ATM multiple DCs can be worth the BP if you have a rep base & low player count. I use double DCs in niveus, and that is with just 5 reps. In many maps you can fit more, often 7-9 (even ATCS outside can fit RC and 7 reps...), thus more buildings.
I doubt healing range and threat changes will improve it enough for people to use them in most bases (since it will cover whole base and buildings will all be in 1 area). Healing rate and hp should be increased IMO. Reporting which building gets hit could be spammy if it reports it for every building.
I congratulate you on the day you build 7 repeaters in outside ATCS (an alien team that doesn't know how to spawn does not count). I also believe in the Niveus example you are wasting build points on DCs. I can build you a lot stronger base without any DCs and more turrets/teslas instead. Also you are highly exaggerating, 5 repeaters is basically the max you can fit in a (good) base.
I build one DC max, and only because of the Base Under Attack text. In some games you do need the warning text as a lot of times you find yourself fighting the aliens pretty much alone anyways. Warning text aside, there's no reason to build one ever. The repair rate is indeed too low to be of use. Repeater DCs are useless as they do not reach all of the main base structures because DC and Reactor both have a range of 1000. DC stacking? Next to useless as no builder will ever build more than two DCs. Even then with two DCs the base defences suffer way too much. Isn't the more powerful RC zap at least useful? Turrets placed to kill aliens on top of reactor cost the same and are much more useful as they shoot aliens everywhere else, too. It isn't also particularly hard to just shoot aliens on top of reactor.
How to improve it then?
Remove healing range restriction and remove stacked healing
Stacking is never used. Healing of forward bases would be useful.
Stacking isn't used or not useful at all - true. Removing healing range restriction I disagree about, forward bases are supposed to be vulnerable since they are such a powerful tool. However the current range of 1000 is very bad and makes DCs much less useful. The range could very well be raised to 1500-2000.
More intelligent threat reporting
Instead of "Base is under attack" which is next to useless as it could mean almost anything (reactor getting eaten vs. forward turret getting slashed). It should contain somewhat detailed info about what's happening. We have location info in each map, lets use it. The structure getting hit could also be included.
Example: "Turret under attack at 'Long hall'"
Preferably it should be in in the normal output as centerprints are annoying, this is just my personal opinion though.
I like the idea very, very much. However as Uniq said it could be spammy. But then again, currently the Base Under Attack text reports every ten seconds only, and I don't see why such a limit couldn't still be there, although with only 5 seconds or so.
Another idea would be to have it give back BP slightly faster.
The BP is being already returned at a considerably fast pace, especially if you compare it to the aliens. I don't think it needs to be any faster.
Increase healing rate
Perhaps it would be too good if every suggested change is incorporated, although i doubt it. If anything the BPs required could be upped to 10.
I understand that Norf didn't want to make heavy changes but still the +1 repair rate is hardly noticeable. Still needs 1-3 points more (preferably two to make DC heal 6 points a second) for it to go to the useful section, and it still wouldn't be in the overpowered section.
One possiblity I'd like to add into Cadynum's list is to consider raising the HP of DC since currently it is so easy to destroy, although of course I'd like to see more "active" changes.
Bottom line is that some changes need to be made still, and the proper way to do it is to experiment with it a lot more. It is indeed currently next to useless and more heavy changes like what Cadynum suggested should be made. If it is needed, the changes can be downsized to the preferred point. Or you can balance it out with removing the stacking or raising the BP cost to 10 as said, or by limiting the amount of buildings it can heal.
