Cult Citizen

[icycalm]

Hadn't realized how expensive Tigersclaws are (1k aUEC), so I changed all quantities to 1 per person.

[icycalm]

Some notes on the ranks because people are buying stuff and it might help them if they know the various ranks’ specs. These are all work in progress, but I’d say I have them almost nailed down.

First off, I am changing the rank names. Currently I am Master Chief, and we have 3 Commanders and a bunch of Inquisitors. In the future I become Supreme Commander, the next rank is Commander, the next is Master Chief (that’s ysignal, Chev and recoil now), then Inquisitor (all CULT players), then Soldier (randoms outside the clan), then Clones.

From Master Chief and up are the officer ranks. The Master Chief is a TACTICAL rank, it means they have tactical command. Commander is a STRATEGIC rank, it means they have strategic command. And I have supreme command.

What’s the difference between tactical and strategic command? Tactical means during battle. Strategic means outside of battle. So the Commanders will be able to arrange Dynamic Event forays without me, they’ll be responsible for getting good streams, setting the whole game plan, handling logistics, who will fly what ship, etc. All the shit you see me do every week to set everything up for us. It’s a lot of responsibility, and perhaps no one in the clan now wants to take this on, which is fine. Maybe some day someone will. We’re not yet that large that we’d need more than one strategic commander. But if someone is interested in the role, you’re welcome to try it. Note that I would like Master Chiefs to handle 1 clone simultaneously with their main accounts, Commanders 2 clones, and the Supreme Commander—me—4 clones. This doesn’t have to happen right now—I don’t have 5 computers—but it is a target and an aspiration. If you are currently a Master Chief (ysignal, Chev and recoil) and you have no interest in ever controlling a clone through a second computer, it’s best if you took an Inquisitor role and left your current rank for someone else.

Also, even if someone fulfills all the requirements, it doesn’t mean I will promote them. Adjudicator had the entire team waiting for him for half an hour the other day because he hadn’t bothered to buy more than 2 gear sets, despite me explicitly asking him to several times in the days before. With that attitude I would never give him any important responsibility. No offense meant, it’s just that it’s not fun being that disorganized and spending your weekend waiting for people to fly across the system and buy stuff.

So here are the vehicle specs for each rank. They are still rough, but I would say I am 90% there. Red means it’s not in game yet, and I plan to put the aUEC prices next to the cash ones, just haven’t got round to it yet. No one has to buy anything with cash to be in any rank (except the officers who have to cash-purchase ONE ship: their main command ship, the biggest one that I have put at the top of their list). The reason I am putting in prices for everything is because I want to give an indication of the total spec cost for each rank, which rises dramatically with the rising ranks. The higher ranks will have to work harder to get their vehicles with every wipe, so it helps to buy at least some of them with cash. Of course, the higher the rank, the more the rest of us will contribute towards those bigger, more powerful vehicles, so it’s not like one person will have to slave away for an entire Javelin by himself.

INQUISITOR
Light Carrier: Liberator $575
Dropship: Cutlass Steel $235
Expedition: Terrapin $220
Ground Bomber: A1 Spirit $175
Bomber: Gladiator $165
Stealth Recon: Razor EX $155
Interdictor: Mantis $150
Search & Rescue: Cutlass Red $135
Combat Freight: Cutlass Black $100
Light Fighter: Gladius (Frostbite) $90
Snub: Fury $55
Combat Rover: Cyclone MT $75

MASTER CHIEF
Corvette: Polaris $750
Military Transport: M2 Hercules $520
Armored Personnel Carrier: Atlas Platforms (Spartan, Centurion and Ballista) $80 + $110 + $140
Gunship: Redeemer $325
Expedition: Corsair + Mule $250 + $45
Support - Medical: Apollo Medivac $275
Anti-capital: Ares Inferno $250
Dropship: Vanguard Hoplite $235
Medium Repair/Refuel: Vulcan $200
Medium Fighter: F7C-M Super Hornet (Frostbite) $180
Boarding: Legionnaire $120
Snub: Fury MX $55

COMMANDER (the forward slashes mean one of the choices per Commander, not all of them)
Frigate: Idris -M, -P or -K $1,000, $1,500 or $1,800
Ground Bomber/Combat Freight: A2 Hercules $750
Minelayer: Nautilus $725 / Capital-sized Exploration: Odyssey $700 / Large Gunship: Perseus $675
Heavy Dropship: Valkyrie + Ursa $375 + $50
Field Hospital: Galaxy w/ Med Bay $380 / Heavy Repair: Crucible $350 / Refueling: Starfarer Gemini $340
Stealth Bomber: Eclipse $300
Heavy Fighter: Scorpius $240
Heavy Tank: Nova $120

I am also making a spec for the Soldiers/randoms. They’ll be riding those little motorbikes that are coming out, hoverbikes, starter ships and similar cheap stuff.

[icycalm]

What happens if a lower-ranked player buys a higher-ranked vehicle?

That’s great! But they probably won’t be commanding it during official missions: their commanders will. So go ahead and buy a Javelin if you want, but during missions I will be commanding it—that’s all.

I would like above all for each rank to strive to get its rank’s vehicles, and beyond that, go wild. But make sure you have at least the most basic vehicles for your rank, like your fighter and your rover or whatever.

Also, please understand that the higher ranks are not necessarily more fun to play—unless your idea of fun is sitting at a desk in a frigate and giving orders for 5 hours straight. That is MY idea of fun, but not most people’s. If you enjoy action and running around, jumping, shooting and the like—including scouting, stealth, sniping, etc.—the Inquisitor is the perfect rank for you. And you should still get some grunts to boss around in little fireteams if we recruit a few from Reddit and the like.

[icycalm]

The two new ground vehicles, the Storm and the Lynx, are precisely what I needed to flesh out the ground specs for all the ranks. I haven't updated anything above yet, but here's a quick look at what the latest ground specs look like for all the ranks:

Clone: Anything
Soldier: Ranger
Inquisitor: Cyclone
Master Chief: Storm, Mule
Commander: Nova, Ursa
Supreme Commander: Nova, Lynx

I haven't thought about the hoverstuff yet. I'll be doing so soon.

Man I wish I could play SC right now. I can't though because I am getting ready to drop on you the mother of all Battlegrounds updates. Been working on it day and night for weeks, and hopefully in a few hours it'll be live, but if I get too tired I might delay it for a day as it's 6:45 AM over here. I am really gunning for today though. Keep an eye on that frontpage! Though actually this update is so huge I'll probably end up emailing everyone. So keep an eye on your inbox I suppose.