Official SE5 release date announced - September 12

[Raapys]

Sure, you can build a turn based system that tries to emulate continuous time with complex initiative and phases and all that, but why do that when you can just make it actually be continuous time?

I'd prefer a complex turn-based system, really. All other considerations aside, real-time combat is and will play differently, regardless of the ability to pause whenever, etc.

[Suicide Junkie]

It is a very complex turn based system if you get down to the nitty gritty details.

It is simply that the turns are one millisecond long, with non-instant weapons and turning.

[Ed Kolis]

Hehe, sort of like "Titans of Steel" on autoturns, if you want to think of it that way
Though I do wonder if the turns are really run every millisecond... that would be an awful lot of turn processing for every measly frame of animation...

[Karibu]

On MOO2 there was a nice (though imperfect) way to simulate realtime combat. Ships had initiative, which then gave you the turn to move. Though, for some reason human players had every time the first move. I think initiative should be calculated by many things like:
- level of engine
- engine capacity divided by ship size class
- experience of the crew
- experience of the fleet
- level of battle computer

Also, there should be different initiative for guns and movement (you may have superior engines but lousy battle computer or vice versa), and also - very difficult to implement - if two ships are have almost identical initiative but one has slightly better, the better ship should not be able to do everything before another ship gets the change.

My logic would say that high engine initiative gives you some movements (perhaps 1 or 2 squares) before another ship gets to move his one square. An example:

Ship A: total movement 7 squares, battle computer level 1
Ship B: total movement 5 squares, battle computer level 2

Battle:
Ship A moves 1 square
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship A moves 2 squares
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship A moves 1 square
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship A moves 2 squares
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship A moves 1 square
Ship B moves 1 square

Firing: If guns itself have no initiative and both ships would have same weapons, firing order depends only of battle computer. the ship B would fire first when in range (even if ship A would move inside the gun range and still have movement to go, but at this point Ship B gets his firing turn).

Example continued:

Ship A moves 1 square
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship A moves 2 squares
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship A moves 1 square
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship A moves 1 squares (ship A have 1 more square to move)
Ship B fires at ship A
Ship A moves 1 squares
Ship A fires at ship B
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship B fires at ship A
Ship A moves 1 square
Ship A fires at ship B
Ship B moves 1 square
Ship B fires at ship A

etc.

Of course, this is a crude combat model but similar what I hope to see in SEV. You get the point. Well, can SEV betatesters give any preliminary information about this or does NDA prevent you from comment?

[Ed Kolis]

Um, it's been known for a long time that SE5 combat is not turn-based, so why are you asking this?

[Karibu]

I have been out of things lately. Enlighten me. Can I see specs/preview of the game somewhere?

[Ed Kolis]

Ahh, sorry
Here's the official page with a feature list, system requirements, screenshots, and whatnot:
http://www.malfador.com/Se5.html

Note that one of the screenshots shows ground combat with hexes; that is a very old one - ground combat is now realtime just like space combat

[Karibu]

Thanks for the link. However, it doesn't really tell anything about the game, except what you can see from the screenshots.

[Puke]

what would be super confusing if each race had a unique callendar. so for the texrux it would be year 4000, but the eee would be marking a new calendar at the year 50 or something.

and of course each race would have time that passed at a different pace, depending on the orbit of their particular homeworld around its primary star.

and each planet would actually orbit its primary star at a unique rate.

or, you know, maybe that wouldnt be so cool. it would actually be a pain in the butt to keep track of.

[capnq]

I cannot imagine a situation where different races having different calendars would be relevant. All that matters is how the race you're playing measures time.