42 replies to this topic

[Vandul]

This suggestion attempts to bring a role playing element to MWO without completely unbalancing the current game. The premise is fairly simple. Players can spend General Experience Points (herein known as GXP) on Roles, Abilities and Skills (RAS).

The system has been kept pretty simple and within the context of currently established rules. There are some Pro’s and Con’s to this system.

Pros:
Allows for role specialization
Allows for custom character development
Is varied enough to avoid ‘cookie cutter’ character builds
Provides both self and group oriented benefits
Provides in game retention
Can be monetized for things like re-specialization, number of characters, etc…
Player tier levels might be a consideration for match making, ELO and other data aspects
Allows for customized unit specialization

Cons:
Creates another layer of ‘grind’
May be seen as unnecessary
Not fully developed. Room for improvement

So, that out of the way, how does the RP system work within the context of the game?

A player is allotted a set number of character slots. I recommend 2. (Extra character slots could be purchased with MC as a part of monetization).

Each character would have their own unique identity (name). In a perfect world, PGI could allow for character avatar creation. (Another monetization opportunity).

When developing characters, players will choose Roles, Abilities and Skills. These are then broken down into Primary, Secondary and Tertiary traits.

Role: The main focus of the character which opens up abilities and skills. A character has a primary and secondary Role. Roles may not be selected twice (i.e. Combat/Combat)

Ability: These are specialties for the character. A character will have a Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Ability chosen from one of the two Roles trees selected. Abilities may not be selected multiple times (i.e. Gunner/Gunner/Gunner).

Skill: These are specific skills for the character. They will also be chosen as Primary, Secondary and Tertiary. These skills can come from any Ability trees selected. Skills may not be selected multiple times (i.e. Intel/Intel/Intel)

Tier: Each Role, Ability or Skill is developed by expending GXP on their tier levels. Primary RAS receive the full benefit of the chart below. Secondary and Tertiary have their abilities reduced as noted. Unless otherwise stated, the RAS will stack with one another and any mech quirks, unlocks or modules equipped.

<GXP Tier table>

Roles, Abilities and Skills

<RAS Table>

There are some overlapping RAS to allow players to specialize differently without being forced to take the same RAS builds.

Each Role introduces a skill in which a new game mechanic which may have to be developed. Every other Role, Ability and Skill is already in game.

The bonus provided on the GXP Tier table would be applied the effect as shown in the notes.

While not perfect and certainly not play tested, I believe this would be an easy and fun way to introduce some RP elements or character development into the MWO game universe.

Soooooo what does it look like? Lets do an example.

Our venerable player creates his first pilot. Lets call him Niko Doe.
Niko prefers in your face combat, so he chooses Combat as his primary role. Looking to make a little bank along the way, Niko Doe chooses Logistics as his secondary role. Profit!

Now Niko Doe must choose his Abilities. He gets three and they must come out of the Combat and Logistics Role Trees.
Niko Doe Chooses Warrior (Combat) as his Primary, Quartermaster (Logistics) as his secondary and Operator (Combat) as his tertiary.

Now Niko Doe must choose three skills from any of those ability trees.
He decides that Brawling (Combat/Warrior) is the most important and makes that his Primary. He selects Ballistic Weapons (Combat/Warrior) as his secondary and finally chooses Salvage (Logistics/Quartermaster) as his tertiary.

How does the GXP Tier table apply? Each time Niko decides to level one of his RAS, he would spend GXP and receive the appropriate bonus, based on their RAS Type (Primary, Secondary and Tertiary).

That being said, if Niko Doe maxxed out every RAS, he would receive the following:
Combat: +10% to Critical Hit Chance
Logistics: +6% bonus to C-Bills earned for himself and any allies within 120m at the end of the match.
Brawling: +10% bonus to damage with enemies at 60 meters or less
Ballistic Weapons: +6% bonus to maximum range with Ballistic Weapons (AC/Guass/MG)
Salvage: +1.8% bonus to end of match C-bills (for himself)

Looks pretty inviting until you realize that the cost to max out to Tier 100 for each of those RAS is *cough* 5050000 gxp EACH.

As you can see, there are infinite possibilities and these do not really unbalance the game.

If anyone knows how to get the tables to display here, let me know and I will edit.

Feel free to give me your feedback and thoughts. If possible, keep it constructive.

Thanks
Van

[Vandul]

Here is the GXP Tier Table



And here the RAS Table

[The Shredder]

I would like to see something like this implemented. Would be nice to have something else to be playing for. I also think there is room for a Faction Standing table as well, with the benefit being the allowance to unlock faction-specific content. (i.e. patches, decals, paint scheme, colors.)
Implementing some Role Development in game would be an excellent idea, and breaks ground on one day bringing in some of the non-mech elements of Battletech into the game. I remember in previous games that a pilot could improve their abilities, such as gunnery, sensors, piloting, etc, by focusing on and using those skills more, with some atrophy to the skills that don't see much use. Implementing this in MWO would give yet another layer of customization, and would also help break up the meta-game a bit. (i.e. If all you ever do is jump snipe, your evasion and sensor skills would drop, making it easier for a scout, or even a well-rounded pilot to sneak up on you.)
One thing I would definitely suggest is for those that focus on scouting should be allowed greater ranges for secondary vision modes, such as heat vision.
Lastly, headlamps. We need headlamps.

