Remove/Tweak Emaggable Maint Drones

[Rurik]

I completely agree with Dinarzad. There may be no specific reason to have it, but there is also no specific reason to not have it. Its another route to take, another option. Drones are not overpowered or anything of the sort either, and they can be blown at any time without the need to explain yourself most of the time, unlike borgs. Dying to a drone may not enhance your experience, but neither will dying to a changeling, or a traitor.

[sdtwbaj]

However, isn't the whole point of a maintenance drone to be a guaranteed respawn where you're not supposed to even interact with players, let alone harm them. Wrecking the station is one thing, however foregoing all of that and essentially flipping the maint drone script entirely is just a bit crap.

[scrubmcnoob]

 

I think the drone emagging problem may be a bit overblown.

I hardly see it done and when it is, the drones usually just wander.

And again, they are very killable if they are caught actually doing murderous deeds.

 

[Mrs Dobbins]

 

maint drones are good fun, and emagged maint drones are even more fun.

"i ded nerf pls"

 

[sdtwbaj]

 

maint drones are good fun, and emagged maint drones are even more fun.

"i ded nerf pls"

can u not

 

it seems redundant (since you can emag borgs) and also a little 'much' since it isn't necessarily clear that they ARE emagged, which really should be a thing given it's such a powerful thing (it can ventcrawl, and do a lot of stuff since it's an all-access non-accountable drone) that can't be blown from the console once it's emagged.

 

[HereticChurch]

I believe something that TG did for drones was to have them get a unique sprite with red lights for when they're emagged. I'd personally be okay with this.

[FlattestGuitar]

 

Having been an emagged maintenance drone a couple of times, I'd back removing emagging them from the game.

 

99% of the time an emagged drone is just supposed to kill someone, which is as easy as staying in a pipe and waiting by an airlock with its safeties off. As you can't drag your victims, there isn't much else you can accomplish than just that.

 

On top of that, issuing a kill order for an emagged drone simply doesn't work; it's coded this way. We could look into changing that.

 

With how fast and lethal drones can be, coupled with how hard they are to catch if they use the disposals system or run around the pipes, an experienced player will be able to play them in a way that's impossible to counter.

 

[Rurik]

 

Having been an emagged maintenance drone a couple of times, I'd back removing emagging them from the game.

 

99% of the time an emagged drone is just supposed to kill someone, which is as easy as staying in a pipe and waiting by an airlock with its safeties off. As you can't drag your victims, there isn't much else you can accomplish than just that.

 

On top of that, issuing a kill order for an emagged drone simply doesn't work; it's coded this way. We could look into changing that.

 

With how fast and lethal drones can be, coupled with how hard they are to catch if they use the disposals system or run around the pipes, an experienced player will be able to play them in a way that's impossible to counter.

 

But the AI or any engineer can blow it if its that much of a issue. If any witnesses see the drones crime and they cant catch it, a quick word to the CE or AI and it will be dead no matter how well it evades.

 

Edit- Nevermind!

 

Edited October 18, 2016 by Guest

[swaggaboy112]

 

maint drones are good fun, and emagged maint drones are even more fun.

"i ded nerf pls"

can u not

 

it seems redundant (since you can emag borgs) and also a little 'much' since it isn't necessarily clear that they ARE emagged, which really should be a thing given it's such a powerful thing (it can ventcrawl, and do a lot of stuff since it's an all-access non-accountable drone) that can't be blown from the console once it's emagged.

 

But it IS i ded, you're mad that you got killed by an emagged drone. It's not redundant, borgs cannot ventcrawl or sabotage areas as effectively. Drones have low health anyway.

 

[Sothangel]

 

But the AI or any engineer can blow it if its that much of a issue. If any witnesses see the drones crime and they cant catch it, a quick word to the CE or AI and it will be dead no matter how well it evades.

 

Emagged drones cannot be remotely destroyed with the console, and have to be hunted down and physically killed.

 

[Rurik]

 

But the AI or any engineer can blow it if its that much of a issue. If any witnesses see the drones crime and they cant catch it, a quick word to the CE or AI and it will be dead no matter how well it evades.

 

Emagged drones cannot be remotely destroyed with the console, and have to be hunted down and physically killed.

 

You know what they say about learning something new every day? I can see what FlattestGuitar means in that case. Now I know the 'emagged' drones that I have been told to blow before actually were not emagged at all.

 

[sdtwbaj]

 

maint drones are good fun, and emagged maint drones are even more fun.

