Repair & Docking Variances

posted on October 25th, 2009, 9:51 pm

Okay, I was hoping that something like this can be implemented. There is the property where if you were to define damage, there is also ship-specific damages defined after the refering of a specific odf of a ship. I was wondering if something similar can be used. Because the one thing that I hate is when the ship is to big to logically fit in the dock, or when there is this huge space between the repair dock and this tiny ship. So I would like to implement multiple things.

Part 1: Hardpoint varience

If you had a mining facility, one docking area was in the shape of a narrow square, the other was shaped as a short and wide rectangle. You have your various freighters, some are short and wide, others are longer and narrow. Or take the insance of a large repair yard made to repair your bigger ships without their nacelles or wings going through its hull, and a little scout ship goes there... all of that WASTED SPACE! So I come to the idea of there being a hardpoint variance. Where you can assign certain ships to specific docking or repair points better suited for a vessel of their geometry. This will not only improve the game's appearence, but also help with dynamics because this means you could have multiple ships that are assigned to different repair areas to dock and repair simultanously. Or if there were freighters assigned differing docking areas, they can both be delivering their cargo at the same time. This can help improve gameplay and strategy because you are talking about more precise micromanaging, more factors to numerate with even the simpler things such as where to drop your ore. Of course it is minor to where some may be unaffected, but little things like this can improve things greatly.

Part 2: Docking Patterns

Now, this one I do not expect to arrive as quickly... but there can be some meaning to this. First of all, if you were to be delivering some cargo to a trade facility (just for example... may not happen) the sterile slide-in and slide-out thing can seem, well, out-dated. So, there can be docking patterns that is defined by the specific repair point in combination of if it is repair or ore delivery type. So lets look back at the situation, instead of being all sliders, we can do it to where a freighter will come in below the docking arm, and raise slightly to simulate it actually docking. And then when the deed is finished, it drops from the arm and flies out.

But there can also be other ways, a freighter can dock in "face-first" at a specific docking point, then when finished it backs out. Kinda like in DS9 when the Defiant departs from DS9. This of course would require some more mathematics, but none the less quite possible.

Also there is those little scout ships, they can dock on starbases, land on platforms to repair, and fly off. So, the fighter would basically fly in using a progrtammed flight pattern, then lower on the landing pad to be repaired. As soon as things are done, it elevates off the platform and flies off to continue its mission.

Part 3: Building ships too...

This can be applied also to ship construction, maybe easier since it is single directional, none the less this sort of thing can be applied to construction as well.

posted on October 25th, 2009, 9:54 pm

Some pretty nice ideas

I hope they are implementable, as when I first got involved in FO, I always wondered why undocking or repairing didn't involve some extensible/retractable devices

posted on October 26th, 2009, 2:43 am

Im not sure about the multiple docking points, as this may complicate balancing, and lets face it, making every shipyard capable of accomodating a captured tavara may simply be too much to ask. 

But the moving parts dom mentioned was already done in the original A2.  Look at both of the klingon yards.  The ships would fly up next to the yard (not inside it) and a claw like assembly would reach out toward the ship (supposed to look like it was grabbing it I think, but it didnt work too well on small ships), then it would release before the ship would leave. 

I kinda wondered why the fleetops team got rid of that little gizmo, but the mod is so great anyway, I never complained about it. 

posted on October 26th, 2009, 5:02 pm

Ah I must have miss-read that--multiple docking points would be kind of overpowered for the current factions I have to say

posted on October 26th, 2009, 5:21 pm

  Look at both of the klingon yards.  The ships would fly up next to the yard (not inside it) and a claw like assembly would reach out toward the ship (supposed to look like it was grabbing it I think, but it didnt work too well on small ships), then it would release before the ship would leave. 

i remember that,  that WAS awesome 

but of course it would release BEFORE the ship would leave.  gota disengage docking clamps before you cam split.  though i seem to recall they would be heading out b4 the arms were fully retracted.

why cant we bring that back...    in the form of the repair yard from the Enterprise episode Dead Stop, i keep cryin about 

posted on October 26th, 2009, 6:31 pm

Ah I must have miss-read that--multiple docking points would be kind of overpowered for the current factions I have to say

Well, how about if each time an additional ship were to dock, the resource rate would be split between them? And for each ship that goes to the same repair yard for repairs would also split the repair rate with everyone else. This can easily balance things out because stations cannot multiply their efficiency. Though they can indeed break it up amongst the various ships.

posted on October 26th, 2009, 9:59 pm

Well, how about if each time an additional ship were to dock, the resource rate would be split between them? And for each ship that goes to the same repair yard for repairs would also split the repair rate with everyone else. This can easily balance things out because stations cannot multiply their efficiency. Though they can indeed break it up amongst the various ships.

Yeah that could work, but to be honest I don't think the engine has the capabilities to handle that kind of programming. Though that is just my opinion...