162 replies to this topic

[Clownwarlord]

AlphaStruck, on 21 August 2014 - 04:54 PM, said:

Donations seems to be a wasted concept. I understand not wanting long time players to artificially enchance a new player using extra c-bills but locking it to those limited purposes really seems to slap units wanting a team/empire building experience in the face. Allowing the unit itself to own and modify mechs with no modules (lost if disbanded and non-transferable) for use by new guys would let us melt our newer unequiped players into the CW idea. Youre lookin at MANY game hours to get someone, even a good player into a useful state due to equipment and mastery limits. The unit could unlock its use (very limited mechbays per DS/Base and small c-bill fee maybe?) for the new guy to compete with while not earning xp in it. Letting him play with the old school players while building himself up on his own time. At least let us offset his consumables for em.

Between the lack of tier system, ghost heat(BANDAID NOT A FIX), matchmaker with 4X3 system throwing it further off, and the UI2.0 that needs a users manuel 500 pages thick with 15 clicks to swap a single weapon, Im amazed you get any new players for more than 10 games, if you are. This could let us keep our new guys interested long enough to learn the game.

With opening it up for transfering both ways ... you open the door for cons. For example, since I am a bad I guy I set up a group. I then get ten to a hundred or so buy in to the group, donating C-Bill after C-Bill. Then one day once the group or unit has a sizable amount. lets say about 100,000,000 C-Bills I with draw all the money into a pay to me and leave the unit. BOOM you never see me again

Now as for a gaming point of view I just robbed the masses of 100,000,000 C-Bills because the people trusted me to lead them and now there is nothing that PGI can do about it because they allowed for it to happen with allowing transfering to players. So to prevent this con or some others (like just skimming) they say no transfering money to players.

[AlphaStruck]

clownwarlord, on 21 August 2014 - 05:11 PM, said:

With opening it up for transfering both ways ... you open the door for cons. For example, since I am a bad I guy I set up a group. I then get ten to a hundred or so buy in to the group, donating C-Bill after C-Bill. Then one day once the group or unit has a sizable amount. lets say about 100,000,000 C-Bills I with draw all the money into a pay to me and leave the unit. BOOM you never see me again

Now as for a gaming point of view I just robbed the masses of 100,000,000 C-Bills because the people trusted me to lead them and now there is nothing that PGI can do about it because they allowed for it to happen with allowing transfering to players. So to prevent this con or some others (like just skimming) they say no transfering money to players.

I dont think you understood my post. This does not unlock any cbills or mechs for the new player. It allows them temp use of a mech setup by the unit for a match with say a 50% penalty in c-bill earnings, thats all. These mechs would be property of the unit and in a unit mechbay (bays based on DS, planets, etc). They would be returned to the unit mechbay when out of match. Add a MC charge to alter the mechs after its purchase and first edit so people will want to build their own version that they can customize, not just tell the unit leader what they want on it. These mechs would be owned by the unit and no single player, not to mention lost in oblivion if the unit disbans. No player can take a mech from the unit mechbay at anytime.

Edited by AlphaStruck, 21 August 2014 - 05:28 PM.

[Lexx]

00ohDstruct, on 21 August 2014 - 04:55 PM, said:

Regarding new map + cER Large Lasers nerf

Is there any attention being given to the fact that the IS version is more effective in DPS/burn time, and that it'll be more of a nightmare trying to shoot these beams in confined spaces for Clan, but not Inner Sphere? Is this another map the Raven 3L's are intended to dominate with their dual ER's and ECM mixed with their speed?

OMG! Are you telling us that your expensive Clan mechs aren't vastly superior to IS mechs on the new map?

CHANGES MUST BE MADE!

[Airic Gryphon]

Another good dev blog. The new map looks awesome.

Has any thought been given to selling MWO merchandise at some point. I'd shell out for the battlemech t-shirts we often see the staff wear in the blogs. Steins as well, I've heard rumors that some of us Canadians like to drink beer

Edited by Airic Gryphon, 21 August 2014 - 05:39 PM.

