Repair Module

[kozality]

Hello,

In the hopes that some interested parties might read this, I thought I'd write this modest proposal here.

As an explorer, one of the biggest risks currently is taking irreparable damage to one's vessel. Being thousands of light-years from the bubble means that if something goes wrong or breaks, there exists the very real possibility of not making it home on account of being completely alone. This of course, is one of the reasons exploration is so exciting.

However, with group exploration, this seems strange. We fly as a group of individuals, in a massive fleet, we're limited in how we can help one another. The fuel limpet drone is a fantastic tool, and we've even found ways to help mine jumponium for others. I'd like to see this taken to it's logical end: Remote repairs.

It can have a material cost, space/tonnage cost, long timer and/or cooldown, whatever's needed for proper game balance, but something that will allow us to support exploration fleets in the field. Our current listening posts and bases are little more than meeting points for photoops; with the right vessels these can be staging areas for fueling and repair.

This would encourage team play and open up new support roles for groups of players, as well a relieve some pressure on forward outposts.

I look forward to your comments and feedback. =)

 

[Kerrash]

+1 for an AFM limpet

 

[Lestat]

Hum. A former Descent player also. I notice the symbol.

As long as it only repairs what can be currently repaired that would be fine.

 

[CMDR Cosmic Spacehead]

+1 as long as repairs are not combat capable.

I (and many others) have made similar requests.

 

[Fyrd Judge]

As long as this limpet can not fix hulls then a good idea.

 

[kozality]

Agreed regarding combat use. While I'd leave game balance issues up to FDev, my feature request assumes that any repair ability be too slow and unwieldy to use in any combat scenario. Also, while a limpet is somewhat logical, I wouldn't presume it be the only solution.

My primary use case is the repair of hulls through, and not just limited to AFM. What's the argument behind not allowing hull repairs?

 

[Lestat]

For hull repairs That should require a dry dock or space dock. If frontier get Hull bug fix we could be seeing ships look like this.

[video=youtube;Xg9k7E4ngFw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xg9k7E4ngFw&feature=youtu.be[/video]

 

[kozality]

Maybe a patchwork that can be done....restoring a ship to 50-65% hull (choose your figure here) but no higher. Full 100% would require a station.

 

[CMDR Cosmic Spacehead]

You could have hull repair, but at the cost of hull integrity degradation.
The more hull you try to repair, the faster your integrity degrades.

Although, most explorers are at 0% after a few 100ly. Lol

Maybe just make it excruciatingly slow, and cost loads of materials. And limited to say 50%ish.

 

[Lestat]

See exploration. Unless the player dose something dumb like Drinking and flying and not using common Sense while flying. The ship dose not get badly damaged while exploring. Right now I been out 800+ jumps and have 85% hall left. 99% of that damage was done by me. It called user error or some call stupid mistakes. Some was done by Heat which I use a heat sink. But mostly done by me. There are players who went to the Beagle point and back with 98% hall left.

I did make a post on Exploration Forum. When do you feel it time to turn around The reason I ask this question. I wanted to see what other players decided when they go home to the nearest base for repairs. Hull repairs and power plant.

You know I don't have the Best build for a Anaconda exploration ship. 17ly to 18ly jump range. :s It down right terrible. I am 800 Jumps out and I have another 800 jumps to go for my destination. My thrusters are not the best. So I keep on 2 g worlds or lighter with Full shields. I try not to search the web while my ship scooping or flying to another object. So I don't have that oh I hit it again. I also have 2 extra Mineral refuel for my ARU and extra heatsinks when needed. It all common Sense.

When you feel the risk is not worth the reward it time to head home.

 

[kozality]

See exploration. ...common Sense while flying....

Those are all really good tips. And we could say, "you get no help out there, when you get damaged that's it, head back". And certainly, many make do just fine under those conditions.

However, I don't think it's diminishing anything from the game to allow a player to recover from a correctable mistake. I don't think it's the goal here to severely punish for bad luck. Some errors are unrecoverable after all, remote repair or not.

