Development Team update, October 2021.

[Prefontaine]

I wanted to make this post to let everyone know what's going on as I've not made an official update since July. Most content I'll be addressing can be referenced in this thread or this earlier thread. The following content is currently on the work list to be done.

• Additional Alliance roles/permissions (Currently being tested/coded)
• Treasure Trading (Being coded next)
• 3 new projects
  • Project Slot
  • Domestic Policy Buff
  • Resource bonus focused on smaller nations
• Adjustment to ships
  • Damage increase in ship v ship
  • Bombardment Attack (still under consideration)
• Adjustment to planes
  • Bombing runs against ships kill less defending planes
• Adjustments to Nukes/Missiles/VDS/ID
• Tutorial changes
• Alliance-wide embargoes
• Treaty Web Bloc-options
• Improved notification system
• Other QoL changes (see links above)

That's not even including commodities and the projects associated with them. Needless to say, there's a lot on Alex's coding plate at the moment. Focus has been made towards moderation changes, information, and server maintenance these last few month. As such there is now a sizable back log. For the remainder of the calendar year, the Dev Team will be on break in hopes of this list diminishing before work resumes. In January I will be restarting the Dev Team and bringing in some new faces. During the beige thread it was noted some people gained interest in getting involved. I don't want to bring new people when we'd simply be piling onto an along long list of "to-do". 

Please continue to post suggestions, but understand the timetable of things.  If anyone has questions that I'd be able to answer, I'll be happy to. 

Any flaming, baiting, trolling that happens in this thread will be moved, blocked, and/or reported. 

 

Edited October 11, 2021 by Prefontaine

[zigbigadorlou]

7 minutes ago, Prefontaine said:

the Dev Team will be on break in hopes of this list diminishing before work resumes

This is all that needs to be said tbh. 

[Sri Lanka 001]

😕

can we buff raiding please? 

[Darth Ataxia]

Is there a general ETA on some of these changes? I recall some of these being worked on for quite some time.

[Rewan Demontay]

I think that a toggable option to see all treaties is existence would sitlll be nice, maybe with a slider of x number of top alliacne.

 

Here we go, with more fun fun fun under the bloody Orbis sun!

 

Edited October 11, 2021 by Rewan Demontay
Extra

[Prefontaine]

11 minutes ago, Darth Ataxia said:

Is there a general ETA on some of these changes? I recall some of these being worked on for quite some time.

I'm going to be prodding Alex a little more regularly on these. The roles are something I've been told are being tested at the moment and thus will hopefully be out soon. Treasure trading will hopefully follow soon there after. 

I'll be pushing for both to be completed by the end of November along with the 3 projects and the damage tweaks to ships and planes (not the bombardment part though).

Ideally by the end of the year the only things on the list will be Bombardment, if we add it, the Missile/Nukes rework and defenses against them and likely tutorial changes and some smaller QoL things. Again, I don't control the schedule.

17 minutes ago, Sri Lanka 001 said:

😕

can we buff raiding please? 

Here ya' go. 

[JadenStar10]

@PrefontaineCommodities when!?

[His Holy Decagon]

If it was stated somewhere else, sorry, but, could you possibly list these 3 new projects and any amount of detail associated with them?

[Prefontaine]

4 minutes ago, His Holy Decagon said:

If it was stated somewhere else, sorry, but, could you possibly list these 3 new projects and any amount of detail associated with them?

It's in the links at the top:

1. Resource Production Center
   • Every turn the nation gets 1 raw resource for each raw resource they can mine (except food) for each city they have up to 5 cities. (60 resources times 3 resource types is a 180 resources total per day)
     • Cost: $500,000
       Food: 1,000
2. Research and Development Center
   • Effect: This project provides two project slots (net: one additional project slot)
   • Cost
     • Cash: $50,000,000
     • Food: 100,000
     • Aluminum: 5,000
3. Government Oversight Agency
   • Improves Domestic Policy Effect by 50% (5% -> 7.5%) (1% -> 1.5% for open markets)
     • Cost: $20,000,000
       Food: 200,000
       Aluminum: 10,000

20 minutes ago, Suyash Adhikari said:

@PrefontaineCommodities when!?

At this point, I couldn't begin to speculate. 

[JadenStar10]

8 minutes ago, Prefontaine said:

At this point, I couldn't begin to speculate.

If Kevin can do it, so can you  

[BelgiumFury]

2 hours ago, Prefontaine said:

• 3 new projects
  • Resource bonus focused on smaller nations

I noticed some people in the original thread complaining about the cost benefit ratio in the original thread (with no suitable solution as of now).
I think we must be carefull that indeed (as I think callisto mentioned), it doesnt cause too much inflation for raws. 

A quick, solution I can think about would be to divide the amount of raws the project produces by the amount of cities you have -2.
So a c4 nation would be (180 raws / 4-2) = 90.
Ofcourse for a city one or two it would still be divided by just 1 (as to not go into negative numbers).
For most new nations it would still pay itself back in a matter of days (unless you're a c30 ofc, but it really isn't aimed at those people either).

[Prefontaine]

15 minutes ago, BelgiumFury said:

I noticed some people in the original thread complaining about the cost benefit ratio in the original thread (with no suitable solution as of now).
I think we must be carefull that indeed (as I think callisto mentioned), it doesnt cause too much inflation for raws. 

A quick, solution I can think about would be to divide the amount of raws the project produces by the amount of cities you have -2.
So a c4 nation would be (180 raws / 4-2) = 90.
Ofcourse for a city one or two it would still be divided by just 1 (as to not go into negative numbers).
For most new nations it would still pay itself back in a matter of days (unless you're a c30 ofc, but it really isn't aimed at those people either).

