Not sure if the is a "bug" or a "feature," but hive bots in Ion Storms have started attacking & destroying CtC transports. They didn't use to. I'm not sure if I like it or not.

I like it, gives it more realisim, makes it seem more like the voy is being driven by an actual person.

This said, its only cool if the Trans actually acts like its getting attacked (ie. getting the hell out of there, its guardian escorts attacking the hive bots).

If it just means that a storm=death for the transport then thats no good.

Yeah, it's kind of a feature. And yeah, the convoys aren't very good about running away yet.

I like it!

I also like it when the ctc escort bots start attacking the cap ships.

/me suspects devs have some major hive-orientated game event planned...

Hmmm, Aerna seekers 10 / yodaofborg 5

This is my current can kill, get killed by defbot score (I think, one of them payed me, he was near death)

A month ago? Aerna seekers 2 / yodaofborg 10

All bots seem to be a little beefed, and acting *better*...

...I still cannot wait to see whats next.

Strike Forces still get thier ass's handed to them on a freshly shined platter by moths though.

hmm... it'd be cool if NPCs could show up on the CtC rankings page.... no??

Here's the only real problem I have with it, and it's really more a problem with the small player base than actually with the hive bots attacking. Currently, there's more Itani players than Serco, and more Itani participate in CtC; also as it is now, the CtC convoy getting caught in a storm just about guarantees that it will be destroyed by the Hive Bots, and because of the fewer Serco participants, the Serco convoys are less likely to be escorted by players, so more Serco CtC units are getting lost in storms.

Basically, the higher number of Itani CtC participants already unbalances CtC, and the Hive Bots attacking CtC convoys in storms just makes it worse. If the CtC convoy AI was improved so that they had a better chance of surviving Ion Storms without player assisstance, then it wouldn't matter as much.

Umm... We just lost CtC Beolach.

After winning two weeks in a row, and by less than the Serco surplus, and Itani convoys delivered over 200 units more than Serco convoys.

I don't see how this is an advantage to one side or the other, Beolach. Basically what you are saying is "since Serco have less players online they won't escort their convoy as much as Itani." Well, that's true, but you could say the exact same thing about attacking the convoy.

Hive bots attacking convoys in storms hasn't shifted the balance at all... there's still more Itani on than serco, just like always... the only thing that's changed are the tactics. I think it's a great thing, now it's even more important to escort the convoy each step of the way, and you are pretty much guaranteed some excitement, whereas before escorting the convoy could be a very boring task if not many others were online.

During the time I was on Friday & Saturday, several times I saw both the Itani & Serco convoys get destroyed in Ion Storms by Hive Bots. So far, balanced, I have no problem with that. But of those times that the transports were destroyed in Ion Storms, I saw all of 2 times that Serco players retrieved their cargo from the storm. I lost count of all the times Itani retrieved theirs (and there were even more times that the Itani transports didn't die in the storms because Itani players defended it from the Hive Bots successfully). Like I said, it's not really the Hive Bots attacking that is the source of the problem, it just makes the existing problem of fewer Serco CtCers worse.

Another effect of the Hive Bots attacking non-players, is that the Border Patrol mission is now much harder. The stupid Orne Guardians & their AGTs keep stealing my kills....

I think the Border Patrol mission would be better if it was moved to Deneb B-12 (the Deneb-Geira Rutilus WH) rather than Deneb E-7; we wouldn't have to worry about Hive Bots, and IMO it would make more sense for the "Border Patrol" to take place at the WH.

[Seconded!]

Just to keep the mission from being too easy, increase the number of enemy scouts you must engage at once. Have a Warthog with a Cent wing. Oh, and make it a group mission too.

Hmm... this belongs in suggestions now.