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Player Features and Ideas Discussion

 
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Mining drone overhaul
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Galphii
Caldari Provisions
Caldari State
#1 - 2014-05-06 12:52:48 UTC
With industry a focus of the current expansion, I figure it's probably a good time to look at mining drones (for a release sometime in the near future of course). It wouldn't take much to improve them, and they could certainly use a facelift.

  • Give mining drones a microwarpdrive, but make their mwd speed roughly the same as it is now, and reduce their normal speed to something a lot slower (say, 50m/s). This will allow them to orbit the asteroid at a slow rate, giving the impression of floating in space while they work instead of zipping around it, giving the lasers the effect of rubber bands.
  • Re-do their laser effect to fire in bursts, using updated effects.
  • Instead of having a swirly light thing occur at the point of impact, have dust and little bits of rock float away from the asteroid and slowly vanish. Much more industrial. Consider this for all mining lasers, actually.
  • A new model, much in the vein of the salvage drones (industrial style rather than robot insect).
  • Have ORE reverse engineer the blueprint of the harvestor drones which they will sell at their outposts. i.e. make harvestor drones useful.
  • Also have ORE release a super-heavy mining drone at 50m3, because geckos are cool and I want to put a mining laser on one.

Cool

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Nolen Cadmar
Caldari Provisions
Caldari State
#2 - 2014-05-06 13:03:46 UTC  |  Edited by: Nolen Cadmar
Galphii wrote:
With industry a focus of the current expansion, I figure it's probably a good time to look at mining drones (for a release sometime in the near future of course). It wouldn't take much to improve them, and they could certainly use a facelift.

    1) Give mining drones a microwarpdrive, but make their mwd speed roughly the same as it is now, and reduce their normal speed to something a lot slower (say, 50m/s). This will allow them to orbit the asteroid at a slow rate, giving the impression of floating in space while they work instead of zipping around it, giving the lasers the effect of rubber bands.
    2) Re-do their laser effect to fire in bursts, using updated effects.
    3) Instead of having a swirly light thing occur at the point of impact, have dust and little bits of rock float away from the asteroid and slowly vanish. Much more industrial. Consider this for all mining lasers, actually.
    4) A new model, much in the vein of the salvage drones (industrial style rather than robot insect).
    5) Have ORE reverse engineer the blueprint of the harvestor drones which they will sell at their outposts. i.e. make harvestor drones useful.
    6) Also have ORE release a super-heavy mining drone at 50m3, because geckos are cool and I want to put a mining laser on one.

Cool

1) MWD, with lower base speed
I don't see the point/need for this change
2) Lasers fire in bursts
No. I like the current system where there's a constant beam
3) dust/rocks effect
YES. Please do this.
4) New model
Meh...I could go either way. I don't use them much, but a more "industrial" model would be cool.
5) Reverse Engineering
I assume you're proposing that harvestor drones be manufacturable? I like the idea, but probably wouldn't use them myself.
6) Heavy mining drone
It would be nice to have a few variants of mining drones. One that's fast, with low capacity. Another that's slow with higher capacity/volume per minute, etc etc.

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Harvey James
The Sengoku Legacy
#3 - 2014-05-06 13:26:23 UTC
part of the problem is also the barges lack of drone-bay too allow for combats and mining drones

T3's need to be versatile so no rigs are necessary ... they should not have OP dps and tank

ABC's should be T2, remove drone assist, separate HAM's and Torps range, -3 HS for droneboats

Nerf web strength, Make the blaster Eagle worth using
Mudro
Vestal Keepers
Embers of the Void
#4 - 2014-05-06 16:04:11 UTC
Harvey James wrote:
part of the problem is also the barges lack of drone-bay too allow for combats and mining drones


Ima let you finish, but first I just need to point out that all the barges have a drone bay and it's up to you if you use it for combat or mining. Exhumers can wield both.
Dave stark
#5 - 2014-05-06 16:14:00 UTC
Mudro wrote:
Exhumers can wield both.

yes they can.

last time i checked, which admittedly was a while ago, mining drones are the same space as light drones. exhumers all have 50m3 drone bays. you can have both a flight of light drones, and a flight of mining drones.
Daichi Yamato
Jabbersnarks and Wonderglass
#6 - 2014-05-06 16:19:59 UTC
1) no
2) no
3) yes
4) yes
5) i liked the idea of sentry strip miner drones. perhaps a 25mb drone with a large alpha but lower yield than 5x t2 miner drones.
6) see above. wouldnt really care for a gecko with a mining laser myself.

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TheMercenaryKing
Collapsed Out
Pandemic Legion
#7 - 2014-05-06 16:36:18 UTC
Mining drones should be sentry style IMO:

Volume: 5m^3
Optimal Range: 15 km (+10 km)
Max Velocity: 20 m/s (-380 m/s)
Mining amount: 10 m3 (-5 m3)
Bandwidth Needed: 5 Mbit/sec

can be bonused from all drone upgrades

the 33% reduction in mining amount is due in part by a few things.

1 - No need for the drone to travel anymore
2 - Drone upgrades would effect drones (including drone damage augments, unless ccp deploys a new mod)
Tenchi Sal
White Knights of Equestria
#8 - 2014-05-06 17:08:23 UTC
i'd still just love for mining drones to "engage target" with the F like every drone in the game does. dont see why mining drones are the ONLY drones you have to constantly right click and select mine repeatedly from target to target.

combat drones attack with the F key
salvage drones salvage with the F key
repair drones repair with the F key
mining drones, right click constantly

can ccp comment on why this is and has been like this for so long? give mining drones an assist.
Galphii
Caldari Provisions
Caldari State
#9 - 2014-05-06 23:47:57 UTC
The mwd idea is mostly cosmetic, I'll grant you, but it would also mean drone navigation mods would benefit mining drones, thus increasing yield due to faster travel time. Choice of fitting options is a good thing.

Sentry miners is a great idea, love to see this happen too Smile

Skiffs will be able to field 50m3 of drones, with another 50m3 stored above that so they could make use of a gecko-miner, certainly. So could an orca, and a rorqual Blink Ok, yes, I do have a dream of the rorqual becoming a carrier-like drone mining ship, but that's another discussion P

"Wow, that internet argument completely changed my fundamental belief system," said no one, ever.