60 replies to this topic

[Ghostrider]

Now that the campaigns have been out for a while I am keen to get your feedback - particularly on which are the scariest pirate worlds in the GFFA setting. Obviously places like Kuat, Corellia, Brentaal IV, Muunilinst and Nal Hutta are going to feature in the top 10, but I really need your feedback.

I would also be very interested in some of the odder places that gave you a hard time. These don't have to be big garrisons, but please enlighten me on all the planets that gave you a nast surprise and the proverbial bloody nose.

I look forward to your tales of woe.

Ghost

[coinich]

N'Zoth's Y'Wings destroyed more of my fleet than multiple battles with the rebellion did. I haven't seen much else though.

[bob345]

Malstare having all those ships with disrupters and the Bandogora I couldn't win with Naboo's starting fleet plus some upgraded fighters and bombers., or 3 dreadnaughts 5 fully upgraded Scimitars, Preybirds and Tie defenders. took 3 tries to conquer

[Ghostrider]

Malstare having all those ships with disrupters and the Bandogora I couldn't win with Naboo's starting fleet plus some upgraded fighters and bombers., or 3 dreadnaughts 5 fully upgraded Scimitars, Preybirds and Tie defenders. took 3 tries to conquer

Yes, the Banda Gora Crime syndicate is nasty...
And I wanted those fireball staffs for the infantry. Sigh. I have to wait until ground is done for that!

[Tropical Bob]

I'd have to say that nothing has really scared me yet in Core Worlds. The worst experience I had was attributed more to the AI than the planet itself.

Kuat had decided to drop in its reinforcements (several Star Destroyers and accompanying fleet elements) right behind my fleet when I felt the most safe.

[Radio Star]

I'd have to say that nothing has really scared me yet in Core Worlds. The worst experience I had was attributed more to the AI than the planet itself.

Kuat had decided to drop in its reinforcements (several Star Destroyers and accompanying fleet elements) right behind my fleet when I felt the most safe.

I had a similar experience on Sluis Van in the outer rim light campaign. I took a force of mostly Acclamators with a couple lancers in support and had bulled through the Golans and about half the space stations when I saw the MC120 I knew was there. Not a big deal. The expected rarely creates a problem in strategy. I task a couple cruisers to keep other hostiles from linking up with the 120 that was all by its lonesome and have the rest of my forces swarm it. No problems, just the wonderful aroma of freshly fried Mon Calamari. Of course, when the 120 blew, the AI instantly had 40 free points to reinforce with. Enter the MC80s, Recusants, etc right on top of me.

This was hands down the most enjoyable fleet engagement I've had in EAW, and I think that even going so far as to mod in underpowered 120s at more pirate worlds just to induce that sudden reinforcement rush would present a brutal tactical choice for the player; engage the smaller ships to keep backup coming in a slow, controllable trickle and endure fire from the weakened 120 .. or roll the dice on where the backup arrives when you toast it.

Lots of fun in that fight.

[feld]

This was hands down the most enjoyable fleet engagement I've had in EAW, and I think that even going so far as to mod in underpowered 120s at more pirate worlds just to induce that sudden reinforcement rush would present a brutal tactical choice for the player; engage the smaller ships to keep backup coming in a slow, controllable trickle and endure fire from the weakened 120 .. or roll the dice on where the backup arrives when you toast it.

Perhaps better might be to raise the unit cap very high and see if the AI could be taught to not always reinforce to the maximum level. Like you say, surprise is the thing that breaks a strategy. Intel would become more important, as well as keeping track of what you'd killed.

[Ghostrider]

Thanks

I'll remember that trick.

Anyone tried Arkania or Geonosis yet?

[Radio Star]

I'm not sure if this would be possible within the limits of the game, but adding a non-player Golan/space station that goes towards cap would do much the same thing.

[Ghostrider]

I'm not sure if this would be possible within the limits of the game, but adding a non-player Golan/space station that goes towards cap would do much the same thing.

I have a few big salvaged craft I can add into Thrawn.....

[Phoenix Rising]

Perhaps better might be to raise the unit cap very high and see if the AI could be taught to not always reinforce to the maximum level. Like you say, surprise is the thing that breaks a strategy. Intel would become more important, as well as keeping track of what you'd killed.

To be honest, I'm not exactly sure where the script is that handles tactical reinforcements, but I'm pretty certain it's nothing sophisticated (like "if < 96, add ships").

[Ghostrider]

The Maw is pretty bad.

It should be. In fact it should have been even worse.

