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Interdictors (piercer as Kluth) |
Grimith
Grand Admiral
Templar Knights
Joined: August 09, 2003
Posts: 836
From: Your local future farm.
|  Posted: 2008-01-25 23:33
Gotta take the good with the lag... or, in this case, interdictors. They've been a feature of DarkSpace for as long as I've been playing, and I've had the pleasure of having my jumps disrupted by many interdictors in my time - Tsavong Lah and -GTN-Starfist (at least, I knew him as that) are the two names that come to my mind when I think of skilled (and frustrating) interdictor pilots. They're as just as much a part of this game as the other ships are.
I'm not a combat person. It's my nature. From time to time, I get bored and want to mash my space bar at people with lots of weapons, but I don't usually mind a lack of combat. I can do my own thing and be fine. Therefore, if my piloting an interdictor helps my allies chase off all of the enemy ships... good. No opposition. Should the enemy continue to charge into battle even though there is an interdictor against them... fine. Something to do.
I have enjoyed the popularity that interdictors receive, though. In combat, I've been labeled as a higher priority target over stations that can't jump away from the scene for several more minutes. Whenever I do short jumps a few thousand gu away (or sometimes even more - like within the 20k gu range), I get tracked and followed... as if I somehow lack the capability to dodge and jump myself. It's immensely entertaining for me. If I didn't get pleasure out of it, I wouldn't fly the darn thing.
But I digress.
There will be people who will not be able to accept the use of interdictor ships in many situations - they will whine, complain, threaten to retaliate, yadda-yadda. "It kills the combat." "It's lame to have an interdictor out when you already outnumber the enemy." "Using an interdictor conveys a lack of skill." "I'm gonna MIRV so many of your planets because I couldn't jump away." They join the ranks of people who whine/complain/threaten/yadda-yadda about any other DarkSpace feature. As a human being playing a game, I understand the need to vent and shout at the situation. And there will be some people who can't let the frustration go, and DarkSpace will not be fun for them. At that point, the only course I could recommend is for them to stop playing. This is a game. If you can't find enjoyment in it, then it's obviously not for you.
Gotta take the good wi--- you get the point.
...And that took way too long for me to type. And it was way too serious. I need to inject some "funny" into it. Hm... wait, let me think... ah... yes, I've got it.
hahalolflameonjustlikethatdudeinFantasticFour.
- Edit: Made to specify the Starfist I was referring to. I don't know who the Starfists are these days.
[ This Message was edited by: Grimith on 2008-01-26 15:52 ]
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Kanman
Grand Admiral
Pitch Black
Joined: August 26, 2005
Posts: 1017
From: Virginia, United States
| Posted: 2008-01-25 23:55
Majii has a good point. It is the FEAR of loss of pres and re-modding time that makes people flee battles.
Grimmith is also right. The interdictor is a CRITICAL component of the DS universe. If EVERY jump was safe, if there was ALWAYS 100% success of every jump, you would lack that chance of catastrophic failure. When you are in battle, you KNOW the longer you are in battle, the higher the chance that something could happen to you that will cost you your way out. A dictor could show up. You JD could be taken offline. Etc.
Random dictors floating around keep us on our toes.
Face it. We need them or the game gets very dull very fast.
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Tenebrean
Grand Admiral
Joined: November 19, 2007
Posts: 14
| Posted: 2008-01-26 03:50
I agree with kanman its a suprise when you see em ive been dicterd loads of times already and i got killed (even demoted) and i didn't mind it was just another challenge to kill a dictor XD (still havn't killed one)
but any way the dictors JD blocker shouldn't be continuasly that makes people flee from dictors ( scared of deing,scared of getting massed) so why not maken it time bounded? lik 5 min or less/more? that should reduce the fear of dictors
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Legatus Immolation
Marshal
Joined: December 20, 2004
Posts: 384
| Posted: 2008-01-26 09:20
face it ppl, dictors are here to stay, im just sorry that the ppl using dictors get lambasted by threats/swearing, if the ppl cant get it into thier heads that dictors are part of the game (AND IS Playable no matter what) then perhaps they should just stop cursing them and look at the ship selection (no rule saying they cant use dictors)
oh dear me....now look what this topic made me do :/
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Rogue Spear
Grand Admiral
Galactic Navy
Joined: March 20, 2002
Posts: 848
From: Texas
| Posted: 2008-01-26 09:57
This post reminds me of a battle I once had in the BD system several months ago. I was in a Assault Dread. There was one other dread, but I had 3 supply ships with me. None of them had the rank to fly a dictor of there own btw. We were against a fleet of 7+ UGTO, dreads, pickets, etc.
