Droid Engineer Archive

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Thunderheart wrote:

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please take the time you need to get a decent response to us. No one will commit suicide if we don't hear today.

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Maybe you folks are misinterpreting me. There is no big post waiting in the wings here, I am gathering information to find out where we go from here. There was enough resistence to the rough plan to warrant reassessing things and thats what Im doing.

The information is on "input", not "output" atm...

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Ah, we did misunderstand.

When you posted yesterday that we were your first priority in the morning we took that to mean that you would be spending today to compose some big post for us based on what you read from this forum and it would give us some hope.

1. I need to know if you agree or disagree with Sintrosi's Plan

Disagree, mostly because I disagree with the combat modules idea being exlcusive to DE's, and the MSE bomb thing is just plain hokey.

2. I need to know if you agree or disagree with the rough DE plan in general

If the combat modules exclusiveness to DE's is dropped (and replaced with a cert system or new droid handling profession) and the MSE bomb idea is dropped, I'll actually vote to agree to the plan as a decent launch board.

My two overall main concerns:

1. Please do not turn Droid Engineering into a quasi-combat profession. SOE has a very creative innovationwith the whole Professions/Skills system. A hallmark of this system is the division of abilities based on the professions one chooses. Crafters become artisans, figthers become brawlers, etc., and players are free to choose how they hybrid these professions. In this context, it would be a serious mistake to suddenly allow a crafting class exclusive domain over these new weapons known as droid combat modules.


2. All changes should be geared towards the DE's ability to spread/release droids into the SWG environment. I think this self-explanatory, as artisans in general make items for the community, and DE's specifically make droids. Frankly, I don't care what changes are made, so long as they make the purchase of droids by others more attractive.

Thunderheart,

Thank you for gathering information from us. It gets us eager for what is to come.

I so far agree with just about all of Sintrosi's posts. She has been doing a great job.

As for the Dev plan, it has some great things I would like to see, but it has some pitfalls as well. I will try to be brief to lighten the load:

Combat Modules - Great idea, but I don't think most people want weapons on "utility droids". I think what people want most are droids specific to combat, with interchangeable modules like you've suggested.

Multiple Droids - I think this is definitely wanted. Conceptually if there are combat droids, it should be easier to limit how many are out versus theother types, rather than based on modules installed.

Repair Droids - I think people are mostly concerned with the fact that the LE Repair Droid can't repair. I don't mind minor repair abilities on other droids, but the LE Repair Droid should be the onlyfully capable one.For example, the Droid Repairt Kit should be fixed and only allow DEs andLE Repair Droids to use it. Suggestion: droid repair module = heals white damage fast, Droid Repair Kit = heals black damage, or vice versa.

Medical Droids - All your ideas are great! Please though, only provide the full range of abilities through the surgical droid. Such things as ability to use stims. Conceptually this functionality would mirror how the LE Repair Droid is done, in terms of item usage.

Power Droids - Another great idea! Just make sure the cost of powersavings throughout the droid's life-timeis greater than the increase in harvester maintenanceplus theprice of the power droid combined. How this is done will dictate how much the droid can be sold for. If it's too low, DEs won't profit from making them, or won't be able to sell them at all.

Things not mentioned in the DE Plan:

Power/Charge Status - Anything that requires charges/batteries with droids should be visible somehow by examining orlookingatthe droid. Right now we have no idea whena probot will say *Low Power* and stop fighting.

And I think everyone would agree that bug fixesarethe highest items on our wishlist, just above establishingat least oneeffective combat droid.

Thanks for appeasingus sometimes cranky Droid Engineers, Thunderheart.

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Thunderheart wrote:

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please take the time you need to get a decent response to us. No one will commit suicide if we don't hear today.

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Maybe you folks are misinterpreting me. There is no big post waiting in the wings here, I am gathering information to find out where we go from here. There was enough resistence to the rough plan to warrant reassessing things and thats what Im doing.

The information is on "input", not "output" atm...

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Ok good I can stop clicking refresh . My carpal tunnel from crafting too many Advanced Droid Frame Units thanks you.

ThunderHeart! Babe!! What the heck is the meaning of this??There's TONS of feedback on this already. I mean this thread is already 3 pages now and it's all copy/paste from other threads.. but I digress.

1. YES.. Sintrosi directly addressed the overall state of DE without question. Yes, it's dramatic, but so are some of our bugs.. I would be fired if 1/100th the bugs on Gorantoth's list were in my product. Thatwarrants adramatic tone in my book.

2. I completely appreciate that DE is getting some attention, but "the plan" is not the attention we were hoping to attract. We've had vague attention with no commitments before.. we don't need any more of that. We need detailed lists with calendar dates attached.

The TOP priorities in my little DE-world..

