- Proposal
- Create a new stat, or change a current stat(like Vitality), on the droid to one that decays over use time(time summoned/in space) to eventually require repair or replacement of the droid.
- Justification
- By adding decay, and the ability to repair, it will add another facet of player interdependency to the game and more market activity. This would also function as a good use for the relatively unused Droid Assembly skill. It will increase the cost of using droids; but, at a reasonable decay rate, most people would only need to buy/repair a droid every month, with maybe the most active users every week.
- Motivation
- To allow Droid Engineers to be as useful and engaged in the player economy as other Artisan professions. Currently, Droid Engineers are few and far between as their products last forever, other than bounty hunter droids.
The droid decay could be easily structured as a time dependent decay, where most droids would last for 50-100 hours of being 'out' before needing to be repaired/replaced. This would also serve to make planned limited availability droids maintain their value and not become worthless over time due to supply saturation.
Having a decay system opens the door for other ideas and PVs(THESE ARE EXAMPLES, NOT THIS PV):
-Certain modules and experimentation could increase this lifespan, for things like medical droids, to add depth and decisions to droid crafting.
-Something like powerups for droids that increase their effectiveness at the cost of faster decay.
- Decay penalties for certain things like letting your droid die in combat, your ship blowing up in space, etc.
-Some sort of equipment styled decay system for combat droids where their lifespan, or even the effectiveness of their armor/damage, is more determined by active usage than time summoned.
(DISCLAIMER AGAIN: These ideas are meant to show what the system opens up for future ideas, these are not this PV.)
Having a decay system opens the door for other ideas and PVs(THESE ARE EXAMPLES, NOT THIS PV):
-Certain modules and experimentation could increase this lifespan, for things like medical droids, to add depth and decisions to droid crafting.
-Something like powerups for droids that increase their effectiveness at the cost of faster decay.
- Decay penalties for certain things like letting your droid die in combat, your ship blowing up in space, etc.
-Some sort of equipment styled decay system for combat droids where their lifespan, or even the effectiveness of their armor/damage, is more determined by active usage than time summoned.
(DISCLAIMER AGAIN: These ideas are meant to show what the system opens up for future ideas, these are not this PV.)
I'm going to upvote this as I believe that droids should also decay requiring either maintenance from an engineer or replacement. Any economy that depends on new players to exist or grow, isn't sustainable. The economy has to have obsolescence built into it so that maintenance, repair or replacement is required. Else it stagnates. I agree with the honorable GS RGViza that a repair kit or such should be used when a droid is destroyed before it could be used again.