I just noticed that Dark Communion is an Investigation, even though we do nothing but murder people and break stuff in that mission.
Yes it’s still a very low priority thing, but it bugs me that it has the POTENTIAL to actually matter, and instead it just doesn’t, at all. Mission types COULD be different enough that players might care about what mission type they’re about to play.
So here’s another idea bucket, expanding on the Finale Focus option I mentioned last time I was complaining about mission types making no sense. This time it’s for how to have each mission type correspond to one kind of finale, and how to change each finale so that each mission matches up to a specific mission type. They might not match up perfectly to the stated goals, but the different mission types have a lot of overlap and hardly mean anything anyway so who cares. I mean, Strike? Disruption? Surely they’re all “strikes” and “disruptions.” Doesn’t “espionage” mean spying? As in gathering information? As in INVESTIGATING? Silo Cluster is classified as a Strike, yet we’re DISRUPTING the demon they’re infecting the water with in order to REPAIR the water supply, so, ehh?? Shrug
Like I’ve said before, none of them matter except for Assassination.
I still like the idea that each mission type should have a slightly different feel throughout, though, with tweaked spawn rates, so certain mission types have fewer hordes but more specials, or more ambient enemies but fewer elites, or more elites but fewer shooters, or tons of shooters but no hordes, or whatever. So that players could learn the differences and be like ah we are about to do a Strike Mission, these have lots of (say) elite patrols so I should bring my anti-elite kit, or ah we are about to do a Disruption, these have loads of shooters everywhere so I should bring my extra toughness build. Or whatever. But anyway, this idea bucket is about Finales.
ESPIONAGE
could be specifically for finales where the players do lots of Data Interrogation.
Based more or less on:
Vigil Station Oblivium
Comms Plex
Missions That Could Be Espionage:
Refinery Delta (currently a Disruption)
Since Refinery Delta’s finale is all Data Interrogation, it could be reclassified as an Espionage without any changes to gameplay or dialogue.
Hab Dreyko (currently an Investigation)
The new finale with jamming biotic probes into the tree is unique since it’s the only place the biotic probes are used, but it’s closest to an Espionage data interrogation finale.
INVESTIGATION
could be specifically for finales where the players do lots of Auspex Scanning.
Based more or less on:
The Old Version of Hab Dreyko
See my other idea about bringing back the old scanning finale and having the probe finale where we kill the phage tree be an Operation. Basically, the old finale except instead of two scanning phases with a waiting period between them, it’d be just one scanning phase with like a whole bunch of scan targets, and slightly longer intervals between mob spawns.
Missions That Could Be Investigation:
Archivum Sycarax (currently an Espionage)
Obviously. Why is it still an Espionage, it’s literally investigating something, why are you like this Fatshark what did I ever do to you
Mercantile (currently a Raid)
This one could potentially be made into a proper investigation by replacing the “wait for the roof to open” onslaught survival segment with a “find and scan a bunch of crates and stuff around the whole arena looking for which ones are blighted stimms” segment. I kind of like this idea because it would make better use of the really big arena. I always huddle in a corner which doesn’t utilize the space very well. Seems kind of a waste of the unique location.
STRIKE
could be specifically for finales where the players do a whole buncha good ol’ fashioned KILLIN’ DUDES. Heavy combat, generally in one large area, with nothing or almost nothing else to do.
Obviously every finale involves lots of fighting, so what separates the Strike finale is that the killing is the only thing we’re doing for a long stretch. Strikes would therefore probably be the least interesting finale type, and special care must be taken to make the big fight more than just normal enemies and a monster. There is something to be said for occasionally just having one big nice uncomplicated murder hoedown to cap a mission off, especially if it could be given some kind of slightly different set of enemies than usual (like how in Mortis Trials sometimes we get like a crapton of flamers all at once or whatever), but I think if a mission can be made to have a different finale, it should probably be anything besides a Strike.
Based more or less on:
Enclavum Baross
Could potentially make this one a bit more interesting by switching the regular hordes out for those armored groaners from the Infected Moebian 21st mutator.
Missions That Could Be Strikes:
Consignment Yard (currently a Raid)
Fine as is, but could be made more distinct by adding in some more heavy ranged groups. Seems fitting to me seeing as we’re in an ammo depot.
Mercantile (currently a Raid)
As is, Mercantile is more of a Strike, since all the finale really entails is the continuous murder of dudes. All it might take to reclassify it is a change or add dialogue to reflect that the objective is less for us to locate and steal the stimms and more for us to clear the area so other guys can do that, just like in Consignment Yard.
Silo Cluster (currently a Strike)
To make Silo Cluster more like the other Strikes, just make it one corruptor instead of three, have the hordes only start after it’s dead, and make the “wait for the system to purge” section longer so it’s the bulk of the event, maybe with a few monsters in there, or extra tox bombers or something. Also, halt enemy spawns after we’re done so it feels more like we were here specifically to kill everybody and now we’ve done that. It would also make some sense to have the objective be to clear all the enemies out so that they don’t just put more crap in the water after we leave. Makes more sense than Mercantile, cuz we’re clearing this place so our forces can capture it, as opposed to in Mercantile where we are outta there after we get what we came for.
