Modern Units Update Coming Soon
I spent the July 4th weekend playing around with the EDCE mechanics. I was mainly looking for a way to fix the issue with Anti-Air Missiles which Framer pointed out. The problem in this case is the game mechanics prevent rapid launches against air units, which negates their usefulness. However, I believe I’ve achieved a breakthrough and it has to do with a creative way of managing unit morphing.
In the next release there will be a new unit type called the Missile Battery. Rather than operate as a stand-alone unit, this new unit will be a configuration option for missiles that reduce their range but also allow them to fire immediately at enemy units. I am putting the finishing touches on this and the release will follow. While not a true fix to the problem, it offers an alternative to how missiles work which should improve their usefulness to players. This method also let me continue to use the set’s principle of applying real world data to unit values since I was able to capture a handful of real-life results that confirmed performance.
There will be some other adjustments to space units as well. Again, Framer did a great job at pointing out the deficiencies of this set, and the “invulnerabilities” of space units is one I’m paying close attention to. Unfortunately, the “launch” mechanism is the limiting factor here. For reference, it is also the limiting factor that impacts missiles, so the mechanic in general is a problem. The issue is that it takes an entire turn to use the launch feature, and space units will not work at all until they are launched.
The fix for space units was simpler than I thought. I am going to make most satellites geosynchronous by default as a stop gap for a long-term fix. This will limit their effectiveness at traversing the entire map unassisted. I am also expanding Space Shuttles to include two new types of launch vehicles in the hope of allowing them to keep their current versatility, just without the overwhelming recon advantage that is a bit out of place.
Finally, MUD is also about to get a video manual. I just finished recording Part 1 and will have a link to it as soon as a find a place to host it. I’m really excited about this as it represents a step in the right direction towards explaining how the set works. Unfortunately, some of you might not like my voice, and I’m not spending hours upon hours editing it, so if you are looking for production quality videos you are going to be sorely disappointed.
