Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Summary
Another grab-bag day, but a fun one nonetheless.
If I had a focus today, I guess I'd have to say it was stations. I spent a while implementing the math for radially-symmetric objects (intending to use it for radial stations). I've now got a general-purpose function that can take any scalar field and use it to produce a radially-symmetric field. The math for it was trickier than I initially expected, but it was worth getting it right: the effect looks fantastic. The interesting thing is that it takes an "angle" factor, which controls the angular size of the piece that is repeated. In the limit as the angle factor goes to zero, the field essentially becomes a "solid of revolution" - a perfectly-rounded shape. Anyway, I've used this to make some quick-and-dirty stations (still very ugly).
I'm also trying to finalize the architecture for stations and how they're going to work logistically. After thinking long and hard about it today, I'm pretty confident about a few things: first, stations will be extensible, meaning you can order new modules and attach them to your existing station. Modules will contribute more hardpoints, more storage space, more docking ports, etc., depending of course on the type of module. Second, modules will not be individually-destructible. This was really the key question, and I've decided that the (arguable) benefits just aren't worth the extra code and gameplay complexity. The problem with modularly-destructible stations is that you introduce this very strange type of object to the game - an object which is subject to being splintered into shards at any moment. On the one hand, you want to treat your station like a single entity: see
all the cargo, access
all the hardpoints, etc. On the other hand, when a module is destroyed, which part of the cargo is lost?
Now, just because stations aren't modularly-destructible
doesn't mean that we've taken away all strategic gameplay! Hardpoints, as always,
are fully destructible. So the weapons can be taken out. More importantly, things like power generators, sensors, and construction modules are all hardpoints as well! Up until now, they've been "invisible" hardpoints (hence, not destructible). But we can certainly change that. And I think we should, at least for stations. Having, for example, the power generators or sensor array exposed would certainly increase the strategic gameplay around station sieges. Bring down their power grid. Blind them to incoming forces. Maybe just cripple their production by hitting the construction modules. IMO, that's where all of the interesting gameplay is. If we take all of the hardpoint functionality and make it destructible, having actual modules be destroyed seems superfluous. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong about that
And, finally, I managed to get the last insight that I need to finish the BIH tree building algorithm today, so I started doing so and, with luck, will have it done tonight. I'm interested to see how it works
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You can visit devtime.ltheory.com for more detailed information on today's work. ]