A Player Base Mod Concept

Player Bases. A Mod Concept

Introduction

You are aware that a Player Base is a goal that can be undertaken by any player provided they have the will and resources. Base Maintenance and Expansion is expensive in time, credits and resources. Arguably it is not a task to be undertaken by an individual player unless they have faction support. However this in itself may create an additional challenge in that a faction remaining in its own ZOL (new rules) may find certain resources for expansion unavailable without neutral support. However these challenges in base maintenance and expansion do prevent Sirius from becoming littered with “junk” bases.

Player bases do have some limitations which may be the fuel to justify modification. They are:

1. Once built they are unmoveable.
2. Multiple bases cannot be joined.

Recommendations

The following modification recommendations are offered for comment and discussion.

1. Bases are moveable.
2. Multiple player bases can be joined to form a community.

Implications

Moving a base implies that a ship (tug) is needed for the task of towing a base across a system or from one system to another. Such a tug could be the Hercules Heavy Lifter. It is used to construct the basic base after which it has little value in that its cargo space is limited (750 units). In order to be a tug it would require some sort of towing facility or tractor beam. This could be a Towing Turret purchased at high expense in order to justify movement. FL Hook commands could then be used to tether the tug to the base and move it from its current location, then release it in its new home.

The number of bases that could be joined requires consideration. I would suggest no more than 5 and perhaps 3 may be, currently, optimum. Each base would be joined by gantries forming a ring as in the Oder Ring at New Berlin. Fortunately it is not a pure ring in that it is joined by straight as opposed to curved gantries thus making it octagonal in shape. I would imagine our “community” base taking on a pentagon shape.

When more than one base is joined what would be the function of the additional base(s)? Provided each additional base meets a particular standard of development or maintenance it could automatically become a recognised expansion module. Player bases could then develop ships and weapons and as such support itself via trade.
In order that this does not become a cheap way to expand a base the “Restart build base” function may have to be scrapped and the resources needed to build a base such as Cryocubes become more accessible. Currently there are only available in Gallia.

The procedure would require some sort of “snap to grid” function. It is highly unlikely that any player character could fly in precise detail to dock one base with another and so the distance and alignment for the “snap to” function requires consideration.

Defence WPs etc. would move with the main base. Should there be a limit on the size of a base that could be moved? Clearly any tug would be limited in its towing capacity unless multiple tugs were used and at the moment I would not want to go down that route of modification but it may be a future consideration.

Is it Achievable?

With cautious optimism I believe that it is. What may be the key to success is utilizing current mods and procedures. Time is also a factor in the completion of such a modification. Examining the current files would show that many of the routines needed exist but I have yet to discover how to unpin a base and how the positioning arguments work still needs understanding, amongst other things. However as said I remain (semi) confident.


Your Comments

Naturally I welcome views, comments, criticisms and help.

Yes, off course, it's a fantastic idea and I'm agree about not having more than 5 bases joinables.

Problem #1:

The ship able to tract such a base should be strong enough, just to remains logical, so, the Hercules seems to me a little bit weak. The solution is thus to find a model which could fit with enough cargo size. I will see what I can find.

Problem #2:

The tract itself: I have to edit a new turret (yes, this one should be able to move on its axe), with a sufficient range to not loose the tracted base on its way. But how join this with a FL Hook command? I believe it's up to you mate.

Problem #3:

How to join base, so do we use existing modules? If yes, I have to add hardpoints on the concerned modules, and the said hardpoints should link directly to a FL Hook command.

Problem #4:

Which models to use as player bases? Existing ones? Or we have to find new models, if yes, still no modelers in our team, so the best solution is to edit existing bases models to allow them to become player bases.

Problem #5:

Allowing player bases to product commodities, equipment and ships by themselves? Woah ! I really don't know how to do this !....for now

Here is what it comes to my mind right now

Reply to your Reply
Problem #1: As the hercules was strong enough to carry all the components needed to make a base I assumed that it would be strong enough to tow the same number of components constructed. However I get your point. I do not imagine towing any base bigger than a level 1.

Problem #2: Though about this for a long time and it is only about tieing in the position (posn) of the base to the moving position of the tug. I have completed a flow on this one and it is stil a matter of working out how the posn co-ordinates work. That aspect I have given up on for a while as it was doing my head in. My sister in law, a Maths Tutor at Queens University Belfast is working on it for me.

Problem #3: Hmmm not thought about this one. You have stired my thought .

Problem #4: Yes existing bases. We dont want to get tied down modelling, no time.

Problem #5: No I havent thought about it either.

Regards

Here's a link to the Player Base Source Code:

http://forge.the-starport.net/projects/flhookplugin/repository/revisions/215/entry/trunk/plugins/base_plugin

Have fun !

A few thought about Player Bases, let's review the points:

Problem #1: As I said in a nother thread, all Vanilla Models will be replaced sooner or later. So: exit the "Hercule"

Problem #2 & #3: If the Player Bases are constitued by several parts, how move them all together without forget a Base Module? It means that once the Base completed, it can't be disassembled. So maybe few lines of code to add to lock this.

Problem #4: I think set up Player Bases like they are in Disco is a bad idea, remember the time needed to maintain them, only strong factions with a lot of members could have the time and money. It goes well for a really populated server, but not for our future one in the first times. So, I thought set them as Combat Space Stations only, it means a few hardpoints to add for defense turrets, but it's not the most difficult part.

Problem #5: Irrelevant, see above.

What I can do is I can make the wireframes for the ship models and the base models if you want. Since I am still working on texturing stuff, I can make all the models and work on texturing them once I have learned to do so.

I could even make some player base models? I can also work on the Turret design. I don't see it possible to use a tractor beam, so instead it could be like a Grappling line with a magnetic lock on the end of the cable. I can make a large two barrel grapple turret and also work on the tug boat. (Should be called that, YP-01 Tug Boat. )

You do have a modeler on the team, when I disappear for a while, it means I am busy working on improving my skills so that everything can appear professional when it goes into FL.

~Hunter

Hi Hunter

Glad to see you are still with us. Don't see any offense if you don't see your name in the readme file but from now on, the names will be added once jobs done and usable. Gunner and me are tired of people saying "if you need help, count on me", and see these people doing absolutely nothing, or giving no news, so, no "big mouths" anymore.

About models, we would prefer that you focuses on the Corsair shipline for now, even if it seems that you work go forward quickly. Step by step mate LOL.

The Player Base plugin is far from beeing resolved as the code source is open, yes, but it look like the authors wanted it absolutely ununderstandable. there are routines and variables there such as:

'p.personality.EvadeDodgeUse.evade_dodge_corkscrew_roll_flip_direction = true;'

The strange thing is that Gunner don't have found no declarations of them, just these lines which assign them (180 lines like this one). Furthermore, what is the reason to use variables names of such complexity?
And yes, using tractor beam would be more easy to code in my opinion, I don't talk about the item you already now, but about a new "home made" device.
So, once again, don't worry about this for now, we are far from the finnish line

Hi All

The tractor beam idea is clearly a good one and it looks like a prefered one. Remember that the move is within system only as the whole thing would be to large for JG and JH.
The Personality viariables in the code remain a mystery for now in that they are interesting in that such a huge, long viariable name uses words like corksrew which no one yet has heard of in FL. We shall see but for now I do not believe it imposes on our objectives.

Well, I'll work on the wireframes of the Corsair models for shiplines and bases, then aswell as work on the Tug Boat model.

~Hunter

Okay, but please Hunter, stay on the main subject. If you want to talk about models, you got an area for this.

btw, any news from NoVa? He was supposed to help us...

Referring to the first post, problem #4 & #5 *RESOLVED*