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Made in us
Rampaging Carnifex





Mandeville, Louisiana

    I didn't want to dredge up the topic in news and rumors, but an idea hit me yesterday about this supposed 40k mmo.  Many reactions involved the question, "How youz gonna balance a SpAZe Mahreenz against Guardsmn!?!?!one!"  (with all respect)

   For this idea to work, the game would probably have to be a wierd mix between Battlefield 2(allowing players to select which weapons and equipment to use in a battle) and WOW(for the skill trees and such that keep you interested in advancement).  Most fights would be instanced battlefields pitting sides against each other like Chromehounds online.   But what would the balancing feature be?

Respawn time

    To represent the fact that sPAs3 Mahreen3s are much harder to replace, they would take much, much longer to respawn.  Both sides would have everyone active at the start, giving the Marines(or any other set of much higher valued characters) an initial advantage they would have in any fight anyway.  However, if a standard equipment Guardsmen dies, he would only take 5 seconds to respawn, whereas a standard Tac Marine would take 20.  This punishes the players of higher value setups if they don't play effectively, and rewards teamwork on the weaker players part. 

     Further, any extra equipment selected to be used in the battle(such as, a Guardsmen got  Grenadier training in his special weapons skills or something and acquired a grenade launcher in his available weapons) would add to your respawn time.  The more over-standard equipment you choose to use, the longer it takes for you to recover from death, effectively tying each players power to the team's "effective fighting" (enough people at once to fight the other side without being pwned) time.  Noobs running around getting killed in sniper gear will still be killed off alot and leave the team without their assistance, but it wasn't like they were helping anyway and will be out of the game for longer.  This encourages players to practice at their own level.  An average shot with a lasgun backing you up is better than a terrible shot with a long-las wasting time and dying by himself.

   Finally, instead of a simple kill/death score, it would be a factor your kills worth to your own.  A Crisis battlesuit player who kills 5 Ork Boyz and dies once won't have a 5/1 score(good looking) but something more like 40/65( approximate worth, in whatever units the devs decide to use).

What do you all think?

 


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What are you talking about? They're Space Marines, which are heroic. They need to be able to do all the heroic stuff. They fight aliens and don't afraid of anything. -Orkeosarus

 
   
Made in us
Master of the Hunt





Angmar

Interesting, but in essense you're punishing the player by forcing them to wait. That's no way to encourage people to play the game.

A better idea would be to limit the number of players per team depending on the faction chosen. I.E. only one out of every 10 players can choose SM while there is no limit on IG players. Again, this limits choice, and that's an bad idea, so this could be offset by AIs. For every SM player, the opposing AI NPC count increases x10 or something, depending on faction.

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Made in us
Longtime Dakkanaut





Silverdale, WA

I like both of your ideas, but I just don't see either of them being used. As blue loki suggests, no matter what way you slice it the only way to balance it out would be to punish marines. Is there anyone out there who plays online games who ISN'T interested in getting the uber equipment? Most of the punks I used to run into online only cared about one thing and that was their score. If your life revolves around being ranked in the top 50 then a game that pushes spawn time or punishes uber loadouts will not appeal to you. Unfortunately, that is exactly the target audience.

 
   
Made in us
[DCM]
Sentient OverBear






Clearwater, FL

I just figured they'd go by how large your party is; if you're a space marine, you're going it alone, but as a guardsman you'd have nine of your closest  (and replaceable!) buddies along with you.

Inquisitors would be the most fun.

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- BBAP

 
   
Made in us
Fixture of Dakka






Unless the game is likened to the 40k shooter with the tau, or is something along the lines of Space Hulk, I don't think its going to even be close.

The game will then have to depend more on the class, or the type of toon that you choose, and your " Balance" will come from your traits.
" Paper beats rock, scissors beats paper, rock crushes scissors."

