Player Features and Ideas Discussion

Example:

The Blood Raider shipyard Sotiyo. It has a shield reinforce timer which for *fluff* reasons (not connected to Upwell network etc etc) is the only one. Conceptually then, it's quite a nice and 'clean' mechanic in that sense - once you've discovered the thing you hit the shield, it gets reinforced and generates a timer (we like timers, timers are good, timers be content generators). Everyone comes back later to try to finish it off, or from the other perspective, try to blow the attackers to bits while resolutely avoiding the use of webbing mechanics ().

So, my question is, with the ever increasing spam of the new structures in all areas of space, does it really work/make sense for player-owned versions to have three states covering 7 days, compared to one 41 hour, 40 minute timer for the Starbases they replace?

Combined with the limited vulnerability windows and built-in asset safety, it seems excessive. Should the new structures only have a shield reinforcement akin to the Blood Raider version? Should 'invulnerability' periods be dependent on some periodic, active maintenance by the owner, which, if you **** up for some reason (or, insert "Spai!"), leaves it open for attack at any point?

Discuss.

So if I build citadels in my enemies system, I can tear down their citadel faster then just pack up my own?
Alternatively if it's per alliance I just use holding corps to spread them around.

Either way that sort of shared timer is abusable.

They need to be like POS' s were, one timer, a little over a day. And no asset safety, when it gets reinforced you lose access to some of your stuff and when it pops it drops. The current economic problems are being caused by a lack of fighting. The lack of fighting is being caused by the difficulty of attacking people's ****. Instead they want to nerd ships and they are going to keep hitting the ratting flavor of the month with the nerf bat until they results. Which they won't because the ships aren't the problem.

The damage caps are fine, as long as they are reasonable. An hour to reinforce and two to finish is good in my opinion. Also extending timers for the big important citadel isn't bad either but should still be one reinforcement and not so long.

1- Citadels are not meant to replace NPC stations, they are meant to replace the conquerable outposts.

2- People already do move all their **** into 100% destructible things, they did it with POS's, and they still do it with Citadels in J-Space, which poop the assets into a loot-able can when they pop. Just as BOB intended.

3- there is nothing strategic about destroying a structure that can be dropped anywhere, gives you nothing for doing it, and can be replaced far easier than the assets that must be risked to destroy it. This is why people avoid the hell out of it and just farm their own space.

4- This is EVE. This game is based on the concept that a player can lose everything in an instant, this idea makes what people build that much more precious. This is what sets it apart from other MMO's. Or rather I should say has. Lately their changes have all been about mitigating risk and loss. This has led us to this point where factions that once fought legendary battles just don't give a **** anymore. The largest Alliance in the game, the alliance that won BR5B has taken to harassing Hi Sec miners for the lolz. How sad is that?

Here's a scenario that i see coming down the line when someone finally does decide to knock over someone else's systems and citadels.

I can anchor N+1 Citadels in system X for as long as I have the isk to buy them, and the time to drop them. When someone comes and RF's the shields on all of my citadels, I can anchor another one... and another one... and keep anchoring more. Instead of TZ tanking, I can just Boredom tank these bastards to death and eventually one of us is going to quit trying. With the isk available to the largest alliances in the game, you can skirmish but you cannot war. Any attempt to remove them from specific regions is now rendered, for all intents and purposes, impossible due to the sheer amount of time it takes to remove just 1 Astrahus from an area.

Citadel mechanics in Wormhole space seem to make the most sense, 3 timers, 24 hours each timer, no asset safety, and even then it can be cancerous to remove them. Plus its about 10x harder to "Boredom" tank with citadels in a wormhole system as opposed to a single Null sec system due to hole control and mass restrictions in J-Space.

While i can understand and even agree with CCP on needing a means of making players feel like their assets are relatively safe, the fact that a citadel can be destroyed at all adds a level of risk to using them that i think is a GOOD thing for eve over all. There always needs to be risk.

But at the moment the sheer volume and ease of proliferation for Citadels, combined with the terribly boring, drawn out, and cancerous experience of removing citadels has actually caused people to feel LESS inclined to go to war, not more so.

A good balance might be to limit what a single player organization can anchor based on size and economic control of an area. Every corp or alliance gets X amount to start with, and if you have beyond Y member count you get more to a set maximum of (enter value here).

Yes, it can be exploited via alt groups and alt corps, but there is still a relatively finite number in place even then... as opposed to an UNLIMITED amount for EVERY player in the game.

Yeah this is the best way to limit proliferation. They need to have fuel requirements like the old POS's. Not to mention that removing the need for fuel took away a major commodity sink. Everyone that used to produce POS fuel now produces something else. They could also add an upkeep fee to make an ISK sink as well. I mean someone has to scrub the toilets in those things.

except fuel was reined for a good reason and proliferation is only a problem in wh space. In k- space any abandoned citadel can be ignored.

If we really wanted to limit it then do it via a weekly bill this way of they are tied to dead corps/ alliances eventually they will shut down but no one has to be a fuel monkey for currently unused citadel.

Bump the price of asset safety a bit and give the extra to the entities who were on the KM based on damage done or something like that. This does not fix the timers but make it at least somewhat worthwhile to shoot it beyond a KM.

It actually might not be a good idea as I am not sure how it would affect the usage.

As for the timers, they could probably stand to lose one.

Do something about the damn void bomb. It literally kills most imaginable doctrine that could try to fight on grid beside passive armor Mach.

It might be interesting if the owners were allowed to choose between different alternatives. e.g., exchange damage cap for number of timers, or duration between timers.