Official "bring Back The Babblers" Thread

eliotmat · March 2005

<div class="IPBDescription">Show your support. Bring em back.</div> Please post here showing your support.

Bring back the babblers.

Curlydave1 · March 2005

Technical difficulties man.

DuoGodOfDeath · March 2005

No

Marik_Steele · March 2005

If and <i>only</i> if they had more respectable AI, I'd like to playtest them. I just doubt it could happen until NS:Source.

eliotmat · March 2005

Babblers were to NS what fatalities are to Mortal Kombat.

There was nothing quite as fun as 2 or 3 gorges unleashing a flood of babblers into marine start.

NS should start being fun again. I've had to add too many plugins to get the fun factor back.

A couple years ago I just had a vanilla server because vanilla NS was fun.

Babblers = Fun Factor

kill4thrills · March 2005

if babblers came back, they shouldn't be shot out from the gorge's mouth. they should be some sort of self-defense mechanism that the hive can use. perhaps a special babbler gland or sac that a gorge can build on a hive to "upgrade it". kinda like how rts have to be built on res nodes, the babbler sac can only be built on complete hives. when attacked, the hive can release these from the big schlong and it will home in on marines and kamikaze on them!

Depot · March 2005

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Marik Steele @ Mar 18 2005, 08:27 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> If and <i>only</i> if they had more respectable AI, I'd like to playtest them. I just doubt it could happen until NS:Source.  </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> 
Have you played against the latest Whichbot v0.94g? They may be just good enough to change your mind. <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wink-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wink-fix.gif' />

DiscoDuck · March 2005

I'd love to see babblers back they were fun and good at killing buildings and made marines panic and buggy and fun and buggy and i put to many and's in this sentance andunlike bilebomb could hurt marines

That_Annoying_Kid · March 2005

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Marik Steele @ Mar 18 2005, 04:27 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> If and <i>only</i> if they had more respectable AI, I'd like to playtest them. I just doubt it could happen until NS:Source.  </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> 
^^

as much as I <3 babblers I don't think they can make a comeback.

PRTe · March 2005

they would require A LOT of coding and playtesting but they are fun to have around...

Curlydave1 · March 2005

At this point it's too extreme for the team to consider; like many mod teams, the NS team is at a point where they've basically stopped experimenting with anythign except for relatively minor changes.

Xeno · March 2005

let me guess, you don't run a server, do you elliot?

eliotmat · March 2005

I've been running a server since July of 2003, and a lead admin on !!!Team Fun's Allergic Reaction!!! since November the year prior.

Check the signature. Thanks. Come again.

Xeno · March 2005

yeah well, then you would know that babblers and mine lasers bog servers down. now say if 10 people go gorge and spam babblers, well then, as admin since since July of 2003, you would know what would happen.

Thanks. Come again.

lagger · March 2005

I support this reintroduction of babblers if AND ONLY IF they were modded to be small cows with wings. Maybe we could even change focus to "laser upgrade" which equips each babbler cow with a laser on its head, the more people on the kharra team that get this upgrade the higher power and more accurate the laser cows ARE!

--------- <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tiny.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tiny.gif' /> <--- Laser coming out of babbler cow.

Swiftspear · March 2005

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Xeno @ Mar 18 2005, 10:21 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> yeah well, then you would know that babblers and mine lasers bog servers down. now say if 10 people go gorge and spam babblers, well then, as admin since since July of 2003, you would know what would happen.

Thanks. Come again.  </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> 
CPU GO BEWM!

Depot · March 2005

I don't recall babblers being cpu intensive at all.
Laser mines yeah - they could crash a server ... but not babblers.

Xeno · March 2005

i used to help a guy with a 30 man server. he HATED babblers. when the game was almost over, everyone would go gorge and gorge rush marine base with babblers flying. it was hard for the cpu.

not to mention laser mines. people would go out of their way to make sure that they found a hallway so that the laser would reach across the map. ie. viaduct hive on nothing. couple that with a few mines and you got a crash waiting to happen.

Thats_Enough · March 2005

God, Xeno... I can only IMAGINE how bad server #1 would be with babblers and laser mines lol.

You think siege turrets will crash the server?

Imagine the 21 siege salute + 8 gorges with babblers in the siege room + 8 GLs spamming....

Yeah, quoting from before:

CPU GO BEWM!

Condizzle · March 2005

I never got to try them, so I wouldn't know, but I'd like to be able to use them to see what they were like.

Manta · March 2005

There is a v1.04 download somewhere.

Dr_aaagh · March 2005

noooo - gorge spit, bile, and web add such strength to the aliens - babblers were cool, but removing one of these would cripple the aliens

Savant · March 2005

Let me first say I loved Babblers, I really did. You don't know laughter until you have been camped in a vent somewhere 'raining' babblers down on marines! <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' />

However, I do know that there are issues and map limitations that prevent them from working 100%, so I don't think we should consider it otherwise.

