Masslock Compensator
In a nutshell, the Masslock Compensator is an OXP that permits the player ship faster speed (approx. x2) when alert status is yellow (i.e. passively masslocked but not in combat). It is a solution to the masslock problems in Oolite (the current version provides on-board Masslock Compensators which activate, allowing faster travel under certain conditions).
There are 3 pages of discussion and analysis of the 4 versions of this OXP here: BB thread (2018+)
Contents
Overview of original Version 1.0
A simple little expansion to make masslocks less time consuming.
It works by recognising two types of masslock:
- Passive Masslocks - These are how typical masslocks begin: the player is masslocked by an entity that has no wish to delay the player. In game this is the situation during yellow alert.
- Active Masslocks - This is where an entity actively hinders the player's escape from masslock, typically to engage in combat. In game this is the situation during red alert.
- During passive masslocks, the player ship's masslock compensators will be activated granting extra speed (x2) to assist in escaping masslock.
- During active masslocks, the same compensators will be disabled by 'jamming' from enemy vessels.
- Pros: The slower player ships are less tedious to pilot and masslocks generally are less mind-numbing.
- Cons: Like the torus drive itself, it's another player-only concession.
- Rationale: (This is up to the player of course but here's one to consider...)
- Assuming (for sake of argument) that non-player ships actually had torus drives, it becomes highly likely that masslocking ships meet one of the following three conditions:
- They are heading in the opposite direction
- They are slower than the player ship (torus drive based on ship max speed)
- They are somehow dawdling or have only just started up their torus drive
Each of these conditions provides (IMHO) a reasonable argument for the player to be travelling faster than the masslocking vessels. So it could further be argued that this oxp creates a simulation of torus-slowing rather than torus-breaking in a way that isn't obviously player-centric. A player can be masslocked from behind of course but (for me at least) this is a very rare ocurrence considering that there is typically a good deal of space that the player has already torus-driven through.
There are other conditions in which masslock can occur but they typically don't involve a tedious spacelane 'race' to overtake or evade other vessels.
Future Considerations:
- Speed boost could be reduced or increased but x2 seems about right to me
- There could be an equipment item to gran a further boost for slower vessels (x3 perhaps)
- It could be disabled within the aegis of stations
Meanwhile, if masslocks are getting you down then this little thing should make things much more tolerable without significantly changing gameplay.
License
- Author: Redspear
- License: CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0
- Version: 1.4
- Requires: Oolite v.1.81
Links
Other oxp's with similar effects
- Traffic Redistributer (Redspear, 2017)
- Power To Engines (Redspear, 2019)
- Variable Masslock (Norby, 2015)
- Note that Redspear's three oxp's are compatible with each other!
Redspear's summary of his four Masslock OXP's (from the BB)
- Speedboost (150%) when weapons offline
- Useful for escaping faster opponents (if they did same then they wouldn't be able to shoot)
- Helps reduce duration of masslocks
- Speedboost (200%) when masslocked but cancelled by red alert
- No benefit for combat
- Significant reduction of time spent in masslock
- Adjusts traffic to increase frequency of slower traders (and so that the 'best' courier ships aren't also the most common)
- Station bound traffic becomes easier to overtake because it's usually slower
- Pirates, hunters and police are unaffected
- Masslock lasts for a fixed duration rather than until scanner is clear
- No speed changes to either player or average encountered NPC
- Taking fire negates the effect but possible to dodge your way out of a masslock without being the faster ship
- Likely to make Masslock Compensators obsolete if it develops as I hope
Gameplay and Balance Indicator
