Balloon Buffing

[N-Sunderland]

As somebody who's put over 100 hours into the engineer class, I've always been underwhelmed by the effect of the buff kit on the balloon. It takes a long time to buff, it runs out quickly, and a similar effect can be reached much more easily by using hydrogen. There's simply no point in buffing the balloon when you could be doing something more productive instead. And then there's an achievement for buffing 150 of them. This is pointless.

So I think that the buff should be changed to make it useful. Maybe have the buffing time shortened, the effect time lengthened, or something else. As it stands, there is no good reason to buff a balloon.

[teweedo]

Does it stack with hydrogen?

[Pickle]

It makes it look shiny-pretty.. is that not reason enough?

Mr Shine, him diamond

[N-Sunderland]

Does it stack with hydrogen?

I would think so.

[Helmic]

The time you most need to buff the balloon is the time it's getting popped faster than you can buff it.  Carronades are just awful.

[N-Sunderland]

The time you most need to buff the balloon is the time it's getting popped faster than you can buff it.  Carronades are just awful.

Carronades are an engineer's worst enemy.

[Jazzza]

The time you most need to buff the balloon is the time it's getting popped faster than you can buff it.  Carronades are just awful.

But it takes so long to buff it and in that time you'll be under fire and have to repair it and other stuff.

[Captain Smollett]

I vote, buff time reduced by 20% effect time increased by 100%.  Hopefully awkm sees this.  He'll never admit it but sometimes he draws inspiration from the forums.

[N-Sunderland]

But it takes so long to buff it and in that time you'll be under fire and have to repair it and other stuff.

Exactly. As I said, there's no point in buffing the balloon, since there's pretty much always something better to do.

I vote, buff time reduced by 20% effect time increased by 100%.  Hopefully awkm sees this.  He'll never admit it but sometimes he draws inspiration from the forums.

I like the sound of that idea!

[Lord Dick Tim]

Altitude shifting is a key strategy against long range opponents.  A game can be played in the clouds and debris to get into knife fighting range, as I prefer to fly, but the amount of movement needed kills the balloon with pilot tools, and certainly isnt strong enoigh to rely on an engineer buffing it.

[Ccrack]

buffing balloons is largely pointless unless you buff it 90% then coordanate with your captian to actully get any use out of it

[Helmic]

buffing balloons is largely pointless unless you buff it 90% then coordanate with your captian to actully get any use out of it

This is what happens 99% of the time on my ships, I just buff it and when I notice the captain's trying to rise I'll smack the buff in.  Doesn't seem like it pulls us up much faster, though.  It's certainly underwhelming even when you do manage to get it in.

[Ccrack]

iv noticed a difference when the captian uses hidrogen while the balloon is buffed, they usally shoot up much higher than they were ment to be.

i think the buff is slightly more effective when its active just before the ship starts going up as apposed to activateing it just after

[awkm]

I vote, buff time reduced by 20% effect time increased by 100%.  Hopefully awkm sees this.  He'll never admit it but sometimes he draws inspiration from the forums.

I see it and  I will always admit that changes are due to player reaction from the forum or anywhere else.

The effects should stack.  At the end of the day, there is very little I can do with balloons without instituting feature requests.  I'll poke around and see what I can get.

[HamsterIV]

With blenderfish (Hell hound armed Goldfish) prowling the skies perhaps a balloon buff would be more lustful if it could increase damage resilience instead of lift speed. If a captain needs lift speed, there is always Helium and Chute vent.