I was thinking about adding this to the game and not telling anyone about it to see how long it took for anyone to notice.

But then I decided, what the heck since this will be the LAST new feature added to the 0.3x code base why not let everyone know about them before hand. Everything after this will be just bug and exploit fixes in the main game.

I have rewritten much of the probe code and probe class code to allow easier creation of new probes. A new probe can be added to any running game just by dropping the new probe file into the probe directory under classes. The game will automatically detect the new probe and use it. There are some really innovative and nasty probes that can be created now.

So to celebrate the new probe system we will be adding three new probes to the main game and the upcoming 0.31 release. Two of them are evil and nasty while the other is a little more subtle.

Seeker Probe

The Seeker Probe is designed to do only one thing... Find SG Gateway sectors in realspace. It cannot scan ships or planets. It can only use warp links to move around just like a Warp Probe. The probe will constantly move around the universe checking to see if the sector it moved into is an SG sector. If it is it will report back to the owner the name of the sector it moved FROM to get to the SG sector. That will be the Gateway sector from realspace to that SG pocket. As soon as it finds an SG sector and reports the Gateway it will use a built in rechargeable EWD to randomly warp to another realspace sector so it can start looking for another gateway. You can set the cloaking level for the probe to try and keep it from being seen while it is wandering the universe.


Hunter Probe

The Hunter Probe has only one purpose, find a player in a certain ship class and destroy them. The Hunter Probe uses the same technology as the Sector Missile. It will use the targeted ships energy to try and destroy the ship. It will automatically attack the targeted ship when the ship enters the sector or if the probe enters a sector containing the targeted ship.

When you create a Hunter Probe you have to select the player and ship class you want to target. You could select player "Fuzzy Bunny" flying around in a Razorback class ship. The Hunter Probe will NOT attack "Fuzzy Bunny" if they are using any other ship class. The target player MUST be using a Razorback. If "Fuzzy Bunny" is detected by the Hunter Probe entering the sector in a Voyager the probe will not attack.

You can also set the sensor and cloak tech levels for the probe. There is also an additional cost for selecting the Hunter Probe. You do not pay this cost until you convert one of your probes into a Hunter Probe. If you create a Hunter Probe and pick it up again before it can find it's target you do not get any of the money you spent creating that probe back. It is gone for good and the probe is converted back into a standard Sentry Probe. The additional cost of the Hunter Probe is roughly the same cost as the Sector Missile.

Sentry Trap Probe

The Sentry Trap Probe is basically the same thing as the Hunter Probe. The only difference is it never moves. It just sits where dropped waiting for the targetted player in the right ship to come through the sector. It's a perfect probe to drop off in a sector known to be traveled by an enemy player. You can only drop ONE of these probes in a sector and you have to be IN the sector where you want to drop it just like a normal Sentry Probe.

These three new probes will hopefully give everyone an idea what kind of probes can be created for the game. When we open the Beta game expect to see a couple more new probes added to the beta. We have to give everyone some reason to play on the Beta server.

Are probes limited by bounties also? So if I set a probe to hit a player, and two weeks go by and I've forgotten about it, and the probe shoots the guy (Who didn't even have energy so he lost nothing) do I wake up with a bounty?

Probes are smart enough they will not attack if the attack would give you a bounty.

Great

Hehehe... That's great! Sounds like something I can do while I'm laid up in my SG. Hehe... revenge from the grave!

lol; it would be funny to get someone with one of those while they were building their sg.

We decided to be nice and added one more attack probe to the upcoming update. The main server was going to have the new code added friday but it will have to wait till saturday. Check the main pot in this thread for information about the third new probe.

The ideas that come to mind; in ways to use these probes; just awesome.

oooh could it be a probe attacking probes? since probes are SD proof.

Killer probes...lol! oh man jus think waking up and getting out of your Sleeping Planet and have those 5 or so of those waiting for you outside your planet. Or when in an attack mode at someone's big SG sector you'd have 10 to 20 of those Killer Probes waiting for them while you finihing up some planets. Sort of your very own little armies.

Alright! I'm gonna have a lot of fun with that trap one too! Is "Saturday" today, or next week? Today would be awesome...

It will be today but late.

And remember you can only put one trap probe in a sector. The Hunter probe roams around and you cannot give it a target sector. So there won;t be a way for you to fill a sector with those probes. And remember they work just like a sector missile. Twenty of them would be kind of useless after the first two hit. And then again some players may dump all of their energy before landing on a planet.

A probe that carrys spies? and if the probes cloak is greater than the ships or planet it will Board the ship or land on the planet?

Oooh.. that'd be even nastier than the hunter probes! And the probes can hit people on planets?

We talked about that one as well. Any new probes will be added to the Beta Game when it opens and that may be one of them.

I think if you are on a planet a probe can't do anything to you. Now doing something to the planet it another story.