The idea of disabling enemies

[Omnires]

In some game you can damage different parts of the body of enemies. Any this idea give rise to the idea of crushing and/or cutting off body parts of enemies. Basic stuff now a days in gaming, even more so in games with non-human enemy types. But what I feel is still less common is the idea of disabling enemies to the point where they can no longer really do much to you. In games the devs rarely let you block or stop all of the enemies attacks.

For example take monster hunting games where you can do things like cut off the enemy's tail to stop them from using tail attacks or damage their wings enough so they can no longer fly or breaking the bones in their legs so they can't run around anymore. But even if you was break all the possible parts you can on the enemy they can still attack you no matter what.

I get it. If they allowed players to totally disable all the enemy's attacks and movements it would make the later half of the fight to easy in their view. But from my point view they are limiting high skill playing by not allowing this to happen and rewarding people for doing things in a given way. After all, in real life it is not always that you killed an animal for food and/or resources that matters but in how you kill that does. For example killing some types of fish in the wrong way makes it so you can't eat them as you allowed the toxins they carry to spread through their body. Or damaging some parts of the body of some animals makes it so you can no longer use that resources from them as it needs to be undamaged to get the highest quality out of it. I think devs need to embrace the idea of some players being able to completely disable their enemies in exchange for the idea of a "clean kill" or "clean break" to get best quality resources out of it. This would also allow for players who like to as things like snipers and assassins we better use their skills out of just being DPS, as they have tools and skills that would allow them make clean breaks and kills more often because of their high precision attacks.

What are your ideas on the subject? And do you think the idea of being able to break the body parts of enemies have a place in this game? And if so, to what degree?

Because maybe I don't feel like killing a zombie at the moment. Can't I just disable it's arms and legs so it just lays their helps on the ground while I enjoy the sun rise?

 

[Pandagnome]

I like it as an example

Medic - could use an imploder injector that makes the enemy area implode after injected by the special nano tech dart that results in less mess.

Recon - Micro bytes they act very similar to knee biters but in digital form if hacking the enemies they are eating their mind and could self destruct etc

Assault - MInecinerator Baiter, Its like a little sun that makes the day brighter but not for enemies feet.
If the enemy moves on to these little devices they give a good dose of blasted heat that certainly affect the feet and even the rest of them the longer they are on there.

Engineer - Rock n roll, fires a sphere that rocks and wacks the enemy off balance and rolls over them some times like a pancake which results in less or no bones. The Engineer uses a extractor device just like the ghost buster ghost trap to clean up.

 

[Wyntyr]

I believe the goal is to allow the disabling of limbs, wings, generators, etc. on the Kaiju. Not necessarily the Tsi-Hu. Perhaps an upper tier leader/boss/special Tsi-Hu.... I don't mind timed immobilizing weaponry/abilities (slow movement due to cold attack or some flailing around due to fire DOT, etc.) but shooting off limbs so the main body can just lie there seems a bit odd to me. If it's not dead, then the server has to account for it. If it's just lying there, then it might as well have been killed. And if the argument is skill, then why didn't you head shot it to death...

 

[Omnires]

The skill argument has to with farming and types of bounties. For example there some things you can only get from animals while they are alive, but you might want to stop them from attacking you first so you can get it without being killed. There is also the idea of taking in enemies alive for extra rewards and research. There is only so much you can learn from dead bodies and like I said before there some things you can only get while the animal is alive. Sure, it takes a lot of skill to get a head shot and just kill things in 1 hit for it be over. But it takes even more skill to disable a target and find away to bring it back alive.

This adds in an extra risk vs reward layer to the game. You could just run in and kill the enemy like normal. Or look for ways off killing it without damaging the parts you want to collect from them. Or look for ways of taking down the target without killing it so you can take it back alive. Greater risk, greater reward, more challenges. A real life example of this would be something like anyone can kill a puffer fish but how many people can kill a puffer fish in such a way that you can still eat it?

 

[Wyntyr]

That I'm aware of there will be no loot from animals and Tsu-Hu. Only resources from thumping and Kaiju parts from kaiju destruction. One can argue that Kaiju are tough or large enough that those parts were not defiled by player weaponry or Kaiju Juice...lol.

Perhaps a skill based mini-game for the Kaiju Part(s) that help determine either part type (when needing or wanting a specific part) or part quality (when no specific part needed or wanted)?

 

[Pandagnome]

but shooting off limbs so the main body can just lie there seems a bit odd to me. If it's not dead, then the server has to account for it. If it's just lying there, then it might as well have been killed. And if the argument is skill, then why didn't you head shot it to death...

- What if limbs could regrow if they have regenerative abilities
- What if each time a limb is gone the movement of the enemy changes in some way so as an example

1) Full use of movement
2) Missing limb or 2 more leaping, running, jumping
3) Much more missing limbs Use of rolling, hopping, hiding and calling out for support
4) no limbs self termination unless other tsihu/kaiju can get there to merge or recover and build the kaiju back up for round 2.

 

[Wyntyr]

Tsu-Hu limbs being regenerative might add some interesting visuals and if there aren't any different special affects such as cold/fire/acid/poison, then perhaps worth putting in the game.

 

[Mahdi]

Since we don’t want to encourage sword/axe users (or snipers) that would aim for major joints and then let a Tsi-Hu squirm in agony and be mentally disturbed in society….BUHAHAHA!!!
ok almost made it through that. Other than seeing the regenerative capabilities during combat, why would you wait…dead Tsi-Hu is better.

