While golems are by no means bad, there have been some comments (especially on the Discord server) that they are a bit "glass cannon", in contrast to what the name "golem" suggests.
So prompted by the discussion there, I threw together this mod to beef up golems a bit (including the AI ones
)
As they aren't bad, the increase is relatively modest (yes, 4x is rather modest, given the kinds of fleets golems are deployed against).
Feedback on balance is greatly appreciated. I am certain it will need work before it is ready to be applied to vanilla.
Some of the golems didn't really need a buff (I'm looking at your Regenerator), but I buffed them anyways to keep them in line with the new HP curve.
I have marked it as a cosmetic mod for easy A/B comparisons in the same scenario, but keep in mind you may encounter a bit of weirdness if you turn it on/off with non 1HP golems already alive in a game.
I may also look at arks as well, as they seem to be even squishier, but that will be a separate mod.
Changes:
Note that in vanilla, AI golems (except regenerator) have 2x the HP of human ones. This has been preserved for most golem types.
Because of their strength scaling super linearly over HP because of their gimmicks, and how annoying they are to play against, AI Botnet, and Black Widow golems only have 3x their base HPs, instead of 4x like the human counterparts do. And similarly for AI Cursed golem, 2.5x instead of 3x like their human counterparts
Armored Golem: 5x; 2000000->10000000 Hull; 1000000->5000000 Shields
AI Armored Golem: 5x; 4000000->20000000 Hull; 2000000->10000000 Shields
Artillery Golem: 3x; 900000->2700000 Hull; 450000->1350000 Shields
AI Artillery Golem: 3x; 1800000->5400000 Hull; 900000->2700000 Shields
# A trivial (for golem standards) amount of shields added to player version to give the player some forgiveness
# Even with the regeneration nerf, thanks to the HP increase, these can still get a 3/2 = 1.5x increase in the amount of HP that can be regened
Regenerator Golem: 3x; 3000000->9000000 Hull; 0->250000 Shields; Only half as effecient at regenerating ships (.3 HP regen / 1 HP lost -> .15 HP regen / 1 HP lost)
AI Regenerator Golem: 3x; 4000000->12000000 Hull; 2000000->6000000 Shields; Only half as effecient at regenerating ships (1 HP regen / 1 HP lost -> 0.5 HP regen / 1 HP lost)
Cursed Golem: 3x; 800000->2400000 Hull; 400000->1200000 Sheilds
AI Cursed Golem: 2.5x; 1600000->4000000 Hull; 800000->2000000 Shields
Botnet Golem: 4x; 1200000->4800000 Hull; 600000->2400000 Shields
AI Botnet Golem: 3x; 2400000->7200000 Hull; 1200000->3600000 Shields
Black Widow Golem: 4x; 1800000->7200000 Hull; 900000->3600000 Shields
AI Black Widow Golem: 3x; 3600000->10800000 Hull; 1800000->5400000 Shields
Hive Golem: 4x; 1400000->5600000 Hull; 700000->2800000 Shields
AI Hive Golem: 4x 2800000->11200000 Hull; 1400000->5600000 Shields
Hive Drone: 1.5x; 4000->6000 Hull; 2000->3000 Shields
AI Hive Drone: 1.5x; 8000->12000 Hull; 4000->6000 Shields
Spire Lost Frigate (Lance/Laser/Railcannon): 2.5x; 1800000->4500000 Hull; 900000->2250000