OK, but if you get a Tesla Cannon in S3 then I want a Flying Exploding Bile Dretch in SD! But really, I do like Superpie's Upgrade idea. Deus Ex-style upgrades for weapons and TeamArena-type powerups for aliens (Cloaked Basi with Quad-damage, FTW!).
And while this idea is fresh in my head, I'll elucidate. During some late stage of the game, say Sudden Death +x minutes, PowerUpGrade phase begins. For every enemy structure you destroy a PowerUpGrade appears. For Humans, a Scope, Clip, or Ammo Box for projectile weapons, blaster dual-wield with Adv ckit for destroying enemy structures, a batt/jet toggle for NRG weapon-with-backpack loadout, etc. When the acid tube, barricade, or egg dies, it yields the appropriate item ("You picked up the Clip", "You have Dual Blasters", etc.) For aliens, destroying say, turrets, teslas or spawnpoints would yield some kind of PowerUpGrade, like Cloak, Shield, or Damage Multiplier. The first player to run over the PowerUpGrade grabs it ("You have the Shield", etc.). Elements of Quake, UT, Deus Ex, and yes, the dreaded Halo. This would reward attackers, and teach new people that late in Sudden Death you should be attacking enemy structures or guarding your spawnpoints. Also, Humans can't pick up Alien PowerUpGrades and vice-versa. And they only last a limited amount of time, don't regenerate, you lose them when you die, and maybe they are destroyed when you die or after a limited amount of time. OK, flames please.
Sudden Death +x minutes = PowerUpGrades
Human
Clip - reloads projectile weapon with some/max ammo
Ammo Box - increases ammo carry by x% for proj weapon
Scope - limited zoom for proj weapon
Affected weapons: Rifle, Shotgun, Chaingun (yes, S1 weapons)
Dual Blasters - with adv ckit near repeater for destroying alien structure
TogglePack -switchable between batt or jet with NRG weapon
Affected weapons: Pulser, LasGun, TeslaCannon
Alien
Cloak - dampens movement noise, camouflages player
Affected classes: all except Tyrant (gets HealthBoost instead)
Shield - adds armor rating to alien classes
Affected classes: all except Tyrant, Adv Goon, Adv Mara, Adv Granger (get SpeedBurst instead)
Damage Multiplier - multiplies damage based on class
Dretches = x2
Grangers = +50%
Lisks & Maras = +25%
Goons & Rants = HealthBoost only
And you can/cannot pick up multiple PowerUpGrades (for your playertype), based on server preferences.
Thanks, I'm better now.
Ed the editor sez:
Yes, I realize a scope on a shotty is just a monocular. Some PowerUpGrades work better with certain loadouts. Boohoo. Use it to find hidden dretches, then run in and blast them with bugshot.
And the TogglePack converts your (carried?) battery pack or jetpack to dual use. When it's "off", it's a battpack, and when it's "on", it's a jetpack. Maybe if you aren't carrying a pack, you get nothing. Zip. Squat. Nada. Possibly won't work with LuciCannon or TeslaBFG/Lightning Gun. (Use above model and give adv mara/tesla gen chain lightning attack). Interference between device field generation or something. Again, such is life. All is not fair. This is a war for the very survival of our species (I speak to my fellow aliens). :roll:
:wink:
Also, you could have the non-wallcrawling Shield Granger as well as your wall-crawling Adv Granger, which means you might still have someone who will build essentials late in the game.
If Sudden Death is Stage Four, PowerUpGrades is Stage Four times Two-and-a-half!
Also, to simplify, you could just have the pinkskins get Reload (reload proj weapon), Dual Blasters (adv ckit gets dual blaster wield AND dual blaster fire rate AND 2X blaster damage near reactor or repeater for limited time, all others dual blaster wield with simul-fire for limited - slightly greater? - time) and TogglePack (with/without carried pack and player gets TeslaCannon replacing PulseRifle/LasGun as server options). Aliens get Cloaked, Shield & DamageX as described above. HealthBoost = +x health which deteriorates over the next minute back to no gain/max health. SpeedBurst = brief increase in movement rate (say 110% for ten seconds).
Unless you think "Timelimit Hit" makes a better screenshot than using Dual Blasters against a Cloaked Basi. "You have the Power Blasters; Git 'em!" vs. "You are now Cloaked; Bite/Slash!"!! Or tramplecharge with SpeedBurst vs. Chaingun with fresh Reload. "You got the SpeedBurst; Run!" against "Your weapon was Reloaded; Fire!"! PowerUpGrades - get 'em soon at a lonely outpost, abandoned corporate militia space base or infested processing plant near you!
Again, this is only for Sudden Death + no outcome situations. Double overtime. PowerUpGrades. Would activate ten minutes into SD, possibly only in games over one hour, or where timelimit has been extended, could be voted upon by server option, et cetera, &c.
It would work like this:
When an affected Alien structure is destroyed (say, acid tubes, barricades and eggs) a blue rune/icon/glowing-ball-of-lightning appears. If, within a specified time (maybe ten to thirty seconds) a Human player runs over it, he or she is awarded the appropriate PowerUpGrade, based on current weaponcarry (loadout). Riflemen get Reload, builders get Power Blasters, pulser/lasgunners get the TeslaCannon, and those with packs get the TogglePack in addition to Reload, Power Blasters or the TC. Those with battlesuits or lucis get HealthBoost; flamers get SpeedBurst. The PowerUpGrade would last some limited amount of time, say one to three minutes (or much, much shorter for the SpeedBurst), or until the player dies, or thirty seconds after the player dies, and still have an ultimate (temporary) lifespan.
When an affected Human structure is destroyed, a similar (except that it is coloured red) rune/icon/lightningball appears, but, based on which structure it was, one of three different PowerUpGrades (or one of the two consolation prizes) is bestowed upon the first Alien to run over the sigil. Thus, turrets give Cloaking, teslas endow Shielding (maybe especially against other teslas), and telenodes produce Damage Multiplication (or the appropriate HealthBoost or SpeedBurst for classes powerful enough already). Again the PowerUpGrade would only be temporary. (Limits could be server options.)
New models: 1) Sushi's gun as TeslaCannon 2) PowerUpGrade rune/icon/glowing thingy imported or purpose-built for the occasion (blue for Humans, red for Aliens), 3) Dual blasters, or not (maybe just a SuperBlaster with 2X firing rate & 2X damage; regular model but green and glowing; overheats and blows up easily). Also, some sort of visual effect for PowerUpGraded Aliens: chameleon, ghostly or matte black for Cloaked, golden and shiny or matte grey for Shielded, bright red or glowing green for DmgX. Some new game-code, for PowerUpGrade enablement. New and surprising outcomes to hour-long games. Thoughts, comments, cries of outrage? Also, maybe the TeslaCannon remains when you die, floating and rotating in space like a Q3a weapon, which can be picked up by anyone carring a pulserifle or lasgun, and which converts their weapon to the TC. TremArena. You could call the mod Teslafication or SushiCannon or just PUGmod. Anyways, just some silly ideas for a lazy afternoon. Cheers!
Don't forget the Flying Exploding Bile Dretch. Costs 2 evos. 50 health. Fly via "enter" or "mouse 3". Use "space" for up, & "C" for down. Wallwalk disabled by fly mode. To re-enable, disable fly, toggle wallwalk. Explodes upon death, after final "dying throes" animation. Spawns with poison bite. Counterbalances TogglePack & TeslaCannon combo. Sticks to humans like bubblegum on a hot sneaker.
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