StarControl Forums
The December update requested ship module upgrade ideas.
Aside from the basis (energy, crew, thrust, turning, cargo), what else would you want to see?
Module 1: an endgame module filled with mining drones that could fly down to a planet and harvest all minerals automatically. An upgraded version would harvest from all planets in a system simultaneously. Similar drones would also capture lifeforms.
Module 2: A high powered scanner that can tell me which planets in a system have anomalies.
These modules would be optional.
Module 3: A stellar converter. Gotta have a stellar converter to destroy planets from space.
After reading through some of the earlier founders newsletters, it appears that bridge is what controls the main weapon and I would expect that the the special weapon will be also controlled in some similar method (to prevent the player to have more than one). It also appears that there is different sizes of these modules (based on the concept art images)
Ideas for various modules:
> System Modules - Ignoring the usual suspects (Cargo / Crew / Dynamos / Batteries / Fuel tanks / Engines / Thrusters)
- Fleet Command: Module that enables you to control more support ships (earthling cruiser and the like)
- Hightail HyperDrive: Because if we are weak to start with, we might wanna run away when we are outgunned in Melee.
- Dampen Drive : Reduces your hyperspace signature in so you don't attract as much attention.
- Grav Drive: Remove ship inertia in Real Space and Super Melee
- ECM: Reduces your signature in real space.
- Fusion Forge: Convert unwanted resources into Fuel. Useful for long haul trips (but its a more expensive method)
- Fuel Scoop: As mentioned in another post, but instead of a sun, give the a gas giants a purpose. (maybe increase efficiency with fusion forge)
- Science Lab: Destroy the same ship type enough times and eventually you get the blueprints to build that ship and/or build the weapon modules.
- Deep Space Radar: As IBN suggested, a late game module that enables you to send out a ping in a solar system to detects what resources are on each planet. But the trade off is that it lets anyone know that your in the system and where exactly you are. (Good module to use if your itching for a fight.)
Super Melee:
> Passive Modules - Modules that modify the combat ability of the ship.
- Grav Drive: Remove ship inertia in Super Melee
- Shields (adds X number of HP that need to be destroyed before you loose crew - will regen when battery is full)
- Point Defence Drones: As mentioned in another post, Drones that orbit the ship shooting at anything.
- Combat Capacitor: Increase the main weapons attribute (damage / range / rate of fire)
- Weapon Matrix: Changes the main weapon firing pattern. (Spread / parallel / side / rear)
- Targeting Assist Gizmo: TAG for short. Improves or Enables the tracking of a weapon (Homing Lasers ! 
)
> Weapon Modules & Special Abilities: I had a list, but when I looked at it, all I was doing was pulling ideas from SC2 that do not look like they are currently on any ships in SC:O. It is worth to note that there are some good ideas people have mentioned for super melee ships. A modified version of my earlier idea.
Primary weapon: Stellar Core Launcher / Star Fury / Or something equally as cliche.
Fires a plasma ball which it shoot "solar flares" at anything that gets close enough to it. The damage and the distance the increases the longer you charge the weapon. If you score a direct hit the plasma ball goes "super nova" dealing a large amount of damage. (colour of the plasma ball changes to indicate level of charge)
Primary weapon: Cluster Missile
Fires a large missile, while the player holds down fire the missile continues in a straight line. When the player releases primary fire, the missile explodes releasing several micro homing missile. Note: If the player can hit the target with the main missile, it will deal more damage than if ill the micro missiles were to hit the target.
Special Weapon: Magna Cannon
Any target hit by this weapon gains an Mag field that will attract any nearby asteroids or will cause the ship have an increased pull towards the planet. (Multiple hits will increase the effect.)
aaand thats all i can think of at the moment . .
Simply put:
There should be expansions!, weapons, crew, storage... you name it
also, i would find Awesome if we got some useless aesthetics pieces!
Wow, this one is pretty cool.
Thanks 
I just remembered, the counter part to the Magna Cannon was a weapon that drops or fires objects (spike balls / spinning blades / etc) onto the battlefield that are persistent and are a hazard to both players.
Once the target is magnetised the hazards are pulled in. (The hazards are also good at disrupting incoming fire). This weapon could be modified for the Players Ship by turning it into some form of "Mass Driver Shotgun"
I think it would be interesting if there were modules that you could only get if you played the campaign a specific way... kind of like a Paragon/Renegade system. If you could play "evil" humans or what have you. Being a recent founder I am not sure if such a system was looked at when creating the campaign, I am still going through the other posts.
I think it would be interesting if there were modules that you could only get if you played the campaign a specific way... kind of like a Paragon/Renegade system. If you could play "evil" humans or what have you. Being a recent founder I am not sure if such a system was looked at when creating the campaign, I am still going through the other posts.
