Technology Balancing Suggestions for 1.1 :]

Last time I gave jst some simple suggestions on what I felt where hte most important aspects of the game to balance (primarily LRMS, carriers, yada ya.)

1.1 was supposed to be more in depth balancing the devs said, so I have more in depth suggestions.


Of course I'll make suggestions for how to balance the ships and other things, it is too soon for that. I'll put in at least 100 hours and discuss a lot with other good players before I think I have an idea for that.

However, technologies haven't changed. Techs that where bad in 1.02 are still baddd. Some are very awful and you should never EVER research.
While of course, the overall racial balance effects these technologies, still.. I believe all these will remain valid for changes to 1.04!


To start I'll say that how the game is now, it really is a bit of a rush to unlock certain ships and then build those. You don't research much else in a typical game unless it's multi-star. There are a few important techs you get, and these techs are mainly ones to unlock ships. Some of what I'll suggest is because of this, starting with:

• I really think all techs to unlock ships should have their cost DOUBLED. Double sounds like a lot, but if you look at the cost of ships, the cost of the tech isn't much compared to the ship. So the tech cost doesn't displace buying many ships.
  
• Double would mean 800$/0M/50C to unlocked Assailants, a T1 tech for example. That's just the cost of one Assailant.. More significantly, $1600/200M/350C for Gaurdians, slightly more than the cost of 3 of them.
• Even more significantly, Tech 5 ships, such as the high level support cruisers and Heavy Cruisers is would be $2400/400M/650C. This is more significant in delaying Heavy Cruisers rush 1-2minutes for the time to save up, and will be more costly to have Subverters go along with those enforcers.
  
• Doubling the cost of all ship techs would keep it still uniform and clean with the costs still, I think.
• To me this makes more sense, and it would make it would make deciding what ships to use more important! Ship techs are the most important, without them you're just making light frigs and scouts, so why not cost me? And more so, I think it adds more strategy when it's more costly to research all of them, maybe it'll add more emphasis on the strategy of what ships you decide to use, maybe people will wait more to see what their enemy uses(definitely emphasising scouting even more, which is a big part of strategy.) I could see why some people might disagree with this, I'm not sure if I'm crazy here.
• ALTERNATIVELY: Make ship unlock techs 2 levels. The first level you can build it, but the ship takes up double supply and takes 3x longer to build. Research the 2nd level brings it to normal supply and build time levels.
  

Also often brought up is the Cost-Per-Benefit of upgrade techs.
Yes it's very true, you need a tonnnnn of ships for just the cheapest 400$/0M/25C upgrade to be worth it.
However, there is a lot of counter argument while is completely valid such as how upgrades don't take up fleet supply, and you can only build ships from one factory so fast, and another factory is costly and not beneficial until you can almost pump out two at a time.
Not to mention, when you upgrade it applies instantly. Your newly built ships aren't instantly teleporting onto the front lines, so upgrading while in a fight can tip the scales, while that ship that popped out 4 jumps away will not!
Despite this counter argument, the benefit is still extremely small, and simply not really worth it. Suggestion:

• On Upgrade techs, boost the benefit 50%. This would be 7.5% per level up from 5%. Still you need a lot of ships, but it's much worth it. Typically bonuses are 6 levels and that's 30%. This would be a 45% bonus at a 50% increase. I would find myself upgrading more often then, but the cost would keep me to only upgrading one weapons.
• This doesn't need to be applied to phase missiles. =] They own so hard already.
  
• This should apply to hull/shield research as well. 50% more than they already are each level.
• For bombardment upgrades make it tripple, so 15% instead of 5% per level, up to +90%. You don't make many of them so you NEVER EVER EVER get a benefit except for the using less fleet cap. :/ Even if you properly balance Siege Frigs and give them 30dps or something, the tech wouldn't be overpowered AT ALL giving +90% damage at level 6.
  

Ore Research.

• On big maps this can be beneficial. In most games in higher level play, it's not past tech3. Simply costs too much so takes too long to reap benefit. The tech should be made 50% better or maybe even twice as good on small maps, say at 20 planets. 50 planets should be considered normal amount, and be how they are now. 100 planet maps should get 33% less benefit. So some formula that scales the % bonus based on planet numbers, capped at 20 for the lowest, 100 for the highest, 50 being normal.
  
• If you do this, which I reallyyyy hope you do, It'd improve the game a lot as it plays quite different on different map sizes,(which is a good thing, it's just so drastically different on small maps.. it seems so not made for them often times.) have it show the REAL number, not a rounded one.

Now for more specific ones.

All Races, Shared techs.
Military

All "view incoming phase jumps" techs. These should share with allies. If an ally researches one all the allies should see the jumps as if they have the tech please! =]

Unfettered Jumpd drive, Failsafe Jump Plotting, ETC. The tech that makes scouts ignore the effects of PJI.
For the cost of this, I never find it useful. I don't think I'm alone. Suggestion:

• The tech level of these is usually high. simply not worth it. It should be tech 2-4 on all the trees, or it needs an added bonus.
  

