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Old 2011-03-23, 06:21 PM   [Ignore Me] #1
Rbstr
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Thoughts about Transport (some new ideas)


I got to thinking about potentially larger Skeeter and Reaver bailing/hotdrops, the Galaxy, Platoons (larger squad-like entities in general), changes to flight mechanics, removal of MAX autorun, back hacking, behind the lines operation and countering of the latter two.
More in depth explanation:
One of the more likely happenings in PS:N is a change of the world's scale, either smaller or larger. In a larger world, ground vehicles will be sufficient for frontline transport, hopping base to base and providing significant firepower. However, if traveling behind the lines or trying to react to behind the lines incursions the ground vehicles may become impractical or simply not fast enough.
Many of us find HA/Agile hotdrops out of skeeters and reavers are a silly thing. Not just in balance but in a more suspension of disbelieve manner as well. (Are these things really supposed to be though of as simply disposable). But the speed and availability of the mosquito and reaver is much greater than the Galaxy making them in may ways ideal fast transports for infantry.
Aircraft changes are likely to make things less "hover-y" in general and more like fixed wing craft.

I think the way to keep people in transports instead of jumping out of combat aircraft while maintaining useful ground transport is a reworking of the scale of the galaxy and ground transports (del/sund) and adding a fast lighter transport craft (Yeah the phantasm exists, but stick with me).
Without max autorun you need to be able to move those a bit more readily as well.

So my changes:
The Galaxy is now much faster but a lot less armored to facilitate flybys and longer range travel. It can now carry a 10 rexo-infantry + pilot, 4 max and a buggy (17/18 total in best case, 1 agile, 12/13 rex, 4 max when you count the buggy). You'll still need two to put two squads in. It does make it a considerably more powerful hot drop...but I think that's ok, it blows up easier when you catch it and has very limited availability at drop centers and sancs only. The idea is that it becomes a paratrooper's kind of vehicle. It flies over, drops the load, runs away.
Sunderer: 2 more max spots totaling 4, better anti-infantry firepower.
Deliverer: 2 max spots, same otherwise
The Phantasm mostly stays the same, no guns, cloaky. Potentially agile/lighter two-slot only.

The new transport: We're thinking more of transport helicopter here. It's got some ground attack guns for clearing the landing. It drops off a small force and provides some support (you could think like those transports in the newer Star Wars movies, or a sci-fi UH-1)
Speed: Reaver + a teeny bit, but lower AB max speed. Makes for interesting balance. Highly maneuverable, with high side-to-side and altitude change speed compared to more fixed-wing-esque craft (those being the skeeter and galaxy in the new game, I expect).
Capacity: Pilot, 4 troops, 1 gunner, 1 Max. Basically, short of a full squad closer to a half
Armaments: I'd hope empire specific. (Gauss auto-cannon, beams, dual-linked MCGs) Failing that, an old style skeeter 12mm. We're looking for some anti-infantry power and some AA in the right situations but little to no AV. Mounted under the chin with 360 rotation.
Armor: I don't know. I imagine it needs to abuse rock-paper-scissors somehow. Low-altitude survivability needs high HP, but skeeters should chew it up rather good. So you need to have high resistance to AT/AA guns but weak to bullets, instead of the typical vehicle workings.
Availability: Tech plant equivalent or even always.
Critical: Low altitude hotdrop only. Basically the blue glow would run out by the time you reached the ground from approx 1.5x the tallest building. It forces you to be low and not up a the ceiling.

What this all does:
People can move maxes around with some modicum of efficiency following the removal of auto run.
Makes sure ground transports have roles in moving maxes especially.
You can get infantry air transport in a pinch without needing a galaxy...but you need more than one to take a full squad.
The galaxy becomes more strategic and enables larger fighting units (2x gal and you can fly a platoon around)
Allows the expansion of the world scale and enables both behind the lines actions and the reactions to them.
Allows us to reenact the Ride of the Valkyries Scene. (Super important)
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Last edited by Rbstr; 2011-03-23 at 06:27 PM.
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Old 2011-03-23, 07:38 PM   [Ignore Me] #2
Furret
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Re: Thoughts about Transport (some new ideas)


Originally Posted by Rbstr View Post
Allows us to reenact the Ride of the Valkyries Scene. (Super important)
/agreeagreeagreeagreeagree

Anyway, I like these ideas.

Does your suggestion change the hotdrop mechanics at all? You mentioned a blue glow running out. I assume this pertains to the magical air resistance that stops your molecular structure from rearranging to that of a pancake upon impact.

I think parachutes and or different hotdrop mechanics are a must for PS:N, because I always thought it was silly that someone can jump out of a plane going 185 km/h and survive the landing without trouble.
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Old 2011-03-23, 09:12 PM   [Ignore Me] #3
Traak
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Re: Thoughts about Transport (some new ideas)


Originally Posted by Furret View Post
You mentioned a blue glow running out. I assume this pertains to the magical air resistance that stops your molecular structure from rearranging to that of a pancake upon impact.
I think he meant that the blue glow wouldn't be advertising your drop to everyone within 1.6km, but would function as usual. What I think he meant was that BELOW a certain altitude, you get rewarded with NO blue "come and kill me" glow when you drop, but above that altitude, you still get the "comet tail" advertising your presence when you drop.

And, yes, jumping from a plane doing mach 0.2 and surviving is kind of ridiculous.
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Old 2011-03-23, 09:15 PM   [Ignore Me] #4
Rbstr
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Re: Thoughts about Transport (some new ideas)


Yeah, Furret, not really Traak. Things would mostly work similar to now.
I'd fiddle with them in a fairly minor way. You only get to fall a certain distance and your "blue glow would run out" meaning you'd no longer be protected from the fall damage - you'd splat.
The blue glow itself is sort of irrelevant to the new ship. If you have to hot drop from just a bit above the tower they know you're there anyway. For the Galaxy you could make the case for removing the glowy effect.
The new ship has to drop you from a low altitude or else you splat reinforcing the idea this is more of a tactical transport. Ideally I'd want the thing to be just feet off the ground to load and offload soldiers, no real hot drop for the non-pilots at all.
You'd be able to swoop in, get the thing slowed down and close to ground in the middle of a fire fight, lay down cover fire, get infantry in or out of it and be gone very quickly.
That includes the top of buildings.
But that may not be game-mechanically feasible...I'd yet to see a game where landing on anything but the flattest ground hasn't caused you to get flung about horribly. So the just-above tall-tower-height drop is a kind of compromise.

A Galaxy would be able to drop from quite high as a more strategic transport. It would require quite a lot of time to get situated on the ground where it could load people up. It would certainly not be able to swoop in and evacuate or deposit soldiers in the middle of a ground fight.
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Last edited by Rbstr; 2011-03-23 at 09:19 PM.
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