[MOD] Slightly More Useful Plot Station (27.02.2015; 3.60 and Linux-compatible)

[w.evans]

Right. Forgot about that. Thanks, Yorrick.

[Sparky Sparkycorp]

Ooh, interesting, thanks. I'll give that a try later to see if this mod will override the layout of the default station.

A little off-topic, but do you know if the Cantarans try to build stations in that start like they are reported to after the plot finishes? I am hoping to see and help the reported second DV shipyard.

[YorrickVander]

It looks like its set up ok from the owned property screen, but there are some vusiual artifacts - missing sections - as you fly about. Starting from devried freelancer, fly direct across the station looking for the spanner dock on the long branches pointing toward fervid corona direction.

[w.evans]

Yup. Just took a look myself. Hoo, boy, this might take some work still.

The station production lines work. Two lines producing RMP, and the URV wharves were producing interceptor URVs and Scooper Mk1s. But, yeah, some parts of the plate foundry are just kinda hanging there in space, disconnected from the rest of the station.

I have to work today, but I'll take a jab at repairs tonight.

[YorrickVander]

If I may make a suggestion - part of the point of the special station was it made (crap) drones from very minimal resources with a custion build type just for that station so actual production only needed things mined in dv. Perhaps look into that for the extended version too? Maybe drop the fusion reactors, add gas reources in place of the chemical compounds and raw nividuim in place of the cubes etc so it retains its new player friendly status and not force the now much harder boarding of ships to get some of the stuff required.

[w.evans]

Good idea, Yorrick. Thanks.

That's in libraries\wares.xml, isn't it? I'm assuming that since a devries method is defined, and there isn't a devries method for making these drones, that it's reverting to the default method?

Code: Select all

    <production time="3600" amount="60" method="default" name="{20206,101}">
      <primary>
        <ware ware="bioopticwiring" amount="194"/>
        <ware ware="energycells" amount="716"/>
        <ware ware="foodrations" amount="488"/>
        <ware ware="fusionreactor" amount="7"/>
        <ware ware="holtzmanfieldgenerator" amount="8"/>
        <ware ware="microchips" amount="34"/>
        <ware ware="plasmaflowregulator" amount="14"/>
        <ware ware="reinforcedmetalplating" amount="16"/>
        <ware ware="scanningarray" amount="48"/>
      </primary>
    </production>

So would just have to add a devries method for these other drones. Something like this?

Code: Select all

    <production time="3600" amount="12" method="devries" name="{20206,201}">
      <primary>
        <ware ware="crystals" amount="1840"/>
        <ware ware="energycells" amount="380"/>
        <ware ware="foodrations" amount="260"/>
        <ware ware="nividium" amount="1720"/>
        <ware ware="ore" amount="3240"/>
        <ware ware="silicon" amount="2880"/>
      </primary>
    </production>

[YorrickVander]

Yeah I would assume so I've never experimented with doing it though. With some subtle changes to certain stations for visual consistency could then extend the dv cv with a few other useful stations (objects like the commencial dock tower are different iirc on the dv build stations to the argon + albion ones). I'm starting a plot game to store at the start plot station point for when i have time to play with and study whats broken with the npc builds for the area. Prior to v3 I recall the station staff didnt work and the cvs did't do a lot for the new stations. Maybe try to rescue all those dead ships too as they revert to command none after the plot scripts give up on them. Oh and the old bug with trades if you destroy the plutarch overlook...

Anyway a timed script measuring say days of game time could be triggered for all game start types to start building new npc stations if they can be made to work properly, which would please me Even better if npcs start taking over previously empty space too

EDIT : sorry straying offtopic

[Sparky Sparkycorp]

That would please me too!

As an aside, while playing this plot game, I noticed that the location a CV picks to deploy isn't fixed (at least for plot station). I'd thought they would have preferred particular spots for build locations but apparently not. I assume this is widely known but it was news to me.

First time I ordered the plot station to build in DHA, the CV plonked itself closer to the highway (where mission rats come from!) than the first stage of the station. lol. In desperation, that prompted me to try again with the CV ordered to fly behind the build spot before the build order. Fortunately, that lead to a much less worrying location.

[w.evans]

It worked! But the production method has to specified as "devries" or one of the known methods has to be altered. Tried using "SMUPS_devries" for forward compatibility, but it wouldn't catch.

