A list of features for the next patch or DLC

[Firefox440]

Clearly I do not go to answer your questions and very probably nobody will make it. End story.

[Tokolosk]

I have to stand by Random here.

Nomada your answers are pretty childish. Remember the people playing this game are the paying customers. Not only have they paid for the game but they are also the early adopters of the game. In a market where there are lots of 4x games coming out, you do not want to lose these customers. These are the people that will allow Slitherine to continue funding development! You should listen to them.

And if you do not talk on behalf of Slitherine then I suggest you stop pretending like you have the final say.

I've actually told a few of my friends not to buy this game yet. This is a loss of income to the company and the developer. Imagine how many other people might also be doing the same. Perhaps it is time to listen to customers instead of shooting their comments down.

Random Attack is asking a simple question: to quantify the extent an AI can cheat.

We all know the AI needs to cheat as it cannot be as adaptive and creative as humans. That is not the point being argued. The point being argued is that in order to make strategic and tactical decisions in the game it helps knowing the extend to which an AI can cheat. Some games even display the amount by showing a percentage penalty to the player for various tasks or a percentage bonus to the AI. In this game it is being deliberately hidden.

[BiteNibbleChomp]

(The current option of gaining the ocean or the radioactive tech still doesn't let volcanic or super earths be used )

- BNC

Perhaps I have misunderstood you, but are you telling how you can not conquer a volcanic or super earth planet in the game? because I have not problems conquering them.

In the same way, there is not a ocean tech. Just anti-seismo domes and anti-radiation. After it, you can research the celestial dome and you will be able colonize the gas giants.

At the start of the game, you aren't able to take over or colonise volcanic, super-earth, and a number of other types of planets - even when the bonuses you can grant would make sense to allow this.

What I would like to see is more variation between races, including the ability for different races to consider different planets as 'ideal'

Some other ideas I have had lately:

Increased number of difficulty levels. One between easy and medium and another between medium and hard would do fine.
A ship class beyond battleship. This could be called 'Titan'
Moons that have some use.
Neutron armour, uses neutron star material.
New empires rising in the mid-game (like 2700 onwards). These would start at similar stage to the races that begin at 2048, to vary the map a bit.
The economic screen not removing dead races. I like to see my enemies rise - and especially their fall - here.
Possibility to start with more than 1 planet.

- BNC

[Ufnv]

1) What is the extent/nature of the fuel cheat? For example, is it infinite?
2) Can it be modded?

I was actually explaining this several times on different forums.

Range cheat helps A LOT with the performance. AI tries to stay within a reasonable limit, but sometimes fails. If I completely remove it, I'll get a slideshow at some stage of the game.
No, it cannot be modded, it's a core feature.

I am well aware of the problem and I have several ideas on how to fix the issues caused by the range cheat. But I consider this a pure technical thing that I will solve routinely in the next patch, not something big I am talking about here.

So please let's separate known issues that are to be routinely fixed and the discussion on the next big things.

[Firefox440]

A ship class beyond battleship. This could be called 'Titan'

It remembers me to Sins of a Solar Empire Rebellion. But the idea is not bad. Just it is not the type of new feature which I need. Adding new type of units is not difficult.

Possibility to start with more than 1 planet.

It can be made editing a scenario manually.

[peterw]

Increased number of difficulty levels. One between easy and medium and another between medium and hard would do fine.
Moons that have some use.

- At V1.03 there is already a level between medium and hard; just update!
Generally I like a lot of difficulty levels too.

- I disagree to your idea with moons. I see no need for this. 3-5 planets for a star is enough micromanagement.

[bjgrt]

let's separate known issues that are to be routinely fixed and the discussion on the next big things.

Let's don't. The next "big thing" should be creating some sort of bug tracker, which you will be checking/updating with predictable (and reasonable) delay (nothing crazy, maybe 2-3 days).

BTW, you still haven't answered the RandomAttack's question (while saying a lot of words). "It has to cheat sometimes" isn't exactly an explanation. I personally don't really care about the "fuel cheat", but you do it all the time. If English is a problem - answer on the Russian forum, and I'll do my best to translate. You don't answer questions on the Russian forum neither though.

[RandomAttack]

I was actually explaining this several times on different forums.

Thank you, but I haven't seen any of these where the question was actually answered except in the vaguest of ways. I've been asking these questions for a long time and received no specific answers. Even sent you a saved game showing the issue.

AI tries to stay within a reasonable limit, but sometimes fails.

Understood. Clearly you don't want to disclose a NUMBER to put to that "reasonable limit" (it's your right of course) -- 15K? 50K? Infinite? " Reasonable", after all, could mean ANYTHING. To me, an extra 10K limit would be reasonable, but it's obviously way more than that. Just so I can have some expectations as to the limit. It often appears the AI isn't constrained by fuel at all...and if that's the case that knowledge would be useful.

I am well aware of the problem and I have several ideas on how to fix the issues caused by the range cheat.

Thank you. This is the first time I've seen anything in writing from you that you are in fact going to try and fix this. I understand you think of it as a technical problem, but it's a critical game function that is a strategy-breaker for me.

No, it cannot be modded, it's a core feature.

Ok.

Thank you for your answers and I wish you the best of luck with the patch.