It was fun, for 30 minutes I would jump in, deal out some serious damage, then I would run at 30% hull. My supply ships were making good prestige, I was actually gaining prestige in combat as well as the UGTO. Good times...
Well ofcourse that wasnt good enough for some people. Starfist as someone stated earlier the "skilled" dictor pilot ; jumped in and decided it all must come to an end.
Well as my hull slowly melted away I got a message from a couple of the UGTO saying they were sorry, they didnt know the dictor had come along. Kanman you were one of them.
I died. Knowing that combat would be fruitless from that moment on I logged. I was outnumbered, it would be pointless for me to fight back. I messaged Starfist and asked why he decided to get a dictor out. His reply?
Starfist: I decided you needed to die.
At that point I was sort of angry, I messaged him again stating all the above reasons of what him getting a dictor just did to the game.
-Made the outnumbered faction log
-Ended combat
-Ended supply prestige
-Destroyed Fun
His 2nd reply...
Starfist: whatever, whine....whine...whine.... you dont like it dont play DarkSpace.
After that I sat back thinking what unsportsman like behavior. Who the hell is this jerk telling me to go play another game? Like its his decision to make. In .480 players would never do such things to other players....
But .480 is gone and it wont ever be back. This is a totally different DarkSpace and I have to learn to deal with that. While combat does not benefit me anymore I still continue to try it. My game crashes almost 100% of the time, causing me to die over and over again. Whatever other players have to deal with it too.
Anyways, to sum it up yes the dictors have been around forever, and as mentioned previously its the pilots who cause the problems. Not just for using a dictor, thats not a bad thing, but to use it selfishly, without thinking of the number of players your gonna hurt.
So, yeah this version sucks... am I going to leave? God knows I think about it all the time. But the answer is NO. I will not, I remember the amount of fun I once had on this game, and I would like to do what I can to make it live just a little bit longer.
I also stay around as a simple "Forget You" to players like Starfist. It will take more than an interdictor and crumby attitude to break Rogue Spear. Try harder.
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Sputter{TB}
Grand Admiral
Interstellar Cultural Confederation United
Joined: September 22, 2004
Posts: 109
From: Pennsylvania
| Posted: 2008-01-26 13:18
Dictors only ruin combat since few know how and when to use them... thats why when i see a dicto i target it first and tell anyone with me to kill it right away.. so as i play kluth i like sneaking behind it and then boom no more noob dicto and the fun resumes
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Ph33r the Ruptors!
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Axianda The Royal
Fleet Admiral
Terra Squadron
Joined: November 20, 2001
Posts: 4273
From: Axianda
| Posted: 2008-01-26 13:32
Quote:
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On 2008-01-25 15:16, Doran wrote:
*sniff sniff*
smells like...
flamebait.
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Purple
Fleet Admiral
Joined: March 17, 2007
Posts: 67
From: Boston, USA
| Posted: 2008-01-26 13:50
i personally dont use dictors however i will say they are a part of the game. i think dictors are only to be used when your faction has a disadvantage over the other faction. you said you use it to get kills however the dictors has very little firepower therefore your team is getting the kills not you...so it is really not doing anything for you at all just making your rep bad. also it is the first cruiser you get in the game but as i said before it has less firepower then an ED. i would say use an ED or PD for your combat points and if you want pres go bombing, engi, supping etc.
i have no problem with a dictor however if i am in a very fair fight with the other team and everyone is gaining pres without dying i would say leave the dictor at the sy cause it really does kill everyones fun. one team logs the other team is left bored.
so just to recap the dictor only makes your rep bad and doe snot get you any kills unless your very lucky. also you are most likely to loose pres from dying (cause everyone attacks the dictor first) rather then gain pres.
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Shigernafy
Admiral
Joined: May 29, 2001
Posts: 5726
From: The Land of Taxation without Representation
| Posted: 2008-01-26 14:50
In line with Rogue Spear's response, I enjoy combat. I think it is the most fun part of the game for a vast majority of our players as well.
I also don't like dying. I don't mind overly if I am able to gain enough prestige in short order to overcome my deaths, but that is difficult to do in this version, especially by combat alone. Thus, if it is more likely that I will die before I will gain any prestige, I won't engage. And even if most people don't make the calculation overtly, I think its behind most people's decisions on when, where, and how to play as well - which is why we see so much bombing, incidentally: its very easy to gain prestige and much harder to lose it, so it becomes the preferred play mode.
