Secondary Skills Revamp

It is very likely Astech will be much cheaper to level up than Tech. And yes, as Skwi said, there will probably have to be a limited XP refund as a result.

Benefits? Not for me, but for others perhaps. The main problem with doing this is that the results will not be very accurate. It all goes back to Techs that have done less repairs will have correspondingly lower XP than those who did more repairs... and it is anyone's guess as to who that has been. It might be interesting to look at if someone else wants to do the calculations, but I'm satisfied enough with the changes listed above to act on it.

 

Astech skill list updated:

• 6 levels (same as Tech)
• Astech skill costs per level will be roughly half that of Tech (subject to change)
• Tech Level 3 and higher will receive full XP refund (since no one here actually paid for the training cost and first 2 levels in the skill)
• Players with Tech will automatically get Astech training and first two levels for free.
• If Astech becomes maxed out, remaining XP may be spent on either Negotiation or Scrounge (both are reasonably connected to a mechanic's skillset)
• If any XP remains after this, it may be spent on any secondary skill.

The end result of all this is the Player's Astech skill will be roughly 1-2 levels higher than their former Tech skill.

Working Skill Costs:

Tech/Mech 8 5 10 11 13 16 20 25 X X
Tech/Mechanic 8 4 6 7 9 12 16 21 X X
Tech/Aero 8 5 10 11 13 16 20 25 X X
Tech/Battle Armor 8 X X X X X X X X X
Astech 8 3 4 5 7 10 14 19 X X
Doctor 8 5 10 11 13 16 20 25 X X
Medtech 8 3 4 5 7 10 14 19 X X
(sorry for crappy format; check skill spreadsheet in character creation for better chart)

 

reduced costs for Astech further. To max it out to Level 6 will now cost you 55 XP (by comparison, Tech/Mech requires 100 XP). I'm very happy where it is at now. Upgrade submissions now require a minimum of Level 3 in Astech:

Class C upgrades = Level 3
Class D upgrades = Level 4
Class E upgrades = Level 5
Class F upgrades = Level 6

The lower levels only make you competent with loading equipment and basic armor welding jobs. Since the first couple of levels cost barely anything, I don't forsee this being a problem.

 

Skillsheets updated to version 3.6 with new Astech/Medtech skill costs. Find them in the character creation links.

 

oops... i'm a dummy. would make more sense just to make the Astech costs the same as the old Tech skill costs and jack the hell out of the Tech skills to make them more in line with Primary Skill costs. I might just put the Tech skills in the Primary Skill tree as well to avoid any confusion.

• old cost to max Tech skill = 100
• new cost to max Tech skill = 150 (cost for max level in Mech Piloting = 150)
• new Tech costs make sense when you consider that a Level 6 Tech is basically a genius inventor.
• new Astech skill costs = same as old Tech skill (will make conversion immensely easier)

I will also relax Upgrade Level requirements as a result:

• Class C upgrades = Level 2 or better
• Class D upgrades = Level 3 or better
• Class E upgrades = Level 4 or better
• Class F upgrades = Level 5 or better

Skillsheet updated to version 3.7 to reflect these changes

 

Sounds like a plan!
Move doctor to primary too?

 

Yes, but the change would be more than cosmetic as (besides the other changes we are implementing) MekHQ treats Astechs differently from Techs. The end result will be easier to keep track of since all the Techs will be lumped together as NPC dedicated Techs.

Excellent idea! Absolutely!

 

So... if my calculations are correct, I can be a maxed out Astech....

 

your Astech skill will be the same as your old Tech skill. no XP calculating/refund required.

 

So, nearly maxed out. Awesome!

 

Yay, we are collaborating!

:hodor:

 

This is why I like to ask first

Ok... let's take a look at the lance event table now...

old version:


Leadership:

• possible change: "Divided" seems to be fairly easy to mitigate if OpFor deploys on far side of map. should the number of turns be extended beyond 3?
  
• possible change: nerf "Armed and Dangerous" slightly by removing the +1 Initiative option. My reason for this is that there seems to be a huge jump in rewards between this level of rewards and "Well Supplied".

