Player Features and Ideas Discussion

1) Your ideas have merit.

2) Don't keep posting until you get the attention you think you deserve. It comes off as being a whiny brat.

3) Don't assume you know what is best for me.

Thats pretty simple actually, make cloaks require some fuel, the burn rate of fuel is based on your ship's velocity up to some maximum along a logarithmic curve so that if you are sitting still, a full load of fuel (full as in the modules "ammo") would last say 5-6 hours, if warping all over the system, fuel would last 20-30 minutes. Then make the module be shut off to reload, and require something like 45 seconds to reload, that way a reasonably good scan prober has a chance to lock you down.

To the OP's ideas, I like them immensely.

I few ideas to add to them though:

1. Terrain. I would add a bunch more of it. Large gas clouds, debris fields, comets, etc. I fell the right number of "terrain" features other than planets should be above 40 in any given system (too many for a gang to blindly warp to all of them looking for people). All of them should be discoverable by using a system scanner. The system scanner can be activated and take time to scan in an outward spiral, covering approximately 1AU per 10-20 seconds (modifiable by skills). So for example, if you want to hide, you can activate your scanner, and in a large system, it might take half an hour or more to scan the whole thing, after you have scanned, all of the terrain are now warp able objects that you can bookmark. This way, preparation will give you an advantage but that advantage can be overtaken by patience if your enemy is willing to sit and scan long enough. Into these terrain features, you should be able to either hide your ships, or hide your POS (the new POSes that will be anchor able anywhere). In addition to this, collections of bookmarks should be able to be created from scanning these sites so that explorers could map systems and sell the bookmarks on the market. Over time, the positions of different terrain features should drift, making old bookmarks (older than 2-3 weeks) no longer good enough. But each time you warp to a bookmark, it automatically corrects for spatial drift, so if you "live" in a gas cloud, you don't have to manually update the bookmark all the time.

2. Local. I would make local chat optional as it is in W-hole space, however, I would also separate the local count from local chat and add a new piece of information to the UI that indicates the total signature size of all active ships in that system that are detectable by your sensors. This should include ships that are cloaked. So, if your sensors say that there is a total of about 800m of signature right when you jump through, you know there are people active, as your sensors either get closer, or activate the active sensors, you might be able to tell that those 800m's are from 4 signatures. After that, it works as described. This way, an experienced pilot will still be able to tell when people are in the system and would have a decent idea of how many etc, but not WHO they are or what they are flying unless they work for it.

3. Strategic Intel. I think this could easily be done in two ways, first as a bribe to CONCORD to get the stats that you can currently get through the map, but the bribe would be some set amount for intel on a system, constellation, or region that is fairly cheap, but scaled by size (maybe 25,000 for a system, 100,000 for a constellation and 1 mil for a region...just as a rough swag). The bribes would be good for a 24 hour period or so. In addition, players should be able to deploy a variety of strategic scanners that are able to provide the same kinds of stats as long as the scanner probe/structure is not destroyed. Players should also be able to "sell" their intel for less than CONCORD charges via contracts. Some sensors should be able to report on gate traffic to include ship types and times. This way, being a scout recon becomes a profession able to make you money in Eve. For better quality intel (like ship types and times, an active scanner that actually scans ships as they jump in and provides fitting/cargo information) would be much more valuable, but require scanners that are much easier to identify and destroy, making them good for Alliances defending space, or scouts in deep behind enemy lines. Such intel could be contracted for millions of isk/hour if so desired.

I've been playing Eve for a long while (8 years now), and thinking about its game design just as long. I know full well that everything has been discussed to death. The point is to bring a few concepts together in one integrated design so that they all work together cooperatively so that the end result is greater than any one single change.

What if alliance/corps could setup local to what it is now but it required a module essentially similar to the POCO. Only with about half the hitpoints. Which means 5 guys with decent DPS can take it out at a planet (no passive POS guns, max of 1000 ish DPS and no 300 km point) in less than 30 minutes. Sure, put a reinforcement timer on it, but local essentially breaks back to delayed until the module is fully repaired.

I like the idea of having the more precise modules be the most vulnerable/expensive. Follows the risk/reward quite nicely.

I always thought small roaming gangs should have some clear targets they could periodically kill, thus annoying bigger alliances who control space too big to properly patrol.

Targets can easily be automatically defended by adding something similar to gate guns. Serves as a tank-check if you will, but is countered by bringing 1-2 extra guys above the tank-check.