H.U.D. \ Interface Suggestions

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Archonsod

An old salt from the mainland
Marquis
A few suggestions for improving the interface in combat. Some have been suggested before, others are new as far as I can tell:

1. Current Weapon:

Something that occurred to me earlier. At present, it is quite possible to have different ammunition types for the same weapon loaded, yet not know which you are using. E.g. I have 1 large bag of bent arrows, 1 bag of barbed arrows and 1 bag of arrows. When using the bow, the missiles remaining count shows the total of all arrows. It would be nice to have some way of knowing which particular arrow I'm going to use.

2. Communicating orders:

I don't know how many people have played Operation Flashpoint, but basically this is 'inspired' by that game. Rather than have a key = an order, have a small menu open up. The menu lists the troop types, and selecting a type lists the orders which can be given. So, lets say I press the menu button and get:

1. Archers
2. Infantry
3. Cavalry
4. All
5. Exit

Selecting one takes me to an orders menu for that particular group. Orders could consist of the standard set (those we have now) plus orders only relevant to those troops (eg. Archers could have hold fire). The ability to give orders to seperate groups would allow an element of tactics, which is an added bonus (order cavalry to charge, while archers hold ground). Op Flash mapped this to the scrollwheel\3rd button too, which would be nice since its currently unused. Of course, keyboard shortcuts would also be necessary for those who don't have a scrollwheel.

3. Horse Condition

Showing the condition of your horse would be nice. As a concession to the realism buffs, it doesn't have to be a hit point format. Simply a descriptive line would do (Healthy, cuts & bruises, wounded, near death).

4. Troops remaining
It would be nice to see a tally of the remaining foe, and remaining allies. Not necessarily the ones engaged, but those still in reserve. It gets confusing in the middle of combat trying to keep track of how many times the enemy has been reinforced.

5. Not necessarily a HUD improvement, but some way of telling where units will enter the map (and where the inventory chest is). A banner pole or a flag would suffice.
 
Great suggestions! Every one! Escpecially that Flashpoint-esq command interface, that's gold. Another minor thing I'd like would be the ability to change the interface colour when fighting in snow. The Damage stats and the crosshairs are a little hard to see at times.
 
I agree with Conrad. I can't really see anything in HUD during a fight in snow.

4. Troops remaining
It would be nice to see a tally of the remaining foe, and remaining allies. Not necessarily the ones engaged, but those still in reserve. It gets confusing in the middle of combat trying to keep track of how many times the enemy has been reinforced.

Not really sure what you mean, but only the troops that aren't engaged would work for me. It takes a little bit of realism out if it shows you the troops still in the field.
 
Excellent ideas, even if some of them may have been posted before.

If these could be implemented........ :lol:
 
El Perdido said:
I agree with Conrad. I can't really see anything in HUD during a fight in snow.

4. Troops remaining
It would be nice to see a tally of the remaining foe, and remaining allies. Not necessarily the ones engaged, but those still in reserve. It gets confusing in the middle of combat trying to keep track of how many times the enemy has been reinforced.

Not really sure what you mean, but only the troops that aren't engaged would work for me. It takes a little bit of realism out if it shows you the troops still in the field.

Basically a counter showing you how many troops you and your opponents still have waiting to enter the battle. It could keep track of numbers in battle too I guess. I'd rather see it as an option rather than compulsory - after all it makes no sense if your soloing. It could even scroll up alongside the "reenforcements have arrived" or "more enemies have arrived" messages. So you might get "more enemies have arrived, 15 still remain" or similar.
Its a quick way of keeping track of how the battle is going, not to mention how long the fight is likely to last (important if you've got something to do and want to get finished and save the game).
 
I think that a HUD really clutters up the screen, I believe that a simple hud (as is now) is the way it should be. Why would you need to know your horse's condition? If it falls down then you know its condition dont you?
 
Well, yes, but by then it is a little late to fix anything... :roll:

The HUD as it is now is great, but I would not mind a horse health descriptor. And yes, I think that it should be described in rather vague terms, rather than hp. Hell, I would be interested in trying to play when the character is described that way too. A little more detail than the four types listed above would be nice. Maybe make it every 15% of your health it changes? so...100-85=good, 84-70=battered; 69-55=bleeding; 54-40= wounded; 39-25=bleeding heavily; 24-10=reeling, and anything less than that is near death. I would like to try that...*thinks...
 
Two reasons:

1. If my horse is near death, then I'd rather dismount and acquire another horse than run the risk of crippling it, especially if its a good horse.

2. It makes no sense that you can't tell the difference between a horse which is about to die and a healthy horse :smile:
 
Right. I would be much more careful with my spirited horse if I knew it was low on hp... Less likely to charge headlong into a group of enemies, instead, stay at a distance and use my bow.
 
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