2.0 wish list

[Darth Stalin]

Not only - the Interdictors make the IR battles way too easy IMHO. If I can choose the ground and pin the enemy forces until they are utterly destroyed, there's no real thinking, it's just the matter of "making the hammer heavy enough" and then "applying" it with smashing force.
Also in defence battles the Interdictors are pretty dangerous - in my finished campaign I fortified key worlds on the attack routes of EotH and placed there small sfleets (as they were cut off the main IR body) along with double HypVelGuns on the plantes and two Golan-I. What surprised me in previous 1.2 campaign (same appeared this time, too) was that EotH attacked me with a bunch of admirals (3 or even 4 in one group) with only a few other ships; thus I could pin that group long enough to destroy 1 or 2 admiral ships with my HVGs (you need usually 2 shots to destroy a capital ship completely, or leave only a shard of it to be destroyed by TIE-bombers) - after some 3 or 4 strikes the EotH remained with virtually NO admirals, as all of them were killed on repelled attacks against my border "fortress" worlds, with Thrawn being the exception, as he managed to break through (though losing Siath in battle...) and land with ground forces (including the "commando" general). But I was prepared with complete series of weapons factories and full garrison of 10 units, and I hunted the EotH land forces to the last man and killed Thrawn...

Thus I think that the Interdictors should be difficult to obtain and the IR player must always choose what to build first... (well, with income of ~15k credits per week it may be hard to choose, either construction of another pair of ISD IIs or just one Interdictor cruiser and maybe 1 Victory II...). Also limiting the number of places they could be built would require a change in strategy - to keep and protect the shipyard from any interruption.

[Znieh]

Correct me if I'm wrong. But you all want them to be expensive, because they were expensive in canon? Just a reminder. We don't do canon things 100% of the time because it can be bad for gameplay. I don't have anything to do with the coding department though, so I can't say whether or not we're considering this.

No I wouldn't say that's the reason, at least not the main reason. I like it because of what the other people have said, I feel it would add a new dynamic to the strategy of the game. Though being canonical doesn't hurt.

[Lord Xizer]

I disagree that interdictors limit strategy, the basic law of Strategy is to dictate what the enemy does(I.e. make him dance to your tune) the interdictors achieve this by either trapping an enemy or becoming the primary targets of focus allowing other units to respond accordingly. Give me an interdictor, a modular sensor ship and a modest fleet and I can annihilate just about any enemy fleet, because I know how to use those tools to achieve victory. It's all about knowing the best uses for the units.
I do agree that interdictors should be harder to build(either taking more time or costing a bit more and only able to be built a Capital shipyards since the tech for building them was very complex and they were hard to produce according to the EU) This would make them more strategic and spread out so you couldn't just spam large numbers of them.
As to HypeVelocity guns they are useful when used with other units, by themselves they are insufficient to defend a worlds but coupled with defense platforms and a few ships to support them they can be the deciding factor in a defensive battle, which is what they were intended for. I think they are fine as is now.

[Darth Stalin]

I do agree that interdictors should be harder to build(either taking more time or costing a bit more and only able to be built a Capital shipyards since the tech for building them was very complex and they were hard to produce according to the EU) This would make them more strategic and spread out so you couldn't just spam large numbers of them.

That's exactly what I mean. I would even restrict them to be built only in one shipyard (the HQ of Sienar Fleet Systems, IIRC Corulag?), and do the same with Interdictor Destroyer (buildable only on Kuat, and even more expensive).

Also as my wish list I'd add giving the Empire "fighter pilot" heroes the special abilities like "hunt for enemies" etc. - Tuur Phennir can't do this while other fighters in my fleet can - why? The same applies to Soontir Fel IIRC.

And one more thing: please change the "ground construction panel" to show some units also in the bottom row: if I build on a planet all 3 types of factories (Light, Heavy, Advanced) AND Infantry Barracks, then I CAN'T SEE (and thus CAN'T order to construct) some of units produced in these factories - for example the Speeder Bike Scouts and Juggernauts.