Anyway, how does this attitude translate into play? Well, I recognize that I like combat and dislike death; I also recognize that most other players have the same preferences. I also am biased against Dictors, EDs, and PDs, in that order. So when I'm playing, my style is:
1. Kill the dictor. They are only used to guarantee that the enemy will die, and as much as I like to be high-minded, I am willing to cause prestige loss for others in the face of that attitude.
2. Kill EDs and PDs. They are an abuse of the game system, in my opinion, and are cheap enough that I likewise feel little remorse killing them.
3. Wound others to the point where they withdraw. I might track them if they just e-jump out, but mostly to harass them a bit more and see if they might learn to jump further.
However, my goal is always only to wound them. I have no interest in killing them.
Why? Because if they're wounded, they will simply repair and come back. If they die, they might get annoyed and decide to go bomb, or just logoff - and either way, I lose an opponent. Since I like combat, it is in my benefit to let others live.
So the next time you're in the MV, feel free to engage me safe in the knowledge that you will be given a chance to retreat when your hull starts to take damage. As much as I can control things, I won't kill you if you're playing fair. And if you do the same, you can also know that you will have a happy opponent enjoying the challenge of seeing who can reach hull first.
While I know I can't necessarily convince anyone to do the same, I personally find this type of play style one which maximizes enjoyment for all concerned.. and I will usually encourage my faction-mates to let ships go when they run; here too I now encourage all of you to focus on damage more than kills, on fun more than dominance, and on honor more than selfishness.
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Grimith
Grand Admiral
Templar Knights
Joined: August 09, 2003
Posts: 836
From: Your local future farm.
| Posted: 2008-01-26 17:12
Quote:
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On 2008-01-26 09:57, Rogue Spear wrote:
Well ofcourse that wasnt good enough for some people. Starfist as someone stated earlier the "skilled" dictor pilot ; jumped in and decided it all must come to an end.
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The Starfist I was referring to, the one who was in GTN, appears to no longer be named as such (don't even know if his account still exists, as I don't know his accout number), and, as of right now, a player account with the ID of @157071. I wasn't active several months ago, so I don't know the who's who of then. I made an edit to my earlier post as such.
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On 2008-01-26 14:50, Shigernafy wrote:
. . . I now encourage all of you to focus on damage more than kills, on fun more than dominance, and on honor more than selfishness.
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That sounds like a broader message than the scope of this thread, Shig. I'm also not sure how it makes me feel, as you yourself appear to be implying that interdictors are the fun-killers of DarkSpace.
Interdictors are NO guarantee that any enemy will die. Let me repeat: NO guarantee. Interdictors can fail. Concentrated enemy fire can force them to jump or destroy them (should they refuse to jump/lag/not see the ownage). The destruction of systems can render the disruptor offline. Prolonged energy drain brought on by the using of other systems and engine speed can also render the disruptor offline ("butomgdictorsrarelyrunoutofenergy" I know). UGTO Interdictors, as any other UGTO ship I've piloted. And cruisers require a low rank and no badges: There may be a newbie with minimal skill piloting the thing ("butittakesnoskilltoactivatethedisruptor" It takes skill to point-jump, evade enemy fire, and stay at the point where the enemy is not sure whether to charge you or turn and attempt to escape your range).
Oh noes, teh migh-tee evils uf deh Interdictor! I hear that. I hear that again. I hear it yet again. But what about their positives?
One: Ever been in combat with an enemy interdictor. If you haven't, you've probably seen it. Players tend to focus on the "hated/vile/yadda-yadda" interdictors, which can grind an interdictor's armour and hull into nothingness. As long as an interdictor is fielded, the ships of his allies tend to take minimal damage.
Two: Ever been harassed by a lone interdictor? I've done that to many people. When I have no power or fleet behind me, I find the time to make myself have an impact. I hassle bombers. I hassle supply ships. I camp jumpgates. When people run through those jumpgates, I jump through the gate to the other side and hassle them further. Interdictors will destroy nothing by themselves (unless their enemy is very poor at piloting or did not upgrade their equipment), but they can serve as a tool to make the enemy work harder in order to accomplish their goal. In fact, an interdictor can make the enemy forget about their goal and instead focus on hunting the bloody ship down.
