Author Topic: Solar's wishlist  (Read 454072 times)

Offline legionof1

  • Commander
  • *****
  • Posts: 1899
  • Bullets go that way. Money comes this way.
    • View Profile
Re: Solar's wishlist
« Reply #405 on: May 11, 2017, 01:32:26 am »
More an accuracy issue. Given that the CQC check is [([Melee x .5+Reaction x.5]x.65)-dodge] the net chance to succeed will be considerably lower then melee butt strike accuracy.

The majority of butt strikes are .8x(50+1/2 melee) which is far more likely to hit.

Example with 100 melee and reactions vs 0 dodge.

CQC check: [([100 x.5+100 x.5]x.65)-0]=65%

Butt strike: [(50x.5)+50]x.8=80% 

Even at max stats the CQC check is only 84% vs butt strike 96%

Accuracy is not hidden from the player while penetration and dmg are. Given multiple options, put emphasis on the one the player can see without rule diving. Ideally a comparative check between snap and strike options, would be the best statistical solution for success but that both be more work to code and less realistic.

Offline Solarius Scorch

  • Global Moderator
  • Commander
  • *****
  • Posts: 11401
  • WE MUST DISSENT
    • View Profile
    • Nocturmal Productions modding studio website
Re: Solar's wishlist
« Reply #406 on: August 02, 2017, 08:03:53 pm »
Meridian, your most recent addition (sequential getOneFree) reminds me of my request for additional prerequisites of getOneFree items.

I understand that putting a request right after you delivered a nice new feature may seem a little... thankless... But I guess it's a good moment to bring back this idea. The reason is simple: I need it, and badly.

What exactly is it about? I think I never managed to convey the idea properly. So let my try again. This is what I need:

Code: [Select]
  - name: STR_SOME_ALIEN
    getOneFree:
      - STR_RESEARCH_ONE
      - STR_RESEARCH_TWO
      - STR_RESEARCH_THREE
      - STR_RESEARCH_FOUR
      - STR_RESEARCH_FIVE # requires STR_UFO_POWER_SOURCE
      - STR_RESEARCH_SIX # requires STR_UFO_POWER_SOURCE
      - STR_RESEARCH_SEVEN # requires STR_UFO_NAVIGATION
      - STR_RESEARCH_EIGHT # requires STR_MUTON_AUTOPSY and STR_BATTLESHIP

As you can guess:
- Researches 1 - 4 work as normal.
- Researches 5 - 6 can only be picked if you have STR_UFO_POWER_SOURCE. If you don't have it, the game never picks it. If you have no other getOneFree available (all are researched), you cannot research this item until you get STR_UFO_POWER_SOURCE.
- Similarly, research 7 can only be picked if you have STR_UFO_NAVIGATION.
- Research 8 - same, but with two prerequisites, not one.


Inb4 1. This is a n00btrap, like the TFTD tech tree! What if you research all getOneFree before you research the prerequisite? You won't even know you can research the item again when you finally get the prerequisite!

Answer: yes, it's a potential problem, if you plan your mod carelessly. I am confident in my abilities to not screw the player over, though. :) The most obvious methods include:
- Don't hide critical stuff behind this.
- Don't do it on rare items.
- Give it to a number of items.
- All of the above.
TL;DR, I'll manage.

Inb4 2. Why do something like this at all? It is so convoluted! Why would anyone need that?

Okay, let me finally explain why I need it! The truth is, it is not for gameplay purposes like balance or difficulty management; it is because of story/fluff elements. And no, nothing to do with RPG-like ideas. :)

My idea for X-Com Files was mostly inspired by the new XCom: among the nameless scientists, workers and janitors you have several named characters, like Dr. Vansen or Bradford. Their function is mostly to author reports specific to their field, and also to act as prerequisites for certain researches. The latter idea works because you only start with four people (Quartermaster, Chief Accountant, Intelligence Officer and Chief Medical Officer), and you can recruit another four during your campaign (Military Envoy, Chief Scientist, Xenologist and Chief Engineer).

A typical article from a staff member looks like this:


But that's not all! These characters also have a special kind of "research reports" that essentially have no value other than (poor) entertainment. For example this:



Well... the truth is, it's not just for fun, it's also to make interrogations more random. These "staff input" reports are always getOneFrees from interrogations, to make them more varied and unpredictable.

