NPC disappear distance

[hribek]

Increase in lag, maybe? If there is an NPC so far away that you cannot see it... if you're being hit by its' weaponry then you seriously need to take a look at yourself and think what you are doing wrong. Cap ship patrols can barely even hit my Barghest at a range of 500 let alone 2500.

Hey, take it easy.

1. the problem is, when a BS patrol "barely hits" your barghest under 1200m, you die. One of the fanciest things about NPCs is that they aim their razors better than most players. Now try flying a gunboat / BH Dessie in Omicron Delta against an Osiris / Titan patrol, and you will get my meaning. if you try to take the escorts on first, either you're too close so the osiris hurts you a lot (which is meant to happen), or it disappears because you're over 2.5K (sucks). This doesn't affect bomber pilots much, but if you have a gunboat or larger (like a transport, for instance) then it matters a great deal.

2. cruiser / battleship inferno, and you're sitting in a gunboat or larger. you have your shield half down before you find out where the fire is coming from. And no you can't see the projectiles. get it?

3. yes, lag is an unknown variable here, can only be really measured by trying.

Let me rephrase it: there are some strategies you can use against players but can't use against NPCs, because they disappear if you do.

Also, a battleship patrol with super-deadly battle razors spawning right into your face before you can react is not a nice thing. You can't see them and suddenly they pop up at 2K and CD / razor you before you can react.

I propose that the NPC disappear distance is increased to 3.5K for starters, and any difference in latency / server load is measured, and NPC patrols tested. If we find that it doesn't work, we can always revert to current values. This is still a beta, right?

Yes, possibly, possible increased lag might be a possible problem. But I don't think it can be that serious, especially in high-playercount times when the NPCs are low on numbers anyway. I'd like to try this out.