Hello, I've played the game for a while and I'm fairly happy with the freedom of building, but weapons leave something to be desired as a weapons enthusiast. I have listed my thoughts below, I hope they serve as inspiration. *kinetic weapons below are designed with projectile travel time and atmosphere drop in mind* Projectile weapons Gatling Cannon: Damage= +flesh, -shields Range= Low-Medium, dependent on atmosphere Accuracy= Low, No splash damage Rate of fire= Very high C0sts= Common materials, low power cost, high ammo cost Notes= I see the gatling cannon as pest clearing weapons, they are great at dealing with soft targets at low to medium range. They utilize the concept of "accuracy through volume", this also renders them effective as anti-air vs lightly armored/ unshielded targets. Cannon: Damage= +flesh, +hull Range= Medium-High, dependent on atmosphere Accuracy= High, Medium Splash damage Rate of fire= Medium Costs= Common materials, low power cost, medium ammo c0st Notes= I see the regular cannon as the main weapon for a lot of early ships, they are meant to fill the gap until later weapons are unlocked. They are best used in most early conflicts against targets larger than humans. Giving them the medium-high range insures they remain useful later on. Flak Cannon: Damage= ++flesh,--hull,--shields Range= High, dependent on atmosphere Accuracy= Very high, High splash damage Rate of fire= Medium Costs= Uncommon materials, low power cost, medium ammo cost Notes: I see the flak cannons as the name suggests, well-suited for Anti-air due to the proximity fuse, while of course also being quite capable of dealing with flesh targets. Railgun: Damage= -flesh, ++hull, ++shields Range= Very high, dependent on atmosphere, damage drops off according to max range. Accuracy= Very high, No splash damage Rate of fire= Very low Costs= Rare materials, high power cost when charging Notes: I see the railgun as an endgame weapon designed for sniping turrets, possibly bypassing shields and doing some direct damage to the block / turret it hits or allowing for straight up 1-shots. *NEW* Weapon mechanic: Charging up weapon before it can fire, this would also have a subtle visual effect. Artillery: Damage= ++flesh,+hull,-shields Range= High, dependent on atmosphere Accuracy= Medium, Very high splash damage Rate of fire= Low Costs= Rare materials, low power cost, medium ammo cost Notes: I see artillery fulfill the role of actual artillery, it would fire in arcs and be be considered devastating against formations of ground troops, whilst also being a go-to weapon for sieging fortified POI's. *NEW* Gatling Point Defense: Damage= -flesh,--hull,--shields Range= Low, dependent on atmosphere Accuracy= Very high, no splash damage Rate of fire= Very high Costs= Rare materials, medium power cost, medium ammo cost Notes: I see this as the go-to defense against missiles or artillery shells, not meant to be a guarantee, but another step in defense. Comes with some cost to resources and power, to deter players from keeping them running, similar to the shield power drain. Energy Weapons Lasers weapons: Damage= ++hull, --shields Range= Low-High, dependent on atmosphere Accuracy= High, No splash damage Rate of fire= Medium Costs= Rare materials, very high power cost, no ammo cost Notes: I see laser weapons as the "economy" weapon, once you have paid for the high up front cost, you'll have a relatively cheap weapon to fire. They would be heavily punished in atmosphere, which would incentivize a mixed arsenal. Plasma Cannons: Damage= ++flesh,++hull,-shields Range= Low-High, dependent on atmosphere Accuracy= Medium, High splash damage Rate of fire= High Costs=Rare materials, high power cost, high ammo cost Notes: I see the plasma weapons as endgame "melters", they aren't well suited for shields or atmosphere, but melt through hull and flesh targets. Their main balance point is their relative poor accuracy compared to their ballistic counterparts. *NEW* Laser Point Defense: Damage= --flesh,--shield Range= Very low, does not work in atmosphere Accuracy= Very high, no splash damage Rate of fire= Medium Costs= Rare materials, very high power cost, no ammo cost Notes: I see this as the endgame choice for protecting CV's against missiles, only works in space to balance the no ammo requirement and incentivize mixed arsenals. Ballistic weapons Rockets: Damage= +flesh,++hull,+shields Range= Very high Accuracy= High, medium splash damage Rate of fire= High (MAX volleys of 4) Costs= Common materials, low power cost, high ammo cost Notes: I see rockets as fast dumb fire weapons, a quick and dirty way to send a lot of explosives in whatever direction you're pointing, but not pin point accurate and can be shot down by point defense. *NEW* Swarm Missiles: Damage= +hull,+shields Range= Medium, ignores atmosphere, detonates at max range Accuracy= Very high, low splash damage Rate of fire= Medium Costs= Uncommon materials, low power cost, medium ammo cost Notes: I imagine them as a 1 by 1 block similar to spotlights, also being able to fire at a 45 degree angle. They would be quick to turn and can catch even the most stubborn SV within range. Each launcher would house 8 small missiles. *NEW* Promethium Missiles: Damage= +flesh, +hull,+shields Range= High, ignores atmosphere, detonates at max range Accuracy= Very high, medium splash damage Rate of fire= Low Costs= Uncommon materials, low power cost, high ammo cost Notes: The Promethium missiles would act as the go-to missile choice, each launcher would be 2 by 1 and house 4 missiles. Best suited for dealing with large SV's & CV's, while being significantly stronger than their swarm counterpart, it comes with a loss to turn radius and acceleration. *NEW* Pentaxid Missiles: Damage= ++flesh,++hull,++shields Range= Very high (longest range in game), ignores atmosphere, detonates at max range Accuracy= Very high, very high splash damage Rate of fire= Very low Costs= Rare materials, High power cost, very high ammo cost Notes: The pentaxid missile would serve as the nuclear option, while being the most powerful singleshot weapon in the game, it would be balanced through its' weaknesses. It would have the slowest turn radius and acceleration, being easily countered by point defense weaponry. It would be 4 by 1, while housing 1 missile per launcher. The main downside to this weapon would be its' weakness to point defense and slow setup before launch, if a missile were to hit its mark, it should result in critical damage to the impact area. *NEW* Target Finder: Costs= Rare materials, medium power cost, no ammo cost Notets: As the name suggests, this would be the way missiles require their targets, without these missiles do not get a target lock and can therefor not fire. Each block would have a limited FOV (100 degrees), while being very expensive CPU wise, which would often result in people accepting a blindspot. The idea is that missiles should act like their real counterpart, well hidden inside the hull but expensive, if you manage to knock out the target finders you effectively stop the enemy from using missiles. These are some of the ideas I've got regarding EGS' combat, I hope it inspires new ideas if nothing else If you have any questions feel free to hit me up.
