Rebalancing armor

[Hythlodaeus]

Since with the next version the game will be fully playable, I believe it's time for us to discuss some things that could be added to the so-called enhanced mode.

One thing I would really like to see would be a whole rebalance of armor role as to make soldier customization more strategically interesting. To put it blunty:

Personal Armor: increased mobility (superior to no armor), with only average protection
Power Suit: Strongest protection, but reduced mobility.
Flying Suit: Not-so-strong protection (inferior to power suit, but still superior to personal armor), average mobility, flying.

This rebalance essentially emphasizes soldier roles according to the armor they wear. A Scout would benefit from wearing Personal Armor over a Power Suit, for instance. Heavier armors could also reduce peripheral visibility, while having the advantage of built-in shoulder lamps which would allow easier illumination at night. Additionally, I also believe there should be a severe aiming penalty to be added, whenever a soldier is hovering with the flying suit.

Agree/disagree? Thoughts on this matter?

[moriarty]

since the personal armor is basically just alloy plating, it wouldn't really make sense to have mobility superior to "no armor".

maybe it would make more sense to have two types of power armor:
- "advanced mobility": powered exoskeleton is used to increase speed and strength of wearer, but armor protection is the same as personal armor
- "advanced protection": powered exoskeleton is used to compensate for much stronger armor plating, speed and strength are unchanged

[Hythlodaeus]

since the personal armor is basically just alloy plating, it wouldn't really make sense to have mobility superior to "no armor".

Personal Armor goes beyond that for me. It's not just simple alloy plating: it's a skin-tight, spandex-like, lightweight battle armor that seems to restrict movements even less than regular coveralls. Conferring it superior mobility is a way to keep it useful in late game for reasons other than being cheap.

maybe it would make more sense to have two types of power armor:
- "advanced mobility": powered exoskeleton is used to increase speed and strength of wearer, but armor protection is the same as personal armor
- "advanced protection": powered exoskeleton is used to compensate for much stronger armor plating, speed and strength are unchanged

Frankly, I feel there's no point in adding another type of armor when you could easily rebalance the flying suit. The power suit looks heavy and cumbersome, and it should act like that.

[moriarty]

Frankly, I feel there's no point in adding another type of armor when you could easily rebalance the flying suit. The power suit looks heavy and cumbersome, and it should act like that.

I guess it's all a matter of personal opinion at that the way I understand it, the Power Armor is what the name implies: a powered armor - it's only researchable after researching UFO Power Source, after all. I always thought of it as something like the "Iron Man" armor (without the flight capability, that is) - the powered servos allow for high mobility despite heavy armor. the Personal Armor, although lightweight, does not have any active components.

[Hythlodaeus]

I guess it's all a matter of personal opinion at that the way I understand it, the Power Armor is what the name implies: a powered armor - it's only researchable after researching UFO Power Source, after all. I always thought of it as something like the "Iron Man" armor (without the flight capability, that is) - the powered servos allow for high mobility despite heavy armor. the Personal Armor, although lightweight, does not have any active components.

Mobility doesn't always concern weight. The Power Armor may be an enhanced exoskeleton, but it's still pretty bulky. I'd imagine it would be a lot harder to run in one of those, or to squeeze through a tight corner, no matter how compensated the weight was. Personal Armor might not have any active components, but like spandex, it's a skin-tight suit which confers more freedom of movements.