Kuva lich murmur gains suggestions as well as one larvling QoL.

[Aadi880]

First, lets start with the larvlings:

No real problems. The larvling creation mechanics is ok at base. However, some players are having cases where they are accidently creating liches via "reloading" with x, which also happens with the finisher button, as we as other reasons (some claims muscle memory etc). For cases like this, I think it is best to implement a "hold to confirm" for mercy killing the larvlings, preventing accidental creations.

 

Second, the lich encounter, or more specifically, the murmur grind:

The murmur grind is just too repetitive and has nothing memorable about it. Find thrall, mercy kill thrall, repeat. And that's it. Reducing the murmur grind will simply make matters worse as the lich system will just be blazed through, which I guess you want to avoid.
So here's my suggestion:

•  Make the lich themselves be the primary source of murmurs. First, the lich anger meter: Have the anger meter be increased the more lich controlled nodes are cleared. No thralls will spawn at all.
• Once angered, the lich will spawn (100% chance the spawn at "Furious" state). When the lich spawns, he will be accompanied by 10 servants. All 10 servants need to be dealt with in order to deal damage to the lich. If the any of the 10 servants remain, the lich will remain invulnerable.
• Next, the battle itself. The lich needs to be given the same AI design as Wukong's clone. Meaning, it will act aggressive, and stay in close proximity to the player, in an attempt to "grab" them, while also being able to teleport to the player if they get too far away, like how Rell does in The Chains Of Harrow quest. This AI will even be in effect when the player is trying to kill the 10 thralls as well.
• Once downing a lich, the player will have to mercy kill the lich (or down it 3 times to have it despawn). The mercy kill will progress in 2 ways:
  • If parazon mod is correct, a minigame will play where the player will have to extract murmurs from the lich, that will get progressively harder/faster the more murmurs are extracted. This will result in the player getting as much as 15 murmurs, or as less as 5 (5 being the minimum). This minigame will only be played once if passed. If the player fails it, the lich leaves, ranks up . however, it can be replayed the next time the lich spawns. What kind of minigame will it be? I'm more leaning it towards involving the player's reaction time, like how "quick time events" works.
  • If parazon mod is incorrect, then the lich is killed immediately, only to comeback later ranked up, 5 murmurs are granted (there is a reason for this**).
• Next, the murmur farm itself. Let the mission objective itself be the source of murmurs, that is ONLY triggered by presence of the lich. Examples:
  • Exterminate missions: The servants will act as murmurs source, like thralls.
  • Spy missions: Spy vaults will grant 4 murmurs (12 total) each in the presence of the lich. Lich will attempt to kill the player or waste the player's time so that the player cannot complete the mission and destroy the data, specially since the lich can teleport.
  • Rescue mission: Rescuing the hostage will grant 12 murmurs. Lich will teleport the hostage and kill them, while also trying to prevent the player from reviving the hostage. To compensate for difficulty, the hostage will prioritise in remaining in close proximity to the player like how the wukong clone behaves, and will move 50% faster.
  • Defection mission: Each squadmate rescued will grant 1 murmur. Its 1 murmur because there are multiple rescue targets, while in rescue missions, there was only one target to rescue. Lich will attempt to kill squadmates.
  • Interception: Completing the interception mission will with all 4 towers captured will grant 12 murmurs, with 3 captured towers, its 8. With 2, its 4. Lich will attempt the take control of towers by diverting player attention from towers, so that the grinner can capture it. (The lich itself cannot directly "conflict" or capture the towers).
  • Defense mission: Keeping the defense objective alive will grant 2-3 murmurs per wave. Lich will prioritize on destroying it. 
  • Sabotage mission: The reactor can only be detonated through internal freezing, done by inserting the coolant into the fuel rod. However, the coolant cannot be removed  until all 10 servants are killed (5 servant defending per coolant). Servants acts as the murmur source. Lich will be present in both coolant rooms trying to prevent the parazon finishers (pushing players away, knockdown, etc). If all servants are killed, the player will have take care NOT to destroy both of the coolants as it will result in mission failure.
  • Disruption mission: Each conduit successfully defended will grant 2 murmurs. Lich will prioritise in defending the demolysts. It is suggested that the servants are killed before the conduits are activated.
  • Survival mission: Each 5 minutes will grant 10 murmurs, with the lich preventing players from accessing the life support capsules, either pushing the player away, or by knocking down the player. Personal life support modules will not spawn in the mission, therefore, the only source is the life support capsules itself. (camping won't work).
  • Excavation mission: successfully defending 1 excavator will grant 3 murmurs, with the lich of course trying the destroy it.
  • Capture Mission: Capturing the target will grant 12 murmurs. The lich will defend the target. But if fails to do so, the he will let the target die, and attempt to prevent the player from capturing it.
  • Mobile Defense mission: Keeping the defense objective alive will grant 4 murmurs per defense target. Lich will prioritize on destroying it. Mission does not immediately fail if one if the targets are destroyed, but will fail if 2 of 3 gets destroyed.
     
