Attack of the Ankle-Biters - Replacment player needed.

[Fyron]

So why would the shields not interfere with the mental energy going out to create the telekinetic bLast? They could still block that, forcing the telekinetic bLast to begin just outside of the shield layer.

[Pax]

Originally posted by Imperator Fyron:
So why would the shields not interfere with the mental energy going out to create the telekinetic bLast? They could still block that, forcing the telekinetic bLast to begin just outside of the shield layer.

Maybe you are not seeing this part:

"[...] does not cross the intervening space [...]"

I don't think any mental energy goes from Point A (the projector) to Point B (the target ship), at all. Therefor a shield between A and B is of no use, and has no effect.

That is how I envision telekinesis working -- and therefor that is how it will work in the SmallShips mod. So far, as a preliminary balance, I've cut the damage of the weapon in half (making it always inferior to the PPB, except against phased shields).

Considering the increase in relative armor hp/kt, it's not a be-all end-all weapon. Against Crystalline races, you want shields (and armor-skipping weapons); against Psychic races, you probably want armor (and MCs). I don't see why it's such a problem for you.

[Pax]

One thing I forgot to mention: turns out SE4 is hard-coded NOT to allow an MC-like control component for fighters. 8P So the Drone Fighter Control is out.

[Fyron]

Something has to travel between the projector and the target. It can't just magically leap there.

[geoschmo]

Originally posted by Pax:
One thing I forgot to mention: turns out SE4 is hard-coded NOT to allow an MC-like control component for fighters. 8P So the Drone Fighter Control is out.

I am pretty sure you can make a component for fighters that has the abilities of cockpit and lifesupport. But the AI will use two of them.

You can also have identical fighter hulls that do not require these components. Call it built in drone fighter control or something. But that might not be what you were wanting.

Geoschmo

[ July 28, 2003, 00:43: Message edited by: geoschmo ]

[geoschmo]

Originally posted by Imperator Fyron:
Something has to travel between the projector and the target. It can't just magically leap there.

Are you seriously debating telekinetic powers skipping shields, and using a realism argument? ROFL!

Geoschmo

[Fyron]

Well, I was going under the assumption that he was not wanting to include magic in the mod. Anything technological or pseudo-realistic has to make some sort of travel path. Instantly warping there is absurd unless you are doing something like folding space (an absurd notion in and of itself), which is well beyond the scope of telekinesis. Even wormholes have a path of travel in realspace.

[geoschmo]

But nothing about telekinesis requires a path. It's using mental energy to manifest a force out of nothing. If we are going to accept a weapon that violates the laws of thermodynamics as it's fundamental operating principle, we don't have to say the force is created out of nothing at the point of the projector. We can simply say the force is being created out nothing at the point of the target. Either one is acceptable once we get past the initial violating assumption.

EDIT: Put it this way, if the force required a path from the mind creating it to the target it would punch a hole through their own ship on the way out. Unless the psychics are strapped to the outside of the hull.

Geoschmo

[ July 28, 2003, 01:01: Message edited by: geoschmo ]

[Pax]

Originally posted by Imperator Fyron:
Well, I was going under the assumption that he was not wanting to include magic in the mod. Anything technological or pseudo-realistic has to make some sort of travel path. Instantly warping there is absurd unless you are doing something like folding space (an absurd notion in and of itself), which is well beyond the scope of telekinesis. Even wormholes have a path of travel in realspace.

Tell me, Fyron, have you ever heard of the phenomenon called "quantum tunnelling" ... ?

Matter -- that's matter not just energy -- instantaneously jumps form point A to (say) point H ... and does not pass through points BCDEF or G. And it's a real-world current thing, not just SF.

Further, there's also the whole "quantum pair" infinite-distance instantaneous information transfer effect. Create two particles; they will have opposite spin. They will always have opposite spin. If you send particle B to the other side of the universe, uncountable billions of lightyears away while keeping particle A HERE ... and then reverse B's spin ... at the exact same moment, particle A will also reverse it's spin.

All that's required is, they both be in the same universe. (as far as we know so far, anyway; it migh even work across THOSE barriers). A forcefield wouldn't change that. Heck, fourty billion klometers of armor wouldn't change that.

So it is entirely within the realm of quantum physics to posit a mechanism, by which energy can be "created" or otherwise accumulated at some marked distance from teh generator, without effect upon or from intervening energy, matter, space, etc.

So much for your "it has to be magic" argument, hmm? I guess "everything technological or pseudo-realistic" doesn't actually HAVE to have apath of travel, now, does it?

8P

Oh, as for folding space being absurd: tell it to Einstein. He was under the (apparently absurd) notion that space IS foldable, warpable, bendable,e tc. Seems he had this crazy notion gravity does JUST that.

But, of course, that's not possible; never mind the fact that we've PROVEN gravity warps space (that bit, at least, is no longer theory).

[Slick]

*sigh*

not again...


Slick.