An idea that has been rolling around in my head...

[FAD]

Well, sorry to be another poo flinger but.... A laser is a laser is a laser... Doesn't matter if my laser goes from 1-4 to 8-32 over a duration of time due to experience, it will still be a laser and will still be ineffective against the later baddies equipped with higher grade armor/shields that seriously make lasers obsolete. ...for example.

[Boris the Cat]

No one said anything about the weapon being a laser. For that matter, it could just as easily be a thermonuclear weapon, that starts out by doing 1-1 damage.

[goat not sheep]

It throws out rocks, and then the rocks get bigger...?

[FAD]

My point was that by the time you've managed to get the weapon up to max strength, it could already be outdated and the need for another weapon being inevitable. I simply used the laser as an example since it's commonly used in them.

Don't get me wrong, I like the idea but in a game such as this where many things are constantly changing as you advance onward, one thing you practically have to rely on is fire power and in a wide variety at that, in order to survive.

So lets say we used a thermo-based weapon, 1 damage rate for starters as you mentioned. Thermo generally enters the picture around level 5 on average (sometimes lvl 3 or 4 if you're lucky) OK, at level 5 we're usually being introduced to the Dwarg-and that 1d thermo weapon should do fairly well against a Dwarg Raider 1 on 1...But they come in swarms and worse, they're being lead by their Master, which, would chew your ship up while your little pea shooter 1d thermo only managing to plink a few rounds off its hull. That would gain some experience points but by then it could be too late, you're dead.

[Boris the Cat]

I'm fairly certain, that by the time you'd start meeting Dwarg, it would have advanced a level or two.

Incidentally, if such a thing were possible, what would be a suitable damage progression rate? I thought of something like this:

0 kills - 1d1
15 kills - 1d4
50 kills - 1d8
120 kills - 1d10
200 kills - 2d6
300 kills - 2d8
425 kills - 2d10
550 kills - 3d6
(and so on, and so forth)

[george moromisato]

...is this idea feasible with the current version of Transcendence, or is this something George would have to add in a later version?

It's a neat idea.

I might do it by creating a series of weapons (each a separate item class):

artifact weapon (level I): 1d6 laser
artifact weapon (level II): 2d6 laser
artifact weapon (level III): 4d6 laser
artifact weapon (level IV): 1d8 particle
etc. etc.

All of the above would be non-random and could not be ordered or found in any way. The player would start with level I.

On some trigger, the game decides that the player should get the next level. At that point, the code installs the next level weapon (and uninstalls the previous one).

The thing I don't know how to do is how to figure out how much experience the player has gotten. Right now the "score" variable (which is the closest thing) is not exposed via script.

One other possibility is this (I'm sure someone can come up with a better story):

1. An alien weapon that can regenerate itself and adapt.
2. It uses other weapon parts to sustain itself. The player needs to feed it other weapons/devices to re-charge it.
3. The alien weapon goes up in levels when it eats a sufficient number of weapons of a higher level than itself.

You could probably mod the above (though it would take some time).

[Betelgeuse]

I do like the weapon that eats up higher level weapons. Would make a nice money sink too.

[Blinzler]

Hmm, i just though of something, rediculous I'm sure, but what the h...:

How about while going through the universe you come upon an abandoned alien craft and switch into it. You are able to figure out how to steer it, the reactor seems to accept the fuel's you're used to and most of the basic systems seem to be - at least remotely - compatible with tools/devices you're used to. Only the weapon's system gives you headache. You found the weapons, but they're hardwired into the ship so that you can't replace them. They seem kinda weak, but as you go along you slowly learn what certain things do and learn to use the weapon more effectively, e.g. powering up hidden features you were not aware of before.
Or - as you go along - you have encounters with people who know little things that help you use the ship more effectively - bar encounters would be good here. Maybe some technician can look at the ship - for a price - and depending on his *level* he can advance/enhance it a bit or even unlock new features.

[goat not sheep]

I got an idea too! The cannon fires out matter which absorbs energy into the weapon itself, making it stronger when it got a certain amount of energy... maybe that'll work.

[FAD]

On some trigger, the game decides that the player should get the next level. At that point, the code installs the next level weapon (and uninstalls the previous one).

The thing I don't know how to do is how to figure out how much experience the player has gotten. Right now the "score" variable (which is the closest thing) is not exposed via script.

Is it possible to have a trigger to use something like Boris' idea on the number of kills that would determine the cannons next level? That does sound more practical and would also eliminate some possible abuse of one finding a cache of higher grade weapons and end up having a super weapon prematurely.

[goat not sheep]

Farming...? Waiting by a gate? Killing anarists? Staying in charon for a long time...? How many levels of weapons are there...anyways?

[Yugi]

How many levels of weapons are there...anyways?

I don't see much reason to put a limit on it (If someone wants to spend loads of (probably boring) time waiting around a gate, why not let them?), but I suppose of something like...level twelve?

[goat not sheep]

Well...there has to be a limit to george's programming...unless you just add the attack...

[Yugi]

Well...there has to be a limit to George's programming

Why?

[Blitz]

Can you make a weapon do more than one type of damage? Now this alien bio weapon would be able to do one type of damage one and another based on what type of weapon you fed it or something like that. I tried to make a weapon which does more than one type of damage by using the semicolon ";" separator but it doesn't work. The game uses only the last damage type. This could come in handy while making some some unique weapons which do more than one type of damage. Come to think of it, you could even have weapon enhancer items or tinker customs which could add different damage types or increase weapon speed like putting gems or runes into socketed items..... stone of jordan.... frostburn gauntlets.... oh, wait I'm drifting off into another game....