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Are you sure this game wasn't made to be actually played by Zaphod Beeblebrox?
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Dec 20, 2015 03:57
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GreyjoyBastard posted:Pkunk ships. Twit. Worm. Idiot. Dodo. Loser.
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Dec 20, 2015 03:59
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Pkunk Furies can be used to refill your crew while you're out and about! Just send one into battle with only the pilot, and then intentionally destroy it and hope you win the coin toss. 
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Dec 20, 2015 04:18
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There's nothing better than getting an insane lucky streak and reincarnating five times in a row.
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Dec 20, 2015 04:24
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Please stop talking about the Pkunk ships.
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Dec 20, 2015 04:43
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ProfessorProf posted:Please stop talking about the Pkunk ships. OP stifling the Pfunk. I'm sorry. I'm not
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Dec 20, 2015 05:12
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I get that the OP doesn't want spoilers in this thread, but with the repeated pressure to stop talking about topics, I'm beginning to feel like I shouldn't contribute to the thread because I've played the game and might accidentally spoil something. Maybe ProfessorProf could suggest some safe topics to talk about? Or, if there aren't any, lock the thread until the next update?
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Dec 20, 2015 05:17
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ProfessorProf posted:[*]As usual, a strict policy of NO SPOILERS in the thread. If it hasn't happened yet, don't post it, don't allude to it, don't wink-wink-nudge-nudge about it. If I permanently skip something, then sure, talk about it then, but only once there's absolutely no chance that I'll run into it later. I think this is essentially it? We're not talking about a particularly unusual spoiler policy here. Anything that's been shown already is fair game, and anything that is now 100% impossible for Prof to achieve is fair game. The Pkunk ships have not yet been shown, and he was just handed four of them, so they don't fall under either category. idonotlikepeas fucked around with this message at 05:33 on Dec 20, 2015 |
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Dec 20, 2015 05:28
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idonotlikepeas posted:I think this is essentially it? We're not talking about a particularly unusual spoiler policy here. Anything that's been shown already is fair game, and anything that is now 100% impossible for Prof to achieve is fair game. The Pkunk ships have not yet been shown, and he was just handed four of them, so they don't fall under either category. Haven't seen them in combat, so technically we can't talk about that part of them. Just that the Pkunk are the best race and bring the funk.
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Dec 20, 2015 05:36
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idonotlikepeas posted:I think this is essentially it? We're not talking about a particularly unusual spoiler policy here. Anything that's been shown already is fair game, and anything that is now 100% impossible for Prof to achieve is fair game. Okay. Of the topics that aren't spoilers, what is there to say? I mean, I'd be happy to be proven wrong, but I feel like there isn't anything we can safely talk about that hasn't already been said.
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Dec 20, 2015 05:53
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We could talk about whether the Pkunk or the Spathi are more hilarious. I mean, it'd be a short conversation, because it's obviously the Spathi, but we COULD talk about it!
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Dec 20, 2015 06:01
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Next update is going to have a nice meaty chunk of Pkunk ship combat. My hope was to have the ship's stranger properties come as a surprise to anyone reading the thread who hasn't played the game before. Is this too strict of a policy?
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Dec 20, 2015 06:30
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What we need in here is a banhammer Christmas miracle.
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Dec 20, 2015 06:34
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For my part, I'm sorry for going off half-cocked on the Pkunk. It's your LP and you get to make the rules. I do however feel like you kind of left us at a mechanics cliffhanger, since you got the ships and then ended the update right there. Again, totally within your rights to do so, but you left us hanging and goons can be really bad at being patient sometimes.
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Dec 20, 2015 06:40
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:The Ilwrathi backstory is one of my favorite random bits about this game. Turns out morality is a signed 16-bit integer and there's no bounds-checking; better stay under 32000 on the Good-O-Meter just to be safe. Wait, does that mean that if you're real evil and you become even more evil you suddenly become good again? That's one way to reach nirvana...
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Dec 20, 2015 11:48
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Carbon dioxide posted:Wait, does that mean that if you're real evil and you become even more evil you suddenly become good again? That's one way to reach nirvana... Sadly, the universe has a check for negative overflow, it's just that nobody in the design team expected to need a positive overflow check so they didn't make one.
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Dec 20, 2015 13:35
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I think I'm in love with these idiotic bird-brain dorks. I wonder if the Yehat are as ridiculous? Didn't sound like it from what we've been told, but who knows. I haven't played this game, this LP is a blast.
