Repair beams? - What do you think?

Scavenger4711 · Post by **Scavenger4711** » Sun Jan 29, 2012 11:45 am

Hey guys!
I just played around with the idea of having repair beams (or maybe also cannons?) as a "weapon" in the game.

This device would be used as a weapon which would mean that it would replace the beam weapon slot. With cannons like the Trebuchet, which are also capable of damaging the enemy's shield system, the player using this technology would still be able to defend himself during combat, so this shouldn't be that much of a problem.

In my opinion it would give a player a new role which would be the role of an actual engineer or "medic". Player utilizing this repair-device could be able to "attack" their friends during combat in order to repair their hull while they're fighting or to repair them after combat or whenever.
All in all he would be there to repair stuff.

So what do you think about that? Is it useful, or not? Should it be perhaps integrated into the game?

Viper · Post by **Viper** » Sun Jan 29, 2012 12:05 pm

I selected option 1. It's definitely a good idea, but I'm not sure whether I'd trade my beam weapon for a repair beam. Having that said, when engaging in combat in a larger (clan -) group, it might be a really good option to equip a couple of the fighters with this repair beam.

Good thinking!

Letoras · Post by **Letoras** » Sun Jan 29, 2012 12:31 pm

This is a nice idea indeed!!!! For big combats it would be nice.....beam or a bubble that surrounds the ship and every ship inside to be repaired?
hmmm, nice idea!!!!!!

Maarschalk · Post by **Maarschalk** » Sun Jan 29, 2012 5:01 pm

You can already built a repair station with a protective shield! Or put a protective shield around a Player built Station for repair purposes. So the Engineer persons job could be to Have a Built constructor and Deploy Constructer to built a repair station with a Protective shield....this is already part of the game!.....

I voted No. Not because it is nonesense, because as explained above there are already other alternatives.

Also because ships can already carry a repair system and I think it will be confusing as hell in combat who is trying to repair you and who is trying to shoot at you since both beams will probably look the same even if they sound different!......

:P

[Edited on 1-29-2012 by Maarschalk]

Busch · Post by **Busch** » Sun Jan 29, 2012 5:23 pm

Hey, Scavenger. I'm with Maars on this one. Think it's more "re-inventing the wheel" than much else. Not nonsense, but potentially excess-to-needs at this point.

Post by **DaveK** » Sun Jan 29, 2012 8:14 pm

Interesting idea - it has a whiff of magic about it - how is it supposed to work?

Dingo · Post by **Dingo** » Sun Jan 29, 2012 8:19 pm

What Busch and Maars said, and not only because they said it, though that is almost enough in itself for me.

Scavenger4711 · Post by **Scavenger4711** » Mon Jan 30, 2012 8:29 pm

Okay, I understand your arguments guys and at a second thought I can say that what you say is true and that there's really no doubt about it.
People already have the possibility to repair themselves or to get repaired via the deploy constructer.

But still I'd rather wish for something like that to make players more specialized. I mean I feel like that as soon as you have a build constructer or a deploy constructor you're like "Mr. fantastic" or something because this tool covers nearly everything, so also for example the fuel converter. Why are we still having these hanging around?
Apart from that the repair beam would make possible to repair ships on-the-fly. A deploy constructor is something that requires you to be in some kind of safezone because you have to stand still inside the repair-station for a while without being shot in order to get repaired. The repair beam would of course then be more combat-oriented. So it's something you use to support your comrades during a fight (as well as outside of combat) without the need of having a break.
You can also protect your station with a built shield and then it might be safe (also if nothing's safe when a fulcrum torp is inbound but whatever ^^) but then your team still has to retreat to that safezone and (of course) they
1.) also need to survive this and
2.) the enemy could place their ships there to keep an eye out for (your team's) ships that want to get repaired and shoot them down even before they reach the shielded zone.

At first this would be all I would hav to say.
Keep in mind that I don't want to persuade you or to make you agree with my opinion. I just want to give you some hints and thoughts that probably may have slipped your mind. I clearly understood and tolerated (and I still do

) your argument but still I just want to provoke a bit to keep you guys thinking

[Edited on 30-1-2012 by Scavenger4711]

Maarschalk · Post by **Maarschalk** » Mon Jan 30, 2012 8:37 pm

You can protect yourself also already when standing still at repair station and not worrying about being shot at while repairing by deploying a Protective shield aray around the deployed repair station and even a fulcrum torpedo will not destroy or penetrate the protective shielding!.....

Viper · Post by **Viper** » Mon Jan 30, 2012 8:41 pm

Ok you got me, I retract me previous statement. Sorry Scavenger.

Scavenger4711 · Post by **Scavenger4711** » Mon Jan 30, 2012 8:41 pm

From post: 127704, Topic: tid=8675, author=Maarschalk wrote: and even a fulcrum torpedo will not destroy or penetrate the protective shielding!.....

