The battle islands should function like the caves from Core Combat

[Roy Awesome]

Everyone thinks Core Combat sucked, but I disagree. I think Core Combat came up with quite a few novel and great ideas that fit in really well to PS1's metagame. The rotating time based geowarps added an interesting layer of complexity to the lattice. The Cave Mods gave you a reason to defend and fortify bases. Ancient Tech links were awesome and added a bit more strategy in selecting bases to attack.

The caves sucked though. The zip lines were confusing and the base layouts didn't help.

So, why not take the good from Core Combat (time based geowarps and mods) and use the Battle Islands as a place for those objectives. Create smaller controllable warpgates that anyone can use, put them on an 8 hour timer, and link them to bases on the main continents.

This creates small scale combat that has an influence on the larger overworld game, secondary objectives (cave mods and a CTF like mechanic to go with it), and a use for these MLG islands that don't just take people away from the foreverwar

[bpostal]

No. Fucking. Ziplines.

[Roy Awesome]

No. Fucking. Ziplines.

Thank you for your valuable contribution to the thread by saying something I said in the OP

[bpostal]

Thank you for your valuable contribution to the thread by saying something I said in the OP

I'm here for you. I'm glad I got my point across easily and concisely.
EDIT: Allow me to elaborate. You could make these battle islands function like the Men's bathroom at the back of an adult theater and as long as my dick doesn't have to go from point A to point B via zipline, I'm happy. I only care about these battle islands as long as they facilitate the introduction of the intercontinental lattice. Sure, I might have to play on them and for that reason alone I want to ensure there are no ziplines. Global domination is, and always has been, my goal.

[capiqu]

That would be great, I like the Idea that the Islands could be connected via timed geowarps to the continents. Good Idea Roy.

[Snipefrag]

I really like that idea, the caves were a great idea poorly executed.

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2

[AThreatToYou]

I think that's a workable idea.

[ringring]

I think that's a good idea.

All those features that you mentioned certainly did add a lot to the ps1 metagame, they made to think ahead about the enemy gaining a link to your base and about you gaining one to theirs. So +1

But I can't see how this comment
The caves sucked though. The zip lines were confusing and the base layouts didn't help.
still flies after the ps2 Amp Stations and Tech Plant design chaos. There was far more structure and a lot better infantry fighting in the caves.

[Qwan]

Ok im a little lost, I thought the battle islands was going to be reserved for outfit vs outfit battles. So what Im getting from this thread is that the Battle Islands are going to be just regular islands. Question does any one have a snap shot of what these islands even look like......

[ringring]

Ok im a little lost, I thought the battle islands was going to be reserved for outfit vs outfit battles. So what Im getting from this thread is that the Battle Islands are going to be just regular islands. Question does any one have a snap shot of what these islands even look like......

Apart from the fly thru of Nexus no.

But the island are going to be used for the mlg matches and integrated into the game.

It seems there will be separate instances used for the matches, really they could have as many matches running concurrenyly as they wish as they're instanced.

This thread is concerned with the versions that will be integrated into the game and I presume there will be 4 battle islands as per PS1 and if done right it could be a big step for the meta-game and additionally the op suggestion is a good one.

[GeoGnome]

Why?

I mean if we want the caves back (I am not qualified to say if that is a good or bad thing) then why don't we push to get the caves back? The battle islands could be used like small bases between the larger continents... which would be pretty good IMO, you fight through the smaller BIs around a continent, or you fight on the continent... many ways to contribute right there. I think an arbitrary rotation of the BI will just be a little silly, as there is no reason for it. The caves, apparently there was timed entry for a decent reason. They were subterranean and linked to some weird tech. Battle Islands... they are islands, you can swim there, no reason for them to have rotating time to get onto them, unless the people who built the Warpgate system, was a company that specialized in making egg timers or something.

[Malorn]

I enjoyed the cave game play and metagameplay as well. They were a good way for small squads to make a noticeable impact on a continent outcome. And they didn't have BFRs! I think it was the zip lines and confusing layout that turned most players off.

The connectivity idea is interesting, I liked the rotating geowarps. We've talked a bit about how to have player-driven warpgate rotation/randomness. Any ideas about how we can do that to where it happens but doesn't happen too often?

As for nexus and other BIs, been quite a few ideas about how best to integrate them into the main game. Continent connectors is certainly the obvious way, but I like the geowarp idea too. That would allow the controlled introduction, much like it was in PS1's caves.

[Ruffdog]

What if instead of fighting over mods, players will fight over implants? Battle Island Implants?
This could lead to rich get richer situation though for over pop empires.

[Calista]

I like the idea of "geowarps". They would essentially be the first true warpgates and by being a dynamic rotating entry point onto a continent, would break up symmetry and that is something PS2 has been sorely needing since launch. It is a much better idea than sticking them in between continents and retaining the 3 empire 3 WG's of today.

[Timealude]

What if instead of fighting over mods, players will fight over implants? Battle Island Implants?
This could lead to rich get richer situation though for over pop empires.

it could also keep us away from the dreaded pay to win aspect everyone is so worried about with implants.

