26 replies to this topic

[Wolf Reverend]

Hey guys,

So I was thinking about MW:O at work today because well, why would I think about work? I was thinking back to the game play footage and my own fears of people rushing in to battle without much thought. Basically, how do we give people incentives to play cautiously. One life is the big thing on the table but once you are in a fight most people get tunnel vision. Right now it doesn't seem like their is much incentive to retreat from an engagement once you are in it, since damage seems permanent and running will only give your opponent a chance to take shots at your back.

Part of this is dependent on how our own 'Mech damage is relayed to us (ex. if percentages for sections are readily available). I was thinking that some fighting games the most prevalent example in my own memory was from Bloody Roar.





Pardon the horrible MS Paint-iness...

As you take damage you lose health, but a portion of the health you lost you had the ability to regain by performing special abilities. The more damage you took the more health you permanently lost and would never be able to regain. My suggestion is this: what if you escaped from an engagement and had the ability to shut down your 'Mech, you could then initiate an Automated Repair Sequence that would allow you to regain a portion of your lost "health" as the mech made some minor repairs. The amount repairable would not be total but only a portion of what you lost could be repaired. Also the sequence can not be interrupted, so if the sequence takes 30 seconds you can't stop it and then once it is done you have to power back on.

This function would not repair destroyed weapons or arms. Though maybe it could be used to restore partial functionality to a critically damaged leg (ex: someone legs you then lopes off leaving you there). I don't want this to be a miracle restorative.

It could be implemented as a base feature in all 'Mechs, it could be a module you have to choose to install to get the option, maybe it is in one of the skill trees (pilot, or 'Mech). Just an idea for the community and the devs, looking forward to hearing feedback, the more constructive the better.

[That Guy]

Turning off a fusion reactor wont cause vaporized metal and severed muscles to re-materialize in any fashion. So wile i can see where you are coming from, no.

Since mechs are built to be tough and have many redundant systems, if something is knocked out there is a very good reason for it. (a mech is even capable or re-routing a small amount of power through armor plates if need be to maintain minimalistic functionality to some weapons or parts, apparently)

[Exilyth]

I hope the only ingame repairs we'll see are

• inside a mechhangar/repairbay
  
• in front of a repair truck
  
• harjel
  
• the pilot getting out of the mech with a toolbox

A Mech magically regaining health on its own doesn't make much sense lore wise.

Edited by Exilyth, 05 April 2012 - 02:38 PM.

[Listless Nomad]

Guys, just take cover behind a building until the red goes away. It works in CoD.....why does it take so long in MWO....

/ Sarcasm.

Sorry but I had to. I appreciate the effort put in, in trying to come up with a good idea. It's just not right for this franchise. Maybe as others have said, if there was a hanger or a MFB, but not just shutting down.

[Halfinax]

This is something I could see possibly being a thing much later in the lore with an automated repair system, but with the current start date it would be fairly immersion breaking for many, including myself, when considering established lore.

It's an interesting concept, and the potential use of modules gives it a layer of feasibility, but I wouldn't want to see this implemented until at least the timeline hits 3055.

[That Guy]

I am actually quite against any sort of in game "field repair" as seen in MW3 with the MFB, or repair bays in MW4. just stop and think about it for just one second... done? good

there, saved my self from having to explain why field repairs are dumb

[Kenyon Burguess]

im against field repairs. theres no time for that in combat situations. besides, i am pretty sure engagements are going to be extremely decisive between lances. lights will spot, mediums will flank, heavies will clash. most everyone dies. winners dont need to repair.

[Agent CraZy DiP]

I'd like to see the Commander have the ability to drop a repair truck with limited repair ability. If you're a nubstar, your commander isn't going to hot drop a repair truck for you, but the fact that he can might curb people to pull out of lost engagements.

[wwiiogre]

A minimum repair for say like replacing a single ton of armor is longer than most games will play out. A crit repair takes hours, ammo loading takes half a minute or more per ton, if you have right vehicle and you don't mind a chance to get blown up for rushing a dangerous operation in the field during combat. So no repairs in the field, as for Mobile Field Base, they are not available yet. So no MFB, no repairs in the field. Could possibly pull off ammo reloading in the field but imagine that will be expensive beyond belief and dangerous and pull your mech out of combat.

chris

[Dirk Le Daring]

Geist Null, on 05 April 2012 - 03:45 PM, said:

im against field repairs. theres no time for that in combat situations. besides, i am pretty sure engagements are going to be extremely decisive between lances. lights will spot, mediums will flank, heavies will clash. most everyone dies. winners dont need to repair.

I have to agree with this. And as I said in another post about reloading, the repair facility, whatever form it takes, is going to be a No.1 target.