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Dec 20, 2015 14:22
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GenericOverusedName posted:I think I'm in love with these idiotic bird-brain dorks. I wonder if the Yehat are as ridiculous? Didn't sound like it from what we've been told, but who knows. I haven't played this game, this LP is a blast. You can play the game for free y'know. That specific link has no spoilers, however that only applies to that particular link, don't venture away from it if you don't want spoilers.
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Dec 20, 2015 14:37
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my dad posted:Sadly, the universe has a check for negative overflow, it's just that nobody in the design team expected to need a positive overflow check so they didn't make one. What makes you think there isn't? Maybe there is one but it's so huge no one's actually hit it yet.
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Dec 20, 2015 14:40
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I have decided I do not like the Pkunk. However... Prof, can we ask for more "tokens" of love? How much do they sell for? Basically... can we mine the pkunk?
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Dec 20, 2015 15:52
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GlyphGryph posted:I have decided I do not like the Pkunk. Once a year. Today's update is more or less good to go, but I'm suffering from an area-wide internet shortage. Worst case scenario, it'll be up late this evening. After that my hiatus will begin.
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Dec 20, 2015 16:24
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Welp, seeing this motivated me to get off my butt and play UQM... Despite the control issues this is a pretty fun game!
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Dec 20, 2015 17:07
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This is probably a stupid reason to like a game, but... Ok, so it's standard in RPGs and adventure games that you start out with no money and crappy equipment and then, over the course of the game, you get money and buy better equipment until you're a force to be reckoned with. From a gameplay perspective, it makes sense. Narratively, though, it's always been kind of odd. It's the shopkeepers saying to you "Well, yes, I recognize you're the chosen one fighting the ultimate evil, and our only hope to prevent the world from being destroyed and us all dying, but I'm still not going to give you the sword you need unless you pay my crazy prices." Something I like about this game is the way it handles resource gathering and the in game economy. It's Commander Hayes saying, "Hey, we want to give you all the help we can, but we just don't have the resources or any way to get them. Get us the stuff we need to improve your ship." There's no practical difference between that and saying "You need to farm 5000 gold before we'll give you the sword of death". but it's a nice little touch.
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Dec 20, 2015 17:59
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:The Ilwrathi backstory is one of my favorite random bits about this game. Turns out morality is a signed 16-bit integer and there's no bounds-checking; better stay under 32000 on the Good-O-Meter just to be safe. Wasn't that basically the reason behind Civilization Ghandi?
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Dec 20, 2015 18:41
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Yep, democracy for Civ increased the peacefulness of a Civ by a certain amount, and Ghandi had the absolute highest peacefulness. Once he researched, and converted India to Democracy, he'd turn into the most aggressive warlord the world has ever known, launching all available nukes at anyone and everyone.
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Dec 20, 2015 18:46
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The Pkunk are entirely legitimately psychic. They are also extremely annoying and they know it. Note how when it comes to things that they actually want you to do or know, they generally give you a mystic woo-woo explanation, then tell you it again in more comprehensible terms.
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Dec 20, 2015 19:56
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Ulvirich posted:Yep, democracy for Civ increased the peacefulness of a Civ by a certain amount, and Ghandi had the absolute highest peacefulness. Once he researched, and converted India to Democracy, he'd turn into the most aggressive warlord the world has ever known, launching all available nukes at anyone and everyone. On the subject of SC2, the variety and comedy level of the various races is definitely my favorite part of the game.
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Dec 20, 2015 20:26
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Did UQM ever fix the issue where an important piece of information was left out of the 3D0 version, which is what they based UQM on?
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Dec 20, 2015 20:28
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FredMSloniker posted:Did UQM ever fix the issue where an important piece of information was left out of the 3D0 version, which is what they based UQM on? If you mean the late-game thing they had no voice-over for, yes, that's in, as text only.
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Dec 20, 2015 20:32
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ProfessorProf posted:Next update is going to have a nice meaty chunk of Pkunk ship combat. My hope was to have the ship's stranger properties come as a surprise to anyone reading the thread who hasn't played the game before. Is this too strict of a policy? No, that's perfectly fair. The best way for anyone to experience the game's surprises is too see it for themselves rather than just have a bunch of us going "hey how about that thing". Speaking as someone who 's already seen this game, I'd much prefer to read fresh reactions over old spoilers. But goons will be goons.
