I could do with a good bit less being right, thank you.
Been browsing SA much, CD?
...so if nothing says love like close air support, what does DEMOLISH ALL THE THINGS! say... assuming you leave them out of the 'to be demolished' list?
**********
The three drones noticed me around the same time I noticed them. As one, they turned and started flying in my direction.
Just in case it was a common AI-breaker, I opened with the same gambit that the Mark Is had lost to; aim a group of magic missiles at one enemy, and split off part of it to target another in mid-flight. Both drones managed to dodge their missiles without apparent effort. So I tried it again, this time splitting one group to aim at all three.
The remains of a single Mark II M-Drone completely failed to blow away on the next gust of wind, on account of there still being three of them.
So the more advanced models can dodge. Good to know. Snapping off a couple dozen magic missiles at one of the drones, I saw it begin to drop out of the way.
"Burst Shot."
A block of twenty-four missiles became an expanding cone of shots- almost too late, as it turned out. A quick projection suggested that, at the pace the drone was moving, it'd dodge all but two of the missiles- and I doubted that two missiles could even mission-kill a Mark II.
I didn't expect it to stop moving, put up a shield (a shiny, neon-orange hexagon), and block the nine missiles that would've hit it, but that's what it did. [Mal, analyze enemy shield. Compare initial and post-attack strength, and extrapolate damage required to drop.] I also didn't expect the other two drones to tag me with cutting beams while I was busy with that, but guess what happened?
Dodging skills and shielding are one thing, but now they can actually deal damage, take the initiative, and react fast enough to matter. These Mark IIs are actually dangerous!
[SHIELD DEPLETED BY APPROXIMATELY 75%. ESTIMATE SHIELD POWER EQUAL TO TWELVE MISSILES.]
I flew backward, away from the fortress, occasionally tossing out a few missiles to keep the drones dodging. It didn't take long for me to be standing over the zone of desolation I'd made earlier... and it wasn't much longer after that that I was standing in that zone, with Air Cutter shut down.
I found myself grinning savagely. Let's see you dodge this. Two sets of missiles formed in front of me; I started by firing the set in front of my left hand, splitting it into three groups along the way.
As soon as the drones began to dodge their respective missiles, I fired the second set- this time at where they were going to be when the missiles got there. When they got close, I triggered Shot Blast, just to make sure. As predicted, the drones stopped to shield the few missiles that would've hit them, instead of taking the hits.
While the drones were busy shielding, I lifted my left hand again, and dropped the Arcane Blast it'd been charging right into the middle of the group. Looks like they're not any more durable, at least. They blew up just as easily as the M1s did.
No other dangers were in range, so I shrank Malleus back down, took a deep breath, and did a quick self-diagnostic.
"AAAAAAGGGGH! THAT HURTS!"
My Unitarian Jihad Name is: Brother Atom Bomb of Courteous Debate. Get yours.
I've been writing a bit.
Been browsing SA much, CD?
...so if nothing says love like close air support, what does DEMOLISH ALL THE THINGS! say... assuming you leave them out of the 'to be demolished' list?
**********
The three drones noticed me around the same time I noticed them. As one, they turned and started flying in my direction.
Just in case it was a common AI-breaker, I opened with the same gambit that the Mark Is had lost to; aim a group of magic missiles at one enemy, and split off part of it to target another in mid-flight. Both drones managed to dodge their missiles without apparent effort. So I tried it again, this time splitting one group to aim at all three.
The remains of a single Mark II M-Drone completely failed to blow away on the next gust of wind, on account of there still being three of them.
So the more advanced models can dodge. Good to know. Snapping off a couple dozen magic missiles at one of the drones, I saw it begin to drop out of the way.
"Burst Shot."
A block of twenty-four missiles became an expanding cone of shots- almost too late, as it turned out. A quick projection suggested that, at the pace the drone was moving, it'd dodge all but two of the missiles- and I doubted that two missiles could even mission-kill a Mark II.
I didn't expect it to stop moving, put up a shield (a shiny, neon-orange hexagon), and block the nine missiles that would've hit it, but that's what it did. [Mal, analyze enemy shield. Compare initial and post-attack strength, and extrapolate damage required to drop.] I also didn't expect the other two drones to tag me with cutting beams while I was busy with that, but guess what happened?
Dodging skills and shielding are one thing, but now they can actually deal damage, take the initiative, and react fast enough to matter. These Mark IIs are actually dangerous!
[SHIELD DEPLETED BY APPROXIMATELY 75%. ESTIMATE SHIELD POWER EQUAL TO TWELVE MISSILES.]
I flew backward, away from the fortress, occasionally tossing out a few missiles to keep the drones dodging. It didn't take long for me to be standing over the zone of desolation I'd made earlier... and it wasn't much longer after that that I was standing in that zone, with Air Cutter shut down.
I found myself grinning savagely. Let's see you dodge this. Two sets of missiles formed in front of me; I started by firing the set in front of my left hand, splitting it into three groups along the way.
As soon as the drones began to dodge their respective missiles, I fired the second set- this time at where they were going to be when the missiles got there. When they got close, I triggered Shot Blast, just to make sure. As predicted, the drones stopped to shield the few missiles that would've hit them, instead of taking the hits.
While the drones were busy shielding, I lifted my left hand again, and dropped the Arcane Blast it'd been charging right into the middle of the group. Looks like they're not any more durable, at least. They blew up just as easily as the M1s did.
No other dangers were in range, so I shrank Malleus back down, took a deep breath, and did a quick self-diagnostic.
"AAAAAAGGGGH! THAT HURTS!"
My Unitarian Jihad Name is: Brother Atom Bomb of Courteous Debate. Get yours.
I've been writing a bit.