Sniper damage

[Shinigami Miroku]

Does the damage from a sniper rifle decrease with distance in this game? I've unloaded a good 20-25 shots into a Geth Armature from a distance of ~300m (as an aside, it's too bad that, this far into the future and given how advanced weaponry is supposed to be, sniping can't be done more than half a kilometer out) but it just hasn't gone down yet. Meanwhile, if I'm only about 100m out, it will only take me about 10-15 shots (depending on how long Assassination takes to charge).

[mirHL]

http://web.archive.org/web/20160310024420/http://forum.bioware.com/topic/494554-weapon-and-armor-calculations/
https://bsn.boards.net/thread/1412/effect-weapon-calculations-compiled-ranger
There's supposedly no distance factor in ME1.

Maybe it's just that you are getting more shots on the target when you are close, so that its shields have less time to recharge?

[Shinigami Miroku]

Originally posted by mirHL:

http://web.archive.org/web/20160310024420/http://forum.bioware.com/topic/494554-weapon-and-armor-calculations/
https://bsn.boards.net/thread/1412/effect-weapon-calculations-compiled-ranger
There's supposedly no distance factor in ME1.

Maybe it's just that you are getting more shots on the target when you are close, so that its shields have less time to recharge?

Yeah, that would make sense, now that you mention it. The sniper rifle has a lot of overall damage, but between the distance and recharge I could definitely see shields recharging during the cooldown.

[Shinigami Miroku]

Second issue (not related to sniping, but I don't want to flood the board with new topics every time something comes up) - I'm on Metgos, taking care of the geth ambush, but for some reason I'm losing health and dying even outside of combat (no poison, not taking any missiles/pulse blasts, etc.). It stops happening if I dive into the Mako, but once I exit it will happen after a minute or so, and I have no idea why. Has this ever happened to anyone else, and if so, do I need to restart the game?

[mirHL]

That happens because it's a Level 2 Heat Hazard planet at a steamy 170°C.

[Shinigami Miroku]

Originally posted by mirHL:

That happens because it's a Level 2 Heat Hazard planet at a steamy 170°C.

I do recall reading that, but for some reason the hazard alert hasn't been popping up on the side like it used to (that gives the timer bar that we have to be outside the Mako before we die). What's even weirder is that I've been out on extended times on other planets but not had that ongoing damage. I just figured that I had a suit that had environment protection built in...

[Valden21]

Originally posted by Shinigami Miroku:

Originally posted by mirHL:

That happens because it's a Level 2 Heat Hazard planet at a steamy 170°C.

I do recall reading that, but for some reason the hazard alert hasn't been popping up on the side like it used to (that gives the timer bar that we have to be outside the Mako before we die). What's even weirder is that I've been out on extended times on other planets but not had that ongoing damage. I just figured that I had a suit that had environment protection built in...

Not all planets are the same in the game. There are some planets in the game that have an atmosphere similar enough to Earth's that the suits can handle it just fine. But Metgos, for example, has an atmosphere that is much closer to that of Venus, and it also has intense volcanic activity. The military-issue armor Shepard wears can handle it for a limited amount of time, but after that, it starts doing damage to you. The Mako can handle the planet's atmosphere indefinitely.

[Shinigami Miroku]

Originally posted by Valden21:

Originally posted by Shinigami Miroku:

I do recall reading that, but for some reason the hazard alert hasn't been popping up on the side like it used to (that gives the timer bar that we have to be outside the Mako before we die). What's even weirder is that I've been out on extended times on other planets but not had that ongoing damage. I just figured that I had a suit that had environment protection built in...

Not all planets are the same in the game. There are some planets in the game that have an atmosphere similar enough to Earth's that the suits can handle it just fine. But Metgos, for example, has an atmosphere that is much closer to that of Venus, and it also has intense volcanic activity. The military-issue armor Shepard wears can handle it for a limited amount of time, but after that, it starts doing damage to you. The Mako can handle the planet's atmosphere indefinitely.