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Dec 20, 2015 20:55
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 I depart the Pkunk homeworld to ride towards more violent pastures.  Gamma Lacaille is in both Pkunk and Ilwrath space, but...  It looks like it's effectively just an Ilwrath system.  I duck around over a dozen Ilwrath fleets to try and find a decent planet to plunder.  This looks like a good one!  The planet is coated in swarms of furious alien mice - fast, dangerous, and going down in a single shot.  It takes a lot of trips, but this is probably the most productive planet visit of the trip so far.  On the way out, I'm ambushed by the Ilwrath!   VIDEO: DIE, DIE, DIEBGM   I Dance With Joy For Our Good Fortune. The Hu-Man Dies With Such Agony That It Cannot Help But Please Dogar And Kazon. Hah! Puny Hu-Man! You Make Me Chitter With Amusement! By The Will Of The Mighty Dogar And Kazon, I Am Here To Make You Die, Die, DIE! There was no way this wasn't ending in combat. Let's give our new ships a shot!  So, the last time we fought an Avenger, it was badly damaged. Now, we get to see what fighting these guys is really like:  Yeah. The Avenger is slow, and only effective at short range, but it can turn invisible at will, at no energy cost.  The Punk Fury is another short-range attacker, but it's fast, maneuverable, and fires in three directionts at once with its main attack. The Fury is powered by psychic energy, which doesn't regenerate on its own. The ship's secondary function hurls insults at the enemy, letting the Pkunk crew psyche themselves up for battle.  In a head-on confrontation, the Fury is obliterated in a flash. Looks like the Ilwrath win...  But wait! A miracle has occurred! Every time a Fury is destroyed, it has a chance to randomly reincarnate with a full crew.  The standard attack pattern for the Fury is the Death Blossom. Cut the engines, spin and shoot while coasting, then jet back away. Allows a 360-degree strafing attack that's almost impossible to avoid.   Every reincarnation is an even 50% chance. Miraculously, Buzzard's crew come back to life three times in a row.  Victory is ours!  Except for one small detail: That fleet had two ships in it. RIP Commander Buzzard.  Next: An ill-advised decision to send in my Earthling Cruiser.  The Cruiser is a long-range artillery ship, slow but capable of attacking with powerful tracking nuclear missiles from any distance.  Unfortunately, the Avenger's cloaking device leaves the Cruiser's missiles unable to track it, so I'm left firing and judging the ship's position based on the camera (you can also spot a hiding Avenger when it passes over the background starfield.)  Also unfortunately, the Avenger, slow as it is, is slightly faster than the Cruiser.  Once the Avenger gets in range, the fight is all but over. The Cruiser's secondary, a point defense laser system, isn't much help either.  RIP Commander Tuf, victim of my bad leadership.   Twitter covers for my dreadful mistake. Anyway, I'd better get the hell out of here before I lose any more ships.   Oops.  We Will Bet On How Many Parts We Can Remove Before It Stops Making Noise! Now, You Space-Ship Captain, Begin The Expedient Transfer Of All Hu-Man Crew So That We May Waste No Time. It Is The Good Will Of Dogar And Kazon That Brings The Fodder Hu-Man To Us! Were It Not For The Dark Lords Of Deceptions' Mighty Directive, We Would Not Have The Good Fortune To Intercept You For A Festive Limb Wringing!Your Fight For Life, Though Futile, Serves The Noble Purpose And Appeases Our Honored Deities. You Have Earned The Right To Hold Your Head High!  I've got fuel. I don't want to fight these guys.  I'm falling prey here to an annoying quirk of the game system. I got attacked while right on top of the planet, and then when I emerged from battle, it did a planet collision check - putting me right back in the planet area.  Then, when I leave, the Ilwrath are waiting for me again.  Why do these fleets keep getting larger?  We Grow Excited: The Hu-Man Makes Excellent Ceremony. When We Peel It, Urgent Bleating Comes From The Noisemaker. Then, The Green Eye Of Dogar Observes It Writhe Upon The Altar, And The Cilia Of Kazon Swell, Indicating Their Readiness For The Juices. It Squirms With Vigor Until We Pop The Crunchy Noisemaker.Rejoice! The Duo Of Deception Shall Receive Their Supplication.  Incorrectness! We Come From The Eye Of Dogar. Such A Quasar Exists Nowhere Near This Location! Look In The Heavens At Location 022.9, 366.6 And Gaze Into The Depths Of Its All-Seeing Eye If You Dare! Only By The Sparing Caress Of Kazon's Anointed Cilia Will You Survive Such An Act. Else, You Will Bless The Altar Of Consumption With Your Ceremonial Blood! Okay, I have a plan this time.  On the solar system map, I can outrun the Ilwrath. So, I go in circles while they all filter into this planetary system.  Then, once they're all bunched up, I make my escape!  I have to get out of here.    