Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

[Tassadar]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

Oh wow Lurker, I now wish I had an original copy of XCOM so that I could take that nostalgia trip... Probably going to be using the newer games for inspiration for this, just for simplicity's sake, but yes, any ideas would be welcome.

And good point Squid... I guess for a tabletop game it might be more acceptable to go with that, but for pbp... I'll admit I don't have a great deal of experience in this regard, so if any veteran pbp GMs have some suggestions, I'd be open to those.

Minimize the number of rolls you need to do, and either roll or decide initiative before you do anything else. The new XCom's rules actually seem like they'd be pretty simple to transfer simply to PbP, since it basically uses a fairly transparent system of percentages which is easy to replicate with d100s as you're doing, with a d100 to hit and another d100 to crit sounding reasonable. The small list of actions also makes it pretty easy to simulate in a pbp, and I would recommend leaving it at that without trying to fiddle with it too much. A separate thread for rolls wouldn't hurt but isn't necessary in my opinion, just make sure that each rolls post is tied to the combat it's for via links. New XCom tends to have pretty quick combat, assuming you don't get those irritating rounds where everyone dodges everything, so if people in combat post at a reasonable rate it shouldn't take too terribly long.

I can help with the rolling if you want, since I'm pretty used to the mass rolls by this point, but in the interests of fairness I wouldn't be comfortable in actually deciding enemy actions, even if my character wasn't involved in an engagement.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

Mm. The quick combat is something I hope to keep. For any worries about both sides hunkering down and turtling it out, if the PCs decide to do that, the aliens will then move to flank them, so staying in one place isn't going to be the best idea (kind of true in the games too).

I figure combat missions can be split into two phases, exploration, which is what they start in when you come off the Skyranger and start looking for the aliens, and combat itself, when shots are exchanged. Could move back and forth between the two phases as well. The exploration phases can be done quicker, with people just saying where they move to.

Any help with the dice rolling would be appreciated, but yah, I'd be keeping any alien tactical decisions to myself. Though I think people can just post their dice rolls at the bottom of their action post. I'll even make the aliens' defensive bonuses available so people can tell after they roll whether they hit or not and can describe the hitting or missing in the same post. Again, kind of fits with the new games and how you know your chances of hitting before taking the shot.

For initiative... I think what I'll do is have it split between XCOM turns and Alien turns (and Civilian turns if any are present). During the XCOM turns I'll let the players decide who gets to act in what order to allow for tactical maneuvering. During the alien and civvie turns, I'll probably come up with an order at the mission start and stick with that through the whole mission.

Weapon damage is somewhat variable, so might need dice rolls for that too, or I can just change the weapons to always deal their average damage for the sake of expediency.

 

[lurker]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

Ooh, the perks are up. Time to get to work there with helping out

Plot Immunity: Something, or someone is watching over you. You won't be killed in battle, but that doesn't mean you won't get hurt or put in very bad situations. However, unless you decide to give up, there'll always be a chance to return to the base.
Special Action: Heroic Sacrifice: You can choose to sacrifice your immortality in order to achieve some particular goal. Possibilities range from putting yourself between an alien shot and a valuable civilian or fellow soldier, entering a toxic gas filled room in order to open a door to let your squad escape, staying behind to ensure that an airstrike takes out a Chryssalid infestation, or flying a self-destructing alien ship out into orbit so that it doesn't take the planet out with it. When making a heroic sacrifice, the goal you are trying to achieve is guaranteed to be successful, but, obviously, you won't survive long enough to enjoy it. There are, of course, some limits, and are to be determined by the GM on a case-by-case basis.

An excellent way of offering a reusable character, while still giving a option to 'trade it off' when needed. After all, some shit you don't just walk off like apparently some JRPGs love to do it.

