Forums » Suggestions
Spy tools
Manufacture a stealth spybot.
This robot is in stealth mode, but will blip your radar if you get close enough ~200m and show up as "unknown entity."
It requires the use of a heavy slot and you have to build a new one every time. It can hold 3 little spybots. These bots do not move and can show you the information it has from the sector you drop it in and relay it back through your navigation map (when you hover the mouse over a sector and see it's info). Once you make one of these, you cannot make another until all 3 charges are used, and their lifespan can be somewhere around 2 hours. They can easily be destroyed as they have low health, so watch where you drop it, and once all 3 are used, that large port becomes open as if nothing was ever equipped. You MUST make new ones and can only hold 3 (as one large port addon with 3 charges). You cannot make 2 of the addons. Only one until all 3 of it's charges are used. You cannot even loot a second one. You can only have one at any given time.
Hive bots and the like cannot see this item at all. They will bounce off it like it's a wall, but considering it's tiny size, that's unlikely. NPCs can see it as a player would, meaning enemy npcs finding it may end up destroying it.
If you want to say -1 to this, I will compromise. Any storm extender can see these within it's range. Mineral scanners also pick up on it due to a glitch in the spybot's systems making it the exact frequency of the mineral scanners. It will pop up as a green or red dot on your radar. It can't fight back, but it can't run away either, and with low health (~1500-2000), you really have to be careful. The player's name that dropped that particular spybot will never be known to it's destroyer or other travelers. It only shows up as "unknown entity" or something along those lines. They will only know if it's an enemy that dropped it or friendly, hence the green and red radar dots upon proximity.
It only has the radar range that a player would have, and can report as a player would see their own (npcs and allies like a sensor log). Dropping them in a NFZ is fine since it's physically harmless and the guards won't care. Killing one in a NFZ is permitted and only gets you the "stop firing" warning as usual, with no short or long term consequences.
Useful for traders ~ See if any nearby pirates
Useful for pirates ~ See if any nearby traders
Useful for miners ~ Mine at one end of an asteroid field, and plant one at the other, basically extending your radar (can overlap) for that sector. If a skirmish starts or another player zones in, know ahead of time to get away if needed.
Sensor log can be relayed regardless of player's current location. Park it in Sedina B-8 and go travel to Deneb. See if your route is clear when you come back.
Another spybot type of idea is making your own type of observer bot, except it's quicker to evade shots and chasing, and when chased down, runs away to you. It's weakness is it's very skiddish and stays pretty far away from the player you tell it to stalk. It can be seen like any observer and lasts only an hour and it has a jammer that messes with your auto aim. It cannot shoot and holds no weapons. It's just light, fast, annoying, and it's biggest weakness is it's survivability by flying erradically, jamming your auto aim (only when targeting it. Nearby players and npcs remain uneffected regardless of proximity to annoying observer) and plotting a course directly to you, which you have to catch before it gets to you. You can tell it to self destruct.
Useful for traders ~ Annoy the crap out of your favorite pirates.
Useful for pirates ~ Watch traders and keep them on their toes thinking you're on the way.
Useful for miners ~ Send it to any sector in the game before you go to make sure it's clear.
This bot is deployed as the Valent bot you made, meaning you can't annoy people and send your own bot after them. One or the other. One hour, it blows up.
Maybe add manual control? You dock, send it out, control it, put it in auto pilot on "stay" to keep it there, undock, go do whatever it is you wanted to do in that sector.
Shows up as "[Player faction] Observer." The owner's name is only given when the owner is controlling it.
~Smokee
p.s. I just want to keep it interesting! :)
This robot is in stealth mode, but will blip your radar if you get close enough ~200m and show up as "unknown entity."
It requires the use of a heavy slot and you have to build a new one every time. It can hold 3 little spybots. These bots do not move and can show you the information it has from the sector you drop it in and relay it back through your navigation map (when you hover the mouse over a sector and see it's info). Once you make one of these, you cannot make another until all 3 charges are used, and their lifespan can be somewhere around 2 hours. They can easily be destroyed as they have low health, so watch where you drop it, and once all 3 are used, that large port becomes open as if nothing was ever equipped. You MUST make new ones and can only hold 3 (as one large port addon with 3 charges). You cannot make 2 of the addons. Only one until all 3 of it's charges are used. You cannot even loot a second one. You can only have one at any given time.
Hive bots and the like cannot see this item at all. They will bounce off it like it's a wall, but considering it's tiny size, that's unlikely. NPCs can see it as a player would, meaning enemy npcs finding it may end up destroying it.