Now, what can we do for you today? The 203 units of biological data we downloaded from your ship earn you 406 Credits. The technology we are now offering includes specifications for constructing modifications to your planet landers which will double their speed. Ah yes, speed! An excellent choice for the relentless hunter, and the craven coward as well. These modifications are simple enough to be put in place immediately. Your landers should be properly equipped in no time.The technology we are now offering includes details on how to add 'point-defense' laser defense systems for your flagship.  These little babies are great for defense, but because of their limited range, they may not make a good offensive weapon. However, the more you build for your vessel, the more damage each laser strike will do.The technology we are now offering includes plans for building improvements to your planet landers which make them resistant to hostile alien lifeforms.  It has been a pleasure dealing with you, Captain. We look forward to your next visit.     A fine job, Captain! The analysis reads as follows:SUBJECT: Clear Spindle Device. DATA: The object in question has no clear use or means of activation, but does have super-conductive characteristics between 18 and 22 degrees C. We suspect that it is of Precursor manufacture, but we cannot be certain without extended study. SUMMARY: In all likelihood, this object is a part of a larger device whose capabilities remain unknown.    The Mycons are hard to get a handle on. In fact, I'm not sure any human has ever had a real conversation with a Mycon. What we know of them we have learned from their corpses, which, I may add, have a nasty habit of coming back to life when thawed out from a decompression quick-freeze.Mycon ships seem to expend a significant amount of energy on life support. This is probably because the Mycon only thrive in temperatures close to the melting point of lead. As far as we know, the Mycon are the only race to actively seek out the Ur-Quan in order to become combat slaves.  Imagine facing a cowardly, mobile clam armed with a howitzer, and you've got a good idea of what it's like dealing with a Spathi. Although they tend to avoid battles as much as their masters will allow, once in battle, a Spathi Eluder is one tough cookie.I once heard a rumor, though I don't like to believe in it myself, that a rogue band of courageous Spathi broke away from the main starfleet, painted their ships black with bright red stripes, and formed the 'Black Spathi Squadron', dedicated to performing brave and hostile deeds. Like I said, I'd have to see it to believe it.  It's unfortunate that the Umgah fell to the Ur-Quan so early in the War, because I suspect we would have gotten along well with those big blob creatures; at the very least, it would have been entertaining. We known them a bit better than most races, because they were eager to talk with our ships, before, after, and during battle.The Arilou intimated that they had a relationship with the Umgah before the Ur-Quan arrived, but I don't know any details.  When I was flying combat missions along the Coreward Front, there was nothing we feared more than the Androsynth Hit-And-Run Squadron. Their Blazer ships were more than a match for our Cruisers, so we stayed clear of Eta Vulcepulae, their home star. In addition, I think each of us aboard the ship knew deep down in our hearts that the Androsynth had a drat good reason for hating us.Our grandparents had kept them as slaves for nearly 50 years.  I still have nightmares about those spiders taking me prisoner - using me as one of their sick sacrifices to Dogar and Kazon, their twin gods of destruction and torment. Those guys were almost as scary as the Androsynth to those of us in deep-space patrol. Their Avenger ships could appear out of nowhere and melt a Cruiser down to slag in seconds. Luckily for us, the bulk of the Ilwrath fleet was thrown against the Chenjesu and the Mmrnmhrm. The Starship Far Voyager, under the command of Captain Jeffry L. Rand, encountered the VUX near Beta Mira. Although the details are hazy, it is generally accepted that Rand offended the VUX starship Commander with an inadvertent insult. None that we had made formal contact with. The Chenjesu implied that they had met 2 other starfaring species, one near the Giclas constellation, and the other directly coreward from Procyon. The Ariloulaleelay once mentioned having 'some fun' with an alien race in Draconis, but like so much else with the Arilou, they never revealed the whole story.I am sure there are hundreds more alien races in our galaxy, but beyond what I've told you, your guess is as good as mine.  Bring back lots of minerals, Captain. A new module is available! The Point Defense System, for 4000 RUs, gives the Heart of Gold a secondary function that fires low-powered short-range lasers, ideal for shooting down enemy projectiles but ill-suited to attacking enemy ships.  New starmap intel! Alpha Tauri appears to be the location of the Ilwrath's twin gods, Dogar and Kazon. We've also heard rumors from the Pkunk that said gods are a hoax, perpetrated by unknown tricksters for unknown reasons.  Eta Vulcepulae is the home star of the Androsynth, who we haven't heard from in some time. It might be good to see what they're up to, although they probably won't be too happy to see us, considering our shared history.  Not far from that same region of space, we have the VUX, who it sounds like aren't too fond of us either.  The Arilou said there was another race in the Draconis cluster, but that's still way too far out of our way to visit until we have a faster way to cross long distances.  "Coreward from Procyon" covers almost the entire galactic sector, so that hint isn't much use. So, once again, we come to the usual two questions. There's a lot on our plate right now, and a lot of aliens we've yet to make contact with. Fuel supplies are fine, but we're going to need more Melnorme upgrades before planet investigation becomes any less of a crew sink. Shopping recap (7791 RUs):
