Octopus Overlords

I'll be in my bunk.

Sepiche wrote: Tue Aug 21, 2018 11:17 am I'll be in my bunk.

You and Izzy.

I hope new chained missions, also means new campaign. If you give me another story to play, I'm sure I'll be there on day one. I'm not sure how stoked I'd be to play the same campaign again with a few new toys.

LordMortis wrote: Tue Aug 21, 2018 12:09 pm

Sepiche wrote: Tue Aug 21, 2018 11:17 am I'll be in my bunk.

You and Izzy.

I hope new chained missions, also means new campaign. If you give me another story to play, I'm sure I'll be there on day one. I'm not sure how stoked I'd be to play the same campaign again with a few new toys.

I was kinda hoping for more than just a few new missions and a few new mechs. Something like mechanics changes to make things more epic.

Or maybe Nickarugua narrating my missions to me after each one.

Freyland wrote: Tue Aug 21, 2018 12:58 pm Or maybe Nickarugua narrating my missions to me after each one.

That's what I'm talking about. Either add another campaign of give me a Nick to supplement my ability to imagine one. Either way would make me happy.

To keep with the mercenary spirit, I *am* available at consultation rates.

I have trouble keeping up. Which one is this again?

This is the one with fancy graphics, created by the company owned (until recently, when they were bought out by Paradox) by the guy who created the tabletop game.

Gotcha. Not being facetious, I just continually confuse the threads.

On sale right now. Almost enough to get me to pull the trigger.

GreenGoo wrote: Tue Aug 21, 2018 3:33 pm Gotcha. Not being facetious, I just continually confuse the threads.

On sale right now. Almost enough to get me to pull the trigger.

I enjoyed the base game enough to play through and beat it. I manage that with about 3% of my purchases. I'm psyched to get some DLC for this, but would have hoped for something bigger than chained missions and a few new chassis.

The campaign was awesome (minus the fact faux decision making clicks). But I have no urge to play it again. The DLC won't change that. The core of the game is good but playing without aspiring to something the game wears quickly and the campaign, as good as it was, was just a one shot for me. Probably because the narrative was like reading a book. Good for what it was but I don't need to invest that much time to read it again. Closed stories are fine but I need more of them to make me return and spend more money.

But that's me.

For me the story was just window dressing for a random mission and mech upgrade simulator.

Honestly I think I'll love it. I'm a big battletech fan from what I hear it sounds great, warts and all.

That said, I'm not in the mood for it plus I like to get my games as cheap as possible on general principles. Of course if I *am* in the mood for something, price is (almost) no object.

And then sometimes I just burn money for no reason. I think I have a problem.

In any case, I hope they are making money hand over fist so they can keep making the game better.

The main thing about those flashpoint things is that I'm hoping it'll allow people to create their own "flashpoints". While HBS' official stance is that they don't support mods, in reality, modders have pretty much cracked open just about every aspect of the game. Added new mechs, variants, new equipment, completely un-envisioned new rule sets, etc. I don't intend to use "big mods" like RogueTech or ConsolidatedCompanyCommander, as they change the game way too much for my liking, but I've got a few mods in mind for when I do fire it up again:

- Hangar of the Dispossessed (adds Warhammer and Marauder)
- JK_Variants (adds a lot of vehicle and mech variants)
- Vehicle Improvement Project (adds a lot of vehicle variants)

Between that and the more granular difficulty settings introduced in patch 1.1, I'll definitely be diving back in. I'd like to hear what other changes they've got planned, too, and how much they'll be charging for it, but it's more or less a done deal at this point.

GreenGoo wrote: Tue Aug 21, 2018 4:01 pm warts and all.

I didn't think it had warts. Play it. Beat it. Put it away. That's not normally my thing but the game was like literally playing a minor character in a book of someone else's story and it did that very well. So much so, I would love to keep the framework and be a minor character in another story. I just have no urge to spend that much effort reading the same book again.

If you're inclined to purchase any and all upcoming DLC, for a short time you can get a 20% discount on the just announced Season Pass, which will include the first 3 DLC expansions for the game (Flashpoint, Urban Warfare, Unannounced). The introductory discount expires on 25 Oct 2018.

