Anyway I think that with the game being so close to completion, that combat really needs to be addressed and tweaked. Here are some of my thoughts to improve on the content already in the game.
Enemies
- -Biters, spitters, worms, and nests should all be elemental in order to pose more of a challenge to the player. Color will represent the type of element an enemy uses.For example a fiery biter deals fire damage and it has a higher resistant to fire damage.
-Enemies should also have randomly generated speed, health, resistance, and damage stats. These should be put under restraints so that it doesn't get ridiculous. This would allow for interesting combinations such as a fast but weak biter or a tanky but slow spitter and more.
-The elements and stats of the enemy will depend upon the seed of the base.
-When a new base is formed it is given a new seed different from the parent base.
- -As they are now scanners are somewhat useless energy hogs. Scanners should connect to each other similiar to roboports. Connecting them unifies and speeds up sector scanning, increases search range and allows turrets, combat robots, and vehicles, work together better.
-Turrets can only work within search range of a scanner.
-Combat robots can come to the aid of turrets as long as they are in the same network together.
-A scanner interface can allow the player to learn more about the element types and stats of enemy bases, and allow the player to target and coordinate an automated vehicle attack on enemy bases.
- -Combat robots should be built like construction/logistic robots
-A special roboport and its personal roboport equivalent for combat robots
-Combat robots are reusable, but have limited energy and in some cases, limited ammo that can both be replenished at the roboports.
-Combat robots will defend activated turrets in the scanner network, and will protect the player or vehicle they are deployed from.
- -Tanks and cars have grids like power armor and be able to utilize modules.
-Vehicles can work remotely and automatically as long as they are connected to a scanner and have a significantly further connection radius then combat robots and turrets.
-Vehicles weapons can be swapped out with other weapons
-Vehicles can connect to other vehicles to coordinate attacks against enemy bases.
- Vehicles will slow down to a combat speed when approaching bases and will deploy combat robots when in range
- During an attack if health,robot count,fuel, or ammo fall below a certain point the vehicle will retreat back to the scanner it is connected to. In a group of vehicles stronger vehicles will try to protect the weaker one, but if one is almost out of fuel or about to be destroyed then they will retreat.
- -Player armor gets debuffed so that players aren't god.
-Different elemental energy shields
- A poison, acid, and laser weapon. We already have a gun and shotgun that deal physical damage, a rocket launcher that deals explosive damage type, and a flamethrower that deals fire damage.
The purpose of the changes I suggested above are just ways that think the game can be improved with out adding to much more new stuff or drastically changing the overall purpose of the game. It makes enemies and scanners more meaningful, combat robots reusable, vehicles more valuable, allows the player forces and the enemy forces to use all elements, and most importantly forces the player to think more about combat instead of running in blindly with a flame thrower and killing everything. Also this is good for more build orientated people b allowing them to clear out biters without interrupting their building. Any feedback about this or my formatting are very welcomed!