Specialized Training: Before being moved to the XCOM project, you were trained in a specialized field. You start in the class of your choosing (Support, Assault, Sniper or Heavy) with the ability to use that class's weapons and armor, as well as any benefits that come from being a part of that class. You do not, however, start with the class's Squaddie level promotion ability but will gain that upon promotion. When being promoted to Squaddie, you can't choose another class to change to.

Seems like a fair enough way to ensure a ground class easy enough.

Night Eyes: You've trained in low-light low-visibility conditions. Your detection range isn't affected by light levels or by obscuring conditions such as weather or smoke.

Basic, generic, to the point, works for everyone.

Tech Specialist: You've got a knack for working with machines and probably would have gone on to join the XCOM project's Engineering division if you weren't also a good soldier. You count as an Engineer on the XCOM staff, as well as a soldier. Additionally, you can repair SHIVs, MECs and any other friendly mechanized units in the field. This takes an attack action and heals the unit for 1 HP, however, this ability requires no research or special tools and can be done an unlimited number of times in a mission.
Special Promotion Ability: Pet Drone: If you capture an alien drone, upon mission completion, the drone is not disassembled. Instead, you keep it in your inventory and can deploy it on future missions. As long as your pet drone survives a mission, it will remain usable. You can only have one pet drone at a time.

Cool little additional bit there with the Pet Drone, and I like the idea of mixing up field ops and secondary staff.

Science Officer: Brain and brawn, you're a scientist as well as a soldier and count as such on the XCOM staff. Not quite sure what other abilities this perk gives, leaning to things like battlefield autopsies or being able to use an unresearched alien weapon for a few actions per battle or something.

My two cents on this one: perhaps at the end of a mission, due to battlefield 'research', there's a chance (I'd say, maybe 25/50%) of a Science Officer noticing or theorizing on what he witnessed, adding a certain amount of research progression to a project relating to the encounter (Alien Interrogation, Alien Autopsy, Weapon Research, etc.). For a active, Battlefield Autopsy seems like a good one, ensuring some added bonuses to a Autopsy research if he's able to pull it off. This could be further augmented to not be limited to corpses, allowing him/her to research weapons and other alien artifacts in a similar manner, gathering data on the subject matter. As a counterbalance, I suggest that the object of research should count as being lost or destroyed at the end of the mission, having been too abused by the field agent's usually armored and under-fire explorations.

Alien Ancestry: The aliens have been observing and meddling on Earth for some time now (at least since the 60s). In that time they've made a few changes to some humans' genetic code. Now that they've started their full-on attack, you find that this hitherto unknown trait allows you to use alien weapons and tools without assistance. However, alien devices aren't made for human hands, so you take a penalty to Aim when using unresearched alien weapons (exactly how much, I'm not sure yet), and an equal penalty when using any other alien device that hasn't been researched yet.

This seems like a better perk for the 'use alien weapons' abilities you first proposed in Science Officer, especially as it's further refined and has drawbacks. Perhaps, when Humans harness the weaponry proper, they can also get a added bonus to Aim when they get the proper human-compatable grips?

As for downsides, if you want to give them, I suggest increased, ahem, 'compatibility' with aliens as well as a detriment to resisting alien psionics.

Wild Talent: As a child people thought your house was haunted due to poltergeist activity. In actuality, it was due to awakening psionic powers. Not quite sure the full effect of this, but probably gives some bonus to using psi powers and you're guaranteed to have "the gift". Possibly adds some minor psi ability that can be used even before psi testing becomes available. Maybe a watered down mindfray ability that becomes upgraded upon proper awakening.

Another good perk to 'assure' a person's role as a psisoldier.

I also agree with your thoughts on turn order copying OldCom for the most part. Gimme a bit and I'll try to think up some extra perkthings if ya want!