I think you mean deflation of raws? This project is meant to be insanely low cost high benefit. Something to pay off itself quickly so in case a player wanted to replace it with a better project as they get larger since this one doesn't scale it's easy to do so. Yes, some whales will add it to the collection of vacant project slots they have without batting an eye, however the % benefit they get is tiny for a nation of their size.

If the complaint is that it's too good for newer players, that's kinda' the goal of it. 

[BelgiumFury]

1 hour ago, Prefontaine said:

I think you mean deflation of raws? This project is meant to be insanely low cost high benefit. Something to pay off itself quickly so in case a player wanted to replace it with a better project as they get larger since this one doesn't scale it's easy to do so. Yes, some whales will add it to the collection of vacant project slots they have without batting an eye, however the % benefit they get is tiny for a nation of their size.

If the complaint is that it's too good for newer players, that's kinda' the goal of it. 

Well the deflation of raws then :p. I mean the price of resources going down because the extra amounts of raws in the system. 

For someone with 2000 infra a city and let's say 20 cities this project might still be quite a bit better than alternatives (if you take into account the fact that alternatives cost a whole lot more, like ITC for example, the "true" roi is lower because  you have to deduct the profit you make from this project from ITC..).

I would like to make it less good as you grow, this can be done by making the amount of cities you have function as a division (as mentioned in previous post; or for example an increase in upkeep for the project the more cities you have. This would actively make it worse for medium (and whale) size nations. 

But that's just my 50 cents.
 

Edited October 11, 2021 by BelgiumFury

[His Holy Decagon]

The resource project will make raiding new players (in the future), more profitable as well

[Prefontaine]

1 hour ago, His Holy Decagon said:

The resource project will make raiding new players (in the future), more profitable as well

Making raiding better? Well now I've gotta' scrap it.

[BelgiumFury]

2 minutes ago, Prefontaine said:

Making raiding better? Well now I've gotta' scrap it.

I know it's a joke, but that is in fact the best unintented consequence possible 😛

[Kosta]

Cheers for the update. It's great to be informed. Keep up the good work. 

[Dusty]

22 hours ago, Prefontaine said:

1. Research and Development Center
   • Effect: This project provides two project slots (net: one additional project slot)
   • Cost
     • Cash: $50,000,000
     • Food: 100,000
     • Aluminum: 5,000

So, use a project slot... To get 1 project slot, wouldn't it be better to just get the project you orginially we're gonna get with that orginially project slot..... Like loosing a project slot to gain a project slot... Why just not loose that original project slot...

 

*Nvm, was over thinking that, dusty still is waking up*

Edited October 12, 2021 by Dusty

[Sweeeeet Ronny D]

do we need to make it better?  I would assume all the new players we have been getting is really what drives making raiding better.  and we are seeing people with 25-30 cities in less than a year thanks to raiding.

[BelgiumFury]

29 minutes ago, Sweeeeet Ronny D said:

do we need to make it better?  I would assume all the new players we have been getting is really what drives making raiding better.  and we are seeing people with 25-30 cities in less than a year thanks to raiding.

I assume they mean raiding for everyone who has more than like 8 cities.

(because buffing raiding for c2's or c5's would be dumb)

[Sweeeeet Ronny D]

What is the problem with the way raiding currently works?  is it not profitable enough? is it not fun? what is the issue?

Politically its pretty difficult to stop an experienced raider from attacking weak spots in your alliance.  Besides for removing, or just not having any weak spots.

[Zim]

3 hours ago, Sweeeeet Ronny D said:

What is the problem with the way raiding currently works?  is it not profitable enough? is it not fun? what is the issue?

Politically its pretty difficult to stop an experienced raider from attacking weak spots in your alliance.  Besides for removing, or just not having any weak spots.

It's not profitable enough when you get past 16 cities, and even then you pushing it, because of current score mechanic. And why you normally see raiders adopt a soldiers only policy ones they start to get to that size.
Wish create the problem that it depends on hitting inactive nations for the majority of targets, which starts to get few in numbers at that point. 

It's simply not sustainable otherwise, Arrgh constantly see a return and then leaving of whale sized nations, who stick around for a few months of fun, before leaving again or effectly just stop raiding while sitting around, because it simply not sustainable to raid at that size. Look

Other issues, is target selections which is chore to do, even if it can compensated somewhat by bots. An easier ingame nation search system, would still be a boon. specially for new players who have to sort through thousands of ingame nations manually, to find a few decent targets. 

Other issue is that nearly all war updates, have negatively effect raiders in some way. Even when that is not the intent. Like the buff to tanks, they can kill airplanes. Do you know what that did? People built a bunch of tanks, like they maxed them out for a good while here(it's have gotten better). 
You aren't beathing throught that with soldiers only, while also having to deal with counters. I changed to missiles beiging as my go to for while(something you only can do to one nation at time by the way, instead of normal 5, raiders is expected to attack), before i slowly stopped raiding all together and now retired from it. 

And that was while we got hit by a nerf that was target at raiding, increasing the score of cities, to limit the range of raiders. And then not soon after, soldiers got nerfed aswell. That Arrgh had to lobby extremely hard for to even weaken that nerf. 
And then we got a compesation for the nerf, a 100 wars won would give a project slots, the rest of you started complaining and got it changed to a 100 wars fought for a project slots. 
Even thought that was buff that was specifically meant to compensate raiders for having low infra. 

[floydpricees]

On 10/11/2021 at 9:23 PM, zigbigadorlou said:

This is all that needs to be said tbh.  

backrooms game

Could we please enhance raiding?