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One way to Change the Skill System

SystemSystem Member, NoReporting Posts: 178,019 Arc User
I know it's a first pass, and as such our ideas for what is needed could be way off what they have in plan.

Still, I have a couuple ideas that may help the skill system.

First, ungate the skills. Since we no longer have to worry about putting points into an RA ship skill at lvl 1, why force the skills into Tiers? We should be able to put our points into any skill from the start.

Second, all skills shold be equal in cost. Instead of skills in tiers and costing more per rank depending on it's tier, make all skills start at the same and gradually increase in cost as it ranks up.

For example, if I want to add a couple ranks to Projectiles Weapsons, I spend 150 points for the first rank. Then I have to spend 250 for the second, and finally 400 for the third.

I end up with 3 ranks in the skill, and it cost me 800 points.

This would be the cost for every skill.

This way Stealth is no more expensive than Warp Core, and each player has a better chance to decied what is most important to them.

This would mean that players who want to specialize in DPS could easily buy 9 ranks in those skills, and spend only 4 or 5 ranks in other skills without having to justify the cost of the skill.

I have not yet understoof why Shield Performance is considered a lower tier skill than Weapon Performance. All Performance skills should be equal, their usefulness is easily determined by the ship and BOff skills used.

An Escort with Rank 9 Aux Performance won't benefit from it as much as a Sci Ship with it, yet the Escort won't benefit as much as the Sci ship with rank 9 Shield Performance either...but still the Shield Performance skill is cheaper to get?


Changing the skill system to a more balanced unit, and making sure that players have the freedom to build the type of Captain they desire means you need equal footing for all. This can't be achieved if certain skills cost 3 or 4 times as much as others.

I think a system like this would allow players this freedom.

Being able to spend where you want, when you want, and not having to worry about spending more points or a certain number of points opens up tons of possibilities for players. Such a system would also help make it easier to change ships and/or weapon types as desired without needing to respec your Captain first.

We still need to straighten up the skills themselves, such as making sure taking 9 ranks in a skill to be able to train a BO with a certain skill also affects the trained skill.

Just my opinion.
Post edited by Unknown User on

Comments

  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited November 2011
    The biggest argument that I can see against the "cost increases with each rank of a skill" is that such an approach would encourage players to get mediocre ranks in everything rather than going for the maximum number of ranks in anything. A flat cost model might be more appropriate--make everything cost 300 skill points per rank or something.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited November 2011
    Any player who did that would be a "jack of all trades".

    We know how that works out in game, most of the time. Honestly, the current system promotes this for anything above T3. You just can't afford to put points into everything you need.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited November 2011
    That is definitely an idea, and one with good reason for existing. It might need to remove the diminishing scaling of the skills themselves however.

    As it is right now rank 1 gives you 10%, rank 2 another 6%, until rank 9 only gives you 1%. If they all gave you say 3.5% each, then there is a bigger reason to spend deeper into a skill, rather than just buy rank 1 on everything for a cheap, universal 10% and go from there.

    That might need tweaking itself, but I definitely think this is an idea worth exploring.
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