Already done. Unannounced sounds amazing!

Got back into this over the weekend as I felt like I was hitting a simmering point in Rimworld where nothing was new enough - and while I was enjoying managing my colony, I was doing a lot of the same things over and over.

I opted to try out a few mods - including StarLeague weapons (available rarely at old StarLeague worlds) and the JK Chassis mod (75 variants). Any other highly recommended mods?

The Company is going well so far, having collected the Argo and moving in a couple missions past there. I'm planning to take a break from the story and just pursue Mercenary work for a while to build up a number of Mech parts. I've already got a Quickdraw and Jaegermech to lead battles. I think whoever designed the stock Jaegermech must have been high on something. 30 armor for arms stuffed with 2 ballistic weapons is insufficient for anyone who has to use the thing for more than one fight. It might work for an NPC that's designed to die, but not a Merc company that can't afford to keep replacing the guns and arms.

Interestingly, the pirate "queen" inside a Quickdraw guarding the Argo died the same way she did the last time I played. A single called PPC shot to the head, meaning full salvage of her Mech. I'm wondering if I've got BS luck, or if she's scripted to have called-shot PPC magnetism to her cranium so you can get an easy Heavy booster.

Despite all the time for development and patching, I'm still having one of the same bugs as before. Sometimes my team drops and is literally bright purple instead of being properly skinned. Other mechs are fully skinned, but not my team. I even completely uninstalled the game and re-installed from scratch.

The first DLC for this is coming out soon, right?

"Winter 2018" I think was their timeframe. I got antsy, though.

Tomorrow!

NickAragua wrote: Mon Nov 26, 2018 10:36 amTomorrow!

Oh! Nice, I will have to purchase that..

NickAragua wrote: Mon Nov 26, 2018 10:36 amTomorrow!

Wait, what?

Dammit. I wasn't paying attention! I hope I don't have to start my campaign over... ... I just started re-playing the game yesterday!

Paingod wrote: Mon Nov 26, 2018 10:46 am

NickAragua wrote: Mon Nov 26, 2018 10:36 amTomorrow!

Wait, what?

Dammit. I wasn't paying attention! I hope I don't have to start my campaign over... ... I just started re-playing the game yesterday!

I feel your pain, that was one of the reasons I had not started it up again the last few weeks.

Not a huge loss for me to restart - a few hours of play, and a couple Heavy salvages - and reading through the DLC description, I expect I'd need to. I don't see how it can mesh the new mechanics into an old save.

That means I'll be restarting without mods, too - unless, by some miracle, they just "work" with the new DLC. Ah well. Most of what I put in was fluff that I can live without.

I don't think I can do it without mods. I've got my list of "more variants and more mech chassis" mods (Warhammer, Marauder, Phoenix Hawk, Annihilator and Assassin, plus the JK_Variants and Vehicle Improvement Project). I'll probably have to spend some time screwing around and getting that stuff to work.

For campaign options, I'll see what else, if anything, they've added. Currently, I'm thinking I'll use the setting that permanently removes a mech if the CT is destroyed, three salvage pieces (the variants and extra chassis make putting together new mechs extremely difficult as is) and slow XP progression, leaving everything else as is.

NickAragua wrote: Mon Nov 26, 2018 11:12 am I don't think I can do it without mods. I've got my list of "more variants and more mech chassis" mods (Warhammer, Marauder, Phoenix Hawk, Annihilator and Assassin, plus the JK_Variants and Vehicle Improvement Project). I'll probably have to spend some time screwing around and getting that stuff to work.

Yeah. I was warming to the idea of a whole lot of variants and hadn't even gone down the road of adding different chassis. If you can get them to work, please let me know how...

So the expansion is downloadable on GOG in just under 2.5 hours...

I'd love to play when I get home, but after the last 24 hours I think the only thing I'll be doing is sleeping.

I briefly contemplated calling out of work sick, but since the download doesn't kick in until noon, I'd only get 3-4 hours of play time before the rest of the family got home. I do have several personal and sick days that I need to burn before the end of the year, though...

Something I want to know more about before I get into playing again with the DLC later - Movement.