Capital Ship Crew Training tech. The tech that raises the max trainable capital crew by paying credits instead of getting exp normally.
It's alright but.. the cap ships levels cost so much. Combined with the tech cost, I'd rather biuld more ships. It's not like you're making 4 or more caps to get much use from this either, and even if you do have 6, that late in the game they level so fast just from teasing hanger defenses. Suggestion:

• Decrease the training cost 25% per level(so half cost at level 2) and decrease the training time 25% per level(so 45 seconds at level 2) in addition to it already raising the max level trainable by 1.

Induced Leniancy and other Mission bonus techs. This is a tech that benefits mission bonuses.
Okay right, people play this game single player. But this tech still exsists in multiplayer! God I think we'd all love it if this tech changed to something COMPLETELY different for multiplayer! I hate to say I speak for everyone, but in this one case...
I know it's a bit more complex to change this, but it'd be so beneficial!

Ice +population. +7.5% pop on ice worlds per level.
Compared to terran.. yeah.. takes forever to recoop. +7.5% to 300 isn't the same as +7.5% to 100. Suggestion:

• +15% pop per level. Maybe have ice planets you colonize with the tech start with more pop too? That'd be neat.
  

Advent
Military

None.

Civil

Augmented Defense Grid. Increases max tactical spots on every planet by 2 per level, max of 2 levels.
Ugh.. This doesn't compare AT ALL to developement mandate. Not that it has to, not all techs need to be equal. But it's not really even that good, it's rarely useful. Not to mention, high level tech so high cost. High level techs need to be GOOD to be worth their cost! Suggestion:

• Decrease the cost of all tactical structures by 7.5% per level in addition to the 2 tac slot increases per level. This way it can make some of it's cost in buying it back if you need those defenses. In addition increase the health of all tactical structures by 12.5% per level.
  
• This fits with the techs name too having these changes. Also, since Advent has the least mobility of all the races(benefits from a tight group and their fleet all together, while vasari and tec do much better than them at spamming at multiple locations) it would makes sense for them to benefit significantly at defense.

False Belief Monitoring. This is the Advent tech that allows you to see all culture spread without needing to scout.
Well like it says, without needing to scout. You can scout for much cheaper, and scouting.. scouts! This tech to me only serves as a prerequisit to Eyes of the Converted, and useless techs that serve just to make another tech harder to get are generally no fun. Suggestion:

• Make it also reduce the enemies Culture resistance, say 35%. This would reduce the enemies effect of their culture resist tech and the effect of having capital ships at a planet, so Advent culture could penetrate a bit better. Much more useful tech then. So a cap at the planet "only" adds .195 resistance not 0.30

Desert + population techs. Raises desert planets max pop +7.5% per level
Doesn't compare to techs.. TEC's +pop upgrade for terrans is GREATTTTT. This is.. well it can sort of be worth it on a hugeeeee map if you make a desert your homeworld. Not to say TEC can't have the best one, and this be an advantage for them, it's less to say this tech should be worthless. Suggestion:

• +10% population per level.
• Addional for the level 3/4 research: Reduced cost of designating a Desert as your homeworld by 20% per level. +1 to the tax rate bonus at the homeworld per level, or like +0.5 per level to all deserts but that maybe be too good to do +0.5 per level to all deserts, I haven't figured the math for that.
  

TEC
Military

Advanced Manuvering. This is the one that makes Cap ships turn faster.
It's nice but.. 15% for like 2500creds, 450 metal, and like 700 crystal? I could just buy another cap for that. Suggestion:

• Increase the turn rate increase to 12.5% or 15% per level, up from 7.5%. Something noticable.
  

Civil

Rapid Developement. This increases the build speed of Planet upgrades(IE civilian infrastructure) 25% per level.
Well it's just.. again.. 800creds, a bunch of metal and crystal for this? I have more important things to spend my money on. Suggestion:

• Rework it. Change to a maximum of 1 level. Have it make planets you colonize start with level 1 Logistics Capacity(475/150/100 I believe) already researched. More it from Tech3 to Tech5(50% increase in its' cost basically. Will take about 3 planets to make up it's cost, which is good then.) That's more like Rapid Developement to me.

Superior Planet Shields. This tech buffs the shield generator building.. you know, that thing no one uses except in huge games when people are using Novaliths? Suggestion:

• If it boosted the max shields and shield regen of friendly ships within the grav well, it'd serve a nice dual purpose, and be less situational. Seeing as how this is an insane expensive level7 tech, extremely situational isn't generally good. Needs a renaming then. So at level 5 you get the structure, at level 7 you can get this tech to make it do more than increase planet survivability.

