exactly what does promod do?

[Lightning]

this thread still doesn't say what promod does:rolleyes:

[ExarDunnan]

OK, here's what the *official* promod website says. It's kinda confusing until the end, but the second half of the last paragraph explains it pretty well.

 

About ProMod

Ever since the release of jk2 there have been innumerable complaints about its multiplayer gameplay. The players whose expectations of deep, involving, strategic saber-play were not met have been very vocal on lucasforums.com and elsewhere. Whether it was the DFA attack in 1.02, the backsweeps/stabs of 1.03, or the effortless, skilless blocking of 1.04, there have been many imbalance issues that have sent the JK2 community to the messageboards to decry the failings of the latest patch. Ravensoft's too-much-or-too-little attempts at balancing have caused many dedicated players to shelve their game cd's for good.

 

With the rumormill reporting that Lucasarts is unwilling to fund any more patches to the game to correct things, it is left to the mod community to breathe life back into Jedi Outcast multiplayer. Many mods have attempted to do so, and I salute their efforts, but I think that there are none that have addressed the true, fundamental flaws of saber combat. Most of them concentrate on cosmetic changes such as choosing RGB saber colors or turning your player model into a towering giant. While these may serve as amusing diversions for a while, they aren't fixing things. Repainting a broken-down car won't help it run any better. The attempts that have been made have only changed things like the amount of damage certain saber swings do, or how much force power is used when you turn on absorb. These adjustments can help, but they fall far short of making the game a truly rewarding experience.

 

So what is it that needs to be fixed?

 

Two major things: One, the saber combat logic has been fundamentally flawed since the very first version. So much so that you can actually hit someone from behind while standing in front of them. The overly-lenient blocking system has allowed even those completely new to the game to wade into a grand saber melee and come out the other side with barely a scratch. Two, the logic is just foul with calls to random number generators. Any professional gamer will tell you that that is the death of any game that wishes to be played competitvely or professionally. Why bother training yourself to be better at a game whose major component is luck? How would you like to lose a tournament match with thousands of dollars on the line to the roll of virtual dice?

 

How are these things fixed in ProMod?

 

Random numbers must be replaced with input from the player at every opportunity. As such, there are only three things that are translateable from a real-life human player into a computer game. One, strategic thinking--any time you go for a shield pack or duck into the shadows hoping to get the drop on your opponent, you're injecting your strategy into the game. Two, your sense of timing-- any time you give the game input, you're making a decision as to your timing. Finally, manual dexterity-- your accuracy with weapons fire or in moving your character are directly related to your ability to control your keyboard and mouse, or other input device.

 

Based on these three factors, Saber Combat has been completely rewritten in ProMod 1.0. Your ability to hit, be hit, break defenses, parry and knock away your opponent's saber are all now based upon a factor inherent to the player and not a random number generator: your aim. Read this twice: AIM IS LIFE. All aspects of physical combat, including front- and sideflip-kicks and some aspects of Force-powered combat have been linked to how accurately you are aiming at your opponent. Saber Duels in ProMod will always be won by someone with better Strategy, Timing and/or Accuracy. There will be no fluke victories.

 

So the question by the author is FINALLY answered (for the first time written on the thread, anyway), so I'll just sit back and keep watching the fun.

[ExarDunnan]

OK, here's what the *official* promod website says. It's kinda confusing until the end, but the second half of the last paragraph explains it pretty well.

 

About ProMod

Ever since the release of jk2 there have been innumerable complaints about its multiplayer gameplay. The players whose expectations of deep, involving, strategic saber-play were not met have been very vocal on lucasforums.com and elsewhere. Whether it was the DFA attack in 1.02, the backsweeps/stabs of 1.03, or the effortless, skilless blocking of 1.04, there have been many imbalance issues that have sent the JK2 community to the messageboards to decry the failings of the latest patch. Ravensoft's too-much-or-too-little attempts at balancing have caused many dedicated players to shelve their game cd's for good.

 

With the rumormill reporting that Lucasarts is unwilling to fund any more patches to the game to correct things, it is left to the mod community to breathe life back into Jedi Outcast multiplayer. Many mods have attempted to do so, and I salute their efforts, but I think that there are none that have addressed the true, fundamental flaws of saber combat. Most of them concentrate on cosmetic changes such as choosing RGB saber colors or turning your player model into a towering giant. While these may serve as amusing diversions for a while, they aren't fixing things. Repainting a broken-down car won't help it run any better. The attempts that have been made have only changed things like the amount of damage certain saber swings do, or how much force power is used when you turn on absorb. These adjustments can help, but they fall far short of making the game a truly rewarding experience.

 

So what is it that needs to be fixed?

 

Two major things: One, the saber combat logic has been fundamentally flawed since the very first version. So much so that you can actually hit someone from behind while standing in front of them. The overly-lenient blocking system has allowed even those completely new to the game to wade into a grand saber melee and come out the other side with barely a scratch. Two, the logic is just foul with calls to random number generators. Any professional gamer will tell you that that is the death of any game that wishes to be played competitvely or professionally. Why bother training yourself to be better at a game whose major component is luck? How would you like to lose a tournament match with thousands of dollars on the line to the roll of virtual dice?

 

How are these things fixed in ProMod?

 

Random numbers must be replaced with input from the player at every opportunity. As such, there are only three things that are translateable from a real-life human player into a computer game. One, strategic thinking--any time you go for a shield pack or duck into the shadows hoping to get the drop on your opponent, you're injecting your strategy into the game. Two, your sense of timing-- any time you give the game input, you're making a decision as to your timing. Finally, manual dexterity-- your accuracy with weapons fire or in moving your character are directly related to your ability to control your keyboard and mouse, or other input device.

 

Based on these three factors, Saber Combat has been completely rewritten in ProMod 1.0. Your ability to hit, be hit, break defenses, parry and knock away your opponent's saber are all now based upon a factor inherent to the player and not a random number generator: your aim. Read this twice: AIM IS LIFE. All aspects of physical combat, including front- and sideflip-kicks and some aspects of Force-powered combat have been linked to how accurately you are aiming at your opponent. Saber Duels in ProMod will always be won by someone with better Strategy, Timing and/or Accuracy. There will be no fluke victories.

 

So the question by the author is FINALLY answered (for the first time written on the thread, anyway), so I'll just sit back and keep watching the fun.

[ArtifeX]

I guess the short and skinny on what ProMod does is allow more variation and skill into saber vs. saber combat through the Combat Strength Crosshair and the bonus meter systems. The old system's blocking and saber hit-detection systems were so laughably broken that I felt compelled to fix them. I won't go into the specifics. I've detailed all the flaws of the official versions in many other threads, and in my old strategy guides (http://www.oculis.org/asc).

 

The best advice I can offer you for learning what ProMod does is to drop by my official server or the Praxeum Knights server while some of the regulars are in there at night. They've got a deep understanding of how the game works, and are generally ok with explaining the mod to new players. I may be in there myself from time to time.