Energy management ideas
Gawain
Join Date: 2016-11-13 Member: 223846Members
Join Date: 2016-11-13 Member: 223846Members
Ever since I have left the lifepod for good, because I could build my own base, I have felt the energy management in this game could use some improvement.
Having oxygen production and interior lightning running without energy consumption just makes no sense really. Also the requirements to maintain life support for a single room should be much lower than to maintain a large and complex base.
Few ideas occured to me, that could possibly solve this (partially) and would make more sense in managing your base in general.
The main idea is - make base modules consume energy - have some base modules with set energy consumption. Some modules already consume energy so this didn't seem to be something too hard to implement.
example: corridor cell (-1HP, -5 energy/day); Multipurpose room (-1.25HP, -15 energy/day) - this would mean a simple base with one multipurpose room and 3 corridor cells could run life support using a single solar panel even during the night, excluding crafting energy of course.
Another option would be just adding an energy pool requirement for base modules, instead of counting each module's energy consumption, so that a large base would have to have a large energy pool, even though you wouldn't actually consume the energy. This would be probably a more simple, though a less realistic solution.
example: corridor cell (-1HP, 5 energy pool required); Multipurpose room (-1.25HP, 15 energy pool required) - this would mean having a base consisting of just one multipurpose room would require to have one solar panel, but you would have to increase your energy pool over 30 if you wanted to build another multipurpose room.
Either would have to go with other energy consumption balancing ofcourse, since there are some modules that require too much energy at the moment, like the water filtration machine or the spotlights (those are actually unusable at the moment). Reactors are a bit too ineffective at the moment compared to solar energy. Also the instant recharge of the Seamoth or PRAWN in the Moonpool is a bit unrealistic.
Both methods would encourage people with large bases with lots of energy-costly modules to think twice about which source of energy to use. Just a bit of balancing would do to keep it a little challenge, while still having fun.
Post your thoughts and ideas as well!
Having oxygen production and interior lightning running without energy consumption just makes no sense really. Also the requirements to maintain life support for a single room should be much lower than to maintain a large and complex base.
Few ideas occured to me, that could possibly solve this (partially) and would make more sense in managing your base in general.
The main idea is - make base modules consume energy - have some base modules with set energy consumption. Some modules already consume energy so this didn't seem to be something too hard to implement.
example: corridor cell (-1HP, -5 energy/day); Multipurpose room (-1.25HP, -15 energy/day) - this would mean a simple base with one multipurpose room and 3 corridor cells could run life support using a single solar panel even during the night, excluding crafting energy of course.
Another option would be just adding an energy pool requirement for base modules, instead of counting each module's energy consumption, so that a large base would have to have a large energy pool, even though you wouldn't actually consume the energy. This would be probably a more simple, though a less realistic solution.
example: corridor cell (-1HP, 5 energy pool required); Multipurpose room (-1.25HP, 15 energy pool required) - this would mean having a base consisting of just one multipurpose room would require to have one solar panel, but you would have to increase your energy pool over 30 if you wanted to build another multipurpose room.
Either would have to go with other energy consumption balancing ofcourse, since there are some modules that require too much energy at the moment, like the water filtration machine or the spotlights (those are actually unusable at the moment). Reactors are a bit too ineffective at the moment compared to solar energy. Also the instant recharge of the Seamoth or PRAWN in the Moonpool is a bit unrealistic.
Both methods would encourage people with large bases with lots of energy-costly modules to think twice about which source of energy to use. Just a bit of balancing would do to keep it a little challenge, while still having fun.
Post your thoughts and ideas as well!
Comments
The filter machine can be "turned off" by simply not taking its products. No such luck for the spotlights.
My 2 cents : pretty much agree on the aspect that life support in base should be a bit more than just slapping a power source and call it a day - I built a base in the Lost River as easily as in the safe shallows, which is a bit strange.
I saw some suggestions here that I liked that would work for me, chiefly removing automatic O2 production from bases altogether and using pipes until a special module is unlocked. I'd elaborate a bit on that, though.
EDIT: the link to the suggestion I mentionned : http://forums.unknownworlds.com/discussion/146414/more-impactful-air-systems-air-transportation#latest
Oxygen :
- Each base room reduce overall oxygen level. Depth has the same effects it usually has.
- If the oxygen level is high enough, your tank fills. If not, you consume oxygen from your tank - the less oxygen there is, the quicker you consume it.
- A pipe system and a pump deployable / external module can provide oxygen to a base
- You can unlock an Oxygen Extractor module/room.
- Plants should require Oxygen when lights are dim, and provide Oxygen in a room with correct lighting.
Temperature :
- Correct temperature is between 18°C and 25°C.
- If it's colder, you consume nutrition quicker (your body burn calories to compensate cold)
- If it's hotter, you consume hydratation quicker (your body sweat to compensate heat)
- A life support module can regulate temperature in your base
- Vehicles regulate temperature.
- The better wetsuits improves the temperature tolerance.
As for the Docking instant charge, I like it because it's convenient, but I understand your issue with it. In my opinion, the Moonpool should automatically get a special Charger. When you dock your vehicle, cells in the moonpool charger are switched with the ones inside the special charger automatically if they're fuller. That would allow convenient "reloading" of the vehicle while maintaining the charge cycle.
Finally, I'd love to have a system to check my power and oxygen usage, and toggle modules and lighting like in the Cyclops. Merge this with the Scanner Room and make it a Base Control Room ?
1. realism - it just makes no sense when you have to charge powercells in the charger for half day
2. energy management - if you have a base with 400 energy pool (which is not a small amount), you can do lots of crafting, have a water filtration machine running and recharging several batteries and power cells at a time, without running out of power. However, if you dock a PRAWN at 2% power, it instantly drains all your power and the base is suddenly without life support.
This could however be solved by just slower Moonpool recharge rate, still faster than the powercell charger, but slow enough for the base to maintain power. Empty PRAWN drains 400 energy in 5sec, which is 80/sec, but set that to 5 energy / sec and it sounds much more reasonable. Then it would take 80s to recharge an empty PRAWN, while the base could still run on its own.