Tesla needs to be toned down

DrPillzRedux · Fri Dec 25, 2015 12:36 am

Singulo: A black hole that slowly moves through the game, destroying everything it touches. Pulls things towards it. Can be avoided with due caution as it's very obvious when it's around since objects will move and glass will break.

Tesla: A ball of energy that very rapidly moves through the map. It almost instantly zaps people through any wall or object, even when just off screen, killing them instantly or near instantly. It's very difficult to tell if it's around as there are no visual elements like the singulo moving things around. If it gets near you, you're done unless you have the right gear.

The tesla needs an audio hum to let you know it's around since you can't see things moving around, yet it could be right in the other room when it instantly kills you.

Zilenan91 · Post by **Zilenan91** » Fri Dec 25, 2015 12:40 am #142640

It is. Goof is changing it to have only one beam to reduce lag and so it doesn't one shot everybody at once. Other than that it'll be the same with a stupid amount of balls.

Cik · Post by **Cik** » Fri Dec 25, 2015 12:51 am #142642

real problem is that engineers don't seem to care about it building a kabillion ealls, because it doesn't escape, even though past a certain point it's clearly entirely superfluous because pretty much any power source is enough to run the station forever.

if there was some benefit to running extremely high energy output i could see it, but eh.

Man_Shroom · Post by **Man_Shroom** » Fri Dec 25, 2015 3:36 am #142676

When the teslaball has 25-30 or more balls then it should start causing events to happen to the station more frequently

Blackouts at first, and then as the number of balls increase you would get ION storms,telecomms interference, EMPs in areas, lights exploding like when a revenant does the light explody thingy, airlocks being bolted open/closed, all/no access, anomalies occuring all over, and the at 45/50 balls it should start doing some real wacky shit like making the whole crew's hair turn to afros from static and then escaping

Causing an event to happen would remove a ball

When the station suddenly is under 3 blackouts, 4 ion storms and 2 anomaly, then the crew will scream at engineering to turn the damn thing down

ShadowDimentio · Fri Dec 25, 2015 3:47 am

Tesla is much worse than the singu because if a singu escapes but R&D has been doing work, you can throw a bag of holding at it and kill it, while the tesla doesn't give a singular fuck about that.

Suggested nerf: Make the bag of holding also kill the tesla when thrown into it, and make it so it can only zap you if it can see you (no more getting zapped from the other side of a wall).

ChangelingRain · Fri Dec 25, 2015 4:45 am

ShadowDimentio wrote:Tesla is much worse than the singu because if a singu escapes but R&D has been doing work, you can throw a bag of holding at it and kill it, while the tesla doesn't give a singular fuck about that.

Suggested nerf: Make the bag of holding also kill the tesla when thrown into it, and make it so it can only zap you if it can see you (no more getting zapped from the other side of a wall).

The tesla lightning checks to see if the beam's source can see you. This means it can shock you by bouncing around walls, but not by going through walls.

Zilenan91 · Post by **Zilenan91** » Fri Dec 25, 2015 4:49 am #142683

You can already bomb the tesla to kill it. You can technically bomb the sing but the bomb gets destroyed too fast for that to work reliably.

iamgoofball · Post by **iamgoofball** » Fri Dec 25, 2015 5:34 am #142687

Why don't you wait for the existing nerf pr to go through before demanding more nerfs?

Post by **Jacquerel** » Fri Dec 25, 2015 6:08 am #142692

Because people make feedback topics in reaction to the live servers, and generally don't bother reading GitHub first.

confused rock · Sun Dec 27, 2015 8:50 pm

Tesla does not even give off light.

Takeguru · Post by **Takeguru** » Sun Dec 27, 2015 9:49 pm #143143

If anything, Tesla needs a buff.

Needs to free itself if ignored.

Gun Hog · Post by **Gun Hog** » Mon Dec 28, 2015 3:44 am #143184

Agreed with Takeguru. It needs to be able to escape if you leave the PA at 2, like the singularity. Useful for rogue silicons when the engineers lock the emitters from habit.

Anyway, it could do with some advanced warning. Tesla is dangerous in its own way, which I like, it just loses out on the element of 'the chase' that the singulo brought. It is fun, running through the maze of pulled up station debris in a pathetic attempt to escape the Lord's wrath. Here, the Tesla just shows up and zaps you.

Again I have no problems with it instantly killing people, or others having a defense, but it would be nice to have a little warning besides the CE yelling that it got loose.

