Anyone Thinking about a Hard Scifi Mod?

[DominusNovus]

Pretty much what it says on the tin. There's been some low level buzz through development about adapting the game to hard scifi rules. Curious if anyone with any skill is looking into this now that the game has been released.

The answer's probably 'no' since this is the release week, but I figured I'd get the conversation started.

 

[Whitecold]

I am definitely thinking of some harder sci fi, but so far I can't figure out how to add new resources, and how to remove or modify existing buildings and techs. (Subsurface heater, atomic accumulator, Plutonium Synthesis, artificial sun... )
I am not the one who compiles spreadsheets on different ratios, but I'd like to make it at least roughly compliant with the laws of basic physics

 

[Darkstar616]

I'd like to make many things but the mod tools offer very little information on the nitty gritty. I'm at the point of giving up on modding altogether since you can't even have add any new nationalities which makes detailed sponsor mods impossible.

 

[Jammi]

I'll work on that if I get the decrypted lua files. Then all should be possible. I was thinking of many resource based stuff. I'm a big fan of many goods, resources and production lines.

 

[Whitecold]

Can anyone from the dev team chime in if/how one can add new resources/new grids?
Or alternatively if anyone has managed to accomplish this in a mod already as an example.

 

[dramamoose]

Hoping that we will get access to the full LUA files soon. I'd be happy to work with somebody on a hard scifi mod.

 

[DominusNovus]

Just to get the conversation started:

My gut instinct is that vanilla’s difficulty curve is wildly off from what it should be. Insofar that resource production is far easier than it should be (food is stupidly plentiful, and that should be incredibly difficult), but a variety of unscientific challenges are incorporated (pretty much all the hazards).

 

[Whitecold]

Just to get the conversation started:

My gut instinct is that vanilla’s difficulty curve is wildly off from what it should be. Insofar that resource production is far easier than it should be (food is stupidly plentiful, and that should be incredibly difficult), but a variety of unscientific challenges are incorporated (pretty much all the hazards).

Yeah. I have no idea how a subsurface heater is supposed to work, and why one would go about it that way. I'd like to see a heating system, where you mostly need to heat domes, which can be done using electricity, solar collectors, or waste heat. (Factories) Heat can then be stored underground to smooth out day-night cycles.
If we can add another resource grid, this should be fairly straight forward to mod in.

As for Oxygen/Water, I'd like to introduce waste water as its own grid, which is then recycled into water by a dedicated plant. The tricky bit here would be to ensure no water reduction tech somehow produces waste water out of thin air. So the only new water/oxygen you need is what you turn into fuel or loose through leaks.

 

[dramamoose]

Just to get the conversation started:

My gut instinct is that vanilla’s difficulty curve is wildly off from what it should be. Insofar that resource production is far easier than it should be (food is stupidly plentiful, and that should be incredibly difficult), but a variety of unscientific challenges are incorporated (pretty much all the hazards).

I agree. I also think that human habitation happens WAY too early in the game.

Yeah. I have no idea how a subsurface heater is supposed to work, and why one would go about it that way. I'd like to see a heating system, where you mostly need to heat domes, which can be done using electricity, solar collectors, or waste heat. (Factories) Heat can then be stored underground to smooth out day-night cycles.
If we can add another resource grid, this should be fairly straight forward to mod in.

As for Oxygen/Water, I'd like to introduce waste water as its own grid, which is then recycled into water by a dedicated plant. The tricky bit here would be to ensure no water reduction tech somehow produces waste water out of thin air. So the only new water/oxygen you need is what you turn into fuel or loose through leaks.

I like that idea. Heaters should be done purely internally. Maybe it's an add on you can build to the item. Water towers, for example. Average lows at Gale Crater are -69 C. Compare this to the record low (at Gale Crater) being -127. Yes, you'd need additional heating during particularly cold times, but not relatively that much more than you would on an average night.

Of course, we would expect all of this to be done underground for the most part, liley with water being over the human habitations.

From a graphical perspective, I wonder if the domes are worth keeping.

 

[DominusNovus]

Domes look cool, but are horribly impractical in most cases. Habitation areas should be subterranean. Also, vanilla needs a proper geodesic dome skin.

Domes should be an end-game thing, mainly for something to make the colonists happy. They do have a place in hard scifi, but far more limited than in vanilla.

That said, doming off canyons would cool from a hard sci fi perspective ( not likely possible woth the game though).

 

[Whitecold]

I agree. I also think that human habitation happens WAY too early in the game.

Honestly, I feel like the humans are too optional right now. What I'd like to introduce is a higher level of maintenance that requires humans to fix it. We are pretty good by now at building automated factories. We are way behind on the repair systems, there a trained mechanic is your best guess still.

 

[DominusNovus]

Also, unless you're playing with the harder sponsors, its far too easy to fix your problems by just calling in a rocket from Earth.

 

[Tyrberg]

Are you sure?

I was just searching for such files.
Thought it had been an relatively easy start to ad name-lists for a new nationality.
Was hoping for a list where you could associate "Sweden" with 50 male and 50 female firstname, and adding 100 lastnames. Then make it possible to randomly combine them.

Had been a great thing to do - and certainly something they must ad. I won´t pay extra for namelists - that´s a typical thing that I feel that mods should be able to provide.

 

[UncleGamer]

Domes look cool, but are horribly impractical in most cases. Habitation areas should be subterranean.

I agree and disagree, early game the habitats would be above ground and similar to what we saw on the Martian. Underground housing would be difficult at best. If it was done it would be best at say the base of a cliff so you do not need to dig down, just in.

Also we need to look at the travel time from Earth to Mars. Even the best research are saying a trip to Mars or back to Earth should take at least in the neighborhood of 38 SOLs. The current technology however is looking at closer to 144 SOLs.

 

[Whitecold]

I think some playing loose with time compression is necessary if you still want children growing up. 30000 sol for a lifespan is just way too long to simulate. Right now you can have your dome ready by sol 10. Waiting another 134 sol until your colonists arrive is also boring.
For longer travel times what is also needed is a decent graph of your resources. You need to be able to know your consumption to plan ahead for calling in rockets with your supplies.

 

[UncleGamer]

There is always going to be a trade off between time and fun game play. I think a more realistic time model works and as you said better graphs so you can judge expected resource timing and then allow time acceleration for the long boring periods.

 

[DominusNovus]

I agree and disagree, early game the habitats would be above ground and similar to what we saw on the Martian. Underground housing would be difficult at best. If it was done it would be best at say the base of a cliff so you do not need to dig down, just in.

Also we need to look at the travel time from Earth to Mars. Even the best research are saying a trip to Mars or back to Earth should take at least in the neighborhood of 38 SOLs. The current technology however is looking at closer to 144 SOLs.

I would expect something along the lines of either partially buried structures, or building in lava tubes and other such caves. Digging is not that hard, particularly in lower gravity, anyway.

 

[ᛒᛖᚱᛋᛖᚱᚲ]

The base game has a ways to go before this is tenable, methinks. Once the game gets ironed out and expanded on once or twice, there will be an abundance of opportunities for a gritty, Hard Sci-Fi setting similar to The Expanse.