[FatYak]

i think they missed the point with the microheat on the modules..... the problem with the heat is that iut was not a valid trade off for the ridiculously small range extension they gave you. If some of these new modules have substantial range extension for weapons then they should incur a heat penalty

[Greenjulius]

I'm... pleasantly surprised. The new map looks good. Keep bringing more maps! Thanks for the preview guys!

[101011]

Lexx, on 21 August 2014 - 05:29 PM, said:

OMG! Are you telling us that your expensive Clan mechs aren't vastly superior to IS mechs on the new map?

CHANGES MUST BE MADE!

Please, tell me again how the Summoner outclasses the Cataphract in every way. Go on.

[Butane9000]

I really wish I could get an answer for this because of how many times I've asked it.

Paul,

Can we players that want to belong to a house (i.e. Marik/FWL etc) create a Mercenary corp and tie it permanently to the house in question. It will operate like a merc corp in terms of donations but it's successes follow through the general system as outlined via house members/units? This way we can have our custom tag MGA and still be a part of House Maril/FWL.

Could really use an answer on this.

[Cpt Leprechaun]

can you add a feature that allows the leader of a merc corp to just put a % tax on matches played? Makes thing a whole lot easier to manage then going through a log like an accountant, this game should feel like a game not a job.

[Keeshu]

I have a feeling that this new map is going to be my favorite map for quite a long time (as long as it doesn't kill my FPS or something).
#1 Night time - I love night maps. but this one seems like it will not force you to use night vision (even though I like night vision). Hopefully you'll be able to choose between normal and night time vision and not be blinded by the street lights when using night vision. Or if some areas in the map are good for either one.
#2 Lots of cover everywhere - However, I do worry a little about LRM cover, the cover seems very short at a glance.
#3 Glancing at the map, it looks like it will be god at separating people a little, but we'll see
#4 Reminds me of one badass moment of the usually cheesy Battletech cartoon.
Seeing all the development stuff for the new map made me extremely happy btw.

Nice to see the thought process on the mech building, even though I feel like I have heard it before. So nice that the fluff is being taken into consideration.

As for the weapon modules, maybe I'll start to invest in them now, even if they are small changes. Also 5 tiers? So they are added 3 more tiers or are they talking about something else entirely? Hopefully we'll get some sort of LRM weapon mod. If not, I won't complain, gives me and excuse to have other weapon mods (Though, I usually don't use anything else besides Medium lasers on LRM focused mechs. No Tag module yet, and rarely I use Narc or AMS).
Community warfare stuff looks like it's coming along very nicely, and I really do like that map. And they are avoiding a lot of mistakes that I see other companies make when it comes to guild related things.
I probably won't be part of a merc unit, but it's nice to see. Maybe with more stuff I'll change my mind on it, but I generally go solo anyways due to the random times I play.

[Eldane]

I'm not sure this stuff fits in with the way I see a Merc Corp operating, I envisioned something like, say me and one friend in my Corp are teamed up, we pick a contract and go fight for whatever, and then get paid...Not the whole Corp paying for a contract(who does that unless it's a kickback kinda deal).

Also, as someone who has basically been forced out of my old "scout" role due to the fact one wrong step gets me dead real fast, I'm not sure I like the thought of my new chosen role of LRM support might be worthless in yet another scenario. Granted I do pretty well at my new role, but it's so very easy to get nearly neutered even on the existing maps.

Are there any plans to look at how Radar Derp, Target Decay, and Narc all interact to balance them all together? One 6 mil cbill Module completely negating another 6 mil cbill Module seems a bit silly, And there are weird things going on with Narc as well, I can only assume it's Radar Derp affecting it, though it may be ECM I didn't notice, but I'm not convinced as of yet.

Edited by Eldane, 21 August 2014 - 06:33 PM.

[Clownwarlord]

101011, on 21 August 2014 - 05:53 PM, said:

Please, tell me again how the Summoner outclasses the Cataphract in every way. Go on.