 

[lurker]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

Separating this little suggestion section into classes, with UFOpedia hopefully being used to bridge my gap between OldCom and NewCom as far as classes are concerned :S

Generics

Spoiler

Infertile - No matter how many times you get a face full of alien wing-wong, offsprings won't result from the not-so-happy union. Alas, certain alien species utilize ovisposition and thus, this perk won't trigger in that regard. (Primarily Crysalids and the like)
Fistful of Frag - Grenades are always fun for the whole family! When using a grenade, you get a bonus to your accuracy, and a re-roll should you scatter too far away. (Think 10 meters or so of scatter distance)

Assault

Spoiler

Run for Your Life! - The sheer speed Assault troopers move at makes aiming at specific vitals that much more difficult. If having moved twice during that turn, increase defensive values by #

Heavy

Spoiler

Bipod Deployment - When the heavy takes cover, the Heavy can activate it's bipod attachment on his weapon, equating to a bonus in accuracy.

Sniper

Spoiler

Infiltration - Using increased training, Infiltration allows a Sniper to move into a position near the Skyranger rapidly. The Sniper can start at a position within Dash range of the Skyranger, as long as it's not uncovering any alien threats. Technology use like grappling hooks and jetpacks can be used during this time as well.

Support

Spoiler

Flares - Support soldiers without any form of enhanced sighting with these nice and bright combat flares, chucked from your infinite pockets.

MEC Trooper

Spoiler

Strafe Booster - A minor augmentation available for MEC Troopers, this equips the MEC with jet thrusters able to give it a quick burst to a singular direction. Most useful for dodging, this allows MECs to get an increase defensive bonus when under fire.
Pilot Failsafe - It may not be much if you escape from death, but the MEC suit can be modified to launch you from the smouldering wreckage should the MEC go down. Sadly, without limbs you'll have a hard time contributing to the battle, and lord knows what the aliens will do to the vulnerable...
Inbuilt Lighting - Attached to the shoulders of the MECs, this allows the MEC to act as a source of illumination to buddies. This will make the MEC even MORE obvious to enemies though.

Psion

Spoiler

Mental Focus - Hardening your mind, you can strike more efficiency with your mental powers. The Psion has a slight bonus to striking with mental powers.

Tech Specialist

Spoiler

Onfield S.H.I.V. Control - While also able to attack by itself, the Tech Specialist onsite may also assist with direct connections with the S.H.I.V device, perhaps allowing advanced maneuvers or accuracy bonuses. Still a tad sketchy. However, should the Tech Specialist put in charge of a S.H.I.V. be incapacitated, the S.H.I.V. becomes inoperable.

Science Officer

Spoiler

Field Strip - No, not like that! This ability allows Science Officers to attempt to locate extra sources of Alien technology during a mission, such as stripping out components of alien bombs and so on. This maneuver happens at the end of the mission, adding a percentage boost to gained loot.

Pilot

Spoiler

Old-Time Flyboy - You're either a aficionado of the early days of dogfighting or you actually flew way back then, but either way you get a bonus to Craft Dodge during Alien Interceptions at Aggressive combat distance when using Cannon-type Craft Weapons.
Lock-On Targeting - A modern-day Top Gun, you have subtly 'tweaked' your aircraft targeting systems, granting a bonus to hit at Standard and Cautious distances with Missile-type Craft Weapons during a Alien Interceptions
Paratrooper - You're not touching that Interceptor or Skyranger unless it has a fully-functioning ejection pod, dammit. This ensures that if you are shot down when preforming a Alien Interceptions, you can survive from the fiery explosions, granting the option for either limping back to the nearest XCom facility or (sometimes) a new away-mission option for your allies. Careful, you may not always get found by the Skyranger first...

Heavy/Fatal Wounds

Spoiler

First, lemme explain how this would work. I blame E.Y.E. Divine Cybermancy for this one, but perhaps for characters that get tied to Plot Immunity, there can still be a detriment to when they 'fail' and fall unconscious. Essentially, this would manifest into a Heavy Wound, offering a minor or major detriment chosen at random. These can also kinda be thought of as general flaws for everyone else, or they could manifest if, say, a stay in the Medbay goes longer than a week to recover. Naturally, there will be ways to reverse this or make immunities, but perhaps nothing we know of in modern human medical skills.

