Subset Games Forum

Hello, i playing this game around month and im sure that something with missiles should be changed because they are now useless. Main problem is lack of ammo and spending all scraps in stores for missiles ammo. Next problem is long time to reload and high possibility to miss.
I think nobody like using missiles and they are in game only on time to find another weapons.

Yeah, lots of people have talked about this. Missiles have a bunch of problems that create a sort of perfect storm together. They do hull damage while ignoring shields, but it's too inefficient to kill ships that way, so you have to get their shields down anyway, which means it'd be better to replace that missile with a beam or laser or something that doesn't use ammo. It would be nice if you could have the missiles around just for hard fights, where maybe you want to use several missiles to destroy the enemy without having to drop their shields, but your weapon slots are very limited, and you can't switch them until the battle is over, so that's not possible in the late game where you're often using all your slots. And even if it were, you'd still have spent scrap on missile launchers that you're only using occasionally when you could've spent it on something you're using all the time instead. Now missiles are almost useful as a support role where you disable piloting or weakening shields with them ahead of your laser barrage, but bombs play that role way better since they ignore defense drones and usually use less power for the same effect. All of this adds up to "a smart player almost never buys a missile launcher".

But it's difficult to find ways of making missiles better because they need to be better just for you and not the enemy. Enemy missiles are already threatening enough because you need a defense drone or cloak to defend against them well.

Personally, I'm working on plans for a mod and I've got a few ideas about differentiating missiles and bombs more and giving some more use to each. Missiles and other shield-piercing projectiles will weaken shields as they pass through rather than just ignore them, so missiles have a greater synergy with lasers, beams, and other conventional weapons. You'll also be able to shoot at defense drones with ordinary weapons to have a small chance of taking them out (but one that's still much better than them randomly getting hit) and giving yourself a grace period to missile the enemy. While bombs I'd make always hit if you target a room where you have crew (since bombs are teleported, they just lock onto your crew's signal). Another idea entirely is that maybe missile-using weapons should have their own slots, system, etc., much like drones, so you can carry missiles and bombs on top of your usual laser/ion/beam arsenal.

Anyway, one word about ammo. The way the game is set up is such that you don't want to buy missiles or drones at all if you can help it, but rather work with what you can find. Either way, the cost of missiles is probably too high at 6, you'll see mods that lower it.

Honestly I think the simple fix here is to have missiles (that presumably home in on their target) ignore some or all enemy evasion to balance the limitations defense drones and ammo consumption place on them.

While it would make sense for missiles to be more accurate, I don't think that's the right way to go because evasion is the most common defense against missiles by far. Missile defense is way too concentrated in the defense drone right now.

I think missiles are fine as they are. Piercing all shields offers a great advantage and as far as I understand them, they are designed to be used strategically and selectively anyway. With powerful missile launchers it is still possible to build an all-missile ship. Ammo is very manageable if you take the right surrenders. Bombs do the same job and it is an advantage that they ignore defense drones, but missiles give you additional hull damage against your enemy, which can be just as good. It is pretty situational. AE also added even more ways to deal with enemy evasion, so getting them through is even easier now. It is up to the individual player how to handle loadouts, but neglecting an entire weapon category will probably not increasing success potential.

Coderro wrote:Missiles and other shield-piercing projectiles will weaken shields as they pass through rather than just ignore them, so missiles have a greater synergy with lasers, beams, and other conventional weapons. You'll also be able to shoot at defense drones with ordinary weapons to have a small chance of taking them out (but one that's still much better than them randomly getting hit) and giving yourself a grace period to missile the enemy. While bombs I'd make always hit if you target a room where you have crew (since bombs are teleported, they just lock onto your crew's signal). Another idea entirely is that maybe missile-using weapons should have their own slots, system, etc., much like drones, so you can carry missiles and bombs on top of your usual laser/ion/beam arsenal.

I have no idea how you actually want to do any of this, but hey, give it a try. From what I can tell, none of this is possible with where modding is at right now.

I feel like missiles are okay (but that's because I never use missiles, so take my opinion with a grain of salt), but because each enemy ship starts with 6-12 missiles, unless you have a Defense Drone, get really lucky with dodge, or get really lucky with cloaking, it seems as though it's kinda rubbing salt in the wound. "Har har!" says the fifth Rebel Rigger I've faced in this sector, "You have to conserve your missiles and take hull damage, but IIII'M going to die ANYWAYS! So I can throw ALL my missiles into my pretty little Artemis/Leto here!"

It's one of those psychological things that really make me hate missiles. I feel like if I use a missile launcher, the moment I encounter a 2-shield Auto-Scout with even a single missile launcher, I'm just going to fling every single munition I have at the bugger out of spite.