[capiqu]

Even if mods or any kind of benefits are not attached to the capture of Nexus just the fact that you can use the rotating geo/warps to move into other continents is reason enough to have . They could serve as back doors to other continents.
Each cont with 2 geo/warps that could be located south to north or east to west of each other. That would be 8 geo/warps on Indar,Esamir,Amerish and Hossin. With 2 warpgates on Nexus each one connecting to 1 cont that would mean that Geo/warps will rotate every 6 hours.

[SexyTRex]

What I fear is with these smaller maps and the idea of having more entrances to continents that Galaxies will become even more irrelevant.

[DviddLeff]

48v48. What about the other empire? How would you get a single organised squad from another continent to it, let alone a whole platoon? I do not see how it can be worked into the main game world easily without it being a major bottleneck.

[Calista]

48v48. What about the other empire? How would you get a single organised squad from another continent to it, let alone a whole platoon? I do not see how it can be worked into the main game world easily without it being a major bottleneck.

Higby said the BI's are capable of more than 200 but the 48v48 you are referring to are the MLG limits. But I agree, even with 200+, if they were to put them inline with existing WG's then it would create a bottleneck of major impact to the game. If they chose to make them a 4th WG to each cont via a rotating geowarp cave-esque technique, it would be less of a bottleneck and offer a variably owned entry point to cont, which I think would be nice to have.

[Shogun]

ok, one idea how to switch warpgates playerdriven:

obvious way would be only the last warpgate a faction owns gets the invincible foothold bonus. all other warpgates are contestable. much like ps1, with the last warpgate becoming the sanctuary. (or reintroduce sanctuaries and make all warpgates work like ps1)

but as i suppose the devs don´t want the ps1 way, or just need something temporary until enough continents are available for a real system, here is my temporary idea:

if a faction conquers a continent, an automated poll is generated for the winning faction. it could be a popup window that pops up the next time you respawn or go to the redeploy screen, asking which warpgate you would prefer. after 5 minutesthe poll is compiled and the warpgate will change to the most wanted.
that would also create a real incentive to capture a continent, according to all the whining that happens after each rotation ;)

and if you capture a cont but everybody likes the warpgate where it is, it will stay there until someone else captures the cont.

and the battle islands really should get functionality like the caves in ps1! i loved the caves. it really was the weird layout that was the only problem with some of them. so i hope we can get some additional gameplay out of those islands! some llu/module like gameplay where players can go to the battle islands to gather some device that gives a REAL bonus if deployed on a continent. i don´t think i have to explain the concept to malorn, he should know it quite good ;)
and there are tons of good boni we would like to fight for! not the 1-5% things we have ingame right now that doesn´t matter and nobody cares about at all.
like vanu nanite core module, that grants free vehicles on the base it is installed on (timers still there, only no ressource cost) maybe include the max and aircrafts, or make a similar module for infantry and air.

or a vanu cloning module, that eliminates the spawn timer on the base and makes it available as spawnpoint to every friendly soldier on the continent (much like ps1 binding, just as a module that autobinds everyone)

maybe even ancient tech that allows access to new vehicles (no, NOT the flail) or the giant flying mystery we once saw as a concept drawing.

or special ancient alien firearms. like a plasma flamethrower that ignites everything it hits for some seconds, even floor and walls. something that is totally different from the standard bullet (or laser) weapon and does crazy stuff. or the original radiator.

a module for extreme accuracy or projectile speed on the base aa turrets, or disables heatbuilding on the ai turrets.

lots and lots f great options to choose from.

at first only apply those benefits to the base that holds the deployed module. then monitor how it is used and which impact it has on balance. maybe extend the benefits to latticelinked bases, or connect it to the ressource system, so when we got ntu, a high ntu level on the base would extend the benefit along the lattice for maybe up to 5 or 6 bases, but when ntu drains, the benefit soi shrinks.
reintroduce the ant, and voila, we have a supply/deny gameplay that has big influence on the battle.

[Blynd]

I enjoyed the cave game play and metagameplay as well. They were a good way for small squads to make a noticeable impact on a continent outcome. And they didn't have BFRs! I think it was the zip lines and confusing layout that turned most players off.

The connectivity idea is interesting, I liked the rotating geowarps. We've talked a bit about how to have player-driven warpgate rotation/randomness. Any ideas about how we can do that to where it happens but doesn't happen too often?

As for nexus and other BIs, been quite a few ideas about how best to integrate them into the main game. Continent connectors is certainly the obvious way, but I like the geowarp idea too. That would allow the controlled introduction, much like it was in PS1's caves.

To me seems obvious we have sanctuaries and we get a rotated home cont link ie to one of the current conts then these BI's provide a link from a warp gate on one of the continents ie link indar to esamir via nexus and the empire who has cont lock has acces to the BI and once they take that they have acces to next continent

[PredatorFour]

I for one, ain't looking forward to the TR holding these battle islands on miller indefinately with their pop advantage. A cap at 200 ? If so it could be a disaster.



Although on reflection... It isn't any different to oshur back on Werner, that was nearly always red!