Tech

• Astech will be replacing Tech for this skillcheck
• alternatively, I'm thinking of relabeling it as "Logistics"; I like this idea because it more accurately describes its intended role (Astech will still be the skill we use for it)
• failed roll events seem to work pretty well; I don't think these need to be changed
• "Priority" has no function if we are not using the "Random Mission Generator"; its intent was to give players more "strategic flexibility" during a dynamic campaign (better logistics = better mobility), however, this has been neglected and needs a re-evaluation
• "Quartermaster" seems to work well as intended, but I think people are forgetting it is there; 20% reduction in Upgrade cost is HUGE; don't expect me to remind you about it
• repair facility bonus works well as intended, but again, i think people forget it is there; no change needed, just need to enforce its use
• new mission ability "Hack" = hack a terminal for a reward or mission objective; would require the Astech to remain stationary at a location for a certain number of turns
• possible new ability: "Salvager Savant" = change ONE "destroyed" mech to "disabled" status (with enough repairs, it can be put back into service). the problem with this, is that it would remove a significant amount of risk for advanced players.

Scrounge

• "Ambush" events seem to work okay... not great, but okay; recommend alternative for "Tough Neighborhood" level event
• Should the "Ambush" event and OpFor BV bonuses be two seperate things?
• optional "Out of Cockpit" combat for ambushes?
• "Enemy Intel" has not been enforced because it makes creating OpFor on the fly in the lobby a pain in the ass; recommend discontinuing until OpFor creation becomes streamlined
• C-bill reward seems to be reasonable; recommending no change needed
• "Entrenched" seems to be a bit circumstantial and under utilized, but not recommending any change; it is there if people want it
• 'counter "Divided" also seems circumstantial, but i don't recommend changing it
• possible new ability: "Target of Opportunity" = unlock a mission that would not normally be available (sort of dependent on Dynamic Mission Generator being active); needs further evaluation
• alternative for "Target of Opportunity" = unlock a new secondary objective for current mission; success = additional reward
• possible new ability: "Spare Parts" = some kind of repair reward or bonus. problem with this is that it sort of blurs the line with Astech/Logistics

Negotiation

• Negotiation works a bit differently than the other skills. I can't justify it having a huge impact during the setup of individual missions (it plays a bigger impact during missions). However, it could adjust rate of mission pay or mission salvage.
• Nominally, the unit gets 20% of all profits from a mission. The remaining 80% is split evenly between lancemates. Perhaps Negotiation could affect these numbers. Needs more evaluation.
• possible new ability: "Renegotiate" = allow one player to reroll his Lance Event Roll; second roll always overrides the first; probably way too OP for advanced players

Thoughts? Suggestions?

 

was doing numbers on this:

assume that a single mission against 4 heavy mechs brings in 10,000,000 in salvage (not completely unheard of).

20% goes to each lance member and the unit = 2,000,000 C-bills for each

the only reasonable reward bonus for Negotiation I can think of would be +1 or +2% = 100,000 or 200,000 C-bills respectively (this is the same reward as Scrounge)

the problem here is that it adds an extra step to calculating mission rewards... which is already a very time consuming process. also, because it is percentage-based, the numbers pulled in are entirely unreliable. when considering that I've been trying to limit all money exchanges to incriments of 50k, using a percentage seems like a massive headache.

Example: you get +1% savage rights, but it only earns you 23,000 C-bills. current rules would round that to the nearest 50k... which in this case would be zero.

one easy solution would be to make the number a flat 100k or 200k regardless of salvage earned. however, this makes it way too similar to the Scrounge reward. however, this might be resolved by emphasizing the new "Target of Opportunity" ability for Scrounge and leave the cash bonus reward to Negotiation.

thoughts?

 

Hack would be mostly dependent on the mission objective, but if your lance also rolls a Target of Opportunity option... I could see it being used quite a bit... especially during assault or raid missions.

hack a terminal:

• open a door that would otherwise be locked
• discover important intel for a bonus mission
• disable automated defenses
• etc.

========

on Salvager Savant:
hmm.. i like the idea of it as a one time use thing per campaign. you would be rolling each mission though. what happens when you get the reward a second time? ignore it?