The effect of Heavy/Fatal Wounds should also be 'stackable'. They should start small (at MOST I'd say a -3 or so), but this should start to 'add up' until a cure has been found, making a worse convenience. This list has been seperated as a result, leading to ones that are 'one-time-only' effects, and others that are perfect for stackable effects.

Breathless - You used to be better at running, but then you took a Plasma to the everything, thus you now have some slight issues with your movement distance now.
Mental Exploit - A psionically enhanced alien has left a 'backdoor' into your mind, allowing attempts to mind control or panic you even easier when a alien uses psy powers.
Shivers - You've seen some serious shit, and your hands are all jittery, offering a minor decrease to combat accuracy.
Corrupted Body - The aliens have done... something to your body as a side-effect of close contact or residual artifact interference. Your strength and agility has been decreased, and your compatibility with alien species has been slightly altered to the worse for humanity.

Stockholm Syndrome - You start to question if the aliens are truly as terrible as you thought they are. When attempting lethal actions against aliens, you have a small (perhaps 10%) chance of freezing at the trigger, forfeiting your combat maneuver. There is some work-arounds to this, of course, if you're using deployed weapons and so on.
Delusional - The operative starts suffering from visions, seeing enemies that aren't there. Unfortunately, this equates to randomly firing all over at everything BUT the enemy when it happens. This happens occasionally during a standard attempt to fire at a target.
Alien Sleeper - You're under their control, you just don't know it yet. At the DM's discretion, you can be taken control of by the aliens for an unknown purpose or mission. Statwise you are the same, but as you are unable to control yourself, you are simply a bystander to the alien's actions. Others with Psion powers can attempt to disable the mind control, and your control is separated if your unknown objective is carried out, the objective is finished in another way, or if you are incapacitated. If the objective was stopped or completed, this perk is removed from the afflicted and is replaced with an instance of 'Mental Exploit'

Naturally a start, may just update this list as the thread goes on and feedback gets hit.

Also thinking some of these may require technology to be unlocked before a soldier can gain them, specially some of the MEC equipments.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

Ehhhh, weapon damage wasn't all THAT variable, mostly like 1d2 to 1d4 range (plus a static bonus and minus the target's defensive bonus) at most. I don't think averaging it is necessary, however, just that it didn't seem to vary all that much. Letting the players do their own rolls and whatnot is fine, so long as we all agree to use invisible castle or some other verifiable source of dice.

On a related note, will you be keeping all of the regular progression abilities that the various classes get, or will you be adding/changing things for the pbp?

 

[maikochan]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

(Aweosme Stuff)

Wow! I'll have to take a look at those when I'm not still half asleep and having to leave for work.

First thing though, I imagined the Tech and Science specialists being perks in their own right, not separate classes. Also Perks are only available at character creation, so making ones that build off of others might not be so good, though, admittedly, I haven't decided how many perks a character gets at the start, so there might be some use for Perks with other Perks as prerequisites. Similarly, MEC or Gene-modded have the problem as you normally can't start like that. Maybe some Perks might lay dormant until you get your augments or something, of have a lesser effect before that, kind of like with the Wild Talent Perk for psi soldiers.

Regarding the promotion abilities, most I'll leave as is. Some I might change for the sake of the game, and I won't be removing any. Might add some if I think of them, but at the moment, none come to mind.

Talking with Tass over IM, he mentioned changing the Heavy's Shredder Rocket to a more generalized Specialized Rocket Training that allowed the use of different kinds of rockets. Some possibilities for those included Incendiary and Stun (having an effect similar to the old Small Launchers).