DrPillzRedux · Tue Dec 29, 2015 3:16 am

It's still awful.

It still kills everything and everybody through walls, moves very fast, without warning, instantly, and cannot be stopped.

1g88a · Post by **1g88a** » Tue Dec 29, 2015 5:17 am #143375

Is there a way for it to be visible, even in total darkness? Currently it breaks all the lights in an area, completely hiding itself.

CPTANT · Post by **CPTANT** » Wed Dec 30, 2015 5:01 pm #143656

This last patch was supposed to make things better?

It is still a completely undetectable uncounterable insta-death machine teleporting over the map.

It doesn't even lose power over time like the sing.

Doesn't lag anymore though

Post by **Shaps-cloud** » Wed Dec 30, 2015 6:32 pm #143667

I got shocked by it once and it dealt 695 burn damage to me in one hit, while it was offscreen and I couldn't hear it. I then saw it strike two people who were walking by and it instakilled both of them in one hit too. Bad meme engine

DrPillzRedux · Wed Dec 30, 2015 6:36 pm

I released it on meta within 1 minute of the game starting. It hovered outside of engineering in space itself. One shot people in the engineering hall who came to see.

That's a huge space.

Scott · Post by **Scott** » Wed Dec 30, 2015 6:38 pm #143669

Maybe shock range needs to be reduced or damage severely reduced if the bolt travels far enough.

CPTANT · Post by **CPTANT** » Wed Dec 30, 2015 6:42 pm #143671

What if the damage just got reduced? If it just does some serious damage instead of instantly critting you it would be A LOT better.

DrPillzRedux · Wed Dec 30, 2015 6:46 pm

It doesn't just instantly crit you it KILLS you.

Cheimon · Post by **Cheimon** » Wed Dec 30, 2015 7:06 pm #143675

The premise of a singularity-like engine that doesn't lag is a fantastic one. It is possible to have the singularity not lag, but in practice that doesn't happen: it'll be fixed for a bit, then lagging due to a new issue.

With that in mind, Tesla has a few problems the Singulo doesn't. The biggest is range: there's no reason for the Tesla to be able to kill people outside of detection range, and yet it does. This isn't just sight, either: even a directional set of sounds, lights, all sorts of things could help, but it doesn't have any of those.

Second is that it doesn't diminish or have any way of going down. At least let us throw, like, super-batteries into it or something to reduce its potential energy.

Third is that it's impossible to guard against. Singulo is deadly with radiation, but that's countered by various rad suits around the station, various hardsuits protecting against it, medicines that can solve the problem, and so on. Its drag is powerful, but you can use magboots or a jetpack to stay away. Tesla has nothing but 100% counters: if you have the right gloves and hardsuit, problem solved, if not, you die. That isn't much fun.

Fix all of these, and you have a worthy alternative to singulo. Maybe even a better one.

Post by **Shaps-cloud** » Wed Dec 30, 2015 7:10 pm #143677

DrPillzRedux wrote:It doesn't just instantly crit you it KILLS you.

Correct, I don't think it used to do this but it definitely instakills you as of now

confused rock · Wed Dec 30, 2015 9:22 pm

Also it gives off no light, and is not effected by singulo beacons or supermatters.

iamgoofball · Post by **iamgoofball** » Thu Dec 31, 2015 3:04 am #143753

The unloved rock wrote:Also it gives off no light, and is not effected by singulo beacons or supermatters.

I can't make it give off light from it and the beams without ~~intense lag~~.

I'll look into singulo beacons.

It's not getting a supermatter interaction.

Takeguru · Post by **Takeguru** » Thu Dec 31, 2015 3:12 am #143755

It definitely should follow beacons.

Because Tesla is the new shiny engine it gets set up more often, so it makes the beacon useless most rounds.

Zilenan91 · Post by **Zilenan91** » Thu Dec 31, 2015 3:40 am #143762

Make it so it disintegrates the beacon once it goes directly over it otherwise it will hover above it forever

metacide · Post by **metacide** » Fri Jan 01, 2016 5:07 pm #144073

Is there going to be another balance update? It's pretty profoundly shitty at the moment, gets released almost every round and just kills swathes of people, without being seen, heard, or even remotely counterable for the vast majority of people.

You should read a bit of deadchat sometime, people really seem to hate this.

iamgoofball · Post by **iamgoofball** » Fri Jan 01, 2016 5:11 pm #144075

Yeah, I was gonna triple the range on the sounds so its even more hearable from a distance, and turn down the bounce distance so you don't get killed by the ball being 3 departments away.

