I have finished my first play through and I have a long list of changes, both minor and major, I would like to make to the game. Some of these changes are minor, and I can probably accomplish them in notepadd++ even with my minute amount of skill. Some are major, but its possible someone has already created them and I just don't know about it yet. And some are probably insane pipe dreams I will never get. If anyone has any links to mods that create any of my dreams or any advice for me in accessing and rewriting the json files I would greatly appreciate it.
**Minor Changes**
Weapon Balance Changes - Improvements to LL and PPC, as well as large improvements to SLDF lasers. Removal of all +, ++, and +++ weapons. Slight Damage and availability (especially early game) increase to AC10 to give some reason to use it over an AC20. Fixing LRM10 and SRM4 so they line up with the other missiles in heat and tonnage. 1/2 Ton Ammo.
Evasion Buffs - Evasion can only be removed by hits or by sensor locking. Misses do nothing. Not sure if this is enough to buff evasion, curious about others opinions on how to make it appealing compared to bulwark.
Change to the Juggernaut skill - Any change to make this skill appealing. As of right now it may as well not exist as far as I am concerned.
Shop Changes - Make the SLDF Black Knight and SLDF Griffin show up as parts on SLDF planets very rarely. Slightly improve shop appearance rates on all equipment, including heat exchangers and heat banks. Add LosTech to stores at extreme rarity and price, and also add to drop rates on 5 skull missions that mention lostech, like capture base or recover missions.
Unlock the Map - unlock the entire map at the point where your team gets the argo. Locking 70% of the map away until after the campaign was a horrible decision.
Argo Morale Improvements - Make these do something useful. Or have no upkeep. As it is these seem way worse than just paying your warriors a tad more to get to 50 and then ignore.
Darius - Shut him up.
**Major Changes**
Mission Variety - More mission variety, especially missions that encourage use of lighter mechs. Also give a reason to keep more types of mechs on hand. Would also like chain missions if possible, or huge missions that require a bigger lance every now and then.
Enemy Variety - Late game quickly becomes a boring assault mech brawl fest. Gets boring killing the same 5 mechs over and over again, with an atlas or king crab or jaeger mech or quickdraw thrown in every now and then. Would like the opportunity to fight a group of 32 locusts instead, or everything else in between. Keep things interesting.
Called Shot Rework - Make called shot not work on missiles.
Mod Mech Salvage - Either needs to take way more salvage or give you a shredded mech. Also would like to see mechs worth much more to sell. Could correspond to the costs incurred in repairing mechs/requiring more salvage to get mechs. Would also like mechs to start with no loadout. Also choosing whether to store or assemble a mech should happen everytime not just when the mechbay is full.
Assaults - Make assaults able to appear earlier in the game, though still incredibly rare. Having the first assault you get ALWAYS be the HighlanderB is kinda lame...
System Balance - More top tier systems out in uncontested space, more high difficulty systems spread around instead of all in the same area, more low level systems spread around too. Make mission difficulty tied to system more than to how far in the campaign you are.
Comstar Missions - Comstar shows as an active faction on some systems but there does not appear to be any affect to their being present. Would be interesting to have comstar missions and a faction bar for your relation with them.
**Dream Changes**
Space Travel Rework - Let me set a path that flies by planets so I can check stores/contracts without landing on planets. Even better make it so a path to a system is just a path to a jump point, and once I get there I can choose to travel to system or not. Also, toggle-able cinematics during travel would be great. I dont mind them early game but if all I am doing is shopping they get old really fast.
Enemy Pilot Spawning - Spawn pilots in mechs appropriate to their talents. Stop spawning Bulwark/Ace Pilots all the time. Give awesomes Multishot and breaching shot and bulwark, locusts evasive movement and sensor lock. Also, no pilots for vehicles would be nice.
Vehicles and Turrets - Turrets should not count toward skull difficulty. Vehicles should count for half. Also a lance of heavy mechs/a stolen heavy mech/a baddie in a heavy mech/bait heavy mech should always be a mech and never a vehicle.
Enemy AI - Improved enemy AI. Locusts running around the flanks keeping evasion up shooting our rear armour and sensor locking us. Enemy Ranged mechs staying back and shooting rather than slowly approaching to die. Attempts at flanking. Jumping over my head to shoot me in the rear. Etc.
Kill Victoria - When I fight victoria in campaign she dies. Everything she does for the rest of the story her father does instead. Not killing victoria here was dumb.
Kill the Commodore - Final Fight versus the commodore in between the bring down the dropship and final fight missions. Make it three missions in a row instead of two. Give him a bunch of damaged bodyguards and a few semi-intact assaults to fight us with.
Kill The Director - Replace Final mission with a fight versus bad uncle. Make bad uncles lance actually threatening. Also, the King Crab in the regular mission is unsalvageable half the time. Fixing that would be cool too.
Side Campaigns - Side campaigns for other factions with cool rewards
End Game Content - Anyone who has played Battlebrothers, things like mapwide disasters, Orc Thrones, the Goblin City, Black monolith, etc.