Also for some new weapons, probably going to add non-MEC flamethrowers, though, obviously, they'd be weaker than the MEC versions.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

Well, I said I'd do it, so here are the progressions for the base classes with my suggestions. I am not doing the MEC or enhanced soldiers or psions just yet. Note that because I'm looking at a wiki, some of these may not reflect changes from Enemy Within.

Assault

Spoiler

Squaddie
Run and Gun - Fire or Overwatch after running. This one I wouldn't change at all.

Corporal
Tactical Sense - +5 defense (capped at +20) per enemy in sight. This one I wouldn't change either, so long as there is an easy way to determine line of sight. Possibly change to just a static bonus that maybe gets even more bonuses when cover is involved if you want something simpler, something like +10 by default, +5 more in light cover for a total of +15, and then +5 more i heavy cover for a total of +20.

Aggression - +10 crit chance (max +30) for every enemy in sight. Again, I'd leave this one alone if sighting is easy to determine, but if it isn't a static bonus of some kind would be simplest.

Sergeant
Lightning Reflexes - First overwatch fired at the trooper automatically misses. I love this ability and would hate to see it changed.

Close and Personal - in EU, gave +30 crit chance when in poking distance of an enemy. In EW, apparently makes the first shot free if the target is within 4 tiles. The first ability is a bit underwhelming since Aggression does the same thing, but the newer version seems pretty good if not outright overpowered. Not too sure about this one, I never took it in EU and haven't played enough EW to say much about it.

Lieutenant
Flush - shoot with reduced damage to force an enemy out of cover. I'd leave it alone unless you really don't like it.

Rapid Fire - shoot twice at -15 accuracy. Really good, probably better than flush considering it's an almost guaranteed kill a lot of the time (in EU) against anything weaker than a disc, so I'd either leave it alone or nerf it a little bit.

Captain
Close Combat Specialist - free shot on anything that gets within 4 spaces. Just leave it alone, assault needs it at that level.

Bring Em On - +1 damage on crits (up to +5) for each enemy that the character can see. Not bad, but given the assault's job I personally never took it over CCS, at least in EU. Again, if sight is easy for you to determine, just leave it alone.

Major
Extra Conditioning - bonus health depending on armor. I would leave it alone unless you plan on dramatically changing how armor works.

Colonel
Resilience - complete immunity to crits. Pretty spiffy, and could have stuff added to it relating to the Plot Immunity perk.

Killer Instinct - activating Run and Gun gives crits +50% more damage. Also pretty spiffy, though maybe a little less so compared to Resilience unless you really want to get them crits. I don't know how the synergy with Bring Em On works since I rarely ended up using this.

Heavy

Spoiler

Squaddie
Fire Rocket - missile launcher get! I recommend renaming to Rocket Launcher Training or Heavy Weapons Training but leaving it mechanically as is.

Corporal
Bullet Storm - get two shots with your main weapon. Don't change it.

Holo Targeting - shooting at or suppressing someone gives your allies +10 aim against them. I never took this compared to bullet storm, which is actually useful late game (double heavy plasma with heat ammo is the only quick way to salvage the sudden sectopod asspull in EU if you don't have a sniper to disable its main gun or two people to put suppressing fire on it) while this is kinda.... Meh. Even when you get it. Maybe give it scaling of some kind, or replace it entirely?

Sergeant
Shredder Rocket - gives a shredder rocket that does less damage but causes things hurt by it to take +33% damage for four turns. I recommend changing to Specialist Rocket Training to allow for taking other special rocket types as we discussed, and maybe allowing ye rocket ammo to be taken in slots with this, the base, and the later upgrade that gives you one more rocket letting you choose basic/special ammo at will. Up to you in the end though.

Suppression - allows the heavy to use suppressing fire. I always felt like this should be a general action, to be honest, but if you leave it the way it is I wouldn't recommend changing it. Suppress is honestly really useful against assholes hiding in heavy cover and sectopodes that show up out of nowhere.

