Torg
26-03-06, 19:39
This proposal for changing the hacknet is related to the on-going balancing discussion. In my humble opinion the hackned needs a re-work. Dearly. It's a weak compromise and doesn't reflect the intitial concept at all.
My proposal will change:
1) Hacknet loot: all that's needed in the hacknet will be constructed from hacknet loot. exception: simple weapons.
2) PvP: not a simplified psi-combat anymore, but enhanced by tactical elements, blockades, immobile weapons.
3) OP-fight. not just a 4th hack but addidional tactical options.
4) Travelnet and control over it: new weapons for blocking paths.
5) Stealing blueprints from your enemy's database will hurt his faction.
6) No more codebreaker fragments, but Code Bits, dropped from all hacknet mobs in relation to NPC combat rank.
What can i do in todays hacknet?
Travelling (travelnet), which is actually quite slow
Combat, which is a simplified psi-combat and doesn't resemble any actual hacking.
Going to enemy HQs, without any benefit.
Stealing blueprints, which can be aquired more easily by trading.
Looting hacknet BPs.
PvM vs hacknet mobs, giving you money and XP only, no loot.
Getting codebreaker fragments for breaking into enemy databases.
What would i want to do in hacknet:
Fast travelling, except the lane is blocked.
Fighting, as a spy: Data-pistols (think of a semi-transparent plasma pistol), code-crusher-sentry-guns, firewall blockades, code nukes.
Penetrating enemy territory: implementing malicious code (sentry guns, firewalls)
Stealing blueprints: this will harm data regeneration, so the database can't be accessed peacefully for hours.
Looting hacknet BPs. (unchanged)
PvM, getting you money, XP and Code Bits. cBits are stored in a hackers memory and can be downloaded to physical data cubes for further processing.
Travel lanes: all paths are tubes now. No falling down anymore. Falling down doesn't get any fun into the game.
PvM: Mobs will move outside of the travel-tubes. There are active ones, doing damage, and passive ones, blocking paths. Hacknet software for combat is now represented as a data pistol. Shield and heal are represented as a handheld pocket calculator. The hacker is now codinh his defense measures, rather than being a small time sorcerer.
Combat (PvP): PvM-weapons (data pistols) do low damage to hackers, so highly specialised players do not have a huge advantage over hybrid ones. Hackers are using combat-code now: Sentry-guns, nukes and firewalls. sentris will look like semi-transparent versions of our well-known op-fight turrets, firing range is smaller than the lenght of a travel path/tube. they will not fire across the room, but along paths, so they best are placed at crossroads etc. Btw: Combat-code is useless vs. Mobs. Firewalls will block anyone but the hackers faction mates. firewalls will vanish slowly, loosing hitpoints by one week RL time. Sentries do medium damage to firewalls, so it'd take several minutes time to kill a firewall this way. Nukes (code bombs) are placed near to a firewall by a hacker and time-fused. Sentries are killed by auto targetting mobile nukes, crawling towards the sentry. Sentries can be placed near a hacknet OP terminal. Sentries can not be placed within line-of-sight of each other.
A PvP duel will mainly be fought using combat code: you either start shooting with a data-pistol (low damage) or placing sentries, firewalls and nukes. More suitable combat code in your inventory plus the right tactics will probably make you superior. The hackers main task is not killing, but gaining control over travel lanes, uplinks, hacknet territory. Killing is still possible, but less likely. sentries may be placed in LoS to a travel gate, but may be nuked by a quick player.
A skilled hacker will be able to check all hacknet blocks from a terminal inside hacknet, except in enemy HQs.
OP-Fight: the OP terminal is located in a remote corner of the OPs hacknet room. it may be secured by a firewall (to block the access path), a sentry and a corporate firewall (owning clan only) that needs to be destroyed before the 4th hack can be performed.
Combat-Code:
Firewalls: can't be passed by anyone but the hacker's faction mates, hard to kill with data-pistols, medium resistance vs. sentries, low res vs. nukes. construction cost and weight: low. you need 4 firewalls to block a travel lane.
Code-Crusher (Sentries): high damage vs players, medium damage vs. firewally, low res vs. nukes. cost and weight: medium.
Code-nukes (bombs): high damage vs. all kinds of combat code. will explode 5 seconds after being placed. cost: med. weight: low.
Mobile nukes: for fighting sentries. will auto-target any enemy sentries in the room, crawl towards and explode. cost and weight: medium.
Corporate Firewalls: placed near to the OP hacknet terminal, blocking an enemy hack unless destroyed. cost and weight: very high.
Different hacknet mobs will drop different code bits, which are automatically stored in the hackers memory for later download to simple datacubes.
Construction of hacknet items:
All hacknet software and combat code is made by a constructor, from a BP and code bits (in BPs as well). Software quality is now a result of construction skill AND hack skill of the constructor. There will be specialised hacknet constructors, who will cst "normal" weapons as well, but spend a lot of skill points to HCK.