Summoner is 65 ton mech, Cataphract is 70 ton if you are going to compare mechs start with similar tonnage first

So more like Jager vs Summoner ... well Jager has better dual weilding balistics but has to use xl or go very slow. Summoner can load up on energy, balistic, or missile options and has jump jets ... so yeah lets compare something of equal value and clan always wins the 65 tonnage catagory (other 65 ton mech is catapult).

Timberwolf 75 tons vs Orion 75 tons ... hmm which one better? Obviously Timber Wolf ... need I go on?

Now since you probably can't do math being a clanner (not much good for other then ripping limbs off other weaker thinsg) I will show you how they are equal. Cataphracts if you want a balistic varient then you don't get jump jets but you can do nasty dps. If you go 2 ERPPC with AC5 and jump jets well ... standard meta, not bad good build has decent alpha and can cycle through weapons for a decent sustained dps. Summoner has jump jets no matter what. It can also be made into an effective streak, lrm boat like a catapult. But summoner has streak 6s and lrms have no minimum (even though not a lot of damage between 0 and 90 meters). If a summoner goes energy heavy well Summoner always wins with er mediums being what they are. Heck my build was 2 ERPPC in one arm and 2 SRM4s in another arm. Due to the builds ability to jump and manuever I could easily dispers the damage, but I was more for shooting at 300 to 650 meters with the ERPPCs (SRMs where there for show and scare off lights). So yeah I would say even each have their good points and each have bad points (cataphract also has an issue of needing xl and has big side torso hit boxes). WOULD YOU LIKE TO KNOW MORE?!

[Mr D One]

Nikolai Lubkiewicz, on 21 August 2014 - 01:21 PM, said:

General Chat:
No. Simply put, it's a moderation and abuse nightmare waiting to happen, which is exactly why more and more games are either fighting to remove these features where they exist or resolving not to add them where they don't. We will be offering more chat options in the future, but a Global / All-Game Chat will simply not be one of those.

Clan-tastic!

[Kageru Ikazuchi]

Below are my notes and comments from watching the video and reading the transcript ...

Thad Jantzi - new map
... fighting over something that is worthwhile fighting over ...
-- Yes, and thank you.
... shorter range combat. ... a lot of little fights all over the map
-- I desperately hope you are right. In every other map, the best strategy is almost always to concentrate firepower.
... nighttime map but very brightly lit ...
-- It appears to have a very interesting asthetic (but I heard Forest Colony once looked nice, too).
... The players are going to like the same things as me ...
-- I am very much looking forward to seeing if this is true, however, please don't underestimate the player base's ability to have a completely different perspective on things.

I really appreciate the early look at the map, and the Dev's perspective on it. The transition from about 2:15 until about 3:05 is one of my favorite parts of this segment ... it really shows the different layers, the large cover (the kind that creates paths), the small cover (the kind you can only hide behind), and the visual effects. Seeing the ramps, elevators, cranes, etc., I can't help but wonder if these things will ever move ...

David Bradley - new mech
... When building a new mech ... When choosing variants ... we try to use the lore ...
-- These paragraphs are important for everyone who is begging for either more 'mechs or certain 'mechs to understand.
... game balance. ... balancing its variants ... look at the bigger picture and take all those variants and compare them to the other mechs that are already in the game, and make sure everything stacks up pretty evenly with each other.
-- I don't envy these decisions and choices, whether you're introducing a new 'mech or balancing existing 'mechs. When the nerfbat swings and hits the Mad Cat right between the eyes (as it desperately needs), the QQing will be loud and long.

Paul Inouye - weapon modules
... weapon modules and we listened to your feedback. ... all 5 tiers ready ... getting rid of the microheat
-- First, I think (originally) they were too expensive for a very small benefit that only helps some of the time with a (admittedly, also very small) penalty that hurts all the time. However, I disagree with them being a straight upgrade, with no penalty. This should be a personalization tool, with a fair trade off (that is not the one-time cost). Reasonable people can disagree about whether range-for-heat is a fair trade, but a straight-up range buff with the only purely in-game cost being relatively small amount of XP (everything else can be purchased) is getting dangreously close to "pay-to-win".