If you want to say -1 to this, I will compromise. Any storm extender can see these within it's range. Mineral scanners also pick up on it due to a glitch in the spybot's systems making it the exact frequency of the mineral scanners. It will pop up as a green or red dot on your radar. It can't fight back, but it can't run away either, and with low health (~1500-2000), you really have to be careful. The player's name that dropped that particular spybot will never be known to it's destroyer or other travelers. It only shows up as "unknown entity" or something along those lines. They will only know if it's an enemy that dropped it or friendly, hence the green and red radar dots upon proximity.
It only has the radar range that a player would have, and can report as a player would see their own (npcs and allies like a sensor log). Dropping them in a NFZ is fine since it's physically harmless and the guards won't care. Killing one in a NFZ is permitted and only gets you the "stop firing" warning as usual, with no short or long term consequences.
Useful for traders ~ See if any nearby pirates
Useful for pirates ~ See if any nearby traders
Useful for miners ~ Mine at one end of an asteroid field, and plant one at the other, basically extending your radar (can overlap) for that sector. If a skirmish starts or another player zones in, know ahead of time to get away if needed.
Sensor log can be relayed regardless of player's current location. Park it in Sedina B-8 and go travel to Deneb. See if your route is clear when you come back.
Another spybot type of idea is making your own type of observer bot, except it's quicker to evade shots and chasing, and when chased down, runs away to you. It's weakness is it's very skiddish and stays pretty far away from the player you tell it to stalk. It can be seen like any observer and lasts only an hour and it has a jammer that messes with your auto aim. It cannot shoot and holds no weapons. It's just light, fast, annoying, and it's biggest weakness is it's survivability by flying erradically, jamming your auto aim (only when targeting it. Nearby players and npcs remain uneffected regardless of proximity to annoying observer) and plotting a course directly to you, which you have to catch before it gets to you. You can tell it to self destruct.
Useful for traders ~ Annoy the crap out of your favorite pirates.
Useful for pirates ~ Watch traders and keep them on their toes thinking you're on the way.
Useful for miners ~ Send it to any sector in the game before you go to make sure it's clear.
This bot is deployed as the Valent bot you made, meaning you can't annoy people and send your own bot after them. One or the other. One hour, it blows up.
Maybe add manual control? You dock, send it out, control it, put it in auto pilot on "stay" to keep it there, undock, go do whatever it is you wanted to do in that sector.
Shows up as "[Player faction] Observer." The owner's name is only given when the owner is controlling it.
~Smokee
p.s. I just want to keep it interesting! :)
+0.5
I think it is a good idea to provide for something in game for which there is very clear demand (spotter data) and for which players now 'have' to work around with lite subscriptions and bots parked outside range.
I also like the fact that you need to go out there and plant them before they become useful and that they can be hunted down.
That said, I think it might make it too easy to get complete information in a guild. Also, it lends to a sort of abuse by existing bots since they can now use the spotters to extend there range, e.g. a program like "load spotters, jump to sector 1, drop spybot #1, jump to sector 2, etc, jump to sector 4, wait until bots are depleted, /explode, rinse, repeat. Maybe give them trader level 4+ so it's out of reach of lite subs?
I think the bot should not have access to the sector list, e.g. can only detect ships in radar range. Ships with a radar extender and/or cargo scanner should see them in the same range
I think it is a good idea to provide for something in game for which there is very clear demand (spotter data) and for which players now 'have' to work around with lite subscriptions and bots parked outside range.
I also like the fact that you need to go out there and plant them before they become useful and that they can be hunted down.
That said, I think it might make it too easy to get complete information in a guild. Also, it lends to a sort of abuse by existing bots since they can now use the spotters to extend there range, e.g. a program like "load spotters, jump to sector 1, drop spybot #1, jump to sector 2, etc, jump to sector 4, wait until bots are depleted, /explode, rinse, repeat. Maybe give them trader level 4+ so it's out of reach of lite subs?
I think the bot should not have access to the sector list, e.g. can only detect ships in radar range. Ships with a radar extender and/or cargo scanner should see them in the same range
+1
If they were crafted item like the teller ulam they shouldnt get too far out of hand
the level 4 requirement is a good idea as well but I am thinking either heavy or lite weapons 4 depending on which slot the launcher was in along with trade 4
There should be a scanner availible that can detect them to at least 1000 meters.
the level 4 requirement is a good idea as well but I am thinking either heavy or lite weapons 4 depending on which slot the launcher was in along with trade 4
There should be a scanner availible that can detect them to at least 1000 meters.
+1.....