Oh, one thing alsocomes to my mind: if I construct TWO HypVelGuns on a planet, the result is that they recharge faster during Space Combat. So, could something similar be done with "production facilities" if a player/AI has more than one on a planet? For example, if I have 3 Advanced Factories, then my AT-ATs would be produced 3 times faster or production time would be reduced by 30% or something like this; thus there could be "specialized" planets producing different types of weapons instead of "typical set" that all factories are placed on a planet if only there's available space, just to provide strong garrison forces, but with no real differenc between each other).

[Kalo]

Oh, one thing alsocomes to my mind: if I construct TWO HypVelGuns on a planet, the result is that they recharge faster during Space Combat. So, could something similar be done with "production facilities" if a player/AI has more than one on a planet? For example, if I have 3 Advanced Factories, then my AT-ATs would be produced 3 times faster or production time would be reduced by 30% or something like this; thus there could be "specialized" planets producing different types of weapons instead of "typical set" that all factories are placed on a planet if only there's available space, just to provide strong garrison forces, but with no real differenc between each other).

Unless Corey specifically changed the line in the coding, it is already like this. It's been like this since EAW came out to my knowledge.

[Darth Stalin]

Hey, I don't mean that such special ability was "specially done" by the mod authors; I only mean that if there's such ability already in the game, maybe it could also be repeated for other purposes and facilities.

[Corey]

What Kalo's saying is that the production bonus you're suggesting we give the factories already exists, and always has existed. He's not talking about the Hypervelocity gun thing.

[tlmiller]

What Kalo's saying is that the production bonus you're suggesting we give the factories already exists, and always has existed. He's not talking about the Hypervelocity gun thing.

I can confirm it works.  Have a planet with 3 of the elite production buildings, and your AT-AT's will be made in significantly less time.

This is one of the first things I do once I get enough defenses built up so that I probably won't need to defend some planets, I kill off HV guns, shields, etc, and make more elite production facilities to keep the AT-AT's a cranking out.

[yutpaeksi]

What Kalo's saying is that the production bonus you're suggesting we give the factories already exists, and always has existed. He's not talking about the Hypervelocity gun thing.

Also confirming that this works correctly, I always designate planets as specialized vehicle producers.

[Senza]

Also confirming that this works correctly, I always designate planets as specialized vehicle producers.

Same here.

[Darth Stalin]

What Kalo's saying is that the production bonus you're suggesting we give the factories already exists, and always has existed. He's not talking about the Hypervelocity gun thing.

Oh, man! How could I play so long in EaW/FoC and all possible mods and live without that!     And there were times where I waited soooo looong for AT-ATs to be finally produced...

I only hope that same thing applies to these factories in other mods, as it seems to be "intrinsic" in the game itself...

[Lord Xizer]

Prisons to control unruly planets in certain eras. Say Isard and Palpatine eras?
High cost to build say 2,500, lowers planetary income by 1/3 for that planet but cheapens ground unit cost(i.e. slave labor) and keeps indigenous population from spawning until prison is destroyed.
This way the IR could help secure worlds that have hostile populations against it(which are quite a few)
It's balanced with pros and cons and adds more tactical elements to ground combat since the prison would have no defenses other than the local ground garrison.
Also the Empire had actual Prison Planets(kessel, Dathomir, Kashyyyk among others)

[Corey]

You already brought that up before 1.3 and it was thoroughly discussed already, remember ? The scripts just didn't work in time for that release. And like we said last time, cutting the income for the planet wouldn't make sense.

[Thrashia]

Hello all,

Just completed playing the Caamas Crisis GC campaign. After having done so, there were just a few things I noticed and so I'll list some feedback:

1) The Galactic Map is excellent. The design team is to be commended.

2) The Chiss Ascendancy appeared to have some very over-powered land units, specifically the Kirov tank. If it's rate of fire could be lowered, it might balance it back out.

3) I was happy to see that hero units did not automatically respawn after dying. This forces players to treat them with more care and act more circumspect in their use. Please continue this function.