That makes sense. Still doesn't explain why the game didn't display the hazard alarm/timebar, though... I know it's been a few years since I last booted up this game, but I thought that was a thing (unless I'm confusing it with ME2, which is entirely possible, but then I also recall that game having a LOT less planetside exploration, so I'm really not sure).

That aside, I appreciate your patience; the time span involved makes it difficult for me to recall everything involved like I used to.

[mirHL]

I just checked Metgos, and the hazard alarm is there as always.

[Valden21]

Originally posted by Shinigami Miroku:

Originally posted by Valden21:

Not all planets are the same in the game. There are some planets in the game that have an atmosphere similar enough to Earth's that the suits can handle it just fine. But Metgos, for example, has an atmosphere that is much closer to that of Venus, and it also has intense volcanic activity. The military-issue armor Shepard wears can handle it for a limited amount of time, but after that, it starts doing damage to you. The Mako can handle the planet's atmosphere indefinitely.

That makes sense. Still doesn't explain why the game didn't display the hazard alarm/timebar, though... I know it's been a few years since I last booted up this game, but I thought that was a thing (unless I'm confusing it with ME2, which is entirely possible, but then I also recall that game having a LOT less planetside exploration, so I'm really not sure).

That aside, I appreciate your patience; the time span involved makes it difficult for me to recall everything involved like I used to.

On planets where it applies, the warning message will only appear if you climb out of the Mako. As long as you're in the Mako, the message won't be there.

[Shinigami Miroku]

Originally posted by Valden21:

Originally posted by Shinigami Miroku:

That makes sense. Still doesn't explain why the game didn't display the hazard alarm/timebar, though... I know it's been a few years since I last booted up this game, but I thought that was a thing (unless I'm confusing it with ME2, which is entirely possible, but then I also recall that game having a LOT less planetside exploration, so I'm really not sure).

That aside, I appreciate your patience; the time span involved makes it difficult for me to recall everything involved like I used to.

On planets where it applies, the warning message will only appear if you climb out of the Mako. As long as you're in the Mako, the message won't be there.

I went back, and sure enough it does say "Level 2 Hazard" on the side. I uploaded a screenshot of my character being outside the Mako on the planet... Maybe I'm just not remembering it correctly, but I could have sworn that, aside from the alert itself, there was a timer there that was supposed to let you know how long you can be out before needing to retreat into the Mako.

[Valden21]

Originally posted by Shinigami Miroku:

Originally posted by Valden21:

On planets where it applies, the warning message will only appear if you climb out of the Mako. As long as you're in the Mako, the message won't be there.

I went back, and sure enough it does say "Level 2 Hazard" on the side. I uploaded a screenshot of my character being outside the Mako on the planet... Maybe I'm just not remembering it correctly, but I could have sworn that, aside from the alert itself, there was a timer there that was supposed to let you know how long you can be out before needing to retreat into the Mako.

Nope, that message and the timer are the same thing. If you look carefully, there should be a colored bar just below the message itself, but within the message's sign. That bar is your timer. The longer you spend outside the Mako, the smaller the bar gets. I've never seen what happens when the bar runs out, but I'm pretty sure it means "game over, time to load your last save".

[Black Hole]

Originally posted by Valden21:

Originally posted by Shinigami Miroku:

That makes sense. Still doesn't explain why the game didn't display the hazard alarm/timebar, though... I know it's been a few years since I last booted up this game, but I thought that was a thing (unless I'm confusing it with ME2, which is entirely possible, but then I also recall that game having a LOT less planetside exploration, so I'm really not sure).

That aside, I appreciate your patience; the time span involved makes it difficult for me to recall everything involved like I used to.

On planets where it applies, the warning message will only appear if you climb out of the Mako. As long as you're in the Mako, the message won't be there.

It always tells you the hazard even if you are in the mako, you just dont get damage from it.