5260 replies to this topic

[Pendaelose]

4. A similar function called "Abandon Vehicle" added to all vehicles, leaving them empty(like when the driver's sniped by Jarmen Kell) so that friendly infantry can get in and capture them if needed.

"This is possible, but I'm not sure it would be very useful."

Since the other proposals aren't viable at all, this is better than nothing; it still offers indirect tech "exchange" with friends by emptying a dozer for your friend to take. It is not just for China/USA exchanges. Seeing how GLA are built(mobile command vehicle able to build workers rather than only buildings producing workers in your mod) they too can exchange tech with their allies.

So how about it?

I think a "Neutron Myself" button would be more of a burdon than a blessing. And i'm nt 100% keen on too much sharing. The generals are each very differnet, but none of them is entirely lacking in any role. they all have AA, artillery, armor, fast attack... While you could share units, every general has a unit capable of fulfilling the same role already.

Tribute truck.. I like that. Instead of having to destroy it to create the crates, why not make it spawn supply crates(like the ones that drop on USA drop pads) every once in a while, and anyone can pick them up? Make them cost as much as a supply pad(maybe more, it's mobile and it can help your allies) and work in the same way or just have it like an ability with a timer.

"Destroy" isn't really the right word.... think of it as "Cash out". you pay 2000$ to build the truck, drive it to your allies base and click "Deliver". the truck is exchanged for 2000$ in money crates. If the truck is intercepted and destroyed it will drop less cash... like 500$ instead of 2000$. This keeps it a clean money exchange from you to your ally.

[Ubermedic]

Why not instead of a "cash out truck" why not a
truck that calls for a plane to drop it? For a price.
ohhh... That could be an awesome super unit.
Think about it. It's got a bunch of options (Have to pay for them though)
like Tank drop, Infantry drop, Hero drop... You know... Like a support
unit but also a way to give your troops renforcement on the fly.
like 1 min reload time but it cost money to use.

[Pendaelose]

Kind of excessive.... and while it could be done, it would always call them to the same place (reletive to iteself)... ie: The calls would have to be created by invisible spawner objects built by the truck. The spawner objects would always apear at the Spawn point assigned in the code. So you could call what ever was asigned, but it would always drop 30ft infront of the truck, if thats where the code pointed to...





What I'm looking for is not a new way to reinforce armies, or a new way to create money. I'm looking for a way to transfer funds from your resources to your ally's resources. Thats all... and a simple 1 time use delivery truck makes alot of sense for that. If you want to send more money, just build more trucks. They'll be available at the command center and will build very quickly (5 seconds or so). I've pretty much made up my mind about how they will work, and what they will look like, so the only remaining question is "How much Cash should they send each?"

[Pendaelose]

This is a very interesting discussion over all..

Okay, basically to have the unit "turn into" money crates is a bit... I mean.. It doesn't make any sense, how does a vehicle turn into cash? LASER tech, plasma, superweapons, Overlord tanks.. it's all explainable, but a vehicle that turns into money is just something out of the blue even in ZH universe!

It doesn't have to "Magicly turn into money" The back of the trucks were going to be covered in supply crates. When they "Deliver" they can have a simple delivery animation (Dump the beds, etc) and then convienently disapear, alot like a destroyed tank convienently disapears.

[Ubermedic]

Hrm... Well a truck seems...
GLA style...
Maybe an Armored Transport for China (Slow, Armored)
A truck for GLA (Fast, low armor)
and a Chinook for USA (medium, medium)

Eh? Good?

[Pendaelose]

Hrm... Well a truck seems...
GLA style...
Maybe an Armored Transport for China (Slow, Armored)
A truck for GLA (Fast, low armor)
and a Chinook for USA (medium, medium)

Eh? Good?

I plan to make them all equal, after all, its a deplomacy issue rather than combat balance. The USA has pre-exsisting supply trucks that work perftectly. There is a version of the China supply truck extended out to use a full length flatbed trailer, and there are also models for GLA 2.5ton trucks.

All three equall in design and speed to maintain fairness, while maintaining the pre-established apearances for each faction. Besides, what could be more realistic than convoys of trucks delivering resources???

