Player Features and Ideas Discussion

If you are willing to put an anti-boost on grid, just put the damn boost on grid and be done with it. The server requirement would be the same. CCP already said the problem with putting links on grid is server load. Until that gets fixed/worked around we all have to deal with the stupidity of off-grid pilots having an effect into fights. Now that fighter assignment is gone, links are pretty much the least thing that still works while not being on grid. I'd bet they are willing to remove it as long as it does not cost too much server resources.

Please, I can say "there are counters to larger gangs in some situations but not all", it's the same difference for a tonne of things in Eve, people will tell me to simply not engage or to try and split the gang up. All of the counters I've listed, including not engaging, I have personally seen or have experience with, I've even fought against larger gangs and had to seperate their fast tackle out of the system they have links in.

Well the deal is that if we want to bring the fight, we would have to bring our own set of boosters.

No one has a objection with that.

What was proposed is that either side have a way to negate that teams boosting bonus by bringing that boosting ship ongrid and being an active part of that combat fleet.

So I bring the fight to your boosted system, and project a field that negates your offgrid boosts for a range of x.

At that point, I've committed my gang into your home, and brought my own booster. To really screw you I keep him ongrid to knock off your offgrid effects.

Tables turned. Come at me without any links, bring your link ship to fight, or go home.

Currently people do not want links nerfed because of the bonuses they give, the afk opportunity they give for a fleet in a system... And that they are system wide. Frankly people don't want their booster alts nerfed So they aren't. Instead, give a incursion force the ability to deal with it by committing their booster to the field to counteract your 5 afk command ships on the undock.

Fleet wide and system wide boosts continue to exist, and combat ship pilots have a active role in a fleet to bring their combat capable ship to the fleet.

No nerf, only new tools and a new role.

The separated fleet and stragglers would also have no links since you can assume their links would of followed the main body of the fleet if it had to be on grid. Same applies for stragglers.

This doesn't add anything over simply removing off-grid boosting. It's harder to implement and doesn't actually add any depth of gameplay beyond "you either bring a BC to negate OGBs or your opponent keeps getting boost for free"



How about simply removing off-grid boosting, as originally talked about by CCP, and force boosters on-grid. If you can't keep them alive but the enemy can then you're already losing. Simple, elegant, no need for a mess of "bring this ship and push button to hard counter this bush button for 10% boost mechanic"

Perhaps move all of the Skirmish/Armour/Shield/etc bonuses onto a deploytable structure, that will provide OGB just the same, but would be easily probable/immobile.

Deployment of said sexy structure should require the same skills as current links.

Probably a concept for the new structure system.

I'm surprised CCP hasn't tied boosts to Grid_ID. The server load is already accounted for and optimized.

CCP have stated that it's all in the legacy code, and they don't have the people on hand to change it.

What they can do is make it simply not worthwhile to not have boosters on grid. The easiest way to do it is to simply have warfare links or command processors reduce sensor strength.

Another thing that can be done is to give POS and stations some kind of warfare link activation exclusion radius, like 100km. However, POS are on the way out, so it might be a wasted effort.

If you can hide them or tuck them out of the way, you might as well have the ship in the fight.

Deep down, I like the idea of gang links. I think they should be an option for ships of every size. I like the idea of them affecting one, and only one squad. I like the idea of that 10 man squad being able to mix and match the kinds of effects they want for the kind of role they intend to exert. I like the idea of minor skirmish links with a fraction of the familiar effect mounted on interceptors, or more diverse smaller squads fitting a broader array of less-stacked buffs. These modules should be as easy to fit as a salvager. This gives the soloist just a smidge of advantage over a gang-fit ship that has been separated from its allies.

I also like the idea of mixed fleets, with larger ships being tanky and supplying fire support with lighter hulls supplying the tactical superiority. For these ships, I like the idea of heavier ships conferring defensive bonuses to their tenders. The concept of sensor integrity naturally lends itself to the idea of a fleet. In the RP sense, you might rely on a shared sensor net up to the point that you are completely jammed out. This makes a lot of sense for ships that are on the field together.