Re: The X-Com Files - 3.5: Whispers In The Dark

[Solarius Scorch]

Editing the sprite sheet should be doable any ways, but I don't have tools to fix up the palette after I mess things up. I'll look into it any ways. The sprite work will take a while any ways.. Hopefully by then, Falko's tools will come back. They were really useful.

If it's just about the palette, then it's no problem, it's 2 seconds in Photoshop. I'd be happy to convert anything.
But how to cut these sheets properly is certainly beyond me.

Another thing: I got a rifle, SA-80, which I don't know much about, and apparently my scientists refuse to work on. If you think there is a reason why I shouldn't be able to buy more (or more ammo for it) by simply researching it, that's fine. But it'd be nice to get some info on what it does. I would suggest a system where you have one STR_RIFLE_SA80 research topic with "needitem: true" for the gun so it can be researched and tells what it does (ie gives a ufopaedia article, the equivalent of taking it to a firing range for a bit of time, I'd guess?), and a different topic, which has the dependencies of the current one, and is what is needed to buy the weapon and ammo (what actually takes more time as you have to setup the contacts, permissions and logistics). It makes sense in Piratez to not be able to study advanced guns when the gals are in the stone age, but for modern rifles in XComFiles it is less logical.

Yes, there are some things to be ironed out like this one. I'm not doing this yet because everything keeps changing.

Also, thanks for the live reaper

Have fun, and don't forget to walk it twice a day.

[JeyP]

Damm...laptop and ISP problems.

About balancing weapons there already plenty factors to do it. Accuracy, damage, TU cost, power bonus, asarc (aimed shoot accurate range cap), reload speed, weight. And there are already plenty done just a little tweaks are needed.
-pistols ~20-25 dmg, can make 3 aimed and 4-5 snap, asarc 20/25 and drop for 3% witch each tile (like Arthanor said) becouse pistols shouldn't be powerfull enought to snipe with them.
-assault rifles ~30 dmg, 2 aimed, 3 snap, 2 auto, asarc 20/25 witch 2% each tile drop
-rifle, sniper ~35-40 damage, 1 aimed, 2-3 snap, no asarc, power bonus firing*0,1-0,2
Weight and reload speed depend of weapon model.

Isn't field of view to big ? Maybe becouse of smal maps at the begining but just remembered that i didn't use scouts in 0.3 just snipe with lugers from afar.

Quick test run 0.31 and crash.

[Meridian]

Quick test run 0.31 and crash.

Simple answer: no aliens are generated for the map/deployment and OpenXcom says: no, you don't.

More complicated answer.

Code: [Select]

  - type: STR_CULT_APPREHENSION_CHURCH_OF_DAGON
    data:
      - alienRank: 5
        lowQty: 0
        highQty: 3
        dQty: 1
        percentageOutsideUfo: 70

On Beginner, the number of spawned aliens is: lowQty + random(0, dQty) + random(0, extraQty)
In this case: 0 + random(0, 1) + random(0, 0)

Possible outcomes: 0 or 1.

Your outcome: 0

QED.

[Solarius Scorch]

Yeah, thanks for catching this logic error.

But hmm, if there are no enemies, the mission should simply end! Err, it means victory, right?

[Meridian]

But hmm, if there are no enemies, the mission should simply end! Err, it means victory, right?

Mission ends when there were enemies and all were killed during the crash.

If there are no enemies, the very fabric of spacetime starts falling apart.

[Arthanor]

Been playing some more and having a good time using Nitro rifles. But, it struck me how deadly some of the engagements are, compared to what we see in the news. I know in Piratez Dioxine talked about increasing stun damage of common firearms, so that firearms become more debilitating and less outright deadly. I think that would be a great thing to have in XCom-Files as well, so you can apprehend suspects (or capture alien life forms) after they have been wounded.

[Solarius Scorch]

Been playing some more and having a good time using Nitro rifles. But, it struck me how deadly some of the engagements are, compared to what we see in the news. I know in Piratez Dioxine talked about increasing stun damage of common firearms, so that firearms become more debilitating and less outright deadly. I think that would be a great thing to have in XCom-Files as well, so you can apprehend suspects (or capture alien life forms) after they have been wounded.

That's possible; a major overhaul, but worth considering.
Surrender mechanics would be better though.

[Arthanor]

They're two different things. Surrender works for active enemies. Adding stun damage allows to simulate "shooting in the shoulder/leg and capturing the guy squirming in pain on the floor". In XCom, everything is either irrelevant or a kill shot. Adding stun damage would allow this poor guy with already 3 bullet wounds to lie down instead of trying to fight back and getting killed by a 4th. Right now, the minute amount of stun damage added is barely ever useful. Only when units are within an inch of death do they actually fall, usually to die off next turn any ways.

Edit: Also, it'd be more user friendly to use descriptive words for research projects (I'm thinking here of the Dragonfly specifically) than weird given names. Luckily, I had just read about the Dragonfly so I knew it was something significant, but others might not.

