Cargo Disk Survey

[Amarie Ancalimon]

One of the surprises I alluded to in my last From the Developer's Desk was that the development team has been considering revamping cargo disks. Before going forward with any changes, though, they wanted me to come to those who use the disks and get some feel for thoughts on proposed changes. In answering the poll, you may choose as many options as you wish. And please, feel free to comment.

"Lines" for the purposes of this poll are the Lunus/Helian, Standard (which includes Deluxe), Standish, and Tarbash lines. Specialty lines such as the Golden Grouper and Knut's lines will be looked at separately once we have a better foundation for the main three.

Please understand that voting results won't determine what will be implemented. No changes will be made alone in a void without considering the full impact of the changes. Should the developers decide that the changes warrant balance, they have also have some ideas to counter balance the changes.

Options raised are:
cargo disks attune to the user the first time they are equipped
cargo disks become more complex to craft
cargo disks require more resources to craft

Please feel free to comment in addition to voting in the poll. We want to hear your discussion on the pros and cons of the various options above.

Edit: The poll should be set up to allow you to choose more than one option.

[Peaches]

Unless you increase storage for holding more items, then it would definately be hard pressed for players to obtain a disk for each item that is used for crafting.

I don't have a problem with attunement, but what purpose would that serve ultimately? Once again, it would create a storage problem, I believe anyway.


I don't have a problem with a disk taking more items to make, but there must be a tradeoff , such as higher speed to make it worth it. Just my opinion!

[starna]

Great poll idea! However, I would like to add the idea of getting 'bulkier' disks (maybe a new line), with perhaps a slower speed than the tarbies do now... the bulk capacity would need to be a worthwhile amount.

And to tag onto the 'specific resource' concept of disk... do them in terms of crafter class, much like we have cogs dedicated to specific schools...

A suggestion I heard from my guildmate Plot for a limiter: make disks that can go faster (or a consumable item which temporarily bumps their speed) that use recharge kits to power. By the same token, perhaps other 'buff kits' that give temporary bulk limit or item limits, which you expend to grant to your disk, and your disk won't move once they wear off until you either apply another one or empty the disk to within its normal limits...

[starna]

I believe Peaches, that any of the suggested 'limiters' are ideas specificly to balance any addons, not to apply them all by themselves. And I am sure we can suggest other balancing options as they occur to us that may well work out better than their initial thoughts (which I think are just posted to help engender discussion, not because of any specific likelyhood of use).

[Amarie Ancalimon]

Thanks Peaches for the concerns. Points out that I need to clarify.

The things mentioned at the end may only be implemented as counter-balances depending on how signifigant the changes to the discs are. So yes, it would be a "trade-off".

[Peaches]

Ok, maybe , I am not sure, I need to make myself a bit clearer here. Sorry bout that. But by storage, I don't mean storage within the disk, I mean storage to keep the disk while using another one.

For example, I am currently working with yew, ironsilk, marble, essence, and mitheral. So, that would mean five more disks to manage. Putting them someplace will be a problem, especially if I need to get lower end resources on top of what I am getting now. It would seem to me, to be a storage nightmare to players without having space to store the disks in.

[starna]

Oooh, another thought. Setting speed limits as a percentage... which would allow people who can increase their foot/flying speeds significantly, to be able to gain a boost over current effective limits... as opposed to the hard caps there are now. I know of items and class abilities and spells that let people crank out faster runspeeds... let those bonuses be felt with disks, at least on a percentage basis. (Example, high end tarby is a speed cap of 26... change it to be 50%, and if the player gets say +20 foot speed from a spell, he'll get up to speed 35 (base 50 + 20 bonus divided by 2). Obviously, exact percentages would need to be balanced appropriately.

[Zexoin]

What about allowing disks to be teched ?
I mean, with techs that add speed or bulk to the disk, that require more ressources/add more complexity to the crafting process ?
Also, when using a specific tech that gives a specific bonus, the disk could become usable with a specific class only ?

Much stuff to think about.

[AmonGwareth]

I would love to, Zexoin, but unfortunately cargo disks (and other containers) cannot be techniqued. Its a side-effect of the way techniques are handled by the game that makes all containers unable to hold techniques.

[Sigi]

It would be nice to either be allowed to equip 2 disks, like one stationary at a workstation for the processed material and one to drag around for the raw stuff or
to have large bulk discs that hold 2 or 3 items

[Zexoin]

I would love to, Zexoin, but unfortunately cargo disks (and other containers) cannot be techniqued. Its a side-effect of the way techniques are handled by the game that makes all containers unable to hold techniques.

aww too bad... Would have been a nice way to make more varied disks.

