Ships function vs form

[Dogdard]

Yes yes but my OP was trying to make that case that BOTH are possible

@z1967 and @kaelum for getting my point.

@incap it could be considered lazy.... BUT consider this... that typically those that focus on efficiency over looks have figured out the absolute best way to make the most out of a given space i.e. the 5x5x5 power regen challenge... Which in turn can make your good looking ship perform better because then you can learn from that and incorporate it into your builds later on.

 

[SafetyTurtle]

There is no right or wrong way to play the game really...you wanna build a cube ship on a server that allows it? go right ahead, nothing wrong with that...as long as you dont berate people who like to spend time making their ships look good.
Have to remember that starmade is not just a PvP game, it\'s also a game for creativity and both ways are both equally valid.

That said, I prefere form over function...a nice looking fleet is what keeps me in the game personally.

Gotta say though, it does anoy me when I hear people say \"I can\'t make ships look good\"...you can if you try...and building one, realizing that it dosn\'t look good and then give up is not trying...everyone can make good looking ships.

 

[Mortiferum]

In my opinion, it is unlikely for people to stop building war-boxes or battle-cylinders, but with a bit of inovation, you can easily beat the even with a good looking ship.

The easiest way is to build a ship that expand outwards, thus, you can use the centre of the ship for the uglier, battle-cylinder layout, while the visible portion looks better. You can easily do this by seperating the ship into different compartments, I kept my Frontal compartment for battle, it doesnt look good, and it is just power, shields and AMCs merged together. The entire bottom floor is shields, these dont really need to be accessible, so just close it off.

Decorate the ship from the outside and designate areas for decal prior to building the ship helps too. You can keep 2 decks for fighting, 1 for carrying planes and the other for good looking, so you will end up with a ship JUST as good as a battle cylinder.

 

[Nootau]

Also remember that dimentions will not slow your ship down, only mass does, so build with space between the inner works such as access tunnels or crawl spaces between layers. This will allow better shapes for the hull while the inside is lined and layered for efficency.

 

[Morhe]

Interior space tends to actually be more harm than help for an aesthetic build that is trying to be combat effective as well. Leaving empty space inside a ship with the same mass increases its profile, making it an easier target, without adding anything to the ship\'s combat capabilities other than slightly bigger box dimensions for energy regeneration. Past 300 mass (where your turn rate becomes fixed regardless of mass), you\'re better off filling that empty space with more shielding/power storage, and just adding a few more thrusters to maintain the thrust ratio.

Additionally, interior spaces aren\'t surface-culled or backface-culled the way two blocks adjacent to each other are, so having a large ship with many interior air pockets can cause framerate troubles for yourself and nearby players, though that\'s more an issue with the nature of voxel rendering than an actual game mechanic.