Lieutenant
HEAT Ammo - gives double damage vs robotic enemies in EU, only +50% in EW. Change to Specialized Ammo Training or something like that and give more options.

Rapid Reaction - Get a second overwatch shot if the first hits. I never took it, so I don't know how useful this really is, but it certainly has potential I guess. Change it or leave it at your discretion.

Captain
Grenadier - carry two grenades per inventory slot (of which Heavy gets 1) and apparently gives grenades +1 damage in EW. I never took this, but if you like grenades.... Not sure if I could suggest anything other than maybe making it grant 3 per slot instead of just 2 or something.

Danger Zone - best name all games, also increases the AoE of rockets and suppression by 2 tiles. So fucking good hnnngggggggg...... I wouldn't change it.

Major
Will to Survive - reduce damage by 2 if you have cover and aren't getting it in the butt. It's an alright upgrade, but since you don't want to get hit while in cover in the first place it's arguably not all that useful. Leave or change at your discretion.

Colonel
Rocketeer - Get another rocket. I like it.

Mayhem - get additional damage based on weapon tech level to suppression and all AoE abilities. I love it.

Sniper

Spoiler

Squaddie
Headshot - shoot blam squish, shoot for the head for extra crit chance (+30%) and damage. I don't see why you'd even want to change this.

Corporal
Snap Shot - snipers can fire and go on overwatch after moving, but at a -10 (in EW) aim penalty. It was useful enough before for more mobile snipers, and the drop from -20 aim in EU only made it better. I'd leave it.

Squadsight - your allies sight counts as yours, though you still need line of sight. Apparently you can't crit on dudes you can only see via squadsite in EW unless you use headshot. I'm not sure if that was necessary or not, but I usually took snap shot on my exceedingly rare snipers so maybe someone else can offer better advice.

Sergeant
Gunslinger - pistols deal +2 damage. I always liked this upgrade, but only because I at least had laser pistols by the time I could take it. I'd just leave it alone, though giving it scaling of some sort might be appropriate as well.

Damn Good Ground - Gives (stacking with regular elevation bonuses) +10 aim and defense against dudes lower than you. Making pbp work in three dimensions is either extremely annoying or extremely easy, so it's really up to how you want to work out positioning in game.

Lieutenant
Disabling Shot - trick shot with -10 aim that disables an enemy's weapon, necessitating that they reload in order to fire. Really good, really useful throughout the game, very tacticool. Leave it be I say.

Battle Scanner - throw a thingy that scans, revealing nearby cloaked units and counts as a new source of vision for squadsight purposes.

Captain
Executioner - +10 aim vs targets with half health or less. It's alright, I don't know if I'd change it except maybe to make it less.... Underwhelming, like give it scaling or a damage/crit bonus as well.

Opportunist - no aim penalty on reaction (overwatch) shots, and allows overwatch shots to crit. Not bad, and I don't think I'd do anything to it. As it stands, it's easily the better of the two sniper captain upgrades, especially if the sniper has squadsight and got put on overwatch before someone else flushed out an enemy.

Major
Low Profile - partial cover is full cover. It's pretty good.

Colonel
In the Zone - killing a flanked or uncovered enemy doesn't cost an action. It's really good, and I'd leave it be.

Double Tap - lets you take two shots, including using headshot or disabling shot. Similar but potentially more useful since you only get it once, but you get more options and it doesn't require circumstances. I wouldn't change it.

Support

Spoiler

Squaddie
Smoke Grenade - chuck a grenade that grants a +20 defense bonus to an area for a turn. Quite useful, if situational, and the only way I'd change it is to do like the heavy's various stuff and change the name to allow for more options. Alternatively, change the name, make smoke grenades a grenade type like they bloody should be, and change the mechanics of this entirely.

Corporal
Sprinter - move 3 extra tiles. It's good, and should be left alone.

Covering Fire - allows overwatch when an enemy unit fires. Also good, and should be left alone.

