Pilot Archive
Thread: Focus: Player-Controlled Capital Ships
Higginsis wrote:
Neb B's would be my choice for the other smaller sized capital ship. A small crew could work it, just not at full capcity, and it wasn't much bigger than a vette.
The problem is really neither were that faction specific (both imps and rebels used them) but in the films we only see them in rebel hands. There not much else of a iconic Capital ship other than the ISD, which is far to big (and laggy) to be workable.
Unless there's a mid sized craft i't not familiar with.
there's a dreadnaught-class starship
it's fairly small and has capacity to hold a few tie fighters
there's also a victory-class star destroyer, which is a lot smaller than the traditional
i'd be happy with either for imperials
Kevie wrote:
Higginsis wrote:
Neb B's would be my choice for the other smaller sized capital ship. A small crew could work it, just not at full capcity, and it wasn't much bigger than a vette.
The problem is really neither were that faction specific (both imps and rebels used them) but in the films we only see them in rebel hands. There not much else of a iconic Capital ship other than the ISD, which is far to big (and laggy) to be workable.
Unless there's a mid sized craft i't not familiar with.
there's a dreadnaught-class starship
it's fairly small and has capacity to hold a few tie fighters
there's also a victory-class star destroyer, which is a lot smaller than the traditional
i'd be happy with either for imperials
also Imperials used Carrack class cruiser.
I would love a Carrack Class ship. Lots of speed and it can doc 4 ships under it in racks.
GanymedePharuu wrote:
Kevie wrote:
Higginsis wrote:
Neb B's would be my choice for the other smaller sized capital ship. A small crew could work it, just not at full capcity, and it wasn't much bigger than a vette.
The problem is really neither were that faction specific (both imps and rebels used them) but in the films we only see them in rebel hands. There not much else of a iconic Capital ship other than the ISD, which is far to big (and laggy) to be workable.
Unless there's a mid sized craft i't not familiar with.
there's a dreadnaught-class starship
it's fairly small and has capacity to hold a few tie fighters
there's also a victory-class star destroyer, which is a lot smaller than the traditional
i'd be happy with either for imperials
also Imperials used Carrack class cruiser.
!
there's a dreadnaught-class starship
The problem with the Dreadnaught is that its not nearly as small as everyone seems to think it is. It is a very large cruiser, according to the Databank it takes a crew of 16,000. Even the slave rigged Katana Fleet Dreadnaughts took 2,200 per ship!
Now, we all know that everything shrinks to fit in this game, but that is still a large jump over a Corvette which has been known to run with crews in the 30s.
Dragon942 wrote:
The problem with the Dreadnaught is that its not nearly as small as everyone seems to think it is. It is a very large cruiser, according to the Databank it takes a crew of 16,000. Even the slave rigged Katana Fleet Dreadnaughts took 2,200 per ship!
Now, we all know that everything shrinks to fit in this game, but that is still a large jump over a Corvette which has been known to run with crews in the 30s.
I agree on the Carrack. Of course, knowing the devs and all the crap ships (sorry privateer fans) they made up for JTL when so many good choices already existed in cannon, we will probably get something they drew on a napkin when drunk after fan fest
KJFett3 wrote:
I think the Carrack would fill the role of the Imperial Navy very well, and the ship was used in almost every system and was small enough that even local politicians could afford them. It has docking capabilities and great speed. It is possible for the Carracks to run small crews like the vettes as well. The Carrack comes in at 350m, but its size is because of the compartmentalization designes used in the ship resluting in a more secure ship in combat, but giving it a larger size. In many ways it is only slightly better than a vette, but without the annoying exposed reactor area behind the communcation tower.
Message Edited by Dragon942 on 06-08-2005 02:32 PM
As much as I like the idea of cap ships, it just doesn't make sense to have 7 or 8 players manning a cap ship. Espically if they are just going to be larger versions of what we already have. How many times do 3 people actually man a multiman ship, its rare, and 3 seperate fighters are way more powerful, than 1 multiman'd ship. So, What about hiring NPC's to help fly your vessel? You'd have to buy the NPC's from a faction recruiter, and would have to pay there "salary" (think upkeep, and I'm not talking cheap, maybe 100k a day or so). This could be a big money sink, and keep the number of capital ships to a minimum.Itcould be made so that a player could man a slot instead of an NPC to keep the cost down, for those that would actually have a complete crew.I think everyone agree's that not everyone should have a cap ship. A SD should have a certain number of players controlling it, but if its too many, it will be worthless in space, just like the multiman ships are now. I also think that these "npc's" could be bought for current ships in the game now, including the multi-man fighters. Also, when your ship is destroyed, your NPC friend goes away, and you'd have to buy a new one.
Kirsha - Kettemoor
Crafted Capitol ships Serves as ?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com
ffice:smarttags" />PlayerCity
I am sure this has been discussed on the forums somewhere, but I have not come across it.