Expedited Permits. This increases the build rate of orbital structures 17.5% per level.
Never researched this as I can tell it's not worth it. :] Suggestion:

• Change it to max level of 1. At level 1 it's 35% build rate increase.
  

Catastrophe Recovery. This increases the rate at which bomb shelters are rebuilt after being bombarded 12.5% per level.
Level 5.. so it's expensive.. not worth it. I wouldn't even pay 400/0/25 for it. Suggestion:

• Decrease the rate at which population is lost while being bombarded by 25% per level in addition to what it does now.
• Even then I don't think i'd research it.. I don't have a great idea of how to make it better. But it's, you know, like I've said with some others, so so situational. You're gambling 1200/200/325(!!!) or maybe possibly getting siege harassed a bunch. It'd take a lot of harassing to be worth the tax decrease you get even still with it dropping down 50% slower losing pop at lvl 2..

Vasari
Military

None

Vasari
Civil

Molecular Assembly. 5% faster orbital structure build rate increase per level.
1400/250/400 for this? DDDD: A more expensive less good than the already bad Expedited Permits.. Suggestion:

• Change it to max level of 1. At level 1 it's 35% build rate increase and gives construction frigates the ability to do an in-gravwell mini phase jump to their construction target.
• So basically, it'd work like Subverters where they phase jump to the target within the grav well and disable, except in this case construction frigs when you give a build order would turn then warp real quickly right to what they're supposed to build. So much of the time is spent just traveling to what you want to build, if they'd warp right there then i'd find this tech useful.. but not really for the cost. Make it tech6 instead of 7 at least.

Trauma Nanomedicine. Reduces how fast you lose population by 10% per level.
The cost of this at tech4, the loss of taxes from lower pop i'm not going to ever recoop basically. Suggestion:

• 25% per level, so cutting the losses of pop in half.

Wreckage Auto-Salvage. You gain 7.5% per level of the resources from enemy buildings and capital ships you destroy when a cap ship is nearby.
This would be a really interesting, neat, and useful tech except it's one of those "snowball" techs. You're winning, and it makes you win harder. You get tons of money when you're steam rolling someone, but the game is already over then.
More important are techs that help you win when you're losing! Suggestion:

• Retool it a bit. Change it to 5% per level gained. Add to it regaining 5% per level(Or maybe just 2.5% per level.) of the resources of your FRIENDLY ships(all of them.. frigates, cruisers, caps) which die near a capital ship. So say you lose an Assailant and a cap ship is nearby, you gain 20 credits, 3.25 metal, 2.25 crystal per level. So that'd be 40 credits, 6.5 metal, 4.5 crystal at level 2. That'd be a nice tech then. 
  

Optimised Construction. 4% decreased metal and crystal cost of ships per level.
Nice tech, but requires building 100ish cruisers(1200 supplyish) to make up for the cost of it. So.. Suggestion:

• Level 1 maximum, and 10% or 15% reduced cost at level 1.

Raider Xenophobia. Decreases how many pirates attack by 10% per level, basically.
Neat idea except 20% isn't much. It's much cheaper to build 2 repairs and 3 turrets which'll easily stop them. Suggestion:

• 15% reduced strength per level. In addition, something with bounty would be nice.. Like what would be nice if every time you kill one of the pirates attacking you, you gain 1% of the bounty money that was placed on you, or 100 credits of the bounty placed on you, something like that. (% is better since it'd scale based on game duration basically), or at the very lease make it so you gain 25% more exp per level to make up for hte lower raid strength.

Volcano + population techs. Increases volcano's population 7.5% per level, 4 levels.
+30% population to 60(or is it 70?) pop planet is.. nothing.. like omygosh this is so bad. You can never recoop that cost! Same argument as advents desert one. Suggestion:

• +25% per level. (So you can double it at level 4. That's makes much more sense. But even then that's less than half the pop TEC get on a terran, so far from "too" good.)
• +15% extraction rates per level on Volcano planet that is your homeworld.
• Move it to tech3, down from 4.
  
• Extra Bonus for the lvl 3/4 upgrade(which notably is tech 5): Reduce the cost of designating Volcano Planets as homeworlds by 35% per level.
• To pre-argue: No, the being able to cheaply make a volcano a homeworld and get +60% metal extraction wouldn't be too good. You're losing a lot of credit income by not having homeworld at a terran! And compared to my suggestion for advent.. Deserts are awesome, also advents desert tech is tech 1 and 2, so half cost. High logistics and such, decent pop, and there are special desert planets with 2 metal and 2 crystal! So this is if anything less good, but hopefully balanced.
  

I miss anything? Let me know what you guys think, I'll edit in good ones.
Or anything I've said terrably stupid? I think I put a lot of thought into it (Been thinking of many of these since 1.02 but held off, knowing it's not time for them) but maybe you're right and I'm wrong somewhere. Post what you think.