Ever since participating in the Dublin race in March of 23, I've been hoping to see a discussion thread like this one, and I'm stoked for it!
I'll take the opportunity to second @jammi in saying that the FLHook support to administrate things in game would be a major plus to organization. It'd definitely make them easier to integrate into on-the-spot interaction between racers. I'd even wager to say that it's really all the support I would ask for, especially if it opens up the possibility of more events!
The discussion of mechanical refinements around it such as different racing thrusters and a pit mechanic are intriguing and its cool to see them tabled, but in our low mechanical support environment I'm pretty happy with just cruising and disrupting. Adding optional turrets to tracks reminds me so much of what AWES did in Dublin with their POB and that's electrifying, though. Those are the sort of changes I think can be made progressively after adding any FLHook support, so as more people take some interest in the activity you can solicit feedback on whether to go so tweak heavy into the concept.
But honestly, just FLHook support alone would be a dream come true for me. For however complex of a task that may be.
The tricky part in my opinion is making something that is actually naturally faster than conventional cruising. If it isn't, it all feels kind of silly when you slap on deliberately slower engines/thrusters to then race with. Just press Shift-W with a normal engine, dumbass.
Maybe we just need loads and loads of CDs, lol.
The current cruise speed is far too high for some of the current tracks.
Opting for slower, but faster than regular thrusters, engines would be a nice middle ground.
Then add different engines, some with fast acceleration but lower top speed etc.
With how the thrusters are implemented I can see plenty of different options.
Make them eat your regular energy core and they become useless for regular pvp or combat.
If you can FLhook restrictions such as limiting cruise engines it would be even better.
Give the organizer of the race the options so they are able to add rules & restrictions, tracks, payout etc.
Give them a start command that forces people to stay still until the countdown is done etc.
Adding loads and loads of CDs would impact regular gameplay outside of races since you know these faster ships will be used to annoy people.
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(01-16-2025, 04:44 PM)SeaFalcon Wrote: Adding loads and loads of CDs would impact regular gameplay outside of races since you know these faster ships will be used to annoy people.
Sorry, that random comment was referring more to something like race tracks actively having "Cruise Disruptor Platforms" scattered around, making constant cruising with conventional engines not an option. I know I wasn't very clear (and it's just a random idea that popped into my head). More cruise disruptors on ships in general is not something I think is a great idea.
(01-16-2025, 04:44 PM)SeaFalcon Wrote: Adding loads and loads of CDs would impact regular gameplay outside of races since you know these faster ships will be used to annoy people.
Sorry, that random comment was referring more to something like race tracks actively having "Cruise Disruptor Platforms" scattered around, making constant cruising with conventional engines not an option. I know I wasn't very clear (and it's just a random idea that popped into my head). More cruise disruptors on ships in general is not something I think is a great idea.
ah okay. I'd rather just see FLhook or whatever stopping you from turning on cruise if you're in a race event that has this rule set.
Platforms would require map changes and also might influence certain locations where pvp is common, such as Dublin.
Just a thought, based on what @SeaFalcon just said.
Thinking about it practically yeah here on earth we'd want faster faster engines. The faster the better. In space, short of a space drag strip, you want more control. So an idea:
Racing Engines
Racing engines cruise just slower than the inbuilt thrust inhibitors allowing the user to activate their thrusters when they normally wouldn't. While these engines allow for impressive stunts such as hairpin turns utilizing them for normal travel is I'll advised.
In this idea, we'd have engines that cruise maybe 350? The old top cruise but it allows you to utilize your thruster while cruising. It would be almost like Nitrous in racing games.
One of the more unique features of Freelancer's movement system is the engine kill, perhaps there could be cruise disruptors that don't affect EK so that there would be skill expression in timing the EK and angling it correctly.
It's possible for anyone with DSAM access to remove or reduce power cores, and mount special engines on ships in a way that the normal player cannot change without a request. I would be VERY stoked to see young mollys and hessians getting into racing hijinks in against young disaffected unioner and corsair youths strapping battleship engines to mostly disarmed cruiser and gunboat hulks in the deep Omegas. Customizable top speeds, accelleration curves, handling mass, etc - have some specialized racing mines that explode with huge flak effects
I haven't been playing for a while, but something in this thread spoke to me. Besides, I noticed some interesting ideas and felt like I had a little to contribute. Not a detailed proposal, just some thoughts that hopefully might help.
(01-16-2025, 05:07 PM)Vulkhard Muller Wrote: Just a thought, based on what @SeaFalcon just said.
Thinking about it practically yeah here on earth we'd want faster faster engines. The faster the better. In space, short of a space drag strip, you want more control. So an idea:
Racing Engines
Racing engines cruise just slower than the inbuilt thrust inhibitors allowing the user to activate their thrusters when they normally wouldn't. While these engines allow for impressive stunts such as hairpin turns utilizing them for normal travel is I'll advised.
In this idea, we'd have engines that cruise maybe 350? The old top cruise but it allows you to utilize your thruster while cruising. It would be almost like Nitrous in racing games.
To develop the idea further (and I think it would actually be implementable):
Add racing engines with slower cruise speed to help you hit those turns.
Introduce racing thrusters that can be used mid-cruise. The caveat? These thrusters don't recharge (or do so at a painfully slow rate). Docking and undocking does the trick though. Do this, and congratulations, we now have NOS from Fast & Furious, but in space.
With "racing thrusters" around, you can even introduce different models of racing engines with different cruise speeds (and maybe even maneuverability). Someone might slap the fastest engine and fastest thruster, but risks not hitting that turn on a track. But it doesn't matter, because picking the combination of engine and thruster that's fit for your means that we now have ship tuning.
P.S. If you let a racer's cruise engines charge up very fast, you'll also open up more gameplay opportunities. Some racers might choose to hit engine kill and use thrusters for a sharp turn, while others will prefer to stay in cruise. Right now, the cruise engine charge time makes it so that the only winning strategy is to hit cruise and stay in cruise.
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