Ascension Riser (currently a Raid)
This mission is also more of a Strike than a Raid, since the hauling of the crystal is only a tiny part right at the end.
RAID
could be specifically for finales where the players have to haul heavy objects around.
Based more or less on:
Chasm Logistratum
Missions That Could Be Raids:
Excise Vault Spireside (currently an Investigation)
This one being a Raid made perfect sense before. We’re raiding a place to steal some stuff. It could be reverted back to a Raid with no other changes.
Ascension Riser (currently a Raid)
To make the hauling more important, two ideas:
1. It could have two cannisters of prismata crystals instead of one, or maybe even three. Also, more enemy spawns after leaving the riser while bringing the crystals to the extraction point so the hauling portion takes a little longer. Possibly fewer roamers and hordes during other places to make the rest of the mission go a bit faster so the mission doesn’t become too long, or maybe the riser could rise a bit quicker.
2. Shuffle some rooms around so that the riser happens at the middle of the mission, and the segment where we’re carrying the crystal is a lot longer. Still hauling focused like other Raids, but the twist is that it’s hauling one thing over a much longer distance.
Mercantile (currently a Raid)
Could be altered into a proper stuff-hauling Raid by putting the stimms in big cannisters all around the arena and replacing the “wait for the roof to open, then light the flare” segment with “find all the stimms and pile them in the center, then light the flare.” As with the idea for turning Mercantile into an Investigation, this could be a nice way to force players to move around and see more of the nice big arena instead of hiding in a hole the entire time.
Here’s where things get slightly more complex.
DISRUPTION
could be specifically for finales where the players have to complete multi stage objectives, with an emphasis on destroying things with our actual weapons, not just with minigames, but a minigame or two would be thrown in here and there as well.
Based more or less on:
Warren
Missions That Could Be Disruption:
Relay Station (currently a Disruption)
Good to go as is with all the corruptor killing, but we had that event a while back with the heretic signal devices that was neat, so it’d be remiss of me not to mention that it would be cool to bring one of those back for the end of this mission, seeing as it’s about a heretic signal we need to take down. I always hate to see decent gameplay mechanics just get dropped off the face of the planet after the event is over.
Silo Cluster (currently a Strike)
Current version with its corruptor punching would qualify as a Disruption more than a Strike.
Refinery Delta (currently a Disruption)
Needs some breaking things if it’s going to be a Disruption and not an Espionage. Not too difficult; just need to add some of those fun-to-smash big green vats from the Warren and Dark Communion around that we need to break in the finale room. Like maybe each data interrogator we finish opens up several of them around the area (like how those generator battery dispenser things open up to reveal a battery we need to haul somewhere) so we need to move around a bit in between each hack. Could slightly reduce the time between each hack as well, or reduce the number of hacks to only two or three. Some of the green things we need to blow up could be like kind of high up or down below, and we need to look around a bit to be able to shoot them (or find an obscure out of the way ladder to reach them, just in case we’re out of ammo).
Dark Communion (currently an Investigation)
Could be reclassified as a Disruption without any changes, since going around thumping the ritualists and then smashing a few things at the end is good enough to qualify.
REPAIR
could be specifically for finales where the players have to complete multi stage objectives, with an emphasis on simple instructions and moving around a big area. Possibly with randomized objectives like in Clandestium Gloriana; maybe that could be the defining gimmick of Repair missions.
Based more or less on:
Clandestium Gloriana
Missions That Could Be Repair:
Smelter Complex (currently a Repair)
Corruptor Killing is more in line with Disruption than Repair, so to make it feel more Repair-y one or two of the corruptors could be replaced with another activity. Maybe a single biotic probe hack, or placing some detonation charges on huge tumor clumps that are clogging something up, or finding and hauling a battery to a slot close by.
Power Matrix (currently a Repair)
This one could use a few more simple steps thrown in to make it feel a bit more involved like Smelter Complex and Clandestium Gloriana. Simple things like pulling levers and pushing buttons, maybe be to unlock the cryonic rods, or to open the insertion slots.
Silo Cluster (currently a Strike)
To make this a Repair, a bit of button pushing or lever pulling on consoles scattered around the area could be required to make the corruptors appear, and the “wait for the system to purge” segment after the corruptors are dead could be cut shorter. Similar to the Smelter Complex idea, another possibility is replacing two of the corruptors with a different short activity to feel more like repairing stuff. Could be another opportunity to add in a biotic probe.
And of course, finally,
ASSASSINATION
Mission ends with a heretic leader to fight.
Good ol Assassination. The only one that makes sense.
Chasm Station
Magistrati Oubliette
It’d be nice to get another one of these, though they could use some variety in the boss at the end. Like for example in Spillway. Yay!
Here’s a finished list of my recommendations, which also handily puts three missions in each category (except Assassination.)
ESPIONAGE
Vigil Station Oblivium
Comms Plex
Refinery Delta
INVESTIGATION
Hab Dreyko
Archivum Sycarax
Mercantile
STRIKE
Enclavum Baross
Consignment Yard
Silo Cluster
RAID
Chasm Logistratum
Excise Vault Spireside
Ascension Riser
DISRUPTION
Warren
Relay Station
Dark Communion
REPAIR
Clandestium Gloriana
Smelter Complex
Power Matrix