@Yorrick, I think we're pretty loose about staying on-topic on this thread, if the two-page digression between myself and Rubini is any indication. Makes it a little bit harder to dig for information, but certainly makes for good conversation! Unless you mind, Sparky? It is your thread.

Also compared the new plot station with the one in vanilla. It looks like the two plate foundries just have to be nudged a tiny little bit south.

And that's it for my break. Back to work.

[Sparky Sparkycorp]

Mind? Nar, bumps have been doing a fine job of finding good people

Besides, I am not sure what is OT anymore but I am sure we're getting somewhere!

[w.evans]

9.Feb.2015 - v0.03 is up!

The drone production lines were re-tooled to use the DeVries method: uses only resources available in DeVries, but produces them in very small numbers due to having to manufacture the components in-situ.

Thanks, YorrickVander for this suggestion.

Station appears to be working, but is ugly as hell since the new RMP lines don't have any points of contact with the rest of the station, and some signs are floating in space. If you don't mind these, than v0.03 is safe for public consumption. If you like your stations preedy, than don't use this mod for now.

__________

note: I don't understand the positioning coordinates:

Code: Select all

		<connection name="ConnectionFor_struct_econ_prod_reinforcedmetal_macro" group="stationGroup" tags="production">
			<offset>
				<!--<position x="2617.182" y="-4.562446" z="1117.957"/>
				<quaternion qx="-0" qy="-0.8660254" qz="-0" qw="0.5"/>-->
				<!--<position x="-284.1924" y="-797.476" z="-1897.638"/>
				<quaternion qx="-0" qy="-1" qz="-0" qw="7.54979E-08"/>-->
				<position x="-284.1924" y="-797.476" z="-1897.638"/>
				<quaternion qx="-0" qy="-1" qz="-0" qw="7.54979E-08"/>
			</offset>
		</connection>
		<connection name="ConnectionFor_struct_econ_prod_reinforcedmetal_macro1" group="stationGroup" tags="production">
			<offset>
				<!--<position x="-2994.465" y="-0.5387802" z="1350.633"/>
				<quaternion qx="-0" qy="-0.8660254" qz="-0" qw="-0.5"/>-->
				<!--<position x="-356.082" y="-1863.795" z="-1698.688"/>
				<quaternion qx="-0" qy="-1" qz="-0" qw="1.629207E-07"/>-->
				<position x="-356.082" y="-1863.795" z="-1698.688"/>
				<quaternion qx="-0" qy="-1" qz="-0" qw="1.629207E-07"/>
			</offset>
		</connection>

These two components are on top of one another, so I would expect them to have very similar coordinates in two dimensions, with different coordinates in a third; but the coordinates are very different. Tried nudging along the x and y axes. Small nudges (3 or so points in one direction or another) seem to work, but 100 point nudges doesn't seem to do anything. Will keep hammering away.

edit: playing with the quaternion settings is fun!

[Sparky Sparkycorp]

Well done! First post and thread title updated.

[YorrickVander]

It would be worth examining the connection part of the macro. iirc from my previous experiments with a custom warehouse station and hints from unitrader on the subject, the coords are relative to (i think) zone center if connection = space, or the component if connection=<something else>.

[w.evans]

Just a quick update before I head out: abandoned trying to nudge the plate foundry in place because even if it does get in the right position, there are normally tubes that connect the stations, and I couldn't, in what time I had, figure out how to get them to extrude. Instead found a way to get a station component that looks, smells, tastes, and feels like a silicon wafer plant, but produces RMP instead; and that fits perfectly, of course.

Need to test it a bit still, and I have to head out, so I won't be able to do that now. We'll see tomorrow or later tonight.

[Sparky Sparkycorp]

That sounds like an efficient and elegant solution to the problem.

It is just one station and the primary objective was to change functionality rather than adjust visuals. Some, maybe many, won't know or notice the difference too.

[w.evans]

Is (extremely slow and inefficient) serial production of Reinforced Metal Plating, Fusion Reactors, and Bio-optic Wiring out of chewing gum and matchsticks a la MacGyver something we want in the plot station, or is that not to be desired?

