Journey gamemode

[Ahammer18]

I was thinking that it would be really cool if there was a gamemode about exploring the regions of space around SS13.

The sequence of events would be as follows:

1. Centcomm announces a new exploration initiative, tells crew it will send a shuttle and that they should prepair
2. Shuttle docks, everyone boards
3. Shuttle flies around to different Z levels in a randomized order, each one containing many treasures and dangers. (the crew could have objectives such as 'collect X' or 'neutralize Y')
4. Gamemode ends with the shuttle docking at centcomm OR the shuttle being destroyed by the hostile inhabitants of the various locations

Victory/defeat conditions

Victory:
Major: Shuttle docks at centcomm with more than 75% of crew alive AND its objectives complete
Minor: Shuttle docks at centcomm with less than 75% of crew alive OR with not ALL of its objectives complete, but not none

Defeat:
Major: The shuttle is destroyed, and the crew scattered and/or dead
Minor: the crew is unable to complete its objectives.


Discuss

[PKPenguin321]

A use for the gateway: The mode

sounds pretty cool

[Helios]

http://www.pixeltailgames.com/elevator/

Shuttle:Source

Seriously though, even if it doesn't become a mode, it could become a neat button. The shuttle having to make a pitstop on the way back to centcomm, at a random location.
Could be fun.

[Screemonster]

Sounds neat, but how2handle latejoins or people who miss the shuttle?

[Remie Richards]

Sounds neat, but how2handle latejoins or people who miss the shuttle?

They play extra characters, people who get picked up at stops, enemies, etc.

[lumipharon]

Should just make it the white ship/new purpose built ship, with a gateway inside.
Crew gets a bit of time to put shit on the ship/pimp it out before going where no man has gone before.
Console could have multiple destinations at any given time. Going to a destination gives a cool down before you can continue onwards, to new destinations (also gives time to explore/for whatever threat if any at that instance to do shit)

Different places could include:
ADVENTURE in deep space (spess pirates/carp breeding ground etc etc)
ADVENTURE when parking the ship at some space station/asteroid/planet/derelict ship
ADVENTURE as you get close enough to something to use the gateway to reach it (Basically the above, only accessed via gateway for ADVENTURE as you try find your way back to a working gate to get back on ship)

Regardless, this sort of thing could really be neat.

Late joins could get put into the next destination the ship reaches, as some crazy survivor/native/etc.

[PKPenguin321]

oh oh oh, we could make it like a full-fledged orion trail type thing!
we could throw in other antags at certain stops, say you have to pull over and inspect some strange asteroid (that is really spooky looking and also blocks out comms because it's made of tin-foil) and the game makes a ghost into a changeling there, and then the changeling eats one of your dudes and secretly infiltrates your ship.

or there could be assaults on syndicate outposts and the game could spawn a player controlled nuke op team into it that has to fight off the crew. if the crew wins they get sweet, sweet syndicate tech; or the crew can skip that stop entirely and not risk the potential deaths.

you could get an abductor UFO following your ship that secretly sneaks off the people that stay behind while the rest of the crew is out exploring.

there could be a stop where there's a massive blob, and when you dock it tries to expand onto your ship you have to defend your ship from it until the engines are ready to get away.

[Ahammer18]

Working on a bit of the story, here.

Central Command Update

Hello crew of XXX, this is Central Command,

We regret to inform you that your station's self destruct sequence has been activated by a covert virus uploaded by the syndicate. They also seem to have destroyed the navigation beacons the emergency shuttle uses to get around.

There is some good news, however! The old beacons that we never retrieved from the original shuttle are still intact, so if you can manage to piece together a shuttle, you can jump from point to point until you reach us.

No human of Nanotrassen has set foot on any of these outposts for nearly a decade, so we have no idea what awaits you, but you have little choice.

The stations on board nuclear fission device will detonate in T minus XXX minutes.



Godspeed.

[PKPenguin321]

i pictured it more like,

CONGRATULATIONS, [Station Name]!

Your station has been randomly selected to do the most important part of research in space: Space exploration. This is a vital process of Nanotrasen's space station program; therefore, failure to comply will be met with immediate termination.

You will be given 10 [or however many minutes the gamemode will give] minutes to prepare for departure. Please gather any supplies you may deem necessary. Take note that EVA gear, atmospheric equipment, replenishable food sources, and medical supplies have been deemed Critical Priority-Level Resources by the Nanotrasen Safety Foundation (tm).

[If there is a captain:] Your head of staff, [Captain's name], will be leading the exploration program. He will be given a choice of destinations and be allowed to select whichever he thinks would be most beneficial. [Captain's name], how you decide will be up to you, be it through a vote or through tyranny. Godspeed!

[If there is no captain:] It seems your station lacks a proper head of staff to lead the exploration program. Please deem whoever you feel fit to lead as your captain as soon as possible, as he will be vital in deciding what routes to take during your journey.

Your journey will end at the Central Command Checkpoint #13 Delta. New arrivals to the station during your journey will be sent to your ship from the station via the gateway. Failure to enter through the gateway within 5 minutes of arrival will result in immediate termination.

Good luck, and have a secure day.

[MisterPerson]

This is more of a different game entirely than a new gamemode.

