Author Topic: Using Energy to balance psionics.  (Read 8208 times)

Offline Jstank

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Using Energy to balance psionics.
« on: March 24, 2015, 09:34:49 pm »
I was watching BB LP today, watching him steam roll through multiple missions by chain controlling alien minds and it really got me thinking.

What if using the psi amp drained a characters energy.

It really makes sense from a lore perspective because using psi abilities always makes a hero tired and weak.

That would make him out of energy if he tried to chain mind control through the whole mission. This would make psi balanced because it wouldn't be available on EVERY turn. I think linking it to energy is a better solution.

Is there a way to make a weapon expend energy?

Offline hellrazor

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Re: Using Energy to balance psionics.
« Reply #1 on: March 24, 2015, 10:33:36 pm »
I was watching BB LP today, watching him steam roll through multiple missions by chain controlling alien minds and it really got me thinking.

What if using the psi amp drained a characters energy.

It really makes sense from a lore perspective because using psi abilities always makes a hero tired and weak.

That would make him out of energy if he tried to chain mind control through the whole mission. This would make psi balanced because it wouldn't be available on EVERY turn. I think linking it to energy is a better solution.

Is there a way to make a weapon expend energy?

I must say that is quiete a good Idea.

Offline Yankes

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Re: Using Energy to balance psionics.
« Reply #2 on: March 24, 2015, 10:46:21 pm »
its done in my extended version.

Offline redv

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Re: Using Energy to balance psionics.
« Reply #3 on: March 24, 2015, 10:59:25 pm »
What if using the psi amp drained a characters energy.

It really makes sense from a lore perspective because using psi abilities always makes a hero tired and weak.

That would make him out of energy if he tried to chain mind control through the whole mission. This would make psi balanced because it wouldn't be available on EVERY turn. I think linking it to energy is a better solution.

Is there a way to make a weapon expend energy?

This idea implemented in OpenXcom Extended.
Try to use the OpenXcom Extended: https://www.openxcom.com/mod/openxcom-extended
And this mod: https://www.openxcom.com/mod/psiwar

Offline Jstank

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Re: Using Energy to balance psionics.
« Reply #4 on: March 25, 2015, 02:38:13 am »
type: STR_PSI_AMP
    costSell: 495000
    energyMindControl: 10 # OX extended <-- Is this what you need to add to the psi amp to make it expend energy?
    energyPanic: 5        # OX extended<------|

Offline redv

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Re: Using Energy to balance psionics.
« Reply #5 on: March 25, 2015, 03:22:55 am »
Yes

Offline Hythlodaeus

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Re: Using Energy to balance psionics.
« Reply #6 on: March 25, 2015, 03:48:51 am »
I actually had thought about this before, and yes it does seem a way to make it a lot fairer, especially if paire with LOS psi, which means maneuvering your psi soldiers would be a lot more difficult and require clever logistics.

On a short side note, I would also like to support making psi-capable soldiers rarer (by making 0 psi hability soldiers occur) and rather make it possible to train psi power instead of psi-hability. This would mean that even soldiers with bad psi resistance could be trained in the lab to at least being able to resist psi control, whereas psi hability would be immutable throughout the whole game, and only good psykers would have a chance of success.

Offline Jstank

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Re: Using Energy to balance psionics.
« Reply #7 on: March 25, 2015, 04:01:46 am »
In the XCom rule set I see this.

- type: STR_PSI_AMP
    requires:
      - STR_PSI_AMP
    size: 0.1
    costSell: 194700
    weight: 10
    bigSprite: 33
    floorSprite: 32
    handSprite: 88
    hitSound: 36
    battleType: 9
    twoHanded: true
    invWidth: 1
    invHeight: 3
    tuUse: 25
    flatRate: true

Where do you put the energy expend code:   energyMindControl: 10    energyPanic: 5   

I am also running FMP. Is there anything I have to do in that as well?

Offline Arthanor

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Re: Using Energy to balance psionics.
« Reply #8 on: March 25, 2015, 05:03:54 am »
The energy cost is only implemented in Yankes' OpenXCom Extended. It is an alternative executable to the main release of OpenXCom that offers more properties to tweak.

Even if you add the proper lines in a ruleset for the main release of OpenXCom, it won't know what to do with the information and will just ignore it. As far as I can tell, mods that work in OpenXCom should work in OpenXCom extended, provided you don't have version clashes from 1.0/different nightlies. Unfortunately, I suspect that the FMP is one of those mods that works with the current nightly and might not with OXCExtended (unless it has been updated).

Offline redv

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Re: Using Energy to balance psionics.
« Reply #9 on: March 25, 2015, 10:57:16 am »
Where do you put the energy expend code:   energyMindControl: 10    energyPanic: 5   

I am also running FMP. Is there anything I have to do in that as well?

You can write your own ruleset file. Such that:
items:
  - type: STR_PSI_AMP
    energyMindControl: 10
    energyPanic: 5

and use it with OpenXcom Extended.
« Last Edit: March 25, 2015, 11:03:11 am by redv »

Offline Solarius Scorch

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Re: Using Energy to balance psionics.
« Reply #10 on: March 25, 2015, 11:56:51 am »
FMP will probably migrate to OXC at some point. It's a colossal job though, and it won't happen soon.

By the way Yankes, I'm still praying for the option of having two-level X-Com bases - one ground layer and one underground. (They would be connected by the lift and hangars.) With a switch to toggle between them in the base view. The purpose is to have both surface and hidden facilities, which would be necessary for the game design I have in mind. Do you think it's doable?

Offline hellrazor

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Re: Using Energy to balance psionics.
« Reply #11 on: March 25, 2015, 01:28:52 pm »
FMP will probably migrate to OXC at some point. It's a colossal job though, and it won't happen soon.

By the way Yankes, I'm still praying for the option of having two-level X-Com bases - one ground layer and one underground. (They would be connected by the lift and hangars.) With a switch to toggle between them in the base view. The purpose is to have both surface and hidden facilities, which would be necessary for the game design I have in mind. Do you think it's doable?

Solarius, you could simply do this with a two stage mission. But i guess that is not what you want.

Offline Solarius Scorch

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Re: Using Energy to balance psionics.
« Reply #12 on: March 25, 2015, 01:56:59 pm »
Solarius, you could simply do this with a two stage mission. But i guess that is not what you want.

Not really, it's mostly related to the tech progress. But it'll also make base defence missions more interesting.

Offline Yankes

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Re: Using Energy to balance psionics.
« Reply #13 on: March 25, 2015, 06:57:38 pm »
FMP will probably migrate to OXC at some point. It's a colossal job though, and it won't happen soon.

By the way Yankes, I'm still praying for the option of having two-level X-Com bases - one ground layer and one underground. (They would be connected by the lift and hangars.) With a switch to toggle between them in the base view. The purpose is to have both surface and hidden facilities, which would be necessary for the game design I have in mind. Do you think it's doable?
In theory it is possible but it probably too big form my version.

The energy cost is only implemented in Yankes' OpenXCom Extended. It is an alternative executable to the main release of OpenXCom that offers more properties to tweak.

Even if you add the proper lines in a ruleset for the main release of OpenXCom, it won't know what to do with the information and will just ignore it. As far as I can tell, mods that work in OpenXCom should work in OpenXCom extended, provided you don't have version clashes from 1.0/different nightlies. Unfortunately, I suspect that the FMP is one of those mods that works with the current nightly and might not with OXCExtended (unless it has been updated).
Current OXCE is based on 04/03/2015 and IIRC only big feature that is lacking from nightly is my own recoloring :)
Right now I'm working on merging with recent nightly. Probably at end of this week it will be finished.