[Solarius Scorch]

They're two different things. Surrender works for active enemies. Adding stun damage allows to simulate "shooting in the shoulder/leg and capturing the guy squirming in pain on the floor". In XCom, everything is either irrelevant or a kill shot. Adding stun damage would allow this poor guy with already 3 bullet wounds to lie down instead of trying to fight back and getting killed by a 4th. Right now, the minute amount of stun damage added is barely ever useful. Only when units are within an inch of death do they actually fall, usually to die off next turn any ways.

Yeah, I totally understand and share your view. My worry is that firearms in general would be hard to get for the player, because they would all display incomplete damage (basic damage, not the stun extra) in the Ufopaedia and their damage values would have to be lowered a little, too... So I'm not sure it's acceptable.

Edit: Also, it'd be more user friendly to use descriptive words for research projects (I'm thinking here of the Dragonfly specifically) than weird given names. Luckily, I had just read about the Dragonfly so I knew it was something significant, but others might not.

OK, I'll rethink the names at some point.

[yrizoud]

I had an idea for the zombies : Give them a combination of :
- no death sound
- never suffer fatal wounds
- do take "additional stun damage" from most damage (like vanilla)
This way, when zombies silently collapse under fire, the player is left with the uncomfortable situation that they are *very probably* dead, but there's always the lingering risk that one is technically stunned, and will rise after a few turns while nobody is watching.

[Arthanor]

Yeah, I totally understand and share your view. My worry is that firearms in general would be hard to get for the player, because they would all display incomplete damage (basic damage, not the stun extra) in the Ufopaedia and their damage values would have to be lowered a little, too... So I'm not sure it's acceptable.

Yes, it's pushing things a bit. I'm not sure what the cleanest communication would be. The best would be if the weapons would do a flat % of basic damage as stun. So if a gun lists 25 damage and 30% to stun, it does 0-50 damage (times 1-resistance, minus armor), and 30% of the damage result as stun.

Edit: Maybe I should make a mod to yours to try it?

OK, I'll rethink the names at some point.

Something like "Special Ops Transport" or "Black Helicopter"

I had an idea for the zombies : Give them a combination of :
- no death sound
- never suffer fatal wounds
- do take "additional stun damage" from most damage (like vanilla)
This way, when zombies silently collapse under fire, the player is left with the uncomfortable situation that they are *very probably* dead, but there's always the lingering risk that one is technically stunned, and will rise after a few turns while nobody is watching.

Mean! But I like it. I don't think zombies suffer fatal wounds already, since I don't remember ever having to heal one and I have way more than enough live ones. No death sound would be infuriating I already walk to any zombie that didn't shout to give them a face full of lead (after I got bit in the back twice...). Now I'd have to do it for all of them!

[Solarius Scorch]

I had an idea for the zombies : Give them a combination of :
- no death sound
- never suffer fatal wounds
- do take "additional stun damage" from most damage (like vanilla)
This way, when zombies silently collapse under fire, the player is left with the uncomfortable situation that they are *very probably* dead, but there's always the lingering risk that one is technically stunned, and will rise after a few turns while nobody is watching.

Yeah, I get the concept, but wouldn't it be just mean? These missions already take long, I'm afraid it'd be even worse if the player had to worry about enemies standing up so much. It'd be like Ghouls in Piratez, but worse (more enemies).

Yes, it's pushing things a bit. I'm not sure what the cleanest communication would be. The best would be if the weapons would do a flat % of basic damage as stun. So if a gun lists 25 damage and 30% to stun, it does 0-50 damage (times 1-resistance, minus armor), and 30% of the damage result as stun.

Edit: Maybe I should make a mod to yours to try it?

Sure, go ahead. I won't be working on the mod within the next few days anyway, so you could give it a try.

Something like "Special Ops Transport" or "Black Helicopter"

At this point it could even be called "Air Transport" and still sound like an improvement.

[hellrazor]

Yeah, I get the concept, but wouldn't it be just mean? These missions already take long, I'm afraid it'd be even worse if the player had to worry about enemies standing up so much. It'd be like Ghouls in Piratez, but worse (more enemies).

Sure, go ahead. I won't be working on the mod within the next few days anyway, so you could give it a try.

At this point it could even be called "Air Transport" and still sound like an improvement.

Make them so always have 1 HP left, immune to fatal wounds, gaining +2 HP each turn. They will always be coming back...

[HelmetHair]

Make them so always have 1 HP left, immune to fatal wounds, gaining +2 HP each turn. They will always be coming back...

No. Meat is still meat; be it dead or alive. A large caliber bullet destroying a section of the spinal cord cripples the zombie. destruction of pelvic girdle or shoulder girdle means a greatly reduced amount of movement or the inability to lift the hands.

[Solarius Scorch]

No. Meat is still meat; be it dead or alive. A large caliber bullet destroying a section of the spinal cord cripples the zombie. destruction of pelvic girdle or shoulder girdle means a greatly reduced amount of movement or the inability to lift the hands.

Yep. Materialism.
I didn't want to go for this argument straight away, but it's true that without excessive amounts of Elerium it's impossible to have a unit that regenerates on the fly.