More quests with fixed reward please- storydriven immersion

General discussion about the game.
Stadtpark
Posts: 9
Joined: Thu Sep 27, 2012 4:02 pm

More quests with fixed reward please- storydriven immersion

Postby Stadtpark » Sat Sep 29, 2012 2:03 pm

I'd like to see more quests with fixed rewards. That would reduce randomness and add more roleplay-flavour.

For example:
- a quest for every race that gives a crewman of that race (maybe a special one who starts with expertise in a certain skill).
- a quest for every type of damage (Laser, Beam, Ion, Shieldpiercing, Hullbreaching, Fire) where you get a decent (not level I) weapon of that type (maybe you even get to choose, or there's  a certain percentage for each possibility.)
- a quest for every type of weapon (Gun, Rocket, Bomb, Beam, Drone) - where you get a decent (not level I) weapon of that type (maybe you even get to choose, or there's a certain percentage for each possibility.)
- a quest for each Augmentation in the game
- a quest for every type of system (Drone, Stealth, Teleporter, Shield) - maybe you should seperate the stealth / cloak from Augmentations to make it more consistent with Drone Control, Teleporter and Shield system (wich you only see in a store if you start with the stealth ship...).

Normal encounters should give only scrap, ammo and fuel - no Augmentations and no higher level (II or III) weapons.
Stores should be visible from 2 beacons away: I mean they want to sell stuff, so they advertise...

If you think there is not enough room for all these quests, just add another sector to prolong the game,  or make the Rebels advance slower, or reduce the number of stores (- but make them have more different stuff, and make them more visible and / or put them in a convenient place... - if you want to sell stuff you don't place your store where nobody is gonna visit you...).

I don't know if this takes away too much of the randomness, but of course the starting locations for these quests could still be random... (or assign them to certain sectors, that make sense from a story-point of view).

Maybe such quests are already in the game but I didn't happen to find them?

On the one hand I like the randomness: like in Star Trek episodes: you never know what awaits you.
On the other hand I'd like FTL to be less random, more immersive and story-driven!
As in a MMORPG players tend to be explorer/ achiever / killer / socialiser to a certain degree (- see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bartle_Test ). Of course in FTL socialising takes place outside of the game (in this forum, on YouTube - "let's play" videos etc.), but right now FTL is mainly exploring and killing - ok: you have the meta-game of unlocking the ships, but I'd like to have more of it in every playthrough! Just visiting a store and buying stuff is boring (- and it's too easy if they have the right stuff, and frustrating if they don't have it.)

P.S.: maybe new crew members could come with a quest: like in Mass Effect or Dragon Age!? So you would not only get a crewmember as a reward from a quest, but would have a followup quest from it. Would strengthen my emotional ties (immersion/roleplay aspects) with that crewmember if I helped him etc.

P.P.S.: if you compare it with a TV-series: you can just add a new story without changing the mechanic of the setup. one sector could be viewed as one episode. Connect the quests in one sector. Or as it is already the case produce a "cliffhanger" by continuing one storyline / quest in the next sector.
If you compare it with game-expansions: most get bad reviews, if they only add story and nothing new, but for a small team it's easier to add story (plus some new bosses maybe), than to add totally new game-systems (- I mean: its pretty much everything there already anyway for our phantasy: transferring energy from life support to the shields, hull breaches, fires, intruders, venting, phasers, torpedoes, disabling of systems (could have called that part hacking instead of "ion"). Raising the "level-cap" is often done in expansions: but I can't see that the game would be more interesting if you had 5 shields, more engine and weapons grade IV... - so I stay with my topic: add more quests, more storyline!
Last edited by Stadtpark on Sat Sep 29, 2012 3:19 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Stadtpark
Posts: 9
Joined: Thu Sep 27, 2012 4:02 pm

Re: More quests with fixed reward please- storydriven immers

Postby Stadtpark » Sat Sep 29, 2012 3:13 pm

More quest ideas:

- Sector 7 "Behind enemy lines"-quest: drop one crewmember behind enemy lines as saboteur for the Boss-fight. Effect: disables one Boss-system permanent - or if that's too strong: only for one phase, or at least let it start damaged; or make one of the Boss-crew change colours / fight on your side, once a boarding team is onboard...

- a quest in the Engi home sector could give 1 point in autopilot/helm for free
- a quest in the Slug home sector could give 1 point in sensors for free
- a quest in the Mantis home sector could give 1 point in Medbay for free
- a quest in the Rockman home sector could give 1 point in Blast Doors for free
- a quest in the Zoltan home sector could give 1 point in reactor / energy for free

- There could be Sub-Bosses that threaten the homesectors: beat them and the freed/saved race offers an advantage / "one-use-button" during the fight with the End-Boss: e.g. Slugs could offer a button with which you could de-cloak the Endboss one time (- or repair all hull breaches in your ship instantly), Zoltans could offer a button, with which you get a Zoltan shield up one time, Engis could offer a button with which you can disable the bosses defense drone in Phase II for a certain amount of time (or instantly repair a damaged system), Rockmen could offer a button to put out all fires in your ship one time, Mantis could offer to instantly kill a boarding drone on your ship-button...
White Elk
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon Sep 24, 2012 11:13 pm

Re: More quests with fixed reward please- storydriven immers

Postby White Elk » Mon Oct 01, 2012 7:53 am

A bump by way of saying i really dig these ideas.