[Agent CraZy DiP]

wwiiogre, on 05 April 2012 - 04:25 PM, said:

A minimum repair for say like replacing a single ton of armor is longer than most games will play out. A crit repair takes hours, ammo loading takes half a minute or more per ton, if you have right vehicle and you don't mind a chance to get blown up for rushing a dangerous operation in the field during combat. So no repairs in the field, as for Mobile Field Base, they are not available yet. So no MFB, no repairs in the field. Could possibly pull off ammo reloading in the field but imagine that will be expensive beyond belief and dangerous and pull your mech out of combat.

chris

touche

[empath]

I'm all for the idea of a repair facility that could permit reloading of ammo and perhaps limited repairs (perhaps only some replacement of surface armor), because I'll be more than willing to vaporize the helpless, powered-down opponent and his repair bay while he wastes his limited match time not fighting.

Edited by empath, 06 April 2012 - 01:01 AM.

[Siilk]

I'm also against any kind of field repair/rearm. It ruins the sim gameplay and makes a lot of otherwise bad tactics viable.

[AlanEsh]

I'm against field repairs, BUT, I if we're going to be experiencing module damage in this game, there may be room for "reroute power to the engines Scotty!" type actions.

So you're blasting away and your head takes a hit, blowing some circuits and messing up some of your cockpit displays. Or a weapon jams from a hit, or your neural helmet gets knocked sideways, (i dunno )
You could stop your mech, spend about 15 seconds "futzing" with the damaged system's breakers, adjusting your helmet, whatever, to improve on the problem.

So you're not really repairing a major system, just trying to "rig" a malfunctioning system by punching your dash board or cursing loudly at "that damned thermal couple!" again.

Not sure if there will be any "light" battle damage like that, but it could be fun.

[Aegis Kleais]

Listless Nomad, on 05 April 2012 - 02:44 PM, said:

Guys, just take cover behind a building until the red goes away. It works in CoD.....why does it take so long in MWO....

/ Sarcasm.

Sorry but I had to. I appreciate the effort put in, in trying to come up with a good idea. It's just not right for this franchise. Maybe as others have said, if there was a hanger or a MFB, but not just shutting down.

If I see "Strawberry Jam" on my screen when I take a hit, there's gonna be a LOTTA people roadtripping to PGI HQ.

Anyways, for me "No in-battle repairs, only a 1x refit of ammo".

If people can repair in game, you'll always have them fall back and just come back out for the front lines fresh once they've only taken moderate or less damage.

[Nik Van Rhijn]

Yet another request for "health powerup" pickups in game Yawn

Edited by Nik Van Rhijn, 06 April 2012 - 09:26 AM.

[Mechteric]

I'd rather there not be in mission repairs at all, its very un-sim like anyway. Repairing a large machine isn't just a short 30 second light show.

[Long Draw]

So why not limit repairs to where you can only acheive a maximum of 50% repaired damage one time only and any destroyed components/weapons/limbs stay destroyed?

[Helmer]

Reserving my opinion for when I have actual experience with this iteration.

That being said, I am heavy leaning towards no in game refits or repairs. Yes you can hand wave it, but repairs take hours, not seconds.




Cheers.

[wwiiogre]

The time frame to repair even a single point of armor is so long that it will not happen in a simulation style of game. On the other hand, reloading ammo per ton is 30 seconds and 50 seconds, so could easily happen in game. Note it is dangerous and would require a special vehicle for the first instance of 30 seconds and a mech with hands for the second instance. Also because it is live ammo and it is explosive, the mech being loaded would have to be shut down so there is no heat and could not fire a weapon or the ammo would explode in the first instance and for a mech reloading another mech, the first would need to be shut down and the second would need to be behind the first, completely cooled down and still and once again hopefully no enemy or friendly fire will intersect this situation since there will be a ton of ammo or more in the immediate area. A single ton of say LRM 20 ammo is enough power to destroy most Light Mechs completely and mostly destroy most Medium mechs and severely cripple a Heavy or Assault. So I don't mind if reloads are available in a game, just understand the Mech getting reloaded is going to be severely punished if something goes wrong (say like he shoots or he receives fire) while the ammo is being loaded.

I would love this to be in game. Why? Because in the fiction it happened. In a game where a map is 5km by 5km there could be some spots a depot or base could be at so it could happen. Note Mobile Field Bases are not available in this time line. Only ammo loaders and Full Warehouses and Army Bases with Mech Bays or Drop Ships. Imagine landing in the game on a Leopard then moving off to attack, using all your ammo and running back to the leopard to get reloaded. This would mean, you better leave back some mechs to guard your dropship cause it is a big target for the other team. Also your mech just pulled out of the action, perhaps you were followed. Then the other team gets a scout in LOS of your drop ship and starts raining down arty, air strikes and indirect LRM fire on your depot or dropship. I know I wouldn't want to be standing shut down in the middle of a pile of explosives when the LRM rain started falling or the Naval Gunfire started Falling or the Seydiltz fighters started strafing or the Arrow IV missiles started landing, etc.

I don't see this happening at launch, but it would be one of the things I would hope the Dev's add later on as it would make the game more immersive and in some situations the battle much more fun as the more options the better the game play. Would some players camp, then reload, etc. Yep they would, but It would come at a price as they would not be other places where they may be needed.

Chris