Auxiliary Reactors Change

[Kingofanime]

Auxiliary Reactors should default to an active energy generating state. When clicked on the hotbar, they should stop generating power for 60 seconds before automatically turning back on. During these 60 seconds all explosions will be canceled and deactivated.

Remove the power storing and dumping feature from the auxiliary reactor block. Make the auxiliary power storing and dumping into their own blocks. That would be a total of 3 blocks...

Aux Reactor Block- Generates constant power (for big ships)
Battery Storage Block - Stores backup power (for any ship size) and can be activated on the hotbar
Battery Recharger Block - Recharges backup power storage (for any ship size)

Under this new setup you can have a small weak power dump that you use more frequently or a massive power dump that takes a long time to recharge. The player gets to decide with how they build their ship. In fact, the player could even customize the backup power storage to match the size of their regular power storage, which could also match up to the size of their alpha weapon strike.


Problem 1: Everyone turns them on and leaves them on, why would I turn them off?
Solution 1: Make them default to an energy generating "on" state.

Problem 2: Every minute of every day of the rest of Starmade's life there will be new users on the forums asking why auxiliary reactors have power storage if they can always be left on.
Solution 2: Remove the Auxiliary power storing and dumping feature from aux reactors.


That is my suggested rework for auxiliary power blocks.

 

[Madman198237]

Generally a good plan. Perhaps instead make it so that, when hit in a reactor, you have two options: Suffer the explosions (Which need to be less absolutely-ship-crippling) or shut the reactor off---and the reactor stays off until the ship is rebooted.

 

[Kingofanime]

They also need a female computer voice that says "Reactor online" and "Reactor shutting down"(with background siren noises).

Generally a good plan. Perhaps instead make it so that, when hit in a reactor, you have two options: Suffer the explosions (Which need to be less absolutely-ship-crippling) or shut the reactor off---and the reactor stays off until the ship is rebooted.

A ship reboot would also work, but the auxiliary reactor hotbar icon would need to darken or grey out or something, so you have some kind of visual feedback telling you that it is off.

Also, since auxiliary reactors came out, I have learned that I really dislike typing the word auxiliary.

 

[Lecic]

I like the idea of being able to shut your reactors off to cut off the explosions. I guess I could even support having it be on by default, since it'd make AI able to use them.

But I do NOT support having a limited off time and getting rid of dump storage. The dump storage is a great tool for ships to quickly refill their tanks after an alpha strike at the start of a battle. I don't see why you would need to get rid of this in the process of allowing reactors to be turned off to halt the explosions.

 

[NeonSturm]

I don't like this.
Aux power should be useful outside fights too. Your suggestion could be a secondary function if arrays ever get a secondary function (from a slave's state?)

Also, since auxiliary reactors came out, I have learned that I really dislike typing the word auxiliary.

Just type "aux power"
[doublepost=1474114533,1474114408][/doublepost]

I like the idea of being able to shut your reactors off to cut off the explosions. I guess I could even support having it be on by default, since it'd make AI able to use them.

But I do NOT support having a limited off time and getting rid of dump storage. The dump storage is a great tool for ships to quickly refill their tanks after an alpha strike at the start of a battle. I don't see why you would need to get rid of this in the process of allowing reactors to be turned off to halt the explosions.

You could call aux reactors "battery reactors".
I would really like more separation between aux and batteries (battery charger and batteries themselves) like shields got separated into cap and recharge.

 

[Madman198237]

I don't like this.
Aux power should be useful outside fights too. Your suggestion could be a secondary function if arrays ever get a secondary function (from a slave's state?)

Just type "aux power"
[doublepost=1474114533,1474114408][/doublepost]
You could call aux reactors "battery reactors".
I would really like more separation between aux and batteries (battery charger and batteries themselves) like shields got separated into cap and recharge.

Why would this prevent auxiliaries from being useful outside fights?

 

[Groovrider]

From what I understand, the on/off feature is there for developing features sometime in the future. Better to have it in now than later.

 

[Lukwan]

To save on maintenance costs and time spent typing my next ship will be Ox-powered.

 

[Madman198237]

But then you gotta pay somebody to dispose of the manure. Even droids won't do that for free.

 

[Kingofanime]

I don't like this.
Aux power should be useful outside fights too. Your suggestion could be a secondary function if arrays ever get a secondary function (from a slave's state?)

I don't quite get what your saying. Because if they're always turned on, they're always being useful making power. Not to mention that if you're not in a fight, you have all the time in the world to let your power recharge anyways.

You could call aux reactors "battery reactors".
I would really like more separation between aux and batteries (battery charger and batteries themselves) like shields got separated into cap and recharge.

I had originally thought of suggesting that the power dumping feature got separated into it's own block and slightly buffed. I still think it would be a cool block block to play with. And I wouldn't mind it existing. But I decided against it because adding more power storage blocks to your ship or adding some power-dumping-only blocks feel like they accomplish the same thing. But your idea of separating the aux power storage and recharge sounds interesting. And would have a fun level of customization.

This is how I interpret your idea...
Aux Reactor Block- Generates constant power (for big ships)
Battery Storage Block - Stores backup power (for any ship size)
Battery Recharger Block - Recharges backup power storage (for any ship size)

This would be cool too.

As far as all these features being on one block... I feel like the power storing and dumping feature becomes only useful on a narrow band of ship sizes. The ship must be big enough to use aux reactors but small enough to use it's thrusters with normal energy reactors. If the ship is too big, you will never turn them off, if the ship is too small you don't use aux reactors, if the ship is a narrow middle-ground you get to use all the functions of the current aux power block and enjoy them.



...I have added to my original post idea...

 

[NeonSturm]

Yes, but there is a difference between caps and batts.

Capacitors are your working energy for weapons and such, but have a lower capacity.
Batteries could store 5x as much power but need 20 seconds to charge and 10 seconds to deplete and aren't directly accessible by thrust or weapons. (Numbers are Examples!)​

Aux do not really fulfil all needs, for example you cannot make an array of variable size but are bound to an optimal size.
Not a far away possibility would be:

Aux → Battery → Capacitor → Guns
​

Has anyone tested the interaction with EMP?
I think Aux are a good counter to EMP+Stop (activate and use push, continue)​

 

[Kingofanime]

In a situation with dedicated backup power storing and recharging blocks.... I have contemplated the idea of the ratio of recharger to storage blocks affecting the duration of the power dump. But I was never too sure of the idea?...

Example...
1 battery recharger and 10 battery storage = backup power storage empties in 30 seconds
10 battery recharger and 1 battery storage = backup power storage empties in 1 second

Quantity of recharger would affect recharge rate.
Quantity of storage blocks would affect storage amount
Ratio of the two to each other would affect e/s dump rate.