I believe crafted capitol ships would serve really well for mobile player run cities.
They could be implemented in a number of different ways. Faction based or Neutral with SD’s and Mon Calamari ships to server for Rebellion and Imperial and (fill some other type of ship in here) for Neutral’s. Of course these ships would be at the greatest cost for resources and should have a guild size limit to be certified to own one. There could be smaller ships for smaller guilds.
For these types of ships to be build would require components made from every artisan profession. Shipwright would be the main contractor but would require sub-components for all major systems from other artisan professions.
Resource cost should be extremely high on every component. Also rent and upkeep should be very high. If you see a guild sporting an SD, you know that they put in some time and money into this project.
Mobile
The ships should be mobile but again there should be some restrictions. A set number of people have to be onboard and manning certain stations for the ship to be able to move.
A ship this size would have a horrendous take off speed but the top cruising speed would be large. (Not sure on the validity of this since space zones are only so big.)
Hyperdrive to another system would be the same way, would require a set number of people manning stations and would take a long time to make the jump.
Commerce
Rebellion and Imperial ships would be greater as far as firepower goes but I think the neutral based guilds and players could take advantage of Neutral capitol ships. They would still be large but would have limited offensive capabilities, but super heavy shielding. Where they would shine is their accessibility. Any player of any faction can stop by one of these ships and shop, rest up, heal or whatever. Also Venders of any faction could rent “booths” or cabins on this ship to sell their wares. A lot of tools could be put in these floating malls. Could have access to control panels that are like the bazaar system planet-side, where you can look at all the items available from the vendor’s throughout the ship. Then you just get a floor and cabin number and go get it, or spend a little more and get the item from the terminal.
Combat
All combat systems on capitol ships should be automated. The larger the ship the more accurate and effective weapons would be. This being said, there should be a way for individual crew members to take over and man a gun emplacement if they choose.
Also, there can be a station that someone could take up, such as a shipwright that can manage the ships power, directing power between power/shields/weapons, even focusing more power for shields to different portions of the ship. Of course guild members can launch from the ship to engage in combat as well. Maybe further up the faction rank system, guilds with enough faction and a capitol ship can have so many NPC ran ships that can be launched from the capitol ship while engaged in combat.
This would be a great addition to the GCW. Can you imagine a full fledged space battle between the Reb’s and Imp’s with capitol ships?
There should also be a heavy penalty for losing a capitol ship. The ship should respawn but it should be immobile for a few days with no offensive capabilities and will not be targetable.
Drawbacks and Problems
I’m not sure exactly what this would do to the ground content. I would hate to see vast areas on nothingness when you are cruising around a planet.
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KJFett3 wrote:
Capital ships are the ultimate example of having to get along in a group and how the success of the whole depends on the whole working together. It is a group effort. It should not be minimized by allonwing a very small group of <5 with some NPC goons being able to run it in combat. I have no problem if 2 or 3, or even 1 is only needed to move it within the system to just get from point A to point B, but don't expect to hyper, and certianly hope you dont get attacked. Capital ships should not be just another thing for solo guys who refuse to join in a group. They should be the top level of this MMO in which groups comes together to engage in a single goal. If you can't get that group together, you certainly do not have the carisma to lead a capital ship into battle.
The only place NPCs should have on a cap ship is as part of a defense against boards. Like the Marines where back when the oceans were run by the tall ships.
While I admire your charisma, it just ain't gonna work. The multi man ship concept is already in the game, and its useless. No one ever uses those craft. Do we want to add SDs and corvettes to the dust collection, even before they are put in the game? I agree that a SD should be a multi-man effort. but at what cost? If they put the SD in with the mechanics that are currently used, I would be able to solo one in pvp with a freakin a-wing, and you'd have 7 or 6 PC's trying to hit one little ship (have you ever tried to hit a small fighter in PVP with a turret?). There must be a way for the capital ships to be worth the effort for them to put them in, and the only way I see it, is if there are NPC gunners, or at least "some" NPC gunners. I hope everyone puts thought into how this would actually fit into the game, and not so much about "capital ship hype". Because there was alot of hype about the multi-man ships we currently have, and no one uses them. I personally don't care about flying one of these, I'm perfectly content to stay in my little fighter. However, I want them to be useful (powerful). I think it will add a whole new lvl to the game. It just needs to be done "right".
Kirsha - Kettemoor
I posted this on another thread, but I figured I'd post it here as well. What if the turrets only required the person manning the turret to get a "lock" and to actually fire the gun. Simular to the way our current launcher system works. This would make it easier for the turret person, although, you would still have to maintain a lock, which trying to hold a lock on an A-wing or Tie adv, would not be easy. But it would certainly make it more fun, and make the multi man ships more powerful.
Kirsha - Kettemoor