A feeble attempt at balanced matches

[doggwa]

Been flying stock lately on new toons and noticed that folk like to all jump in bombers when they see two shippers.

 

What if there was a primary ship slot that one would choose before they queue to try to balance teams? That way matchmaker could attempt to pre balance ship types and avoid teams of stacked gunships and bombers, or at least evenly stack them on both sides.

 

If you use a ship outside your primary ship type during the course of the match, you are penalised with x2 spawn time between deaths.

 

Ideas?

[Ryuku-sama]

Been flying stock lately on new toons and noticed that folk like to all jump in bombers when they see two shippers.

 

What if there was a primary ship slot that one would choose before they queue to try to balance teams? That way matchmaker could attempt to pre balance ship types and avoid teams of stacked gunships and bombers, or at least evenly stack them on both sides.

 

If you use a ship outside your primary ship type during the course of the match, you are penalised with x2 spawn time between deaths.

 

Ideas?

 

No.

 

/5char

[Verain]

I don't like this idea at all.

 

First, it's not enough of a penalty to force people into playing whatever. Second, if someone flies "bombers against two shippers" it's probably because he doesn't want to go farm them hard, and while I generally disagree with that sentiment entirely, it's reasonable to allow players to not have to play the aggro ships when they want to be nice to newbs.

 

Third, people would feel compelled to pick their "good" ship, and the whole point of the hanger is not to have one of those.

 

 

This change would inconvenience me, and not improve the game for anyone.

[doggwa]

I don't like this idea at all.

 

First, it's not enough of a penalty to force people into playing whatever.

 

Valid I guess. I just figure that when folk try to adapt to put the other team at a disadvantage, it would introduce a penalty for dying. The advantage you gain better be better than the slight disadvantage of respawn time. You try to bring a tank bomber into the game, finally get rapid fired to death, it takes longer to come back again.

 

Second, if someone flies "bombers against two shippers" it's probably because he doesn't want to go farm them hard, and while I generally disagree with that sentiment entirely, it's reasonable to allow players to not have to play the aggro ships when they want to be nice to newbs.

 

Nah. Pilots are bloodthirsty on harb. I personally would rather feel like I'm making someone work and dying than getting plucked by turrets, mines, and faced with something I hit for 4 holding the sat.

 

 

Third, people would feel compelled to pick their "good" ship, and the whole point of the hanger is not to have one of those.

 

People already pick their good ship. That's why they start with something else, then change to a charged plating bomber against opponents that have very little counter.

 

This change would inconvenience me, and not improve the game for anyone.

 

You are probably right here though. I was just throwing out an idea to have a match maker that might actually match more than ur a pub and ur an imp.

 

Thanks for an actual response sir. I'll mull it over more.

[Verain]

Btw, one of the biggest things that they could do would be a "simulation versus common threat" or similar- essentially, a way to queue empire AND republic. There's a lot of problems with that most likely, but it WOULD be the cheapest way to apply better matchmaking.

 

 

If players are switching in charged plating versus two shippers, then they must consider the two shippers a threat- so they can't be very far away from that status. For what it is worth, the solution to THAT is to make armor pen much more accessible- for instance, heavy lasers and burst lasers could pierce armor by default, and also take some other hit, such as a loss of base accuracy or damage, and then have the current tier 4 choice become the thing that gives that back- and that tier choice could actually be balanced as a choice compared to the other tier 4 entry. Then new players would have a way to counter armor, and the weapon wouldn't be too strong in general.

 

 

I don't think any pilot will go on record as being fully behind the way armor, armor pen, and charged plating are implemented. Even if you like the rock-paper-scissors aspect (I do), it's still not the best way to do that.

[btbarrett]

For what it is worth, the solution to THAT is to make armor pen much more accessible- for instance, heavy lasers and burst lasers could pierce armor by default, and also take some other hit, such as a loss of base accuracy or damage, and then have the current tier 4 choice become the thing that gives that back- and that tier choice could actually be balanced as a choice compared to the other tier 4 entry. Then new players would have a way to counter armor, and the weapon wouldn't be too strong in general..

 

Not that I run too many charged plating ships, but I would be annoyed if they made that change. I feel like damage reduction is already niche enough in this game w/ all of the armor pen. If you gave base blasters armor pen there would be almost no place in the game for DR. New players can afford 1k req for rocket pods, 2k req for thermites or protons, or 8.5k for slug railguns. Two shippers could also just... not shoot them while they were glowing and instead shoot them when they weren't. I don't think the problem is necessarily that newer players don't have access to the equipment needed to take out charged plating bombers, but that they simply lack the knowledge of how the mechanic works or even that there IS even a mechanic.

[MiaowZedong]

Not that I run too many charged plating ships, but I would be annoyed if they made that change. I feel like damage reduction is already niche enough in this game w/ all of the armor pen. If you gave base blasters armor pen there would be almost no place in the game for DR. New players can afford 1k req for rocket pods, 2k req for thermites or protons, or 8.5k for slug railguns. Two shippers could also just... not shoot them while they were glowing and instead shoot them when they weren't. I don't think the problem is necessarily that newer players don't have access to the equipment needed to take out charged plating bombers, but that they simply lack the knowledge of how the mechanic works or even that there IS even a mechanic.

Thing is, DR is potentially a very bad thing. The only reason it isn't is that it's so easy to counter. Being able to stack 99% DR is just silly, the only reason it's not overpowering is that alot of the weapons people actually use ignore it altogether. That leaves DR as a hard counter to specific strategies, and worthless in the general case.

 

Now, there's alot of criticism of hard counters in general that could be made, but as such things go DR in GSF works and fills its role—but there's no reason to add newb-killing to its role. In fact, IMO, specific newb-killing builds really shouldn't be a thing.

 

If the weapons that get armour pen as a talent had it out of the box (or at least half up front, half on upgrade) the game would be more newbie friendly, and for competitive games DR would be in exactly the same place as it is now. There's no reason to give more weapons armour pen, though.

Edited November 27, 2014 by MiaowZedong