posted 02-23-09 11:01 PM CT (US)
So me and a couple friends are working on a new map that combines elements of Blood's and RPG's. It's intended to be a strategy / tactical scenario, as opposed to the ever popular luck-based no-economy spam-fests. With that said, we've been floating a couple ideas, and I'd like some input from people who, shall we say, aren't a part of the choir. :]
The components I would like commentary on, how you'd like them to work, whether it would be fun or not, too hard, too easy, comments in general, whatever comes to mind.
First:
Resources
In addition to the resources gained through exploring the map, we've taken a page from AoE3 with the wagon / train routes that run through the maps.
There will be two river-routes with 3 or 4 controllable drop-points each. Beyond that they will be controllable, they may or may not be destroyable, to prevent opponents from using them, for example. Haven't decided, and would like feedback.
Each team will no longer get freebie tributes from their "Kingdom", it will be sent via land in the form of a tradecart. This allows it to be intercepted and destroyed by your enemies. So, resources can be sabotaged.
And just like in the first CO, there will be two mines that can be controlled. I'm considering making mining camps buildable, rather than static, and removing the tribute bonus for controlling the mines. Or a combination of both. -shrug-
Taxation... since I already put it in, I don't think I will make that sabotagable. You lose taxation resources when your Captain is lost.
Second:
The Satellite Weapon Array
This... would be the mammoth trigger project that is driving our trigger count so high. :\
The weapon consists of three overall components. Power Generation, Targetting Control, and the weapon itself.
In order to fire the weapon, all four power generators must be either active, or have generated at least one shot's worth of energy (stored in the capacitors, the 4 "ramps" leading off of the Dish in the center). There must be enough energy in each capacitor for one shot in order to fire, or the weapon remains inactive. The current system generates enough power for one shot with all power generators active in roughly 3 minutes. Power generators are activated by bringing "control crystals" (relics) to them. The relics will be randomly created around the map, between 4 and 6 in total. Like such, you can capture a relic and withhold it to prevent your opponent from using it to activate the power generators. But since power is stored, you can go around with 1 relic and get enough power for a shot, and use it.
Power will be generated and sent to the weapon in the form of pulses. Each pulse is a small little crawling explosion (a la TTF) that deals 500 damage to anything it comes in contact with, trees included.
Targetting is more complex than most players will likely be used to, but if you've taken any math involving graphs, this shouldn't be that hard to pick up. The entire map is available to be targetted, rather than just bases, or forts. The map is divided into 36 zones in a 6x6 grid, X marked in red, Y in yellow. Within each zone are 5 potential points for the weapon impact to land. Targetting is semi-accurate. You select the area, and then the game randomly selects one of the 5 points to simulate long-distance inaccuracy.
Each fort controls one axis of the targetting setup. To utilize the target controls, you bring a relic (like the power generators) to the designated area, and direct the control rods (relic carts in the center) up and down (or left to right) to select a target area. Each fort will also be able to fire the weapon, so it is fully possible to control only half of the targetting array, and still fire. You just won't be able to be absolutely accurate. The control rods will also be randomly moved around their targetting axis as the game goes on, with a movement command being issued randomly once every 30 seconds or so. Random coordinates will only be generated while the fort control zones are vacant.
Last but not least, the weapon itself. It requires a minimum of 1/6th of each capacitor to fire, and is fired from the forts. Relics (control crystals) will enable the player to control the weapon. However, if you let one power generator run for too long and a capacitor is filled to capacity, any additional power sent to the weapon will bleed to the other capacitors. If the entire setup becomes saturated (all capacitors full) the weapon will auto-fire to release the extra energy.
Each impact has a fairly large radius, and expands in a shockwave. You have about a 5 second warning before the damage is dealt, so you have some time to evacuate the area. The damage dealt is over 5,000 at the epicenter, and decreases the further from the center you go, to a minimum of 250. There is a radiation after-effect for a 60 second period, that likewise does more damage in the center, and less at the edge. It's in units of 1, looping at 3, 2 and 1 seconds. The edge does around 20 damage over a minute, the center rather more than that.
Thirdly:
Combat Droids / Power Suits
Given that the most simplified version of the plot is that two medieval kingdoms are contesting control of the remnants of a tremendously advanced and long-since vanished civilization, our latest concept is combat droids (or power suits). This is the least-developed of our ideas, and much is still subject to change. The Droids will consist of Hand Cannons, Jannies, or Elite Jannies. Or all three in varying orders. Still not sure, like I mentioned.
