As many have already agreed to, the shield cell with in its current design is too powerful and makes a huge difference in combat, especially for Player verses Player encounters.
Two equally skilled players with the same ship configuration, with the exception of one having shield cell available for use and the other doesn’t or is depleted, will heavily dictate the outcome of the fight, with the best chance for the pilot with the Shield Cell.
Currently the Shield Cell feels much like a skill less I win button.
I didn’t read every single reply so possible this might have been suggested already.
I would suggest that Shield Cells will be changed to the following mechanic, making it more challenging to use along with some draw backs as well as risk for using it.
When the Shield Cell gets installed for the first time, the Shield Cell isn’t charged yet and will need time to charged, before it can be used.
Charging a Shield Cell puts a high drain on your available systems power and depending on how much you have available and how much PIP`s you have set to systems power (Power Distribution), as well as what grade of Power Cell you are using, it might take a little while before it’s fully charged and ready for use, it’s possible you completely drain you stored systems power during the charging process.
Using the Shield Cell will not be a simply a button press, but press, hold and release mechanic instead.
Energy will be rapidly transferred into the Shield Generator, but during the energy transfer a huge amount of heat is being generated, causing your ships heat levels to rapidly climb over 150% and the Shield Cell will be running red hot during this transfer.
Your ship will likely suffer some heat damage, but there will also be the risk of the Shield Cell Exploding because of this heat.
The Press , Hold and Release Mechanic to operate the Shield Cell will force you to time for how long and when to “Eject” the Shield Cell, as well as how much energy actually got transferred from the Shield Cell to the Shield Generator will be based on how long you dared holding the Energy Transfer.
A Shield Cell that goes Critical, still gets automatically Ejected, but Explodes at close proximity of the ship, causing damage to shields and possibly even hull damage if it breaks through the shields. Higher Class / Grade Shield Cell = A Bigger and more Lethal Explosion.
A shield Cell that is ejected (on time) will be similar to a heat sink an object/cargo canister in space
Quick Overview for the above Shield Cell Changes,
-Draws (a lot of) Energy from Systems power when charging a Shield Cell (Power Management required <= Skill)
-Need to be pre-charged before it can be used
-Cooldown / Reuse time: Based on available systems power, Shield Cell Class & Grade / Power Distributor Class / Grade
-Using a Shield Cell will generates a lot of heat (Risk of ship heat damage)
-Risk of a Shield Cell going critical (over heating) and exploding
+Shield will be rapidly recharged
+Press, Hold Release Mechanic (Risk versus Reward as well as some Skill)