CPTANT · Post by **CPTANT** » Fri Jan 01, 2016 5:23 pm #144078

iamgoofball wrote:Yeah, I was gonna triple the range on the sounds so its even more hearable from a distance, and turn down the bounce distance so you don't get killed by the ball being 3 departments away.

To be honest hearing the thing doesn't really do you any good when it teleports over the map and you have no way of knowing which direction it is.

iamgoofball · Post by **iamgoofball** » Fri Jan 01, 2016 5:58 pm #144084

CPTANT wrote:
iamgoofball wrote:Yeah, I was gonna triple the range on the sounds so its even more hearable from a distance, and turn down the bounce distance so you don't get killed by the ball being 3 departments away.

To be honest hearing the thing doesn't really do you any good when it teleports over the map and you have no way of knowing which direction it is.

You'll be able to know how close it is at least.

Lumbermancer · Fri Jan 01, 2016 6:01 pm

Singulo is fun. Singulo is a destructive force of nature. You can run but you can't hide. Most fun things happen when singulo is out and everyone scrambles trying to survive, get space gear and get the fuck out. And when you get within visual distance from it, and you mange to get away from its gravitational pull, you feel like you cheated death.

Tesla is shit. Tesla floats around and zaps people.

I'd rather deal with the lag.

Post by **Shaps-cloud** » Fri Jan 01, 2016 9:49 pm #144125

Knowing how close the tesla is means nothing when it teleports on top of you/husks you through a wall anyway

Luke Cox · Post by **Luke Cox** » Sat Jan 02, 2016 2:08 am #144197

Gloves protect you from it. What the fuck are you people on about?

Gun Hog · Post by **Gun Hog** » Sat Jan 02, 2016 6:07 am #144238

Insulated Gloves reduce the damage by half, a hardsuit reduces it by 95%. Wearing both gives immunity.

See the tesla_shock section for details.

Code: Select all

/mob/living/carbon/human/electrocute_act(shock_damage, obj/source, siemens_coeff = 1, safety = 0, override = 0, tesla_shock = 0)
	if(tesla_shock)
		var/total_coeff = 1
		if(gloves)
			var/obj/item/clothing/gloves/G = gloves
			if(G.siemens_coefficient <= 0)
				total_coeff -= 0.5
		if(wear_suit)
			var/obj/item/clothing/suit/S = wear_suit
			if(S.siemens_coefficient <= 0)
				total_coeff -= 0.95
		siemens_coeff = total_coeff
	else if(!safety)
		var/gloves_siemens_coeff = 1
		var/species_siemens_coeff = 1
		if(gloves)
			var/obj/item/clothing/gloves/G = gloves
			gloves_siemens_coeff = G.siemens_coefficient
		if(dna && dna.species)
			species_siemens_coeff = dna.species.siemens_coeff
		siemens_coeff = gloves_siemens_coeff * species_siemens_coeff
	if(heart_attack)
		if(shock_damage * siemens_coeff >= 1 && prob(25))
			heart_attack = 0
			if(stat == CONSCIOUS)
				src << "<span class='notice'>You feel your heart beating again!</span>"
	. = ..(shock_damage,source,siemens_coeff,safety,override,tesla_shock)
	if(.)
		electrocution_animation(40)

Zilenan91 · Post by **Zilenan91** » Sat Jan 02, 2016 6:09 am #144239

>immunity

What the fuck why

iamgoofball · Post by **iamgoofball** » Sat Jan 02, 2016 6:59 am #144243

"Ugh tesla a shit cant be countered"

Zilenan91 wrote:>immunity

What the fuck why

"Ugh it has a counter"

It's so engineers can work on the engine and people can defend themselves if it gets loose. Would you prefer I remove it entirely so you can't avoid dying from it?

Zilenan91 · Post by **Zilenan91** » Sat Jan 02, 2016 7:03 am #144244

I thought it would make you just take like 5 damage a shock if you have a hardsuit and gloves, not total immunity to it. It makes it a bit of a joke if you can just walk around and not give a damn that there are millions of watts of electricity shooting through you.

Post by **Shaps-cloud** » Sat Jan 02, 2016 7:12 am #144245

iamgoofball wrote:"Ugh tesla a shit cant be countered"

Zilenan91 wrote:>immunity

What the fuck why
"Ugh it has a counter"

It's so engineers can work on the engine and people can defend themselves if it gets loose. Would you prefer I remove it entirely so you can't avoid dying from it?

