Forums » Suggestions

Mentoring: Specialization

Jan 09, 2006 Shapenaji link
Mentoring is a little strange as it stands. I've trained a number of players in combat (well over 40), but I rarely ever ask for them to use the mentor command.

For me, it just seems arbitrary, them gaining a level, any level, so that they can rate me just seems... to not assess what I teach them at all.

There are many kinds of mentors, those who train in mining, trading, botting, pvp. So I think the mentor function should address this.

So lets break the Mentor Badges into 4 categories:

Trade Mentor:
To Gain a point: After the student selects the player as a mentor, they gain a trade level. Students eligeable with trade levels 0-4.

5 point reward: Better Prices on trade goods at positive faction stations
15 point reward: Better Prices on trade ships/equipment at positive faction stations (equipment at the moment would include mines)
40 point reward: Ultra Charge Battery

Mining Mentor:
To Gain a point: After the student selects the player as a mentor, they gain a mining level. Valid for levels 0-4.

5 point reward: Better premium on mining goods sold to Positive faction stations
15 point reward: Better price on mining ships/equipment at Positive faction stations
40 point reward: Sector Scanner. Gives a list of all the ores available inside your sector. Doesn't tell you where they are though, or in what percentages.

AI Combat Mentor:
To Gain a point: After the student selects the player as a mentor, they gain a combat level. Valid for levels 0-4.

5 point reward: Better premiums on Scrap metal sold to Positive faction stations
15 point reward: Better Prices on Combat ships/weapons
40 point reward: Bot aggro device: bots within 500 m aggro to player as if struck.

PvP Combat Mentor:
To Gain a point: After the student selects the player as a mentor, they gain 5 player kills of an alternate faction. Can be done more than once, but grows exponentially, to get a second point from the same person requires 4 times as many kills. Players are eligeable to be mentored starting at Combat level 3.

5 points: Some grey space stations will sell higher variants of various ships, (aka, instead of basic vulture, they sell vultures mk I-IV, only true for certain types)
15 points: Concussion Blaster: Similar in all ways to the neutron blaster, except that,
A) it's white,
B) it deals no actual damage,
though the opponent's screen will still flash red, and you will hear the noise as if you struck an opponent
40 points: Concussion Rocket: just like the Concussion Blaster except that it mimics the sunflare.

These are just ideas, but it would create a real culture of teaching here.
Jan 09, 2006 teh1ghool link
I think this. I totally agree.
Jan 09, 2006 johnhawl218 link
I like most of your rewards except for the 40 points for AI Combat Mentoring. Why would you want to have bots agro on you? Unless this is a weapon to be used on someone else, I'm a bit unclear on that point.
Jan 09, 2006 icbm1987 link
Mmmm... bot aggro...

It would be a fun thing to have... and would make queening that much more fun...
Jan 09, 2006 johnhawl218 link
can't remember, is there an invisible hive faction rating or is it only temp per sector as you intereact. If there is one then there's no need for a bot agro devise as the more you kill them the more they hate you.
Jan 09, 2006 toshiro link
The concussion weapons being a kind of BB guns used for training?
Jan 09, 2006 jascha link
love your ideas, makes teaching worth while,as well as fun
jamay cheers
Jan 09, 2006 genka link
I don't see this proposal leading anywhere but more confused newbs and less qualified mentors. As it is now, I see way too many people that get four in anything and start trawling 1 for naive newbs to mumble incoherently about ming to for a few minutes before retreating to wait for their inevitable mentor point.
Splitting mentoring into subjects will just mean that instead of getting level four in everything before labeling yourself an educator newbs will get four in mining, and then deem themselves to be a master mentor while, in fact, they're as clueless, if not more, as their victims.

The mentor system's there to help brand-new newbs, not newbs that have been playing for a few months. So, newb, to conclude, I respectfully disagree.
Jan 09, 2006 johnhawl218 link
to be honest the who mentor badge should be removed altogether and the ultracharge battery should be given as a reward for a high end trade mission, or epic mission of sorts. But anything to spice up mentoring is fine by me. As for newbs teaching newbs, as long as they are not hurting you Genka what's the diff? Come down off that pedistal already! =P
Jan 09, 2006 LeberMac link
Shape has rather good ideas when he settles down and starts writing instead of flaming the devs...

/me runs...

Actually, the separate badges would be of great benefit. People will try to get those levels just to get the price breaks/training weapons/etc. Should we get an influx of new players, this will mean a good number of higher-level players hanging around the start points, making sure that the newbs can function properly within vendetta-space.
Jan 09, 2006 incarnate link
I also want to make the mentor system deeper and more interesting. I'll revisit this when I get closer to being able to do anything about it.
Jan 09, 2006 Shapenaji link
heh, johnhawl: the idea behind the bot aggro was to allow a good teacher to teach people to bot more easily, by being able to take the attention of the bots away from his/her students.

Having a Bot Aggro device allows cooperation during combat missions.

Inc: And as far as doing anything about it, most of the things I've suggested are just duplicating the badge system we have now, with the trigger being based on particular level gained, rather than an arbitrary level.

While the Sector Scanner and Bot Aggro are entirely hypothetical (I couldn't think of any device that really fit these), everything else is simple. The Concussion blaster involves changing the color of the blasts and reducing the neutron blast damage to 0, then distributing it to random stations throughout the galaxies. Likewise with the Concussion rocket.

I was going for an idea which used the existing framework.
Jan 09, 2006 johnhawl218 link
for "kiting" the bots, gotcha, good idea!!!
Jan 09, 2006 Lord Q link
>15 points: Concussion Blaster: Similar in all ways to the neutron blaster, except that,
>A) it's white,
>B) it deals no actual damage,
>though the opponent's screen will still flash red, and you will hear the noise as if
>you struck an opponent
>40 points: Concussion Rocket: just like the Concussion Blaster except that it
>mimics the sunflare.

cool, i might actualy try to mentor people for those (as opposed to freely handing out information any time the rest of the player base doesn't beat me to it, like i do now)

http://www.vendetta-online.com/x/msgboard/3/8500#98725
http://www.vendetta-online.com/x/msgboard/7/10975#128336