Hey guys, I’ve thought of something called a “solo homefront”.
The solo homefront works as such:
Players can search for such missions in the opportunities tab or the agency tab.
Such missions are for a single player, and is not limited based on location, apart from perhaps J-space and Pochven. Maybe sov. Null is banned, too? Perhaps only allowed from NPC stations.
The player can then search for a mission, and since it is done “remotely”, as long as they are in an NPC station in empire space they can accept any mission, anywhere.
Not sure if it should be a server-wide pool of missions to complete, or if each player has their own mini-pool to choose from.
After accepting, the player’s consciousness is temporarily transferred to the location of the mission.
They are given a brief before accepting, and then full mission briefing once they have been transferred.
After completing the mission, their consciousness returns to their original location and the rewards are sent.
The mission will occur in deadspace, and no other players can warp to the location. The player will not appear in local, and neither will they be able to see local channels or other players. They are effectively isolated for the time being - only in the system.
Rewards could include ISK, LP, or parts of a grant which once enough are collected, allows the player to redeem the ship which they flew in at an NPC station of the correct faction.
So for example - I flew 20 Osprey missions, and I end up with 20 Osprey grant pieces which I can trade for an Osprey hull at a desired station.
Also - there could be LP for certain corporations which are the ones “asking for aid”.
I have thought of a few possible themes, and I will list them below:
EXAMPLE 1: COMBAT
player docked in Hirtamon
Mission briefing before accepting: “A Deep Core Mining enforcement team had to retreat from an engagement in Osmon. Fight your way out! No doubt DCM will reward you generously”
accepts mission
player is moved to Osmon, in a DCM Merlin, in a fleet with other DCM ships
Mission briefing upon transfer: “This DCM patrol was ambushed by Guristas forces as they scouted out an asteroid belt. The pilot of the ship you are piloting was incapacitated as he collided with an asteroid during their hasty withdrawal. You must now take his place - fight your way out of this trap - and keep your fleet alive.”
player closes the dialogue, and the hostiles spawn
messages appear in local - similar to combat anomalies
player completes mission
Pop-up message: “Capsuleer, we are grateful for your aid. Please return your ship to [NPC station in system] and sign-off. You will be generously awarded”
player docks at the designated station and signs off
player is returned to original station in Hirtamon
Dialogue upon return: “Thank you [player name], your efforts are greatly appreciated. Please, take this as a sign of gratitude.”
offers ISK, Caldari or DCM LP, and Merlin grants
player presses “complete mission”, and receives rewards
EXAMPLE 2: HAULING
player docked in Thebeka
Mission briefing before accepting: “A Nurtura transport is not responding to traffic control. Find out what’s going on. Nurtura hopes for the best.”
accepts mission
player in moved to Shuria, in a Nurtura Sigil, in a fleet with other Nurtura ships in the middle of combat
Mission briefing upon transfer: “We don’t know what’s going on - the convoy should have checked in a while back. Luckily the fleet’s Sigil is carrying precious cargo - and we fitted it with remote control systems should the ship become hijacked. Find out what’s going on and bring them back - the fleet’s all yours.”
player closes dialogue
NPC fleet commander transmission: capsuleer - we need your help! The crew of your ship were knocked out by an EMP blast, and our long-range comms are inoperable. You must not let the cargo fall into enemy hands - once this interdiction field falls - warp to the rendezvous point and wait for back-up!
interdiction field falls, and player warps
Squad commander transmission: “We’ve arrived at the designated safe point - the enemy should be some distance away now.”
player closes dialogue
hostile ship decloaks, and scrams the hauler
Squad commander transmission: “Dammit, how did they get here first! We can jam it’s weapons, active your warp core stabiliser and dock at [NPC station in system]! We can take them from here!”
player docks at the designated station and signs-off
player is returned to the original station in Thebeka
Dialogue upon return: “Thank you [player name] for your decisive actions. We had no idea there was an ambush, until you were inserted. Don’t worry, CONCORD are arriving as we speak - those criminals will get what they deserve. Please, take this as a sign of gratitude.”
offers ISK, Amarr or Nurtura LP, and Sigil grants
player presses “complete mission”, and receives rewards
So all in all, it’s a bit like a career agent mission, however the rewards could be slightly tweaked. Also, they are accessible from almost anywhere.
It has been mentioned to me that this seems a bit like abyssals, but it is very different because “solo homefronts”:
“Solo homefronts”:
Are linked to NPC corporations and factions - and allow you to gain standings, LP and other loot (details which clearly need polishing).
Are, unlike abyssals, structured and the player knows what they are getting into.
Are much more varied than abyssals - rather than JUST combat, players can complete hauling, hacking, scanning, combat, and mining missions (so yeeesss, a teeeeny-tiny overlap with the existing homefronts - but hear me out…).
Are affected by where you complete them from. So for example, missions for the Caldari faction or Caldari corps can only be done in Caldari and Amarr, and vice versa (FW allies).
Are only for single player.
Are similar to career agents, except with more rewards and possibility for progression.
Allow players - especially newer ones - to fly ships without the risk of losing their own ISK (because according to the storyline they are helping an NPC who is in trouble anyway so if they succeed amazing, if not then nothing changes).
Allow players to gain standings without having to fight in FW.
Allow players - especially the newer ones - to get free ships (nothing blingy, I’m talking 20 completed missions of the same class (e.g. enforcer for an osprey) for a T1 cruiser).
And as for the issue of moving players remotely without having to “move” - I get that, it’ll be exploits galore because you know how everyone tries to find workaround. The concept of these “solo homefronts” is that the players do not actually “move”. Not sure if I mentioned this before - but the player will accept the mission, and their consciousness get moved remotely. They effectively are piloting the ship remotely, from their original location. Now - players cannot see local, and local cannot see the player. The player will be in deadspace and therefore no players can interact with them, or vice versa. They can’t dock or warp or jump anywhere except from where they need to (if they need to). And if they happen to quit or fail the mission, since they never “left” their original location, they will just end up back there, exactly as they were before. And if they die in the mission, the same thing happens and they don’t lose any implants since they are piloting an NPC ship remotely.
If anyone likes the idea or has any suggestions, please do let me know!