Planet Improvements
I'd love to see two surfaces on each planet, one above and one below, each with their own gravity pulling inward. One of the problems I see with planets right now is that anyone can just fly on the underside and get to the valuable resources without having to break soil on the surface, not to mention how easy it is without being affected by gravity (which holding shift to stay still shouldn't completely negate the way it does. I also think planet's gravity should extend quite a bit further, and larger ships should have a harder time dealing with it, creating interesting scenarios where players will deploy smaller ships to investigate a planet by necessity, instead of just crashing in with their Titans.
Specialized Salvaging Beams
First I'd like to say that I think savlaging is much too easy to do, and I think this has to do with the amount of power it requires. That being said, I think another great addition to the mechanic of salvaging would be specialized beams for different types of materials. For example, you may have a cheap one for organic materials (plants, dirt, grass, etc...). The next tier up would be mineral for rocks and ores of course. This tier would also include a Liquid Salvager (see Liquids, next paragraph). I'd put the Gas Salvager here possibly, or with the following (see Gas, fourth paragraph): Finally, the most expensive and power consuming should be Ship Salvager Beam. This would be used for all "manufactured" materials, as well as items in space that may have been dropped out of a chest or as loot for killing an NPC. With this new diversity along with varied and higher power consumption requirements, I think salvaging would become much more balanced and specialized.
Liquids
Of course there must be some liquid out there in the universe on an eventual update, but possibly also hidden in the ground (literally in the dirt) of certain planets. This harvester would deal with that, and introduce a new item type to the game in the process. The liquid wouldn't even need to flow aside from maybe an animation at first, but having this as a crafting material or decroation will be nice when it comes.
Gas
Most planets have atmospheres of some degree, and this Salvager would be responsible for gathering it, as well as pockets of gas left behind in the trails of stars, or solar flares, or maybe even (introduce...) gas giants; huge planets made entirely of gas that might also serve to conceal a location of a pirate base, or your own faction home by dampening the sensors of passing ships. I would have this resource be abundant, but put a very high cost on the Gas Salvaging Beams, with possibly a lower than average power consumption rate and gathering speed per block.
Block Integrity
This would represent the wear and tear on a block because of usage, impacts, multiple repairs, or just plain old age. This statistic of a block would come in handy in numerous ways. Salvager beams, guns, and hull plating would eventually wear out after salvaging a kiloton of gas, firing 100k plasma bullets, or being repaired a dozen times. Furthermore, plants could have a shelf life, and lights could eventually go out.
I hope everyone digs these ideas, I feel like I've given good descriptions of each and good reasons as well. Looking forward to getting your feedback.
I'd love to see two surfaces on each planet, one above and one below, each with their own gravity pulling inward. One of the problems I see with planets right now is that anyone can just fly on the underside and get to the valuable resources without having to break soil on the surface, not to mention how easy it is without being affected by gravity (which holding shift to stay still shouldn't completely negate the way it does. I also think planet's gravity should extend quite a bit further, and larger ships should have a harder time dealing with it, creating interesting scenarios where players will deploy smaller ships to investigate a planet by necessity, instead of just crashing in with their Titans.
Specialized Salvaging Beams
First I'd like to say that I think savlaging is much too easy to do, and I think this has to do with the amount of power it requires. That being said, I think another great addition to the mechanic of salvaging would be specialized beams for different types of materials. For example, you may have a cheap one for organic materials (plants, dirt, grass, etc...). The next tier up would be mineral for rocks and ores of course. This tier would also include a Liquid Salvager (see Liquids, next paragraph). I'd put the Gas Salvager here possibly, or with the following (see Gas, fourth paragraph): Finally, the most expensive and power consuming should be Ship Salvager Beam. This would be used for all "manufactured" materials, as well as items in space that may have been dropped out of a chest or as loot for killing an NPC. With this new diversity along with varied and higher power consumption requirements, I think salvaging would become much more balanced and specialized.
Liquids
Of course there must be some liquid out there in the universe on an eventual update, but possibly also hidden in the ground (literally in the dirt) of certain planets. This harvester would deal with that, and introduce a new item type to the game in the process. The liquid wouldn't even need to flow aside from maybe an animation at first, but having this as a crafting material or decroation will be nice when it comes.
Gas
Most planets have atmospheres of some degree, and this Salvager would be responsible for gathering it, as well as pockets of gas left behind in the trails of stars, or solar flares, or maybe even (introduce...) gas giants; huge planets made entirely of gas that might also serve to conceal a location of a pirate base, or your own faction home by dampening the sensors of passing ships. I would have this resource be abundant, but put a very high cost on the Gas Salvaging Beams, with possibly a lower than average power consumption rate and gathering speed per block.
Block Integrity
This would represent the wear and tear on a block because of usage, impacts, multiple repairs, or just plain old age. This statistic of a block would come in handy in numerous ways. Salvager beams, guns, and hull plating would eventually wear out after salvaging a kiloton of gas, firing 100k plasma bullets, or being repaired a dozen times. Furthermore, plants could have a shelf life, and lights could eventually go out.
I hope everyone digs these ideas, I feel like I've given good descriptions of each and good reasons as well. Looking forward to getting your feedback.
