I would like to hear from the balance team on the current state of affairs. Is the Novax discussed at all or it it being considered to be in a good place?
I very much dislike the current Novax - makes the game worse for mentioned reasons (see other thread).
Thank you, Caliber, for having a look at potential changes.

Hi,
what is the issue with the Sera BS texture? When you zoom out a little, it completely changes and looks very different. Is this done on purpose? If not: can it be fixed?

Hi,
current vet system is counterintuitive and acts in unexpected ways:
Instant significant HP boost is bad game design. Attacker does not know if it is smart to push with units or if oppo ACU is about to get insta HP by OC-ing a t3 unit and render the rest of the attack nothing but a mass gift. This is not strategy but luck.

Possible improvements:

1. Significantly increase HP boost for a short period of time when vet is reached, don't have x amount of HP given instantly.
2. Make it visible as to how close ACU is to next vet level. We already have access to some information on oppo team (building status of units/buildings, energy level [e-storage].). Maybe something could be implemented which indicates how close to the next vet level the other ACU is (vetting bar oppo can see)?

The sat situation has become unbearable. It has a hit rate of 95+%, gives free intel, does not overkill. A few of them shuts down any air production bc you need to micro manage shields and lose eco from pushing shields. High accuracy makes it even hard to escape when locked on ACU and no water near by. It outpaces any engi you could use to get shields around mexes. Either you lose your air grid or mexes.
I get that is "weaker" and "cheaper" than an arty. However, unless oppo gets tons of shield anyway, the "weak" damage is enough to cause havoc. It's a lazy "low risk, high reward, fire and forget" unit.
One nerf would be that you cannot cue up targets with the sat so you need to micro manage it yourself.

I hear a lot of complaining (rightfully so) yet hardly anyone can give good reasons as to why it is well balanced atm beyond "don't let them get it". Same situation as with OP Sera TML Acu before nerf.
Is any serious change being considered beyond gathering thoughts in this thread?
I feel it is more dreaded than a Mavor at this point for a Mavor is supposed to end a game for its cost. Sats just make people want to play less FAF

Hi,
I encountered this issue with a ML and a GC:
Units are partially under water yet their guns stick out so they can shoot. Unfortunately, they stay invisible to radar as well as direct view (basically cloaked). The chicken even hardly could damage the GC with its standard weapon when ground firing (energy ball did most of the damage) [game ID: ##26097802; around 30 min, center right area of the map).

My view:

Oppo's view:

This is an absurd situation. It's like a battleship firing in plain sight yet being invisible and hard to hit even with ground firing.
Cherry on top: while my chicken was also in water, the GC still could see it while my chicken could not see the GC

Please fix it.

Hey,
today, for the first time ever, I saw that an older chat from a few days ago showed up when opening a tab to pm someone. A mod told me a longer time ago that no chats are being saved. Has this changed or is there an issue on my end (I also saw pop ups in Aeolus as if someone pmed me - those were my own messages though).

Which messages are saved for how long and how has access to those?

Mz bad, it was a t2 then.
I could swear it happens with t3 pgens as well. If air player acu dies while pgen was almost done, and then it blows up, air is basically lost.
Maybe someone can explain eventually what the reason behind losing all resources put into the structure is.
If only specific units/structures are effected it would be nice if someone could provide a list of the affected ones.

@Jip
I don't have a replay with a t4 at hand (maybe my memory is off and it was structures only?).
Here is an example of #22913645. At ~ 8:50 my base is transferred and an unfinished t3 pgen blows up.
I think it would be better if all structures and units being build would be transferred without blowing up.

Why do unfinished elements get destroyed in FS games when a player receives the base from a former player who is no longer in the game?
A 99 % finished t4/t3 pgen just blows up. Is it possible to just get it similar to a paused upgrading mex which does not blow up?

Thanks. Maybe it also could be added what kind of map one gets (gras/green, snow/white, alien etc.).
I find some colors harsh on the eyes.

1. "Biome" only has the option "RANDOM" - why have a drop down menu then?
2. Some of the options are unclear. What does "resource generator" mean (basic, low_mex, water_mex)?
   --> many of the terrain generator options are unclear ("flooded, valley, little_mountain, mountain_range)
3. What is prop generator (high_reclaim vs large_battle, what is "basic"?)