Paul Inouye - community warfare stuff
... merc unit leader can then use those s to upgrade defenses ... bid on contracts ...
-- so excited to see how this turns out!
... Inner Sphere map ... scrollable ... zoom in and out ... more and more detail ... more planetary information as well. ... major release of faction warfare that's going to be happening along the borders of Rasalhague and the periphery as the Clans start pushing down into this zone.
-- OMG! OMG! OMG!
... creating units...
-- cool, but not my problem

Overall, great stuff ... I'm enjoying seeing the insight into the decision making process behind 'mech implementation and the creative process behind map production. Community Warfare ... More! Faster!!

[FDJustin]

Redshift2k5, on 21 August 2014 - 04:21 PM, said:

A big example is Blizzard's Hearthstone lacking any in-game chat and lacking global chats- there is still a bustling Hearthstone community but little in-game vitriol because you can't say anything except to someone who agreed to be your friend.

That's also a pure 1 v 1, mostly random drop experience. Though it's true, you don't get any sort of (expressed) vitriol, in that without a voice I can't yell mean nasty things at you.
Or have interesting discussions. Friendships. Rivalries. The second half of a social game that matters.

[braveheart95]

Based on what I seen in the public test server, yes you will!

[Drakken]

There are NOT only two "hero" vindicators! You totally missed the the vindicator that Justin piloted on Solaris in his very first fight, the first book of the "Warrior" trilogy...

[Cimarb]

Airic Gryphon, on 21 August 2014 - 05:36 PM, said:

Another good dev blog. The new map looks awesome.

Has any thought been given to selling MWO merchandise at some point. I'd shell out for the battlemech t-shirts we often see the staff wear in the blogs. Steins as well, I've heard rumors that some of us Canadians like to drink beer

They would love to, but do not have the rights to do anything "physical". They simply are not allowed. Show the shirt to any decent screenprinting company and they will be able to replicate it, though.

[Frost Lord]

Chenkenstien, on 21 August 2014 - 11:49 AM, said:

Its nice to see more progress. The new map looks pretty sweet, cant wait to try it. One gripe i have is the add/remove rank feature, it seems a little tedious to have to click remove then confirm. It would be easier if it just removed the rank as soon as you press remove. looking forward to testing when everything is sorted out.

or better yet leave it blank and you can add ranks as you need them, that's a lot of place holders to delete.

[Kageru Ikazuchi]

00ohDstruct, on 21 August 2014 - 04:55 PM, said:

Regarding new map + cER Large Lasers nerf

Is there any attention being given to the fact that the IS version is more effective in DPS/burn time, and that it'll be more of a nightmare trying to shoot these beams in confined spaces for Clan, but not Inner Sphere? Is this another map the Raven 3L's are intended to dominate with their dual ER's and ECM mixed with their speed?

Wow ... just, wow ...

A new map makes one weapon system less effective, and might change the way some people build some of their 'mechs, or make some people complain or rage quit when they bring certain 'mechs to that map ... that's never happened before ... close range brawlers are totally effective on Alpine, and high-heat builds are super awesome on Therma, Tourmaline, and Caustic, and ground-bound 'mechs are clearly OP on Canyon and River ...

'Mech selection and outfitting, and especially weapon choice, is a trade ... if any one weapon system is equally effective on every map, then it is OP. (And if you're only griping that the CERLL will be less effective than the IS ERLL, I'm sure that totally makes up for the extra ton and extra slot the IS ERLL occupy.)

I apologize for this post being a bit more snarky and sarcastic than normal, but complaining about one weapon system being less effective on one map is just silly.

Edited by Kageru Ikazuchi, 21 August 2014 - 07:02 PM.