[Vandul]

The Shredder, on 05 July 2014 - 04:53 PM, said:

I would like to see something like this implemented. Would be nice to have something else to be playing for. I also think there is room for a Faction Standing table as well, with the benefit being the allowance to unlock faction-specific content. (i.e. patches, decals, paint scheme, colors.)
Implementing some Role Development in game would be an excellent idea, and breaks ground on one day bringing in some of the non-mech elements of Battletech into the game. I remember in previous games that a pilot could improve their abilities, such as gunnery, sensors, piloting, etc, by focusing on and using those skills more, with some atrophy to the skills that don't see much use. Implementing this in MWO would give yet another layer of customization, and would also help break up the meta-game a bit. (i.e. If all you ever do is jump snipe, your evasion and sensor skills would drop, making it easier for a scout, or even a well-rounded pilot to sneak up on you.)
One thing I would definitely suggest is for those that focus on scouting should be allowed greater ranges for secondary vision modes, such as heat vision.
Lastly, headlamps. We need headlamps.

Agreed (even on the headlamps). Since there are no other assets in the game except Mechs, I kept the focus on that. It could be easily expanded to accomodate other aspects of the game. Thanks for the feedback!

[Mirkk Defwode]

Why not pluck the skill systems from the Battletech RPG. It's relatively what you're looking for and some tweaks to that can expand upon that to fill in the system.

But i agree this would be a cool thing to add.

[Nightmare1]

You know, when MWO was originally announced, it was lauded that there would be rolls like Commander, Scout, etc. each with their own respective skill trees.

It never happened though...kinda like CW.

[Vandul]

Mirkk Defwode, on 07 July 2014 - 03:27 PM, said:

Why not pluck the skill systems from the Battletech RPG. It's relatively what you're looking for and some tweaks to that can expand upon that to fill in the system.

But i agree this would be a cool thing to add.

I used some of the skills from the actual Mechwarrior RPG rule set and applied them to the MWO mechanics.

Nightmare1, on 07 July 2014 - 03:33 PM, said:

You know, when MWO was originally announced, it was lauded that there would be rolls like Commander, Scout, etc. each with their own respective skill trees.

It never happened though...kinda like CW.

Soon™

[Reno Blade]

I would love to see something like this.
And I hope CW and factions will have some kind of bonus tables too.

One thing I am not sure about is the versatility.
Do you only "own" one pilot and are "stuck" in your role for all time, or would you be able to create more than one pilot to do more roles?
As it is now, with over 80 mechs and thousands of builds, the roles on the battlefield are very open (even if most builds are either brawler or sniper).

Even if the bonus from your skills are not forcing someone into certain builds, it would always feel like a waste to play builds that are not supported by your skills.
In your example, brawling and balistics skills would mean a LRM/Laser mech would play against ones choosen role and people might feel that all their mechs which only supports such builds (e.g. catapults) would be a faste in their mechbay.

[Vandul]

Reno Blade, on 08 July 2014 - 03:50 AM, said:

I would love to see something like this.
And I hope CW and factions will have some kind of bonus tables too.

One thing I am not sure about is the versatility.
Do you only "own" one pilot and are "stuck" in your role for all time, or would you be able to create more than one pilot to do more roles?
As it is now, with over 80 mechs and thousands of builds, the roles on the battlefield are very open (even if most builds are either brawler or sniper).

Even if the bonus from your skills are not forcing someone into certain builds, it would always feel like a waste to play builds that are not supported by your skills.
In your example, brawling and balistics skills would mean a LRM/Laser mech would play against ones choosen role and people might feel that all their mechs which only supports such builds (e.g. catapults) would be a faste in their mechbay.

You would have multiple characters. Say 3 to start and then monetize extra character slots, just like mech bays.

[Vandul]

Tweaked the RAS a bit, to provide flexibility and some expanded development trees.

[CDLord HHGD]

1000% approve of this. A little uniqueness and not able to just buy everything across the board.... Make you choose...

[Ansgar Odinson]

I totally approve so long as I can make a character, walk around my mech bay and collect trophies in my mech bay from achievements.

[CocoaJin]

I'm concerned it'll just cause buff creep and grand father in advantage for veteran players over new players. I don't like gifting advantage to players just for grinding.

This is the type of game where success and failure should come from one's actions. Not gifted bonuses to damage, crits, etc...especially not significant bonuses. I accepted the various perks already provided in game, I'm not too excited about the prospect of adding more.

In the end, these buffs are pipe dreams. One gets excited about them under the mis-guided and self-centered notion of how great it would be for one's self, totally neglecting the reality that everybody will have it also, so you continue to suck relative to your peers, while providing too much advantage and grief against the masses of new players who have to endure the hazing process of grinding their own bonuses to just get on some symbol of equal footing.

