nerf lanterns, buff lightsticks

[AmoryBlaine]

Lanterns are essentially perma-flares. They're bright and reaches 360 degrees. Decrease the brightness and reach, to be more moderate given it's a low light item, or change the design to be directly forward, similar to a heavy flashlight and reaches 180 degrees. To counter this, make lightsticks slightly brighter, and easily bought in packs from cargo, and spawn in mining, but keep with the 360 coverage so to encourage their use. The lanterns are legit 10x better than any other light in the game, and spawn frequently in maintenance. Please consider this suggestion.

[Pratepresidenten]

Lanterns are ridiculously bright, I agree. This seems like a fair suggestion.

[Conspiir]

Real lanterns aren't directional, that's just silly. Keep them omnidirectional. They're one of the most useful tools for mining imo. If the issue is other people having it, perhaps remove it from spawning in maint. Or make it better when in space than in the station.

[DronzTheWolf]

I support the brightening-down, and maybe change it from yellowcake uranium light color to something a bit more like actual fire. 
Coalf's making it so it doesn't spawn and/or greatly reducing the spawn rate is also a good idea. But, the 360 degree lighting has to stay, that's the most useful thing about it for mining and really the only thing that makes it possible to play without a RIG should you choose to.

[VTCobaltblood]

10 hours ago, AmoryBlaine said:

The lanterns are legit 10x better than any other light in the game

Science can produce identical lights, but white/whatever other color. So, not much would be lost even if the lanterns just got flatout brightened down without the glowstick buff.

Is this really a balance issue, though?

[AmoryBlaine]

1 minute ago, VTCobaltblood said:

Science can produce identical lights, but white/whatever other color. So, not much would be lost even if the lanterns just got flatout brightened down without the glowstick buff.

Is this really a balance issue, though?

That's actual good then, if people want permaflares, they have to go to RnD and get one. And yeah, it's a balance issue, trust me. In a game where sight is almost everything, you can essentially cover your ass in the dark with ease, and thwart any attempts by antags to attack you stealthily. This applies heavily to Sec Officers who abuse these by romping around maintenance looking for the ninja or cultists, ect. What would be a well matched battle in near darkness is turned into a turkeyshoot. You can't approach them from any side without being visible, and because the light covers all the area it does, it means they'll be able to aim at your sprite, rather than just blindly into the dark.

[Conspiir]

24 minutes ago, AmoryBlaine said:

That's actual good then, if people want permaflares, they have to go to RnD and get one. And yeah, it's a balance issue, trust me. In a game where sight is almost everything, you can essentially cover your ass in the dark with ease, and thwart any attempts by antags to attack you stealthily. This applies heavily to Sec Officers who abuse these by romping around maintenance looking for the ninja or cultists, ect. What would be a well matched battle in near darkness is turned into a turkeyshoot. You can't approach them from any side without being visible, and because the light covers all the area it does, it means they'll be able to aim at your sprite, rather than just blindly into the dark.

So this is more of "security gets ahold of lanterns and can see behind them" issue rather than a lantern issue.

 

Security has flares already, and those last quite a while. So, make it so security can't easily get their hands on lanterns.

[AmoryBlaine]

It applies to everyone. Anyone can abuse it, I'm just calling from my experiences, and think we ought to make lightsticks more used, while limiting something that is the best source of light on station. @Conspiir

[VTCobaltblood]

31 minutes ago, AmoryBlaine said:

That's actual good then, if people want permaflares, they have to go to RnD and get one.

It's circuitry, so not a lot of people know how to make these, and even less know that RnD can make these.

[AmoryBlaine]

Just now, VTCobaltblood said:

It's circuitry, so not a lot of people know how to make these, and even less know that RnD can make these.

It's a side thing- if someone wants an ultrabright 360 coverage bulb, then they have to go through RnD. People can do fine without it, and make use of a mixture of lightsticks and flares to help with area coverage. It makes sense, as far as I care to look at it.

[Conspiir]

4 minutes ago, AmoryBlaine said:

It applies to everyone. Anyone can abuse it, I'm just calling from my experiences, and think we ought to make lightsticks more used, while limiting something that is the best source of light on station. @Conspiir

My experiences generally say that having an omnidirectional light on your sprite makes you an easier target for others. It's usually better to keep it off than on because it's a huge beacon saying "I'M RIGHT HERE". The exception is when a security officer or similar is actively looking for someone to find/fire at.

 

I'm looking from the point of view of a miner, and I don't know how dimming the lantern will affect its use. It's an amazing, benign tool that really helps when finding ore (even more than mesons). Buffing lightsticks (those things are joke) would be alright, I suppose, but wouldn't that make them another type of flare?

[AmoryBlaine]

1 minute ago, Conspiir said:

My experiences generally say that having an omnidirectional light on your sprite makes you an easier target for others. It's usually better to keep it off than on because it's a huge beacon saying "I'M RIGHT HERE". The exception is when a security officer or similar is actively looking for someone to find/fire at.

 

I'm looking from the point of view of a miner, and I don't know how dimming the lantern will affect its use. It's an amazing, benign tool that really helps when finding ore (even more than mesons). Buffing lightsticks (those things are joke) would be alright, I suppose, but wouldn't that make them another type of flare?

A flare is the highest level of coverage, but lasts the shortest time, a lightstick is moderate coverage and lasts a long time, if not the full round- seriously, those things last like 12 hours. Lanterns get the same coverage as heavy duty flashlights, but keep their added benefit of fitting in your pocket, and not taking up much room.