What I had always thought would be better for babblers would be to use them with devour. I know this would be hard to implement (initially) but what I always imagined for devour was to have a special room created that would mimic the stomach of the Onos. Then, if a marine is devoured they are transported to that room, with only their knife in hand. Once there, babblers are launched out of the walls, and the marine can kill them as he is devoured. It would be a heck of a lot more fun than looking at a static screen display of a red wall. <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/confused-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='confused-fix.gif' />

However, I know this would be hard to implement, since all mappers would have to add that room to their maps. Perhaps a special routine could be put in place to check for the presence of that room in the expected location, and if not present would just show the regular devour screen.

Babblers are a hoot, but to me it would only make sense to have them as a weapon of the Onos. Considering that the Onos has 4 good weapons, perhaps we could still use babblers in the devour process.

The only other place that I think babblers would fit would be with the skulk after a Xenocide. What about making it so that once a skulk Xenocides, the body 'explodes' into 3-4 <b>smaller</b> skulks? These 'mini-babbler' skulks would have low damage to marines (compared to Xenocide) so they would not throw off balance. They would also have low health/no armor, and so they would die quicker. The key is how it would play out, and I think it would work to have a skulk 'explode' into babblers if they were smaller than an actual skulk.

I don't think babblers should come back in their past form though. It just doesn't work for the gorge anymore.

Regards,

Savant

TOmekki · March 2005

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (eliotmat @ Mar 18 2005, 07:29 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'>
NS should start being fun again. I've had to add too many plugins to get the fun factor back.  </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> 
maybe, just maybe try to set your server to something reasonable like 14-16 maxplayers instead of 20-22?

Swiftspear · March 2005

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Savant @ Mar 19 2005, 06:53 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> Considering that the Onos has 4 good weapons, perhaps we could still use babblers in the devour process.  </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> 
The onos does not have four good weapons. The onos has MABY 2 good weapons. Gore is ok, stomp is... interesting... devour is annoying as it is buggy as hell to use as an onos and boring as hell to have happen to you as a marine, and charge is just useless without combat 50 level plugins.

eliotmat · March 2005

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'>What about making it so that once a skulk Xenocides, the body 'explodes' into 3-4 smaller skulks? These 'mini-babbler' skulks would have low damage to marines (compared to Xenocide) so they would not throw off balance. They would also have low health/no armor, and so they would die quicker. The key is how it would play out, and I think it would work to have a skulk 'explode' into babblers if they were smaller than an actual skulk.
</td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'>

*drools*
That sounds like a great time!

eliotmat · March 2005

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (TOmekki @ Mar 19 2005, 07:04 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> </div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (eliotmat @ Mar 18 2005, 07:29 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'>
NS should start being fun again. I've had to add too many plugins to get the fun factor back. </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'>
maybe, just maybe try to set your server to something reasonable like 14-16 maxplayers instead of 20-22?  </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> 
I find the beauty of NS in large scale, chaotic battles. I don't often see these in small playercount pub servers. What I do see in small playercount pub servers in ill-prepared marine teams futilly fighting early fades and onos.

Babblers added to this chaotic atmosphere at the end of a game.

Zavaro · March 2005

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Depot @ Mar 18 2005, 07:38 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> Have you played against the latest Whichbot v0.94g? They may be just good enough to change your mind. <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wink-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wink-fix.gif' /> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'>
Depot's right... heh heh heh. Now all we need is a plugin for babblers for metamod or AMX. That would be nice. Would it be possible? I mean, all we really need is the snark source code...

Or maybe a new type of Offensive chamber that releases the little buggers...

Depot · March 2005

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Zavaro @ Mar 19 2005, 10:44 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> </div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Depot @ Mar 18 2005, 07:38 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> Have you played against the latest Whichbot v0.94g? They may be just good enough to change your mind. <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wink-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wink-fix.gif' /> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'>
Depot's right... heh heh heh. Now all we need is a plugin for babblers for metamod or AMX. That would be nice. Would it be possible? I mean, all we really need is the snark source code...

Or maybe a new type of Offensive chamber that releases the little buggers...  </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> 
Someone was working on a babbler plugin before modNS.org forums went down. Try placing a plugin request on the <a href='http://ugleague.org/forums1/' target='_blank'>Mods Maps and Models for NS Forums</a> to rekindle the fire! <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wink-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wink-fix.gif' />

NoObiE_Mech · March 2005

Babblers were hella fun to use, but they're throw off the balance if given to a gorge. And to solve the problem with the "red wall" you see while being digested, add the ability to use the knife and do damage to the onos; possibly cut yourself out, with the help of gunners outside.

Oh yeah, I use to abuse laser mines at Absolut's. Use to ask comm (or drop them) just to do some 'artistic' work on rooms. <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' /> But, I could usually get up to 25-30 mines up without a problem. <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' />

Xeno · March 2005

didn't mean to sound like an a-hole, i just hope people think about the server op's before they make suggestions. like depot said, their are plugins for this kind of stuff. by all means, put it on your server. but making it official.......come on.

Official "bring Back The Babblers" Thread

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