#1- FIX THE BUGS ON THE LIST WE ALREADY HAVE!! Gorantoth's list rocks! So use it. Today, perhaps?

#2-NEW combat chassis with higher HAM, possible shield generators, FUNCTIONAL armor (will stacking 2 Level6 plates EVER do anything?),the capacity to use a variety of different weapons, and a couple different attack AI models. (demolitions, ranged assault, melee, etc..) I could care less if this droid looks like a droideka, a Buick Skylark, or the garbage can that Oscar the Grouch (who is a jedi, make no mistake on that) lives in.. we just need them.

All else will come in time.. but these 2 items are the primary source of pain and flames on these boards right now. Please absorb, and ACT.

In closing, my main pet peeve around here is the lack of commitment from the SOE dev-world. I am FORCED to create deadlines for my projects on a daily basis.. it is a demand from my customers and I fail to see how that dynamic does not apply here. If Sony management gets a dizzy feeling about writing dates on stuff then I guess I need to write LucasArts again.

Cheers,

If you mean the state of the profession post I agree with it.

I completely disagree with the DE plan presented.

What needs to be done:

1. add more combat droids


2. make droids specialized


3. make a reason to be master


4. above all fix the bugs


5. Unnerf the probot (easy to do)

I DO NOT want to see exploding MSE droids. Healing is for medics. Medical droids help only

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Thunderheart wrote:

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please take the time you need to get a decent response to us. No one will commit suicide if we don't hear today.

---

Maybe you folks are misinterpreting me. There is no big post waiting in the wings here, I am gathering information to find out where we go from here. There was enough resistence to the rough plan to warrant reassessing things and thats what Im doing.

The information is on "input", not "output" atm...

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hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha what a slap in the face. the DEV's and SOE never fail to impress me on how crappy there communication and customer service is! i think i can go to mc donalds and get better communication through the drive thru window and better customer service at the window when i tell them something is wrong. And i pay them what a couple bucks a month and you guys $200 for a year? maybe mc donalds should become game makers.

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Thunderheart wrote:

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there are volumes of posts here

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yes there are and on every board. thousands and thousands of posts. Which is why I am coming to you for help. I am trying to find out what the key points are. You guys are telling me you are the experts and my job is to find out what your thoughts are on things.

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Hmm... key points. Let's see... oh, how about everything in the centralized issue post? In particular, bugs and uncertainties. Let's start there and see where we get.

_begin ramble_
I haven't read any of the SW fiction (please don't hate me, instead post here with all the juicy back-story I don't have) but all the combat droids I've seen in Starwars movie function in one of two modes:

a) single droid controlled by a user far, far away (couldn't resist) i.e. probes, though torture droids could be considered some form of combat droid (the big scary needle droids)

b) ranks upon ranks mounted on racks and deployed in formation led by droids and non-droids

I remeber reading somewhere on the boards that there's been a crack down on combat droids since episode 1/2 stuff due to the imps being in control and wanting to stay there.

If the cry is "more combat droids" and the response is high level droid handlers with a new droid frame or two I want to have a dozen little droids similar in feeling to the big battle at the end of the Episode 1.

I also like the idea of my droid remembering things for me. Early on in SWG they did, but those abilities need to be brought back in some form. My palm pilot is a natural extension of my brain at this point, please duplicate.

I made this point in another forum, but ASIMO walks out to the front door and picks up the paper, why can't my droid make it to my harvester to check the status for me or something else as useful?

Replacing too many CH's with too many droid engineers trailing combat droids doesn't seem like a fix though it'd appear more star warsy...


_end ramble_

Ack.. I spent too long typing my response and half the western hemisphere posted while I was stewing up a response. TH posted 2 times while I was grumbling along.. makes me look like a jerk.. LOL

THANKS, Thunderheart for putting up with our disgruntled insults, and looking for some input.

As far as "input" is concerned, I'm afraid there are a million voices on this forum.. so using this thread to gain any sort of focused perspective is going to be VERY difficult. You may even get threatened once or twice around here too.. a rather rough neighborhood after dark!

1. Yes, Sintrosi hit it perfectly on the head.

2. The plan in general I believe is a slap in the face. It seems like it was thrown together at the last minute. The MSE bombs are funny but that is about it.

MikeBauerTwo, Eclipse MDE. General pain in the butt.

Yes, what Gorantoth just said.

He just updated it for you. Please usehis issues threadas the starting point for any "output" which will come from you in the future regarding droids. If you don't we will just all point to it again and ask why you didn't.

Oh... forgot something...

1. Fully agree with Sin's state of the profession. Everything of importance is in there as far as I can tell.

2. Everything in there is a little too vague. I remember seeing a rather good post which addressed every issue one by one. This seems to be a typical dev post, vague and nowhere near the issues that actually need addressing.