I don't like it...I get that the devs feel the need for a carrot to dangle, but any bonuses need to be excruciatingly minuscule. That way we can have our Pavlov's grind, without creating insurmountable disparity between the old and the new. The old players are not entitled to having advantage solely for having played longer.

We are warriors, hunters...you eat what you kill, not what some RPG mechanic gifts you. Want to give players stuff for playing? give us cosmetic stuff, like decals, paint jobs, alternative chassis designs, etc.

If it was up to me, hitting tier 100 on one of these bonuses should be no more than a 5% buff accumulative....yup, a paltry .05% bonus for each tier. Who cares its a small buff for an increasingly huge GXP investment...it's not like you have anything else to spend on eventually, and it's just stacking up anyway...but at least the focus in playing is more about getting better instead of the grinding for that next .05% boost on a 40 damage alpha.

Edited by CocoaJin, 25 July 2014 - 06:28 PM.

[Vandul]

cdlord, on 23 July 2014 - 12:40 PM, said:

1000% approve of this. A little uniqueness and not able to just buy everything across the board.... Make you choose...

I feel it would be fun to have specialized pilots based on the mission(s) at hand. Hence the limited development pathways.

Thanks for the feedback!

Ansgar Odinson, on 24 July 2014 - 03:15 AM, said:

I totally approve so long as I can make a character, walk around my mech bay and collect trophies in my mech bay from achievements.

Had not even considered that. Nice.

Thanks for the feedback!

CocoaJin, on 25 July 2014 - 06:23 PM, said:

I'm concerned it'll just cause buff creep and grand father in advantage for veteran players over new players. I don't like gifting advantage to players just for grinding.

This is the type of game where success and failure should come from one's actions. Not gifted bonuses to damage, crits, etc...especially not significant bonuses. I accepted the various perks already provided in game, I'm not too excited about the prospect of adding more.

In the end, these buffs are pipe dreams. One gets excited about them under the mis-guided and self-centered notion of how great it would be for one's self, totally neglecting the reality that everybody will have it also, so you continue to suck relative to your peers, while providing too much advantage and grief against the masses of new players who have to endure the hazing process of grinding their own bonuses to just get on some symbol of equal footing.

I don't like it...I get that the devs feel the need for a carrot to dangle, but any bonuses need to be excruciatingly minuscule. That way we can have our Pavlov's grind, without creating insurmountable disparity between the old and the new. The old players are not entitled to having advantage solely for having played longer.

We are warriors, hunters...you eat what you kill, not what some RPG mechanic gifts you. Want to give players stuff for playing? give us cosmetic stuff, like decals, paint jobs, alternative chassis designs, etc.

If it was up to me, hitting tier 100 on one of these bonuses should be no more than a 5% buff accumulative....yup, a paltry .05% bonus for each tier. Who cares its a small buff for an increasingly huge GXP investment...it's not like you have anything else to spend on eventually, and it's just stacking up anyway...but at least the focus in playing is more about getting better instead of the grinding for that next .05% boost on a 40 damage alpha.

Interesting points. I included a team based Role (Command) where bonuses are conferred to lancemates, team mates, or allies within set ranges of the pilot for this reason.

As for the actual bonuses, certainly can be tweaked for effect, as well as the costs, etc... I only constructed the Tier table to provide a foundation. Ultimately, you will run out of things to spend GXP on so this will provide a conduit for GXP expenditure.

It also provides some monetisation opportunities for PGI (Pilot Slots, Mech XP --> GXP conversion, etc).

Thanks for the feedback!

Edited by Vandul, 28 July 2014 - 09:35 AM.

[Vandul]

Thinking about the customization piece, it would be nice to be able to create and select the pilots appearance. In cockpit (change the ghastly green jumpsuit) and as mentioned, a character for walk arounds, etc...

In another thread someone mentioned live character portraits which would be awesome as well. Throw some taunts and gestures into the mix and you have the trappings of a pretty nice cosmetic add on subset.

Im sure the devs have more than enough to do, but I believe there would be a real opportunity for the players to enjoy some deeper customization and immersion. Especially with the advent of CW on the distant horizon.

[Malleus011]

I've been thinking along the same lines, but I really like your skill system.

http://mwomercs.com/...dules-and-soul/

[Vandul]

Malleus011, on 10 September 2014 - 06:26 AM, said:

I've been thinking along the same lines, but I really like your skill system.

http://mwomercs.com/...dules-and-soul/

Thanks for the feedback and the link to that post. Good stuff!

[Vandul]

Tying this to the CW drop decks would be a lot of fun and allow you to specialize your pilots as well as immersiveness.

Thoughts?

[Zeta Zhul]

While this is nice let's face facts that it'll be extremely low on the priority list. If nothing else being able to have Clan organized around Stars of 5 mechs would be at least conform to lore. And where are the Elementals?

[Vandul]

Not one much for self bumping, but