And more specifically, I've also written about how situational stealth (stealth that happens in specific locations, not everywhere, like Asteroid Concealment for example) is way funnier to play and way more rich strategically than permanent stealth.
So here's a Ship part that I created to that order, that allows ships that put it in one of their Internal slot to get more stealth when in a system with a Gas Giant :
Code: Select all
Part
name = "ST_COATING_GG"
description = "ST_COATING_GG_DESC"
exclusions = "ST_COATING_GG"
class = Stealth
capacity = 00
mountableSlotTypes = Internal
buildcost = 2 * [[FLEET_UPKEEP_MULTIPLICATOR]] * [[SHIP_PART_COST_MULTIPLIER]]
buildtime = 5
tags = [ "PEDIA_PC_STEALTH" ]
location = And [
ResourceSupplyConnected empire = Source.Owner condition = And [
Building name = "BLD_BIO_LAB"
Or [
OwnedBy empire = Source.Owner
OwnedBy affiliation = AllyOf empire = Source.Owner
]
]
OwnedBy empire = Source.Owner
]
effectsgroups = [
EffectsGroup
scope = Source
activation = ContainedBy And [
System
Contains Planet type = GasGiant
]
stackinggroup = "STEALTH_GG_STACK"
accountinglabel = "GAS_GIANT_FIELD_STEALTH"
effects = [SetStealth value = Value + 10 + (20 * Statistic If condition = OwnerHasTech name = "GRO_XENO_HYBRIDS" )
SetSpeed value = Value - 10
SetDetection value = Value - 100
]
EffectsGroup
scope = Source
accountinglabel = "VALVE_SPEED_REDUCTION"
effects =
SetSpeed value = Value - 10
]
icon = "icons/ship_parts/gasgianthidden.png"
#include "stealth.macros"
#include "/scripting/common/upkeep.macros"
At first I did not include the speed and vision restriction.
But testing in single player showed me that in Galaxies with high planet density (I mean, when there aren't many empty spaces with no stars) there was so many Gas Giants that it was possible to move from one to the other for most of a trip, and also to hide in a Gas Giant in order to attack most systems.
With the speed restriction, it's still possible to do so, but at the cost of adding speed parts to the ship, so it's a quite costly trade-off that makes the game strategically interesting, not a no-brainer.
Also multi-player taught me the importance of scouting, so the ability to put a scout ship in a Gas Giant and leave it there till the end of the game was too powerful.
Now with the nerf it's still possible, but only with good Radar techs and still it would see only a small part of space.
At first it was a flat +20 to stealth when in a Gas Giant, and tied it to Xenological Genetics, but it meant that it came too late for my taste, and if made it usable earlier +20 would have been a bit too powerful at the beginning of the game.
So I split the bonus in two, +10 very early and a further +20 (so +30 total) later in the game - much later in many play styles, early mid-game in some others.
I tied it to Xenological Hybridization because I didn't want to make it a no-brainer for Sly, and Sly usually do not research Xenological (or at least have little incentive to do so).
They still can get a +10 bonus from Genetic Engineering but that shouldn't be too unbalanced as it requires the part and internal parts are quite scarce early game (except for Protoplasmic Hulls, but these ones are come initially with so little structure, that they're not unbalanced).
I made it require a specific building, the bio-lab, because at first it didn't require a specific tech, just Xeno Genetics. So I wanted to give a clue to enemy players whether the Empire was or wasn't able to build these stealthy ships (it still required scouting, but it was possible).
Then I got tired of having to change the tech FOCS file every time I refreshed the snap package, so I added the Biomimesis tech since it bears its own requirements directly in its FOCS file.
I kept the lab both out of lazyness and because it would still allow enemy scouts to get a better idea whether the Empire could or could not build ships with this part.
So if someone experimented has any argumented opinion about keeping or removing the biolab, I'm all ears.
So this part allows early ships to get directly (when in systems with Gas Giants) a stealth value of 15 with very little investment, a stealth of 35 for Asteroid ships in systems with a Gas Giant and an Asteroid Belt (so making Asteroid stealth more interesting), and a stealth of 35 (which avoids active radars OR scanning continuously) for Protoplasmic Hulls and Endosymbiotic Hulls, also for Symbiotic Hulls in systems with an owned Resonant Moon and a Gas Giant.
Later in the game, as it stacks with other Stealth parts, it can generates interesting levels of Stealth, but only in systems with Gas Giants, which imho adds a lot to the strategy.
