Factorio Forums

BTW: GREAT GAME, around 200 hours no time flat... 4th full game, experimented with multiple settings. no mods yet.

Aliens Creep from their original bases, then spread like wildfire around the map.

This does several things.
1.) it forces the players to take action before they are enclosed prior to needing more resources.
2.) it adds a layer of a action to the game, as aliens will eventually assault your base from multiple directions.

This is in general a very good system. However, the problem is that aliens become obnoxious. the aliens you deal with around your base are one thing, but the aliens beyond that are even stronger and denser. Then you add a 2 second respawn, and its really lame to attack a base... There is strategy, and strategies you can utilize to take down each base. However, being overpowered with research or kiting the whole base 10 times, are both pretty craptastic.

I believe based on the engine you have devised, it may be possible to limit the spawn rate of aliens but to have them react to your assults on neighboring bases. Then limit spawns and bases to resource nodes. Possibly determining the aliens spawned by the resources available or traded between bases. So alien bases would occupy resources only, then possibly farm those resources... albeit slower than a player. Those resources then feed a central hive, or local hive determining spawns. perhaps adding a harvester alien that a player can even kill for those resources.

The converse would be that alien attacks would be more severe and include more bases, but that would just require the player watch his map. So long as you create a pooling period like you have, but then tweek the time before they attack, giving an attentive player a chance to respond. Might not be so bad. Also, make easy - hard settings determine size/delay on attack. Should give new players time to respond.

My 2 cents.

However you do it, It would limit alien bases and give you a reason to attack them. Now its... aliens every 4 feet... ignore it and those bases merge into superbase. kite 400 aliens 87 times, kill 1 bulding each raid, 45 minutes later, you cleared 1 ore patch... build rocket, leave.

There have been a lot of suggestions on alien behaviour, personally I like the idea that aliens spawn much slower but have a "buffer". So normally you have only a few aliens milling about but if you attack you get swarms jump out of the nests. If you can deal with the initial wave the nests are left mostly defenceless. Also if a nest is destroyed before deploying its defence force, only maybe 25% of them make it out. They amass attack forces as per normal so if they're gearing for an attack you have to deal with that too, but it means you can sneak around the attack force and attack the nests at the back.

Also see my topic on weapon balance for some suggested changes to combat to make it better suit the game, such as seriously buffed rockets with long range to destroy bases from afar (which is offset by their expense).

Moved to Balancing...

If you want to assault late game bases, get Power Armor Mk2, stuff it w/ 4 Fusion Reactors, and 8-9 Energy Shield Mk2s (maybe 1 Roboport for when you want robots to help you build stuff back at base). Get some slowdown capsules just in case you still need to kite (you rarely ever will w/ this), and whatever weapons are well suited to removing the base (Combat Shotty, OPthrower, Cluster Grenades). Waltz in and wreck the base, with 1200+shield hp and insane regen you can literally facetank dozens of biters for 15 seconds straight without your shields giving out. It's insane.