Hi

Im doing a tactical/management game where you run a gang/militia and fight for control of urban areas. You build bases (like XCOM) and can have facilities like safehouse, barracks, drug labs, radar etc. My problem is:

1. What could suit for the sale of drugs in the city district? I know a real gang would have pushers on the streets but i need a building/facility for it. Any idea?

2. Also i need a better title for "militia skills". These are upgrades/researches that are very broad, like combat bonuses, drug production knowledge, better market connections, lokal popularity bonuses etc. Its broad but any better term than "skills"?

3. Any facility idea that speeds up "skill" acquiring? Now i have "offices" where agents work to develop your militia skills, but its not a good name/idea.

Thanks for your input!

Erik

1. You could have stores and such that run some normal services as a cover to the drug selling/whatever. You can only build them in shady dark alleys in the crime infested areas of the town of course.

2. Gang/militia swag factors

3. Private security companies, transportation companies (so you can smuggle illegal weaponry from other countries more easily)... hunting clubs xD?

2. Swag factors? So learning to produce LSD is a swag factor? Doesnt sound right.

3. You misunderstood me. What could be the name/idea for the facility that speeds up militia skill training (like labs adds scientists to speed up research in a typical xcom-like game)

2. orly

3. I thought all of those would increase general militia/weaponry knowledge. Can it be very 'direct' (as in drug labs), or should it be more undercover (medicine lab *cough*)?

Orly? Again you are to short for me to understand.

Swag is perfect in such a game, but it doesn't sound like a skill, more like a resource(like favor)

Isn't there a game on steam that's exactly just the game concept you're describing above? (much more than XCOM)?

Isn't there a game on steam that's exactly just the game concept you're describing above? (much more than XCOM)?

I think you're talking about Omerta - City of Gangsters : http://store.steampowered.com/app/208520/

And yeah, it does kind of sound like that. I haven't played it but watched totalbiscuit's WTF is on it, and it looked to have two main layers - a strategy/city view where you could upgrade and attack other mafias, and an xcom style fighting system (oddly arguably better than xcom's, due to some features that it has which xcom doesn't).

Doesn't make the original idea in this thread any less important, but its good to checkout your competition.

1. What could suit for the sale of drugs in the city district? I know a real gang would have pushers on the streets but i need a building/facility for it. Any idea?

Bars, arcades, club, etc. Basically, any business office you can use as a legal front to have your pushers hide inside of. This is a well known tactic and very hard to stop, as the business itself is legit

2. Also i need a better title for "militia skills". These are upgrades/researches that are very broad, like combat bonuses, drug production knowledge, better market connections, lokal popularity bonuses etc. Its broad but any better term than "skills"?

Swag is actually a good idea, depending on your branding for the game. It's a "street" word so to speak. If the game is more gang-oriented it works. If you want to play it more mafia-style, choose a more fancy world, preferably, italian or russian.

3. Any facility idea that speeds up "skill" acquiring? Now i have "offices" where agents work to develop your militia skills, but its not a good name/idea.

Warehouses. By definition, you can do a lot of stuff in a warehouse. A bunch of gangs use them to do other stuff than actually storing stuff. You could settle for headquarters or front offices perhaps?

1. If you want a small building, you could make a "photo booth" building like there was before digital cameras. Or a Hawaiian Shave Ice booth. Or a newspaper stand.

2. Instead of "skills", say "specialties". One can be specialized in whatever bonus you like. It doesn't have to be a physical action that way. Combat Specialty, Contacts Specialty, Production Specialty, etc...

3. Skills are acquired through use. Put an agent to work in the Hawaiian Shave Ice booth to increase his Sales Specialty. Public Park increases Contacts Specialty. Local Gym or Gun Range increases the appropriate Combat Specialty. Working at the "Bakery" increases the Production Specialty.

I think you get the general idea of what I'm saying, right?