The Thargoid War: System States Clarifications

[Bruce G]

Greetings Commanders,

We wanted to take this opportunity to clarify some details about system states within the Thargoid War:

• The UI provides time in weeks: this is how long the system will remain in a given state. If the state isn't pushed back it will progress (Alert to Invasion or Invasion to Controlled).
• If the progress bar is filled at the end of a week, the state will be pushed back and Thargoids will be defeated in that system. If not, the bar is reset for the next week. Players have as long as the time stated in the above to defeat the Thargoids.

With these points in mind, a number of systems are currently liable to remain under attack as progress resets with the weekly tick on Thursday. However there is still time to win them back!

O7

 

[tafkabb]

Can we have an income from controlled systems? Thanks

 

[Mark Zero]

Greetings Commanders,

We wanted to take this opportunity to clarify some details about system states within the Thargoid War:

• The UI provides time in weeks: this is how long the system will remain in a given state. If the state isn't pushed back it will progress (Alert to Invasion or Invasion to Controlled).
• If the progress bar is filled at the end of a week, the state will be pushed back and Thargoids will be defeated in that system. If not, the bar is reset for the next week. Players have as long as the time stated in the above to defeat the Thargoids.

With these points in mind, a number of systems are currently liable to remain under attack as progress resets with the weekly tick on Thursday. However there is still time to win them back!

O7

Ok, so our progress to push back a system resets on a weekly basis? But we have that many weeks to push a system back before the Thargoids move forward? In other words, the number of weeks before a system falls is better read as the number of chances we have to stop the advance, not the total amount of time we have to work on retaking a system?

Is that on the Thargoid War overlay of the galaxy map somewhere? If not, can it be? Having our progress reset backward every week isn't intuitive, so having that clearly stated is important. Apologies if it's there and I missed it.

 

[CMDRDarth_Vader]

Hi @Bruce G in Taranis' cluster of influence we have Trianguli Sector CA-A C15 but it hasn't been spawning any NHSS; there are no AXCZs (similar to the other Alert Systems), there are also no hostile interdictions, and is an uninhabited system so how can we revert its state. The only possible way is by triggering hyperdictions so it seems

On the other hand, we have Ebisu and Awara where a good amount of Orthroi have fallen and deliveries have been hauled to and the Thargoid War Bar hasn't registered a single progression after a week.
Appreciate the hard work!

o7

 

[stormyuk]

Ok, so our progress to push back a system resets on a weekly basis? But we have that many weeks to push a system back before the Thargoids move forward? In other words, the number of weeks before a system falls is better read as the number of chances we have to stop the advance, not the total amount of time we have to work on retaking a system?

Is that on the Thargoid War overlay of the galaxy map somewhere? If not, can it be? Having our progress reset backward every week isn't intuitive, so having that clearly stated is important. Apologies if it's there and I missed it.

Thats how I read it too, looks like the bubble is going to burn.

 

[Aegis 1 Razor]

Greetings Commanders,

We wanted to take this opportunity to clarify some details about system states within the Thargoid War:

• The UI provides time in weeks: this is how long the system will remain in a given state. If the state isn't pushed back it will progress (Alert to Invasion or Invasion to Controlled).
• If the progress bar is filled at the end of a week, the state will be pushed back and Thargoids will be defeated in that system. If not, the bar is reset for the next week. Players have as long as the time stated in the above to defeat the Thargoids.

With these points in mind, a number of systems are currently liable to remain under attack as progress resets with the weekly tick on Thursday. However there is still time to win them back!

O7

Unless this is intended, there really isn't enough time to move the progress bar within 1 week, making defeating the thargoids in a system nigh impossible. I'm not sure I understand adding all these mechanics for the Thargoid War when the goals are too high and the time is too short to actually accomplish anything.

 

[shevek]

Is the progress bar affected by the population of the system, a bit like influence? I.e. a system with a population of 2 billion will needs more effort to progress than a system with 100k pop.

 

[Disemboweled Ego]

If the progress bar is filled at the end of a week, the state will be pushed back and Thargoids will be defeated in that system. If not, the bar is reset for the next week. Players have as long as the time stated in the above to defeat the Thargoids.

This does not sound like a fun mechanic, given the difficulty and considering how we have no tools to track progress and estimate completion like on CGs so we know if it's worth commiting to a system or if it's doomed to fall.

The difficulty as it looks now and all-or-nothing nature of the weekly resets makes it impossible for groups and/or individual commanders to take on heroic efforts to defend systems they're interested in and get any sense that they've contributed. It's maybe possible to move 1-2 pips as a group, but it'll just be reset next week anyway.

 

[redthorne]

Progress bar filled by the end of the week?
Despite very much enjoying seeing all the CMDRs out there concentrating on things, it is currently clearly impossible to accomplish. So either a) this story is on tracks or b) very soon someone has to come out with significantly more powerful weapons or a more powerful way to move the bar. Unless the math in the codebase isn't working correctly?
Nonetheless, still having a fun time here!

 

[Gamertank]

Greetings Commanders,

We wanted to take this opportunity to clarify some details about system states within the Thargoid War:

• The UI provides time in weeks: this is how long the system will remain in a given state. If the state isn't pushed back it will progress (Alert to Invasion or Invasion to Controlled).
• If the progress bar is filled at the end of a week, the state will be pushed back and Thargoids will be defeated in that system. If not, the bar is reset for the next week. Players have as long as the time stated in the above to defeat the Thargoids.

