Newbie Drone Questions
 

My first post and it is a silly newbie question. I've searched the forum but maybe I missed the answer.

What exactly is a Drone and what are the strategic and tactical implications of drones? Why do people want them?

Also if PBW games are upgraded to Gold, what tech path will result in Drones? Will players who have followed that path have a sudden advantage?

Re: Newbie Drone Questions
 

Drones are a seperate tech area.

It is not clear yet whether we will be able to convert games to Godl in mid game like we have been able to with previous Versions, but if it is possible, nobody will get them automatically. All reaces will have to research them. Unless it's a high tech start I guess, then maybe everyone will get them. Not sure about that. Never tried it.

Geo

Re: Newbie Drone Questions
 

Drone is a feature not implemented in the actual Version of the game, it will be implemented in SE VI Gold. Sorry but I don't know what drones are expected to do in the game, if I remember correctly past rumors in this forum, it will be some type of unmanned and self guided vehicle launched by ships, something between a fighter and a very small ship, which can go trough warp point and has a set of preselected instructions. I don't know if the owner player will have some control on it after launch.
A place in the structure of the game is nevertheless reserved to drones since the first release of the game, you can check the bitmaps pictures in the races subdirectory, and I think the interest of many players in drone is due to that.
Hope this help you, and may be Richard or someone of the beta tester group can post some more information in the thread.
Bye, Marco.

Re: Newbie Drone Questions
 

yeah, I picture drones as a ROV- basiclly a use-once robot vehicle. Like a missle, but it can be given other orders.

It also means a Honor Harrington mod is possible, *if* we can get the AI to use them that way.

Phoenix-D

Re: Newbie Drone Questions
 

Drones could be more than just missiles though, here is a couple of ideas:

Spy/Recon Probes
Mobile Point Defense units

Re: Newbie Drone Questions
 

I believe drones will be units, but able to traverse warp points. The way I imagined them, you couldn't give them orders every turn like ships. Kind of like an interstellar Version of an ICBM, but capable of performing missions other than just carrying a warhead.

Idea: Wouldn't it be cool to have a class of drones that do nothing but imitate ships? So, beyond sensor range, it looks like you have a fleet of twenty warships, but in fact all you have is a fleet of drones? How would you write an AI to deal with stuff like that???!!!!

Re: Newbie Drone Questions
 

Possible uses:

Recon Spy platforms
Solor Killers
Planet Killers
Planet Plauge deliver platforms
Early warning
Exploration

Send a Drone through a suspect warp point to set off any enemy mines if present.

Cloak it, and send it to the star of an enemy, then blow it.

Etc. The uses are endless if one sits and thinks about it. A new tool to use in ones quest to be the ruler of all.

Re: Newbie Drone Questions
 

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by dmm:

Idea: Wouldn't it be cool to have a class of drones that do nothing but imitate ships? So, beyond sensor range, it looks like you have a fleet of twenty warships, but in fact all you have is a fleet of drones? How would you write an AI to deal with stuff like that???!!!!<hr></blockquote>

That would be awesome. A reall hum-dinger in a PBW game. Think of it, you send a 3 ships escorted by a horde of drones with these components on them. It would create some situations, is that a real fleet that just passed through your warp-point, or a horde of drones.

Anyone know the sizes for drones?

Re: Newbie Drone Questions
 

The small drone is 100kt. I found this out at the screenshots area.

Re: Newbie Drone Questions
 

ok,

1) I have seen the screenshot but was asking about the other drone sizes as well. I mean how big can a drone get?

2) I know they will be modable.... I was asking about the standard sizes...