Destinations recap:
EMPIRE MEMBERSHIP: HUMANS, SPATHI, PKUNK CREW LOST: 258 VOTE NOW Quinn2win fucked around with this message at 22:36 on Jan 12, 2016 |
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Dec 20, 2015 22:27
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As usual, no real recs for shopping (making spaceships good is hard, guys  ) but considering how easily the Ilwrath tore us up, it might be better to shore up our defenses a bit before going too far into their territory. Let's visit home again and try to cheer up those guys that hate us for perfectly good reasons.
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Dec 20, 2015 22:40
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One thing you forgot to mention about the Avenger: when it decloaks, it is instantly turned to face the enemy vessel. This allows you to make what would be a grazing pass, then decloak and burn them. It also shares the common flaw of many invisibility tools available to both player and AI: it's easy to lose track of exactly where you are (though the map centering on the two vessels helps) and which direction you're pointing. The AI has no such issues. Nor do they seem to have trouble finding you, though at least their tracking weapons don't track.
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Dec 20, 2015 22:46
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 That Buzzard managed a literally miraculous fight. Good job, Pkunk! Shame about that Cruiser though.Shopping: Buy a new Cruiser. I never found the flagship point-defense to be much help even when using the flagship in actual fights; right now it's certainly too expensive to be worthwhile. Destinations: Visit the VUX and see if we can't make amends for that insult.
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Dec 20, 2015 23:00
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Vela, Eta Vulcepulae, and Beta Mira
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Dec 20, 2015 23:03
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:I never found the flagship point-defense to be much help even when using the flagship in actual fights; right now it's certainly too expensive to be worthwhile. The game mentioned that they become more powerful the more of them you have, if you load up on like 8 point-defense modules can you blow up ships in a single pass? Edit: How long until we find out what Juffo-Wup is? Captain Bravo fucked around with this message at 23:26 on Dec 20, 2015 |
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Dec 20, 2015 23:17
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Shopping list: 2x Spathi Eluder and crew (~3800 RUs) 1x Crew Pod and crew (2150 RUs) 2x Planet Lander (1000 RUs) 1x Cargo Bay (750 RUs) Total: ~7750 RU We're getting to the point where we're going to be exploring places with hostile aliens, and we are going to need competent warships. Furies are okay for some fights, but I can't think of any fight where I would want a Cruiser over an Eluder. It also seems like fuel isn't a huge concern as long as we're doing these short sweeps around Sol. Itenerary: Vela, the Androsynth, and the VUX. After that short tour, if we still have the crew, fuel, and cargo space, we may be able to continue to Yehat and Shofixti space before heading home. Glidergun fucked around with this message at 23:39 on Dec 20, 2015 |
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Dec 20, 2015 23:34
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Well, since we have gotten to see 3 of the ships from Star Control 1 in action so far, let's look at those ships data cards from the first game.   I don't think this is spoiling anything since we've seen the ships in action, and these were only in the first game, but let me know and I'll remove them. Let's visit the Yehat and Shofixti. Given that our ships did terrible against the Ilwrath, and we can't really replace the Pkunk ships, it's probably a good idea to go visit our actual friends to see if they will help us out, and provide us with new types of ships.
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Dec 20, 2015 23:43
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"Poor Tactical Positioning" is cracking me up
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Dec 20, 2015 23:54
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Captain Bravo posted:Edit: How long until we find out what Juffo-Wup is? That depends entirely on what order we choose to visit things in.
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Dec 21, 2015 00:04
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