Three: Whenever you're heavily damaged and you jump out, have you ever had enemy ships jump around you in an attempt to find you? The interdictor solves this problem. When you abort from combat, you are guaranteed at least a small reprieve as the enemy tries to jump, realizes it can't, and struggles to break free in order to get to you (or forgets jumping you and shoots the interdictor). Guess what? Interdictors can save their allies... which means that they don't lose their ships... which means that they hahadonthavetodealwithmoddingtheirshipsandtheyllbemoreeagernottolog. Ever hear that argument before?
Four: Do you fear going into an engagement in part because you're worried that a powerful enemy ship is going to plot a jump directly behind your aft and introduce you to massive pain? Well, with an allied interdictor nearby, enemy ships can still do that... but they will end up several hundred gu short of their target. This gives you time to assess the threat of the enemy and deal with it accordingly.
As I said, combat is not usually a craving of mine. The whole damage-ships-go-repair-damage-ships-go-repair cycle appears almost like a prestige farm. True, this is a game, but I get involved in the game, and the cycle presents itself as the battle between factions that will never end. I, as an interdictor playing my role, am glad to see it end. I rarely apologize for disrupting the jumps of enemies. I seldom let anyone escape if I can stop them. I tend to taunt my enemies while flying the interdictor, as I like the attention of the enemy to be focused on me (and not anyone or anything else).
While playing this game, as you live your life, you should learn to expect the unexpected and to have to deal with people who will show you no mercy. This game's background is war, with two human factions that have no love for each other, and an alien faction that is trying to secure its own existence after being chased away from its home.
...And I need something funny in my post again, so I'm gonna say it:
THIS. IS. DARKSPACE.
- Edit on January 26: There were some typos in my post that I needed to fix.
- Edit on January 29: More typos. Boo.
[ This Message was edited by: Grimith on 2008-01-29 20:52 ]
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Fattierob
Vice Admiral
Joined: April 25, 2003
Posts: 4059
| Posted: 2008-01-26 19:07
Quote:
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On 2008-01-26 17:12, Grimith wrote:
...And I need something funny in my post again, so I'm gonna say it:
THIS. IS. DARKSPACE.
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GothThug {C?}
Fleet Admiral
Joined: June 29, 2005
Posts: 2932
| Posted: 2008-01-26 19:46
Okay since none of you get why there are dictor pilots here i will explain a few things
1. Dictors are here for planetary Defense....
2. if you mirv a planet FLAT be prepared to GET DICTORED
3. if you BOMB with neutrons and mirvs you will get dictored
4. If you use Escort Dessies and Pickets....YOU WILL GET DICTORED
5. Stop bitching and play this game right
If you do 3 of the 5 things mentioned you will have a hellish gaming experience....
if you are like me and build or supply or TRY to atleast get some combat in and find that those methods are wasted away by n00bs who think they are better than you...then this message was meant for you all to read....
I myself dont get dictored while in combat because why? i dont bomb that much and 2...i dont use ED/PD's. but when i am dictored because you players are too lazy and want easy combat pres...then thats lame and you will get dictored back....Eye for an eye i always say.
Lack of sportsmanship? plz the sportsmanship i once knew doesnt exist anymore...and you all have to grow up and adapt to the new game play...I have....and its taken me 3 years to realise that.
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Fattierob
Vice Admiral
Joined: April 25, 2003
Posts: 4059
| Posted: 2008-01-26 20:08
Quote:
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On 2008-01-26 19:46, GothThug {C?} wrote:
Lack of sportsmanship? plz the sportsmanship i once knew doesnt exist anymore...and you all have to grow up and adapt to the new game play...I have....and its taken me 3 years to realise that.
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sportsmanship does still exist
it's in the RoC.
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GothThug {C?}
Fleet Admiral
Joined: June 29, 2005
Posts: 2932
| Posted: 2008-01-26 20:23
yes but no one adheres to the code so...its like the RoC doesnt even exist to the players...its also very apparent that the mods ignore the code of sportsmanship ENTIRELY when its quite obvious that the MV is flattened just to spite some of us who play fairly 
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Leonide
Grand Admiral
Templar Knights
Joined: October 01, 2005
Posts: 1553
From: Newport News, Virginia
| Posted: 2008-01-26 20:24
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On 2008-01-26 20:23, GothThug {C?} wrote:
its also very apparent that the mods ignore the code of sportsmanship ENTIRELY
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O RLY?
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