Proportions mod 1.5 released

[PvK]

Actually, yes, the homeworld catastrophe aVersion is a probably a good idea. I wouldn't want it to be absolute, because it is pretty interesting when something does happen, but it also should be rare enough that it's an unlikely exception.

I will add a suggestion to the next Version's readme that if a player does experience a homeworld revolution, that they should probably be given the choice (either by themselves or by their game master / host), of switching player spots with the new rebel empire. I'd actually really like to see that happen sometime - it sounds like it could be quite interesting, though it should be very rare, of course.

PvK

[PsychoTechFreak]

I guess you are aware of this, but just to avoid a possible misunderstanding in my sometimes poor wording... The setting event frequency medium (10%) and the "Change Bad Event Chance - System" at -15 does not exclude events absolutely AFAIK. My guess about these modifiers is: Either -15 means -1.5% or the 10% of the event frequency will be reduced by 15%.

[PsychoTechFreak]

Some wrinkles observed so far, don't be offended, please, I really like your mod

The lower level quantum reactors seem to be not functional, or do I have to kick them to generate fuel between re-energizings ?

If I setup a ship with solar sails as engines and no supplies, it just moves one sector per turn. If I add a 5kt Supply Niche, a light cruiser gets 6 sectors per turn and is able to run endlessly, as expected.

Edit: ... and the armor skipping weapons appear to be very weak with the new armor rules in your mod. My setup was a kamikaze light cruiser just with engines and about 36 times armor 4 (because of the high price of armor 5 to 7) against a starbase with massive mounted null-space weapons and a sensor (88% to hit chance). The null-space weapons just scratched the armor of the light cruiser a bit, the controls or the engines were not harmed, kamikaze reached star base and wahooom...

[ 17 March 2002: Message edited by: PsychoTechFreak ]

[PvK]

On the contrary, PTF, I'm thrilled people are so eagerly testing out the mod, and finding wrinkles is the the way to get them ironed out!

Regarding these:

1) Low-level Q reactors should perhaps be explained better somewhere. What they are are just very high-capacity, low-space supply storage. They are re-energized by returning to a depot. Only the Mark VI (I think) actually generates supplies by itself.

2) Sail-only ships will stop moving if they have no supplies, and they don't generate or store supplies. Note that if a non-Proportions sail ship has no engines, it won't move at all. I should probably give them a small solar supply generation ability and a spot of storage. That would be consistent with their development at the end of solar collectors. Thanks for the idea - it'll be so in the next Version! Meanwhile, ya, splurge on a 5kT supply niche.

3) a) Yes, armor-skipping weapons are ineffective in Proportions against generic armor, which is why I increased some of their damages. It is still useful against non-generic armor, and particularly against Crystalline and Organic armor.
b) Sounds like you were doing a "high" (i.e., max) tech test, so I expect you were using "superlative" Armor VII's, and quantum engines in which case your suicide ship probably cost about 55,000 minerals. That's the cost of about five max-tech light cruisers with sensors, shields, and weapons. I built a starbase with eight massive mount null space projectors, fire control center, and filled the rest with armor IV, and it only costs 74,000 minerals (and about 50K of rads, thanks to the not-especially-useful-against-regular-armor null space weapons). For about the same cost as your ram ship, I believe I can build a non-null-space base with cheaper armor that will gobble up your super-tech-armor ram ships (and cost half as much to maintain). Study the standard armor progression and you'll see that highest-tech armor is very strong but extremely expensive.
c) When you say "wahoom," what happened? If you build a starbase with no armor or shields, it is little better at receiving rams than a bunch of unprotected equipment waiting for impact. Adding a proportion of armor to all ships and bases that might get hit by something is recommended (though be careful how expensive the armor is that you are using).

I should make the higher-tech armors be more distinct with different names and pictures, so players notice that suddenly their armor is costing an order of magnitude more. Also I notice the Armor VII shows a VI numeral - I'll fix that.

Thanks!

PvK

[Osweld]

I found a bug, where if I upgrade a ship design that has combat sensors II (I haven't tried it with any other Versions of it) the computer switches them to a fire control center which is meant for weapon platforms, and isn't normally available to ships.

[PvK]

Confirmed. SE IV isn't checking the vehicle type restriction when upgrading, because they have the same family number. I changed the family numbers, which fixes this, so it won't do this in the next Version of the mod.

PvK

[PsychoTechFreak]

1) Other than the supplies of the engines, the lowlevel QRs actually do nothing, I have built a Cruiser with QR I (claims: generates 15000 fuel between re-energizings) but nothing else than the engine supplies are displayed, and after they (about 1000) are gone, the ship runs out of fuel.

3) I think you are right about the cost balance. Actually what I have tested was in the simulator, fully human control. The base was without any armor or shields, I just wanted to observe what armor-skipping weapons do under the changed rules of armor physics. One massive Null-Space weapon destroyed one or two armor 4 (I did not use the costly 5,6 or 7) and nothing happened with the engines or board controls of the ram ship. So Null-Space is not armor skipping at all in your universe ? Actually I would like to learn what particularly you have modded to get a not-always-first-armor-peeling physics in your mod. Could you explain it to a Modding greenhorn like me ?