To balance it a little bit, here's another Ship part, the Gravitic Resonator, that removes some stealth in systems which contains Tiny and/or Small planets :
Code: Select all
Part
name = "SP_GRAVITIC_RESONATOR"
description = "SP_GRAVITIC_RESONATOR_DESC"
exclusions = "SP_GRAVITIC_RESONATOR"
class = General
mountableSlotTypes = Internal
buildcost = 10 * [[FLEET_UPKEEP_MULTIPLICATOR]] * [[SHIP_PART_COST_MULTIPLIER]]
buildtime = 10
tags = [ "PEDIA_PC_GENERAL" ]
location = OwnedBy empire = Source.Owner
effectsgroups =
EffectsGroup
scope = WithinDistance distance = 0 condition = Source
activation = ContainedBy And [
System
Contains Planet size = Tiny
]
stackinggroup = "SP_GRAVITIC_RESONATOR_STACK"
accountinglabel = "PLANET_RESONANCE"
effects = SetStealth value = Value + 10 * (Statistic if condition = And [ Planet InSystem id = Source.SystemID Planet size= Small ]) + 20 * (Statistic if condition = And [ Planet InSystem id = Source.SystemID Planet size= Tiny ]) )
icon = "icons/ship_parts/graviticresonator.png"
#include "/scripting/common/upkeep.macros"
I haven't tested the new FOCS file yet, and will probably not test it before the end of the 16th MP game, so I put it here as is.
Also, here are the corresponding Stringtable :
Code: Select all
ST_COATING_GG
Variable Pressure NanoCoating
ST_COATING_GG_DESC
Allows ships to hide in gas giants. Researching [[GRO_XENO_HYBRIDS]] allows stronger nanovalve coating, meaning that the ship can hide deeper inside the gas giant atmoshphere and as such improve its stealth. A ship buried in the gas giant atmosphere has reduced speed and Detection Range.
SP_GRAVITIC_RESONATOR
Gravitic Resonator
SP_GRAVITIC_RESONATOR_DESC
Reveals Hidden Objects by activating gravitational resonance of tiny planets and secondarily of small planets.
GAS_GIANT_FIELD_STEALTH
Gas giant concealment
GAS_GIANT_FIELD_STEALTH_DESC
The ship was able to hide in the Gas Giant
SPY_DETECT_5
Sensors 2
SPY_DETECT_5_DESC
An amelioration of the Sensors. Allows the building of Neutron Flare.
SPY_DETECT_6
Sensors 3
SPY_DETECT_6_DESC
An amelioration of the Sensors
SPY_DETECT_7
Sensors 4
SPY_DETECT_7_DESC
An amelioration of the Sensors
SPY_DETECT_8
Sensors 5
SPY_DETECT_8_DESC
An amelioration of the Sensors
SPY_DETECT_9
Sensors 6
SPY_DETECT_9_DESC
An amelioration of the Sensors
SPY_DETECT_10
Sensors 7
SPY_DETECT_10_DESC
An amelioration of the Sensors
SPY_DETECT_11
Sensors 8
SPY_DETECT_11_DESC
An amelioration of the Sensors
SPY_DETECT_12
Sensors 9
SPY_DETECT_12_DESC
An amelioration of the Sensors
SPY_DETECT_MAX
Omni-Scanner
SPY_DETECT_MAX_DESC
This technology guarantees that nothing escapes the Empire's detection
SPY_STEALTH_5
Neutron redirection
SPY_STEALTH_5_DESC
Allows to build a [[BLD_NEUTRON_FLARE]] in planets orbiting a Neutron star, in order to hinder enemy detection
SPY_STEALTH_6
Planetary Temporal Anomaly Shifting
SPY_STEALTH_6_DESC
Gives all planets and outposts bearing a [[TEMPORAL_ANOMALY_SPECIAL]] a huge stealth bonus.
SH_HYDROPLASMIC
Hydroplasmic Hull
SH_HYDROPLASMIC
This hull, derived from the Protoplasmic Hull, can be build if the planet has a biolab. It can dive into water, giving it a huge stealth bonus in Ocean planets, and a smaller one in Terran and Swamp planets.
SPY_BIOMIMESIS
Bio-inspiration
SPY_BIOMIMESIS_DESC
Biological diversity is a source of inspiration for many things.
VALVE_SPEED_REDUCTION
Reduce the ship speed due to the presence of Variable Pressure Nanovalves
SHP_HYDROCELL_EXP
Hydroadaptation
SHP_HYDROCELL_EXP_DESC
Allows, with [[SPY_BIOMIMESIS]], to build the [[SH_HYDROPLASMIC]].
BLD_BIO_LAB
Biological engineering laboratory
BLD_BIO_LAB_DESC
This biological engineering laboratory allows working on living material, and to produce [[ST_COATING_GG]] and [[SH_HYDROPLASMIC]]
SITUATIONAL_STEALTH_SHORT_DESC
Improves stealth in some particular situation
PLANET_RESONANCE
Planet Resonance
SHP_GRAVITIC_RESONANCE
Gravitic resonance
SHP_GRAVITIC_RESONANCE_DESC
By computing the resonance of tiny and small planets, this allows ships using resonators to remove some stealth in the system.
(All my work here is GPL 3.0)