Not enough "large" haulers?

[Gunney_Plym]

And thanks to you to Capt H, but save the trousers for when a Minotaur drops in system, it could change your whole day

Take a butchers at the bottom of my Wiki page. Not textured yet but you'll get the idea.

[Eric Walch]

Hmm, I like this idea... So potentially as the "replacement" ship doesn't have to have the same capabilities as the original, you could (for example) shoot the engines off a ship to stop it's flight? **

Yes, but this could be done easier by giving the subent a script on death like:

this.ship.owner.reactToMessage("DO_STOP") and put the line: "DO_STOP" = (performStop); in the ships AI.

[Stromboli]

Maybe there could be a specific "cargo station", or a harbor of sorts--large, spindly frameworks that larger ships can dock to, and where smaller ships can buy random goods at variable prices.

Also, I'd be willing to design some super-ships.

[Eric Walch]

Maybe there could be a specific "cargo station", or a harbor of sorts--large, spindly frameworks that larger ships can dock to, and where smaller ships can buy random goods at variable prices....

The GRS station of Svengali has two external docking bays. But I have never seen a change to do something as docking with it. It just will lead to collisions. Maybe when you can set destination coordinates by script, you can direct a ship to a very specific location.

[Svengali]

The GRS station of Svengali has two external docking bays. But I have never seen a change to do something as docking with it. It just will lead to collisions. Maybe when you can set destination coordinates by script, you can direct a ship to a very specific location.

Eric is right. When creating the BuoyRepair.oxp we have thought about some workdrones flying around the station, building new buoys and carrying them to a fixed place where the buoys can be attached to the transport-ships (Armadillos). But it was impossible because of the collision detection of the very large station. You can fly into the workbenches, but it is risky. I've died a lot of times while testing the station. Maybe some day we'll try it again, with a better knowledge of modelling, JS and AIs - we'll see.

[Griff]

Maybe when you can set destination coordinates by script, you can direct a ship to a very specific location.

Eric, on page 8 of the Scripting requests thread you've posted this script example to place an object at a specific point in relation to a station:

Code: Select all

this.shipSpawned = function() 
{ 
    system.legacy_addShipsAtPrecisely("my-buoy", 1, "abs", this.ship.position.add(this.ship.heading.multiply(9000))) 
} 

could you maybe use this code to place a series of waypoint marker buoys for the ships to follow as you guide them around the station by using some sort of AI script, or is it possible to only place objects along the heading (Z) axis of another ship?

[Eric Walch]

could you maybe use this code to place a series of waypoint marker buoys for the ships to follow as you guide them around the station by using some sort of AI script, or is it possible to only place objects along the heading (Z) axis of another ship?

Yes, that is possible. I can place an object and set player target to that object. In Ai I than can set target to destination. For docking I would have to fly through the markers and in that process I will push them from their exact location. Therefore I would like to set a destination point directly without having to place an object first.

EDIT: Pushing a marker from its point is no problem as the old coordinates are fixed at that moment. Placing one marker in front of the dock and one at the end would make it possible. At least will I give it a try to guide a ship in between the GSR external docks.

[Eric Walch]

Placing one marker in front of the dock and one at the end would make it possible. At least will I give it a try to guide a ship in between the GSR external docks.

Hello Griff,

It is working, ships approach the station, select one of the free docks, or are put on hold until one docking station is free again. A lot of work, but it works at last. Not yet flawless, but that will be before the next release. The station just becomes a joy to fly around and watch all the activities.

[pagroove]

Wow Eric That is so great. I also thought and wrote in other forums that I also would see a mega Cruiseship that docks with a hub. Passengers transfer at the hub on shuttles that either dock with the main station or fly to the surface.

Keep up the good work!

[pagroove]

Made a hauler idea: The Mammooth class in Google Sketchup free version. Don't know how to export this to Wings. I've read somewhere that there is a convertor to Blender. Then from Blender it can be converted further.
But looks like a lot of work. However this is just to get the creative juices flowing

[Dr Beeb]

Maybe there could be a specific "cargo station", or a harbor of sorts--large, spindly frameworks that larger ships can dock to, and where smaller ships can buy random goods at variable prices.

Also, I'd be willing to design some super-ships.

I like this idea, and Thargoid earlier made comments that more or less agree with my point of view. If the cargo transfers occur near the main space station aegis that is fine. But how about the idea that when a large ship arrives in orbit, near the main space station or not, it throws out a Rendez-vouz nav-style beacon/anchor (that shows up as a triangle with the letter D or A or something on the advanced space compass) so that 'private contractors' know that a ship has arrived/where it is and scoot over them to snoop, make some money. And these large ships don't need their own shuttle craft - instead a fleet takes off from the main space station? Rather than scooping up cargo cannisters and trying to keep track of the real owners when you try to sell them at the main space station, instead your job is to shunt/tow some big pallet in - your docking computers don't work - and the pallet could be destroyed if you do a bad job bringing it in?

[pagroove]

It would be nice if anyone is going to make some large haulers.

[Thargoid]

This is still floating around in the back of my mind, along with my other planned OXP (shooting gallery), and of course my "first" OXP which I still haven't finished (having been detoured by 9 or 10 other ones ) TCAT. My thoughts are a large hauler, plus a revision of the AI for the main station to make it interact with it once it arrives (shuttles etc).

The harbour idea is a nice one, but I know Eric is working on something similar with one of his projects so no need to duplicate work I think.

But unfortunately I'm off to Japan on Wednesday for 10 days, so I doubt I'll get much of anything done for a fortnight...

[pagroove]

aving been detoured by 9 or 10 other ones Embarassed ) TCA

Lol

But unfortunately I'm off to Japan on Wednesday for 10 days, so I doubt I'll get much of anything done for a fortnight...

Well I wish I could go there for my work. As it is now a boring office job.
Tokyo is on my city-wishlist

[Dr Beeb]

Made a hauler idea: The Mammooth class in Google Sketchup free version. Don't know how to export this to Wings. I've read somewhere that there is a convertor to Blender. Then from Blender it can be converted further.
But looks like a lot of work. However this is just to get the creative juices flowing

Ditto here, I wondered about realistic sized cargo pods, so below is a 10 tonne (more precisely 8.9 if I do a strict volume scaling from the 1 tonne cannister) cannister [the dark blue one] that is ten-sided. Tessellation with pentagons is not easy Ignoring Penrose tiling, the only other scheme that 'nearly' works is referred to as '5,20,4' ie 20-sided surrounded by pentagons and squares, so I made that one [lime green] x5 taller than the regular cannister and it is ~ 100 tonne capacity.

The other bits of 'lego' scattered on the floor of my docking bay are various ideas for arranging the pieces, trying to create ideas for the cross-section profile of a cargo carrier which has minimal infrastructure with pods mounted around a central narrow core.