[Ubermedic]

Besides, what could be more realistic than convoys of trucks delivering resources???

Planes dropping supplies?
haha... I understand what your trying...
But say my ally is under heavy attack and my troops are defending my base.
He needs supplies and I've got tons I make a bunch of trucks but OPPS! the only
road into his base is being spammed! he gets no supplies and dies...
BUT NOW. I've got 15 trucks full of money sitting in my base... Useless...
why not this way

Supply truck build time 5 sec cost 3000 (1000 for truck 2000 for delivery)
Plane drop reload time 3:00 mins cost 5000 (2500 for plane 2500 for drop)

so the plane drop is more expensive but it can help out a surrounded ally.

[Pendaelose]

so the plane drop is more expensive but it can help out a surrounded ally.

But a targeted air supply drop cannot be tied to a $ purchase... To be targetable it has to be either a weapon attack, or a special power. It is possible that a Script could tie the availability of the button to your resources, and then do the resource deductioin after you buy it, but I'm excessivly leary of any method that intertwines the Ini behaviors with Scripts to make them work... for example, if the wrong script file was acedently used, the targetable money drops would be completely cost free.

A plane could be built at the airfield to do the job, and use a deliver button... then it could fly over, drop the cash and then fly away, but what about factions that don't have an airfield big enough for a cargojet? Or about the ones who don't even have an airfield?

[Ubermedic]

A plane could be built at the airfield to do the job, and use a deliver button... then it could fly over, drop the cash and then fly away, but what about factions that don't have an airfield big enough for a cargojet? Or about the ones who don't even have an airfield?

Well, for one's that don't have big airfields. It could use a biplane to drop suitcases.
and seeing as chem doesn't have an airfield use his crop duster!
Well, I don't really remember if any other factions don't have airfields...

[Pendaelose]

A plane could be built at the airfield to do the job, and use a deliver button... then it could fly over, drop the cash and then fly away, but what about factions that don't have an airfield big enough for a cargojet? Or about the ones who don't even have an airfield?

Well, for one's that don't have big airfields. It could use a biplane to drop suitcases.
and seeing as chem doesn't have an airfield use his crop duster!
Well, I don't really remember if any other factions don't have airfields...

I've been pndering for a few minutes and came up with options.

There are a few ways to fudge it and fake the delivery.... for example, buying the delivery plane (at you command center) would cause the plane to come down from above the screen and hover over the command center until its given a delivery location... then after the goods are dropped it flys away off the map... this is probably the most stable way of doing it, but I still have my reservations.

I do like your suggestion of loosing money when sending it 3000>>2000 and worse when air dropping it 5000>>2500. I like the balance aspect and it encourages using trucks for large transfers and planes only when you really need it... I'll agree to play with it for now. I'll for sure make the trucks.. and if the plane works out well I might use it too... but I'll play around with code options for now.



I've been obsessing over the limits on the game engine too, and dispite my own suggestions of infeesability, I'm actualy thinking about trying to decompile the core engine and create new behavior modules. I've never done this before... i've never heard of anyone doing it before... I'm not sure if it can be done without screwing up the game, but its worth spending an evning or two experimenting to see if its even an option. If it did work, it would completely change the nature of the mod.. imagine this... you supply truck leaves your command center: you target a friendly command center, and the delivery truck drives there, they open thier door and the truck enters the building. BUT thats only if the behavior modules can be edited.

ps. I'm also worried about EAs response to a decompiler.

[CPT.TIKER]

Kind of excessive.... and while it could be done, it would always call them to the same place (reletive to iteself)... ie: The calls would have to be created by invisible spawner objects built by the truck. The spawner objects would always apear at the Spawn point assigned in the code. So you could call what ever was asigned, but it would always drop 30ft infront of the truck, if thats where the code pointed to...





