NationStates Jolt Archive

I wish to know how people respond to droid armies.

They'd be an obvious GodMod in Modern-Tech. I wouldn't know about Future-Tech, since I don't do those. Heh.

I'm an FT player, and it depends. If you can provide an explanation for how they came about and their control system etc, you could get away with it. Don't make them so strong they can't be beaten, that would be God-modding

They'd be an obvious GodMod in Modern-Tech. I wouldn't know about Future-Tech, since I don't do those. Heh.

Well, that depends. Automatic defense systems exist, and simple robotic forms exist. So if we're talking about "the popdown and popup guns appeared and began laying fields of .50 cal fire on the invaders", not a godmod.

"And the humanoid robots lifted their arms and..." - Godmod.

So it depends.

Well, that depends. Automatic defense systems exist, and simple robotic forms exist. So if we're talking about "the popdown and popup guns appeared and began laying fields of .50 cal fire on the invaders", not a godmod.

"And the humanoid robots lifted their arms and..." - Godmod.

So it depends.


Yes, I was refering to a type of infantry unit, as he did say army. ;)

Well, that depends. Automatic defense systems exist, and simple robotic forms exist. So if we're talking about "the popdown and popup guns appeared and began laying fields of .50 cal fire on the invaders", not a godmod.

"And the humanoid robots lifted their arms and..." - Godmod.

So it depends.
Actually, the U.S is currently experimenting with small droids in a number of roles, such as tiny UAV's and such. I wonder if that would be classed as droid armies? But whatever, considering MT is from now to ten years in the future, if they were tracked droids etc, then its a distinct possiblity

Ive always thought of it as ways for a tiny nation to get away with fielding superior numbers...

Assuming you're referencing the Star Wars droid army and you're in Future Tech then no, I wouldn't consider it a godmod.

Though Mass-produced they were able to be beaten by a combined effort between Jar-Jar's social retards and a nifty fighter pilot. And that they were the armies of a seemingly non-martial race all the better.

As long as they're not nearly invincible and can have some major flaws, then go for it :)

Ive always thought of it as ways for a tiny nation to get away with fielding superior numbers...
Which is exactly why it should be considered a godmod.

Neither trained soldiers nor programmed droids spring from the ground in infinite numbers at your beck and call. Each requires a logistical infrastructure, a support system, transports, etc. If you want to say that droids are being used in place of soldiers (and subject to the same sorts of population limits put on similar sizes nations), I would say that is reasonable. A five million nation can't have a five-million-droid army and more than they could have a five-million-soldier army. You have to spend the time and resouces developing them.

If your species believes that the loss of life in war is an intolerable barrier to combat, then let them accept the equivalent loss of resources in their place. Keep your citizenry alive, but for every droid-soldier in your army and logistical corps, you have one less human/Kzin/Nabooite/whatever in your nation's population. That's the only way to keep it fair.

Well yes because in the meritocracy of NS, power is and always should be determined based on your join date and not on any actual skill or RP ability.[/devil's advocate]

You do have a point

OK guys, sorry to go completley off-topic here, but I'd like it if you checked this out: http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=413225

Criticisms (not too harsh) and applause are nice

You can use droids. Why do you think there is such thing as Star Wars. You can't use it in Moderm War except the Unmanned Ground Vehicle called "Sword". They should not have a mind of it's own.

Well yes because in the meritocracy of NS, power is and always should be determined based on your join date and not on any actual skill or RP ability.[/devil's advocate]
New players in traditional RPGs don't start as 21st level Paladins, nor do online RPG players start out with a fully equipped character with a huge bank account. Everybody has to start at the beginning sometime, and I think the current practice of at least a month's 'apprenticeship' is entirely reasonable.

Most serious RPers here don't use their ZOMG! overwhelming population to shove newer players under their chariot wheels. Some of them do, of course, but not most. Most of them also started as small nations and RPed their way into positions of power. Why should established players who got there the hard way have to consider a new player with a "just-add-water-and-stir" droid army their equal?

There is a place for meritocracy, and a place for seniority. In both, you should have to pay your dues before reaching the top. That's the whole concept behind the godmod rules in the first place.

I'm assuming no, if it's like the Star Wars army.

They can still cause greater casulties.

Droid armys are good unless they have few, if any, flaws. Espesially in MT nations. You really can't have very powerful droids against a MT nation, it would be unfair. FT it's almost never a godmod. Unless you make some n00bish thing about them... but mostly that wouldn't happen.

I believe it might not be fair sometimes for people to base war on population too much. Because it's all a matter of word of mouth, or luck. If someone finds out about Nationstates before someone else, then they have an advantage purely out of luck, or word of mouth. That might not be fair, but meh.

However, if a 5 million population country believes he can try and take down people older than him, then that's breaking the rules. Then again, I welcome 5 million pop countries to try and invade me. My climate alone can kill them.

New players in traditional RPGs don't start as 21st level Paladins, nor do online RPG players start out with a fully equipped character with a huge bank account. Everybody has to start at the beginning sometime, and I think the current practice of at least a month's 'apprenticeship' is entirely reasonable.

Most serious RPers here don't use their ZOMG! overwhelming population to shove newer players under their chariot wheels. Some of them do, of course, but not most. Most of them also started as small nations and RPed their way into positions of power. Why should established players who got there the hard way have to consider a new player with a "just-add-water-and-stir" droid army their equal?

There is a place for meritocracy, and a place for seniority. In both, you should have to pay your dues before reaching the top. That's the whole concept behind the godmod rules in the first place.

I beg to differ. Becoming a power on NS does not take effort, it just takes time and a modicum of intelligence. If I gave a RL friend a massive puppet I'm sure he could become a "power" very quickly by simply forging a few alliances. There is a place for meritocracy and a place for seniority, but in NS seniority doesn't need effort, it just needs patience. It only appears to work because 80% of nations get bored and die off before they get to any position of power because they just get smacked down by massive nations whenever they try to do anything.

If a good RPer wants to RP their nation as being 1.5bn regardless of their stats I don't see why they shouldnt be able to, so long as they dont godmod... but if they godmod they'll just be ignored anyway, which works regardless of population, so it is not a problem, yes?

I would tend to agree with Praetonia on this.

Really, it depends on the players involved. If your opponent doesn't mind you RPing with a giant droid army, you can RP with a giant droid army. If you do it well, more nations will accept it, whether you've been doing it for two weeks or two years.

It just comes down to numbers, if you have a 35 billion droid army thats a god mod because so much metal would go into the droids that your territories would be suffering a steel/titanium famine

like on my country i only have 1 million combat droids that are able to take a hit but there not going to get hit with a hellfire or an artillery shell and be able to walk away.

Also i count Droids as 2 men to 1 droid using the same 5% combat thing so really in my five % Ive taken 2 million men out of combat.

But if were talking of simple security robots (3 wheels and a 50 cal.) i have many of them in my bases

In a modern/post-modern/near-future tech RP, they are definite Godmodes and I'd ignore them.

If a FT RP, it would depend on how well you explained it or whether or not you've added a degree of plausibility to your armies. If you're FT and you spent a lot of time hashing out the armies (similar to the way AMF developed his Sentinels or Pantera developed his Reavers), I'd be more inclined to accept them if I were playing FT.