“Jesfa, I think what Kay means is if you need 1000 hull R&D points, and you have 600 on one datapad and 400 on another, would you be able to pull points from both to start the research/project or would all the relevant points have to be on the same datapad?
- Elias Aubec
”
Yep, that's what I meant.
The non-cumulative idea was to treat R&D points like item drops, so that as opposed to a straight scaling factor there's only a Z% chance of getting X points on a datapad, and if you need X for a leaf you want and only get X-y points on your datapad, well you're SOL and you should either re-use the datapad in a new R&D action to try for more points (obliterating the existing ones), or sell the datapad on to someone else who might Need the X points for something. I felt this makes it possible for any given R&Der to potentially obtain a Large-Point datapad (ie worth more) instead of really just grinding slowly to amass points and merge them onto a single datapad.
With the cumulative effect, however, it appears to fit better with eventual Reverse Engineering as an alternate action for R&D points (if that ends up planned), and it means that datapads will not likely decrease in value over the long term, as you'd always be able to merge their points together. However, it does mean that those with more resources (e.g. GE and other well-established factions) will progress far faster net by virtue of having more R&D facilites/stations with which to use.