Thats all I can think of right now. I am gonna go redownload Notepad++ and start working on the things I think I know how to do. If anyone has any idea how to do any of the other things, or knows of anyone who has already done them, please let me know. If anyone has any other ideas for cool changes to the game also let me know!
**Minor Changes**
Weapon Balance Changes - Improvements to LL and PPC, as well as large improvements to SLDF lasers. Removal of all +, ++, and +++ weapons. Slight Damage and availability (especially early game) increase to AC10 to give some reason to use it over an AC20. Fixing LRM10 and SRM4 so they line up with the other missiles in heat and tonnage. 1/2 Ton Ammo.
Evasion Buffs - Evasion can only be removed by hits or by sensor locking. Misses do nothing. Not sure if this is enough to buff evasion, curious about others opinions on how to make it appealing compared to bulwark.
Change to the Juggernaut skill - Any change to make this skill appealing. As of right now it may as well not exist as far as I am concerned.
Shop Changes - Make the SLDF Black Knight and SLDF Griffin show up as parts on SLDF planets very rarely. Slightly improve shop appearance rates on all equipment, including heat exchangers and heat banks. Add LosTech to stores at extreme rarity and price, and also add to drop rates on 5 skull missions that mention lostech, like capture base or recover missions.
Unlock the Map - unlock the entire map at the point where your team gets the argo. Locking 70% of the map away until after the campaign was a horrible decision.
Argo Morale Improvements - Make these do something useful. Or have no upkeep. As it is these seem way worse than just paying your warriors a tad more to get to 50 and then ignore.
Darius - Shut him up.
**Major Changes**
Mission Variety - More mission variety, especially missions that encourage use of lighter mechs. Also give a reason to keep more types of mechs on hand. Would also like chain missions if possible, or huge missions that require a bigger lance every now and then.
Enemy Variety - Late game quickly becomes a boring assault mech brawl fest. Gets boring killing the same 5 mechs over and over again, with an atlas or king crab or jaeger mech or quickdraw thrown in every now and then. Would like the opportunity to fight a group of 32 locusts instead, or everything else in between. Keep things interesting.
Called Shot Rework - Make called shot not work on missiles.
Mod Mech Salvage - Either needs to take way more salvage or give you a shredded mech. Also would like to see mechs worth much more to sell. Could correspond to the costs incurred in repairing mechs/requiring more salvage to get mechs. Would also like mechs to start with no loadout. Also choosing whether to store or assemble a mech should happen everytime not just when the mechbay is full.
Assaults - Make assaults able to appear earlier in the game, though still incredibly rare. Having the first assault you get ALWAYS be the HighlanderB is kinda lame...
System Balance - More top tier systems out in uncontested space, more high difficulty systems spread around instead of all in the same area, more low level systems spread around too. Make mission difficulty tied to system more than to how far in the campaign you are.
Comstar Missions - Comstar shows as an active faction on some systems but there does not appear to be any affect to their being present. Would be interesting to have comstar missions and a faction bar for your relation with them.
**Dream Changes**
Space Travel Rework - Let me set a path that flies by planets so I can check stores/contracts without landing on planets. Even better make it so a path to a system is just a path to a jump point, and once I get there I can choose to travel to system or not. Also, toggle-able cinematics during travel would be great. I dont mind them early game but if all I am doing is shopping they get old really fast.
Enemy Pilot Spawning - Spawn pilots in mechs appropriate to their talents. Stop spawning Bulwark/Ace Pilots all the time. Give awesomes Multishot and breaching shot and bulwark, locusts evasive movement and sensor lock. Also, no pilots for vehicles would be nice.
Vehicles and Turrets - Turrets should not count toward skull difficulty. Vehicles should count for half. Also a lance of heavy mechs/a stolen heavy mech/a baddie in a heavy mech/bait heavy mech should always be a mech and never a vehicle.
Enemy AI - Improved enemy AI. Locusts running around the flanks keeping evasion up shooting our rear armour and sensor locking us. Enemy Ranged mechs staying back and shooting rather than slowly approaching to die. Attempts at flanking. Jumping over my head to shoot me in the rear. Etc.
Kill Victoria - When I fight victoria in campaign she dies. Everything she does for the rest of the story her father does instead. Not killing victoria here was dumb.
Kill the Commodore - Final Fight versus the commodore in between the bring down the dropship and final fight missions. Make it three missions in a row instead of two. Give him a bunch of damaged bodyguards and a few semi-intact assaults to fight us with.
Kill The Director - Replace Final mission with a fight versus bad uncle. Make bad uncles lance actually threatening. Also, the King Crab in the regular mission is unsalvageable half the time. Fixing that would be cool too.
Side Campaigns - Side campaigns for other factions with cool rewards
End Game Content - Anyone who has played Battlebrothers, things like mapwide disasters, Orc Thrones, the Goblin City, Black monolith, etc.
Thats all I can think of right now. I am gonna go redownload Notepad++ and start working on the things I think I know how to do. If anyone has any idea how to do any of the other things, or knows of anyone who has already done them, please let me know. If anyone has any other ideas for cool changes to the game also let me know!