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Post by Ketara on Jun 6, 2010 15:12:59 GMT -5
To continue our discussions of PBEM RPGs and how they work, I want to talk about harsh climates and climate-related weather conditions.
As a writer, it is very hard for me to incorporate things like whether or not a mobile suit works well in the desert into an outcome of a battle. It is also very hard to work in a climate condition like "Heatwave" or "Freezing". While something like a Snowstorm or Sandstorm is easy to work in visually and representationally, the concept of a mobile suit just not quite working at top effectiveness is something that is hard to account for.
I am wondering if it would be easier for the writers to, rather than have climate and climate refits put in a nebulous category with element of surprise advantages and weather effects like rainstorms, if it would be easier to give them direct VP bonuses/minuses like specializations.
Discuss.
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Post by zerodash0 on Jun 6, 2010 15:21:23 GMT -5
I agree. Though I never had to attempt to write heatwaves, rainstorms or extreme cold into a battle, I cannot very well think of an easy way to add such elements effectively. But by giving a Cold Climate GM for example a small VP bonus in extreme cold areas, you could represent the fact that the machine functions better in that environment, regardless of who pilots it.
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Post by on Jun 6, 2010 18:07:48 GMT -5
Depends how you work it in, sounds like it will get a lot more complicated to people already in the game and confuse people who are just joining even more.
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Chan
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Post by Chan on Jun 6, 2010 21:23:28 GMT -5
Climates like"Heatwave" and "Freezing" only serve to help me write introduction fluff at the beginning of battles. Other than that, I have difficulty working them into deciding the outcome of a battle. To be honest, climates like those are best suited for prolonged sieges.
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Post by Ketara on Jun 7, 2010 1:35:22 GMT -5
So you'd be for a VP modification as a helping factor, Chan?
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Chan
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Post by Chan on Jun 7, 2010 1:38:08 GMT -5
Yeah, kind like the territorial specs (space, earth, moon, etc).
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Feyd
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Post by Feyd on Jun 7, 2010 10:14:59 GMT -5
The VP bonus would have to be pretty large to be meaningful.
Take a GM CCT in the Arctic for example.
A 10 VP bonus would be good for a lvl1 unit but would be pretty useless for a lvl 5 NPC or a 100+ VP PC.
If climate specific units are supposed to have a LARGE advantage than I don't think VP bonus would work well enough.
I kind of like weather the way it is.
'Heatwave' probably only really effects units not with a ship or fleet since you would assume a ship or fleet would have enough supplies.
Not as meaningful as say a snowstorm or random San Francisco fog that magically prevents an unsupported Garma Zabi from dying...
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Post by Ketara on Jun 7, 2010 10:28:18 GMT -5
Are you saying you could have beaten him in his Zaku?  I dunno. I don't think the climate bonuses are supposed to be large. I will think about it. Heatwave affects not only unit morale, but also the performance of machines, since their electronics overheat. I wonder how that works in space, which is supposed to transition from super hot to super cold all the time  |
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kuriboh
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Post by kuriboh on Jun 7, 2010 22:19:38 GMT -5
Space units would be built with that in mind though, wouldn't they?
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