Player Features and Ideas Discussion

The original idea/discussion is truncated here for simplicity.

I am hoping this gets some player / DEV attention. The original conversation and brainstorming session was met with enthusiasm by a large group of players, thus why I even bother posting it here.

Thanks for reading and flame on.

Aliath

Abstract:

Problems identified:

1) Growing the EVE name brand to make it the penultimate space / FPS / Game on the market much like the original EVE Online was such a good idea in MMORPGs that it has lasted some 13 + years.
2) The gaping hole left when WIS (Walking in Stations) was canceled and Dust was canceled.
3) Capitalizing (instead of not capitalizing) on the market of single instanced MMORPGs in an ever changing landscape of increased competition. (e.g. Elite Dangerous, Star Citizen). Make EVE great. Leave them in the "dust."

Solution:

1) Re-introduce Project Legion (aka Dust's successor) back into play on the PC and also add PlayStation or whatever platform.

2) Tie it directly into EVE in the form of Space Marines for Super Capital ships (could be expanded to other sizes someday) and possibly Stations or Citadels.

3) Marines are carried on a new class of ship "Troop transports" and can only be delivered to said Capital ship or Station when certain parameters are met. Troop Transport ships are low defense and can carry only so many Dust Bunnies. Dust Bunnies will be in Pods too. The pods themselves are the only thing that can land on a ship. They can only hold one Marine per pod. To deploy said pods, the transport must land on field. If the transport is managed to warp in close to the ship, great, but it still has a chance of being alpha'd and / or the deployed pods in space have a chance of being destroyed before they make it to the ship. IF they make it to their prize though, the mechanic can be setup to either deliver to a set spot on the ship or all over spread out (subject to DEV development and balance issues ofc.)

4) This stays with EVE immersion and role playing because ships are supposed to have crews.

5) The goal of Offensive Marines will be: A) to either take over the ship allowing for a pilot to either board the ship through another special / new ship. or B) Damage certain modules on ship. or C) Blow up the ship.
(NOTE: The only way option A will happen is if one of the marines is dual trained in EVE and Legion - i.e. marine and pod pilot. More on this later.)

6) The goals of any Defensive Marines the player has on said ship or station will be to prevent such in a FPS environment.

7) Having humans fulfill this defensive goal will be ideal (manned tasks are always better than automated and will be DEV designed/balanced to be this way.) If the Super Capital or Station owner decides not to make his ship/station open for Marine support, he will have NPC defenders or automated defenses which will slow or stop the attackers most likely. Success also depends on the numbers of pods an attacker successfully manages to land on said ship or structure. Again - some could be blown up enroute to the ship.

8) Said Marine Pod troopers can also be EVE Pod Pilots as well. Omega Characters in EVE will be allowed to train Marine skills and jump between play. IF you are a marine and make it to the bridge (again very hard to do, but the prize will be worth it) and you have the skills. You can claim the prize.

9) If you get blown up you have the option to respawn to a transport, not in ship once deployed.

10) Again balance mechanics will have to be worked out, but maybe a ship can only be assaulted so many times per hour or only if into hull. Maybe by only so many marine pods? Maybe it can only be assaulted with a new type of module that depolarizes the hull? This would provide a unique window and game play that would allow attackers another option instead of destroying a ship. The ship may be scuttled...but maybe not. Maybe the defender has reps coming in? Maybe he has enough defending marines he thinks to stave off the attack? Maybe accepting a takeover is preferable to a loss mail?

Anyways, again - everyone that started talking about folding Legion into WIS and EVE really liked this idea. Maybe someday if PI ever becomes super important (i.e. Player made Planet stations that function like Space Stations/Citadels) the same could be incorporated there.



Further thoughts:

*While Dust Bunnies are waiting in their pods in the new Troop Transport ship, maybe they are allowed to man defensive guns like GunJack?

