Resources do have value, I understand where you’re coming from but if we could keep auto miners on planets that’s all we’d need. Resources could be the only things that could be mined. Wiping everyone’s OCD’s randomly would only benefit the newer players. Why spend all that time saving that stuff up for it to be wiped? Resetting people’s autominer levels? They paid for those and that wouldn’t make resources more valuable because they don’t give that much to begin with. They don’t have a mechanic to restore ships back to blueprint status so you HAVE TO spawn new ships over and over to continue fighting. Repairs can only go so far. After repairing 10 times putting blocks on the front you start to lose a whole lot of devices etc. Wiping OCD wouldn’t be smart at all in my op.
I guess the point is Colin. Options 2 or 3 are a complete change to HWS. A new player would never be able to catch up. I know I read someplace that the HWS AM’s reset at Beta and at Release with a two week head start on one of Rex’s guides. Don’t rely on them too much.
Yeah I understand that, I just feel like performance for space and planet side would be more important than drilling into the ground to make tunnels/bases.
Remember. @RexXxuS took the survey and it looked like people didn’t want to PvP. 6.0 doesn’t have any real performance improvements that I’ve seen. In fact my FPS went down a little. The focus looks like cosmetics and PVE.
The HWS focus looks to be more POI and PVE friendly too. Don’t forget we also get the new NA server boost that should improve performance also since Nova went away. I think he posted that was happening when 6.0 was implemented.
I would expect Empyrion which already does not focus on the PvP community to start to impact HWS. Rex influences them but the deeper he gets in bed with them (good on him) the more PVE I see HWS becoming. It’s cool as that seems to be where the $$$ is and that’s what keeps the lights on!
There are some other PvP servers out there. I’ve already started on the official Empyrion one. The guys don’t know crap. HWS is still the best of the best but I definitely don’t think you’ll get your fill of PvP in 6. PvE is the goal man. Get on the train…
Uhm? PVE or PVP regardless the game needs performance. You can say whatever you want because I wasn’t arguing with you. Idc what 6.0 is aiming towards, this poll is for 7.0 get on the train.
I wasn’t even talking about 6.0…
Couple of thoughts / questions
I fully agree, we need to get rid of moles.
Now they are there for a reason (to take down underground bases). So if you eliminate digging tunnels, make sure that you don’t overpower bases that way (they can hide stuff underground, like cores, turrets, etc.). I would say. No tunnels => no bases (partly) underground.
I do like my T3s. I am just too lazy to hunt down asteroids. But reading from the comments these could still work in (most of) the different options.
And as mentioned above, it is not only digging, but also damage from fighting. I see 2 alternatives. Eliminate / reduce damage from any kind of weapon, gun, turret. That eliminates the digging to attack bases and surface damage…
The 2nd option (not perfect, but maybe workable). Refresh the surface of planet every day/week (not a wipe). As a consequence players have to build either on top of the surface or have to dig out their bases with each refresh. But the planet is ‘healed’ every time. Eliminating any damage done. To me this would be a less severe change than option 3, but achieving almost the same result… It does keep open the option to ‘dig’ out somebody else’ base that is (partly) underground.
@colin2cold Lol you’re right. It’s for 7. I am completely fine with @RexXxuS wiping OCDs and combining option 2 and 3 for 7.
Good catch man!
My personal choice is irrelevant. Server performance should take precedence over PvP or PvE.
I would like to be able to shape terrain around and under bases. However if losing this ability
creates better performance overall then that is what should be done.
Well my personal choice is tactics and taking the mole threat out of the game is a bad choice. It’s a sandbox game and I like the tactics. There are plenty of games where I can plant a flag and push forward until I win or lose. I like the fact that Empyrion allowed for tactical planning and you had to guard from attacks at any angle.
Honestly the people that hate moles are the one who usually also hate tactics, cat and mouse, and guerrilla warfare. I’m all for 1v1 but if someone brings 4v1 you respond by coming back 8v4 etc.
@Ranzeth is my hero when it comes to 1 v the server.
I’m a networking guy so I don’t have any input for the programmers but when we get hit by an attack or routing issue we figure out the problem and fix it vs. throwing out the entire network topology.
Obsey-
your analysis of what tactics means is wrong, I think. I believe, and I could be wrong, that you are using the term “tactics” to mean if it can be done it should be done.
I agree with you that you are using “tactics” to play the game.
The people that hate moles, found, executed and exploited this themselves. Pre-alpha. And found it lacking.
This is not mind craft. this is not ark. there are no dinosaurs. This is survival. the digging in the ground was not near as interesting to us as building a ship and flying out in the solar system. Then landing then getting out of ship.
This “tactic” of digging under a base or hiding turrets underground is outplayed. Been there. Done that. We should not be digging anything. at all. ever.
Ive been playing a long time. I know people who have been playing even longer. if we want to we can use “tactics” to own all your base.
The Fact that this Exploit persist is the reason all the great servers that have come before HWS called it quits.
remember .ca? we broke the game with 28 players on line. pre-prealpha 3.
remember blg? an intensive roleplay with strict rules set in place because the game mechanics were flawed. 112 online.
remember hws? 6.0 came out and the game mechanics were still, flawed. end of game.