Being Droids, they would be obtained somehow from the forts, either through purchasing, or just regular spawning while the fort is controlled. The area in which they can be used is initially small, limited in range by the control antenna. The antenna can be upgraded, either with the Captain, or with villagers doing some "work" of some kind to the antenna. This will increase the range, and power, of the droids. Droids that move outside of the Antennas effective control radius will receive damage, and the damage will increase exponentially the further from the control area they travel.
Now, being that the droids will be tied to the antenna, and subsequently to whoever controls the fort, loss of fort control will either result in droids under your control being killed (deactivated) or switched to the player who is in control. The droids are likely to be more powerful than equivalent tier units (units are grouped in combat strength according to Tiers, tier 1 being the weakest, 4 the most powerful, and likewise the most expensive). It is a double edged sword, though, as while they are more powerful, a run on the antenna (you can destroy it) or the fort will render your droid army at best, useless, at worst, turned against you.
Now, notice that the 3rd increase in range is more than half the map. The control radii for the antennas can overlap. I'm not sure how I want to handle control conflicts, either by having the droids continuously switch between the two players at a slow enough duration that an attentive player can capture (or prevent the capture) of a given droid army, or if I will use separate units so no conflict occurs. They will not be convertible, in that they will return to the player in control of the antenna if a conversion is completed.
Droids will have a limit to how many you can have at one time, or how many can be purchased overall for all players, or some other limitations. Again, not decided.
Edit: A new idea is that range extensions are gained through the installation of control crystals (i.e. relics). Since there is a finite number of those on the playing field, you would have to choose where to use them.
Fourth:
Victory Conditions
Like in the first CO, killing all three Captains on the enemy's side will win you the game. But, in addition to that, I want to add other objectives that you can pursue that will likewise win you the game.
Ideas that have been brainstormed, but not decided on include:
- King of the Hill style condition for if you control your own starting base, and the enemy's base.
- Control of all control crystals for an extended period of time (the timer would reset if control changes)
- Control of both forts and all weapon components for a consistent and extended period of time (resets or halts when control is lost / contested)
Lastly:
Terrain
The terrain so far is tentative, and is very much open to change. Any comments on what has been put in so far, such as layout, would be welcome.
Mapshot
And that is what I would like feedback on thus far. As we get further along, I will update with more information, again seeking feedback. Any suggestions / comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
The components I would like commentary on, how you'd like them to work, whether it would be fun or not, too hard, too easy, comments in general, whatever comes to mind.
First:
In addition to the resources gained through exploring the map, we've taken a page from AoE3 with the wagon / train routes that run through the maps.
There will be two river-routes with 3 or 4 controllable drop-points each. Beyond that they will be controllable, they may or may not be destroyable, to prevent opponents from using them, for example. Haven't decided, and would like feedback.
Each team will no longer get freebie tributes from their "Kingdom", it will be sent via land in the form of a tradecart. This allows it to be intercepted and destroyed by your enemies. So, resources can be sabotaged.
And just like in the first CO, there will be two mines that can be controlled. I'm considering making mining camps buildable, rather than static, and removing the tribute bonus for controlling the mines. Or a combination of both. -shrug-
Taxation... since I already put it in, I don't think I will make that sabotagable. You lose taxation resources when your Captain is lost.
Second:
This... would be the mammoth trigger project that is driving our trigger count so high. :\
The weapon consists of three overall components. Power Generation, Targetting Control, and the weapon itself.
In order to fire the weapon, all four power generators must be either active, or have generated at least one shot's worth of energy (stored in the capacitors, the 4 "ramps" leading off of the Dish in the center). There must be enough energy in each capacitor for one shot in order to fire, or the weapon remains inactive. The current system generates enough power for one shot with all power generators active in roughly 3 minutes. Power generators are activated by bringing "control crystals" (relics) to them. The relics will be randomly created around the map, between 4 and 6 in total. Like such, you can capture a relic and withhold it to prevent your opponent from using it to activate the power generators. But since power is stored, you can go around with 1 relic and get enough power for a shot, and use it.
Power will be generated and sent to the weapon in the form of pulses. Each pulse is a small little crawling explosion (a la TTF) that deals 500 damage to anything it comes in contact with, trees included.
