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[Suggestion] Alert level

Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 7:49 am
by PD-Freak
Hello Everyone. I just thought of an idea that would be put in the bar with the 'shakedown' button and all those. What the "Alert" button would do is you could choose it to be set to "High", "Medium" or "Low" and what this would do is set the alertness of your staff, but mostly guards. If you were to set it to high then all the guards would be on a constant lookout, if they saw anything suspicious they would automatically act on it, if say a fight was to break out they would be much quicker to stop it and make sure it doesn't escalate. Whilst if you set it to low then the guards would just chill, if they saw anything they would only act upon it if it was needed and that sort of behavior. I would really like something like this so I can also make my guards more aware especially if the danger level was high I would like my guards to be on high alert. Please feel free to give feedback and tell me what you think of this.
Thanks.

Re: [Suggestion] Alert level

Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 8:05 am
by Masochist
The idea sounds good but it is lacking content and balance.

You would need to flesh out the pros and cons of each level and how they would affect the system...according to what you have laid out so far the best option is to just have them on high alert all the time.

Re: [Suggestion] Alert level

Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 11:14 am
by 111none
As the above poster implied, more detail. I remember seeing a post like this, but for the sake of god I cannot find it.
(something like DEFCON levels?)

Re: [Suggestion] Alert level

Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 1:31 pm
by _alphaBeta_
Sounds like a good idea, and agree there needs to be some implications to always leaving your staff at the highest level of alert.

To get the ball rolling, I'd say alert levels should heavily influence the fatigue model of staff. That's assuming that IV intends to expand on the idea that they started with dogs where staff need to rotate and rest after being on duty. If not, I suppose it could affect wages, but that feels very gamey. Another spin could be that prisoners become annoyed at all the extra scrutiny their actions bring, especially prisoners who aren't up to anything and otherwise compliant. This would be similar to the "x prisoners unnecessarily searched recently" prison anger factor.

Re: [Suggestion] Alert level

Posted: Sat Oct 19, 2013 8:31 pm
by Kolchak
Yes it definitely needs to be impractical (in terms of guard fatigue and prisoner contentment) to keep the prison at 'High' alertness for extended periods. I envisage High as being an emergency response level (or perhaps that could be a fourth?). The kind of stuff that should change:

- Response times of sniper towers: At high they are expecting to have a target soon, and are scanning the ground for targets (fatigue increasing). At medium they are watching the grounds, but not tense (fatigue level). At low they aren't ready to shoot (tea-break etc.) and reaction times mean they are unlikely to shoot escapees before they leave the map (fatigue decreasing)

- Vigilance of CCTV operators: At High they won't miss any incidents, will be able co-ordinate responses across the entire prison, and even alert guards to potential trouble spots. At medium they will provide the level of cover as they do currently, with a small chance (~1%) not seeing a camera feed (camera would show flashing triangle for quarter of an hour). At low, the chance of not seeing camera feed would increase to ~5-10%

- Sniffer dogs: At high they will patrol, but break this patrol route (temporarily) to sniff any prisoner within a limited area, and will patrol and sniff more efficiently (with reduced chance of false results). Medium would be the current level of patrolling. At low they would patrol slower, and have a greater chance of false results

- Armaments: At high guards would prepare for armed combat. I envisage weapons being implemented as items which specially trained guards can retrieve from the armoury, so will explain my vision in those terms. High would see those guards 'suit up' - and possibly deploy to trouble spots (this would be without any specific reason - they could be ordered to arm themselves via other means). At Medium they would report to the armoury and relax. At low they would disperse around the prison making any attempt to suit them up harder

It might also be an idea to have patrol routes definable based on alert level, in a similar way to some people wanting them for different times of the day

Re: [Suggestion] Alert level

Posted: Sun Oct 20, 2013 6:28 am
by PD-Freak
The funny thing is I didn't even think of the negatives so thank you. As for the suggestions to improve this idea I definitely love the ideas you all gave and hopefully this idea will be implemented in the game in the future.
Thanks.

Re: [Suggestion] Alert level

Posted: Mon Oct 21, 2013 10:03 pm
by Sporegen
I really like the idea, i do think that the 'normal' day to day alert level in a normal prison should be low.
Players would have to keep an eye on the thermometer and change their alert level accordingly, changing it too often will have penalties.
It also allows the player to choose play styles, where in constant 'Low' is a left wing approach, and constant 'Medium' is a more right wing approach.
What i think the alert levels should mean:

Low/Safe: Normal day-to-day operations, no anomalies or increased tensions. Prisoners are allowed more freedom, further decreasing tensions.
Medium/Strict: Increased level of awareness and reduced response times, staff gets tired faster. Prisoners are kept a close eye on, irritating them but possibly also discovering contraband or uncovering escape plans.
High: Constant vigilance and combat readiness, armed staff is more trigger happy and walk around with their weapons drawn. Response times are severely reduced however staff fatigues fast.

A player could increase a staff member's time in the field on a high alert level by increasing their wages.
Beyond high, emergency procedures are in order.