Sergeant
Field Medic- lets medkits be used 3 times each. Leave it alone, it lets support do their job.

Smoke and Mirrors - more smoke grenades, 1 in EU and 2 in EW. Take it or leave it, I always left it. You should probably change this too if you change the basic smoke grenade ability.

Lieutenant
Revive- healing downed troopers not only saves them, it puts them back in the fight. Extremely good to the point of being vital, leave it as is.

Rifle Suppression - lets the support use suppression. Also good, but next to revive... I don't see how one could change it though, tbh.

Captain
Dense Smoke - smoke grenades have more AoE and have their defense bonus doubled. See below.

Combat Drugs - smoke grenades give +10 will and crit chance (and allegedly also a hidden +20 aim) to units inside. See below.

These two.... Are the worst fucking upgrades at captain level in the entire game. I never managed to squeeze much benefit out of either, though dense smoke might save someone caught out in the open from a muton horde or a sectopod in a pinch. I honestly want to say scrap them both entirely and replace them with something new, but that would require work and I can't say what. If you leave the entire smoke grenade line as is, you can just leave these too, but even sniper's relatively situational bonuses at captain are at least potentially useful more than 1 to 3 times. I guess if the +20 to aim is true in game thing is true the combat drugs is actually pretty swag, but still... Iunno, do what you think is best.

Major
Deep Pockets - one extra inventory slot or, in EW, apparently nerfed down to granting use items one additional use. Fuck that, use the EU version and let it stack with Tactical Rigging.

Colonel
Savior - Medkits restore 4 more health per use. This is pretty good late game, when it can mean the difference between a random mook dropping the guy you just revived and when people have 15+ health thanks to Titan armor. I'd leave it alone, or maybe even add another medkit use to sweeten the deal.

Sentinel - allows two overwatch shots instead of just one. Pretty good, and I'd leave it be.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

Okay, not going to be able to look over the perk/promotion suggestions in great detail today either, but here's a smut-o-meter rating for the game. People can request different levels if they want for more individual activities.

The Smut-O-Meter is an idea I came up for giving a rough idea of the balance of smut-to-story that is planned or expected in an RP. Think I'll be using it for any future games I run. (For an example, for those that played in the Eastern Pathfinder game I ran, that would be around a 2 or 3)

Smut-O-Meter

Spoiler

0-No Smut whatsoever.
1-If you go looking for it, you'll find smut, but it won't find you.
2-Smut appears where appropriate in the story, but the story is priority.
3-Smut regularly appears in the story, but story is still a priority.
4-Smut and story in equal measure, both having about equal weight.
5-Smut with a story to hold it up. Most Dark Gate threads seemed to follow this idea, at least that's how they seemed to me.
6-Any story only exists to string together smut scenes. aka: Freeko Mode.

XCOM RP Smut-O-Meter rating: 2. Given the kind of story, the above mentioned "appropriate" points in the story may be few and far between, so it might seem lower than this rating.

Also, Smut-O-Meter ratings relate only to the story as told by the GM(s), any player initiated smut isn't taken into account. Think of it like the ESRB's disclaimer about not rating online content.

 

[Rathuris]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

This is turning out to look like a pretty interesting game to play.

 

[Aust_Nailo]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

Wow. Apparently people had a lot more ideas for this then I could have guessed. Well, that just works out for everyone in the end.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

5-Smut with a story to hold it up. Most Dark Gate threads seemed to follow this idea, at least that's how they seemed to me.

Oi! Them's fightin words there gov'nah!

 

[Cappy]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

I'm a little disappointed there's not more interest for CVS, mostly because I've always wanted to non-erotically roleplay a supervillain. My mind swells with potential ideas.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

Oi! Them's fightin words there gov'nah!

Am I wrong?

I'm a little disappointed there's not more interest for CVS, mostly because I've always wanted to non-erotically roleplay a supervillain. My mind swells with potential ideas.

