This week I noticed that there are a couple cases in which the server sends out up to 50 packets of around 50 bytes each to the same person simultaneously. I made some new types of network messages that combine these groups of packets into two new types of combined packets. Hopefully this will reduce lag.

I've implemented the Shadow Ambush skill for seers, where it checks if your target can see you when you shoot him. Normal people get an extra 1% chance to crit in this situation and Seer's with Shadow Ambush can get up to a 100% chance to crit.

I've also made a new and more interesting critical hit system. In addition to doing more damage, each critical hit will temporarily damage some sub-system on the target ship for up to 3 seconds depending on the damage type. Physical crits will cause the target to spin left or right, energy hits will disable the engine, heat will disable the radar, radiation will disable the warp capability, etc. This should make things more interesting, add a little more variety with the damage types, and provide more visible impact when there is a critical hit, since you will see the negative modifiers swirling around the target.

Still implementing the new skills, I'm done with the Combat focus skills and the Recon focus skills so far.

He means that it checks to see if the target can see you, if it can't then it will work...Sounds interesting, should make Seer a very good PvP class.....I do ask if this will also effect AI's in the same way?

marry me

that new critical hit systems sounds much better

Maybe up stealth shots for regular players to a 5-10% chance of dealing a critical considering you must wait for the 3-second vis effect to wear off before getting a chance to critical again.

What is to stop someone from stealthing behind you, unloading a guaranteed critical hit energy weapon (disabling your engines), then restealthing, repeat?

Not that I don't mind putting some skill and variety in pvp, but it just seems a little bit broken to have one class get a guaranteed crit with the critical hit effects being so brutal.

Also, please please please remove gear glue loss for PvP deaths... It could be a new skill similar to and in addition to crazy glue that when combined makes it very unlikely or impossible to lose GG when dying at the hands of a player ship.

pretty much the only reason I kill (when I actually did) was in hopes of good drops, whithc I ws still rathar dissapointed with

someone could be in w3 and I could get em to red then AI finish them off, its not hard getting ppl into red in w3

So, let the AI finish them, whatever. Worst case scenario they would lose as much as they do now. The change would be meant to make PvP and PvB more viable in lower warps, not out in warp 3. Right now though there is just way too much to lose by starting a war.

An energy crit just disables the trust -- you can still turn around and shoot back.

Reavers are the gayest thing in the world. They're gayer than gay people whom I actually like. In fact, a word is yet to be invented to describe how gay the reaver is. Fighting a reaver is a hopeless battle.

Jeff, do you feel comfortable letting us know...

1.) How exactly the proposed seer skills will interact with the base crit chance? I take it from the above that the proposed seer skill that gives an increased crit% will (unlike most modifiers in SS) add linearly. IE, if the skill says you have +100% chance to crit, your 'crit chance' will be equal to 100%+X, where X is the base crit chance, rather than a situation where +100% chance to crit from stealth would mean that your crit chance from stealth would be 2X (where X is the base crit chance)

2.) What the crit damage multiplier will be, (or its range) both in general, and under the influence of seer special skills? If a Seer skill gives +100% crit damage, is this going to cause the damage dealt by a crit to be equal to N*(X+1), where N is the normal damage of the weapon and X the normal crit mulitplier, or is the damage dealt by a seer crit going to be N*X*2 (IE, +100%, like a +100 Damage overloader would do).

Pardon me if the above seems like I'm an idiot, but english phrases like "Plus 100%" can mean some very different things, resulting in very different outcomes.

Ah ok, that seems more balanced... Any idea what the effects for laser, mining and surgical criticals will be? I'm thinking surg should disable weapons, and something could temporarily disable shield or energy regen?

Of course all of this is hard to balance - what happens when you get a bunch of seers together? Even a bunch of lowbies could potentially completely disable the ship of a much higher level/geared player. I guess level protection works both ways, but it still could be abused to cripple some ubers and leave them as free loots?

what about a seer with a mag, good RoF and no thrust peroid, and with a reaver to help your fucked

like it tho

Please also tell us how high exactly the critical hit chance is for all the different classes (MF, SD, sniper, Seer, ShMk..)..
do all of those have a chance to crit? how high is it?

and if you have a weapon with several Projectiles (like an Excom) or if you are MF, does every Projectile/Shot have its own chance on a Crit?
would be cool to know!

best regards,
MB