Sat Dec 03, 2005 6:08 am
I guess I could make a Javascript dealie, but quite frankly, it's not terribly hard.
Here's another example, using Dev's concept of Bounty Hunter ships ("maneuverable and with a lot of firepower but not very durable" ):
hit_pts = 2500 = (2500 \ 100) = 25 tons
20 cargo = (20 * 1) = 20 tons
4 gun slots = (4 * 5) = 20 tons
Power, 250 \ Sec. = (250 \ 20) = 12.5 tons, 5000 capacity
One of each: MineDropper, CM, Guided/Special = 0 tons (these are all "free"
Total Tons = 25 + 20 + 20 + 12.5 = 77.5
So now we have our Total Tons. Let's figure out how well this thing steers:
steering_torque = 2000000 - (2000 * 77.5) = 1845000
So, our final stats come out like so:
mass = 77.5
steering_torque = 1845000, 1845000, 1845000
angular_drag = 1000000, 1000000, 1000000
rotation_inertia = 100000, 100000, 100000
See? It's not terribly hard to do this by hand- I could even do it on paper, but I prefer to use a calculator
**************************************************************************************************
So... we have a Military Fighter with 2.5X the hitpoints and power output of a Starflier, no extra cargo space (appropriate- Military Fighters under the new balance will not be good for carrying goods, for the most part), crummier steering and slower response time to control inputs (that's Mass doing its thing). It has Military/Pirate Shields, so it should probably cost quite a bit more.
How much more should it cost?
That was one of the initial questions that had me wringing my hands for a bit. After working on this for awhile, here's how I'm going to figure costs:
Civilian Spacecraft:
If Mass is greater than 0 and less than 101, then the cost of the ship is 250 * Mass.
If the Mass is greater than 100 and less than 251, then the cost of the ship is 500 * Mass.
If the Mass is greater than 250, then the cost of the ship is 2000 * Mass. Therefore, a 500 Mass Civilian Spacecraft costs... 1 million Credits. Funny how that works
Military/Pirate Fighters:
If Mass is greater than 0 and less than 101, then the cost of the ship is 500 * Mass.
If the Mass is greater than 100 and less than 251, then the cost of the ship is 1000 * Mass.
If the Mass is greater than 250, then the cost of the ship is 4000 * Mass. So a 500 Mass Military/Pirate Fighter costs 2 million Credits.
Therefore, this Bounty Hunter rig, at 77.5 Mass, costs 38750 Credits. A Starflyer sells for 12500, and is worth 6250 as a trade-in.
Obviously, there is a very sheer "cliff" built into these cost calculations, which make it highly unlikely that pilots will be able to afford VHFs during the normal course of play through SP. And yes, it may strike some as a little weird that a fighter on the other side of the 250-Mass "cliff" is so much more expensive. So, why that Mass point?
Simple. That's where ships can get really, really exotic. Past that point, you can see some very strange designs, like things that that can fire a full set of ultra-high-powered guns without running out've Energy... ever... ships that have so much Hull that they're ... not invulnerable, exactly, but definately hard to put down... etc., etc., etc.
This will not mean that they're "uber". They're still going to steer like bricks. But they're not "balanced" in any real sense against, say, a Starflier. The objective of Toolkit is to make it *possible* for a Starflier with upgraded equipment to win a fight against heavier ships... not to make it certain.
Here's another example, using Dev's concept of Bounty Hunter ships ("maneuverable and with a lot of firepower but not very durable" ):
hit_pts = 2500 = (2500 \ 100) = 25 tons
20 cargo = (20 * 1) = 20 tons
4 gun slots = (4 * 5) = 20 tons
Power, 250 \ Sec. = (250 \ 20) = 12.5 tons, 5000 capacity
One of each: MineDropper, CM, Guided/Special = 0 tons (these are all "free"
Total Tons = 25 + 20 + 20 + 12.5 = 77.5
So now we have our Total Tons. Let's figure out how well this thing steers:
steering_torque = 2000000 - (2000 * 77.5) = 1845000
So, our final stats come out like so:
mass = 77.5
steering_torque = 1845000, 1845000, 1845000
angular_drag = 1000000, 1000000, 1000000
rotation_inertia = 100000, 100000, 100000
See? It's not terribly hard to do this by hand- I could even do it on paper, but I prefer to use a calculator
**************************************************************************************************
So... we have a Military Fighter with 2.5X the hitpoints and power output of a Starflier, no extra cargo space (appropriate- Military Fighters under the new balance will not be good for carrying goods, for the most part), crummier steering and slower response time to control inputs (that's Mass doing its thing). It has Military/Pirate Shields, so it should probably cost quite a bit more.
How much more should it cost?
That was one of the initial questions that had me wringing my hands for a bit. After working on this for awhile, here's how I'm going to figure costs:
Civilian Spacecraft:
If Mass is greater than 0 and less than 101, then the cost of the ship is 250 * Mass.
If the Mass is greater than 100 and less than 251, then the cost of the ship is 500 * Mass.
If the Mass is greater than 250, then the cost of the ship is 2000 * Mass. Therefore, a 500 Mass Civilian Spacecraft costs... 1 million Credits. Funny how that works
Military/Pirate Fighters:
If Mass is greater than 0 and less than 101, then the cost of the ship is 500 * Mass.
If the Mass is greater than 100 and less than 251, then the cost of the ship is 1000 * Mass.
If the Mass is greater than 250, then the cost of the ship is 4000 * Mass. So a 500 Mass Military/Pirate Fighter costs 2 million Credits.
Therefore, this Bounty Hunter rig, at 77.5 Mass, costs 38750 Credits. A Starflyer sells for 12500, and is worth 6250 as a trade-in.
Obviously, there is a very sheer "cliff" built into these cost calculations, which make it highly unlikely that pilots will be able to afford VHFs during the normal course of play through SP. And yes, it may strike some as a little weird that a fighter on the other side of the 250-Mass "cliff" is so much more expensive. So, why that Mass point?
Simple. That's where ships can get really, really exotic. Past that point, you can see some very strange designs, like things that that can fire a full set of ultra-high-powered guns without running out've Energy... ever... ships that have so much Hull that they're ... not invulnerable, exactly, but definately hard to put down... etc., etc., etc.
This will not mean that they're "uber". They're still going to steer like bricks. But they're not "balanced" in any real sense against, say, a Starflier. The objective of Toolkit is to make it *possible* for a Starflier with upgraded equipment to win a fight against heavier ships... not to make it certain.