Targetting is more complex than most players will likely be used to, but if you've taken any math involving graphs, this shouldn't be that hard to pick up. The entire map is available to be targetted, rather than just bases, or forts. The map is divided into 36 zones in a 6x6 grid, X marked in red, Y in yellow. Within each zone are 5 potential points for the weapon impact to land. Targetting is semi-accurate. You select the area, and then the game randomly selects one of the 5 points to simulate long-distance inaccuracy.
Each fort controls one axis of the targetting setup. To utilize the target controls, you bring a relic (like the power generators) to the designated area, and direct the control rods (relic carts in the center) up and down (or left to right) to select a target area. Each fort will also be able to fire the weapon, so it is fully possible to control only half of the targetting array, and still fire. You just won't be able to be absolutely accurate. The control rods will also be randomly moved around their targetting axis as the game goes on, with a movement command being issued randomly once every 30 seconds or so. Random coordinates will only be generated while the fort control zones are vacant.
Last but not least, the weapon itself. It requires a minimum of 1/6th of each capacitor to fire, and is fired from the forts. Relics (control crystals) will enable the player to control the weapon. However, if you let one power generator run for too long and a capacitor is filled to capacity, any additional power sent to the weapon will bleed to the other capacitors. If the entire setup becomes saturated (all capacitors full) the weapon will auto-fire to release the extra energy.
Each impact has a fairly large radius, and expands in a shockwave. You have about a 5 second warning before the damage is dealt, so you have some time to evacuate the area. The damage dealt is over 5,000 at the epicenter, and decreases the further from the center you go, to a minimum of 250. There is a radiation after-effect for a 60 second period, that likewise does more damage in the center, and less at the edge. It's in units of 1, looping at 3, 2 and 1 seconds. The edge does around 20 damage over a minute, the center rather more than that.
Thirdly:
Given that the most simplified version of the plot is that two medieval kingdoms are contesting control of the remnants of a tremendously advanced and long-since vanished civilization, our latest concept is combat droids (or power suits). This is the least-developed of our ideas, and much is still subject to change. The Droids will consist of Hand Cannons, Jannies, or Elite Jannies. Or all three in varying orders. Still not sure, like I mentioned.
Being Droids, they would be obtained somehow from the forts, either through purchasing, or just regular spawning while the fort is controlled. The area in which they can be used is initially small, limited in range by the control antenna. The antenna can be upgraded, either with the Captain, or with villagers doing some "work" of some kind to the antenna. This will increase the range, and power, of the droids. Droids that move outside of the Antennas effective control radius will receive damage, and the damage will increase exponentially the further from the control area they travel.
Now, being that the droids will be tied to the antenna, and subsequently to whoever controls the fort, loss of fort control will either result in droids under your control being killed (deactivated) or switched to the player who is in control. The droids are likely to be more powerful than equivalent tier units (units are grouped in combat strength according to Tiers, tier 1 being the weakest, 4 the most powerful, and likewise the most expensive). It is a double edged sword, though, as while they are more powerful, a run on the antenna (you can destroy it) or the fort will render your droid army at best, useless, at worst, turned against you.
Now, notice that the 3rd increase in range is more than half the map. The control radii for the antennas can overlap. I'm not sure how I want to handle control conflicts, either by having the droids continuously switch between the two players at a slow enough duration that an attentive player can capture (or prevent the capture) of a given droid army, or if I will use separate units so no conflict occurs. They will not be convertible, in that they will return to the player in control of the antenna if a conversion is completed.
Droids will have a limit to how many you can have at one time, or how many can be purchased overall for all players, or some other limitations. Again, not decided.
Edit: A new idea is that range extensions are gained through the installation of control crystals (i.e. relics). Since there is a finite number of those on the playing field, you would have to choose where to use them.
Fourth:
Like in the first CO, killing all three Captains on the enemy's side will win you the game. But, in addition to that, I want to add other objectives that you can pursue that will likewise win you the game.
Ideas that have been brainstormed, but not decided on include:
- King of the Hill style condition for if you control your own starting base, and the enemy's base.
- Control of all control crystals for an extended period of time (the timer would reset if control changes)
- Control of both forts and all weapon components for a consistent and extended period of time (resets or halts when control is lost / contested)
Lastly:
The terrain so far is tentative, and is very much open to change. Any comments on what has been put in so far, such as layout, would be welcome.
And that is what I would like feedback on thus far. As we get further along, I will update with more information, again seeking feedback. Any suggestions / comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
[This message has been edited by Kyra (edited 02-23-2009 @ 11:08 PM).]
