The territorial PvP in StarMade is one of the factors of the game I enjoy by and far the most. Having to hunt faction-blocks on non-homeworlds to "shift" a system to my faction's control is a very interesting type of play - in a way a direct, but indirect form of PvP, which in my experience is pretty novel.
However...it could be better! I've got some suggestions on how to improve this form of PvP to be a bit more interesting, and more to the point, defeatable.
Problem: Sunken Blocks
Before I suggest anything, I need to note some problems in the current metagame. They start with one key cause: "Sunken" faction blocks.
Pretty much, a great way to secure a base against someone, is to take a faction block, and stick it in an armored vault, all of which is so well-hidden within a planet that no one will find it without eradicating the planet itself. While there's cases that this is very good, it makes for poor territorial PvP, and worse, strengthens the trend in StarMade's current metagame where big ships with nukes are all that matter.
Problem: Who Needs Finesse or Defense!?
As a result of only needing a large enough nukeship to wrest control of a system, one of the key things that makes PvP satisfying is taken out - finesse, and defensibility. You don't need finesse, because brute force is just a better solution. You also don't need defensibility - your primary, and usually effective, defense is security through obscurity (until someone brings the nuker to that system you just took control of.)
...What can be done to solve this?
Solution 1: Require a path from the planet surface to the faction block
Pretty much, people need to be able to get to faction blocks for territorial PvP to be a viable thing, without nuke ships dominating. That means, we need to make a concession to the trolls, and require that it be possible to reach a Faction block without the need for heavy ordinance.
Now, does that mean it needs to be easy to do so? No. Due to the wiring/logic systems in the game, all manner of horrible traps and puzzles can be set up to dissuade intruders. It would require more finesse to set up these sorts of 'base defenses', and as a result contribute great fun not only for the griefer, but for the builder who gets to devise more effective traps to screw over ne'erdowells.
The next benefit of such a system? It requires defenses in the first place. It would be necessary to set up AI drones in orbit of a base. It would be necessary to have a way of having an outpost under attack notify members of a faction that something's going on. In short, it would make it necessary to provide players with information to set their own goals, thus adding depth to the game, and making it "better".
Solution 2: A new kind of Home
But wait! That's not all. What about the loners (yes, trolls included)? Should you really need a faction to play the game?
I say, "no" - even if you're in a faction with other people, maybe there's a station you want to live in, or an awesome planet, or something. You want it to be "yours". That's a noble goal. However, things are only more valuable if they can be taken away.
The workaround as it stands is to make a one-man faction, and set a faction block. This is bad, because it fundamentally discourages factions above one person, which prevents a number of cool things from happening - crewed large vessels being among them. It's simply not an efficient way to play the game.
The solution I propose is a block that is cheaper, but similar to the Faction Block - The Player Home block. It has the same "path to" limitation that the Faction block has. It is mutually exclusive with Faction blocks - you can't have a planet that's a player home and a faction home at the same time. Like the faction block, it provides invincibility and inoperability to players who aren't the player it's set to. However, unlike the faction block, it's destructible no matter what.
This means, players can set up that awesome personal station, or planetary base, or asteroid outpost (the asteroid thing is a bit iffy, I admit, but still; Rule of Cool.) They don't need to spin off a one-man faction. It still needs the best defenses possible, however, which means traps and drones and friendly players.
The best part of this suggestion? You already have most of the code necessary to make this happen. A slight tweak to ownership will make life more interesting for everyone involved.
Conclusion
By playing alone, StarMade's territorial PvP fails to reach its fullest, and fails to fully realize the game itself. By requiring that bases - be they for factions or individuals - require finesse to both attack and defend, you make a deeper, more engaging game that de-emphasizes big ships and bigger guns in favor of creativity and teamwork.
Thanks for reading the Great Wall o' Text. What do you think about these changes to the Territorial PvP in StarMade?
However...it could be better! I've got some suggestions on how to improve this form of PvP to be a bit more interesting, and more to the point, defeatable.
Problem: Sunken Blocks
Before I suggest anything, I need to note some problems in the current metagame. They start with one key cause: "Sunken" faction blocks.
Pretty much, a great way to secure a base against someone, is to take a faction block, and stick it in an armored vault, all of which is so well-hidden within a planet that no one will find it without eradicating the planet itself. While there's cases that this is very good, it makes for poor territorial PvP, and worse, strengthens the trend in StarMade's current metagame where big ships with nukes are all that matter.
Problem: Who Needs Finesse or Defense!?
As a result of only needing a large enough nukeship to wrest control of a system, one of the key things that makes PvP satisfying is taken out - finesse, and defensibility. You don't need finesse, because brute force is just a better solution. You also don't need defensibility - your primary, and usually effective, defense is security through obscurity (until someone brings the nuker to that system you just took control of.)
...What can be done to solve this?
Solution 1: Require a path from the planet surface to the faction block
Pretty much, people need to be able to get to faction blocks for territorial PvP to be a viable thing, without nuke ships dominating. That means, we need to make a concession to the trolls, and require that it be possible to reach a Faction block without the need for heavy ordinance.
Now, does that mean it needs to be easy to do so? No. Due to the wiring/logic systems in the game, all manner of horrible traps and puzzles can be set up to dissuade intruders. It would require more finesse to set up these sorts of 'base defenses', and as a result contribute great fun not only for the griefer, but for the builder who gets to devise more effective traps to screw over ne'erdowells.
The next benefit of such a system? It requires defenses in the first place. It would be necessary to set up AI drones in orbit of a base. It would be necessary to have a way of having an outpost under attack notify members of a faction that something's going on. In short, it would make it necessary to provide players with information to set their own goals, thus adding depth to the game, and making it "better".
Solution 2: A new kind of Home
But wait! That's not all. What about the loners (yes, trolls included)? Should you really need a faction to play the game?
I say, "no" - even if you're in a faction with other people, maybe there's a station you want to live in, or an awesome planet, or something. You want it to be "yours". That's a noble goal. However, things are only more valuable if they can be taken away.
The workaround as it stands is to make a one-man faction, and set a faction block. This is bad, because it fundamentally discourages factions above one person, which prevents a number of cool things from happening - crewed large vessels being among them. It's simply not an efficient way to play the game.
The solution I propose is a block that is cheaper, but similar to the Faction Block - The Player Home block. It has the same "path to" limitation that the Faction block has. It is mutually exclusive with Faction blocks - you can't have a planet that's a player home and a faction home at the same time. Like the faction block, it provides invincibility and inoperability to players who aren't the player it's set to. However, unlike the faction block, it's destructible no matter what.
This means, players can set up that awesome personal station, or planetary base, or asteroid outpost (the asteroid thing is a bit iffy, I admit, but still; Rule of Cool.) They don't need to spin off a one-man faction. It still needs the best defenses possible, however, which means traps and drones and friendly players.
The best part of this suggestion? You already have most of the code necessary to make this happen. A slight tweak to ownership will make life more interesting for everyone involved.
Conclusion
By playing alone, StarMade's territorial PvP fails to reach its fullest, and fails to fully realize the game itself. By requiring that bases - be they for factions or individuals - require finesse to both attack and defend, you make a deeper, more engaging game that de-emphasizes big ships and bigger guns in favor of creativity and teamwork.
Thanks for reading the Great Wall o' Text. What do you think about these changes to the Territorial PvP in StarMade?