Drone Thoughts

[Xaren Hypr]

Does combat movement use any supplies for units/ships? I have an idea for a unit variant (as the base unit types are probably hard-coded), and it was going to be restricted to combat movement with it's supplies determining its "time to live."

[ May 19, 2003, 08:45: Message edited by: Xaren Hypr ]

[dogscoff]

I don't think it works the way you want it to Maybe you could mod it in using some kind of weapon that drains supplies..?

[Xaren Hypr]

I guess that I've been watching/playing a bit too much Robotech, but I was thinking of how it would be just to let loose an anime-style swarm of missles.

I was thinking of something like "mini-fighters" with only a single engine, a lot of bonus movement (combat-only for both, of course), a warhead of some type (specialty loads anyone ?), and set to kamikaze attack. I wanted the supply limitation to simulate limited fuel supplies. Point defense would still rip through a stack of these of course...but since I still use tactical for some of my trickier combats, I thought it would look kinda cool to see a "missle"-ship launch a stack of 50-or so mini missles .

Probably not easily do-able, but I'm going to give it a go...I mean, other than a lot of time, what have I got to lose?

[Suicide Junkie]

Why not just use drones?

Design a variant hull size and let loose packs of self guided ramming mini-ships.

[Xaren Hypr]

I didn't think of using drones...hmm...then a couple of side questions:

1) If I design the "mini-drone" with [Uses Engines = False], will it still be able to use the Combat Movement ability that I put on the chassis?

2) I want to design the new Launcher component (Capacity is too small for usefulness with regular drones, but just big enough for a volley of the mini ones) with the ability to manufacture more of them when outside of combat. How would I best set the SY ability to prevent, or at least try to , using the mini-fac to build cruisers or something ?

I've got bits and pieces of a mod I've been fiddling with floating around on my HDD...just another bit of flotsam to add to it, neh?

[ZeroAdunn]

Also: Don't forget different damage types don't work on ramming warheads.

[Phoenix-D]

On 1: I think they need at least one engine for that to work.

"2) I want to design the new Launcher component (Capacity is too small for usefulness with regular drones, but just big enough for a volley of the mini ones) with the ability to manufacture more of them when outside of combat. How would I best set the SY ability to prevent, or at least try to , using the mini-fac to build cruisers or something?"

You make your mini missiles cost only, say, Minerals. Then your SY ability is given a 0 point speed for organics and radioactives; since all normal ships need those, you won't be able to build normal ships with it.

Give the drones no supply storage and they'll self-destruct after combat. Otherwise any that don't reach their target (i.e. the ones left over after it blows) will sit around the sector until their supply runs out.

[Krsqk]

You can always give the drone hull (in VehicleSizes.txt) the movement generation ability (or whatever it's called). Without supply storage, they won't be able to move anywhere anyway even if they do get launched.

Will the AI be smart enough not to assign ships to the drone-only SYs? Assuming one actually got built?

[Xaren Hypr]

Originally posted by ZeroAdunn:
Also: Don't forget different damage types don't work on ramming warheads.

So the damage types of "Only Engines," "Only Shield Generators," etc. will only work on Mine Warheads, but not Drone Warheads?

I kinda figured they would, since both are the same weapon type in Components.txt (Warhead)...back to the design board...

A thought though....if I put an ability (Combat to Hit Defence Plus, Armor Regenerstion, Component Repair) on a weapon, does it operate as normal..or just not at all?

Just some thoughts...

[Fyron]

Originally posted by ZeroAdunn:
Also: Don't forget different damage types don't work on ramming warheads.

Its not that they don't work, it is that it is impossible to assign them. For a weapon to do damage when ramming, it has to have the warhead damage type. So, it can not have any other damage type, and hence can not do only engines and such.

A thought though....if I put an ability (Combat to Hit Defence Plus, Armor Regenerstion, Component Repair) on a weapon, does it operate as normal..or just not at all?

They will work the same as on any other component.

[ May 19, 2003, 09:31: Message edited by: Imperator Fyron ]