Player Features and Ideas Discussion

I'm not strictly opposed to any of that, especially more high end agents, but I don't think it would really change anything. I remember the days when low sec had many, many mission runners and they weren't all blued up together in a mutual defense setup. The difference is back then combat probing was a very serious endeavor only undertaken by a handful of players. Although I think our current probing system is far more logical than the old one, it is greatly overpowered.

Until it is possible to run a mission in hostile space without getting probed out constantly, nothing will change. An appropriate change would be to restore the old probe cycle time of 5 minutes with all level 5 skills and a cov ops frig, 10 minutes with minimal skill/gear. On the flip side, probes would also have to be removed from the overview completely. Else it would be too unbalanced in the other direction. I don't think this will happen however, people would go ballistic if they couldn't probe down that evil missioner in their system in 30 seconds or less. Very few seem realize you get more action with lots of targets but a low catch rate than you do with few targets and a high catch rate.

On a related note, my fellow low sec bandits have become far more talented at gate camping over the years. Nothing has changed mechanic wise on it, just the tactics. Regardless, some changes on gate mechanics are also in order, too few people are successfully slipping past. That damn orca/carrier "not an exploit" docking feature has to be dealt with too. It's seriously annoying and greatly damages the overall low sec pvp. And no, I've never died to anyone doing that. I've even done it myself a few times just to **** people off. But it still needs to go, it's bad for the game.

Well said. QFT cookie. :D

While the poster above mine has a point too about the old probing system, the old one was still better in terms of getting probed. First of all, not everybody was one - I am exaggerating here, but it was a rarity. Only dedicated people because it required a crap ton of skill points *dramatised* and a lot of patiences.
Not to forget that it was a special mechanic that was both complicated and fun for me. Whenever I tried to explain it to others, they never really understood the technobabble - thah was just cool ;P.

No seriously.
Now everybody is a "professional" prober.

It is too simple to probe any piece of gravel now. I know some prefer how it is now, as well as how we do have mobile probes with an interactive system on how to control them now.

But it is just too annoying and too obvious that as soon as you go somewhere in low and 0.0sec, you are bound to get probe in *finger snip* that instant.

King Rothgar is right with the fact that if one would like more Lowsec missioners populating Low Sec for better agents, then there has to be something done in probing too.

Imo, probing and scanning PVE stuff like WHs, anolmalies and hidden sites should stay as it is.
It is is fine.

But in terms of PVP, I find it should require a lot more skills - both in player and trainable skills.
However, I wlil refrain from spamming this post up with suggestions as this is about lowsec.

Personally, I'd also prefer the higher-level/quality highsec agents in lowsec for logical reasons, but there has to be several ways so thta new players just don't get ganked that easily once daring to ignore that 0.4sec warning before jumping.


Beefing Lowsec missions for them to be a lot more lucrative is good imo, but there has to be something done so the players rolling in won't just be free killmails for gankers.

I can see that probing needed an overhaul, but I believe it's been dumbed down way too much.

that's all you had to say.

Probing is fine.
Don't like it? Deal with it.
Don't know how to live in low sec? Your problem.
Don't know how to avoid getting killed? Learn or get back on the short bus, sister.

It isn't mechanics that hold you back, its you.
You want something handed to you? Go ask your mama to make you some cookies.

Nothing you've posted so far is on topic at all, its just whining about probes and derailing my thread. Get the eff out.

Believe it or not, the probing discussion is actualy relevant to this thread. But seeing as you have identified yourself as a whiney ***** who can't stand anyone not praising his idea (they were actualy trying to be helpful) I vote we derail this thread and move on.

Calm down.
And read on please.

You are right to say we were derailing your thread.

And frankly, you should be happy one is considering to bring it back on topic despite what happened.


But you are going to have to deal with derailing here somewhat because your suggestions are damn close to that probing topic. In fact, your idea would have rocked imo pre-WH changes. Nonetheless, nothing speaks against adding in your suggestions while disregarding the probing subject.

Another thing is that there is no real point to be talking about probing here anyhow as it is too complex to begin with. King nad I were just skimming the surface, nothing more.

And one more. When it comes to suggestions, people have to think out of the box, which may require some minor derailings. Just don't forget that it still has to do with the topic. It is your right of course to complain or remind what the topic is about, but ffs don't shoot at them. After all, we're keeping your thread up on first page to read.



So let's move back on topic then.

(and sheeeeeeeeeee-it, I have to put up with unnecessary derailers myself. Bait em last time, though.)

We're on your side here, so let's get back to what you want.


That said - Just to make things clear.


I enjoy that idea because, frankly, all NPCs of various missions have been quite dumb over the last years. A bit of that Sleeper AI would certainly spice things up; of course leaving the Nightmare-hard Sleeper-AI for the real Wormhole dwellers.


I would only say that is important the Lowsec agents are tagged so that players know that taking on their missions involve smarter foes. I would almost say that is imperative that missions are "Teammissions" to begin with in those challenging Lowsec missions then - one can of course go solo, but it should be advised that a group of players is likely to survive vs gankers and/or smarter NPCs.

But in short, I don't see many cons speaking against making these specific Lowsec mission-NPCs smarter.


But also - if, say, a ganker shows up, the mission-NPCs should also go for the tempting ganker too and not just like the typical moments where the NPCs just keep shooting at you, ignoring the possibly more "easier" target.

edit: I removed my last sentence.
It would be too extreme if the Lowsec NPCs would have 100% of Sleeper AI. But they should still have a frequent "grid check" on new threats and consider attacking them too, especially if it is a paper-tanked cloaky that suddenly appears and tries to gank you.

Okay enough from me. There are other people on this forum too.

There are always those willing to move to more dangerous areas for better income, even if it is only 10-20% better as is the case now. The problem as I stated earlier is the ease of combat probing. Yes probes show up on overview in overview settings mode (I am also well aware they were always there in the no overview settings mode), but that's really besides the point. Anyone paying attention will never be caught, but they can still force you to abandon your mission. It's not the actual risk of getting caught, it's the fact that you constantly abandon missions because it takes 30-60s to probe out just about anything with a 3 day old character.

So probing is relevant, no serious discussion about low/null sec pve can be had without bringing up probing. I do not want the older versions of the probing system back. I like it's current configuration, what I don't like is its speed and low SP requirements. Low sec will never return to what it once was (and it was never that great) until combat probing is returned to a specialized skill.