There's a balance to be struck always between keeping the challenge in place without being so difficult as to make it punishing (unless you like Dark Souls. We're nowhere near that of course. But as we spend more and more time in the void, the benefits of these things become apparent. This is not only from a mechanical perspective, but from a player interaction perspective.

We're seeing long distance trade runs now, month long patrols in the rift, and other instances where players are flying a lot more and a lot longer than your typical exploration in and out. To support these, and to give a mechanic that provides incentives to group play I think contributes far more to the game than diminishes.

 

[Lestat]

Those are all really good tips. And we could say, "you get no help out there, when you get damaged that's it, head back". And certainly, many make do just fine under those conditions.

You know We could not help pilots of apollo 13 and they made it home. Then everyone in the States Cheered when they got home.

However, I don't think it's diminishing anything from the game to allow a player to recover from a correctable mistake. I don't think it's the goal here to severely punish for bad luck. Some errors are unrecoverable after all, remote repair or not.

I look at it this way. The errors or bad luck is more on the line the user is not paying attention to what they are doing while playing game. I do not define a mistake like texting or talking on a cellphone or writing on this forum while the game playing in the background. When you do pay attention to the game. You rarely have any issues with the hull damage.

There's a balance to be struck always between keeping the challenge in place without being so difficult as to make it punishing (unless you like Dark Souls. We're nowhere near that of course. But as we spend more and more time in the void, the benefits of these things become apparent. This is not only from a mechanical perspective, but from a player interaction perspective.

See I been exploring and right now I don't see a challenge at all. As long as the user uses common sense and Pays attention. But I watch what I am doing. So there is a good balance right now. That balance is players who pay attention to what they are doing vs players not paying attention and complaining.

It just like driving a car. There considerate drivers vs drunk drivers/ using Devices. Who are safer drivers. It not drunk drivers or drivers who using their devices while driving. They are the ones that have accidents.

We're seeing long distance trade runs now, month long patrols in the rift, and other instances where players are flying a lot more and a lot longer than your typical exploration in and out. To support these, and to give a mechanic that provides incentives to group play I think contributes far more to the game than diminishes.

I looking at it this way. It the old west. People died trying to get to point A to point B. There a risk and you have to understand that risk.

If your having problem with hull damage it time to start looking at what you are doing wrong. I been flying for months with 85% hull left. The only reason my hull damage has not gone any lower is. I play the game. Not play the game plus doing other things at the same time.

 

[kozality]

See I been exploring and right now I don't see a challenge at all. As long as the user uses common sense and Pays attention. But I watch what I am doing.

I see this argument you're making as "I don't need it, so no one else should either."

I don't like the implication eithe rthat I'm proposing the change because somehow, I personally need this in order to succeed. I've crossed the Formidine Rift multiple times without heatsinks, without an AFMU, and made it back just fine with minor scratches.

I have seen others who would benefit, and I think it would be a great interaction to be able to help out, in the same way the fuel rats do, rather than say, "well, tough cookies, fly better."

I don't agree with the notion that anything added to the game that helps players somehow detracts or removes from the game experience or it's ability to give a challenge.

 

[CMDR Corlas]

I love the idea of hull repair limpets, and have suggested them before. I am all for it.

I think to encourage team gameplay even further, you could have the repair limpets use a resource (both purchasable at the commodities market and able to be mined), and make a new module that consumes resources (also purchasable or mined) to craft new blank limpets.

Essentially, you could have a self-sustaining exploration fleet. Would also create new gameplay options for deep-space emergency repairs (player-driven or mission board), logistics & supply chains for potential deep-space wars, and more.

 

[Lestat]

Q3P[-0O

I see this argument you're making as "I don't need it, so no one else should either."

I don't like the implication eithe rthat I'm proposing the change because somehow, I personally need this in order to succeed. I've crossed the Formidine Rift multiple times without heatsinks, without an AFMU, and made it back just fine with minor scratches.

Then you should know how easy it is and how easy not to get damaged.

I have seen others who would benefit, and I think it would be a great interaction to be able to help out, in the same way the fuel rats do, rather than say, "well, tough cookies, fly better."

