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I posted this map plan less than a year ago. I've come back to BroodWar and decided to actually do it. This plan is almost identical to the last one, except I've removed various extraneous features.

RED = This feature WILL NOT be inplemented in the final version of the map.
ORANGE = This feature will POSSIBLY implemented in the final version of the map.

Please read [as much as your brain can handle,] and post your thoughts and comments. Thanks!

P.S: Currently, I can't recover my password for 'Beardo' on USWest. Until then, you can whisper me on 'Elude'.





Space/Futuristic themed RPG map. Land/platform areas off to the sides. Space in the center. Multi or single player.

[SYSTEMS]

The space will be dividided into individual square/rectangles by individual impassable location. Each one of these sections of areas will be called a 'System'. A system will commonly have 1-2 ports. To travel from one system to another, you 'jump' (think hyperspace) with your vessel.
Jumping exerts a certain amount of fuel from your craft (I'll get into fuel later).

[FUEL]

Traveling with your ship exerts fuel. The rate of fuel consumption depends on you vessel (It will have a rating of Exellect, Good, Fair, Poor, Terrible)
Once you're out of fuel, your ship is immobilized, and cannot move until your obtain more. Fuel can be transfered from allys, or requested from neighboring ships (The neighboring, NPC ships dont actually have to be there).
Depending on your standing with one of their affiliated governments (I'll get into that later as well), the ship may refuel your vessel for free. If they're indifferent/hostile to you, then they will request money (Randomly determined).
Fuel can also be slowly regenerated while standing still if you pocess a solar generator (Upgrade that can be purchased). Each ship comes with a dedicated amount of maximum fuel. Along with a solar generator upgrade,
fuel expansion upgrades can be purchased as well. Normally, fuel can be purchased at most ports out there.

[GENERAL TRAVELING]

The ship's will be treated in a Space Pirate RPG style. As in, one main "Carrier" ship controled by one player, and several fighter ships controled by the remaining players.


[COMBAT]
Here it goes. The combat will be a FnD TBC system, where [if you dont already know] the players enter combat in random encounters with enemy ships.

[ENCOUNTERS]

Encounters start when each member of the party travels a certain amount
in their ship. The amount you have to travel is based on how 'hot' the system you're traveling in is (That is, how common it would be to encounter an enemy vessel; I.E: A lawless region has a much higher encounter rate than a secure, government controled system.)

Also, the amount you have to travel is randomly determined (Of course, based on the above factors) after each battle you complete)

The enemies that you face when you begin an encounter has to do with your faction standing with the government controllning the system you're in. I.E: If you're a fugative in a system, then the odds of big carriers and frigates spawning are greatly increased.

[COMBAT OPTIONS]

In combat, you're going to have 4 options on your turn: Attack, Missle/Projectile (Explained Later), Escape,
and finally Communications.

-ATTACK
If you've played FnD, you'll know what this is. If not, I dont want to get into it. If the timer reaches zero for selection and a player hasnt selected yet,
this option is automatically executed for that player.

-ESCAPE
A check is made; Your ships speed vs. The speed of the fastest opposing ship. If
your speeds higher, your ship is out of the battle (Not every players, just yours).

-COMMUNICATIONS
2 options here.

{Beg For Mercy} In combat, depending on how hostile the enemy craft is to
you, you may give a sum of money to the ship to evade the battle.
Same rules as escaping apply here; only your ship is taken out of
battle, not every players.

{Request Assistance} If you're in a potentially friendly system, requesting
assistance could bring a randomized number of friendly crafts
to help you against you're enemy. No bribes here, sorry.

Communications may be prevented with another ship if its pilot speaks a language you dont, or if you're in a system that has a poor communications field.

[ENEMIES IN COMBAT]
Opponents won't only attack, but will be randomized to use a variety of several
different attacks.

[VICTORY]

Congratulations, you won. When an enemy is killed, a dice is rolled to determine if the killer(s) get 'loot'. These dice chances can be increased by certain upgrades such as 'Hired Gun' (Theoretically, this makes it easier for your crew to aprehend disabeled ships and take their valubles). If the roll is sucessful, the killer of the ship get's an extra amount of money (The monetary unit is to be decided), and if the disabled ship pocessed any items (Usually missiles, or job/mission related items) the killer of the unit gets them (Don't worry; items can be traded between players). Your standing with their government(s) also changes (Usually for the worse).

