Thruster Rebalancing and Capital Ship Docking

[Winterhome]

For the sake of realism and multi-person gameplay, a small ship shouldn't be able to go as fast as a massive one.

"But sir, smaller ships have less weight to push around!"
Yes, but there's no air resistance and the thrusters are everything. It's not size, shape, etc. that matter - it's the potential change in velocity.

The potential change in velocity is greatest with larger thrusters, which are typically driving larger ships.


I recommend implementing a mechanic by which every few hundred thruster blocks added to a ship, the maximum *FORWARD* velocity is increased by 1 point, alongside reducing acceleration values for ships based on mass.

A ship that's all engine and no gun (or external charge to turrets) might be able to maneuver just as well as a smaller craft, but that'd lead to not being able to defend itself except by dumping fighters out.

Large ships aren't agile, they're just plain fast. They'll get you from point A to point B in minutes. They just aren't suited to maneuvering and stopping on a dime.

 

[Fum]

This suggestion is silly. Large ships could accelerate faster, but in space the speed you move at is based on how long you can accelerate. If you have 1 thruster working for 60 seconds, you get the same speed (generally speaking) as if you have 2 thrusters working for 30 seconds.

The current speed is fine. We only need some sort of warp drive for faster teleporting and that\'s it.

 

[bonerdagon]

Except that the ratio of thruster size to mass of ship should effect how much velocity you\'re getting, which is what he\'s suggesting.