Player Features and Ideas Discussion

A whole new version of scouting, yes!


Rather late to this thread but this, this is what Odyssey should have been about, actual exploration with mysteries to solve.

+1, thanks Dinsdale

I like the idea of aligning sensor strength with overview range, be it stronger strength = longer range, or the inverse of that. Either way has merits.

But the key is the same thing that these ideas run up against: the KISS principle.
How difficult are ANY of these ideas for a CCP coder to handle?

None of us have a real answer to that.
And I just don't know how many resources CCP has to throw at something like this entire concept.
It may take years before we even hear the first inkling of it, if we ever hear anything at all.

I like this idea A LOT. Stick to the purest definition of the word "Explore". No bookmarking for farming, and no indications of what may or may not be in there. Scan probes in, and scan probes to get out. 5000km is pretty small for a fast explo ship. Make the area giant, and take it off the normal 'disk'.

Put things in these areas that are worth finding, and make them hard to scan out. Good sites that have decent drops, rare ore and ice belts, oddball (read ancient) structures that you need to navigate thru that may or may not have something worth putting in your cargo. If a combat type site, then ramp up the rats(new and scary rats, not the usual one shot wonders) according to the ships that are brought in. (a scanner, a bc and a bs walk into a bar sort of thing.)

Think about killing combat probes in these areas to make any intervention between two or more ships totally by chance. (That could be interesting.) Think about taking the security down a couple notches from the surrounding system. (.3 in a .5)

Most importantly, give it the true feel of isolation. Some people like this from time to time. Make it so you WILL need to use the tools and skills you have at hand to save yourself. No clicking the sun and spamming warpto, etc. You want out, get yourself out. Either with your ship and goodies, or by pod express.

I actually think the idea of LIMITED farming of these systems could actually work.

Back to the original post there was an example of explorers in the deep forest at the beginning of the 20th century.
Often apart from hunting game, these explorers sought out ancient tombs, gold and other precious minerals.

They didn't just load up their backpack and come home.

They made maps, and they came back and either fitted for an expedition or they sold the map to another to exploit.

We should be able to make bookmarks and routes to these hidden gems, and they should persist long enough to plunder. Maybe even for a few days, Different sites different timers. But Once gone they are gone forever.

Of course others can also find these prizes and wait with other intentions..............

Once a book mark trail is made then one should be able to return reasonably swiftly.

But the finding is slow and full of risk and challenges, Real exploring. Just that the dangers can be avoided next time, just like the explorers of old did.

Instead of mountain passes there will be asteroids and sleepers and other challenges to map a way through. But even the sleepers guard treasure, and is there better beyond them? What portal are they guarding?
Those hunting you also have to pass them, Hard challenges for those who wish to prey on you Too , no easy kills....

Keep it simple, the original post is superb, and lots of good ideas since, The mechanic can actually be incredibly simple, due to the disruption effects and the limited intelligence provided by the space, It limits exploitation due to the changing nature of un-bookmarked areas. Of course others have to explore from scratch. PVP will find it's own way to happen, it always does.

Mapping a way through is the core of what will make this work rather than just getting lost for it's own sake.

let the discovery of Dinsdale's new space commence.

Yes, no doubt folks will have to develop methods of coming back to what they find.
Someone much earlier suggested that a new profession as a "pathfinder" may grow organically out of such an area.

And yes, as you said, the key is simplicity.
No new modules to make life easier.
No new deployables with an "I-WIN" button.

The allure of such an area must be the difficulty level and danger, balanced with the potential wealth, just like wormholes were when they were new. The biggest difference I see between wh life and this the mechanic that randomizes the PvE situations. In a C5 or C6, there are manuals describing every single PvE scenario you will come across. In my idea, because of the vast smorgasboard of potential sites, you cannot roll in with specialized ships and fits.

You have to search, prepare, and think, a lot more.

From simplicity arises greatness.

In my opinion, the best solution to this would be denial of bookmarking ability outside the existing system sphere.
Not just bookmarks inside the area, the ability to use bookmarks at all when in the cloud.

The Reason: Bookmarks rely on a grid and coordinate system, which require specific points of reference.
These points of reference are simply not available beyond the established system boundaries, nor can they be utilized within a cloud that obscures needed telemetry.

Therefore, while you would be able to place bookmarks outside the boundary of this cloud's border, that will be the last truly known point of reference players would have upon entering the system.
They would only be able to proceed from one sensor beacon / waypoint to the next, afterwards, until they again exited the Dinsdale Cloud and could reestablish the reference points.

Like a blindfolded player trying to pin the tale on the donkey, or strike a pinata, they must guess and hope they are on the right track.

My take on this was to allow bookmarks but only when save location is on another vessel in your fleet. If that vessel leaves the cloud you lose the bookmarks associated with it.

This would be implemented (in game terms) by sharing absolute co-ordinates as reference points. You would point at the target vessel, then calculate an x-y-z point based on it's current location and then warp to there. Without the pathfinders travel log you can't back-track to where it has been.

In code terms these are standard save points but tied to the vessel they are created on. If it leaves the area the save points are removed.

Bump for a collection of good ideas. Just what Odyssey should have been.

The main thing this thread is missing is a blue tag.

Actually I just thought that concept could be expanded to planetary rings.

Those things already are huge, thousands of km wide, not quite as deep but still enough.

You could fly to a planetary ring, with your mining barge fly around at the fringes and well, mine stuff and if you really want to be the brave explorer you could always "dive" into the ring, were the light of the local star can't quite reach you because of all the dust and debris and asteroids drifting around, were you can't warp out because of all the interference.

That way getting into and out of the area would still be quite the piece of work but at the same you can discern a general direction for the fastest way out as the ring would not be as deep as it is wide.

And (I really like that part) it wouldn't just vanish after a few days, you could actually stay in there, there could be small structures that a player would attach to an asteroid (of sufficient size), to further mask it's signature and create a little base of operations and if you want to bring your corp mates those could attach/anchor their own structures to asteroids nearby (yes I know, space city cliché)...

For some reason that picture won't leave my head, you're there with your little manticore or even Astero exploring the ring, the light is all diffuse and yellowish because of all the dirt and dust in the area, you navigate around a particular large asteroid when suddenly you stumble about something that almost resembles a little capsuleer city, haulers slowboating around between all those little micro bases, micro production facilities are active, producing ammo, ships and whatnot else for the local market and you look around a little bit and notice their capsuleer made jumpgate as it flashes and a few cruisers and maybe even battleships arrive on grid, returning from some roam or some anomaly to repair and restock on ammo.

The base had been well hidden, away from the main entry routes and the most ore ich areas, surrounded by enough sensor impairing debris and every structure attached to a bigger asteroid to mask its signature, you only found it by accident. Jackpot!

Now it's only a matter of bringing your buddies, and enough of them, to get what you want from them. But they'll have guards (no not THE guard), it's a concorde free zone after all, no one to interfere, no one between you and them...

EDIT: Grrr, now I can't stop thinking about that and how cool it would be. Thank you very much Dinsdale.

Any of the more agreed upon ideas presented would be good additions to the exploration aspects of Eve I think, and the better rounded the ideas the more likely to be considered. This has definately been one of the better threads here with people actually trying to be constructive rather than just shoot ideas down!