If you have the right upgrades, you may even have a chance to hijack the disabled ship for yourself. A ships crew size (Explained below) is also a factor in
capturing a ship. A captured ship replaces your own ship though (MAYBE I'll implement an option to have it as an escort; which is explained later)

[DEATH]

If the main ship is destroyed, then all players aboard the ship are killed and defeated. However, if the ship is equiped with a [special] (For larger-ships) escape pod, the players are saved, and treat the escape pod as their vessel. You can't use any combat functions

Upon death, you also lose a sum of your money (Determined by the size of the ships 'Crew'; see below)

If any other ship (other than the main ship) is destroyed, then the same escape pod rules apply. If you dont have one, I hope you saved.

[SHIP STATS]

Ah, a new feature. I'll try my best to explain this.

Each ship has unique statistics attributed to it.

Speed: Each ship has this property. It basically determines how quickly
your ship can accelerate in space. It is possibly the most important
stat in this RPG, as it determines wheter or not missles
hit you, if you escape a battle, or get hit by a normal attack. Speed
(Like other stats) can be increased by purchasing and installing a
number of speed upgrades available to your ship. And like most
upgrades, a speed upgrade takes up a specific number of mass on
your vessel.

Mass: Each ship also has this property. It determines how much additional
weight your ship has for expansion for upgrades is available to you.
Mass expansion upgrades are available, however, they take up
cargo in your ship.

Cargo: Most ships have at least a small amount of this. Cargo is the
amount of spaced determined for transporting goods.
The more cargo you pocess, the more you can transport. The more
you can transport, the more money you are able to make from
delivery missions (More freight results in more money).
Cargo expansion upgrades are available, however, they take up
mass (See above).


Fuel: The maximum amount of fuel that your ship can carry at once.
Everyone can benefit from extra fuel. Fuel (as explained above)
is used for normal traveling, and jumping from system to system.
Fuel expansions are available at the expense of mass.

Crew: Each ship has a crew which [theoretically] helps control and
maintnenece of the ship. A ships crew is considered when
attempting to capture a ship. It also effects how much money
YOU lose when being destroyed by an enemy ship.

Armor (HP): Ships have DND Style HP. That is, they're HP starts out as, say,
2500/5000 HPs. Armor upgrades (NOT normal upgrades that you get at an engineering bay; custom
upgrades that are bought at a shop I.E: Duraplast Armor [+300]) increase the maximum amount of HPs you can have. So, for example, if
you had 2500/5000 HP, and you bought Duraplast Armor, it'd
increase to 2800/5000 HP. Armor upgrades take up mass on your
ship.

[ITEMS/UPGRADES]

There are several of these in this RPG. I'll explain them here.


[MISSLES/PROJECTILES]

Yes, this corresponds with the combat command. They're purchased at vendors/stores.

In order to fire a projectile or missle, you need to have a launcher or pod that corresponds to the missle you want to fire. Launchers/Pods can also fire a certain amount of missles on one turn. They will have a name like this: 'IR Missile Launcher (2)'. So, an IR Missle launcher can launch two missles per turn.

Missles have custom animation, as well. The damage is delt with scourages.

[UPGRADES]

As you may already know, there's several types of ship upgrades that may be purchased at vendors, etc..

I'll list a few catagories here, however, it's not complete yet.

Missles/Projectiles
Missle Launchers
Escape Pods
Missle Jammers
Communications Upgrades
Fuel Expansion
Mass Exansion
Speed Upgrades
Armor Upgrades
Cargo Expansion
Reactors
Licenses (In order to purchase many of the above items on your ship (legally), you need to have a license. It's possible to obtain them without one. However, if you're flying in a system where they're required and you dont have one, you'll be scanned and attempted to be apprehended. You can escape a potentially faction-crippling fight, by escaping the battle, or jumping to another system. You cant land at a port, however. If you do, then your faction will suffer and you will be placed in jail until an ally bails you out.)