[Sparky Sparkycorp]

I guess if it was up to me, I would leave it just as RMP and the broader drone selection. Then it produces one useful end product that can be sold in DV without needing manual trading with Albion or the building of further stations.

I recon it should then feel useful to the player (alongside the drone production) without having a major impact on the gameplay surrounding rebuilding DV and supplying the DHA SY.

How about you?

[w.evans]

Let's try it out. Working on the theory that the station makes Microchips, Chemical Compounds, and other such intermediate wares through the production line, but extremely wastefully. Since they could do that with drone production (albeit extremely wastefully and inefficiently), then why couldn't they do it for stuff that's needed for station building which would be immediately needed in a System that's rebuilding?

Did an itty bitty spreadsheet with the resources needed for products plugged in, then the resources for the production of those intermediate wares substituted for those intermediate wares, but with huge wastage, until I got to the base resources that one could get from mining and can be sourced from around DeVries. Then tried to find logical substitutes to liquid resources so we wouldn't have to add liquid storage in. (Less changes = good. Only reason adding the products makes sense code-wise is because we're already changing the production line to RMP, so possible problems with compatibility and what-not going forward will be the same with the added products as without.)

*snip*

Given the inefficiency, the Bio-optic Wiring, Fusion Reactors, and RMP production should lose money if this were used for profit with imported resources; and the low output should (hopefully) make a negligible impact on the economy. For a system that's rebuilding, and has mineable resources in abundance, however, it seems to make sense. Also, building a Ship Tech Fab and a Construction Materials Shop would still be a priority build, if only because the plot station churns them out so slowly and wastefully. Of course, let me know if you disagree, or if anyone has suggestions.

edit: Something to keep in mind: changing Silicon Wafer production to anything else will probably require loading to at least before the station is built because it requires changing the component that is built. Possibly a new game start, but I'm not sure about that. But changing that something else later, or tweaking the resources needed should not, since that will only require changing code acting upon that component. (Won't know for sure until we test it.)

edit 2: Cut the figures out since they're also in the announcement directly below.

[w.evans]

9.Feb.2015 - v0.10 is up!

Replaces the Silicon Wafer production line with one that produces Bio-optic Wiring, Fusion Reactors, and Reinforced Metal Plating.
Adds slightly more useful drones to the drone production line.
All production lines retooled to use resources native to DeVries.

Please be aware that all production lines were designed to be extremely inefficient and wasteful. The changes were intended to make sense as something that will be useful to kick-start the rebuilding of DeVries, as the description of the Plot Station states. This will, however, never be very profitable.

_____
So far, the production lines are set so:

STEEL REFINERY

Refined Metals
400 Energy Cells
240 Food Rations
400 Ore

makes 200 units in 600 seconds (? not sure if the time units in the code correspond to seconds)
-this is the default configuration which is left untouched.

........
RECONFIGURABLE MATERIAL FABRICATOR

Bio-Optic Wiring
920 Energy Cells
420 Food Rations
1040 Ore
560 Silicon

makes 25 units in 1800 seconds

Fusion Reactors
2400 Energy Cells
1220 Food Rations
640 Ore
960 Silicon
800 Nividium
280 Crystals
80 Refined Metals

makes 10 units in 2400 seconds

Reinforced Metal Plating
760 Energy Cells
480 Food Rations
640 Ore
560 Silicon
200 Nividium
600 Refined Metals

makes 15 units in 1800 seconds

........
URV WHARF

Drones
380 Energy Cells
260 Food Rations
3240 Ore
2880 Silicon
1840 Crystals
1720 Nividium

Makes 12 Interceptors Mk1, 15 Cargolifters, 8 Construction URVs, 13 Scoop Collectors Mk1, or 14 Surface Miners Mk1 in 3600 seconds.
-this is the vanilla DeVries configuration for Interceptors. Worked out the output of the other drones in relation to the DeVries interceptor output vs Albion's. Did NOT change resource requirements between drones to simplify supply, and later balancing, if needed.

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Page ID 97524 is used for what little text there is in this mod. If this page is already in use, please let me know.

_____
This mod requires a save to at least before the Plot Station is built, possibly a new game start. However, later development of this mod should be save-game compatible.

[Rubini]

Mybe it is a dumb question, but as far as I could understand, to use this new URV wharf we need a new game or load a saved game before the URV wharf is ready in main plot?