Armor, Shields and Damage (FAQ) - Page 8

LGM · #71 December 14th, 2001, 07:17 PM

Getting back to the discussion of Organic Armor on units being useless. It will be useless for the regeneration aspect. However, there is another advantage to Organic Armor that many overlook: it takes no metal resources. Almost everything a non Organic player builds is limited time wise based on Metal, not Radioactives or Organics. If using Organic Armor can even out the cost ratio of your unit design, you may be able to build some extra ones every turn at your planet or shipyard.

dumbluck · #72 December 15th, 2001, 12:51 PM

quote:
Originally posted by LGM:
Getting back to the discussion of Organic Armor on units being useless. It will be useless for the regeneration aspect. However, there is another advantage to Organic Armor that many overlook: it takes no metal resources. . . . If using Organic Armor can even out the cost ratio of your unit design, you may be able to build some extra ones every turn at your planet or shipyard.

An excellent point. I think that benefit was intentionally designed in, although I think that organics should be useful to everyone, not just Organics races. One way to do that is to mod things like life support, crew quarters, the various supply components (well some of them wouldn't fit very well, description wise), and Colony components to greatly increase their organics cost. But in doing so, one must be careful not to take away the organics benefit of more balanced construction costs. (Unless you think Organics is too powerful, anyway...)

Ok, sorry for the OT response there. It's late and I'm babbling.....

dumbluck · #73 December 15th, 2001, 01:34 PM

quote:
Originally posted by [K126]Mephisto:
Methinks that no special armor abilities are working.

Um, does that include Scattering and Stealth armor? I'm pretty sure that the cloaking isn't working (At least, it shouldn't, anyway...), but what about the tohit bonuses? What about ECM? I'm pretty sure that combat sensors, Events predictors, etc. work (at least, they should...)

Baron Munchausen · #74 December 15th, 2001, 05:50 PM

quote:
Originally posted by LGM:
Getting back to the discussion of Organic Armor on units being useless. It will be useless for the regeneration aspect. However, there is another advantage to Organic Armor that many overlook: it takes no metal resources. Almost everything a non Organic player builds is limited time wise based on Metal, not Radioactives or Organics. If using Organic Armor can even out the cost ratio of your unit design, you may be able to build some extra ones every turn at your planet or shipyard.

The first advantage of Organic armor is that it's tougher than standard armor. Don't forget the total damage rating. Since units don't track internal components, this is actually more effective for units than for ships and bases. It increases the total damage needed to destroy the unit. In a stack of satellites this can really add up.

[ 15 December 2001: Message edited by: Baron Munchausen ]

Suicide Junkie · #75 December 15th, 2001, 08:13 PM

quote:
The first advantage of Organic armor is that it's tougher than standard armor.

25% stronger at max tech...
The problem is that shields aren't tracked separately from the hull in unit stacks anymore, so a shield generator will blow away any armor in terms of defense. (2x the strength of standard armor!)
Unit shields are not even affected by shield depleters!

Unless your enemies are packing null-space cannons, you'd be better off with shields.

Mephisto · #76 December 17th, 2001, 02:25 AM

Every to hit bonus plus is welcome for a weapon platform but why go for a to hit bonus defense? A planet is nearly always hit and so is the weapon platform on it.

Suicide Junkie · #77 December 17th, 2001, 09:50 AM

LoL. It is true that the stealth armor won't have much effect on a platform, but as a general unit ability, it could have a great effect (eg. fighters).
It's just the fun in discovering how stuff works.

[ 17 December 2001: Message edited by: suicide_junkie ]

CW · #78 December 17th, 2001, 01:42 PM

quote:
Originally posted by [K126]Mephisto:
Every to hit bonus plus is welcome for a weapon platform but why go for a to hit bonus defense? A planet is nearly always hit and so is the weapon platform on it.

Just nearly? I can't recall seeing my ships missing a planet. In any case, any gunners who shoot at a planet and miss deserved to be court-martialled and shot!

LGM · #79 December 17th, 2001, 08:25 PM

quote:
Originally posted by CW:

Just nearly? I can't recall seeing my ships missing a planet. In any case, any gunners who shoot at a planet and miss deserved to be court-martialled and shot!

They may always hit the planet, but it should be difficult to hit something in particular such as a Weapon Platform or a Troop which would be smaller than a Light Cruiser. Hitting population on a domed world should be easier than an undomed world. You also have to allow for possible refraction throwing off the accruacy beam weapons as they pass through different layers of an atmosphere. Gas Giants should get a defense modifier bigger than the other types. No atmostphere planets would get the least modifier.

capnq · #80 December 17th, 2001, 09:13 PM

quote:
Just nearly? I can't recall seeing my ships missing a planet.

It really is 99%. I've seen a ship miss a planet with a DUC at range 1, twice in the same battle. That's the only time I've seen it happen in the year or so since I bought SE IV.