Please note that, There's going to be several special items that can only be aquired upon completing certain missions/jobs.

The only items that can be traded among players OUTSIDE A PORT are Missles/Projectiles. However, while in a port, any upgrade can be traded among players ships (Unless stated otherwise).


[FACTION SYSTEM]

Another semi-unique system to BW maps. In this example, I'm just going to use generic factions (governments) that probably wontbe used in this map.

Confederates
Rebels
Pirates

When you kill a ship belonging to a certain faction, your standing with that faction DECREASES. However, your standing with the ENEMIES
of that same faction INCREASE. So, for example: If I killed a pirate ship (Assuming that Pirates are enemies to both Rebels and Confederates)
my faction with the PIRATES would DECREASE, and my faction with the REBELS and CONFEDERATES would INCREASE. Once your faction reaches a low
enough level, they become hostile. Being hostile with a faction means several things:

- You get an increased rate of encounters with stronger ships from that faction
- You can't land at ports owned by them†
- You can't get assistance from them
- You can't obtain missions aiding them†

†: If you're on a delivery mission to a hostile port, you're cleared for landing at that port. However, you still get the increased encounter rate and more powerful enemies.

In contrast, if you get a high enough number of points with a faction, you're subject to special priveleges.

- Free assistance from able-ships.
- Special missions
- Clearance for landing on exclusive spaceports

You're standing with a certain faction has a ranking†† (Which is displayed whenever you enter a system).

(Note: These adjectives are subject to change)
95-100 Virtous Citizen
94-85 Leading Citizen
84-75 Model Citizen
74-65 Upstanding Citizen
64-56 Citizen
-55- Clean
54-51 Minor Offender
--50-45-- Offender
44-35 Criminal
34-25 Felon
24-15 Wanted
14-5 Fuguitive
4-0 Public Enemy

††: There's going to be less rankings & lower numbers

[COMBAT RATING]
Just like the standing rating, you also have a combat rating depending on
how many enemies you've killed††.

0 No Ability
1-29 Little Ability
30-49 Fair
50-99 Average
100-129 Good
130-159 Competent
160-199 Very Competent
200-249 Noteworthy
250-299 Dangerous
300-349 Deadly
350-499 Frightening
500+ Overlord

††: There's going to be less rankings & lower numbers

Combat rating effects your elegibility for certain missions.

[SYSTEMS PART II]

In almost every populated system, ships friendly to the government of that system will wander about the system (For scenery reasons only)
If you're in a hostile system, and you (or one of your allies) runs into one of the wandering ships, you automatically engage in battle with that ship.

Certain systems have no stellar objects, meaning, there's no ports and no place to land. This is most unfortunate if you've
used your last bit of fuel to jump to that system

System data (BEFORE you jump) can be aquried if you're equipped with a special computer upgrade.

[PORTS/SPACESTATIONS]

To land on a port, simply bring your ship over the port, and if you're faction is good enough, you will be cleared to land. Attempting to land at a hostile port, however, results in a denied docking request. Depending on how bad you stand with that government, you may attempt to bribe the port for clearance on docking.

Most ports have several necessities:

BAR: No, your character isnt an alcoholic. Bar's are valuble places for gaining
helpful information for difficult mission, as well as getting unique/rare jobs
for youself.

HANGAR: Along with a place to 'park' your spacecraft, it's a place where your ship can be refueled as well as serviced. Some light upgrades can usually also be purchased, however upgrade shops are usually the best place to buy these things.

SHIP UPGRADES: Self-Explanatory

(More to be added here...)


[MISSIONS/JOBS]

They can be obtained in a few ways. One of the most common ways is by using the 'Mission Computer' (Please note, that all these names are subject to change). These can be found scattered throughout almost every port. They are most commonly used for less urgent missions, such as deliverly/transport missions.

Missions can be obtained by going to a bar (As said above). These missions usually take a more experianced/powerful player.

Along with the two listed above, various missions can be obtained from simply talking to different NPCs.

A player can only have one mission at a time. If he or she wishes to obtain another, the player would have to cancel the pre-existing one.