I enclose my original design concept notes for reference.

THE MAW

If there is time, I would like to make The Maw very different. Consider the following:
Built with unlimited imperial funding in a very difficult place to attack.
Research facility for the best and most brilliant scientists of a generation.
Very limited size for the installlation itself.
No limit on energy due to high gravitional effects and extremely high radiation levels (I am sure this is used to power the base)

I was already going to have a small collection of illegal spaceships (bought and stolen by the Empire to give the Scientists something to work with), but I think we can do more:
Base protection:
Small quantity of illegal craft

Despite the tiny size of the facility and the limitations on hardpoints, this facility will be very dangerous -

1. Facility has 6km+ reinforcement prevention radius AND interdiction due to The Maw's gravitational fields utterly preventing hyperspace calculations
2. Facility comprises a Colony Level 2, and 4 Level 1 Space stations - heavily modified.

3. All facilites have exceptionally good shielding (say 6000 with high recharge rates)
4. All facilties protected by ultra-dense rock/armour blend with energy dissipating systems: Say Armour AT_11 Tactical Health 3000
5. All facilites have very good laser defense, say Heavy Quads at worst.
6. All 4 space stations are different and each has a specialised weapon in addition to the defense systems. Only the Artillery concepts has missile systems

Laser Weapons Facility
test bed for advanced Turbo-lasers etc.
For example the HOTL on the IMP II were first developed here

All turbolasers and turboions shoudl be slightly strange - say Quad Experimental Turbos with long recharge times

High Energy Building
Strange beam weapons.
Eg. Ion cannon version of the SPHATL with a burst radius.
Accuser proton beam
Mini SPHATL's
This facility has very few ordinary turbos etc.

Artillery Concepts
Strange missile systems. These don't have to be useful. (Remeber Tol Sivron who runs the place is completely incompetent)
MCF-1 illegal missile
Pulsed Plasma Missile - ultra fast mini missile with long range burst effect plasma warhead
Fat Flechette - Big impact warhead with very long range low damage burst effect.

Mass Sciences
No shielding but exceptional armour plate (say AT_14) and a very good healing effect.
Self-healing asteroid!

All turbos and ions replaced with mass drivers. Quad Slug throwers etc.
Wide bore slug thrower??

I think you get the idea....

PR's reply...
QUOTE (Ghostrider @ Oct 27 2008, 04:43 AM)
Wide bore slug thrower??

Explosive slugs.

I really like the idea... I just hope I can fit it in for v1.1. We've got basically a month (if we're on time). PR

We would like to re-implement The Maw upgrades at the next release.
Ghost

Edited by Ghostrider, 09 February 2009 - 09:54 AM.

[Phoenix Rising]

Unfortunately one-shot units and new projectiles didn't really fit into the schedule last time .

[A1Dasdfsdkli4r2]

Nal Hutta had to be the most casualty inflicting for me. Fighters and bombers just cant hang out there. Transports are the only thing that can survive! Kuat was a pushover, need to have either more caps or some upgraded caps.

[Phoenix Rising]

Aren't the hundreds of upgrades we have already enough?

[Ghostrider]

Nal Hutta had to be the most casualty inflicting for me. Fighters and bombers just cant hang out there. Transports are the only thing that can survive! Kuat was a pushover, need to have either more caps or some upgraded caps.

Kuat is pretty strong by GFFA Standards (well the legal planets anyway) - it tops out at about 18 ISD-I Equivalents, including the yards and Golans - for early GFFA era this is pretty bad, considering the ISD is barely a year old at this point! If you note Kuat has just completed construction of it's second Level 5 Production Yard, making it very heavily defended at this time.

As to upgrades, everything at Kuat is fresh off the production lines, including 4 Vic-II's - which are about as new as you can get at 18BBY.

The only thing missing is a possible dreadnaught class - perhaps a single Praetor-I, but I have made these very rare indeed at 18BBY. In fact in my GFFA universe, the Kuat Drive Yards have just delivered a Praetor-I to a very rich client in the Core, so Kuat just has it's normal ISD defences at this point.

Has anyone discovered the location of this ship at all....???? Think big, think very rich.

PS. What's the verdict on Tepasi and Empress Teta - I made them slighly different to normal?

Ghost.

[Phoenix Rising]

If Kuat is too weak, I'm okay with it having a dreadnaught. According to one of the ICS books, I think, Kuat was protected by Mandators and the like during the Clone Wars; the only problem with them was their awful hyperdrive, so they were pretty defensive.