Turn-Based Tactics Mars Tactics - Fight for Martian freedom or suppress terrorists who hamper future of Mankind

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

From discord:

Hey guys here's a first look at Events. They are semi-random but connect in dynamic ways to form stories. Let me explain:

Every Event has a bunch of trigger percentages -- if worker dissent has risen above a threshold, if you hold any POWs, if any unit has a certain Trait, if you have constructed a certain building, etc. And many events also check the outcome of *prior* Events. So your choices stack up over time and hopefully create stories in organic ways.

In this screenshot you basically have 3 options: prioritize the workers, the war effort, or the research. And your decision will affect the chance of seeing other future Events. For example, if you prioritize research here, there's a greater chance you'll trigger another hacking-related Event down the line. But it's not a guarantee like in an RPG. It's just a higher chance for a trigger. So the system only makes loose connections.

Overall, my goal is to have many Events because they are quite common so I want good variety. Events are the main manifestation of worker support or dissent. So if you are keeping your people happy, you are more likely to get a positive event. If you are pissing them off, they might hit you with a strike or worse.

 

[motherfucker]

They should drop the EA already

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

From discord:

Hello, here's a new look at the outpost-management screen. I admit it's less clean and pretty than what I shared in January, but closer functionally and thematically to what I'm going for.

Firstly, I've scrapped the idea of Projects within Buildings. Now it's simpler: each Building does just one thing. You assign it inputs and receive an output. And one Building's output can become another's input, allowing you to create production chains. Hopefully it's intuitive? In this screenshot you can see an Ice Mine takes Workers and outputs Ice. And next door, a Farm takes Ice + Workers and outputs Goodwill. (Goodwill is Labor's default social currency).

But probably the biggest design evolution is how central Workers have become. After all, Mars Tactics is about labor issues. I want Workers to feel like the lifeblood of your economy. I want them to be soul of the game!

As mentioned above, Workers are a necessary input for almost all Buildings. Growing and maintaining your workforce is a constant challenge for both factions. As Labor, you mostly get Workers through defections. In the early campaign, you're constantly sniffing out messages from those who want to escape the company -- picking up radio distress signals, hacking company servers to establish contact, even gleaning tips from POW interrogations, etc. Once you gather enough intel, you can go on combat missions to rescue the Workers. (Just don't kill them in the process!) As the campaign goes on, you'll also unlock other methods like recruiting them directly from Earth.

As Capital, you start with the ability to recruit Workers from Earth. Sometimes you'll also get rescue Events, as not all Workers support those crazy union terrorists.

But that's hardly it. Managing labor is not so simple. Workers have demands -- wages, housing, access to wifi, etc. If their demands are not met, their Motivation will drop. If it gets bad enough, they will try to defect or worse. Well, this post is already too long, so I'll explain those mechanics next in another one the coming days.