When a new mission is obtained, each player is asked if he/she is willing to participate. If they do, they get part of the reward. During the mission however, if you find that a player isnt contributing what they should, a vote of 2 players can remove the slacker from the mission, thus, removing him/her from their share of the reward.

Rewards can range anywhere to money, or upgrades/items.

[MONEY]

(As stated above, the universal monetary unit is to-be determined)
Just to recap, it can be obtained from mission rewards, or looting (killing) ships.
It can be transfered between players only while in a port, or on the main ship.

[GROUND-MISSIONS]
Yes, theres plans for ground unit missions/mini-games and such. I'll keep you posted.

[ESCORTS]
As mentioned WAYYY above, escorts are computer controlled ships that fight along-side you in battle. Escorts can be hired, however you must pay them a pre-determined fee everytime you jump to another system, or land at a port.

You may only have one escort at one time.
You always have the option to fire an escort.

You're responsible for maintaining their fuel (If they can't jump, you have to either
abandon them or pick them up in the main ship)

Escorts are always willing to assist you. If your ship is destroyed, your escorts leave.
[MAIN SHIP]

The main ship's set-up is going to be similar to Space Pirates (An actual area where the individual units walk around). You board the ship by flying over it. (Sorry space pirate, but this idea was too good) When you leave the ships communication range, you lose vision with the controler of the ship (This communication area is increased with the right upgrade(s).

[CHARACTERS]
Each character in the game will have a unique personality/backround, as well as a different [ground] unit for each one.

[GROUND COMBAT]
It will be FnD Style. Basically the same as ships fighting, just with the choices: Attack, Escape, Item Your hero will be able to level (They will have DnD style HP as well). Defeating an unruly commoner (Such as a drunken ruffian at a bar) Wouldn't hurt your faction that port. Rewards for fighing are the usually money.

[MAP SIZE]
There will be both a Sound and No-Sounds version. The No-Sounds version will actually just have necessary sounds (Selections, Alerts, Etc..), and is intended for distribution on B.Net. The sounds version will be much larger, and is intended for download from UMS sites.

I took alot of the concepts from the famous, [originally] Mac-Based single-player space RPG, Escape Velocity. I would name it 'Escape Velocity RPG', but alot of my own original concepts/ideas will be added as well. However, I plan to credit Escape Velocity in the map.

-- More features (Last Updated: 7/6/05) --

[PARTY SYSTEM]
[If the previously stated Space Pirates RPG system w/ one main ship isn't used, the party system] Allows players to choose who they want to "party" with. Partied players receives these benefits:
- If a member of the party enters an encounter, all other party members (Who have the same standing w/ the encountered faction) in the same system are automatically entered into the battle
- Shared vision can be enabled between party members

Beardo:
This sounds like going be a really awesome map. Has alot of good features going for it and has many possible things which you can do during the game. Will Missiles / Lazers have radius which your ship has be in to launch or fire? Missile pretty much long range weapon and may have splash damage so you wouldnt put you ship in close range and use a missile. Also when firing a missile will dere be a delayin in firing, due fact your crew members are loading missiles? Other then that good luck map going own


\\Moogle

Thanks for the comment. No, neither of those things won't be a factor due to the order of the Turn-Based-Combat events. If you've played (or remember) FnD RPG, before everyone "attacks", there's a mini-round where all spells/special abilities are done.

This actually looks like something to look forward to... If people for somereason don't havea ship or aren't on the Carrier parhaps have transports from city to city using thie experimental map idea i made. It's really neat and would look really cool in a map like this.

Whoa! Awesome sounding map you got there Beardo! Just like Moogle said you do have alot of features in your map, and you TBC would be nice to utilize strategy. Good luck with this one and keep up the good work.

Excellent.

The only question now is, do I spend my money upgrading to Broodwar (which would let me play this map) or on Nova (so that I would have access to all three...)?

Addendum: Why not implement escorts and cargo? You're taking the fun out of piracy...

So doesnt remind me of escape velocity.. /sarcasm

ADDITION:
(Progess Log Update)

For some reason this really reminds me of the ancient game Elite. The turret idea sounds really cool, as does almost everything else about this map. A demo would be very awesome.