It's completely uncounterable for 95% of the station and completely counterable for the 1-2 people who would actually let it loose in the first place.

iamgoofball · Post by **iamgoofball** » Sat Jan 02, 2016 7:21 am #144246

Shaps wrote:
iamgoofball wrote:"Ugh tesla a shit cant be countered"

Zilenan91 wrote:>immunity

What the fuck why
"Ugh it has a counter"

It's so engineers can work on the engine and people can defend themselves if it gets loose. Would you prefer I remove it entirely so you can't avoid dying from it?
It's completely uncounterable for 95% of the station and completely counterable for the 1-2 people who would actually let it loose in the first place.

So what do you propose I give to the crew to allow them to "counter" the engine that already is going to result in a red alert shuttle call just like the singularity and end the round in 10 minutes, that doesn't make the engine underpowered against it?

Zilenan91 · Post by **Zilenan91** » Sat Jan 02, 2016 7:25 am #144250

Just make it so full protection only makes you take like 5 damage per shock instead of total immunity.

Jazaen · Post by **Jazaen** » Sat Jan 02, 2016 8:22 am #144261

Also, making it Singulothable would be great, or giving all hardsuits some resistance. While Lord Singuloth does favour engineering a bit (hardsuits with jetpacks and good rad protection), for tator engineer relasing tesla has NO disadvantage.

Gun Hog · Post by **Gun Hog** » Sat Jan 02, 2016 8:30 am #144263

Jazaen wrote:Also, making it Singulothable would be great, or giving all hardsuits some resistance. While Lord Singuloth does favour engineering a bit (hardsuits with jetpacks and good rad protection), for tator engineer relasing tesla has NO disadvantage.

All hardsuits provide 95% resistance to the Tesla shock, not just Engineering ones. That means most heads, miners, engineers, and Atmos personnel can avoid it. Assistants and Cargonians have a chance to survive due to their easy access to insulated gloves.

The singulo can eat the Tesla engine, resulting in an explosion that usually negates both of them, leaving nothing. Attempting to start both engines at the same time in the containment field will result in an explosion and loss of both engines.

Jazaen · Post by **Jazaen** » Sat Jan 02, 2016 8:39 am #144266

Oh, thanks for clearing this up. This means that RD with autocloner/death wish can charge at Tesla with two bags of holding, right?

DemonFiren · Post by **DemonFiren** » Sat Jan 02, 2016 11:24 am #144281

If he doesn't get zapped from half a mile away.

Amnestik · Post by **Amnestik** » Thu Jan 21, 2016 7:43 pm #147895

I was just saying to my friendly in deadchat how it's not got a lot of counterplay if it murders you as soon as you see it.

Like, give people at least a second to run out of its range. Bearing in mind different people have different amounts of lag, and buttons don't always register, etc.

tl;dr i ded nerf pls

Zilenan91 · Post by **Zilenan91** » Fri Jan 22, 2016 12:33 am #147969

Sometimes it does let you get away, and sometimes it doesn't. It's to do with how the beams target things, sometimes I've seen them have retarded ricochets and kill people in atmos from the SMES rooms, and other times people have been right next to it and been totally fine.

DemonFiren · Post by **DemonFiren** » Fri Jan 22, 2016 8:27 am #148077

I run as soon as I hear it.

I generally don't fry.

Lumbermancer · Fri Jan 22, 2016 8:41 pm

I would remove tesla altogether, but if you really want to keep it, there should be some kind of a warning about its presence. You can see Singulo from the distance, enough to get away most of the time. While In case of Tesla, you can walk a completely normal hallway and then BAM get killed instantly without any warning or chance of survival. It's a definition of not fun.

Make the area around Tesla do emote text, something like "you can feel static electricity crackling in the air and on your hair".

ShadowDimentio · Fri Jan 22, 2016 9:29 pm

Tesla is so, so much worse than the singu. Singu gets out, fuck we might lose engi and atmos but the world isn't over. Tesla gets out, OH GOD CALL IT EVERYONE IS GOING TO DIE AAAAAAAAAAAAA

Remove.

iamgoofball · Post by **iamgoofball** » Sat Jan 23, 2016 1:00 am #148206

there's a nerf PR up that makes the tesla inferior to the singulo in terms of power generation, are you happy now or are you still going to demand removal