Is there a master list or table somewhere that shows how many hexes a Mech can move in combat - running/sprinting/jumping? I know that "more pips = more faster" but I'm looking for an honest-to-Bob ratio ... like "3 pips means it can move 6 hexes when it walks" or something similar.

I'd like to know while I'm working on a Mech in the lab how far it'll move when I've deployed it. It's probably been staring me in the face but I didn't notice it.

A mech's movement speed is fixed with the chassis, you can't change it in the mech lab. The only thing you can change is how many jump jets you put on it, which affects the distance you can jump. The maximum jump distance, I believe, is limited by the mech's chassis as well. I'd like to say it's 1 hex per jump jet, but I am probably wrong. The other complicating thing is that not all hexes are equal - road hexes are faster to walk through, forest and water hexes are slower.

I think there was a chart on the paradox boards somewhere that listed chassis speeds (and a bunch of other data) but I can't get at those from work.

NickAragua wrote: Tue Nov 27, 2018 12:14 pmI think there was a chart on the paradox boards somewhere that listed chassis speeds (and a bunch of other data) but I can't get at those from work.

That's exactly what I was looking for. My abilities to Google today aren't very good and I wasn't getting anywhere with my own searching. I know I can't alter the base speeds, but I was hoping to be able to simply know how many "regular" hexes a Mech moved based on it's raw movement speed data in the lab, without having to field test it. I mean - do all "5 pip" Mechs move the same base speed with no variation, regardless of tonnage? Mostly I worry about how badly a slower Mech will lag behind, or how far up a scout could move, especially when I start considering using Mediums or Heavies as
"scouts"

I also really, REALLY wish they'd let me drag and drop my Mechs in the bays to re-arrange them visually. It tweaks my OCD every time I open it and I've got a 45, then a 55, then a 30, then a 65 then a 55... ... If I thought it would help, I'd put them all in storage and pull them out again - but as soon as I acquire a new Mech I'd have to do it all over again.

*Edit: Aha. I think this is it - a Google Doc of Mech Stats. It's got the column I was looking for - "Walk Dist" - where I can see the 60-ton Quickdraw can out-walk a Centurion... My Google search was lacking a key word - "Paradox" - I found this finally with "paradox mech movement chart" after "battletech" kept putting me back in Sarna.

Heh, what helped me was memorizing the tabletop movement profiles for the various mechs involved, because they kept the ratios roughly the same.

With that "walk distance" figure, I've read that each hex is approximately 30 (of whatever the unit is).

Paingod wrote: Tue Nov 27, 2018 12:21 pm I also really, REALLY wish they'd let me drag and drop my Mechs in the bays to re-arrange them visually. It tweaks my OCD every time I open it and I've got a 45, then a 55, then a 30, then a 65 then a 55... ... If I thought it would help, I'd put them all in storage and pull them out again - but as soon as I acquire a new Mech I'd have to do it all over again.

IIRC, this will be added with the free patch that will go along with the new DLC.

NickAragua wrote: Tue Nov 27, 2018 12:44 pmWith that "walk distance" figure, I've read that each hex is approximately 30 (of whatever the unit is).

I wonder if those units line up with the pips in the lab. So maybe 4 pips = 120 (4x30) units

abr wrote: Tue Nov 27, 2018 1:15 pm

Paingod wrote: Tue Nov 27, 2018 12:21 pm I also really, REALLY wish they'd let me drag and drop my Mechs in the bays to re-arrange them visually. It tweaks my OCD every time I open it and I've got a 45, then a 55, then a 30, then a 65 then a 55... ... If I thought it would help, I'd put them all in storage and pull them out again - but as soon as I acquire a new Mech I'd have to do it all over again.

IIRC, this will be added with the free patch that will go along with the new DLC.

If it is, it's my new favorite feature - even above chained mercenary missions and the Hatchetman.

*Edit: So Flashpoint on GOG is a 1MB download? Also, no 1.3 patch? I'm hoping this is a glitch and it'll be corrected before I get home.

**Edit: Now there's a 1.3 patch, and Flashpoint is at a 6MB download.

Remember, however, that pilot skills will also alter the movement. There are bonuses you get with skills that allow for +1 or +2 movement, increased running distance, ability to jump farther, increase heat tolerances, increase your dodge ability the farther you run by +1 or +2, etc. There's even one that allows you to move a full weight class lower (such as Medium to Light, or Assault to Heavy) The chart helps, but pilots' skills are more important.

