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Player Features and Ideas Discussion

 
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New Ship Type: the Horsebox
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Swiftstrike1
Swiftstrike Incorporated
#1 - 2014-02-24 16:15:34 UTC
Horseboxes are towed by cars and carry horses around... in a box, if the name didn't give it away. I propose an internet spaceship equivalent.

This would basically be a stripped down Orca. It would have the same sized ship maintenance bay for carrying fully fitted ships, but it would not have a cargo bay, ore hold, fleet hangar, the ability to fit gang links, provide refitting in space or as much EHP as the Orca. It would be slightly more manoeuverable than the Orca and a little faster to train into.

Purpose
Transportation of a handful of assembled Battlecruiser and down sized ships in one trip

Drawbacks
None, this would not be adding any new feature or game mechanic that cannot already be used and abused.

Casual Incursion runner & Faction Warfare grunt, ex-Wormholer, ex-Nullbear.
Anhenka
The New Federation
Sigma Grindset
#2 - 2014-02-24 16:57:31 UTC  |  Edited by: Anhenka
Having a ship itself that occupies the same role as an Orca is less likely to be introduced based on CCP's stated avoidance of introducing ships that conflict with other ships's roles on the same tech level. What would basically be a stripped down Orca wouldn't stand a chance.

Perhaps a slightly different version.

In line with the horsebox idea, a tow-able storage hangar, either one only able to be towed by BS hulls or a series of them for each ship hull size BS and below. Said hangar would be capable of holding an amount of ships roughly equal to one of the hulls currently towing the hangar.

Of course, the box would be scannable and not all that sturdy (scaling with box sixe), so that we don't have people hauling Panthers around in plated Typhoons feeling safe.

That would give people the ability to haul assembled ships around that you are looking for, without restricting it to another Orca-ish hull with similar stats.
Kaerakh
Obscure Joke Implied
#3 - 2014-02-24 17:06:53 UTC
As he said orcas fill that role, but freighters can more than take care of the role if you just repackage them.

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Danika Princip
GoonWaffe
Goonswarm Federation
#4 - 2014-02-24 17:19:21 UTC
...Why would you not just fly an orca anyway if it's better than your proposed ship in every way?
Swiftstrike1
Swiftstrike Incorporated
#5 - 2014-02-24 17:22:01 UTC
Danika Princip wrote:
...Why would you not just fly an orca anyway if it's better than your proposed ship in every way?

For the same reason you wouldn't fly a battleship to run a level 2 mission. It's more than capable (ignoring the fact that it wouldn't fit through the acceleration gates), but it's big and slow and takes a long time to skill for.

Casual Incursion runner & Faction Warfare grunt, ex-Wormholer, ex-Nullbear.
Anhenka
The New Federation
Sigma Grindset
#6 - 2014-02-24 17:37:13 UTC
Swiftstrike1 wrote:
Danika Princip wrote:
...Why would you not just fly an orca anyway if it's better than your proposed ship in every way?

For the same reason you wouldn't fly a battleship to run a level 2 mission. It's more than capable (ignoring the fact that it wouldn't fit through the acceleration gates), but it's big and slow and takes a long time to skill for.


Wanting a ship to do the same task with a shorter training time is not the sort of reasoning that leads to CCP introducing a ship with conflicting roles.

Accept that they wont be adding a stripped down Orca for the foreseeable future.

With that in mind, if you purpose is desiring a method to haul assembled ships around, how can they introduce a method of doing so that does not involve introducing a ghetto Orca?
Rowells
Pator Tech School
Minmatar Republic
#7 - 2014-02-24 18:08:58 UTC
Is this new ship cheaper on material costs?
Swiftstrike1
Swiftstrike Incorporated
#8 - 2014-02-24 18:17:25 UTC
Rowells wrote:
Is this new ship cheaper on material costs?

Compared to an Orca? Yeah ofc. Reduced functionality would translate to reduced cost.

Casual Incursion runner & Faction Warfare grunt, ex-Wormholer, ex-Nullbear.
Mournful Conciousness
Federal Navy Academy
Gallente Federation
#9 - 2014-02-24 18:20:27 UTC
Isn't what you're proposing basically a cargo net? Couldn't that be fitted onto anything that was powerful enough to accelerate and decelerate it?

Tractor beam tech could be used to stabilise the payload maybe?

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Swiftstrike1
Swiftstrike Incorporated
#10 - 2014-02-24 18:25:06 UTC
Mournful Conciousness wrote:
Isn't what you're proposing basically a cargo net? Couldn't that be fitted onto anything that was powerful enough to accelerate and decelerate it?

Tractor beam tech could be used to stabilise the payload maybe?

Basically, yes. Towing something through space would prove technically difficult as there's no precedence in the code. It would require the creation of a new "function" that ships can perform. This is just an easier to achieve implementation of the same thing.

Casual Incursion runner & Faction Warfare grunt, ex-Wormholer, ex-Nullbear.
Anhenka
The New Federation
Sigma Grindset
#11 - 2014-02-24 18:31:03 UTC  |  Edited by: Anhenka
Swiftstrike1 wrote:

Basically, yes. Towing something through space would prove technically difficult as there's no precedence in the code. It would require the creation of a new "function" that ships can perform. This is just an easier to achieve implementation of the same thing.


Except that it's an implementation that only works for a single ship that has to be introduced, that is already performed by another ship.

It's also non scalable for future uses like introducing an ability to transport fitted BS's, something currently not possible in highsec other than flying them to destination.

Regardless of if it was a towbox idea like I suggested, or a net like Mournful, an important part of a good idea for moving ships would require it to be usable for more than one scaled down orca hull.