snowhusky5 wrote:1: usually space stations aren't that common, you probably just got unlucky
My gripe is less with how common they are, and more with that they don't add anything to the experience if encountered in early sectors as they are now. I like the idea, I like the choice you get after defeating the station, but the current execution does not do it justise, IMO.
snowhusky5 wrote:2: in vanilla you saw the ship graphics for ships that were out of fuel/had a ftl malfunction, even though you can't fight them, so I think it makes sense to have space station graphics for the events that have a peaceful space station.
Ah, that is correct. Then again, you do not get an image for the ship that was stuck in an asteroid, nor you get an image for the federation ship that got lost in a nebula. The vanilla game is not very consistent on this one. Still, the graphics you get in vanilla seem to be different each time depending on the encounter. There is only one type of space station graphics currently implemented, and seeing it in every other event gest old quickly.
snowhusky5 wrote:5: I've tried it a few times, and surrendering to AIs seems to be useless - they don't give you anything. The only reason you'd do that is if you somehow got the surrender offer while it is still powerful enough to hurt you, which you usually don't
You seem to misunderstand. The event did nothing, that is, absolutely nothing. It did not stop the drone from attacking (this is intended), but it did not inconvenience me in any way (this, probably, was not intended). I do not know if it is the case now, but it might be a good spot to implement the mechanics when that choice could either give you 50% chance of AI actually surrendering and rewarding you, or 50% chance of some sort of handicap (depowering your weapons, as the description implies, and repairing the weapons of AI, because they are usually destroyed at this point).
snowhusky5 wrote:6:there's not really much the mod can do about enemies not being able to hurt you, except not letting them have light lasers/etc. And yes, missile drones are real asses.
I know little of FTL modding, so I do not know if it is possible to equip enemies with weapon bundles (and thus not group beam weapons with light lasers unless they have something else). I haven't seen a ship with nothing but beam weapons in vanilla, so to me it did not seem that they draw weapons from a random pool.
Sleeper Service wrote:You play normal I guess?
I pride myself on never playing on easy.
Sleeper Service wrote:Boarding ships can deal with these just like they can deal with other auto ships: By fleeing, by getting weapons or by tedious and dangerous quick boarding manoeuvres.
Fleeing I can understand, but you do not have weapons in the first sector, and when the station in question only has 2 systems, there is not much room for boarding maneuvers. Taking 2 HP by boarding out of 20 does not make a difference. It is either waiting for 2 minutes for FTL drive to recharge (we are talking starting sectors here, which means no engine upgrades), or firing your basic laser for 1 HP at a time for the same 2 minutes. Not fun.
I still think that moving them to later sectors (where players get more options) is the best way of dealing with the problem.
Sleeper Service wrote:How many playthroughs did you do with the mod?
The one I started is currently in progress. I still think that battles with regular ships are more interesting, from a tactical point of view. If I only encountered space stations once or maybe twice per sector, and they were armed to the teeth death stars, that would make fights against them much more distinct from the regular fare, which, I presume, was the intention.
Sleeper Service wrote:The difference between Light Defense MKII and Defense MKII is that Light Defense MKII can't shoot down enemy laser fire.
I got that much from the description. The question I was asking, what was the difference between Light Defense MKII and Defense MKI? Speed? Is that enough to warrant a new drone unit?
There is a perfectly good idea of a drone that only shoots lasers, but it does not seem to be implemented.
Sleeper Service wrote:Explaining what I had in mind for the AI surrender would take the fun out of it.
I won't ask you what you had in mind, I just wanted to confirm if the event actually does something and if it is not a 'false choice'. I seem to have an avertion to these.
Sleeper Service wrote:Exactly, that's how Vanilla FTL feels to me, that part of the fun and that's how I want the mod to feel.
The original strikes an intricate balance between difficulty and fun. For the most part, the mod retains this while expanding on content, which is quite an achievement. Still, some parts feel more right than the others.