[Ufnv]

AI tries to stay within a reasonable limit, but sometimes fails.

Understood. Clearly you don't want to disclose a NUMBER to put to that "reasonable limit" (it's your right of course) -- 15K? 50K? Infinite? " Reasonable", after all, could mean ANYTHING. To me, an extra 10K limit would be reasonable, but it's obviously way more than that. Just so I can have some expectations as to the limit. It often appears the AI isn't constrained by fuel at all...and if that's the case that knowledge would be useful.

Maybe I am not clear enough in explaining this. AI designs it's ships using the same bodies and techs, targeting the TypicalMaxDist value set in the ShipType.all file for each body type. Then it tries searching for the path using it's fuel limits. But if it fails flying within limits, but really needs to fly somewhere, it just ignores fuel limits.
So there is no answer to your question, there is no number.

What I am thinking as possible solution, is to ensure in the code AI never breaks fuel limit at least when attacking a player. This should not affect performance a lot, but, to my understanding, will solve the most embarrassing problem. In the same time it will be permitted to break this limit when retreating from the hostile territory to his own territory - that's the most calculation-hungry part of it.

[bjgrt]

An article related to a different area of IT (I'm closer to), but explaining well why transparency pays out, while being unresponsive is counterproductive:
https://blog.serverdensity.com/write-status-updates/.

[RandomAttack]

What I am thinking as possible solution, is to ensure in the code AI never breaks fuel limit at least when attacking a player.

That sounds like a winner to me!
I really don't mind it except when getting attacked in the early game.

[bjgrt]

What I am thinking as possible solution, is to ensure in the code AI never breaks fuel limit at least when attacking a player.

That sounds like a winner to me!
I really don't mind it except when getting attacked in the early game.

While arguing with you I've honestly thought this was done a long time ago.

[BiteNibbleChomp]

Also can we get rid of retreat for ships that have guns or passengers. I'm sick to death of having enemy ships retreat from by slower but stronger ships, only for them to retreat further into my space and capture a planet.

(Scouts retreating is fine, they don't cause any damage after they have got away)

- BNC

[BiteNibbleChomp]

^^^
Just found the module that gets rid of retreat. Couldn't it be made to come earlier than when someone has 80% of the techs?

For one of the new races, an bacteria type thing would be pretty cool. Same for a blob of slime and an insect type thing. The current ones all look either very human or very similar to an animal on earth - just with different colour schemes and minor modifications

Also (I hope this will be my final request), change the external threat so that it is just a bunch of ships (without "god" weapons, but it is fine if they are strong - 2v1 is good strength, 50v1 is stupid) that come and conquer things, without all the planet-exploding nonsense. I wanted to enjoy this feature, but it seems like an unfinishable chore than anything else. And give the idiots a proper image - a black battleship doesn't look anything like an alien.

- BNC

[Firefox440]

I have other three suggestions for tactical combat:

-The addition from a tractor beam.

-A weapon which it disables the enemy ships.

-Capture enemy ships. Perhaps with the addition from a boarding ship type which only can capture a ship after disable it. With a random value of success. Curiously, I made the same at my mods from EAW with a new lua code.

[Tokolosk]

Currently in my list (only the big ones):
...

How do you rate these change, what are the most important ones?

You should create an actual poll for this

Personally I would rate the above as follows:

5. New race (with completely different properties, type of planets required, etc)
7. Bigger diversity of planets and their characteristics
6. Tactical combat-related features (more weapon types, capital ships formations, more commands, etc)
8. More technologies, especially "civil" ones
3. More FTL types
2. Rally-points for fleets.
1. Automation of building/replenishment of small ships.
4. Battle arena

5 and 7 go hand-in hand and open up possibilities for existing races to be customised and made more unique. It could also open up having a true multi-racial empire and using each race for their strengths and exploiting the weaknesses of others.

[Maddoc06_slith]

1. Maybe a mechanic allowing better targetting of ship systems in space combat.
For example, targetting energy or engine modules to disable them, marines to then board them if there are any in your fleet, and capture them.
This could speedup discovery of alien technologies and maybe add additional alien ships to your fleet.

2. The ability to buy and sell existing ship types on offer from other races, or some sort of space trader.

[Ufnv]

Thanks for your feedback!

Today I'll summarise all feedback from different forums and make a priority list. Also I'll list additional suggestions with some comments on how doable are them.

BTW, I am going to release a 1.04c patch that fixes "AI fuel cheat" later this week.

[peterw]

Thanks for your feedback!

Today I'll summarise all feedback from different forums and make a priority list. Also I'll list additional suggestions with some comments on how doable are them.

BTW, I am going to release a 1.04c patch that fixes "AI fuel cheat" later this week.

As the "AI fuel cheat" was discussed a lot I name my opinion too:
I've seen that the calculation how far my ships can drive to have enough fuel for fly back to my systems, it would OK for me if the AI find itself out of range it directly fly back to his nearest system.
In this way AI would not try to cheat, but just compensate a mistake.

Beside this I'm interested in your priority list to see what I can expect of future features.

Greetings, Peter

[bjgrt]

I am going to release a 1.04c patch that fixes "AI fuel cheat"

What about not working Science Domination?