Player Features and Ideas Discussion

EDIT: The entire idea has been overhauled to exclude structures, so even if you saw it already, please read it again to get a proper idea of what it's like.

It's long since been known that there's something wrong with highsec wardecs. This is pretty much common knowledge yet even with the recent changes to the wardec system and crimewatch, not much has changed in terms of commitment that people generally put forward during a wardec.

The main reason for this is, as has been stated millions of times before, the fact that if **** start being upwardly inclined, one side docks up and refuses to come out to fight.
There is a lack of incentive to fight.

This has been interpreted by some (not going to name any names, but just take a look at the latest CSM minutes) as a reason to turn highsec into some sort of themepark where everything is jolly safe and prancing about on rainbow ponies but doing so would be a massive mistake in my personal opinion.

Because of this, fellow Skunks Psychotic Monk and Rareden helped me come up with what might be a potential solution.

Eve is a cruel place, it's what it's known for. Thus, instead of making it safer, we simply provide corporations, even carebear ones, with an incentive to actually fight over something.

How do we do this? We give them system wide contracts.

These would be contracts handed out by the faction that owns the system. There's different types of contracts that could give different bonuses such as:
- System wide bonuses to either mining, siege, skirmish, information or armored warfare (for example they could be equivalent to a non-bonused ship providing all 3 links at once). These bonuses STACK with fleet bonuses provided by specialised ships.
- Boosts to NPC bounties or mission rewards (isk or LP)
- Station repair facilities
- Clone services (allowing free clone updates or letting people install jumpclones)
- Extra research or production slots that only they can use
etc...


Contracts are handed out on a first come first serve basis, but here's the catch.
A corporation or alliance can only own one contract at a time and there's a limited amount of contracts available in a system.
Thus, once the contracts are 'depleted', the only way to get one is to either buy one from someone else, or take it over from someone else through a wardec.

The party that wins the war, gains the contract.
How this war would be declared as a 'win' is open for discussion, but it could be a combination of isk destroyed, ships killed, general presence in space, etc...
(or for example the contract could be part of the surrender terms)

The purpose is not to force someone to PvP, but rather give them an incentive to do so, in order to gain an advantage during their regular activities.




There's multiple reasons why CCP could implement this.
It's a buff to highsec carebears (we all know how much they love them).
It provides an incentive and an actual goal to partake in highsec wars, not just for griefers or pvp-ers, but also for industrialists, mission runners and miners.
It provides the poorer corporations that don't have standings or the funds required for a POS with the ability to (within limits) research and create BPC's.
It's a conflict drive that requires people to actually do something out in space in order to profit from it. No structure shoots involved whatsoever, just pure player interaction and conflict.


This is of course just a preliminary idea and I'm hoping that the following discussion can add ideas or features and completely work out the kinks.

I support this product and/or service. +1

anything that encourages players to put hard assets into space gets a +1.

Is the HQ a must? or just something that can provide potential benefits most ppl would like to use?

also, i dnt see anything that would benefit mission runners who usually have to fly a jump or two out of their home to make money and most PvP corps would probably keep to guerilla warfare. so this is pretty much just for miners.

fair enough, though missioner runners make more money from bounties and loot over rewards and LP's, its better than nothing.

if the manufacturing and research is not as good as a POS. wont corps just erect a POS in the same system and use that instead? relegating the HQ to the role of an expensive booster, but little more.

As you know arden, we just conversed the idea for over half an hour

It simply doesnt work in the manner you hope it will

Yeah! Now this will definitely get these wimpy industrialists and miners to undock.

Looking for a fight? Dec someone who will fight. Oh wait, you just want free kms.

So you want riskless pvp? I know just the thing for you - shooting red crosses. Rats will let you molest them as much as you want and shoot back like a miner.

This idea needs more cowbell.

I initially thought that as well, but talking to Elise changed my mind.
It'd be something too big to be really easily coded and generally CCP is trying to move away from structures to shoot and into people doing stuff in space.

excellent Idea... Very nice.. Give something for people to fight for! +1

There should be a "gank" button to undock them, because, you know, other ppl exist purely for your entertainment, right?