Simple data-pistols can be bought from NPCs (faction managers) so hunting for cBits can start at all. More cBits for constructing better hacknet stuff and BPs of better code will drop/download from killed mobs.
Have fun discussing.
My proposal will change:
1) Hacknet loot: all that's needed in the hacknet will be constructed from hacknet loot. exception: simple weapons.
2) PvP: not a simplified psi-combat anymore, but enhanced by tactical elements, blockades, immobile weapons.
3) OP-fight. not just a 4th hack but addidional tactical options.
4) Travelnet and control over it: new weapons for blocking paths.
5) Stealing blueprints from your enemy's database will hurt his faction.
6) No more codebreaker fragments, but Code Bits, dropped from all hacknet mobs in relation to NPC combat rank.
What can i do in todays hacknet?
Travelling (travelnet), which is actually quite slow
Combat, which is a simplified psi-combat and doesn't resemble any actual hacking.
Going to enemy HQs, without any benefit.
Stealing blueprints, which can be aquired more easily by trading.
Looting hacknet BPs.
PvM vs hacknet mobs, giving you money and XP only, no loot.
Getting codebreaker fragments for breaking into enemy databases.
What would i want to do in hacknet:
Fast travelling, except the lane is blocked.
Fighting, as a spy: Data-pistols (think of a semi-transparent plasma pistol), code-crusher-sentry-guns, firewall blockades, code nukes.
Penetrating enemy territory: implementing malicious code (sentry guns, firewalls)
Stealing blueprints: this will harm data regeneration, so the database can't be accessed peacefully for hours.
Looting hacknet BPs. (unchanged)
PvM, getting you money, XP and Code Bits. cBits are stored in a hackers memory and can be downloaded to physical data cubes for further processing.
Travel lanes: all paths are tubes now. No falling down anymore. Falling down doesn't get any fun into the game.
PvM: Mobs will move outside of the travel-tubes. There are active ones, doing damage, and passive ones, blocking paths. Hacknet software for combat is now represented as a data pistol. Shield and heal are represented as a handheld pocket calculator. The hacker is now codinh his defense measures, rather than being a small time sorcerer.
Combat (PvP): PvM-weapons (data pistols) do low damage to hackers, so highly specialised players do not have a huge advantage over hybrid ones. Hackers are using combat-code now: Sentry-guns, nukes and firewalls. sentris will look like semi-transparent versions of our well-known op-fight turrets, firing range is smaller than the lenght of a travel path/tube. they will not fire across the room, but along paths, so they best are placed at crossroads etc. Btw: Combat-code is useless vs. Mobs. Firewalls will block anyone but the hackers faction mates. firewalls will vanish slowly, loosing hitpoints by one week RL time. Sentries do medium damage to firewalls, so it'd take several minutes time to kill a firewall this way. Nukes (code bombs) are placed near to a firewall by a hacker and time-fused. Sentries are killed by auto targetting mobile nukes, crawling towards the sentry. Sentries can be placed near a hacknet OP terminal. Sentries can not be placed within line-of-sight of each other.
A PvP duel will mainly be fought using combat code: you either start shooting with a data-pistol (low damage) or placing sentries, firewalls and nukes. More suitable combat code in your inventory plus the right tactics will probably make you superior. The hackers main task is not killing, but gaining control over travel lanes, uplinks, hacknet territory. Killing is still possible, but less likely. sentries may be placed in LoS to a travel gate, but may be nuked by a quick player.
A skilled hacker will be able to check all hacknet blocks from a terminal inside hacknet, except in enemy HQs.
OP-Fight: the OP terminal is located in a remote corner of the OPs hacknet room. it may be secured by a firewall (to block the access path), a sentry and a corporate firewall (owning clan only) that needs to be destroyed before the 4th hack can be performed.
Combat-Code:
Firewalls: can't be passed by anyone but the hacker's faction mates, hard to kill with data-pistols, medium resistance vs. sentries, low res vs. nukes. construction cost and weight: low. you need 4 firewalls to block a travel lane.
Code-Crusher (Sentries): high damage vs players, medium damage vs. firewally, low res vs. nukes. cost and weight: medium.
Code-nukes (bombs): high damage vs. all kinds of combat code. will explode 5 seconds after being placed. cost: med. weight: low.
Mobile nukes: for fighting sentries. will auto-target any enemy sentries in the room, crawl towards and explode. cost and weight: medium.
Corporate Firewalls: placed near to the OP hacknet terminal, blocking an enemy hack unless destroyed. cost and weight: very high.
Different hacknet mobs will drop different code bits, which are automatically stored in the hackers memory for later download to simple datacubes.
Construction of hacknet items:
All hacknet software and combat code is made by a constructor, from a BP and code bits (in BPs as well). Software quality is now a result of construction skill AND hack skill of the constructor. There will be specialised hacknet constructors, who will cst "normal" weapons as well, but spend a lot of skill points to HCK.
Simple data-pistols can be bought from NPCs (faction managers) so hunting for cBits can start at all. More cBits for constructing better hacknet stuff and BPs of better code will drop/download from killed mobs.
Have fun discussing.