Player Features and Ideas Discussion

ECM's purpose is sound. Stop powerful force projection such as high dps ships or logistics. I have considerable sp into electronic warfare, but ECM play? I just do not enjoy it. Random chance events is outdated for anything aside from "critical hits" and the black or white, lock or no lock seems a bit dated.

So here is the idea and mechanically would work the same as a tracking disruptor in that it affects a fitted weapon's stats. Have ECM debuff a weapon's targeting resolution. Resultant effect would be an effective reduction of applied damage on small sig ships by reducing high damage hits and wrecking shots while increasing miss chance.

In terms of existing ecm types, these would be removed, just the multispectral ecm. It also adds two forms of counter. You can make use of target painters, or the ECCM.

ECCM can be one of two things. First, it can be potentially remade into a resolution boosting module and renamed, although this could be overpowering a bit as it would increase a ship's effective dps, or it can be a reducer of the effectiveness of ecm.

ECM burst would need to be done differently. It would best be done if it gave penalty based on cycle time of the module. Makes burst ships a bit more of a threat and potential new doctrines.

projected ECM burst instead would put up a prolonged field. Not for cycle time of the bust module, but say sixty seconds of a spacial disruption.

Disadvantage and counter points? Well, if too powerful, missile ecm doctrines could become the norm. However if painters are an effective counter, and the ECCM effective enough, it provides a simple one module fix to it. Thoughts?

DISCUSSION SO FAR

What about four types of ECMs. Turrets, missiles, remote engineering and one for remote electronics falloff.

• So turret one is like original with target resolution?
• Missile ECM increases a missile explosion radius?
• Engineering ECM to reduce a ships efficiency at transporters and neutralizers?
• Electronics one for reducing range of ewar and remote buff modules?

I think that could work better.

Edit: To maintain a bit of flexibility, perhaps the ECM can do all four, then have scripts to specialize?




White noise field generator conversion.

ECMs are converted from a debuff to a buff of sorts. It reduces the signature size of all affected. Bursts again would be a duration. The simple way would be to have that direct. But a more interesting and tactical means could be to have an internal value modifier applied. A ship's sensor strength compares to this value to create an internal modifier. The different ecm sensor types would be either the effect, or the sensor hole as a means to allow friendlies to still quick lock.

This should be combined with remote rep modules having a resolution effect as well. This means ECM will affect logistics by reducing their ability to effectively apply reps, but at the same time, it would make it harder for your fleet to land hits. As such, powerful ECM does become a double edged sword.

Lastly, white noise would best be combined with my proposal for Weapon Tiericide V2 in which DPS application would become and important factor. Precise weapons allowing a fleet to land shots meaning potentially higher net damage vs a high damage weapon.


https://forums.eveonline.com/default.aspx?g=posts&m=6196633#post6196633




And the skill bonus could be fairly simple to do as well. One additional point of jamming per ship skill level. Not in game, but is there a skill that directly affects ecm strength? If so then that could go to range or something. ECCM prevents X number of jams depending on ?

Not quite tracking disruptors, but true, would be a similar effect in feel. It would be possible to have it double bonused to missiles or missile specific by making it affect a missile's explosion radius. Follows along with accuracy. That note, potentially make ECM an anti missile version of the tracking disruptor?

As for the logistics.... hrm... I do hate having multi role items.

What about four types of ECMs. Turrets, missiles, remote engineering and one for remote electronics falloff.

• So turret one is like original with target resolution?
• Missile ECM increases a missile explosion radius?
• Engineering ECM to reduce a ships efficiency at transporters and neutralizers?
• Electronics one for reducing range of ewar and remote buff modules?

I think that could work better.

Edit: To maintain a bit of flexibility, perhaps the ECM can do all four, then have scripts to specialize?

Add target resolution to remote-rep and remote-cap modules. Then this idea makes sense.

It won't work for ewar effects as all modules are the same size.


Also, have a read of my comments from many moons ago about an ECM rebalance.

https://forums.eveonline.com/default.aspx?g=posts&m=6110008#post6110008

Resolution style effect to repping would be interesting indeed. The remote target spectrum breaker would be interesting, but from a lore side of it, difficult to implement. One of the side effects of using the spectrum breaker is you lose your own locks. If they take away the self lock breaking thing either on you or your target, then it is a potential. A white noise field of some sort...

That is also an interesting idea, a buff/penalty deal. Apply white noise to make it effectively reduced sig size. This will reduce damage from all sorts, but also make it tough to lock onto as well. Once more, painters and such are counter.

A much better idea that is not so similar to other ewar mechanics is to make locked targets unusable but not lose locks. The most frustrating thing with ECM is that you not only lose the ability to shoot something but you also have to retarget everything which might take a long time, otherwise it would be fine. Optionally add other modules that prevent locking new targets.

Lore/explanation wise: ECM would disrupt the connection between targeting system and weapon system.

I feel the same as Reaver. While ecm is fairly decent in what it does, and a good overall balance, it also isnt much fun for either party. The binary nature means somebody will be getting mad and swearing. Also, binary makes little sense. Works..... Doesnt.... Now it works again...

ECM is the red-headed stepchild of the EWAR family.

Problem would be cycle time. Even an instant only lock prevention can take larger ships permanently out of combat if cycled unless cycle times are increased as well or some immunity period after. Doesnt sound very engaging. That is the issue with a binary result. They are less of an adapt and counter play. More just suck it up til you can pop the target

I am not sure I made myself clear enough so I will give a detail walktrough of how this would work.

1. Ship A engages ship B which is equiped with ECM.
2. Ship A locks ship B. And B locks A.
3. B engages ECM against A
4. A lock over B weakens over a few seconds, and eventualy breaks (The ECM module neads to be activated during all this time.). Meanwhile Ship A can still act as if he has a lock.
5. A can relock B.

Of course the unlocking time is the key point of balance here and I don't realy know the duration it should have.

I don't agree. The whole, "you are not allowed to lock anything" mechanic needs to go. If ECM must effect target locking, then it should not be a blanket removal of your locking capability, but a handicap to it. So if you are jammed, you lose a certain number of target locks. I'd even be prepared for the jamming extent to bring your target locks to zero if you are jammed by enough modules to remove all of your lock slots, but that is one ship using multiple modules to fully jam one other ship, not one ship permajamming multiple people. If the jam floor must be zero, then ECCM modules should not only buff your sensor strength, but also boost the number of target locks you are capable of by 1 or 2 so that ECCM is not 100% useless when not being used to counter ECM, much like sensor boosters and tracking computers are not useless even when that ship is not being disrupted or damped.