- Joined
- Jan 16, 2016
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NOTE: All values are examples chosen to be reasonable, which are subject to change. Also, all effects are my ideas about what would be both interesting and useful - I don't know it they can or will be implemented if this idea goes anywhere.
Okay, once again, "one of these threads." Bear with me.
We all know that you hardly ever use damage pulses, apart from anti-boarder systems, and honestly, how many of you choose boarding over MOAR CANNONS? So here's my suggestion to redo pulse for a more useful and interesting model.
The damage pulse would now be a "dampener", which in its unmodified state would create a power drain within a certain area.
This drain would act as a pulse effect - once fired, it creates a drain which slowly tapers off.
Now, the modifiers.
Pulse/Cannon - Drain loses range but reload is shorter. Total power drain is the same.
Pulse/Missile - Drain no longer tapers, instead it is constant. Total power drain is slightly lower.
Pulse/Beam - Increases range, but decreases total power drain.
Pulse/Pulse - Drain no longer tapers, instead it is all applied at once. Total power drain is much higher. Recharge time is also much higher.
EMP - Power drain is higher, but it affects all ships, regardless of faction. However, allied or neutral vessels receive a lower than normal drain. (Does not include the vessel using the dampener - it's using enough power as it is.)
Explosive - Power drain is converted to weak shield-penetrating damage.
Ion - Power drain is converted to weak shield damage.
Overdrive - Power drain is converted to thrust drain. (Consider it similar to the thruster failing effect you get if your ship is damaged enough.)
Piercing - Power drain will also decloak and unjam all vessels using those effects for a given period of time (I'm thinking about ten seconds) However, this will not occur if the mass of these vessels is greater than the vessel generating the dampener.
Punch-Through - In addition to draining power, it would create a "power deficit" (negative power storage) if the total power drained is greater than the capacity of the vessel affected. If this occurs, the affected vessel would be uncontrollable until the deficit is filled.
Alternatively, this could make ships smaller than the size of the drain module uncontrollable instead.
Push - When the drain is applied, the engines on all vessels affected will use more power than normal. Similar to Pulse/Overdrive, but weaker.
Alternatively, all vessels affected would be pushed away from the dampening vessel.
Pull - When the drain is applied, the engines on all allied vessels would use less power than normal.
Alternatively, all vessels affected would be pulled toward the dampening vessel.
Stop - Instead of a power drain, all affected vessels would have a steering lag. This lag would be based on the size of the pulse array as compared to the affected vessels.
Alternatively, all vessels affected would recieve the stop effect (although rather weakly.)
Additionally:
This power drain would use a great deal of power to generate, much more than a simple beam/cannon/pulse/missile + EMP effect. Total drain would also be lower.
If at all possible, Pulse/Missile would be able to be activated on stations - seeing as it doesn't need aiming and has no recharge. This would also give dedicated "drainer" stations a purpose, seeing as it cannot be mounted on turrets.
I don't see this being the weapon of choice on a lone ship, but rather a support tool for a large, dampener oriented battleship, designed to give a fleet an edge during an attack. Although the EMP effect would affect all ships, the fact that it drains less power on allied vessels would allow ships with slightly overpowered power systems to get away just fine.
So, please post your opinions, suggestions, unending praise, etc.
Okay, once again, "one of these threads." Bear with me.
We all know that you hardly ever use damage pulses, apart from anti-boarder systems, and honestly, how many of you choose boarding over MOAR CANNONS? So here's my suggestion to redo pulse for a more useful and interesting model.
The damage pulse would now be a "dampener", which in its unmodified state would create a power drain within a certain area.
This drain would act as a pulse effect - once fired, it creates a drain which slowly tapers off.
Now, the modifiers.
Pulse/Cannon - Drain loses range but reload is shorter. Total power drain is the same.
Pulse/Missile - Drain no longer tapers, instead it is constant. Total power drain is slightly lower.
Pulse/Beam - Increases range, but decreases total power drain.
Pulse/Pulse - Drain no longer tapers, instead it is all applied at once. Total power drain is much higher. Recharge time is also much higher.
EMP - Power drain is higher, but it affects all ships, regardless of faction. However, allied or neutral vessels receive a lower than normal drain. (Does not include the vessel using the dampener - it's using enough power as it is.)
Explosive - Power drain is converted to weak shield-penetrating damage.
Ion - Power drain is converted to weak shield damage.
Overdrive - Power drain is converted to thrust drain. (Consider it similar to the thruster failing effect you get if your ship is damaged enough.)
Piercing - Power drain will also decloak and unjam all vessels using those effects for a given period of time (I'm thinking about ten seconds) However, this will not occur if the mass of these vessels is greater than the vessel generating the dampener.
Punch-Through - In addition to draining power, it would create a "power deficit" (negative power storage) if the total power drained is greater than the capacity of the vessel affected. If this occurs, the affected vessel would be uncontrollable until the deficit is filled.
Alternatively, this could make ships smaller than the size of the drain module uncontrollable instead.
Push - When the drain is applied, the engines on all vessels affected will use more power than normal. Similar to Pulse/Overdrive, but weaker.
Alternatively, all vessels affected would be pushed away from the dampening vessel.
Pull - When the drain is applied, the engines on all allied vessels would use less power than normal.
Alternatively, all vessels affected would be pulled toward the dampening vessel.
Stop - Instead of a power drain, all affected vessels would have a steering lag. This lag would be based on the size of the pulse array as compared to the affected vessels.
Alternatively, all vessels affected would recieve the stop effect (although rather weakly.)
Additionally:
This power drain would use a great deal of power to generate, much more than a simple beam/cannon/pulse/missile + EMP effect. Total drain would also be lower.
If at all possible, Pulse/Missile would be able to be activated on stations - seeing as it doesn't need aiming and has no recharge. This would also give dedicated "drainer" stations a purpose, seeing as it cannot be mounted on turrets.
I don't see this being the weapon of choice on a lone ship, but rather a support tool for a large, dampener oriented battleship, designed to give a fleet an edge during an attack. Although the EMP effect would affect all ships, the fact that it drains less power on allied vessels would allow ships with slightly overpowered power systems to get away just fine.
So, please post your opinions, suggestions, unending praise, etc.
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