I like your idea that if they attack you attack with more. The bully mentality is a construct of all MMO that no one can code against.
I will be there. come at me. Do you even lift bro?
The need for rules against drilling to bedrock… since pre-alpha will be erased by embracing a non voxil- Un-drill-able planet.
DUH!
That DUH! is for almost 2 years of the same voxil exploit complaints.
why bother facing my base turrets when you can just drill underneath?! sigh.
Obsey>> get on board. this tactic is played out. if we eliminate it other tactics… better tactics open up.
I chose Option 3, because I’d like the performance boost and don’t think an occasional tunnel is worth the cost. Allow terrain deformation, but heightmap is enough - no need for voxels except for asteroids.
It would be nice if we also had a better selection of inexpensive “base-only” blocks which looked like terrain, rocks, grass &c. made with crushed rock, wood, and the like, so we could make an “underground” base where the dirt on top is actually blocks. They’d need to be more protection than concrete currently is, but as long as we can have a similar level of cheap defense for bases, why not let people play at being hobbits?
We’d also need more geometry and smooth textures to make it look good of course.
I hope not too much energy is spent on that, though - I’m much more interested in automation and star travel, but there’s no reason to completely exclude the hobbits.
Ok so one of my favorite bits of this game is that it is pretty much the only sandbox multiplayer out there with full ability to dig and fill ground without being blocks like minecraft. The Full voxel terrain can be a pain at times, but it is moments where you are running along and a shell hits near you and craters the ground, and you dive for cover inside it, or thousands of other instances where the plyfield exists below just the terrain that really makes for an engaging type of gameplay. To be honest, the complete indestructability of the terrain was in my opinion one of the biggest downfalls of Ark, and a big reason I stopped playing it after over a thousand hours. There are only so many times you can look at the exact same bit of terrain that you cannot alter and be ok with it. And here is where I think a lot of people may be misleading themselves.
I know for a fact that removing ground destruction would ease the burden on the game engine. Anyone who has ever worked with unity can tell you that that sort of rendering can be murder on performance. But Who out here, including the ones who voted for 2d planets, has honestly NEVER walked out into a field with a drill/flatten tool and levelled it out so that they could park more easily? Or made a basement portion to their base to help get vital bits out of the way of flying shells? I think if we go all out and say no more digging period, we are cutting out a huge chunk of the game that is the part that makes it so unique and multi faceted. Yes, you disconnect at the moment while digging underground in HV’s. But that doesnt make it any less amazing to cut your own little corner of the galaxy out of unforgiving alien stone, while war rages overhead. You take that away, and I can tell you that yes, you will get more frames. But if you take a step back, you will see that really for bases that just means that someone will have a nice fluid experience destroying your base a hundred times more easily since everything you own is guaranteed to be above ground, is auto targetted by homing rockets and as such highlights the core location, and did I mention the part where bases still can’t actually shoot back at attackers who are patient and use rail guns? This is not the way guys. If anything, I could totally see nondestructible environments for pvp hotbeds, homeworld system, things like that. But places where players are meant to LIVE, that little bit of terrain destructability makes the planet and the gameplay far better.
Polls dont lie though, so I guess we will see if it continues the trend I am seeing. Just know that in a year from now if the terrain manipulation is completely gone and the game becomes nothing but cv laser simulator 2000 with far less actual gameplay depth (literally and metaphorically), try and remember that we chose that. And why.
Definition of tactics
a
the science and art of disposing and maneuvering forces in combat
b
the art or skill of employing available means to accomplish an end
I’m not saying it should be done @philigus but I am saying if the game allows it, it should be something we adapt and protect and even use as a tool in our arsenal.
I agree with @mcprouty on this. The non-destructible games are boring. the sense that I can effect my environment makes Empyrion awesome. Take that away and your just EQ Landmark, Shards of the Avatar, Guildwars 2, Arc, …the list goes on.
Give us a 2d world and we just rail gun and offline attack if we want to take something out. Drop some ammo drains from above. Cap the turrets. Without terrain there really is no point in basing except to use them for assault.
But that’s why Rex asked for thoughts. Your’s are valid too even though I disagree with them.
There are in fact raptors and parasaurs.
You make very good points, but pc/network technology isn’t ready for this game (yet), this might be the best change for now and maybe in a few years when performance improves we can move back to full voxel terrain.
Maybe there is middle ground, where most of the land is 2D and areas that have been dug shot become 3D and those dug area’s that aren’t being used (Base put on/under it), get healed back to 2D after a few hours to reduce lag.
Problem is that it would be using a completely different library in unity. It would likely be one way or the other or you would be just adding more performance hunger by supporting both, if possible.
I can’t find it where does Rex mention potentially wiping OCDs?
Wipe? Nope. Only change in some ways…
Maybe hopskotch, if there is a way to have cut-outs as a child class to the terrain that overides that area then it would be possible 
wish i knew unity then my idea wouldn’t be so strange xD
Also if the terrain dug under bases could mold to the structures surface then the amount of poly’s would also decrease, since most underground structures have full blocks as walls.