This is why I suggest something REALLY simple for the visual icon around a ship.
Size and IFF settings.
Represented by Shape and Color respectively.
The rest of the data about a ship is pulled with a dedicated scan, which you get when targeting them.
What we could do is have two TYPES of targeting, Active and Passive.
Passive gives you basic details, but doesn't alert them that you are looking at them.
While Active targeting has the possibility of alerting the target that they are being scanned, and will use your on-board scanners (if any), such as Cargo or Subsystem scanners.
You would need to be Actively targeting a ship for missile/weapons lock. Meaning that the target will always be alerted if you are going to use missiles (to help with the missile discussion elsewhere )
This would give us some very basic information at a glance, the more complex information with a quick target. (so you could quickly look over everyone in the local vicinity before making a move)
And Good information would inform your target that something is happening. (This would also go for the player, so you WILL know when you get cargo scanned while carrying contraband. :V A good idea, else smuggling will be a pain in the butt)
Post
Wed May 10, 2017 4:02 pm
#76
Re: Friday, May 5, 2017
<Cuisinart8> apparently without the demon driving him around Silver has the intelligence of a botched lobotomy patient ~ Mar 04 2020
console.log(`What's all ${this} ${Date.now()}`);
console.log(`What's all ${this} ${Date.now()}`);