There has been a number of threads lately about HIVEs having too much weight in continent locking and being too separate from the rest of the game. I'm not sure how things are on other servers but at least on Cobalt the continents lock a bit too fast for my liking. I think the HIVEs current function is ok but the VPs they bring should be compensated with say 30 VP to lock the continent. But I haven't thought of the impact of 30 VP goal in too much depth. But now on to the two alternatives I though about that could both be available as options even alongside current VP generator. Perhaps a console on the HIVE that allows you to select a function for the it. Who the **** knows. First function I had in mind was to boost the cap speed for your faction both in attack and defence and reduce it for the enemy, in the hex the HIVE was build in and with diminishing effects in other hexes along the lattice. The effect would be in the magnitude of 0.6x cap time for your faction and 1.4x for the enemy. This multiplier would be increased/reduced by 0.1 per every base between hive and the base in question. Keeping the HIVE alive long enough could reduce the multiplier drop off to 0.075 and then 0.05 although this might result in too much reach. This multiplier could additionally affect generator overload times, point flipping times and possibly respawn timers but the last two are questionable. The second suggestion is not mine but came from a thread about the bastion fleet carrier where it was suggested as a function for it. Essentially the owner of the HIVE could create a one way lattice link (one way because of the eventual 4th factioning and necessary TK orbital that would otherwise follow) between the hex its located in and any adjacent hexes to it. The link would take 5-10min to form and it would be visible on the map during the whole process and would jump trough the HIVE in question. Having the HIVE up for a long time would allow for additional links to be formed. If the HIVE is destroyed, the hex that was contested can still be captured as long as the defenders don't manage to reset the cap timer at which point the link would have to be rebuild. If the HIVE is lost after or during the cap the hex is considered as cut off until the one way lattice is reformed or a normal lattice link is formed. Instead of destroying a HIVE like this the attacker has the option to revert the lattice, destroy the base and build their own in its place. All the suggested values are of course debatable and would love to hear about any additional ideas you might have. Also do you think it would make base building too profitable if vehicles/players spawned from your tubes/pads ammo resupplied from your tower and your faction banner being hailed at rewarded you with XP?
Sorry for the wall of text. I really shouldn't write this stuff on my phone. I might actually be able to make it less painful for the eyes on a computer.
I still say VPs need to be entirely stripped from Hives, and that they should be solely used for choke point defenses and have other assault options, like a SAM sight, radar station, or very long range artillery. Maybe offer a new laser designator weapon attachment and let that direct artillery fire from the hive after you sync with the canon. Bottom line, if hives are ever going to be incorporated in to the game, fighting from them needs to be their main purpose, not a VP factory in some crevice in a corner.
Some of the most rewarding bases I have build are the once I was able to stop a zerg with. One such was on the little cliff at scarred mesa. Held in place and farmed a RE4 steamroller zerg for almost 20 minutes. But to be honest almost always when building a base in a high efficiency location I'm more concerned about how well it will attract enemies rather than how many victory points it can generate. Some sort of a long range radar that could perhaps used for slow but broad scans or focused on a small sector for more real time information would be nice and arty/sam site with actual range and umpf too but those would probably get cried about and swiftly nerfed to hell no matter how inconvenient to use.