With these points in mind, a number of systems are currently liable to remain under attack as progress resets with the weekly tick on Thursday. However there is still time to win them back!

O7

we also need how many people are fighting on particular system on the map, this way we will know we are doing something just a bar is boring. Also would like to see a auto wing if any fighting inside CZ, this way we dont have to keep asking looking for a wing in CZ, that way we join hands and fight seamless. This should work in open or pvt group if they have wing space. Just a suggestion, this will give good opportunity to all inside CZ, to be on a temporary wing and fight. Please give a thinking about this

O7

 

[Ned Flandalorian]

The UI provides time in weeks: this is how long the system will remain in a given state. If the state isn't pushed back it will progress (Alert to Invasion or Invasion to Controlled).

Sorry, this is not clear at all.
The current UI for invasion systems shows two different times: time to invasion (shown as weeks and days, possibly bugged) and the current attack cycle (measured in days).
Neither of these is "time in weeks". Please can we get a proper explanation, and a clarification of what exactly is going on with the weeks vs. days numbers that don't appear to be counting down correctly.

 

[Northpin]

I would assume the effort to defeat the targoids in any given system will be monitored and will be adjusted eventually.
Unless the purpose of this new narrative is to end the human civilization and shut down the game in a more or less near future (let's say by the time the 10th anniversary of ED hits the fan)

 

[Val Sylvana]

A lot of the effort is focussed on HIP 23716, as per the AXI's defence priorities. And the progress for that system is only around half way so far. What hope have we got if that's getting reset every week?

 

[Ian Doncaster]

Well, the initial thresholds were always going to have to be a rough guess, and with eight Maelstroms giving a few hundred systems of concern (when the other five show up) and massively focused effort so far able to slightly less than half-fill one bar in a week, I think it's pretty clear that they were a bit too high even for the necessary "heavy initial losses" phase of the conflict.

Presumably they'll get adjusted fairly soon once more data is available, though.

 

[Xarionn]

After a week of fully focusing everyone on HIP 23716, we barely managed to reach 50% progress, how are we supposed to defend even 1 system if our progress straight out gets voided after a single week?

There will soon be 8 Maelstroms but 1 is already overwhelming us, I get / understand that we should be in a "despair struggle" chapter of the narrative but is this reset mechanic really necessary? With 2 weeks to repel one invasion, we won't slow down the Thargoids fleets by much anyway

People are being evacuated, supplies delivered, Thargoids dying so... voiding everything feels a bit too much, why not, let's say reduce the current progress by a fix -25% rather than fully resetting it?

 

[Bruce G]

Sorry, this is not clear at all.
The current UI for invasion systems shows two different times: time to invasion (shown as weeks and days, possibly bugged) and the current attack cycle (measured in days).
Neither of these is "time in weeks". Please can we get a proper explanation, and a clarification of what exactly is going on with the weeks vs. days numbers that don't appear to be counting down correctly.

Hi Ned,

I understand these elements could be clearer and we're currently looking at improving how we present that information. The attack cycle refers to the number of days remaining in the week to win back the system. The time to invasion marks the total number of days until the system is lost.

Invasions last a number of weeks. Each week represents an opportunity to complete the progress bar which results in the system being successfully defended. If this is not achieved, progress is reset as a new attack cycle begins. This repeats either until the invasion time runs out and the system is lost or the progress bar is filled in a given week and the invasion is repelled.

 

[Disemboweled Ego]

Having to focus effort so much also reduces the game play choices for individual commanders - what if you want to fight at one of the new surface CZs but the ones in the system that is being focused already fell? You can go fight somewhere else but that really achieves nothing long term?

Same goes for passenger missions if you want to also get imp/fed rank from them.

 

[Ashnak]

Progress bar filled by the end of the week?
Despite very much enjoying seeing all the CMDRs out there concentrating on things, it is currently clearly impossible to accomplish.

currently

Which ties in well with an extended narrative for the next couple of years or so (or the remaining lifetime of ED): humanity is currently unable to stop the invasion, maybe able to slow it down - but will have to retreat. Advances in technology will (hopefully) be able to level the playing field somewhat, making stopping the advance possible - and perhaps even push the Thargoids into retreat (although that one didn't work out the last few times it was tried).

 

[rootsrat]

Greetings Commanders,

We wanted to take this opportunity to clarify some details about system states within the Thargoid War:

• The UI provides time in weeks: this is how long the system will remain in a given state. If the state isn't pushed back it will progress (Alert to Invasion or Invasion to Controlled).
• If the progress bar is filled at the end of a week, the state will be pushed back and Thargoids will be defeated in that system. If not, the bar is reset for the next week. Players have as long as the time stated in the above to defeat the Thargoids.

With these points in mind, a number of systems are currently liable to remain under attack as progress resets with the weekly tick on Thursday. However there is still time to win them back!

O7

That explains a lot! Thanks

Unless this is intended, there really isn't enough time to move the progress bar within 1 week, making defeating the thargoids in a system nigh impossible. I'm not sure I understand adding all these mechanics for the Thargoid War when the goals are too high and the time is too short to actually accomplish anything.

FDEV did say on the last live stream that they will monitor the numbers and adjust to balance it out in time.

Also, new weapons are coming. Guess for now we'll just need to try our best and - above all and most importantly - coordinate the defence effort. Seems we can't afford to spread ourselves thin at all at this initial stage!

Going to be VERY interesting to see what happens to the Trouble Bubbles on the server tick

 

[shevek]

On the plus side, the last stand at Sol 3 will be epic