Poll: Aim the Nerfbat of Damocles: AI-side (II)

[keith.lamothe]

Nominations from this thread.  Also look there if you want an explanation of what we're doing here.

(note: The AI did catch some of the nominations that didn't follow directions, but it probably selectively omitted some of them.  There's always the next poll )

So, who gets the bat?  2 votes per person this time, and I'll try to do something with the top 2 results (excluding anything which fails to do better than the "None of the above" option), but probably not more than that because "processing" the results tends to significantly bog down if there's a ton of winners.

This is specifically just for the AI units.  Obviously, nerfing some units will nerf them for both sides, but there's a separate poll from the specifically "nerf this for human usage" nominations.

Thanks for the feedback

[TechSY730]

Wasn't special forces buildup rate also nominated for a nerf? That is what one of my voted would go to.

[TechSY730]

Also, if zombards do win (as it looks like they will), I oppose "slitting" them into AI and human versions (like the Raid starship)
I think adjusting the AI only "cost multiplier" type things for zombards is a better, less intrusive way to go.

[Lancefighter]

As much as I really wouldve loved to vote for the wormhole guard posts here, there are just too many things I would like to see toned down a bit.

For instance - those silly ravenous shadow things. In my opinion just far too fast. I felt like I had to wait for the enclave starships to stop, so they would engage the bases before I could really do anything.

And zbombards have been annoying me a lot recently..

[Aeson]

I voted for Gravity emitters (for the same reason as in the other thread), and for the Colony Ship Bombs. That scenario is probably the hardest I've played so far by a very wide margin due to the power of the colony ships, aside from the first time I tried the Neinzul Mourner Warden scenario and thought "Well, why not just pop all of these all at once? That's a great idea!"

I also agree with TechSY730 that if Special Forces spawn rates were up for a nerf, I would have voted for them, even though it encourages the feeling that the human remnant forces cannot win in a contest of strength. However, if they did get a nerf, they might also need some slight behavior modifications. The first game I played after special forces were changed, I ended up activating the Botnet Golem for the first time and baiting the special forces into a system I invaded with it. I gained a little over a thousand zombies from that, which now kindly kill the special forces as they race to their own doom trying to clear out the roughly 1000 zombies that are still in that system, and every time those zombies start getting thinned out I send the Botnet back to make some more. The special forces don't stand a chance of cleansing the system of the zombies unless I get distracted for a very long time since they keep arriving at the system piecemeal, and this is despite one or two exo waves having passed through that system on the way to my territory.

[Hearteater]

I agree that I would prefer bombards not get a stat nerf, but get something else instead:
* lower wave multiplier
* make one of the turrets immune to antimatter bombs
* give them a 5 second reload on passing through any wormhole (which would include waves)

[Lancefighter]

How about.. Giving them the same setup time that the spire siege engines do?
mm thats probably far too over the line. What if after firing they are paralyzed/slowed down somehow? The idea being that they cant move and shoot as efficiently as other ships, but still can if they must.

[KDR_11k]

"gravity turrets"?

[Kahuna]

"Aim the Nerfbat of Damocles: AI-side (II)"
"Gravity turrets"
O_o <--- confused panda
Since when did AIs use Gravity turrets?

[Kahuna]

Wasn't special forces buildup rate also nominated for a nerf? That is what one of my voted would go to.

Yes it was. By me.. I think. But it was. Special Forces and Core Reserve respawn rates.

[KDR_11k]

Did you prefix it with *Nomination: ?

I've voted for SGDs (occasional gravity is fine but these things are just omnipresent when the AI has them, they're roaming with the special forces in the hundreds and appear in practically every system. Even one of them is enough to shut down all fleet movement in a wide area so having them scattered around liberally makes it so you're stuck in gravity like half of the total playtime) and the colony bombs (the scenario was extremely easy for me since I just unlocked the destroyer but it's just so damn arbitrary. The ships are so fast that they go from being outside weapons range to hitting you before your weapons realize there's something to shoot at, your only bet is to kill the enemy bases and hope the random spawns don't mess you up too bad).

[Kahuna]

Did you prefix it with *Nomination: ?

Not sure. Maybe I should have written it more clearly. Oh well will nominate it next time.

[DeBunny]

I tossed my vote to the SGDs here too.
In small numbers they're okay, serving as irritating-but-acceptably-so enemies.
But once they start appearing in force, it kind of just becomes flat out annoying, since it means there's probably hordes of other ships too.
Never live long enough to actually reach the drain hordes and remove them.

Don't really have an opinion on the other options.
I kind of like how mean the zenith bombards are.

[TechSY730]

Nerfing zombards in ways that both played will get but the AI abuses more so it is more of a nerf to AI use would actually be an even better, more natural way to go about it.

Anyways, can we PLEASE have special forces rate be added in, as it was intended to be nominated anyways? I feel that this is a big enough "fun inhibitor" that I don't think it can wait another week or two to be considered.

[Kahuna]

Nerfing zombards in ways that both played will get but the AI abuses more so it is more of a nerf to AI use would actually be an even better, more natural way to go about it.

Anyways, can we PLEASE have special forces rate be added in, as it was intended to be nominated anyways? I feel that this is a big enough "fun inhibitor" that I don't think it can wait another week or two to be considered.

Agreed and agreed