4) The Imperial Remnant was rather limited in capitol ships, imho. The fact that they could not build any form of SSD seemed strange to me, considering that in 12 ABY Pellaeon had access to three SSDs: the Reaper, Megador, and Dominion. The Reaper was destroyed in 13 ABY at the Battle of Celanon, but the other two remained in Imperial control up to 18 ABY when the New Republic started its own offensive to push back (the Caamas Crisis GC game starts in 19 ABY). At the very least I'd like to see some ships like the Allegiance-class included. Maybe for other GC campaigns there are, but this was an element I felt was lacking in the Caamas Crisis.


That's all for now. More coming eventually.

Cheers,

Thrashia

[Corey]

2) The Chiss Ascendancy appeared to have some very over-powered land units, specifically the Kirov tank. If it's rate of fire could be lowered, it might balance it back out.

Not important, but it's the Empire of the Hand, not the Chiss Ascendancy. The Chiss Ascendancy is not in the mod. And the Kirov is residual, it's either being removed or redone.

4) The Imperial Remnant was rather limited in capitol ships, imho. The fact that they could not build any form of SSD seemed strange to me, considering that in 12 ABY Pellaeon had access to three SSDs: the Reaper, Megador, and Dominion. The Reaper was destroyed in 13 ABY at the Battle of Celanon, but the other two remained in Imperial control up to 18 ABY when the New Republic started its own offensive to push back (the Caamas Crisis GC game starts in 19 ABY). At the very least I'd like to see some ships like the Allegiance-class included. Maybe for other GC campaigns there are, but this was an element I felt was lacking in the Caamas Crisis.

We've considered letting him start with or or two of his SSDs, but he certainly won't have access to building anything bigger than an Imperial-class. Pellaeon had trouble just buying TIE Fighters at that point, he's not getting access to huge capital ships. We're adding the Praetor for Delvardus of the Warlords and Palpatine's build options for era 3, but that's it. Pellaeon wasn't building gigantic new ships, and it's not really even in his nature to do so, though he wasn't as against using them as Thrawn was.

[tlmiller]

We're adding the Praetor for Delvardus of the Warlords and Palpatine's build options for era 3, but that's it. Pellaeon wasn't building gigantic new ships, and it's not really even in his nature to do so, though he wasn't as against using them as Thrawn was.

Are you using an existing Praetor model or making your own, since to my knowledge there is no canon pictures of what the Praetor actually looks like.

[Corey]

Like with basically everything else, we're making our own model. The EGW confirmed a design as being the Praetor, so there are canon pictures now.
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Praetor_Mark_II-class_battlecruiser

[tlmiller]

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooh, I like that picture.

I hope the Praetors won't be limited quantity, way cooler looking than the ISD's.    (cause you know, I'm all about how cool something looks, form over function and all that).

[Thrashia]

Side Note: Ansel's artwork for the Essential Guide to Warfare are b-e-a-utiful. I've followed him on SD.net for the past three years and its nice to see his work finally getting the attention it deserves. That his ships have become cannon due to this opportunity only makes it that much better.

[Penegrin]

I disagree that interdictors limit strategy, the basic law of Strategy is to dictate what the enemy does(I.e. make him dance to your tune) the interdictors achieve this by either trapping an enemy or becoming the primary targets of focus allowing other units to respond accordingly. Give me an interdictor, a modular sensor ship and a modest fleet and I can annihilate just about any enemy fleet, because I know how to use those tools to achieve victory. It's all about knowing the best uses for the units.

You do realize that you contradicted yourself? With Interdictor and Modular Taskforce Cruiser every battle is the same.

For 2.0 I'd like to see both the Interdictor and the Modular Taskforce Cruiser with a way lower range of their abilities. An Interdictor should not be able to block a whole System so you are forced to to keep it closer to the enemy where it also is more at risk. Same with the Modular Taskforce Cruiser as it's a real overkill to see the whole map with this unit.

I too like units to be as canonical as possible. But in the game we have to think about both the balance as well as the abilities of the KI. Imho the KI is really bad with the Interdictor (both defending and attacking it) so the player gets a real advantage here.

Would it be possible in 2.0 that single ships can retreat? Or is it hardcoded that only the whole fleet can flee?

Also is it possible to get rid of obsolete ships in the build list? I mean there is hardly any reason to build inferior fighters and I also almost never build an Aclamator in the later eras.