What I'm looking for is not a new way to reinforce armies, or a new way to create money. I'm looking for a way to transfer funds from your resources to your ally's resources. Thats all... and a simple 1 time use delivery truck makes alot of sense for that. If you want to send more money, just build more trucks. They'll be available at the command center and will build very quickly (5 seconds or so). I've pretty much made up my mind about how they will work, and what they will look like, so the only remaining question is "How much Cash should they send each?"

hows about a big supply truck that takes supplys from 1 supply depot and transfer it 2 another

[Ubermedic]

ps. I'm also worried about EAs response to a decompiler.

Shhh. Pend You never posted it and we never read it.

[Pendaelose]

hows about a big supply truck that takes supplys from 1 supply depot and transfer it 2 another

I don't think thats code-feasable.

[Capt.Drake]

I dodn't know how nuker did it in reborne, but he had that oil derik whic hproduced money and as an ability surplie drops that could be targted, if sthg like that is added to every fraction who cares about truckes and so on

[Pendaelose]

I dodn't know how nuker did it in reborne, but he had that oil derik whic hproduced money and as an ability surplie drops that could be targted, if sthg like that is added to every fraction who cares about truckes and so on

Thats easy to do..... but I don't want to CREATE money... I want to MOVE money... theres a big difference.

[Capt.Drake]

ok, would it work if you would have to buy sth like that, or sth like the csh hack thing?

[Pendaelose]

ok, would it work if you would have to buy sth like that, or sth like the csh hack thing?

you can't buy a targeted power.... you can buy an upgrade that allows indefinite use of that targetable power.... you can buy a caller object that call that power once to the pre-defined (not targetable) location. But you can't buy it and target a single shot, then buy the next shot.


the closest you can get:

Buying an upgrade enables the drop ability, and updates the commandset from "enable" to "deploy". deploying the ability also creates a temp object that creates a second upgrade: The second upgrade removes the first upgrade (so it can be baught again) and also resets the commandset. the cycle restarts when you buy the upgrade again.... thus one use per purchase.

With minor changes, this could be made to work and allow multiple trade centers. multiple centers would still only allow you to build ONE airdrop at a time, but that use could be used from any center.

but there is a catch:

2 exsisting upgrades have to be removed from the game to add 2 new ones for this method... plus a new "Trade center" must be created.... I hate modeling buildings

The trade center could be used to build both the tribute trucks and single shot air drops of cash. pretty much without any problems. The more I think the more I think it could be made to work... but theres still the issue of 2 upgrades to remove from the game...


Any suggestions? My first 2 choices would be Capture Building (is a freebe anyway in remix3) and Black napalm... Flame china already starts with it, so it can be made as the default, not an upgrade, and Tank china doesn't need it.

[Striker26]

holy..
pend plz put that cannon in and dont change your mind about it for assault plz

[Phoenix911]

hello all i am back MUHAHAHA, anyways i only just managed to get the new alpha pend and i have to say GREAT work on teh infantry gen i am loving that gen.

anyways i onyl been able to play for about 40 mins right now but i gonna be playing more soon, i not had time to read any of the minor bugs or ideas yet so if i say something thats been said forgive me.

anyways lets get to the 2 or 3 things i found.

Troop dropzone and drop relay station, both have missing objects in there info. also the troop relay center says it calls in tanks (tank gen code?) so needs updating to infantry.

the officer is cool but is it possable to make the frenzy aura he gives off come out of vehicals aswell?
when u put him in battle fortriss the aura go's and its anoying :(
And for the life of me i lost my track of though and so blach i'll post later if i remember what i was thinking


edit: ok i don't not agree with the idea of abandoning your units so your allies can take and i also don't like the idea of your allies taking your tech. contra stops stolen dozers being able to build enemy tech and thats how it how it should be, if u could take your friends tecgh then there would be no need to use a combined arms or work together as you would have all his units too. making it so each team can only use ther estuff means that u have to work together effectively witch makes it more fun and tactical.

Also i personly would profer pends first idea of the suicide truck thats drops of money to your friends, i don't want to lsoe 2 upgrades just for that drop or anything sounds like too much of a lose for such a small power, even more so since pend already sai away that would work and not infring on any other powers or upgrades.

Edited by Phoenix911, 13 September 2006 - 10:32 PM.