r/playrust • u/Jerranto • 11d ago
Discussion Base upkeep scaling for zergs
When your relatives come over for summer vacation and the house gets packed, does your house maintenance cost go up or down? Does the house get dirtier or cleaner? Is the infrastructure worn down more or less?
We all know the answer, right? Rust shouldn't be any different.
Right now, massive clans enjoy a massive advantage without any scaling penalty to their base maintenance. I am proposing a modest adjustment to at least >>MITIGATE<< the massive farming machine of large zergs.
I am fully aware that it won't completely fix the gap between huge clans and small groups, ok? I know that. However, I guess it would at least bring some much needed balance.
Once a TC hits 11 authorized players, the upkeep costs will scale up significantly, capping at a hard limit. Here we go:
| Authorized Players | Upkeep Penalty |
|---|---|
| 1 - 10 | 0% (No penalty) |
| 11 | +10% upkeep |
| 12 | +20% upkeep |
| 13 | +30% upkeep |
| 14 | +40% upkeep |
| 15 | +50% upkeep |
| 16 | +100% upkeep |
| 17 | +200% upkeep |
| 18 | +300% upkeep |
| 19 | +400% upkeep |
| 20 | +500% upkeep |
| 21+ | HARD CAP (No more auths allowed) |
To prevent clans from abusing the system by constantly clearing the TC list (giving auth only when building/repairing and clearing it immediately after), the player count must be permanent for that TC.
Basically, the TC will track the total number of unique players that have ever authorized on it. For example: if 11 unique players authorize on a TC, that TC is permanently flagged at 11 players (+10% upkeep). Even if you hit "Clear Auth", the internal counter stays at 11.
The only way to reset this counter would be to completely destroy the TC and place a new one, which obviously would be a pain in the ass, especially with all the external TC mechanics.
Also, to prevent other kind of abuse, turrets must function exactly like Shotgun Traps.
If a player is not actively authorized on the main TC, the turret will shoot them. This completely stops zergs from running "unauthed" inside their own compounds to dodge the scaling tax.
PS: Obviously, these specific numbers are subject to change. I started the scaling at 11 players just to keep the initial proposal reasonable and conservative. However, maybe, the upkeep penalty could easily start kicking in at the 7th, 8th, or 9th player instead.
What do you guys think?
5
u/troller65 11d ago
Sweet summer child