But a thought would be an awesome tranquilizer, cage, convoy ala Jurassic Park missions involving other pilots of vehicles (land or air to change up the encounter) that sedates a few Tsi-Hu and bring them back to…what’s her name, Carmen? Then let the science bring answers, sweet! Have the time for her to complete the work be real time and like WoW week timers.

Stop throwing rotten veggies at me….I’m being serious.

 

[liandri]

It makes sense with the Kaiju, since you'll be disabling their shields anyway. Disabling weapons to reduce damage, legs to reduce movement speed, pipes and tubing to cause a DOT effect would be nice.

It isn't brought up much anymore, but the beast mode of the Tsi-hu could also be a contender for using this idea. Beast mode requires energy to maintain, but what if you were to shoot out a certain part of the beast mode, rendering the Tsi-hu unable to turn back? They burn out completely and perhaps you could collect some of their ferrofluid-ish goop from them.

Being able to shoot and destroy grappler's chains/hooks would be neat.

 

[Omnires]

It would be nice that if going by what you do in the fight what happens afterwards changes.

1. Everyone goes in and just do as much damage as possible until it is died.
   1. Nothing different happens. Game just goes on like other games do after a kill.
2. Everyone goes in targeting key body parts to harvest.
   1. Some games go the rout of auto harvesting. So the moment when say the tail is cut off everyone gets the resource. This works best with parts that can be easily get to and removed from the body.
   2. Things like internal organs are a bit harder to get to. So player could have the option to do something after the fight to try and harvest key internal organs and such. Maybe something like an extra defense mission where you protect the NPC team doing the harvesting of the body and the loot you get after is based on how well you protected them. Keeping them safe for as long as possible without taking damage means you get the best quality resources as they make less mistakes.
3. Everyone goes in with the goal of taking it back alive.
   1. After it is captured players have the option to join the escort team in trying to move to safe place. All the while you have to stop random attacks from enemies on your way back. While also making sure that the target is unable to break free and escape. Be it by making sure it always stays asleep / knocked out or making sure it never heals enough to regain its strength and mobility. Going by what I said before about how there are some things only to harvest while something is alive. Means that you could get higher amounts of a rare resource build variant gear from it. To make sure that is not something that players are forced to or feel they have to do the variant gear always be more of a side grade rather an upgrade. And this would just allow people to have more build options that could change how they play.
      1. For example they harvest the stuff that made that enemy immune to acid damage, so how you can add a coating layer of it on your armor to make you highly resistant to immune to acid damage yourself. (Note that in real life the it is the mucus that lines our stomach wall that protects Humans from their own stomach acid destroying our own bodies. And some animals have different layers of armor and/or stuff on their skin to protect them from acid with the places they live and/or acid attacks from things trying to eat them.)

There has only been a few games that I've played where going by what you did in missions/quests that it would give you the option to take on extra side missions if you wanted too for extra rewards. Like a famous once said, "It is not over until everyone makes it back home safely.". And those extra missions does also address things about what happens after the battle and what are the NPCs doing when you are not around. Like how people made that one game about the clean up crew who comes in after the player leaves as they have to clean and repair everything. Like removing all the bodies and stuff.

- What if limbs could regrow if they have regenerative abilities
- What if each time a limb is gone the movement of the enemy changes in some way so as an example

1) Full use of movement
2) Missing limb or 2 more leaping, running, jumping
3) Much more missing limbs Use of rolling, hopping, hiding and calling out for support
4) no limbs self termination unless other tsihu/kaiju can get there to merge or recover and build the kaiju back up for round 2.

To add this we can look to some monster hunter games to see how the A.I. changes it's movement and attack patterns based on what parts of it's body is damaged and/or cut off.

For example in some games there are fast moving predator-like enemies who like to charge and lap at players. But if you can target and break off the claws on their feet they lose the ability to get a good grip on the ground making so that is they do charge or jump around after that point they tend to slide around and lose their balance. And in some games to make fighting giant birds and dragons easier you can do things to break their wings and/or cut off their wings forcing them to have to fight you while on the ground. And in the case of dragons it also means stopping them from using some of their massive AOE attacks because they can damage themselves if they are also within the blast area, which is why they only do that attack while they are in the air outside of the blast area. This also brings up the topic of enemies being hurt by their own attacks. Going by the example before about cutting off the claws on their feet. In same games not only does this make it harder for the enemy to run around without sliding and losing their balance, but it also opens them up to taking extra environmental damage as they can no longer stop themselves in time from ramming into rocks and walls.

 

[Pandagnome]

Everyone goes in with the goal of taking it back alive.

1. After it is captured players have the option to join the escort team in trying to move to safe place. All the while you have to stop random attacks from enemies on your way back. While also making sure that the target is unable to break free and escape. Be it by making sure it always stays asleep / knocked out or making sure it never heals enough to regain its strength and mobility. Going by what I said before about how there are some things only to harvest while something is alive. Means that you could get higher amounts of a rare resource build variant gear from it. To make sure that is not something that players are forced to or feel they have to do the variant gear always be more of a side grade rather an upgrade. And this would just allow people to have more build options that could change how they play.

This option makes it more interesting than just kills, plus you get to use the truck and have new achievements for none lethal take downs as well.