  • NOTE: As a reminder, ALL ABOVE will only take place if the lich spawns. If the lich does not spawn, then the mission will play as normal missions and only serve to increase is anger if completed.

Anger meter: Have it increase by 25% per cleared node. reaching 100% on the fourth node. Anger meter resets on failed requiem or failed 50% of the minigame. Anger meter does not deplete on a successful requiem, guaranteeing a spawn on the NEXT mission.

**The reason of why five murmurs are granted instead of the current 10, is because multiple liches can spawn in the same mission, thus increasing the murmur gains.

 

Edited February 20, 2020 by Aadi880

[(PSN)BlightDragon89]

You have some very interesting ideas here. I agree that the mummer grind could use some work. Not really to make it easier, but to make it more interesting as you said. Looking through your ideas, it looks like they could be accomplished solo and in a group, which is great for both player bases. I'm a solo player myself due to cruddy internet, so having things reasonably solo-able is important to me.

[Aadi880]

8 hours ago, (PS4)BlightDragon89 said:

You have some very interesting ideas here. I agree that the mummer grind could use some work. Not really to make it easier, but to make it more interesting as you said. Looking through your ideas, it looks like they could be accomplished solo and in a group, which is great for both player bases. I'm a solo player myself due to cruddy internet, so having things reasonably solo-able is important to me.

Thank you. I kept that in mind as I thought about the other 2 missions types. As a solo player as well, I'd like to keep things solo-able myself, but have players benefited more via squad play:

Updated Thread to include "Capture", "Mobile defense" and "Sabotage" missions

Edited February 20, 2020 by Aadi880

[Aadi880]

Updated thread to include the anger meter mechanics.

[(PSN)smb-twisted]

On 2020-02-20 at 5:33 PM, Aadi880 said:

Thank you. I kept that in mind as I thought about the other 2 missions types. As a solo player as well, I'd like to keep things solo-able myself, but have players benefited more via squad play:

Updated Thread to include "Capture", "Mobile defense" and "Sabotage" missions

I tell you what i am currently hating about the lich mechanic.

I find it pretty boring to play through these things solo and i cannot stand playing in public. When i do liches therefore it is with a group of friends, clan mates & alliance people.

If i play solo every mission revs up my lich's anger. If i play in public the same, with a change of a random lich to increase thralls. However when we pay as a group it is only the person selecting their mission who gains anger. So we take it in turns to pick missions. So with a group of 4 friends it can take 4 times as long to generate anger and so get our lich to spawn. 4 times as long for each attempt and testing the mods on each lich, 4 times as long to then get them angry enough to show up again.

For a supposedly co-op game to punish people who play with their friends this really amps up my anger bar and after doing quite a few liches this way it is pissed me off so much i'm really not motivated to do much more, which is a shame with a few weapons i still need, a few weapons i want to buff and the corpus liches coming (although who knows if they'l have the same mechanics)

So what i would add to your idea is have anger generated whatever node you're playing, just as long as it is lich territory. It is frustrating playing pointless missions just to get anger up, but worse still playing pointless missions when all you are doing is getting someone elses anger up (and doing that 3 times for every once you do your own)

The other option is not having a limit to the thralls in a mission, if someone wants to farm all 3 of their requiems by staying in a 90 minute survival i say let them, it probably won't speed things up much and everyone hates extracting after 5 minutes of surival or 5 waves of a defense.

[Aadi880]

7 hours ago, (PS4)smb-twisted said:

So what i would add to your idea is have anger generated whatever node you're playing, just as long as it is lich territory.

Its already in the post, mate. 🙂 

On 2020-02-20 at 2:02 PM, Aadi880 said:

Anger meter: Have it increase by 25% per cleared node. reaching 100% on the fourth node. Anger meter resets on failed requiem or failed 50% of the minigame. Anger meter does not deplete on a successful requiem, guaranteeing a spawn on the NEXT mission.

 

7 hours ago, (PS4)smb-twisted said:

The other option is not having a limit to the thralls in a mission, if someone wants to farm all 3 of their requiems by staying in a 90 minute survival i say let them, it probably won't speed things up much and everyone hates extracting after 5 minutes of surival or 5 waves of a defense.

hmm.... I've been leaning towards removing the thrall mechanics entirely, and focus more on the core objectives of the game, with added difficulty or twists, like for Survival and Defense mentioned above. I imagine just killing thralls like an exterminate mission every game would feel rather boring at one point. 😕 

Also, AFIAK, your lich's anger meter DOES increase if you play on a lich node in your lich's sector, as you suggested. Regardless of who is the host or not.

[(PSN)smb-twisted]

50 minutes ago, Aadi880 said:

Its already in the post, mate. 🙂 

Also, AFIAK, your lich's anger meter DOES increase if you play on a lich node in your lich's sector, as you suggested. Regardless of who is the host or not.

as you say, only if it is in your sector.

if me and my friend play together, they have ceres and i have pluto then we have to take it in turns to select nodes and so generate anger half as quickly