Races
Csaj
Do we want to have Races? All players are human, but Races allows for a player to more specifically customize themselves.
Races are still up in the air.
We would love to hear your thoughts about this idea.
Or start a new topic with ideas you would like to see happen.
Enoch Dagor
Also, if you think races would be good, what sort of features or abilities do you want the races to have?
Aurelius
Well, I don't like races. I think that the starting planet should dictate some modifiers. Other than that, I think the empire should evolve with their experiences and intelligence.
Csaj
When you mentioned 20-40 minutes to create the character in eve I immediately thought about the message we have in the tutorial warning you not to proceed with the next action unless you can be online for the next few hours (combat section). Be prepared for a multi-hour sit down the first time you log-in.
Csaj
Customizable hull graphics would increase the requirements and thus limit the number of players that would be able to enjoy the game. Should our minimum requirements change in the future we will definitely revisit this feature.
Csaj
I do believe it is time to address some of the great ideas popping up in this thread.
Generational adaptations as brought up by Sanian is a wonderful idea. Which also begs the question how can we determine what adaptation(s) an empire could acquire while the game is being played? I see adaptations as being decision driven where the players play style changes their empire. I would like to hear your thoughts on this.
Sub-races of humans versus alien races: I like the debate that has formed over this issue, keep it up =). I personally like the idea of starting with sub-races and "discovering" alien races later if the players wish it so, it leaves a lot of room for improvement without having to make sweeping changes to the storyline… (imagination running wild: you know all those alien races? they… um… died but good news all the colonists you had of that race were magically replaced by human colonists!)
Single governmental body militaristic in nature wholly dedicated to adhering to protocol find themselves without a contingency plan and forced into a mass evacuation. Leadership breaks down as they venture blindly further and further Beyond Protocol which opens the door for leaders (political, militaristic, economic, etc.) such as yourselves to influence the colonists. This is just a hack in the dark summary but it should give you some basis of the mythology of the past, the facts of the present and why you are the future. History however, is written by the victors and although we will give you the government's version of the past we expect as power shifts so too will the "truth" of the past.
Name changes were originally discounted so that griefers wouldn't be able to change their name and get away with murder (figuratively speaking of course =) ). However, Havoc's post about the Borg brought to mind an alternative, having part of the name that can change, and part that can't, as seen in BF2's tag system. This allows representation of your current guild affiliation and who knows how players may use this in the future. I'll be bringing this by the devs.
I see builders differently than just fodder, I see them as vital to the success of any guild. Wars take supply chains and who better to build a supply chain than someone who enjoys doing just that, and as a plus side I have found that builders usually aren't as opposed to subjugation as the military minded.
I see races as needing each other much in the same way as in an RPG you need your healing, tanking, DPS, and buff classes working together to make a formidable team. Here I see Havoc as a definite DPS going for attack bonuses race wise, other war minded people could have more defensive bonuses and would be your tanker making sure the home-front is secure while the battle-line is being advanced, your hard core researcher with research bonuses as a buff class providing technological advantage, your espionage guru with sneaky sneaky bonuses as a buff/debuff class providing tidbits of tactical data and hindering the enemy, a builder with production time bonuses or transport time/size bonuses as a healing class aiding where needed and ensuring the war goes well with constant reinforcement and supply deliveries, the trade/diplomatic minded as aggro control aka keeping empire B from attacking you while your busy with empire A and possibly even getting Empire B to aid in the attack.
Well, my head is spinning, time to take a breather. I like what I am hearing from you all keep it up! These are just my 2 cents. Hopefully they will fuel the fire for a while.
