Cloak and thermals.

[Clarks]

So... yesterday I stole a pair of thermals. As I was walking around I saw a husk wedged on a lattice in space, half the screen away.

You see traitors bagging their items, changelings spitting, syndies in space. The only way to hide from a random jackass walking around with thermals is to be half a screen away.

The only real weakness of thermals is the lack of protection from flashes.

I wish thermals had a more specific use than keeping them on and having instant x-ray.
If they only showed mobs, but no turfs or walls - like blindness - it would be inconvenient enough that nobody would walk around with thermals; but they would still be useful to locate hidden or cloaked people, or to observe somebody if you are certain that he is hiding behind that wall.
They would be demoted to a support tool, but still useful for specific purposes.


The cloak should be used to hide yourself when things go awray and you have to run. Or to conceal when you want to get the jump on someone.

As it stands, it's used mostly to rampage unseen, until someone with thermals comes along, or a guy with a t-ray scanner gets a lucky chance to strike down the cloaker.

It could have a limited charge, a couple of minutes at most? Recharge would occur either automatically, like the radbow, or from a recharger, like energy weapons.

[Cogwerks]

Yeah, that's pretty much what I've been messing around with for a side project. Trying to figure out how to make thermals restrict most vision, but if I can't get that down right, I could make them cause eye damage or something.

Cloaks will probably end up running on a charge when I figure out how to do that. I was leaning towards radbow-style regeneration for that.

[mozi]

clarks idea is good, thermals blow but outright removing them would make cloak/vampire unfun for everyone. I'd only suggest that maybe thermals should also highlight bloodstains on the floor just cause.. it'd be cool? and no one bothers with luminol anyway

[Readster]

I've always wondered why thermals show bodies or suitless changelings in space, I mean they are hardly giving of heat at that point are they.

[Sundance]

A good nerf for thermals would be instead of seeing the player sprite behind a wall, you'd just see an orange/red overlay on the player. There's no way of examining the player, due to the overlay, so you can't tell who it is or what they are carrying.
I'd think this would be a good nerf because it's actually how thermals kind of work, you see body heat, they aren't superman specs. Otherwise you can see perfectly normal, all players in your normal line of sight (i.e: not behind walls) would look normal.
Also this, due to the reason above

I've always wondered why thermals show bodies or suitless changelings in space, I mean they are hardly giving of heat at that point are they.

Honestly, I'm not a fan of the charging idea.

[mbc]

I support these things.

A few months ago I was messing with thermalcode but I couldn't make too much progress. I was able to get an overlay displaying over mobs and prevent examination, but not much else. glad to see someone's still working on it!

[UrsulaMejor]

I like the aura idea, but not at all the blindness idea. Thermals should be constantly wearable, like in real life, but maybe make you near sighted if used too much In well lit areas? Like, you're safe in most maintainence tunnels, but too much use In main hallways will start to hurt

I hate the recharging cloak idea. I think instead it'd be cool to make moving cloakers slightly visible, some kind of visible "static" overlay when in motion.

[Hard Boiled]

I'm gonna have to agree with Ursula on this. I think thermals should show a red or orange heat signature. Maybe showing the shape, like a cat, or human. Not let it show what they are doing, or allowing examine. Just show you that a living(or dead) thing is there. I agree that they should not be blind to anything else, but make you nearsighted when you wear them around too much light, like in halls or bright room if you have them on too long. Maybe a message that your eyes sting a bit. Personally, I like them, but if they are nerfed, I would rather see this then anything else.

[icarus]

there should be more ways to find a cloaker, right now if a traitor with a cloaker can take down the detective and get rid of the HoS or his locker before he spawns, you're pretty much untouchable except for AIs, who can't harm you anyway

some ways you should be able to find cloakers is

• fire extinguishers can a)give an outline of the person if you're using foam and b) short out the extinguisher for a second if you use water
  if they walk on tiles that are painted or have something splashed onto them, they leave footprints/their feet are colored in
  if they're bleeding they have patches of blood appearing
  make exosuits or headwear show up, if they wear anything besides their jumpsuit they're seeable (this is a pretty extreme change though)
  

[BlackPhoenix]

there should be more ways to find a cloaker, right now if a traitor with a cloaker can take down the detective and get rid of the HoS or his locker before he spawns, you're pretty much untouchable except for AIs, who can't harm you anyway
[/list]

AOE Flashing disables the cloak. But where can we get a flash if we're not security? Two chests full in robotics, the RD starts with one, robotics fabricators can make them I believe...

[icarus]

AOE Flashing disables the cloak. But where can we get a flash if we're not security? Two chests full in robotics, the RD starts with one, robotics fabricators can make them I believe...[/quote]
how long does the flash disable actually last, i remember hearing about it but i never see it used

[BlackPhoenix]

how long does the flash disable actually last, i remember hearing about it but i never see it used

It lasts until they put it in their hand and turn it off and back on again, but that's plenty of time to do something about them.

[Clarks]

I hate the recharging cloak idea. I think instead it'd be cool to make moving cloakers slightly visible, some kind of visible "static" overlay when in motion.

This is a new idea, but doesn't solve one problem. Even if you know where the cloaker is, you can't hit him unless you have a projectile weapon, or a (shitty) spraybottle.
The cloaker is slightly more conspicuous, but still mostly untouchable.


With thermals, I think the main problem is "stumbling" on traitors. You walk around, and you see who they are and what they are doing, from the other side of the screen -not the wall, the screen.-
You're not using thermals for a purpose... like to make sure you don't get ambushed when you are about to break into a room with a traitor.

They should either reveal very little information about players (forbidding you from examining them). Or show you players, but be extremely inconvenient to use continuously, so you will only use them when you specifically need them.

[Dauntasa]

how long does the flash disable actually last, i remember hearing about it but i never see it used

It lasts until they put it in their hand and turn it off and back on again, but that's plenty of time to do something about them.

Not sure that this still works, as every time I've been attacked by a cloaker in the last few months flashing has done nothing.

[Embolism]

AoE Flashing has no effect on Cloak for months now, and yet people still spam it whenever they think a Cloaker is around.

At the very least an active Cloak should not be pocketable, allowing it to be countered by things like flashbangs and wet floors.