This is a typical research item from X-Com Files:

Code: [Select]
  - name: STR_SYNDICATE_AGENT
    requiresBaseFunc: [INTLAB]
    cost: 10
    points: 10
    needItem: true
    destroyItem: true
    unlocks:
      - STR_SYNDICATE
    getOneFree:
      - STR_PISTOL
      - STR_SMG
      - STR_BLACKOPS_SHOTGUN
      - STR_BLACKOPS_MAGNUM
      - STR_DOSSIER_ILYA_DOLVICH
      - STR_DOSSIER_HARLEY_STONE
      - STR_DOSSIER_IVAN_VASLOV
      - STR_DOSSIER_TERRENCE_LOCKHART
      - STR_DOSSIER_ERNIE_LLOYD_SOBATKA
      - STR_DOSSIER_CARLOS_TANAKA
      - STR_DOSSIER_ELIAS_SEPPA
      - STR_DOSSIER_OWEN_HOFFER
      - STR_DOSSIER_KIM_HARWELL
      - STR_DOSSIER_MONICA_GRUMMANN
      - STR_DOSSIER_TYVARIUS_STIENBURG
      - STR_DOSSIER_GERTRUDE_ELLISON
      - STR_DOSSIER_HENRY_GARRISON
      - STR_STAFF_001
      - STR_STAFF_002
      - STR_STAFF_003
      - STR_STAFF_007
      - STR_STAFF_008
      - STR_STAFF_009
      - STR_STAFF_010
      - STR_STAFF_012

As you can see, this individual can give you three types of getOneFree: 1) weapons, 2) dossiers on various enemy agents and 3) staff input articles. Weapons give you weapon knowledge (and associated points), dossiers give you fluff articles (and associated points) and staff inputs are there only for entertainment or just frustration. Please don't judge me, sometimes modding is also about weird crap like that.

Now, we finally get to the point. Each staff input has, obviously, a staff member who is the author of the message. But please remember that half of these people are recruited at some later point in the game. This means that I have to be extra careful: a prisoner should never give a staff input article from someone who wasn't even recruited yet! This means that I can only give such getOneFrees to prisoners that I am 100% sure can only be caught after this particular person was recruited. And this is a bit of a bummer, since most factions appear regardless of whether you have recruited a particular person or not; otherwise it would be a terribly artificial limitation. So I have very little articles from the recruitable people, and they can only be found on a small number of specific prisoners that I know can only appear when these guys are already present. Das ist die ganze Sache.

Perhaps you will say that this reason is too insubstantial to invest the effort in it, as it doesn't influence tactical game at all. I would understand that. But I also consider this feature - I mean, the recruitable people and the staff input articles - as core X-Com Files feature; it was planned something like two years ago and I still consider it very important to the mod (for the same reason I appreciate and love the Solar Courier in Piratez, many articles for which I wrote myself). Therefore I would deeply appreciate a possibility to only allow certain getOneFree items to be researched if you already have a prerequisite - in this case, a person recruited. And of course, it would probably have various other uses too.

Please consider this option.

Offline Meridian

  • Global Moderator
  • Commander
  • *****
  • Posts: 8578
    • View Profile
Re: Solar's wishlist
« Reply #407 on: August 02, 2017, 10:50:19 pm »
This is just crazy... there must be a better way to do the same... I'll try to come up with options.

Offline KiriKaneko

  • Colonel
  • ****
  • Posts: 215
    • View Profile
Re: Solar's wishlist
« Reply #408 on: August 02, 2017, 11:26:04 pm »
I suggest the ZZZ sign on KO units changes colour the higher their stun is, giving players an idea of how much time they have to wake them. I'd also like to suggest it take a bit longer for them to die from high stun

Offline Solarius Scorch

  • Global Moderator
  • Commander
  • *****
  • Posts: 11401
  • WE MUST DISSENT
    • View Profile
    • Nocturmal Productions modding studio website
Re: Solar's wishlist
« Reply #409 on: August 02, 2017, 11:28:15 pm »
This is just crazy... there must be a better way to do the same... I'll try to come up with options.

Thanks! I'm open for suggestions.

I suggest the ZZZ sign on KO units changes colour the higher their stun is, giving players an idea of how much time they have to wake them. I'd also like to suggest it take a bit longer for them to die from high stun

Not a bad idea. Very rough, but worth considering.

Offline Meridian

  • Global Moderator
  • Commander
  • *****
  • Posts: 8578
    • View Profile
Re: Solar's wishlist
« Reply #410 on: August 04, 2017, 05:45:43 pm »
Thanks! I'm open for suggestions.