This is a longtime issue with alot of MMO's.
I play shooters like the BF2 line, and I play COH/V, so I know a little about the MMO thing, but I am not all to thrilled about the line of thinking that I have to go get a job online, for the entertainment value, such as in WOW, or in SIMs kind of games.

Being a skeptic and a luddite, I will only wait and see about the supposed "MMO for 40k."

I've learned, a long time ago, its best to wait and see in your approach to the MMO thing.

"Star Wars online, anyone??"

I am nor ever have been a fan of " uber loot, munchkin gamers, or spazzed out inferiority complex holders." I perfer my games, but there is a point that one comes to when Time is important, and unless it is something akin to a game such as DOOM, HL2, or COV, I don't see the reason to waste valuable painting time.

Of course, BEING an COV/H player, there is alot to be desired from MMO/s, but the darn things after a while become button crushing feeder rat food, and the after a point loose the novelty, and eventually die a slow horrible death.

If it is along the lines of the WFB online game, you will probibly get into a cross Shooter RPG, where combat can be changed in views to either first or third person , and later, the game reverts to loot, stat aquisition with various tasks.

Balance will have no issue, it will only be about the uber loot.




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Made in us
Longtime Dakkanaut





Or since marines are the most popular armies in the game, by a significant margin, make everyone marines. Instead of different races, people can play as different chapters, each with a "racial" chapter benefit- DA's are stubborn, Ultras get a reputation bonus or something, BA's get bloodrage. If you want a WoW style Alliance vs. Hordes kinda thing with different player factions, have loyalists vs. chaos. Then as for different classes- librarians are the magic-users, scouts are sneaky rogues, apothecaries heal, techmarines get cool crafting/gear-boosting skills, chaplains get faith/morale based powers, tac/assault marines are straight up combat tanks.

Then once the game is done and working, you can potentially release other races in expansions.
   
Made in us
Unbalanced Fanatic





Minneapolis, MN

I think a 40k roleplaying game wouldn't interest me in the least.  I think a Battlefield 2/Call of Duty type game would be much more fun.  As far as I can tell 40k players are more into war and action than gathering experience and adventuring.  I'd rather be able to jump into a game and blow a few heads off than have to devote my life to completing missions.

Whatever the system that is used, it has to be able to balance assault and shooting.  I imagine that power armour could be made to be resistant to a lot of weaponry, Orks could be tough and fast.  But that area needs to be done properly.  Another way to balance the races would be to give weaker armies more vehicles and access to a larger number of heavy weapons.  And as has been said the maximum number of players on a side could be limited in accordance with the strength or there could be more support NPCs.

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Made in us
Tzeentch Aspiring Sorcerer Riding a Disc






Southern New Hampshire

I think Crawling Chaos has it right: Either make everyone a Marine, or not let anyone be a Marine. I favor the latter, as it leaves open the possibility of a handful of Guardsmen having to complete a quest to take out a Chaos Marine.

If you not let anyone be a Marine, balance issues go way down.

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Made in us
Blood-Drenched Death Company Marine





Puget sound region, WA

Heres a better one. Don't make the game. Nice and balanced that way and we won't hate it.

 
   
Made in us
[MOD]
Madrak Ironhide







Two words: force slot.

God I hated that game.

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"...he could never understand the sense of a contest in which the two adversaries agreed upon the rules." Gabriel Garcia Marquez, One Hundred Years of Solitude 
   
Made in us
Dakka Veteran




NJ

Two words: force slot.

God I hated that game.



Way too many hours of my life stolen by that game trying to unlock just to have the whole damn game change....I feel ya.


If you think codex creep sucks, wait till you see what these guys do to an MMO. I'm willing to bet this game's development will follow similar lines to SWG.



   
Made in us
[MOD]
Madrak Ironhide







I actually got out before "the secret" was revealed.

And, like I said, thank God.