Really? I've always experienced that a FT penetrates the shield... okay it was quite a long time ago, maybe that already has changed ^^

From post: 127705, Topic: tid=8675, author=Viper wrote:Ok you got me, I retract me previous statement. Sorry Scavenger.

No problem

I just wanted to find out what you really think about all that. That there are also votes against this idea was unevitable. I'm actually glad that you still thought a bit further and that you thought even a second time to get to the conclusion that might match your imagination better

[Edited on 30-1-2012 by Scavenger4711]

Maarschalk · Post by **Maarschalk** » Mon Jan 30, 2012 8:50 pm

From post: 127706, Topic: tid=8675, author=Scavenger4711 wrote:
From post: 127704, Topic: tid=8675, author=Maarschalk wrote: and even a fulcrum torpedo will not destroy or penetrate the protective shielding!.....
Really? I've always experienced that a FT penetrates the shield... okay it was quite a long time ago, maybe that already has changed ^^

Maybe we are both right or wrong, and it depends on the distance of where the torpedo explodes.

I used deployed protective shields when doing one of the IMG missions and would hide behind the buble and fire a Fulcrum torpedo from behind the buble(You can not fire while inside) to instantly kill all 10 enemy ships and the buble and me and the Capital ship needing protection would all survive without any damage!.....

Scavenger4711 · Post by **Scavenger4711** » Mon Jan 30, 2012 8:53 pm

From post: 127710, Topic: tid=8675, author=Maarschalk wrote:
From post: 127706, Topic: tid=8675, author=Scavenger4711 wrote:
From post: 127704, Topic: tid=8675, author=Maarschalk wrote: and even a fulcrum torpedo will not destroy or penetrate the protective shielding!.....
Really? I've always experienced that a FT penetrates the shield... okay it was quite a long time ago, maybe that already has changed ^^
Maybe we are both right or wrong, and it depends on the distance of where the torpedo explodes.

I used deployed protective shields when doing one of the IMG missions and would hide behind the buble and fire a Fulcrum torpedo from behind the buble(You can not fire while inside) to instantly kill all 10 enemy ships and the buble and me and the Capital ship needing protection would all survive without any damage!.....

Wow, now the effects and rules of a FT in connection with a deployed shield confuse me even more than ever

Maarschalk · Post by **Maarschalk** » Mon Jan 30, 2012 9:01 pm

Well this one is Easy to test out, you do not need to be a Rocket Scientist like DaveK......

:P:P:P:P:P

Scavenger4711 · Post by **Scavenger4711** » Mon Jan 30, 2012 9:17 pm

From post: 127362, Topic: tid=8675, author=DaveK wrote:Interesting idea - it has a whiff of magic about it - how is it supposed to work?

Could work like a welder that repairs cracks in the hull

From post: 127713, Topic: tid=8675, author=Maarschalk wrote:Well this one is Easy to test out, you do not need to be a Rocket Scientist like DaveK......:P:P:P:P:P

I have a friend who has recently bought the game... he would be a perfect test subject >:-]

Rubber Chicken · Post by **Rubber Chicken** » Tue Jan 31, 2012 12:39 am

I chose the 'no' option. If you have a 'weapon' that can only repair, then what would you do if you were singled out? Ruin their morale by signing your mortgage over to them?:P

Beams could drop shields of course, but missiles to follow up are currently too in effective to count as sufficient offense.

If there was any sort of 'repair beam' in game, I'd rather see it as a 'station maintenance' mission in which the tractor beam could be used to 'work on' points of the station super-structure. Or perhaps a repair battleship mission along the same lines. It would be a glorified 'clean solar array' mission really. More variety but more of the same simultaeneously.

Scavenger4711 · Post by **Scavenger4711** » Tue Jan 31, 2012 3:16 pm

From post: 127759, Topic: tid=8675, author=Rubber Chicken wrote:I chose the 'no' option. If you have a 'weapon' that can only repair, then what would you do if you were singled out? Ruin their morale by signing your mortgage over to them?:P

Beams could drop shields of course, but missiles to follow up are currently too in effective to count as sufficient offense.

Yeah I agree with that. Apart from the fact that possibilities on how to repair your ship are already there, what you mentioned is one of the main arguments against my idea.

I'm still trying to figure out a way on how to make it more effective and therefore more usefull. If anyone of you has an idea, feel free to post them here

NemesisTheory · Post by **NemesisTheory** » Tue Feb 07, 2012 6:59 pm

Good idea, i would try mah beam for that !
i'll be a support class ship <3

TGS · Post by **TGS** » Tue Feb 07, 2012 11:19 pm

The biggest problem you would have with a utility device like this is if you use it to repair yourself as has been said... there are already ample methods. If you are using it for others... that would be very impractical unless it had excessively long range. Who would want to spend their time trying to chase someone beaming them to keep them repaired without some sort of system to make it easier.