Code: [Select]
research:
  - name: STR_BOTH
    cost: 0
    dependencies:
      - STR_MEDI_KIT
      - STR_MOTION_SCANNER
  - name: STR_SECTOID_NAVIGATOR
    sequentialGetOneFree: true      # getOneFree topics will be given in sequential order, not random
    getOneFree:
      - STR_ALIEN_RESEARCH          # free
      - STR_ALIEN_HARVEST           # free
                                    #
                                    # getOneFreeProtected topics will *NOT* be given in sequential order!!
                                    #  - The 3 groups (A, B, A+B) can be read from the file in a different order by YAML
                                    #  - Within the group itself, they will be given sequentially though
    getOneFreeProtected:
      STR_MEDI_KIT:
        - STR_ALIEN_ABDUCTION       # not free, requires A (medikit)
        - STR_ALIEN_TERROR          # not free, requires A
      STR_MOTION_SCANNER:
        - STR_ALIEN_BASE            # not free, requires B (scanner)
        - STR_ALIEN_SUPPLY          # not free, requires B
      STR_BOTH:
        - STR_ALIEN_RETALIATION     # not free, requires A+B
        - STR_ALIEN_INFILTRATION    # not free, requires A+B

This way I can at least somehow visually show it in the tech tree viewer...
 - white label = discovered prerequisite
 - golden label = undiscovered prerequisite
Still not very fond of this craziness to be honest...

Offline Solarius Scorch

  • Global Moderator
  • Commander
  • *****
  • Posts: 11401
  • WE MUST DISSENT
    • View Profile
    • Nocturmal Productions modding studio website
Re: Solar's wishlist
« Reply #411 on: August 04, 2017, 09:09:34 pm »
But I am. :) I like it a lot. :D

Great job. Can't wait!

Offline Meridian

  • Global Moderator
  • Commander
  • *****
  • Posts: 8578
    • View Profile
Re: Solar's wishlist
« Reply #412 on: August 05, 2017, 03:45:45 pm »
I have "exclusive research" on todo list from you, but can't find the thread about it... so I post here.

It was implemented here: https://openxcom.org/forum/index.php/topic,5482.msg86298.html#msg86298

Offline Solarius Scorch

  • Global Moderator
  • Commander
  • *****
  • Posts: 11401
  • WE MUST DISSENT
    • View Profile
    • Nocturmal Productions modding studio website
Re: Solar's wishlist
« Reply #413 on: August 08, 2017, 11:49:33 pm »
Great!

This will revolutionize Piratez. :)

EDIT:

So... How do I use getOneFreeProtected? Sorry, but I can't make heads or tails of this example...

Offline Meridian

  • Global Moderator
  • Commander
  • *****
  • Posts: 8578
    • View Profile
Re: Solar's wishlist
« Reply #414 on: August 08, 2017, 11:53:39 pm »
Simpler example:

Code: [Select]
research:
  - name: STR_SECTOID_NAVIGATOR
    getOneFree:
      - STR_ALIEN_RESEARCH          # no requirement
      - STR_ALIEN_HARVEST           # no requirement
    getOneFreeProtected:
      STR_MEDI_KIT:
        - STR_ALIEN_ABDUCTION       # requires medikit researched
        - STR_ALIEN_TERROR          # requires medikit researched

Offline Solarius Scorch

  • Global Moderator
  • Commander
  • *****
  • Posts: 11401
  • WE MUST DISSENT
    • View Profile
    • Nocturmal Productions modding studio website
Re: Solar's wishlist
« Reply #415 on: August 09, 2017, 07:44:52 pm »
Ah thanks, I understand now.

Sorry, there were many ways to interpret the code, and I didn't feel like trying all of them. :)

On a different topic, shouldn't this thread be moved to OXCE+ subforum?

Offline Meridian

  • Global Moderator
  • Commander
  • *****
  • Posts: 8578
    • View Profile
Re: Solar's wishlist
« Reply #416 on: August 09, 2017, 10:35:41 pm »
On a different topic, shouldn't this thread be moved to OXCE+ subforum?

Would be nice.
There are many threads that should be moved, but I don't have the rights to do it myself and I don't want to bother the admins each time.

Offline Dioxine

  • Commander
  • *****
  • Posts: 5412
  • punk not dead
    • View Profile
    • Nocturnal Productions
Re: Solar's wishlist
« Reply #417 on: August 09, 2017, 10:50:01 pm »
OK I will move it.

Offline Meridian

  • Global Moderator
  • Commander
  • *****
  • Posts: 8578
    • View Profile
Re: Solar's wishlist
« Reply #418 on: September 15, 2019, 01:53:14 pm »
Gladly!

Here's a list of suggestions - for the current commendations and some potential new ones, too. (Co-produced with Dioxine.)

See here: https://openxcom.org/forum/index.php/topic,7405.0.html

Offline Meridian

  • Global Moderator
  • Commander
  • *****
  • Posts: 8578
    • View Profile
Re: [WIP] [Suggestion] Solar's wishlist
« Reply #419 on: October 14, 2019, 06:06:23 pm »
@Solarius: can we have this list processed and updated as a new post? just to see what's still outstanding.

https://openxcom.org/forum/index.php/topic,4830.msg82753.html#msg82753