Personally, I am a fan of putting jump jets on all my mechs that can take them. Mobility is life in this game, especially once the skills take effect, and you MUST keep moving. Even if it's just stepping from one stand of trees to another, or having one mech spot for you while you unload LRMs from the other side of a hill, keep moving. My favorite lance that I've worked with in my two completions of the game was a full lance of 4 Highlanders. 90 tons of hopping death allowed me to slice through the game at a ridiculous pace. I was landing some jumps where I had six bars of dodge on an assault mech near the end.

I ALWAYS take full salvage, and by the early mid-game I'm selling Phoenix Hawks and Quickdraws by the handfuls. I never keep any of the lighter mechs once I get into mediums, because some of the mediums (and even some of the heavies) might be less mobile than a true scout mech, but that doesn't matter. I don't even call them scouts, I call them hunters, because once I find them, my "scout" can take it out with a single alpha strike on most medium mechs.

Damn I can't wait for tonight... Sorry, Fallout 76. You get put on the back burner.

Huh. Don't remember any skills that increase mech movement distance.

There's definitely a skill that increases initiative. And also one that lets you move *after* firing, which is great when you reserve one of your "faster" mechs all the way to the end, jump in behind some enemy unit and unload, then unload first thing next turn again before they have a chance to take a turn and jump away.

I agree about lights not being useful, I never keep them once mediums come around. Unfortunately, the way the game goes, there's really no reason to keep mediums when heavies come around or heavies when assaults come around. The main problem with lighter units is that, if there are enough bad guys on the field, the evasion modifier evaporates pretty quickly and then your lighter unit suddenly finds itself eating a lot of PPCs and other heavy ordnance, which it can't absorb. A medium, heavy or assault that can reach high evasion pips is worth its weight in gold, as, not only do the first couple of salvos miss, but they can absorb the subsequent fire (especially with the way the new abilities will work).

Public service announcement, RE: Bulwark. It works differently now. It stacks with cover and the guarded state. So if you want to tank incoming damage, you better be in some woods or a whirlwind. At least the way I read it.

NickAragua wrote: Tue Nov 27, 2018 3:50 pm Huh. Don't remember any skills that increase mech movement distance.

There's definitely a skill that increases initiative. And also one that lets you move *after* firing, which is great when you reserve one of your "faster" mechs all the way to the end, jump in behind some enemy unit and unload, then unload first thing next turn again before they have a chance to take a turn and jump away.

I agree about lights not being useful, I never keep them once mediums come around. Unfortunately, the way the game goes, there's really no reason to keep mediums when heavies come around or heavies when assaults come around. The main problem with lighter units is that, if there are enough bad guys on the field, the evasion modifier evaporates pretty quickly and then your lighter unit suddenly finds itself eating a lot of PPCs and other heavy ordnance, which it can't absorb. A medium, heavy or assault that can reach high evasion pips is worth its weight in gold, as, not only do the first couple of salvos miss, but they can absorb the subsequent fire (especially with the way the new abilities will work).

Public service announcement, RE: Bulwark. It works differently now. It stacks with cover and the guarded state. So if you want to tank incoming damage, you better be in some woods or a whirlwind. At least the way I read it.

Yeah, one of the minor pilot increases (not the major skills) allows for +movement when sprinting. I always max out Piloting skills with all my pilots and take sensor lock from Tactics on two of them, then max out for indirect fire bonus for LRMs and targeting for increased headshots. I usually take out an average of 2 mechs per mission with headshots.

Heh, I was so focused on the major skill points, I often didn't notice the smaller increases. Except for the accuracy buffs from gunnery.

In case anyone is interested, on Green Man Gaming the Flashpoint expansion is available for 26% off, for how long they don't say.

jztemple2 wrote: Tue Nov 27, 2018 5:00 pm In case anyone is interested, on Green Man Gaming the Flashpoint expansion is available for 26% off, for how long they don't say.

Looks to be a flash deal - which expires in about 17 hours from right now (6:45 pm CST).