I don't agree with the notion that anything added to the game that helps players somehow detracts or removes from the game experience or it's ability to give a challenge.

If exploration was harder I would agree with you. But it take a little brains not to have issue with exploration. If the RRU only repaired stuff that currently be repaired with the current ARU But Power Plant or Hulls. I would be fine with it. But I see exploits with hull repair and Power plant repairs. For one players never has to head home.

Let look at Combat aspect Ya you said slow. But I see a Wing of players with a few ARU that also repairing Hulls. Also with Fighter bays up coming 2.2 update. Now you have a ship doing repairs just out of range combat as well joining in the combat at the same time in a fighter. So I could be in a Anaconda Being repaired or repairing Another Anaconda while having fun attacking Players or NPC at the same time. I don't think time going to matter to those players.

 

[CMDR Corlas]

I don't like the implication eithe rthat I'm proposing the change because somehow, I personally need this in order to succeed. I've crossed the Formidine Rift multiple times without heatsinks, without an AFMU, and made it back just fine with minor scratches.

I have seen others who would benefit, and I think it would be a great interaction to be able to help out, in the same way the fuel rats do, rather than say, "well, tough cookies, fly better."

I don't agree with the notion that anything added to the game that helps players somehow detracts or removes from the game experience or it's ability to give a challenge.

There's a ton of people this forum, sadly, who just come here to try shoot down ideas by assuming (wrongly, in almost all cases) that suggestions are only made for the personal benefit of the poster. Don't worry though, plenty of people read it and can realize the gameplay possibilities.

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Let look at Combat aspect Ya you said slow. But I see a Wing of players with a few ARU that also repairing Hulls. Also with Fighter bays up coming 2.2 update. Now you have a ship doing repairs just out of range combat as well joining in the combat at the same time in a fighter. So I could be in a Anaconda Being repaired or repairing Another Anaconda while having fun attacking Players or NPC at the same time. I don't think time going to matter to those players.

There are simple workarounds to your complaints here. For example, maybe hulls can only be repaired with shields down and weapons stowed. Also if limpets are already doing the repairs, there's a built-in easy counter - point defense already targets limpets, and would make repairing near someone with point defense totally useless. You could also make the limpet controller for this use a lot of power, and so make it prohibitive to have in-use in a combat situation.

Basically, there's a lot of options to prevent what you're saying here. The potential negatives are not even slightly outweighed by the new gameplay possibilities this would open up, imo.

 

[Chrystoph]

Previous iteration of this thread, including most of what Lestat has said here...

https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=240616

 

[kozality]

Then you should know how easy it is and how easy not to get damaged.

I think this is a very self-centered point of view.

If exploration was harder I would agree with you. But it take a little brains not to have issue with exploration. If the RRU only repaired stuff that currently be repaired with the current ARU But Power Plant or Hulls. I would be fine with it. But I see exploits with hull repair and Power plant repairs. For one players never has to head home.

That's actually part of the reason I'm proposing it, so that those who are staying out longer can. But this already carries a drawback within the exploration mechanism itself: There's no payout till you get back, and the chances someone else will turn in your discovery first increases. You're trading payout for endurance.

Even then, it doesn't erase risk. You can still be destroyed out there. We lost a ship the other week when one player accidentally rammed another during a meet. It happens.

Let look at Combat aspect Ya you said slow. But I see a Wing of players with a few ARU that also repairing Hulls. Also with Fighter bays up coming 2.2 update. Now you have a ship doing repairs just out of range combat as well joining in the combat at the same time in a fighter. So I could be in a Anaconda Being repaired or repairing Another Anaconda while having fun attacking Players or NPC at the same time. I don't think time going to matter to those players.

I agree. The mechanics of this really don't matter to me. It could be a limpet. It could be a docking bay. It could take rare materials, it could be carried only by the largest ships. You might have to land on a suitable moon for the work to be done. Whatever is required that establishes proper game balance an prevents exploitation. For those aspects, I'll leave that to the experts at FDev. We'd be wise to.