Other than that, I'd say that some cargo disks should be able to recall, but it has to be severely counterbalanced, if not then noone would use the other disks. In example, for dragon disks, a recall would consume hoard, for bipeds, specific items that need to be crafted.
Oh, and can we have more dragon disks please ? :3

[Knossos]

Amon:

I believe that satchels are classified as containers and I have applied techs to many satchels.

Knossos

[GalemThawn]

Current cargo disks have a speed cap that is applied no matter how high your current speed is (Gift of Speed, Swift Feet, tech bonus on boots).

However, the Road Bonus is applied AFTER.

If you can't tech the cargo disk container, how about a held object, belt, or perhaps a teched HARNESS that takes up both shoulder slots (down side is new coding and art for a harness) with techniques for the cargo disk?

Techs for a cargo disk should be something unique. Bulk could really be increased by just adding a larger satchel or bag. Skill is increased by tool techs and cogs.
A speed tech would be applied AFTER the speed cap, just like the road bonus.

.... but I'm probably getting way off down the wrong path even talking about techs.

[GalemThawn]

Amon:

I believe that satchels are classified as containers and I have applied techs to many satchels.

Knossos

A satchel is not really a container. It just expands your inventory capacity.
A backpack pouch is a container. You can put item into it.

[AmonGwareth]

Satchels are classified in the game as a container, but as far as the actual code they are not. You cannot actually place items into a satchel like you can a cargo disk or bag. They are simply a tool that increases your inventory capacity. And because you can't place items into them, you can tech them.

[LaughingOtter]

For example, I am currently working with yew, ironsilk, marble, essence, and mitheral. So, that would mean five more disks to manage.

The content restrictions would be more on the order of "only raw resources" or "only finished construction units", rather than limiting them to a single type of resource.

[Peaches]

The content restrictions would be more on the order of "only raw resources" or "only finished construction units", rather than limiting them to a single type of resource.

I don't understand, perhaps I didn't make myself clear enough. I was talking about raw resources, so would it be like the example in my previous post? A different disk for silk, mith etc? Or, are you saying a different disk for the finished item versus the resource one? Even then, its still a nightmare storage wise to find a place to hold these disks, especially if you have more than one character and their attuned to only one.

[Toby]

The way I see it collecting resources is already time consuming enough, what is the purpose of limiting disks? For example, what huge balancing issue would result from a monster all-purpose disk? say you could create one disk that carries 100k bulk and 100 items and could teleport and recall with. would that really ruin the game? now i can see that some people would use it as a vault and simply park it somewhere (adventurers most likely since it would still require emptying in order to use as a resource collection device unless you can hold 100K burden on your character) and simply use it instead of the level VII vault you spent so much to acquire. you would have to return to that disk to bank things just like you would any other storage container (silo, vault, etc)

I've just started back playing after a two year time out and am still bugged by the amount of time required to collect resources, adding limited cargo space and speed and specialty disks simply increases the time and amount you need to spend getting resources. I love the complexity of the crafting system but let's get a few things that you do not have to think about into the game to help out the part time gamer and those that do not have a PHD in horizons so we can spend our time learning the crafting skills rather than juggling where things go and how to collect them in order to make simple items.

Would it really be so bad to have a single cargo disk that does everything? honestly I'd play a LOT more if i didn't have to spend 40% of my time swapping out disks and placing items on consigners to hold ingrediants to craft with!!!!!!!!

I mean it's not like there isn't alternatives to a large disk already in game... i've seen people use connies, silos, other characters to accomplish just this what is the big deal?

[Syndic]

Well as voted I would like to see the disks lower your speed by a certain amount rather than to a fixed amount but this would be the last on my list of changes.

I would like to see a line or 2 that allows recall, that would cut out most of the pain of slow speed anyway.

I love the 2 disk idea but I remember when requests like that went in several years ago it was explained to be too difficult to implement and maybe a little unbalancing.

I would like to see the Standard ones with maybe recall & teleport, to help boost their usefulness.

[Zexoin]

The content restrictions would be more on the order of "only raw resources" or "only finished construction units", rather than limiting them to a single type of resource.

hmmm not sure I'd like that.
When I'm crafting ressources, I usually gather raw ressources when dragging my disk (the ressource is in the disk). Then I process it at the machine, and park the disk there ; after that I do a few more trips in the field until I fill the disk with processed ressource.
So I don't think such restricution would good (at least for me, heh)