Why do the loosing side get 20% surplus for next week? That's BS if you ask me. You snooze you loose. To get that crappy Neut 3 you should have to be active every week. Not be really active one week and then sit on our ass the next.

And let the winners get something useful like HD-beams, Avalons (can be useful), Adv Mineral Scanner etc.

CTC needs a total overhal and limited weapon supplies depending on how much stuff each side gets so i'd rather wait for something more awesome than a half assed fix.

[Stamp of no]™

I don't play the CtC, but it always seemed to me to be the closest thing VO has to privateering. Would that be a reasonable assessment? If so, perhaps it would be best to think of it in those terms and request redesign along those lines?

I'm probably out in left field here; just trying to get the proverbial handle on the thing.

The losing side gets a 20% surplus to keep unbalanced player activity from completely dominating it for months and months easily. It gives the smaller team a chance. It also provides incentive to keep the battle close, so things get heated all the way up to the end.

CtC the closest thing privateering that VO has, and Purified Xithricite Ore is the *only* contraband in the game at the moment. :(

But yeah, +1 to better rewards.

Hmm...perhaps adding additional "contraband" is the trick? With different types of rewards for which contraband category is being lead?

Of course, some types would possibly be incentives for more UIT participation as well?

"perhaps adding additional "contraband" is the trick?"

+1

(From another thread)

New items...

Illegal Pharmaceuticals: Illegal everywhere except Corvus.
Illegal Weapons: Illegal everywhere except Corvus.
Human Cargo: Illegal everywhere except Corvus.
Harvested Human Organs: Illegal everywhere except Corvus.
Hacked Medical Nanites: Illegal everywhere except Corvus.
Scan Blockers: Illegal every where but Corvus.
Super Light Kits: Illegal every where but Corvus.

Old items...

Serco Cybernetic Implants: Illegal in Itani space and Biocom stations.
Serco Ale: Illegal in Itani space.
Serco Training Disks: Illegal in Itani space.
Betheshee Spices: Illegal in Itani space.

Itani meditation crystals: Illegal in Serco space.
Itani Education Disks: Illegal in Serco space.
Deneb Rum: Illegal in Serco space.
Divinia Spices: Illegal in Serco space.

BioCom Implants: Illegal in Serco and Itani space.
Corvus Holo Disks: Illegal everywhere except Corvus.
Tunguska Mining Module: Illegal in Orion space.
Orion Drill bits: Illegal in Tunguska space.

That is of course just a rough list, more could be added. The reason to do this is there has (for as long as I've been playing) been a significant desire for smuggling, and consequently... a significant amount of disappointment that there is no real form of smuggling.

With the advent of cargo scanners, we took a step in the right direction. Scan Blockers, Add On Scanners and Cargo Spoofers were another large step in the right direction. The next step is for station guards to have them hardwired into their ships and to introduce Border Patrols at Worm Holes, which obviously would have cargo scanners as well.

Simply put, you approach a nations WH and you are hailed by Border Agents and instructed to stop or slow for scanning. Failure to comply within five seconds or attacking them, gets you a temporary KoS and they attack. That in itself is not a very daunting penalty. So, as smuggling undermines the law and there for the government/organization which instated the law... there is also a faction hit. Ten points for first offense, twenty for second, forty for third, doubling each time. Easy enough to regain but, large enough to be a slight PITA.

This obviously brings us to Scan Blockers (illegal every where but Corvus) and Add On Scanners and Cargo Spoofers.

One in ten or twenty Border patrol ships should have an Add On Scanner. If you are found to have a Cargo Spoofer equipped, Border Patrol assumes guilt and attacks. Same penalties as transporting illegal trade items apply.

This gives incentive for people to make use of Cargo Spoofers and to a lesser degree Scan Blockers.

Naturally, as smugglers should use smaller, lighter cargo oriented ships... (Revenant, Atlas, Marauder, Prom MkII, Aeolus Behemoth and Centaurs) and there is double risk (pirates and border patrols) in the transport/sale of these items the pay out should be high, perhaps 10,000 to 25,000 per cu, however... as Illegal items are not always easy to sell, perhaps stations might have a cap on the amount they will but from a pilot as well as a daily/weekly/monthly cap.

Ultimately, this gives us a more exciting/dangerous form of trading with significantly higher rewards and significantly higher risks. It adds something that has been desired for a long time, adds a logical restriction on certain cross nation trading which in turn adds much needed immersion and helps to make the back story more relevant.

Original thread...
http://www.vendetta-online.com/x/msgboard/3/24005

Re: Contraband

I seem to recall from the manufacturing mission descriptions that certain player cap ship components are "Class 1 controlled" items.

I think it's fairly easy to explain the surplus for the losing side in CtC, both from a gameplay and RP perspective; the losing side didn't get to produce the weapon, so they keep and re-use some of the Purified Xith that got delivered. Maybe the rest was either used in manufacturing products that never were finished, or somehow decayed, or went bad.

Holy thread hijack, Batman!

Yeah, as Phaserlight said, the surplus makes sense. Incentive not to pound the other team into an unwinnable oblivion every week is a good thing.

The 20% surplus description on the ctc stats site actually says for EACH nation, not just the losing nation.

Personally, I've always thought the surplus should go to the winner. The thought of scrabbling up from the bottom after a period of losing has some allure to it. Granted, if it were done this way there should be a cap on the amount of surplus that could be held.

Well, given that the winning side gets a blockade of the other's gray space WH (and assuming that blockades be more effective in the future), a mechanism for balancing sides is necessary for good gameplay. I believe that's what the 20% surplus to the losing side is for?

The blockades and surplus are not apart of the same game mechanic. Blockades are sent based on Deneb participation, and the.surplus is based on ctc participation.

My apologies then.

Still, this does tie into the discussion on contraband. With more types of contraband for different factions, and a different reward for delivering said contraband to the receiver, this could very easily be made into a privateering system without the need for any surplus going to anyone.

My vote goes to only losing side having any surplus. They got some Xith and did not used, so, they store it, frozen. Even then something between 50% to 70% decay into regular Xith. So losing side gets a bonus in next week, starting with some crates.

What CtC really needs is better, but EXPIRING REWARDs!

Like, make CtC winner get Neutron Blasters mk4, and Ultra-mining beams, maybe more things, THAT ONLY LASTS A WEEK, then decay into regular NB3, regular mining beams, etc...

And surely we need more contraband items, border guards, etc... but that is another topic.

And remaining OT while thinking out of the box on CtC, it should be integrated with missions to escort, intercept and haul items... with regular scheduled departs, and bigger convoys with one capship. Why would someone leave the most important item for dumb bots to carry, while protecting gov.blasters and free cells with "people" as escorts and armed moths?

Maybe PurXith should not be carried by "people", but even then thsy should be escorted by NPCs and Players, including even a Trident. Using transport drones for hauling makes it remain as easy to kill as before, since convoys lose memory from one sector to next one. And cappies makes convoys slower, thus favouring interactions...

*"people" = players and NPCs in manned ships.

How, then would you propose that it be recovered from the opposing teams bots and delivered to it's rightful destination?

that when it comes that old suggestion to PurXith damage container ship... or maybe it is simply the regulations...