Val:
For the damage/rate/kiloton formula, here's my plan:
Pick values that you want the damage ratios to be for every weapon type at tech level 1. For weapons with variable damage, use the average damage for determining the ratio. Make the small weak guns have a ratio of 0.8, the medium/average guns have a ratio of 1.0, and the big, slow guns a ratio of 1.2. If you want a particular weapon to be more powerful, then increase it's ratio by a few tenths. For weapons with special damage types and to-hit bonuses, decrease the ratio by a reasonable amount. Then, do this:
Damage / Ratio / Rate = Kilotons
for each weapon to get the size you want. Make each tech level for that weapon be the same size.
And, voila! Weapons are nearly balanced from the start. Then, just do a bit of play-testing and tweaking to get the final values. Of course, my ratio values are hypothetical, and could be bad or unbalancing. The ratios I proposed are up for debate. What do all of you think?
SJ:
Yeah, I know the APB's are deadly. I just used it as an example cause its what most AI's use.
[ 26 January 2002: Message edited by: Imperator Fyron ]