"i ded nerf pls"

can u not

 

it seems redundant (since you can emag borgs) and also a little 'much' since it isn't necessarily clear that they ARE emagged, which really should be a thing given it's such a powerful thing (it can ventcrawl, and do a lot of stuff since it's an all-access non-accountable drone) that can't be blown from the console once it's emagged.

 

But it IS i ded, you're mad that you got killed by an emagged drone. It's not redundant, borgs cannot ventcrawl or sabotage areas as effectively. Drones have low health anyway.

I think the other reply above fits well.

 

[Dinarzad]

 

Except nobody is saying the fact they're unable to be blown via console should stay. In fact, so far, everyone was under the impression that drones being able to be detonated, emagged or not, was how it was now, so if anything everyone is okay with emagged drone's being able to be detonated as a change.

That's enough of a nerf to make it fair, they do NOT need to be outright removed. That's using a Nuke to solve a problem that could be handled with a handgun.

AKA: Improve, don't Remove.

Removal of features should never be the first option when faced with a problem.

 

[Rurik]

 

Except nobody is saying the fact they're unable to be blown via console should stay. In fact, so far, everyone was under the impression that drones being able to be detonated, emagged or not, was how it was now, so if anything everyone is okay with emagged drone's being able to be detonated as a change.

That's enough of a nerf to make it fair, they do NOT need to be outright removed. That's using a Nuke to solve a problem that could be handled with a handgun.

AKA: Improve, don't Remove.

Removal of features should never be the first option when faced with a problem.

 

Makes sense, drones being able to be blown from console sounds like it would balance it pretty well. No matter what I think removing the feature to emag the drones based on being a little too powerful in the right hands is a bit drastic and unneeded.

 

[sdtwbaj]

Then don't remove it. There was some idea of changing the drones' operation to wrecking up everything instead of taking orders. That seems like it'd fit the script if people are opposed to giving it a more standing out sprite when emagged, as well as being easily blowable.

[Dinarzad]

 

Then don't remove it. There was some idea of changing the drones' operation to wrecking up everything instead of taking orders. That seems like it'd fit the script if people are opposed to giving it a more standing out sprite when emagged, as well as being easily blowable.

 

No.

I've tried to throw a compromise out here, to give a very fair and powerful counter to emagged drones, and you're not giving me anything back here, just more "Make emagged drones basically worthless, in addition to a super easy counter."

Which is really throwin' off "i ded pls nerf" vibes here that you are doing VERY little to disprove here.

 

"Flipping the script" on a drone is no good. At BEST it is a distraction, except it's a distraction the traitor can't control when or where it works, because it no longer takes orders from him. It's laws tell it to rip the station apart, not listen to the syndie.

So it just gives away there's a traitor around emagging drones when he might still be setting up. It actively INHIBITS his goal.

In addition, keeping it's normal emagg law set and forcing an inability to interact with the round as an "Antagonist" is... Not physically possible. You can't "Not effect the round" while effectign the round. Again. You are basically asking for them to be deleted/removed in every single sense of the word besides blatantly saying it.

 

The entire "Problem" (Of which there never WAS one.) of emagged drones being "super OP" is solved simply by remote detonation alone. That's it. No addendums or additions needed, because no matter where it is, it dies. Instantly. It is the ultimate counter. You can even blow every single drone if you're unsure which one it is and they can all respawn. Cuz Drones don't have rights.

This solves the exact problem you stated. So you don't need any additions because problem solved, right? Unless your entire goal of the thread is to 'remove' something that makes you salty, right?

 

[sdtwbaj]

 

I will not deny the salt here--who thinks of a problem until it's theirs, right? Being no philanthropist, there's my mindset.

 

As far as your compromise, sure, it's fine, but it doesn't address the underlying issue here, which is emagging a maint drone is essentially a free all-access pass with zero station accountability, since it has no specific job, and isn't remotely signified to be emagged. At least with a borg, the AI has a notion, as does anyone with a robotics console, that something's wrong. Since drones are arguably more useful than a cyborg, what counter is there to walking around with all access on your head?

 

Well, make it visible. Make it glow red, make it somehow stand out. As you said, drones have no rights, so why would a tampered drone need to not be at least remotely visibly emagged? It can ventcrawl for stealth, it has all access to run away, or disrupt pursuers, and it is probably the stealthiest tool in the entire game, as it can literally walk up and deconstruct drone computers, turrets, hell, even the AI, because its just that versatile. I can concede to not nerfing it's abilities, but instead nerfing its nigh invisibility.