Yah, was kind of hoping CVS would be the preferred choice myself, but hey, democracy isn't perfect. Perfect in this context meaning "What I want for myself".

That doesn't mean the CVS won't ever happen, it'll just be put on the shelf until a later date.

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

Yes, at least for the threads that matter, but you're welcome to your own opinion.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

Yes, at least for the threads that matter, but you're welcome to your own opinion.

Oh okay. That's just how I perceived them. The 'point' of DG is a sexy RP game. The story is very good, don't get me wrong, but what I meant by that 5 is that sex and such occur with the story facilitating such actions. In addition to telling an awesome story.

I guess 5 might be better described as having a story that actively brings sex into the picture. Kind of like an opposite to 1, if you don't want sex to happen, you have to actively pursue that.

 

[Unknown Squid]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

Just ended up pondering the idea of soldier down time from wounds, mishaps and such as well as other mission roster stuff. In all the X-Com games as far as I'm aware, an agent getting wounded or otherwise not being available for a particular mission was quite a common occurrence. Whilst a bit of down time RP is certainly possible there, it seems like it could still threaten to have players sometimes forced to sit the game out whilst waiting for a mission to finish.

How were healing rates handled in New-Com? It also raises the question of time tracking policy if there is ever enough players to have more than one mission going simultaneously. Alternatively, if half the active players ever got badly wounded enough that a mission might be lacking in numbers, is it assumed that the base is simply short on staff, or might players be able to assume the role of additional characters or reserves?

 

[Tassadar]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

New-Com handled it more or less like Old-Com did, soldiers who got hurt but not killed were out of commission for a set time depending on how badly they got it. I'd say allowing someone to play multiple characters in the game is fine, but only if they don't get sent on the same missions together. Unless maybe a person goes on missions only with their characters, or something derp like that.

 

[lurker]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

Making a brace of characters may not be a bad idea anyway, considering how 'lethal' Xcom tends to turn into. Sure, Newcom isn't quite as lethal thanks to the huge amount of extra skills and powers you get, but it's still deadlyish.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

Yah, I'd be encouraging people to make more than one soldier. Also, thinking abstracting the time between missions. Lightly wounded soldiers (those that don't take a crit or don't need reviving) miss out on one mission. Critically wounded soldiers miss out on two or three. While they're out, they can still be RP'd in the base threads. Also, I mentioned the possibility of taking control of a SHIV for someone who didn't have a soldier available for a mission.

 

[maikochan]

Re: Interest Check for CVS 2.0 or XCOM RP

Doublepost for some new ideas. This time about SHIVs.

For those not familiar with New-com, SHIVs are the new HWPs. They're basically gun drones. They start off being tracked platforms with a machine gun on them. They can be upgraded to Alloy SHIVs, which allow soldiers to take cover behind them, and then Hover SHIVs, which, well, allows them to fly. They can also be upgraded to have a heavy laser and heavy plasma weapons. No Blaster SHIVs.

So for the RP, I'm thinking of expanding the SHIVs further and possibly making them modular, allowing for different SHIV parts to be put together to customize them. Also going to have different roles for the SHIVs to play as well, like support SHIVs that are equipped with a rifle-level weapon and some support device like a smoke launcher or healing mist device. Sniper SHIVs too, equipped with a sniper-level weapon. Rocket SHIVs for those fights where annihilating the enemy is more important than recovering artifacts or leaving any buildings standing.

So thinking of breaking SHIV parts down into Chasis, Weapon, and Utility. Chasis would be Standard, Reinforced (Alloy SHIV) and Hover. Maybe more. Weapon, pretty self explanatory, but would affect what kind of Utility part the SHIV can have, if any. Utility parts would be the things like smoke launchers, healing sprays, Arc throwers and so on. Anything else I can think up too (one such idea is for a construction foam sprayer, that sprays a foam that hardens in a few turns into a material that provides cover, or can be sprayed in such a way to block off an area).