Player Features and Ideas Discussion

Module name: Gravitational distortion probe

Possible skills required to use said probe:

Science V

Astrometrics V

possible a few other skills, that might resolve around grav-metric reports.

Maybe even a skill involving using the probe itself. And maybe even have a launcher dedicated to this probe, and this can prevent some OP seeing only one kind of probe launcher can be put on at a time. This could bring in the possibility of a new job, a cloak/ship hunter killer, dedicated in finding hidden hostiles.

The probe could work very much like all other probes, only it can only detect ships, and cloaked ships.

Of course, we must always have counters for an item like this! for someone that really dedicated in making sure he stays hidden could equip items that help with making their signature harder, and harder to lock onto, of course this means he will have to make a tactical choice of taking away items off his fit to make sure someone doesn't find him.

Now this is just an idea, I'm wondering if it possable, and what kinds of changes you would have, or make to said item of you think it a good idea.


Remember, Posting "That's an awful idea," is not constructive. It also breaks one of the ground rules, if you don't like it, and don't have anything constructive to post, please don't post anything at all. =)




Edit: Okay here a few gained ideas so far!

First and formost: A number of people think this should be addressed first before cloaking should be changed and edited, sadly, I didn't not take this in account when I first put this post up, and I am sorry

The change of local: Some vote to have it turned off like in WH. So suggest a 30 second update timer: And my own person suggestion is turn off the part that shows players, and the numbers.

Changing local can eliminate a number of things, first, it destroy the 'fear of AFK cloakers, if you don't know he there, how will you be scared of him? Similar, he won't know if people are actually in the system unless he actually went out and scout.

Another idea: Ships that specialize in hunting cloakers, like how covert ops, and force recon ships specialize in hiding, maybe there could be ships that specialize in finding.

Another suggest was also include a "sonar", which with higher skills to operate said sonar, you can home in on them quicker

This is also all granted teamwork ideas, as you still can't shoot something that you can't lock, so one normally would think they would team up with others that have force decloaking items "Such as smart bombs" and scower the area for him. Assuming he didn't warp away after spotting the massive load of ships warping in.

Bad Ideas:

1: Cloaking ships having timers, reasons: Long jumps times, it would be rather annoying specially for transports that work in low, and null sec, to be jumping around, and then suddenly, loose their cloak due to a timer right when they warp in. It would be annoying, and it would cause many senseless threads demanding the timer's removal.

2: Cloaking requires fuel: This is also a bad idea, very much for the same reasons as Bad Idea 1. Long trips, Not carry enough fuel, unable to carry enough fuel, and or have no access to buy said fuel cause what if you are forced to live in null sec. Fuel would create to many problems then it would be worth, and it will still basically the timer thing all over, only the timer is fueled by isk.[/quote]

3: Limiting cloaking ships combat abilities: I included this in bad idea section for a number of reasons, A: That means CCP has to spend countless dev hours re-balancing the cloaking vessel one can't just simply limit the combat abilities, that means the dev has to right up special rules, limit what goes here and here. In in general it an un-needed mess.

4: Time limit before you go into 'AFK' mode, the ability to detect someone after they don't move their mouse after so many minutes is actually pure bullshit, a cloaker is like a sniper, they will lay there for days, even weeks to get that perfect shot, to get that kill that will make their entire life meaning full. So no, there should be NO suggestions of having someone being labeled as AFK if they don't do anything for a set amount of time.

The real problem that needs to be addressed is the reason people have to cloak up in a system for hours just for a chance to get a kill.

Also, is it me or is this the third OP in the last day who either hasn't understood that, or has deliberately ignored it?

And here are three posters, who provide 0 feed back, instead they just complain about an idea that is presented instead of actually providing useful feed back, if you don't think it will work Danika, Simi, Mxzf. Why don't you provide your own detail explanation on why it won't work. Provide some useful insight Danika all know one, that auto assumes if someone in a NPC corp, that they never been to a null sec area.

Mxzf, one that actually didn't respond with anything on subject with the topic, instead he just read the first line, and made a quick post about AFK users, and not actually read the subject itself.

Simi, one that didn't actually post anything related to the subject at all, only about what other people posted.

It really simple, if you don't like it, don't read it, if you have nothing to say, go vent somewhere else. It really easy.

I think what you are misunderstanding Jackal is that what the three previous posters are trying to tell you. They aren't approaching your proposal because they do not believe that your premise that there is a problem in the first place exists. And I tend to agree with them.

AFK Cloaking in all common sense cannot be a problem. The person is 'Away From Keyboard' and therefore should pose as much threat as a person that is docked up in a station or sitting inside a POS.

What you are proposing, in effect, is a counter to standard/CovOps Cloaking. However, you did not explain in your OP why cloaking as a game mechanic is broken and would need to be addressed via the implementation of your proposal. Until you do so, you will not get any constructive feedback to your actual proposal.

You cannot remove local without providing another form of passive detection, the game would be far too lopsided in the favor of agressive play for the carebears to get anything done.

Abusing game mechanics and inadequate game mechanics are two separate issues. Right now AFK cloaking is abusing game mechanics because it allows a person to disrupt activities while not being active at the keyboard. AFK cloakers want people to just ignore the threat so they can get killmails. It makes a joke of sovereignty. AFK cloaking proponents like to tell people to put together an operation to defend against the apparent threat. However to instill paranoia with an AFK cloaking alt does not take an operational effort. The level of effort is minimal. There is no way to address the potential threat of a cloaked neutral or war target in your system at all. It is far too asymmetric.

The best proposal is to add a fuel element to the cloak so that a cloaker cannot leave his ship in a system afk without supervision and a re-supply effort.

I actually agree with you, but I disagree concerning the solution. I'll post and explain why in a minute, just going to swap from my phone to a computer

*EDIT: Heh, edited to agree with katie's proposal to let this thread die a quiet death

"AFK cloakers that is sit in someone's null sec space, just so they can destroy the indy and mining of that system"

This is where I stopped reading. Cloaking does not stop you from mining.

Consistently, the only people who whine about cloaking are those who want risk-free mining in null-sec.

This,

The real issue here is local, people use it too much as an indicator as to whether a system is safe or not. WH space FTW, where miners cant fear local & also die horribly to ganks.

They are a threat ONLY when Active or Uncloaked
Because of spies.

And we have no way of telling if they are AFK

Jackal Datapaw, your research on this topic is horribly biased, and incomplete.

Cloaking has already been broken for some time. It is balanced, however.

Sound like a contradiction? Then you also assume balance implies functionality, which it does not.

Cloaking is broken by local reporting it, in an absolutely reliable manner. This is broken.

It is however, balanced by:

You absolutely cannot locate a cloaked vessel, unless they let you, or make a mistake. This is also broken.

Since both sides are countering each other, it is in balance.

Sadly, this leaves cloaking as a meta gaming tool. Many people enjoy this play, so to them there is no problem at all.