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"...he could never understand the sense of a contest in which the two adversaries agreed upon the rules." Gabriel Garcia Marquez, One Hundred Years of Solitude 
   
Made in us
Fireknife Shas'el





A bizarre array of focusing mirrors and lenses turning my phrases into even more accurate clones of

Not having anyone be a space marine would be great, but face it: how else do you think THQ (correct publisher?) will get the funds of all the fanboys but by allowing space marines? The game may stand on its own with great game balance and mechanics, but I'd bet they'd have to use the marine crutch for subscription sales somewhere along the line. It's just like SWG: everyone wants to be a Jedi in Star Wars and everyone wants to be a Marine in 40k. How else would you ensure long-term subscriptions besides forcing the fanboys to unlock their precious OMGMARINE after 4 months of play? And not only that, they'll have to unlock his special abilities through training and get the PHATLEWT too, which is another 5 months of play.

And unlike some of you, I wasn't tempted by the Jedi Grind. I enjoyed crafting and the space wars when JTL came out. Then I quit a couple of months before the Combat Upgrade. (If that guy from the other thread reads this: no I did not play that other game but SWG's experimental crafting mechanics were fun.)

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2009, Year of the Dog
 
   
Made in us
RogueSangre





The Cockatrice Malediction

I think I have the solution.

Let people select marines just like any other race.  A space marine starts as a strapping young buck from a feral or hive world recently selected for possible induction into a space marine chapter.  The opening missions lead you through the grueling selection process after which the battle-brothers "initiate" you into their ranks and implant you with their potent geneseed.  As a scout you progress through missions in which your instructors teach you (among other things): how to properly handle the holy bolter (it's got quite a kick!); how to plunge your chainsword deep into the enemy (again and again!) until your battle-lust is spent; and how to surprise an enemy from behind (bueno!).  Along the way you learn your chapter's secret rituals and intimate traditions.

The marine missions would be a delightful romp through 41st millenium homoeroticism.  With the exception of the Dark Angels (who are closeted) marines would be openly "gay" (in a greco-roman kind of way).  They randomly grab each others asses.  They greet each other with kisses and uncomfortably long "brotherly" embraces.  And after battle they tend to each other with steamy ritual "massages".

This should make the munchkins think twice about choosing spase marienz (hurr!).  Yes, you can have an enormous epeen.  But only if you share it with your battle-brothers.

   
Made in us
Fireknife Shas'el





A bizarre array of focusing mirrors and lenses turning my phrases into even more accurate clones of

Abby, I'd love to joke around about homoerotic Space Marine behavior but unfortunately I was once tortured about stories involving WOW and creepy roleplaying. Now I know that sort of thing is serious business out there on those Internets. And yes, it would be a great deterrent for potential SM players. And their epeens.

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2009, Year of the Dog
 
   
Made in us
Plastictrees



Amongst the Stars, In the Night

All Marines would be members of the Poof Patrol! Excellent!

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Deathwing Terminator with Assault Cannon






Posted By Abadabadoobaddon on 03/10/2007 4:59 AM

This should make the munchkins think twice about choosing spase marienz (hurr!).  Yes, you can have an enormous epeen.  But only if you share it with your battle-brothers.



Supposedly 5% of the general population is gay. There currently isn't an MMO game marketed towards the GBLT market. GW could really cash in here.

   
Made in us
RogueSangre





The Cockatrice Malediction

Posted By nyarlathotep667 on 03/10/2007 12:29 PM
All Marines would be members of the Poof Patrol! Excellent!

I meant gay in a manly greco-roman kinda way.  Like spartans.  In space.

Posted By Asmodai on 03/10/2007 12:40 PM
Supposedly 5% of the general population is gay. There currently isn't an MMO game marketed towards the GBLT market. GW could really cash in here.

Not to mention the % of the 40K straight population who thinks that the idea of gay space marines is TOTALLY AWESOME.  If this was implemented I would totally make a space marine Red Corsair butt pirate.  SWEET!

   
 
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