[ringring]

To me seems obvious we have sanctuaries and we get a rotated home cont link ie to one of the current conts then these BI's provide a link from a warp gate on one of the continents ie link indar to esamir via nexus and the empire who has cont lock has acces to the BI and once they take that they have acces to next continent

Except if you're fight to win a cont lock and then actually achieve it you have a lot of people wanting to move into a BI who won't fit.

I think it needs to be something like in ps1. Each continent has two warpgates to fight for and as soon as you win the WG base you gain access to the link to the next continent or BI.

This also implies sanctuaries that link into the third WG too.

We need Figgy to theorycraft it. :)

[raw]

The connectivity idea is interesting, I liked the rotating geowarps. We've talked a bit about how to have player-driven warpgate rotation/randomness. Any ideas about how we can do that to where it happens but doesn't happen too often?



Infiltrators, my friend. Give them something to infiltrate.

Say, each wargate has a connection control node, that can be hacked by our dear infiltrators to establish a link between this warpgate and a target warpgate. Think of it like a Stargate!

The Warpgate control doesn't necessarily need to be next or even close to the warpgate, maybe a new facility type altogether. Also, there should probably be a cooldown on how often you can override the connection. Finally, high cert dependency, so a deep specced Infiltrator can finally feel special.

Open a sudden unexpected backdoor? Yes, of course! Completely deny an enemy assault of a continent before it can even take place? Hell, yes!

Oh btw, we need more continents.

[capiqu]

Going on the OP something like this.

1. At Indar:

A) North Nexus/Indar Geowarpgate:
Located at and linked to J908 Impact Site.

B) South Nexus/Indar Geoewarpgate:
Located at and linked to Xeno Tech.

2. At Esamir:

A) North Nexus/Esamir Geowarpgate:
Located and linked to Apex Genetics.

B) South Nexus/Esamir Geowarpgate:
Located and linked to Glacier Station.

3. At Amerish:

A) North Nexus/Amerish Geowarpgate:
Located and linked to Auraxicon Network Hub.

B) South Nexus/Amerish Geowarp:
Located and linked to Auraxis firearms Corp.

4. At Hossin:

A) East Nexus/Hossin Geowarp.

B) West Nexus/Hossin Geowarp.

Trying to place the WG's as close to the borders between factions.

[Roy Awesome]

I enjoyed the cave game play and metagameplay as well. They were a good way for small squads to make a noticeable impact on a continent outcome. And they didn't have BFRs! I think it was the zip lines and confusing layout that turned most players off.

Exactly. It's the best of both worlds. You get the metagame aspect of the rotating geowarps and if you want to re-add cavemods you could have an awesome CTF mechanic there, and you get to throw out the shitty cave level design and do something really cool and fun.


The connectivity idea is interesting, I liked the rotating geowarps. We've talked a bit about how to have player-driven warpgate rotation/randomness. Any ideas about how we can do that to where it happens but doesn't happen too often?

Honestly? Leave them neutral. Let the links into the geowarp decide where the influence line comes from. Perhaps you can put a base right on the edge of the dome and that base is the 'controller', but the actual warping between continents should be 100% neutral.

It'd be cool to come out of the warp in the middle of a base siege right outside of the shield. Perhaps allow gunfire in the dome but not in the central spire? That would give you an area to fight with a base to control and an area to safely load into the continent and not get killed before you can react.



As for nexus and other BIs, been quite a few ideas about how best to integrate them into the main game. Continent connectors is certainly the obvious way, but I like the geowarp idea too. That would allow the controlled introduction, much like it was in PS1's caves.

Yeah. You and me are on the same page. You guys can just create a new BI and throw it into the rotation. Ezpz.

[artifice]

I enjoyed the cave game play and metagameplay as well. They were a good way for small squads to make a noticeable impact on a continent outcome. And they didn't have BFRs! I think it was the zip lines and confusing layout that turned most players off.

The connectivity idea is interesting, I liked the rotating geowarps. We've talked a bit about how to have player-driven warpgate rotation/randomness. Any ideas about how we can do that to where it happens but doesn't happen too often?

As for nexus and other BIs, been quite a few ideas about how best to integrate them into the main game. Continent connectors is certainly the obvious way, but I like the geowarp idea too. That would allow the controlled introduction, much like it was in PS1's caves.

Couldn't these islands be added to the open world and have them accessible via the lattice?

[Meatball Mobeus]

I... am shocked to say that I agree with this. I really did hate the caves in PS1, but I think that was because I spent way to much time in them. Honestly that was my own doing.

But anyway, once theres enough of them, maybe they could rotate in and out like the caves did. Could be fun. Then later down the road... Whoever owns it unlocks access to something very special. New vehicle or weapon types that shouldn't be OP. But something unique enough to make us want to have them.

[Larington]

One thing I really liked about the cave was the entry corridors, if you had an AMS at each end of it, with all that infantry cover and the little side tunnels for trying to flank each other, you could get some really fun fights in those corridors.

Sadly it was quite a rare occurrence.

[ringring]

If we're talking about cave rotation I'd say make the rotation of links predictable rather than random to enhance strategic thinking.

[TripsJay]

I'd love to see some really infantry focused maps/areas, as well as it being a good place to go if you want to just play infantry, it may help solve some of the issues between vehicle and infantry combat.