v2.6.0 Changes Discussion Thread

[Kaiser]

Steve, can We expect the new update by Christmas?

[Steve Walmsley (OP)]

Steve, can We expect the new update by Christmas?

Probably not. We are back on the island in a couple of days after nine months travelling, but we've rented a cottage for three months and our furniture (and my desktop) is still in storage. I'll be looking for a new day job during that time, as I have only been working part-time remote on our travels. Depending on how that goes, we will decide whether to stay on the island, relocate if required for a new job, or spend another year travelling. In cases 1 and 2, I am back on the desktop.

I could do a release on my laptop, but I would need to get the obfuscation working from scratch and I prefer not to mess with it when I have it setup correctly on my desktop. Also, I really need to run a short test campaign for fighters and multi-system NPRs before release.

So very unlikely for Xmas, fairly unlikely (but possible) before March.

[Mark Yanning]

Nice, waiting for the cool update!

IMMORTAL LORD - I got an idea today about officers and characters, just wanna share it. I really like to get attached to characters so it would be nice to have some of them not dying for age at all (but still dying in battle). So, I was thinking: is it possible to introduce a sort of biological research technology that makes immortal officers, or extend dead age? Let's say not all of them: Just 1-3 per year (depending on technology level researched). In this way we may have some immortal lords, or long live officers, to bring with us in the campaign  What do you think?

Edit: I'm not sure about "story character" flag option, it should retain the character in "retired" list and avoid accident or health illness, but still dying for age. I'm not sure about that..

[alex_brunius]

IMMORTAL LORD - I got an idea today about officers and characters, just wanna share it. I really like to get attached to characters so it would be nice to have some of them not dying for age at all (but still dying in battle). So, I was thinking: is it possible to introduce a sort of biological research technology that makes immortal officers, or extend dead age? Let's say not all of them: Just 1-3 per year (depending on technology level researched). In this way we may have some immortal lords, or long live officers, to bring with us in the campaign  What do you think?

Why not just flag them as story characters so they won't retire or die from accidents?

[Mark Yanning]

Yes, i do it, but still they die for old age. Don't they? 

[Doc]

Hello. With regards to the larger parasites... Could we see NPRs that utilize larger parasites instead of (or alongside) fighters, with the carrier update?

[Randy]

Yes, i do it, but still they die for old age. Don't they? 

Just need some Frankenstein tech or Zombie tech ;-)

[Louella]

The proposed change for Precursors, to have them emerge years afterwards, sounds intriguing.

Would there be a possibility for Xenology or engineer units to discover dormant ground forces or ships, and be able to exploit them in some way ?

Certainly, on bigger ruins, I've found plenty of ship components, possibly enough of the right types to build complete warships. (i.e. fire controls, reactors, beam weapons, engines, jump engines, shield generators, sensors)

[Steve Walmsley (OP)]

The proposed change for Precursors, to have them emerge years afterwards, sounds intriguing.

Would there be a possibility for Xenology or engineer units to discover dormant ground forces or ships, and be able to exploit them in some way ?

Certainly, on bigger ruins, I've found plenty of ship components, possibly enough of the right types to build complete warships. (i.e. fire controls, reactors, beam weapons, engines, jump engines, shield generators, sensors)

It's an option, rather than a change. You can still choose to use the original Precursor mechanics.

You won't be able to detect the Precursor ships. The ruins themselves are the indication that something might emerge later. This is on the lines of Necron tomb worlds in WH40k.

[Akhillis]

Really like the Enhance Precursors, but I almost feel they're mechanically different enough to be a fifth spoiler race instead of just an alternative version of the precursors? Call them Ancients maybe? Sleepers?

You could make it so if both options are active there's a 50-50 chance of ruin being trad-precursors or neo-precursors.

[nuclearslurpee]

The change to Precursors makes them much more dangerous and ominous, but also more mechanically distinct from Rakhas which right now are basically Precursors without ships or ruins to loot.

Notably, with Enhanced Precursors on the Rakhas will be the only spoiler that immediately shoots your survey ship out of orbit (unless you discover a system and leave it alone for many years).

[King-Salomon]

With the Enhanced Precursors: if I add a ruin in Sol System per GM (or any other race starting system), is there also a chance for an Emergence?

maybe it would be a good idea to make Sol System an exception so that there can no Emergence in Sol System/starting system?

[Tavik Toth]

Could have that be an option that can ge turned off or on too.

[Steve Walmsley (OP)]

With the Enhanced Precursors: if I add a ruin in Sol System per GM (or any other race starting system), is there also a chance for an Emergence?

maybe it would be a good idea to make Sol System an exception so that there can no Emergence in Sol System/starting system?

Manually created ruins don't generate precursors.

[Ghostly]

Additional swarms potentially spawning in unsurveyed systems, how utterly terrifying. I love it! Will new swarms have the same strength as a normal swarm spawn though? Feels like potentially getting several full-strength swarms in a year might be a bit much, but maybe that's the point.

Will the swarms be allied to each other and assist each other, or be neutral, or fight each other? I feel like that's very important.

Also, should the invasion really be a once-per-playthrough thing? Feels like long playthroughs would benefit from additional ones being possible, perhaps with a long cooldown since the last invasion was dealt with and with a large minimum distance to simulate a different tendril of the Swarm entering a different region of space?