Player Features and Ideas Discussion

Hi, I'm new and this is my first post. so forgive any ignorance on my part..

I've read the sticky and other threads and I can't see this idea anywhere. Apologies if I've missed it.

I've picked up that there are some people who feel the strategic situation in null sec is stagnant and shuts solo players and small gangs out. That might or might not be an accurate characterisation of a situation I know nothing about personally yet, but if true it would reflect what we know about the dynamics that drive Empires (Kennedy's "The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers" remains a terrific read on this).

Empires rise and fall according to the resources they can

a) acquire,
b) transform into economic (and then military) resources
c) deploy efficiently

What disrupts the established pattern of power between Empires is changes to a, b or c; ie,

a) new resources become available to a party through exploration or conquest (eg the "discovery" of America by European nations)
b) new technologies that confer a multiplier effect become available to one or more parties (eg Britain's industrial revolution)
c) a party uses its resources better than its rivals to acquire, translate or deploy its resources (eg better military tactics, like Rome, or more successful mercantilism, like Venice)

What I'd like to suggest is that EVE adds something under item b, above. Invention - genuine invention - could be represented by discovery of a breakthrough technology in EVE that confers serious benefits that

1) a party can achieve through the acquisition and deployment of science, and
2) which remains the exclusive asset of that party for a period of time depending on what other parties subsequently invest in catching up.

I've seen a sticky thread somewhere that suggests a science profession should be available. There are some great ideas in that thread (I didn't see this one). Combining these two suggestions would

a) make EVE closer to how real life works,
b) introduce a great new profession/way of earning isk
c) provide a means by which a small alliance could take down a dominant faction, changing the course of History

This game is brilliant, btw, and I hesitate to suggest changing it in any way. But hey, that's how humans progress, right?

Gabriel

Interesting, thanks.

But what you're calling "power creep" (from what I've just read) would in this case be an accurate modelling the march of scientific progress.

Machine guns are more powerful than flintlocks, and those who don't keep up, die.

Problem with empires income is that it's very hard to do anything with income like renters. It's basically a willing slave force working for their overlord. You won't see this being taken away from them as long as there are 30thousand toons which preffer to pay couple a billions per month rather than having to deal with sov mechanics, politics and CTAs.

A bit like real life then

THe idea work on theory but would need a massive overhoul of the game. It would need the game to have been created wit hthat in mind to work. If I was going to design a game it would be like that (among other things that would make numeric superiority less prevalent), but now is too late for eve.

Makes it a possibility. Which makes it interesting, I think.

I've probably already demonstrated that I know nothing about game development, so I'll bow to your superior knowledge about that.

Thanks,
Gabriel

How, exactly, do you propose to enforce this?

Especially considering the meta of EVE.

we can brainstorm away....it be ccp internally testing first then seeing how people break it on SISI. Use any fitting tool that has the full data dumps and turn off the filtering to see the unreleased stuff. CCP has some nice shinies in those dumps....that probably summon the OP gods. Why they are not in game.

Stuff in game has to keep balance chief. Some semblance of it at least. Even then...meta of eve abuses what makes it through this sometimes.


Also you do know most comms go out of eve's software.....right? Mirc (others) for chat, ts (others) for voice. Not seeing ts devs thrilled if meta/rp has ccp breaking their stuff. And not seeing ccp even going that route....lawyers they would need, many of them.

Your other weapons....since seem kind of new there is rule when presenting ideas. It sadly brings up grrr goons but here it goes....

How will goons abuse this change.


Now it can fill in any blob, but the masses have put goons in by default lol.


Long story short....ccp (or any mmo maker single player games give the dev tools to mod away as they can, its only affecting 1 player, have your uber weapon of 1000000000 damage if you want) makes the items we use because they have a general sense of objectivity. Insert jokes about goon devs, pl devs, etc....but by and large they are objective. If only because many will recall what happened when a dev tried to hook up a (band of) brother(s) lol.

Players tend to lack this objectivity.

and even with a success rate buried deep in improbability-ville....this doesn't even favor the small guy. Blob spamming invents on god knows how many pos'/station slots....rng will favor them most likely.