[WIP] The Siege of Firebase Zulu

[darkus37]

I can't really think of too much else at the moment - but I think the "final battle" should take place at night, with little lighting except flares and mortar/cannon fire. I don't know if there are bugle sounds available - but having them sound off, mixed with the screams of charging legion troops and the moans of those dying, would really unnerve people. I also don't know if it were to be possible, but if the game world would be almost completely dark (no/dim star and moon-light) that would also set the stage for a truly horrific battle.

 

After the battle is over (and assuming the NCR won), there should be a memorial similar to the one in Boulder City (maybe a statue or two as well).

 

I also had the idea of the player raising the NCR flag (dropped by the troop standard bearer) during the battle for a morale boost.

 

One final idea (for the moment) - during a side-quest, the player stumbles over a mutt, starving and wounded. The player can heal/feed the animal which will run away afterwards. Upon returning to Zulu, the player will find that the mutt has followed them inside and will be adopted by the troopers as a mascot. This adoption will result in the dog giving an early warning before one of the assaults, which will save one of the named NPC's from getting killed.

[Guest deleted2159825]

I can't really think of too much else at the moment - but I think the "final battle" should take place at night, with little lighting except flares and mortar/cannon fire. I don't know if there are bugle sounds available - but having them sound off, mixed with the screams of charging legion troops and the moans of those dying, would really unnerve people. I also don't know if it were to be possible, but if the game world would be almost completely dark (no/dim star and moon-light) that would also set the stage for a truly horrific battle.

There are actually several variations of the "Final Battle", some of them very distinct from the others. I've been experimenting with whistles (like the Chinese Army in the Korean War), but so far it's sounded like s#*! in-game. I'll keep working on it, though.

 

 

After the battle is over (and assuming the NCR won), there should be a memorial similar to the one in Boulder City (maybe a statue or two as well).

There will be a post-battle service, with speeches and what not. As for a memorial... probably not, as Zulu is a one-way trip.

 

 

I also had the idea of the player raising the NCR flag (dropped by the troop standard bearer) during the battle for a morale boost.

 

One final idea (for the moment) - during a side-quest, the player stumbles over a mutt, starving and wounded. The player can heal/feed the animal which will run away afterwards. Upon returning to Zulu, the player will find that the mutt has followed them inside and will be adopted by the troopers as a mascot. This adoption will result in the dog giving an early warning before one of the assaults, which will save one of the named NPC's from getting killed.

1. There will be a potential sidequest that involves something similar - stealing the Legion standard.

 

2. Not bad... ;)

 

/end responses

 

Thanks for all the feedback! I've been working on the battle quite a bit, and now have a whopping four randomized events in place. Nonetheless, they are four stable, tested variations. One of the challenges will be balancing, as the Legion is absolutely steamrolling the garrison right now. This is partly due to the sheer quantity of attackers, as well as the fact I didn't complete several sidequests (some of them aren't even finished). However, it keeps boiling down to me and the two rangers fending off a horde of Legionaries. Not good.

 

Other notes:

- Defenders will slowly regenerate hp as long as the medical bay is intact. It can be destroyed by sappers, suicide slaves, and/or extremely accurate (aka lucky) artillery fire

- Getting bombarded by 120mm mortars SUCKS

- Getting attacked from 3+ directions is a clusterf*#@, but it seems realistic

- There will never be enough manpower to cover the entire perimeter; the player will have to prioritize certain spots and roll the dice, in a manner of speaking. It's Alamo-esque in that sense.

- The Legion will have a chance to create breaches in the perimeter at the start of an attack; these gaps may be repaired, but it will take valuable time (about 2 hours)

- The interval between attacks has been set to 0-6 hours. Highly subject to change.

 

I should have a video up later tonight. I'll post a link when it's up. Thanks!

[Guest deleted2159825]

Developer Diary #2 is online. Thanks!

[terzho]

Great video, I heard you mention something about replayability. Will you be able to replay the siege without having to start the mod again? So after you complete the mod, it turns into a wasteland defense type thing where you just have waves of legion for fun?

[maybenexttime]

Great video! I loved the 60 mm mortar fire. It would be cool if you could make a mortar blast destroy a sandbag wall.

 

I actually don't mind having a last stand scenario and making the final mission difficult.

 

But the mortar blast makes the battle seem more real. Nice job, I look forward to the next video!

[Guest deleted2159825]

Great video, I heard you mention something about replayability. Will you be able to replay the siege without having to start the mod again? So after you complete the mod, it turns into a wasteland defense type thing where you just have waves of legion for fun?

Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your perspective), it's a one-shot affair for each character. I know it's a nightmare for the completionists among us, but I felt it was appropriate. There are just too many varied outcomes for individual NPC's and the base itself.

 

 

Great video! I loved the 60 mm mortar fire. It would be cool if you could make a mortar blast destroy a sandbag wall.

 

I actually don't mind having a last stand scenario and making the final mission difficult.

 

But the mortar blast makes the battle seem more real. Nice job, I look forward to the next video!

Thanks! The 60mm mortar fire seems trivial at first, but when it lands next to you and sends pieces of NPC's flying about, it can be thoroughly jarring. It truly is randomized death.

[Stormbringer13]

Glad to see the videos will be gping strong. Definitely excited to defend that little hunk of rock.

 

My first, but hopefuly not last random event suggestion:

 

A lull in the fighting followed by a single Legionary, perhaps a Vexilarius, yelling taunts, insults, and perhaps promises of forced servitude upon surrender, rather than the painful death of resistance. Something in the vein of Lord Humongous' speech in Road Warrior. Player actions during this might include a scathing response using Terrifying Presence, sniping the Legionary (or perhaps walking a green recruit through it, maybe using guns skill/sniper perk), or calming a panicing trooper.

[terzho]

After you leave zulu will any of the characters you meet be in the Mojave? A veterans club perhaps?

[Guest deleted2159825]

After you leave zulu will any of the characters you meet be in the Mojave? A veterans club perhaps?

You might run into a few of them in scripted encounters, but by and large - no.

[darkus37]

The second video was very helpful and interesting, but I now have a couple of questions:

 

1. As you mention, some of the buildings can be destroyed by mortar fire - can they be reinforced to withstand heavy shelling, or are the structural enhancements (mentioned in the first video which involve using some of Speedy's resources) limited to defensive walls/bunkers? If not part of the setup already, I wanted to suggest that all the underground areas (clinic, command post, etc.) be connected by short tunnels so that the troopers wouldn't have to face mortar fire every time they needed to get to some other building.

 

2. I've never been near real cannon fire, but I imagine that it's pretty frickin loud - perhaps the 60mm mortars should be louder? (although it might just have been the video).

 

3. You mentioned several times that the journey to Firebase Zulu would be treacherous - can you give any more information about that? Also, is there a particular reason you decided on making Zulu a one-way trip? Don't get me wrong, areas like the Sierra Madre had little to do once the Dead Money DLC was over, but it would still be nice to be able to come back and look around once in a while.

 

4. I realize that it might be a bit spoiler-y, but could you share what characters are already set and some information about them (i.e. Marcellus).

 

5. I was wondering if you could give some sort of simple map of the mod world - just something basic to know where everything approximately is.

 

Really enjoying the videos - please keep em coming!