*Maybe each Supercapital or Space station can be scanned to see what their active "Internal Defense" number is. i.e. How many defensive marines it has or NPC defenses. This would be something that would influence the space battle. As a ship takes damage, maybe NPC or internal automated defenses drop. The attacker then decides, "Oh I have 20 guys online in Legion ready to go...I have a shot at this. Deploy the Troop Transport."

*Ships could be upgraded via rigs or modules as well for internal automated defenses.

*Defender missiles could be retooled to only hit pods (whether pod pilots or marine pods in space.) Ships with walls of defenders or Super capitals with Defenders would be a choice.

*Legion players if they die on the field, lose their legion loot in ship they chose to attack. Owner of said ship gains loot. So bonus to defender.

Please explain to me how marines are getting on board my ship through shields, armour and structure that can withstand nuclear weapons and doomsday devices.

Now explain what I can do to prevent some fps kiddies from stealing my ship. Active counters within EVE only, some of us are not FPS players.

Now explain how this works in heavy tidi.

Now explain why it should be possible for players of an entirely different game to steal my toys.

Now read the lore. Our ships don't HAVE bridges, that's what the pod is for. the pod that can ALSO withstand nuclear weapons and antimatter, before you start about taking it out with handheld weapons.



In short, No.

Best way to achieve this integration is through extending the basic idea of DUST integration to ******* with PI.

Currently you can not forcibly remove or mess with another player's PI colonies, which is unlike the rest of EVE.

If, in stead, you could load up a "ground forces command center" and drop it on the planet, you could use the existing PI networks there a context for integration without changing the fundamental FPS matchup nature of legion. Just offer players the ability to set bounties of PI structures they want destroyed, and a defense fund to pay out to teams that successfully defend your assets. Make the ground forces command center a legal target that can only be destroyed after all other structures owned by that player. Lose that command center, you lose the ability to set bounties/defense funds that would bring legion players to fight over those assets.

Also I guess you could bring back airstrikes like DUST, maybe spawn an NPC battlebarge for assaulting troops that can be shot at by EVE players to remove airstrike capability from people using NPC airstrikes.

Then use the hisec planets for FW version of the system that is run by NPCs.

Maybe add a couple other "airstrike" style modules e.g. supply drops etc.

This would give EVE players an ISK based tool that is reliable for all sizes of organization, and due to lowish costs and the large number of planetss and importance of PI mats provide a lot of content options for legion players to choose how closely they want to align with capsuleer corps or go full merc.

If it's built within EVE it needs to be able to be defended entirely within EVE.
So using it on PI would be bad. Not to say PI couldn't use a revamp to make it less click spammy, and to make it 'at risk' and require player corps, as that adds a driver to form small/mid sized corps in highsec that doesn't exist currently.
But no 3rd party defence of EVE assets.

How about no?

Boarding is too impractical. Its just so much easier, faster and less risky to blow people up. The same reasons boardings don't happen in real life.

The point is it would happen so infrequently that it wouldn't be a good candidate for integration, as the whole point of integration is allowing players in both games to provide as much content for one another as possible.

Think of the frequency of large scale somewhat balanced battles between large ships. Think about the mindset of people that own them. I personally would have every reason to quickly swap out all my high spots for smart bomb to ruin even 4 peoples fps fantasy of ship boarding. I would do everything I could to ruin the game mechanic including mothballing my supercarriers and fitting subcaps for the sole purpose of ruining those who would join a que for a chance to do such, and speed refit to blow up friendlies to avoid their success.

I would not be out to ruin the game, I would joyfully ruin your idea and the devs cupidity in implementing a bad idea. I would get multiple kills and large is credit for those kills. Not only that, but there is a sizable contingent of people that love fps and group together to have fun griefing other people using the games own rules.

Now think about the reasons of the average player playing against such odds. Do They have such a driven goal? How many times would they keep trying? How long would they wait in a que for that chance? How organized would they be to batphone friends for the chance.

Don't ruin Eve by giving people a cheap mob alternative to giant space battles.

Ed* I hate autocorrect.

Always Dark Angels, pre-Heresy of course. None of that dark green colour scheme nonsense...

Space Puppies are best Puppies.

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