[Jacquerel]

The problem with a gamemode that leaves the station is that 90% of game roles and systems are designed to use the station.
Once you leave, all the scientists, janitors, chefs, barmen, hydroponicists, engineers, miners, cargo crew, and virologists are out of a job.
Security don't really have one either, unless they become the only people allowed to use guns to fight the monsters (which they will, because good luck convincing them to let these newly unemployed losers have their guns).

[newfren]

Jobs which won't have a purpose on the boat:

All of science
Chemistry
All of supply
Janitor
Hydro if they want to do anything interesting
Librarian
Warden
Detective
Atmos Tech

Jobs that have to do a lot of tedious work every time this round comes up moving their entire workplace if they want to keep playing their job
Geneticist
Virologist
Bartender
Hydro (if they want to do literally anything)
Chef
AI

No thank you.

[Steelpoint]

You would have better luck making it spawn everyone inside a derelict space ship and telling them they just evacuated off of SS13 and that they have X minutes to repair the ship to get it moving.

The ship would need to be fairly large, at least double that of the evac shuttle.

[lumipharon]

You can build everything you need for every single job on a ship - you just have to be compact about how you design it.

Edit: As an example, this is what I did on the metastation white ship, and this was before shuttle tiles became destructable, which makes it even more flexible.
Edit2: And I made an even more sophisticated on later that had an AI + camera network, and a full atmos system that was able to pull air from docked stations, as well as pump gas back out, if needed.

[DaemonBomb]

Will I get to pretend I'm in star trek? What if the ship has a high maintenance engine where atmos techs will need to actively maintain coolant and stuff while the ship flies, and Engineers will need to maintain shielding and... the possibilities are endless.

[onleavedontatme]

I remember when Cheridan and Pete and I were gonna try and do this. I probably still have the google doc stuff

[Cheimon]

Will I get to pretend I'm in star trek? What if the ship has a high maintenance engine where atmos techs will need to actively maintain coolant and stuff while the ship flies, and Engineers will need to maintain shielding and... the possibilities are endless.

A high maintenance engine, huh? I can't see that ending badly.

Actually, no, let's be blunt. The singulo just requires basic 'keeping an eye on' and is regularly fucked up. It results in a bunch of rounds ending in a shitty way. Is it fun? Eh. Star Trek has many good points, but high maintenance equipment isn't one of them (or wouldn't be on this game at least, where even basic maintenance is frequently met with total incompetence).

[lumipharon]

Thats because if the singulo fucks up, it FUCKS UP EVERYTHING.

There can be other levels of fucked up - slower engine spool time, having to eva and repair burnt out shit etc etc - not everythin has to utterly destroy the station/ship.

[DaemonBomb]

[quote="Cheimon"
A high maintenance engine, huh? I can't see that ending badly.

Actually, no, let's be blunt. The singulo just requires basic 'keeping an eye on' and is regularly fucked up. It results in a bunch of rounds ending in a shitty way. Is it fun? Eh. Star Trek has many good points, but high maintenance equipment isn't one of them (or wouldn't be on this game at least, where even basic maintenance is frequently met with total incompetence).[/quote]
Maaaaan, I just wanna play CE and yell shit like "We got a coolant leak, people, Atmos Techs, respond! The engine's heating up! Engineers, divert power from medbay to shields!" ect. ect.

Lemme live out my childhood fantasies pls.

Jokes aside, I really like this gamemode idea. I think something like this that forces players to actually do stuff while in a space the size of the white shit would be pretty neato (And probably pretty chaotic, but not in a Rev way where everyone is valid.)

[ThanatosRa]

What about keeping the option to stay on the station and go all tribal and shit.

[rockpecker]

Thats because if the singulo fucks up, it FUCKS UP EVERYTHING.

I always thought supermatter achieved a good level of fucked up: you get LOTS of advance warning before it goes up, and then it trashes the room it's in, and makes everyone else mildly sick. Medbay hands out antitoxin pills, engineers look at the damage and decide between We Can Fix It and Wire The Solars, and maybe some rooms lose power for a few minutes but it's not a round-ending disaster every time.

[AnonymousNow]

To put it simply, rounds are ended by significantly less dangerous things than the singularity on a very regular basis; a high-maintenance engine would cut us down to the minimum amount of time it takes to call the shuttle, consistently.

[rockpecker]

To put it simply, rounds are ended by significantly less dangerous things than the singularity on a very regular basis; a high-maintenance engine would cut us down to the minimum amount of time it takes to call the shuttle, consistently.

Yet another reason for fixed-length rounds with a crew transfer shuttle at the end.

[PKPenguin321]

here's an important question: how big can a shuttle be before moving it will lag the server?

[whodaloo]

hbl once threw a ship that was sized about a tenth of the station AT the station once and the serb only froze for a couple seconds

I wouldn't think just moving a ship would lag that badly since all you're really doing is shifting it to the 'moving' z-level and then moving it to wherever you wanna go

but I'm no coder

EDIT TO CLARIFY: yeah moving big shuttles will lag but only for a second or so since the actual moving action would be z-level shift, shuttle movement's not real movement

[PKPenguin321]

then why don't we just make the journey ship ministation or something

[Helios]

Does this mean we could visit old content?
Like the old prison station?