It feels like there is very limited information/no examples/images gives, so players have to painstakingly try out all the options to make sense of them. Frustrating.

Easiest to understand elements are the sliders. Helpful. Option to use map names is great too.

4. I don't understand why no water slider will be added back in (how can I ensure I get random maps without water?).
5. If there is a list of terrain options could we just click those we want to be included when going random (to exclude others)?

@katharsas said in Why does everything suck so much right now?:

Take a rest @Jip if you need it.

I agree. Jip is one of the best things that has happened to FAF with all the improvements (other contributors not withstanding). One of the benefits of @Jip is that he is very approachable and listens without constantly making snarky, hostile and dismissive comments like others here do. I don't always have to agree with him to see value in that. It's probably really best not to feed the haters and trolls too much. @Jip, if you decide to leave at some point because your sanity is more important to you than arguing with immature people here, then that's the right decision. I hope you can still get something positive out of FAF for the time being. Thanks for your efforts and contributions, they have made a big difference for the better and did not go unnoticed.

@Jip
I looked at the threads on the individual changes - in almost all the cases the design changes were out criticized or it was pointed out how the changes look ok but still make it harder to distinguish compared to the old models.
Iirc the changes were introduced without a big discussion on the forum or elsewhere. Then the team received a lot of backlash. Subsequently forum threads were opened with said feedback and ever since development stopped? Felt short-sided to me.
I got used to the new models - by zooming out more often, which makes any model irrelevant kinda, which I think is a bad direction to take. I still think the visual changes are making it harder to distinguish HQs and non-HQs.

I wonder: would you do it all over again the same way or would you choose a different approach (if so, how?). Is the HQ re-development concluded at this point?

Thank you!

Hi,
I noticed how t3 arties and other units/buildings are facing south when under construction resulting in them having to slowly turn north when completed when wanting to shoot at enemy units. Iirc this had been changed so the turrets face the center/nearest enemy unit in the past. Was that change reverted? Especially with t3 arties this extra rotation time can make a difference in arty wars (same with t4s when under attack from another t4 coming from the north).
Do I misremember? If not, what is the reason for reverting?

Thank you, I found something on Discord and will work through it.

Recently, the ASI mod stopped working (prolly due to some patch). Is there any way of making the mod work again? Thanks.

@Deribus
I appreciate the work you put in. Looks better than the version before. Overall, i just don't like the effect in general - looks like the green jelly army from Lord of the Rings or a massive toxic wasteland. I didnt mind the effect for arties, prolly bc it was on a small scale, but this now looks more like the result of a scud storm than enlightened higher power alien Aeon tech. Eyesore.
In this case, I d opt for something new. RK4000 has shown that many cool effects are possible - maybe there is something that aligns well with Aeon? Even changing the color prolly will make it look better.

@blackyps said in Developers Iteration III of 2023:

It would also be much nicer if people would find back to a more benevolent tone when they have questions or concerns about development.

I d say people in general would do well with some self-reflection. I sought clarification and the response, in tone, was not exactly super friendly ("weird examples", "Allow me to do that for you", "Will you be there to answer it for them?"). You also gloss over the issue and take the role of the tone police.
Unfortunately, I think a rather hostile way of interacting has a long history on FAF forums and beyond, especially when members of various FAF groups are not exactly welcoming no matter what/how people ask (you know who you are).
My point was: neither in the change log nor here has the Mega/Czar change been explained sufficiently initially. I read most, if not every change log, so you guys putting in effort in communicating changes is greatly appreciated.

@jip said in Developers Iteration III of 2023:

We hope to include them in the future. At the moment they are not within reach to be finished any time soon.

Things would be clearer if you explained things a little more to begin with. This mechanic was working before, now it was removed with you saying eventually it ll be included once again when "finished". Not stating what this "finished state" is nor providing the explanation you just gave now leads to confusion imo.
You also wrote you "hope" to include them again. That is not the same as "we will include it back again", so I wonder what you mean.