Aetherspace

Elarin

I have always found the idea of aetherspace very nice, its such a huge space, that I feel has much more potential usage. Maybe with this threat we can find some ideas how aetherspace could be used more and better. And find more reasons to go out there on the ships.

One good idea I heard so far was to implement pirate ships (like the gnome ships now) that try to board you. Or you can board them to steal some loot.

It would be nice to hear some ideas, and who knows *looks at admins* some of them could become real?

Allixea

I want the ability to be a pirate, form a crew of swashbucklers, rob some aetherships, maybe hold a town hostage, I already have a ship.

Versalean

Mob crewmembers would be a fantastic set of artefacts. You could even add a goldsink to it by having to pay them wages.

Devora

• A few solo activities that you can do in aetherspace for exp (not just gold farming) would, I believe, substantially increase people making use of crew mechanics and group hunting by causing more people to learn the skill***

• More aetherspace honours quests. Here, crew mechanics could be used to make a very unique quest experience that requires teamwork

• A few special beasts with cool abilities, maybe one or two rare new abilities, so you'd need aethercraft to get an egg

• Could aetherflares be brushed up? Like having more of them or making them more entertaining? I haven't participated in one, sadly, so I wouldn't know

 ***Verbose: 
Rn there seems to be a vicious cycle where you don't learn aethercraft unless you know someone highly skilled in it who can start a crew and organize the huge cash investment, but many people aren't incentivized to get highly skilled and save up for it bc they don't know people skilled in aethercraft who could act as their crew. With this proposed change, existing squads and guilds could more easily translate into crews

Steingrim

Elarin said:

One good idea I heard so far was to implement pirate ships (like the gnome ships now) that try to board you. Or you can board them to steal some loot.

I don't really see the point. Wouldn't it wind up being something that you can solo, or if not, something that stops people from solo operating ships? Boarding other ships in the way doesn't really expand aetherships other than as a transport mechanism for traditional bashing.

Bairloch

Steingrim said:

Elarin said:

One good idea I heard so far was to implement pirate ships (like the gnome ships now) that try to board you. Or you can board them to steal some loot.

I don't really see the point. Wouldn't it wind up being something that you can solo, or if not, something that stops people from solo operating ships? Boarding other ships in the way doesn't really expand aetherships other than as a transport mechanism for traditional bashing.

I don't disagree that it is just a "transport mechanism for traditional bashing", but it is flavor. And, when you get down to it, that's what a lot of the systems we have are. Just a different flavor of the same thing. And those flavors are what let us get creative with our RP, no?
I could definitely see taking my ship (I don't have a ship) out to the aether to go play Merchant Marine and sink some commerce raiders as being a fun way to bash.
What I don't see is a commercial reason to be shipping anything through the aether that would give these raiders a reason to exist. Unless it's just the things we're collecting in aetherspace that they're trying to steal before we get back to the dock? Is that it?
I don't know enough about aetherspace, clearly.

Enya

There are bashing opportunities in aetherspace, but you can't... do them solo and no iteration of piracy in aetherspace (which already sort of exists: the Gnafia) would allow you to solo go out on a ship and bash in any reasonable way. 

Steingrim

Bairloch said:

Steingrim said:

Elarin said:

One good idea I heard so far was to implement pirate ships (like the gnome ships now) that try to board you. Or you can board them to steal some loot.

I don't really see the point. Wouldn't it wind up being something that you can solo, or if not, something that stops people from solo operating ships? Boarding other ships in the way doesn't really expand aetherships other than as a transport mechanism for traditional bashing.

I don't disagree that it is just a "transport mechanism for traditional bashing", but it is flavor. And, when you get down to it, that's what a lot of the systems we have are. Just a different flavor of the same thing. And those flavors are what let us get creative with our RP, no?
I could definitely see taking my ship (I don't have a ship) out to the aether to go play Merchant Marine and sink some commerce raiders as being a fun way to bash.
What I don't see is a commercial reason to be shipping anything through the aether that would give these raiders a reason to exist. Unless it's just the things we're collecting in aetherspace that they're trying to steal before we get back to the dock? Is that it?
I don't know enough about aetherspace, clearly.

I agree that most people are appear to be starting from an RP perspective, which I why I brought up a more mechanical view. I'm unsure if the people who seem to like this idea currently use aetherships. There is a current aspect of aethercraft piloting that is solo, aka gnome trading. What wouldn't be possible without a change to aethercombat would is solo fighting much of anything (there's some outliers here, but that's damn rare).

Flavour is one thing, but when you wanted to do one thing (aetherhunt) and the game forces you to do something else (group hunt?) that would personally cause me to aetherhunt even less. At that point you might as well astral hunt, or kill larvae, etc. The exception of course would be for a different experience, but once I'd have that what would be the reason to return?

I'd rather they do something to make gnome trading more common and viable. Perhaps a bit along the lines of the Traders' Guild in Dragonrealms.

The reason aethercraft does not use as much is like some other things it is a system designed to be used by a much higher and less leveled population. We just no longer have a game where it is easy to get 6+ people who actually benefit from aetherhunting.

Elarin

I opened this threat to hear some ideas, how aetherspace could be used in more different ways, solo, and in group. I was hoping to hear some nice ideas and maybe some could become actually real some day. I did not meant to start a discussion about if it is the same or not than regular bashing.
I am sure there are many good ideas out there.

Steingrim

Elarin said:

I opened this threat to hear some ideas, how aetherspace could be used in more different ways, solo, and in group. I was hoping to hear some nice ideas and maybe some could become actually real some day. I did not meant to start a discussion about if it is the same or not than regular bashing.
I am sure there are many good ideas out there.

That's fine, but let's be cautious that we're not negatively impacting current use in the hope that someone may bother with new mechanics.