[DEVBLOG#223] Deserters: Services System (Patreon)

Hello everyone and welcome to another mod development blog focused on our new Deserter faction. This time, I'd like to talk to you about the Services deserters offer.

Services are a new panel in the Deserter Network UI, that allows the players to obtain Deserter quests as well as purchase unique rewards using Intel.

Whilst the quests you can obtain do cost intel, they also grant intel upon completion - so you should consider them to be investments!

Services are divided into two categories: quests and abilities.

QUESTS

Services tab in the Deserter network UI features a number of quests that can be ‘purchased’ with Intel in order for them to become active quests. Player doesn’t know what rewards the quest will bring until they purchase a quest.

This UI is divided into two dropdown tabs - Available quests and Critical quests.

• Available quests - these are quests that are between 1 and 3 stars. They cost Intel to purchase.
• Critical quests - these are quests that are 4 and 5 stars. They cost Critical Intel to purchase.

The game should autogenerate 10 quests at the beginning of the game. Whenever a quest is purchased, a new quest should be generated.

How much intel do quests cost to activate?

Since the game generates and stores these quests, it will also generate rewards for them, even though the rewards may be hidden to the player until the activate such quest by paying intel.

The quest cost should be based on the average wealth sum of all rewards available in that quest. The quest should cost 1 Intel for every 500 average silver value of the reward, rounded up.

For example: A quest generated with three rewards, averaging $2600 per reward. It’s available to be activated for 6 Intel in the Deserter network services tab.

Quests of 4 and 5 star rating, instead of costing standard intel, cost Critical intel instead. The quests should cost 1 Critical intel for every 2000 average silver value of the reward, rounded up.

For example: A four-star quest generated with three rewards, averaging $5500 per reward. It’s available to be activated for 3 Critical Intel in the Deserter network services tab.

Please note: This is how to calculate the base value of items in intel. Current Visibility level affects the prices of items. These modifiers take place after the base value is calculated.

OTHER SERVICES

There is a number of other services available from the same UI. These services can be instantly purchased by simply pressing them, but they all cost either intel or critical intel.

Please note: This is how to calculate the base value of items in intel. Current Visibility level affects the prices of items. These modifiers take place after the base value is calculated.

Below is the list of available services:

Lower visibility

Text upon hover: Use intel to convince the deserter network to clear your name and reduce your visibility by 1.

Base Intel cost: 1 Intel

Lowers visibility by 1 when used.

Call Shuttle

Text upon hover: Call a one-way deserter shuttle for your own use, which will transport colonists, items, and animals up to 70 tiles away.

Base Intel cost: 10 Intel

Works the same way as Call Shuttle permit in the Empire, however the shuttle comes down in a random place on player colony map (or on a landing zone if it’s designated). It uses a custom Deserter shuttle.

Increase Goodwill

Text upon hover: Trade intel to convince the deserter network to increase your goodwill with a random faction by 5.

Base Intel cost: 5 Intel

When using this ability, a random faction gains 5 goodwill with you. A message appears in the top left corner:

Goodwill with X increased by 5 due to positive rumors from imperial deserters.

Delay response

Text upon hover: Trade intel to convince the deserter network to create a distraction, increasing the response time on all currently ongoing operations where the counter is already ticking down. This delays the response by 1 minute. Can be used several times.

Base Intel cost: 5 Intel

When using this ability, any operation which has a ticking down counter for imperial response has 1 minute added to the counter.

Taunt Imperial forces

Text upon hover: Spend intel to taunt imperial strike force to attack your colony.

Base Intel cost: 5 Intel

When using this ability, Imperial raid is immediately triggered.

Change Critical intel

Text upon hover: Trade critical intel for 10 standard intel.

Base Intel cost: 1 Critical intel

When using this ability, one critical intel disappears from player base (the one with least lifetime left). 10 standard intel come down in cargo pods.

UI BREAKDOWN

Above you can see the UI that opens up when you contact the Deserters and press the ‘Services’ tab. This section will break down this UI with all functionality.

At the top, player can still see their current visibility and intel in their possession. This does not change between the different tabs of this UI.

Below that, player can see a list of pre-generated quests. These quest list should refresh once per year.

It should pre-generate quests in varying levels of difficulty. All the quests generated are the new quests added by this mod - all of them are deserter quests, against the Empire, with rewards explained in Quest Reward Options

Quests should be generated with different star levels - some easy, some hard. Quests that generate with 4 or 5 stars should end up in their own category called Critical quest. Those quests don’t give standard intel as a reward, but Critical intel.

Once a player clicks any of the quests from the list, a description of this quest should appear in Quest description field. Please note: Player doesn’t know what the rewards will be until the quest is activated. They can only read the description of the quest.

Below that, similar to how it works in the Propaganda panel, player can see the total quest cost for activating that quest.

Below that, following text is displayed:

You can pay intel to obtain quests from the Deserter network, however you will not know the rewards that can be obtained from the quest until you purchase it.

Underneath that, player may find Other services provided by Deserters. They appear similar to gizmos - they can be clicked which instantly removes that amount of Intel or Critical Intel from the player stockpiles, and then instantly provides the reward described above.

Next devblog will go in-depth into how Plots work, and how you can work your way through the Great Hierarchy and finally bring the Empire down!