This reminds me of the crew furnace on the Druuge Mauler. The fond memories.
It looks like the bridge is swappable with other races. So this may be already included.
It would be awesome to get the Hallelujah module from the Pkunk. (Not that they are in this game)
Science Lab: Destroy the same ship type enough times and eventually you get the blueprints to build that ship and/or build the weapon modules.
It looks like the bridge is swappable with other races. So this may be already included.
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Agreed, however based on the comment in the August 2016 report, I would imagine that you can only purchase the weapon tech from friendly races.
" . . .Every player’s ship will function differently based on what parts they have purchased or found.
The shipping version will be about the player finding or buying from merchants cool parts to put on their ship."
Therefore my suggestion was more aimed as an in game mechanic enabling the player to get the weapon systems that of the alien races that are not so friendly. Mainly because the enemy usually has better weapons and after blowing up the 500th enemy, you should get some form of reward . . right ?
I think it would be interesting if there were modules that you could only get if you played the campaign a specific way... kind of like a Paragon/Renegade system. If you could play "evil" humans or what have you. Being a recent founder I am not sure if such a system was looked at when creating the campaign, I am still going through the other posts.
This is a great idea - same with the one that unlocks certain technologies if you destroy and salvage enough of race x,y, or z. Of course, there should also be trade-offs, so that any benefit you obtain should have a negative effect in some way too, kind of like vampirism in Elder Scrolls games.
A module that allows you to harvest resources on gas giants would be pretty cool.
^ Agreed, but it's already been brought up and shot down by Stardock.
I'd like to see faction/alien specific weapons that you might unlock for your ship later in the game. Could also do the same with engine upgrades. Would be fun to experiment with combinations.
How about the "Death-Star" Module? Sacrifice a planet for many resources and riches but have a bad relationship with many races
;D sounds... cool
Which idea? The Gas giant harvesting, or the "Paragon/Renegade" system? There were two posts with ideas above your "Agreed" post, with no quote I could not be sure. Just curious which has been shot down.
Which idea? The Gas giant harvesting, or the "Paragon/Renegade" system? There were two posts with ideas above your "Agreed" post, with no quote I could not be sure. Just curious which has been shot down.
From over in the December Discussion:
So there are other methods but no hints as to what they are at this point. . .
(However if its just larger fuel tanks and a more economic hyper drive - then I am gonna mod in a fuel scoop 
)
It's not just a more economic hyper drive and larger tanks. Though those are also in the game. :)
My money is on hamster wheels. Your ship will have thousands of hamster wheels, and if you run out of fuel you get an option to "Let Loose The Hamsters". Then they take to the wheels and, bam! Power!
They just keep going, and going, and going...
*sigh* I take it that you are immune to any method of coercion / jedi mind tricks that would make you give us more details on the current player ship mechanics?
I don't care if the ideas are still theoretical and subject to change. . . I need my fix of SC:O news and the end of the month is too far away !
If we're going to add planet lander upgrades, I think we should be able to modify individual landers. Have a limit to how many modules can be on each lander, and then the player can specialize landers for specific jobs. IE a Hunter-killer lander, a packmule lander, etc etc.
^ Customizable lander would indeed be kewl. Opens possibilities for more landing mini-games. Slower descent, faster strafing, bigger guide squares...... ....... ....
Temporal Replacer module
Moves ship backwards in time 4 seconds (restores position, crew, and energy to the point 4 seconds ago). Also known as the Dejavu drive.
Hard Hologram Formatting module
Creates 4 illusory copies of the ship that orbit the main ship and face the way the main ship faces. Each fires abilities/attacks as the main ship but each does only 20% of the normal damage. Each can be destroyed by any one instance of damage.
Trophy Gallery module
Levels up with in-game quests/events. Five levels; each level grants additional prestige which manifests in more favorable trading as well as unique trading options.
Atmospheric Stabilizer module
Passively reduces the threat level of planetary exploration.
Concussive Targeting module
All damage dealt that is within X units of ship (close) also stuns the target.
This is a very good idea, you could get a lot out of varied lander configurations. Maybe like a rock-paper-scissors combination of three different configurations that make the lander work very differently on the planets that each configuration is best for. That adds a lot more overall variety to the whole lander experience!
This is actually a good example of what I mean when I say "1+1=Chess". In this simple arcade game, this is an even more important concept. Which is why, instead of suggesting a list of modules that sound cool what I see in this idea is means of adding a little of the "1+1=Chess" that a simple arcade game like this game needs. Three different rock-paper-scissor lander configurations matched with the planet types is like a "force multiplier" on the depth of that entire aspect of the game.
Considering the nature of Star Control, you really should consider doing something like this. It would really add a lot to the lander game for very little work on your part.
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